Quid si nunc cœlum ruat?
November 2, 2012 November 2, 2012 leocookmanLeave a comment
Bond, as I said, is a symbol of decadence. A post war indulgence. A standard on which Great Britain and its once Empire flew its flag high and long. It is little wonder then it was hit so hard by the Economic Crisis. Such bastions of almost licentious displays of money would naturally be hardest hit. As such, Bond lost his studio and all his funding. Something that, no doubt, put the franchise into crisis and certainly made its identity a questionable thing. In retrospect and with the beauty of hindsight, I think this was a good thing. It allowed the film time to fester and ferment in the minds of the filmmakers, and most importantly, in the minds of the public.
If my post a few weeks ago didn't have my cards slammed harder on the table than La Chiffre at a Poker game then I will restate the obvious. I am a big fan of Bond and this one topped my favourites before it was 2/3rds of the way through. It also staked a very bold claim in my top ten, full stop. If you want the pithy, Bond-esque, brief review without spoilers: Go and fucking see it. If you want a more meditative, rambling look at theory and technique that will contain spoilers, please read on.
The reason Skyfall was so successful for me (and I stress the 'For Me' part as I know many people who took quite a violent dislike to this one) is because it is quite a departure from established Bond canon. Sure it ticks every box you want a Bond film to tick: Aston Martin, Walther PPK, Nice suits, Exotic locations, Humorous one liners, Action, Espionage, blah blah blah. If you want a Bond film, it is there. It takes one hell of a sterling leap from its predecessors in its final third however. But we'll get to that…
The two stars of this film were Dench and Deakin. Dame Judi turns in a performance I've seldom seen and certainly not in a mainstream blockbuster. M is a stone hard, unreadable, gun-toting iron woman with an almost pathological protective streak for her country. This edifice, beautifully mirroring the facade of Bond's much fought for 'Queen and Country' slowly crumbles away until they are both literally sitting in their own ruins of centuries ago. Dench's performance is underplayed and un-showy but she steals the whole thing through being given such full screen time. It is really something to watch one of the acting world's truly best being given something meaty and showy and completely owning the whole thing. They would never award oscars for this sort of thing (Thankfully) but Dench, in my mind, just turned in a career high and a performance well above an action movie of this nature.
Roger Deakin is the cinematographer. Skip this paragraph if you ain't a photography/cinema nerd. Skyfall was shot digitally on an Arri ALEXA in ARRIRAW at 4K DCP and it is beeeeeeeeeautiful. Now I personally love both digital and film and think they both serve a purpose, traditionally however, filmmakers have come to use/rely on digital due to the fact it is immediately able to be rendered in the computer for editing and after effects and it is much more responsive to this type of post production. Digital can be better blended than film. Film is an organic, chemical compound and digitising it is a struggle and not always convincing. Skyfall is the first film I have seen use a digital format in a way a film cinematographer uses celluloid. There are two glaring moments of CGI (we're still not there yet): a man takes a looooong fall and a couple of Komodo Dragons. But that is it and for a film of this grandeur, length and spectacle that is impressive. What Deakin gets right is to not over sell the format. He does not use a grain filter most importantly to try to fool us, he keeps everything, crisp, clear and most importantly, DRY. The contrast is never boosted, colours are not over saturated, the dreaded HDR never rears its head, chromakey is not overly relied upon. The establishing shots (particularly of Shanghai and Macau by night) were so eye wideningly joyous that I was in love with the film from then on. I saw this in IMAX and can only recommend the experience. One negative against film at IMAX, unless shot in the enormous and unwieldy IMAX format, is that it can be slightly too dark and fringing can occur. The digital transfer of this film however is the first time I've really felt digital cinematography to be of a similar (still different) standard to film. The artistic merit for both is different but this is the first argument I've seen for a more grand and luxuriant digital cinema. Yet counter intuitively it is because Deakin holds it all back. In short it is kept simple to the point of emaciation. And, THAT ladies and gentlemen, is the key is to the whole riddle of why I love this movie.
The script is lean. I have heard it criticised for its verbose nature where as I would disagree. Deakin builds up to money shots by restraining every other shot. The script does the same. Dialogue is constant, even in action scenes, rattling along and keeping pace but it is when it slows, again like the cinematography, – Bardem's entrance, those establishing shots, descending into the icy lake, the lingering and loving shot of Turner's Fighting Temeraire – that we are fed sumptuous and delicious morsels that feed us a carbohydrate binge for the upcoming adrenalin charge. My favourite scene comes at the end of the second act when the international web of espionage has tightened and Bond is running through London, the Sound FX dim, the score pulses, the shots widen and Dench delivers with, orchestral grandeur, Tennyson's poem Ulysees, drawing the audience so close to the screen you could hear a pin drop. It is this economy yet depth of tone that coats the whole film.
Everything is simplified. Bond has two gadgets, his suits are Alexander McQueen-esque Tom Ford designed slips, only fastening at a single button most times, the coats are simple plain cut, Crockett&Jones shoes with no detail and triple eyelets, rifles not lasers or automatics, the overblown modern architecture of modern MI6 is even deliberately undermined reducing it to a tunnel then to a bureaucrat's pokey office, the cars are un-fussy Range Rovers, Jaguars and only one concession to the old school gaudiness with the DB5 but even that comes with a humorous asterisk. Even the sense of art hoovering up its context that I often speak of is used economically. A Leveson-style inquiry is presented in a very small courtroom. No every sense of the high ceilings, private jets, casinos and five-star hotels is carefully closeted away in favour of a more rich, dense yet economic fare.
It has its negatives. The real clincher for most will be one or both of two things: The 3rd act or its sexism. The latter cannot be ignored and should be addressed.
First and foremost it does not pass the Bechedel test but there is sadly more to it than that. Severine is Skyfall's Bond Girl and is announced as a prostitute with a horrific and abusive past. Whom Bond duly shags in the shower. I've really tried to keep the spoilers to a minimum thus far but don't read on if you haven't seen it. Severine is shot by the evil villain Silva to which Bond makes a dismissive quip. It is admittedly hard to let this one slide. Bond is a throwback, which is not an excuse, but a lot of effort is put in to Bond's background and his true character and motives, something I think is expertly done. However, this does not in any way paint him the hero, quite the opposite in fact. He is pictured as a self-indulgent, cynical, self-loathing, women hating, brute by the end. This does not forgive him and it does not try to endear him to us but it does develop Bond more than any other film and at least makes him more relatable. His nearest applicable character is Indiana Jones who, lest we forget, is a paedophile and a thief. Those aren't jokes about Short Round either, watch Raiders again and pay close attention to Marion and Indiana's conversation in her bar… There are sexist moments in this film that are uncomfortable but the film does at least make a firm effort to point the blame at an old and out of touch Imperialistic agent. Some will not be able to get past this however and I do understand/sympathise.
The finale however, is merely a matter of taste. I personally cannot put in to words how much I utterly fucking loved the final third of this film. Comparisons to Peckinpah's Straw Dogs are justified. The under siege nature of Bond's retreat is poetic to the point elegiac, despite the quips. The pacing of it all is so wonderfully tuned it feels like a gently ramped treadmill. Unfortunately, I am biased in favour of this ending. It is shot in Glencoe, a place I love, and Deakin's photography as soon as they get to Scotland is so utterly beautiful I want to hang it on my fucking wall. Colour is stripped back to an almost non-existent palate which then literally explodes into a single flame of colour that is so beautifully lit it looks like those Turners we were treated to earlier in the film. I honestly wanted to cry it made me so happy and excited. They are in my favourite place, amongst the hills, in a spooky old abandoned house, there's booby traps, gunfights, chases, duels and all majestically shot. Sadly people do not consider this Bond, and they are right. I was fully behind this tonal shift in the same way as I loved Danny Boyle's Sunshine all the more for its similarly off-kilter finale. Others will probably find the down and dirty, horror-movie climax of Skyfall a bit jarring. I utterly fucking LOVED it.
Another Con: I have no idea why they put a model for Topman in the role of Q. Terrible bit of casting for a well written role.
Thomas Newman's score is underwhelming and seems barely present but for 3 moments when the Bond theme kicks in and when he sumptuously reprises the films main title theme.
Comparisons to Dark Knight Rises, Straw Dogs, the Mission Impossible franchise, have all been made but the film it most resembles for me is Jaws. Jaws is a classic and perfect example of the 3 act structure every great story adheres to. Act 1: Set up – Introduce your protagonist and their motives and a mystery to solve. Act 2: The Turn – The villain is revealed along with their motives putting the protagonist either in jeopardy or at odds with them. Act 3: The Stand – Our protagonist confronts the problem and villain and resolves the conflict. Interestingly this is a method for poetry. I know I write poetry so will read it wherever I find something I like but Jaws and Skyfall follow this convention sooooooo doggedly it is hard to ignore and hard not to root for. Hooper, Quint and Brody strike out to sea to face their villain in a mano-a-mano showdown while in Skyfall, Queen Victoria, Daddy Warbucks and the dude from Tomb Raider head into the hills in a Mano-a-mano showdown. I want to cheer the whole way through a last act THIS good.
I think I have made my case as well I can. For some it will not be what they want from a Bond Film but for me there are too many things about this film that seem tailor-made to appeal to me specifically for me to not like it: A subtle but powerhouse performance in the centre stage, images of Turner, that tonal shift, Artistic Cinematography, block colour and simply tailored clothes, Scotland, a 'haunted' house, an epic climax wreathed in flame, poetic allegory, actual poetry, Shanghai, an evocative string-led theme, real darkness in frame, confidence in pacing, soliloquising, the list goes on. All these things on their own would make me love a film but all in one? You had me at Shanghai, James. I could ramble on for paragraphs more and would love to discuss it with anyone who is interested at great length and I am DEFINITELY seeing at IMAX again but for now I'll leave it at that.
James Bond will return but never like this. Eleven out of Ten.
Posted in Canonisation, Nerds Only, ReviewTagged adele, analysis, bond, cinematography, epworth, james bond, judi dench, poetry, review, roger deakin, skyfall, tennyson


Northwood Cricket Club News story
< View all news stories
Northwood Cricket Club's 80 years of scoresheets with over 4000 fixtures are online now!
Happy New Year! Hope you all are doing well.
Since the club started recording scoresheets on the website in 2012, one of the challenges was how to migrate all past scorebooks into the website.
Currently, our website doesn't show a true reflection of performances of past and current Legends of NCC. This deprives the current generation of players to gain inspiration from NCC Legend's past exceptional performances, to show potential new members how much noteworthy history and traditions our club has and to show their daughter/sons/partner how much they have enjoyed a game of cricket in the past.
This challenge of migrating scoresheets still remains due to the amount of time & effort it requires. However, we have managed to do the next best solution to tackle this. We have now scanned all the pre-website score sheets which are in the clubhouse's loft and uploaded it on the website. What this means is that the history of the club is no longer consigned to the murky corners of a cold, dark and hard-to-access attic. Around 80 years of score sheets with over 4000 fixtures are now easily accessible online.
We can assure you that when you go through 1938 to 2000s, it is like binge watching a box-set of never-ending seasons of NCC with multiple storylines spanning across many generations e.g. it ranges from the various styles of scoring from the teenager Jerry Laxton/R Laxton in 70's to the cursive handwriting from Peter Green, to Judith Knowles and Alan Kay's clean and colourful lettering, to the sparkly gel pens of H Lewis to various player's journeys:
Latchman brothers dominated in 70's
Ranjit Latchman has continued to score for over 50 years
The journey of young Daniel Rodgers becoming a prolific batsman from late 80's to early 90's
Dennis Cave's exceptional bowling for almost 2 decades,
How the numerous Knowles brothers played in 90s ,
We still wonder how the grubby but effective batting technique of Keith Watson accumulated so many runs and arguably becoming the highest runs scorer in the club history
How Stephen Hussey dominated the 80's/90's ,
How Steve Dickson always seems to be an underrated player.
How current 1st XI player Stuart Reeve started his journey in 2000s from 3rd XI ( 5th XI in today's standard))
There are many other NCC legend's storylines which you can follow with the likes of Barry Miller, H Green, R Pamplin, C Harrison, Peter Frost, Steve Lewis, Keith Knowles, Richard Mackey, Nigel Hussey, P.K. Merali to name a few.
You will also see the pattern of fixtures played, Clubs that don't exist any more or the fixtures we are still playing, the fact that we have always played Chorleywood in April and also keep an eye on the number of times NCC batted first..
Technical details: Pages are scanned in searchable PDF format, you should be able to search a word in a file, but we haven't made any technological advances yet to decrypt various types of handwriting. If you are lucky, it can sometimes recognise the partial word from handwriting. Printed words are easily searchable . Files are splitted in parts due to file size restriction of the website.
The website link is HERE


More Problems Aboard Carnival Cruise Ships
Published March 15, 2013 at 6:30 AM MDT
Andy Newman
The Carnival Dream docked in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, in December 2010.
For the past month, management at Carnival Cruise Lines has been in a nearly constant state of damage control.
In the past week alone, three of the cruise line's giant floating playgrounds have experienced embarrassing malfunctions that have at least inconvenienced, if not angered, many passengers.
Here's the latest status report: On Saturday, Carnival Elation had to be escorted by tug because of a problem in its steering system. Since Wednesday, Carnival Dream has experienced power interruptions at the island of St. Maarten, stranding more than 4,000 passengers. And now, Carnival Legend is limping home to Tampa at reduced speed because of an issue with one of its propulsion units.
All this, of course, follows by barely a month the so-called " cruise from hell" aboard the Carnival Triumph after an engine room fire left the vessel adrift in the Gulf of Mexico with 4,200 passengers aboard.
Christopher Muller of Boston University's School of Hospitality tells CNN that the latest wave of issues at Carnival appear to be a management problem.
"They are doing something wrong with preventative maintenance," he says. "Carnival has so many working ships that to say the fleet is in distress is maybe a little bit broad, but clearly something is not right."
Carnival has blamed the problems aboard the Carnival Dream, docked in St. Maarten, on a malfunction that occurred in the ship's emergency diesel generator during a routine safety test.
"At no time did the ship lose power, and the ship's propulsion systems and primary power sources were not impacted," Carnival said on its website. "However, for a period of time last night, there were interruptions to the elevators and restroom services. Toilets and elevators are currently working, and have been since about 12:30 a.m."
On Friday, the cruise company announced that 12 commercial planes would take the Carnival Dream's 4,363 passengers back to Orlando — the closest major airport.
The Carnival Legend's problems, though at sea not in port, appear to be more in the way of an inconvenience. One of the ship's two Azipods, a directional propulsion unit, was experiencing an unspecified "technical issue" that has forced the ship to reduce its speed.
Even before the latest problems, questions have been raised about the cruise industry in general and specifically Carnival, the largest line in the industry.
Update at 11 a.m. ET: Carnival Lowers Earnings Forecast:
Carnival's share price is down 2.3 percent and the company says it expects net revenue yields to be flat this year, versus an earlier forecast that they would rise 1 percent to 2 percent, Reuters reports.
The cruise line cites weakness in Europe and pricing promotions. But as the news agency notes: "Carnival, which operates lines including Holland America, Costa and its namesake line, is grappling with a series of recent headline-grabbing mishaps involving its ships that have dented demand for its vacations."
NPR News TravelCruise Ship Triumph
Carnival Apologizes For Triumph Conditions, Cancels 14 Upcoming Cruises
With the Carnival cruise ship Triumph and its 3,143 passengers now being towed to Mobile, Ala., more reports are emerging from passengers on the ship that lost engine power early Sunday. They describe a tent city on the upper deck and continuing problems with the sewage system.
Cruise Ship Disaster Puts Focus On Safety Concerns
Yuki Noguchi
Some of the survivors of last week's shipwreck off the Italian coast described the rescue effort as chaotic and disorganized. A maritime workers union called the disaster a "wake-up call" highlighting long-standing safety concerns — like ships getting too large to evacuate quickly — and lax regulation.
'Cruise From Hell' Was A Mix Of 'Survivor' And 'Lord Of The Flies'
"It was horrible, just horrible" said one passenger, tears welling in her eyes. Tales of hoarding and gross conditions make the five-day experience in the Gulf of Mexico sound like one very unpleasant trip.


ROBBERY WITH VIOLENCE, ASSAULT WITH A WEAPON, ASSAULT, THREATS, RESIST POLICE OFFICER
Cornwall, ON – James Arow, 29, of Cornwall was arrested on March 31st, 2021 and charged with the following:
· Robbery with violence
· Assault with a weapon
· Assault x 2
· Uttering threats x 4
· Resist police officer
It is alleged on March 31st, 2021, the man entered a Pitt Street business and demanded money from an employee, while threatening to kill the employee and others in the business. The man further assaulted three other people in the business, using a salt shaker to assault one of the individuals. Police were contacted and took the man into custody after a brief struggle. He was charged accordingly and held for a bail hearing.
CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
Cornwall, ON – Michael Taillon, 27, of Cornwall was arrested on March 31st, 2021 and charged with cruelty to animals. It is alleged on December 28th, 2020, the man assaulted his dog, resulting in an injury that required medical attention. Police were contacted and an investigation ensued. On March 31st, 2021, the man attended police headquarters to deal with the matter. He was taken into custody, charged accordingly and released to appear in court on June 1st, 2021.
Cornwall, ON – Peter Garlough, 41, of Cornwall was arrested on March 31st, 2021 and charged with two counts of breach of release order. It is alleged on March 23rd, 2021, the man failed to sign in to police and further failed to notify a change of address, despite his conditions. An investigation ensued and on March 31st, 2021, he attended police headquarters to deal with the matter. He was taken into custody, charged accordingly and held for a bail hearing.
FAIL TO ATTEND FOR FINGERPRINTS, FAIL TO ATTEND COURT, BREACH
Cornwall, ON – Joshua Flaro, 21, of Cornwall was arrested on March 31st, 2021 and charged with failing to attend court, failing to attend for fingerprints and breach of probation for failing to keep the peace. It is alleged the man failed to attend court and further failed to attend police headquarters for fingerprints. An investigation ensued and on March 31st, 2021, he was taken into custody, charged accordingly and released to appear in court on June 10th, 2021.


The Idea That Jews Don't Write Fantasy Is A Fantasy
Filed to:Genres
A new essay claiming that Jewish authors don't write fantasy literature has caused a firestorm of criticism online, including an impressive list of Jewish fantasy authors. Is Christianity really embedded in the DNA of the fantasy epic?
Noting that neither C.S. Lewis nor J.R.R. Tolkien was Jewish, Michael Weingrad writes in the Jewish Review Of Books that the masters of the genre weren't alone. Jews, as a rule, don't write fantasy, he claims, and there are no fantasies that are ineluctibly Jewish in the way that Narnia is Christian. He goes on to blame the Holocaust, among other things, and then assert that:
To put it crudely, if Christianity is a fantasy religion, then Judaism is a science fiction religion. If the former is individualistic, magical, and salvationist, the latter is collective, technical, and this-worldly. Judaism's divine drama is connected with a specific people in a specific place within a specific history. Its halakhic core is not, I think, convincingly represented in fantasy allegory. In its rabbinic elaboration, even the messianic idea is shorn of its mythic and apocalyptic potential. Whereas fantasy grows naturally out of Christian soil, Judaism's more adamant separation from myth and magic render classic elements of the fantasy genre undeveloped or suspect in the Jewish imaginative tradition.
Within hours after this essay went up the other day, people were pointing out tons of Jewish fantasy authors that Weingrad had somehow missed. For example, there's Isaac Bashevis Singer, who won the Nobel prize for writing, essentially fantasy. Other fantasy greats include Marge Piercy, Michael Chabon, Peter Beagle, Charles Stross, Esther Friesner and Neil Gaiman.
And Spencer Ackerman asserts that "Jewish Narnia is called Marvel Comics," and points to Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Superman creators Siegel and Schuster as the creators of epic stories whose Jewish roots permeate their work. Commenting on Ackerman's blog post, Chabon writes:
I have not read Mr. Weingrad's piece but I agree with others that the defintion of so-called High Fantasy is necessarily very narrow and excludes huge areas of fantasy fiction written by Jews and Gentiles alike. But I think it's kind of an interesting question, as long as we aren't lamenting the absence or somehow holding it against Jewish literature.
And I'd stack Darkseid against Sauron any day.
I would also put in a good word for the work of the great Avram Davidson and a wonderful contemporary writer, Lisa Goldstein.
In fact, though, as Ross Douthat points out in the New York Times, the larger question still stands — is there a fantasy epic whose Judaism is as undeniable as Narnia's Christianity?


MINIONS AND MISS WORLD MALTA!
Minions director Kyle Balda, of Maltese descent, has accepted Miss World Malta's request to collaborate in the Miss World Charity Auction Gala in Sanya, China.
On finding out that Kyle Balda's mother was from Marsa, Katrina Pavia decided to contact him and recruit his help. He has very generously agreed to donate a personally signed Minion! Ms Pavia has said that she is extremely happy and is sure that this collector's item will fetch a very handsome sum of money in auction.
Miss World isn't just a beauty pageant. It's about the empowerment of women, of personality and of philanthropy. This year, the contestants will be staying at the 7* Beauty Crown Sanya Hotel in China.
The 65th final event will be held at the Beauty Crown Grand Theatre which was purposely built in 2003 for Miss World competitions. Five Miss Worlds have been crowned there so far, and the reigning Miss World, Ms Rolene Strauss, will have the honour of crowning Sanya's 6th Miss World.
During their stay, the contestants will have challenges to work on, including the publication of their Beauty with a Purpose Project and the Multi Media Challenge. The latter is divided into 3 segments and has already started on the 1st November. The contestants have been given a Facebook page and Twitter account to show their skills and their preparations for Miss World.
Since social media in China has a different layout, the contestants will get to know their final segment during their stay in China. One can browse Miss World or install the Miss World app, or contact Katrina on kmpavia@hotmail.com.
For the Charity Auction Gala, each Beauty Queen has to bring a gift from her country to be auctioned, and all the money raised will go towards less privileged children. The more prestigious and valuable the gift, the more money can be raised. Guests from all over the world will be welcome.


A Theory of Evolution for Evolution
How to Disinfect Everything
Symptoms and Testing
Brandon Keim
A new model of evolution's origins traces the possible outlines of a critical and mysterious stage in Earth's infancy, when a few odd chemicals developed into the molecular ancestors of life as we know it. "This was the basis of all life on Earth," said Harvard University evolutionary dynamicist Martin Nowak, "and it's a good […]
A new model of evolution's origins traces the possible outlines of a critical and mysterious stage in Earth's infancy, when a few odd chemicals developed into the molecular ancestors of life as we know it.
"This was the basis of all life on Earth," said Harvard University evolutionary dynamicist Martin Nowak, "and it's a good starting point to ask, how does life begin? How does evolution begin?"
That some molecules crossed a critical threshold from inanimate to animate is widely assumed by evolutionary biologists, but four billion intervening years have erased the details of this passage.
Nowak and fellow Harvard biologist Hisashi Ohtsuki posit a transitional stage: molecules subject to the forces of selection and mutation, incapable of replication -- the final condition necessary for life -- but drawn inexorably towards it.
"Evolutionary dynamics are a universal principle. They can operate with whatever is at hand," said Nowak.
Key to Nowak's model, published yesterday in the Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences, is the basic concept of selection and mutation in the absence of replication. He called this period prelife, and characterized it as a "generative system that can produce information."
"All I need is some chemical system that produces all sorts of chemicals, and some have the property of forming strings," said Nowak. "
In model units of one and zero, Nowak replicated the bonding of simple molecules in the primordial soup.
In this context, mutation occurred at the level of chemical reactions available to the newly-formed strings -- or, in their real-world prelife analogue, in the precursors of RNA, the single-stranded relative of DNA.
Some strings grew faster than others, and were prone to different types of reactions. "Now I can ask which strings are more abundant than others, and this is a form of selection," said Nowak. "This is prelife.
All that's missing is replication."
The replication may have taken a form known as template-directed polymerization, in which molecules attract chemicals that assemble in mirror copies beside them.
"Many DNA-like molecules have this property," said Nowak. "Now I can ask, under what condition can replication emerge?"
That condition remains unknown, but synthetic biologists hope to replicate it in a laboratory.
"The transition between chemistry and biology is extremely murky," said Irene Chen, a Harvard University systems biologist and specialist in early biomolecules. She was not involved in the research.
"This helps an experimentalist like myself narrow in on the interesting questions. It's a clear framework for starting to tackle these problems experimentally," she said.
Prevolutionary dynamics and the origin of evolution [PNAS]
Images: Above, the abundance of various model polymers; below, their development under conditions of replication. Courtesy of Martin Nowak.
Could Life Evolve on the Internet?
Biologists on the Verge of Creating New Form of Life
The Complexity of Evolution
Superorganism as Window Into Complexity and Evolution
Complexity Theory Takes Evolution to Another Level
Microbe May Answer Mystery of Multicellular Life
New Explanation For DNA Ingredient's Emergence From Primordial Soup
German Researchers Create Nano-Scale Basis of ... Life?
WiSci 2.0: Brandon Keim's Twitter stream and Del.icio.us feed; Wired Science on Facebook.
Brandon is a Wired Science reporter and freelance journalist. Based in Brooklyn, New York and Bangor, Maine, he's fascinated with science, culture, history and nature.
TopicscomplexityEvolutionMystery


Full Circle Fiber Adds MTC Engineering
MTC Engineering Continues Along Growth Path with Investment from Full Circle Fiber
Lone Tree, CO – December 9, 2020 – MTC Engineering ("MTC" or the "Company"), a telecommunications engineering and construction management firm, announced that it has been acquired by Full Circle Fiber Partners ("Full Circle"), an affiliate of Mill Point Capital. MTC will continue to operate independently under its new name, MTC Consulting LLC.
MTC's fast-growing platform is focused on outside plant engineering, civil engineering, construction management, construction inspection, land acquisition, optical systems provisioning and business development expertise. Since the Company's founding in 2002, MTC has provided network planning and engineering services in connection with the deployment of fiber optic infrastructure to major telecommunications carriers as well as all levels of government (municipal, state and federal). The Company is headquartered in Lone Tree, Colorado, with additional offices in Florida and Texas.
Mill Point is a middle-market private equity firm focused on control investments in North America. Mill Point employs an Executive Partner model and has extensive experience investing in transactions in the communications and business services sectors. The board of Full Circle includes communications industry veterans such as Wayne H. Davis. Full Circle made its first investment in the communications services space in April 2020, with the acquisition of Knight Broadband, and its second investment in August 2020, with the acquisition of Noble Resources.
Under the ownership of Full Circle, MTC will continue to build upon its strong track record of performance and reliable customer service, while executing on the variety of opportunities in front of the Company today. The combination of MTC with Full Circle's existing construction services capabilities immediately supplements the platform's value proposition and service offerings, while expanding geographical reach and enhancing its ability to serve new and existing customers.
Kevin Manweiler, President of MTC, commented, "I am extremely proud of the foundation our team has built and look forward to the next stage of development for MTC. We are thrilled to be joining the Full Circle platform and are excited about their commitment to our growth going forward."
"Under the leadership of Kevin Manweiler, MTC has established a track record of strong execution in design and engineering services for its telecommunications customers. We look forward to partnering with the entire MTC team to support the extensive growth opportunities in front of the Company as well as the broader Full Circle platform," said Michael Duran, Founder and Managing Partner of Mill Point.
Headquartered in Lone Tree, CO, MTC is a telecommunications engineering and construction management firm focused on outside plant engineering, civil engineering, construction management, construction inspection, land acquisition, optical systems provisioning, switching provisioning and business development expertise. MTC has provided network planning and engineering services in connection with the deployment of fiber optic infrastructure to major telecommunications carriers as well as all levels of government (municipal, state and federal). For more information, please visit www.mtc-llc.com.
Mill Point Capital is a private equity firm targeting control investments in lower-middle market businesses, with a focus on industrial and business services companies in North America. Mill Point's experienced team of investors and Executive Partners seek to enhance the value of portfolio companies by executing transformative strategic initiatives and operational improvements. Mill Point is based in New York, NY. For more information, please visit www.millpoint.com.


HYPER TRENDS
German philosopher Martin Heidegger was completely obsessed with the effects of technology on the human condition at large. He wrote in 1935 "When the farthest corner of the globe has been conquered technologically and can be exploited economically; when any incident you like, in any place you like, at any time you like, becomes accessible as fast as you like; when you can simultaneously "experience" an assassination attempt against a king in France and a symphony concert in Tokyo; when time is nothing but speed, instantaneity, and simultaneity . . . there still looms like a specter over all this uproar the question: what for?—where to?—and what then?" Heidegger, nearly 100 years ago, had a premonition of many of the malcontents of globalization and technology and the senseless emptiness that accompanies an interconnected world.
The pervasive influence of technology, from Heidegger's perspective, led to people forgetting to notice that they are alive, forgetting that all being is connected, and a failure in living an authentic existence. He voiced his concerns about technology and modernity pulling us towards monotonous tasks, overwhelming us with too much information, and killing silence – predicting in 1935 the discontents of 2016 almost perfectly.
His solution to this conundrum lied in exposure to great art, as it is art that helps us remove ourselves from our ego and appreciate the independent existence of other people, ways of living, and objects. Heidegger might have been a visionary, but he did not predict that the technological apparatus would be so all consuming and totalizing that it would fundamentally alter the speed and depth with which we experience and consume art.
In 2016, the acceleration of culture and art is moving at such a pace that is nearly impossible to describe. Everything - companies, artists, human relationships - is being subsumed by the torrid pace modernity operates at. Tinder swipes and vapid Instagram celebrities are becoming our representation of reality, the symbols that guide us through both our Internet and real selves - if such a distinction even still exists. Creativity is now embedded directly into these communication systems, and the pace at which the world operates continues to grow at a dizzying rate.
Fashion– really just a manifestation of the values and currents of culture at large – is no exception to this new pace. Fashion is simultaneously art and culture, which is what makes it such a unique medium. Technology is delivering this medium to the consumer quicker than ever before. The runway to retail timeline is being moved up to instantaneity in some cases, directly engaging with consumers wishes to purchase items representing new trends and the "it" items so often associated with luxury.
Consequently, both broader fashion trends and the specific designers responsible for them are just becoming hyper-trends. They burn intensely for a brief period of time, and then are discarded to make room for the next luminous yet disposable derivative.
Despite many designers' efforts, it is impossible not to be part of the cultural zeitgeist, even if one is firmly against it. Matthew Miller has stated, "Things are consumed far too quickly – this is one of the big killers of subcultures; things don't have a chance to spread progressively and naturally through word of mouth or through magazines. Everyone just gets what's going on straight to their phones, there's no value in it anymore. Things just get consumed and six months later they're in a museum." The speed of fashion has severely limited a genuine, deep engagement with fashion and its references, creating a superficial and transient landscape. This lack of engagement leads to less dialogue and discourse on fashion in general, allowing the pace of fashion itself to act as a constricting force on creativity.
This lack of a real conversation has led the fashion world to draw on nostalgia and an emphasis on the repurposing and repacking of stale trends in place of genuine original design. One has to look no further than ubiquitous logo mania or the constant 90's street wear references that characterize contemporary fashion to see the lack of creativity in the contemporary landscape. Fashion, to many designers and fashion houses, has become nearly an advertising exercise in its totality – not about the clothes, but about selling concepts, status, an imagined self and an invented tradition.
So where do the hyper-trends in fashion leave us? Maks Fus Mickiewicz, senior journalist at trend analyst the Future Laboratory, in a recent article in The Guardian, predicts that for better or worse, fashion companies must democratize their visions and stay away from vertically imposing their aesthetics on the consumer, and he models technology companies and open source software that can be constantly updated and altered as an example of a system of fashion's future. With this, comes a simultaneous wonder and horror of the possibilities entwined with fashion and technology.
Are we ready to accept that there are no creative geniuses who should offer us visions on how to dress? Does the average person, the consumer, really offer the best possible vision? There are no answers to these questions, but what is clear is that Fashion, under the grips of technology, is certainly still in its beta stage. What will last? What will we look back upon with wonder, and what with disgust? One thing is certain, and that is that genuine creativity and vision are finite resources, and they must strive to find a space to exist amongst the mayhem and hyper-trends of the 21st century.
text: Aaron Gray
imagery: Jenny Choi
All images courtesy of the Internet
Yang Li & SAMIZDAT


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No to the Srebrenica Resolution
Appeal of Foreign Intellectuals
уторак, 23. фебруар 2010.
APPEAL TO PRESIDENT BORIS TADIĆ AND THE SERBIAN PARLIAMENT: DO NOT GAMBLE WITH YOUR COUNTRY'S FUTURE! NO TO THE SREBRENICA RESOLUTION.
Dear Mr. President and honorable deputies,
As concerned American and European intellectuals and citizens, we call on you to seriously reconsider the plan to adopt a parliamentary resolution that would treat the Srebrenica massacre of July 1995 as a paradigmatic event of the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina and in doing so to use language that could be interpreted as Serbia's acceptance of responsibility for "genocide."
The execution of Moslem prisoners in July of 1995, after Bosnian Serb forces took over Srebrenica, was a war crime, but it is by no means a paradigmatic event. The informed public in Western countries knows that, at that time, forces attributed to the Republic of Srpska executed in three days approximately as many Moslems as Moslem forces, raiding surrounding Serbian villages out of Srebrenica, had murdered during the preceding three years. There is nothing to set one crime apart from the other, except that its commission was more condensed in time. In a vicious civil war, in which all sides commit crimes, all innocent victims are entitled to compassion but the victims of one ethnic group should have no special moral claim to unique recognition. Putting the suffering of one group on a pedestal necessarily derogates from the right of the other group – in this case Serbian non-combatants in the devastated villages surrounding the enclave of Srebrenica – to an equal measure of sympathy.
More importantly, what really happened in Srebrenica in July of 1995 is an issue that is still not settled, or why it occurred, and who was behind it. The accepted version of events, shaped mainly by war propaganda and hyperbolic media reports, is becoming increasingly obsolete because it is being vigorously questioned and reassessed by critical thinkers in the Western world. Much reliable information on these events is still unavailable and needs to be researched, but without it responsible conclusions on the nature and scope of the Srebrenica massacre cannot be drawn. Both the event's alleged scope and its legal description as "genocide" are intensely in dispute. It would therefore be very unwise for Serbia and its parliament to formally commit themselves to a version of events that is thin on evidence but long on moral and political implications that are extremely detrimental to Serbia and its people.
We are also troubled by the prospect of Serbia and its parliament might accept the thesis that the massacre in Srebrenica, regrettable as it may be, amounts to "genocide." That would unpardonably diminish genuine genocide as a phenomenon of the 20th century, of which the Holocaust of the Jewish people and the mass extermination campaigns against Armenians, Pontus Greeks, Assyrians, Kurds, and the Roma are some outstanding examples.
We are concerned that the politicisation of human suffering and the frivolous usage of the grave legal category of genocide greatly cheapens these important concepts and constitutes an undeserved insult to innocent victims of political violence everywhere in the world.
Not only would Serbia, by an act of its own parliament, put itself in the same league with Nazi Germany if such a resolution were passed. It would also sanctify at Serbia's extreme disadvantage a propaganda narrative whose key components are factually unsupported. It would implicitly endorse the view that the Republic of Srpska was built on genocide and thus endanger its further existence and play into the hands of those pressuring for the centralisation of Bosnia. Finally, it would expose Serbian taxpayers to the possibility of a multi billion euro suit for damages which they are ill equipped at the present moment to pay [and have no obligation to do so, for that matter].
For all these reasons, we appeal to you to refrain from passing the projected Srebrenica resolution. If you feel it your duty to perform an act of public compassion toward the victims of the Bosnian war, we recommend as the only proper method that you pass a single resolution, written in ethnically neutral language, encompassing all of the victims and honoring them equally.
Prof. Edward Herman, academic, United States
Jurgen Elsaesser, author and journalist, Germany
Germinal Čivikov, author and journalist, the Netherlands
Alexander Dorin, author, Switzerland
Prof. Alexander Mezyaev, Russian Federation
Eckart Spoo, journalist and publicist, Germany
Diana Johnstone, political analyst and writer, United States and France
Klaus von Raussendorff, ex-diplomat and publicist, Bonn/Germany
Klaus Hartmann, Chairman of the German Freethinkers Association,
Vice president of World Union of Freethinkers, Germany
Cathrin Schütz, journalist, political scientist, Author of "Der NATO-Krieg gegen Jugoslawien. Hintergründe, Nebenwirkungen und Folgen" (Braumüller Verlag, Wien), Germany
Prof. Dr. Velko Valkanov, president, National Peace Council of Bulgaria, Bulgaria
Nikola Zivkovic, author and political analyst, Germany
Dr. Patrick Barriot, physician, France
Michele Altamura, journalist and political commentator, Italy
Christopher Black, barrister, Canada
Jonathan Rooper, ex-political analyst for BBC, independent journalist, Great Britain
Danilo Zolo, professor of Philosophy of International Law, Law Department, University of Florence, Italy
Theodosios Kyriakidis, Director of the St. George Peristereota Research Centre, Greece
Ing. Bernhard Frerichs, Germany
Dirk Frerichs, student, Darmstadt, Germany
Ing. Jan-Hendrik, Frerichs, Germany
Ing. Ina Frerichs, architect, Germany
Ing. Seidel Klaus, Rüsselsheim, Germany
Reiner Bingel, Taunusstein, Germany
Hödt Otti, medical worker, Groß Gerau, Germany
Ing. Dirksmeier Klaus, Berlin, Germany
Ing. Davide Braga, Italy
Ing. Marco Bellini, vice-president , European Development Centre, independent think-tank, Italy
Ing. Antonio Tassone, Belgium
Mick Collins, Artistic and Pedagogical Director, CirqueMinime, Paris, France
Israel Adam Shamir, writer and political philosopher, Jaffa, Israel
Prof. Wolfgang Richter, acting President of the European Peace Forum, Germany
Zorica Surla, teacher, Germany
Aleksandar Pavicevic, teacher, Germany
Christina Grbić-Buddingh, Arnhem, the Netherlands
Godfred Louis-Jensen, architect, Oktoberbevaegelsen, Denmark
Dr. Monika Nehr, Berlin, Germany
Joachim Guilliard, journalist and author, Heidelberg, Germany
Brigitte Queck, "Mothers against War, Berlin -Brandenburg", Berlin, Germany
Ewald Ressel, Germany
Prof. Wolf Lettmayer, Austria
Thomas Werner, Nuernberd, Germany
Peter Betscher, Dipl. Ing., Association for International Solidarity, Germany
Hermann Kopp, journalist, Dusseldorf, Germany
Maria Tsouras, Frankfurt, Germany
Albrecht Frenzel, Germany
Peter Franz, Member of VDS, Weimar, Germany
David Peterson, attorney, Chicago, United States
Prof. Dr. Hans Fischer, Berlin, Germany
Irene Eckert, lecturer, Berlin, Germany
Hartmut Drewes, Pastor (ret.), Germany
Elke Zwinge-Makamizile, documentarist, Berlin, Germany
Rolf Becker, actor, Hamburg, Germany
Thomas Immanuel Steinberg, Hamburg, Germany
Dr. Erika Kosse, Berlin, Germany
Peter Franz, Member of the Association of Writers VDS, Weimar, Germany
Maria Melkova, free-lance translator, Russia
Andrey Migalin, artist, Russia
Svetlana Bogatyryova, lawyer, Russia
Dr. Andrej Bazilevski, writer, Russia
Rainer Rupp, Journalist, Germany
Dr. Hans-Georg Ruf, member of the "Forum solidarisches und friedliches
Augsburg" (http://www.forumaugsburg.de), Germany
Victoria Knopp, MA Sociology, Frankfurt/Main, Germany
Martin Dressel, Germany
Brigitte Dressel, Germany
Eduard Mader, Ingenieur i.R., Member of Freethinker Organisation DFV, Germany
Dr. sc. med. Uta Mader, Medical doctor, Germany
Kaspar Trümpy, Ingenier, Switzerland
Karl Marek, Germany
Witold Fischer, Historian, Jena, Germany
Marina Borisova, analyst, Moscow, Russia
Elena Borisova, professor at the Moscow City Pedagogical University, Russia
Stefan Zeuge, student, Berlin, Germany
Jean Toschi Marazzani Visconti, journalist and writer, Italy
Yasik Antonov [Ясик Антонов], Moscow, Russia
Ivan Priima, writer, Russia
Dragana Drakulić-Priima, university professor, Russia
Aleksandr Orlov, St. Petersburg, Russia
Dr. med Donka Lange, Farstar medical GmbH, Germany
Baramzina Nadezhda Anatolevna, Saint-Petersburg, Russia
Vladislav Kuprin, internal auditor, Moscow, Russia
Andey Torshin, Russia
Igor Leonov, Russia
Chazov Vadim, Perm, Russia
Hermann Cebulla, Gelsenkirchen/Buer, Germany
Nina Nechaeva, journalist, Lobno, Russia
Rule von Bismarck, Hamburg, Germany
Andrei Tikhomirov, historian, Russia
Геннадий Павлов, artist, Russia
Любовь Селютина, actress, Russia
Чернова Татьяна, professor, Russia
Ирина Чеснокова, retired, Moscow, Russia
Мария Чеснокова, manager, Moscow, Russia
Григорий Гаврилов, Moscow, Russia
Зеленцова Мария Владимировна, Moscow, Russia
ZinaidaPeikova, translator, Russia
Натыкина Елена, journalist, Moscow, Russia
Paskhina Irina, Russia
Yuhanova Marina, Russia
Prokushenkova Irina, Russia
Kai Homilius, publisher, Germany
James Bissett, former Canadian Ambassador to Yugoslavia [1990-1992], Canada
Dr. Hans-Günter Szalkiewicz, Berlin, Germany
Olga Serebrovskaya, museum curator, Russia
John Peter Maher, university professor, Chicago, United States
June Kelly, рesearcher, Ireland
John Kelly, јournalist, Ireland
Kirill Fomchenko, Moscow, Russia
Elias Davidsson, composer and human rights activist, Alfter, Germany
Jelena Guskova, scholar, Russia.
Irina Rudneva, scholar, Russia.
Ana Filimonova, scholar, Russia.
Franz Fischer, Secretary of the Basel Section of Partei der Arbeit der
Schweiz (PdAS)/Party of Work of Switzerland
Julia Gorin, political analyst, Great Britain
Andy Wilcoxson, journalist, United States
Additional remarks suggested by Professor Edward Herman: "(1) When is the EU going to insist on an apology to Serbs from Croatia and the United States and UN for Operations Flash and Storm, which involved the greatest ethnic cleansing operations in the Balkan wars, and ones where, in contrast with others, the victims have never been able to return?; (2) when will the EU and NATO apologize to the Kosovo Serbs for the greatest "proportionate" ethnic cleansing of the Yugoslav wars carried out under NATO auspices after June 10, 1999? (and to the Roma for their ethnic victimization in the same period?); (3) when will the EU and United States apologize for introducing Al Qaeda into Bosnia and Europe to fight (and behead) Serbs, as described in detail in "Unholy Terror: Bosnia, Al Qaida, and the Rise of Global Jihad," by John R. Schindler, Professor at the U.S. National War College and former National Security Council specialist in Bosnia?"
Additional remarks suggested by Prof. Alex Mezyaev:
"Та форма и методы, которые использованы МТБЮ и Международным судом ООН для признания геноцида в Сребренице в июле 1995 года лишь подчёркивают отсутствие реальных доказательств вины сербских военных и сербских властей. В этих условиях принятие резолюции означает выступление на стороне антисербских сил. "
Additional remarks suggested by barrister Christopher Black:
"It is necessary to include a demand for an admission by all Nato countries that they committed war crimes against the people of Serbia in the massive aerial
bombardment of the spring of 1999 in which all rules of war were broken
and that the final agreement to cease that bombardment by allowing Nato
forces to occupy Kosovo was forced on the Serbian government under threat
of the mass murder of the the people of Belgrade by American B52's which
threat was made to president Milosevic and others by Mssrs. Ahtisaari and
Chernomyrdin as agents of the USA; a threat in which they promised to kill
500,000 people in Belgrade and flatten the city unless the terms they
presented were accepted. Srebrenica, even if the Nato propaganda were true
(which I do not accept) pales in comparison against such terror."
Additional remarks suggested by Professor Velko Valkanov, Bulgaria:
"Решително не мога да се съглася, че това, което стана в Сребреница, може да бъде квалифицирано като геноцид. Това бе трагичен епизод от една гражданска война, която враждебни на сръбския народ сили разпалиха. Заставам твърдо зад един протест срещу евентуалното признаване на някакъв геноцид в Сребреница."
Проф.д-р Велко Вълканов,
председател на Българския национален съвет за мир
Additional remarks suggested by attorney David Peterson, Chicago USA:
Whatever the fate of the Srebrenica "safe area" population in July 1995, this most assuredly was not a case of genocide, notwithstanding a series of political judgments handed down by the ICTY, and later reiterated by the ICJ. The European Parliament's passage by a near-unanimous vote of a resolution proclaiming July 11 a Day of Commemoration of the Srebrenica Genocide only adds to the debasement of this important concept, and to the trivialization of real genocides past, present, and future.
Additional remarks suggested by attorney Cathrin Schütz, Berlin, Germany:
"I am not happy with the part of the appeal that condemns the act of the forces of Republika Srpska as "war crime" and speaks about an equal death toll on the sides of the Muslims and Serbs around Srebrenica. I fully support the appeal's statement that 'what really happened in Srebrenica in July of 1995 is an issue that is still not settled... why it occurred, or who was behind it.' This is, in my view, the most correct way to address the issue. And if I have to admit that I do not know what happened, what is the purpose of admitting to some "war crime"? Is there any reliable information about 'Srebrenica' to this date? Information other than from Western media, Western politicians and their so-called NGO's?"
Additional remarks suggested by Vladislav Kuprin, Russia:
I ask you not to adopt a parliamentary resolution that would treat the Srebrenica massacre of July 1995 in such language that could be interpreted as Serbia's acceptance of responsibility for "genocide".
All people of good will know that the description of those hard events as "genocide executed in Srebrenica by Serbs in relation to Moslems " is a lie that is propagated by Moslems' extreme nationalists and fanatics all over the world.
I ask you to support the truth, not lie for Serbia's sake.
Additional remarks suggested by Andrey Tihomirov, Russia:
Необходимо полное изучение всех вопросов этой трагедии и привлечение всех сторон, а не одностороннее рассмотрение.
Additional remarks suggested byAndy Wilcoxson, United States:
I fully support this Appeal, except for the statement that "forces attributed to the Republic of Srpska executed in three days approximately as many Moslems as Moslem forces, raiding surrounding Serbian villages out of Srebrenica, had murdered during the preceding three years."
We have no idea how many people were executed, therefore it is impossible to say if the number was more or less than the number of Serbs killed by Muslims in the region. And while I don't object to a resolution from the Serbian parliament memorializing all of the war victims without regard to their ethnicity; I do think it is imperative to avoid drawing moral equivalency between Serbian, Muslim, and Croatian victims of the Bosnian war.
When moral equivalency is drawn between the victims it obfuscates who is responsible for the war. Without a doubt, the Muslims (and to a lesser degree the Croats) are responsible for the Bosnian war. Everything that happened during that war, including the Srebrenica massacre, is their fault. This is a very simple matter, if there hadn't been a war there never would have been a massacre.
The Bosnian-Muslims had been grooming paramilitary groups for two years before the war started. They chose to use armed violence as a means to seize Yugoslavia's territory and advance their political ambitions. The Bosnian-Muslims have nobody but themselves to blame for the horrible consequences of their actions. Death, refugees, and the destruction of property are the easily foreseeable consequences of starting any war, they knew that going in and they have no right to complain about it now. Whatever war crimes the Bosnian-Serbs committed, they committed in the context of a civil war that the Bosnian-Muslims started. The Bosnian-Muslims are not victims of the Bosnian-Serbs; they are victims of their political leaders' belligerence. If the Muslims want to blame somebody for the suffering they endured in the war, they'd be well advised to point the finger at their leaders in Sarajevo, because it is getting extremely tiresome to listen to them blame the Serbs for the consequences of a war that they started themselves. Belgrade should not pass any resolution that could be construed as indulging the idea of Muslim victimization at the hands of the Serbs.
No resolution memorializing the victims of the Bosnian war would be just without a strong condemnation of Alija Izetbegovic's regime for starting the war. It makes absolutely no sense to memorialize the victims without pointing out whose victims they are. Belgrade should pass a resolution memorializing the victims, and they should be certain that it includes a strongly worded condemnation of Alija Izetbegovic's regime for starting the war that caused these unfortunate people to be victims in the first place.


Licensing Contributor Ante Badzim on Minimalism in Commercial Photography
26/09/2020 admin 500px Blog, 500px Licensing, 500px Licensing Community, Ante Badzim, Australian photographer, commercial photography, Headline, Home Feed, license your photos, Licensing Contributor, minimalism, ocean photography, Photo News, photography tips 0
Ante Badzim is a minimalist photographer from Sydney, Australia. Ante's portfolio presents a minimalist perspective of nature and human life, often incorporating natural elements like water and sand. For his work, Ante has received accolades such as Top 10 Australian Photography Photographer of the Year 2018, Blow Up Photo Award, Olympus Global Photo Cup Award, and many more.
Q: Ante, are you someone who always aspired to be a photographer?
A: My parents migrated to Australia from Croatia in the 1960s, and they brought minimal possessions with them. One of the first indulgent items they purchased after establishing themselves was a camera. This camera was handed to me at an early age, and was the start of my photographic journey, which became my creative escape and lifeline.
Q: You've studied photography academically at schools like Australian National University and RMIT University. How do you feel that your time in these photography programs helped improve your craft?
A: Academically, I was equipped with tools and knowledge to help me on a technical level. I had exposure to many genres and methods, which helped me evolve in a professional sense. What I discovered over the years, is that your style, approach, and how you connect and resonate with subjects is something that can't be taught. It is life's experiences and your view on the world that shapes you and improves your craft. It is the diverse people you meet that inspire you and help you evolve further creatively and as a human.
Q: You're known for your minimalist approach to photography; what draws you to this particular style?
A: My approach is to show the true beauty of the subject, where it demands attention by introducing space and minimizing distractions. The simplest of things, when isolated, can represent something beautiful. The fine details and primitive experiences are becoming rare in contemporary life. I want to celebrate the beauty that is overlooked by creating visuals that offer moments of reflection and appreciation.
Q: Minimalism as a visual movement extends well beyond photography, are there any minimalist artists or pieces you've been inspired by?
A: I'm drawn to simplicity, clean lines, stark contrasts, and, at times, repetition in composition. I am inspired by artists that may not necessarily draw upon these elements frequently, but they are consistent with their style and approach. One inspiration is Photographer and Designer Tom Hegen. His aerial work, which highlights the impact of the human and nature relationship, is an example of work that is not minimal in its purest sense. However, as a body of work, it showcases the beauty of the subjects with repetition, color, textures, and lines.
Q: Many of your photos incorporate water and sand, often focusing on the dividing line between them—what attracts you to these recurring elements?
A: Residing in Sydney and the South Coast of Australia, and with regular trips to the Dalmatian Coast In Croatia, breathtaking beaches and scenes often feature in my work. I am currently working on a series and exhibition titled 'Elixir'. It celebrates the beauty of water and its connection to life. A reminder of how important it is as a resource and the role it plays on the environment and all living things. More than half of the human body is water, and the reason I naturally gravitate towards it. It embodies calmness, strength, and a sensual force that acts on us physically and emotionally.
Q: Your portfolio includes photos from many different parts of the world; what would you consider the most photogenic location you've been to?
A: There is no place like home and the connection to your everyday surroundings. For this reason, Australia, and more generally, the East Coast of Australia, I find to be the most photogenic. Exploring your backyard can also sometimes uncover immense beauty that we can easily overlook. My motherland, Croatia, is also home away from home. Since my first visit at the age of two, I have been back more times than I can remember. Its stunning coastline and villages are equally special to me as they hold fond childhood memories. I have captured some of my most personal work there, which continually reminds me of my heritage and the journey my parents embarked on for a better life.
Q: What are three things you would consider essential to a successful shoot?
A: Light, patience, and timing.
Q: As someone who has won a number of awards from around the globe, what advice do you have in terms of sourcing, participating, and winning international photography competitions?
A: Be true to yourself and your creative approach. Get involved with local photographic events to meet and be inspired by other creatives. Growing your network will provide unmeasurable opportunities to not only improve your craft, but also share your work, obtain feedback, and recognition. Explore the 500px Quests regularly, and research photographic industry partners and organizations that provide platforms for accreditation, education, and competitions for emerging and professional artists. Photographic publications also host regular and affiliated awards aligned to major sponsors and leading camera brands such as Olympus.
Q: Creative block is something many artists experience from time to time. Do you have any tips on how to stay inspired?
A: Have your camera with you at all times and engage with other photographers and visual artists. Delving into 'behind the scenes' of other artist's methods, production, and processes helps me out of any lull. Also, getting involved with workshops and talks will always provide a spark of inspiration.
Q: If you were to pick one photo you're most proud of from your 500px Profile, which would it be and why?
A: My 'Surfer' photo is one that currently feels poignant. Capturing this image in Manyana, on the South Coast of New South Wales, I wanted to portray a sense of calmness and simplicity, allowing the viewer an opportunity to reflect. Isolating subjects presents an opportunity to showcase their beauty. When we bring attention to these simple elements, it can function as a reminder to truly appreciate our surroundings, especially in a time where there is so much uncertainty.
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6th Graders from Bet Shemesh Climb Massada on Bar/Bat Mitzvah Tiyul
Like all good tiyulim to Massada, this one began in the middle of the night. More than 50 sixth graders from the Begin Elementary School in Bet Shemesh arrived at their school at 2:00 a.m. on a weekday in mid-May. Each child was accompanied by a parent.
The tiyul was arranged by the local OU Israel Youth Center. This was a special Bar and Bat mitzvah trip that is part of the Gesharim program which is supported by the Jewish Agency for Israel and is run in the school by OU Israel.
"The sixth graders are learning about Massada all year. That includes heroism, Jewish values and history," says Rikki Toviana, who accompanied her daughter, Maya, on the tiyul to Massada.
The reason groups climb Massada so early is because of the heat and also to see the sunrise over the Dead Sea.
"We started the climb before 5:00 a.m. when it was still dark," says Chaim Pelzner, OU Israel Director of Programming. "The kids had to make an effort, so there was a sense of accomplishment when they reached the top. We explained that one of the messages of Massada is that you have to make an effort in order to succeed," he says.
"Seeing the sunrise on the top of Massada is very special," Toviana says. "It's the beginning of something new. It symbolizes how our children are starting to grow up."
"We planned this program to help the kids connect to the history of the Jewish people," says Racheli Ninio, Education Director, OU Israel Youth Centers.
"This is the generation for whom everything is instant and disposable," Pelzner says. "But Am Yisrael isn't disposable. We explained that Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel), Am Yisrael (the People of Israel) and Torat Yisrael (the Torah of Israel) are all part of a greater process."
"We wanted this tiyul to be significant," Ninio says. The plan included four information stops on top of Massada. Each had a different activity.
"The first stop told the prophecy of the dry bones coming to life," she says. It was staffed by sherut leumi (national service) volunteers who also work in the school weekly during the year. Each child received an album and they learned how to write their names in ancient Hebrew.
Next, Hillel HaZaken (the elder) explained the meaning of the text אם אין אני לי, מי לי. Hillel was played by Menachem Persoff, Associate Director of Development, OU Israel.
"He explained that the verses talk about what individuals have to do to improve their lives," Toviana says. "He also talked about becoming better people. And then the kids gave their own interpretations," she says.
Another information stop was at a cistern where a tour guide discussed how important water was on Massada. The children were able to enter the cistern.
The final station overlooked the path they climbed up in the dark. Two of the sherut leumi volunteers were in costume here as well. One was dressed up as Elazar ben Yair, the leader of the community on top of Massada. Another volunteer was dressed as a member of the community.
"They had a very interesting discussion and eventually asked the kids what they think they would do in a situation like this. The message was that they're now at an age where they can start making decisions for themselves," Toviana says.
"When we designed the stations, it was important they weren't just informative," Ninio says. "After all, these kids know how to search for "Massada" on Google and get the whole story in no time. What we wanted to do is present the story through experiences on the site which would make it more impressive. We wanted to give them the feeling of what really happened on Massada," she says.
The last stop was the Bar and Bat Mitzvah celebration that took place in Herod's Palace at the northern end of the mountain. "The kids put on a performance and there was singing and dancing," Toviana says. "There was a canopy made out of several talitot for the children and the parents. We read from the Tanach (Bible). It was very moving," she says.
Several hours after they climbed up to Massada, once the singing and dancing were finished and everyone received a Bar or Bat Mitzvah Certificate, the students from the Menachem Begin Elementary School rode the cable car down to the Visitors' Center where they ate and then boarded the buses to return to Bet Shemesh.


Eric Baudelaire
ERIC BAUDELAIRE (1973) is a visual artist and filmmaker. His films Letters to Max (2014), The Ugly One (2013), The Anabasis of May and Fusako Shigenobu, Masao Adachi, and 27 Years Without Images (2011) were shown at the FIDMarseille, Locarno, Toronto, New York and Rotterdam film festivals. His research-based practice also unfolds as installations incorporating photography, printmaking, performance, publications and screenings. Recent solo exhibitions were held at the Fridericianum in Kassel, Berkeley Art Museum, Kadist Art Foundation in San Francisco, Bétonsalon in Paris, the Bergen Kunsthall, the Beirut Art Center, Gasworks in London, La Synagogue de Delme in France and The Hammer Museum in Los Angeles. He has participated in Sharjah Biennial 12, Seoul Mediacity Biennial, the Yokohama Triennial, the Taipei Biennial, Berlin Documentary Forum 2, La Triennale in Paris and the Baltic Triennial. His films and installations are in the collections of the Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid, the MACBA in Barcelona, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, M+ in Hong Kong, the Museum of Modern Art and The Whitney Museum of American Art in New York.
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27 January — 21 May 2017
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Italy Travel GuidesItaly Travel Guides
Tipping in Restaurants and Hotels in Italy: How to Do itTipping in Restaurants…
Tipping in Italy
Tipping in Italy includes guidlines on tipping in Italy at restaurants, in hotels, and tourist guides as well as an overview to how Italians treat their service providers
Tipping in Italy is not compulsory, in fact the majority of Italians don't generally tip huge amounts, that's if they tip at all. But, as tourists, you will be expected to leave a tip in Italian restaurants, when touring with a guide or taking a taxi ride.
Talking about tipping at restaurants in Italy, many establishments in Italy don't even give you the option to tip, as they already include tips in your bill in the form of service and cover charges, that can increase the cost of your meal by 20% or more. Some people think that the service charge goes to the people who wait on you, but unfortunately, in the most cases, it goes straight into the owner's pockets. We recommend you to only tip when you receive good service. Below we have listed some rough guidelines.
In sit-down restaurants it's customary to leave a 10 - 15% tip. For Taxi Drivers a tip of around 5-10% would be ideal, although this depends on the city. A water-taxi in Venice is already so expensive that a 10% tip would be more than a taxi ride would cost in other parts of Italy.
Tipping in hotels in Italy is slightly different. In hotels, if the concierge has been of assistance to you and made your stay pleasant a tip of €10 - 20 is customary, while chambermaids are happy with a 1 or 2 Euro. For tour guides, it depends on the kind of service they provided, but again a typical 5 - 10% would be sufficient.
When tipping in Italy, try to avoid taking out your loose change and leaving a Euro or less to your service provider as many would take this as an insult, as the cost of living is quite high in Italy and nominal tips like this have no real value to anyone. So better not to leave any tip at all in these cases.


State pensions
One in five women retiring in 2014 will rely on state pension alone
Women are three times more likely than men to have no other pension income, a survey by Prudential reveals
Tue 8 Apr 2014 19.01 EDT First published on Tue 8 Apr 2014 19.01 EDT
About 20% of women said they had no provision for their retirement apart from the state pension. Photograph: Kathy deWitt / Alamy/Alamy
Women retiring this year are nearly three times as likely as men to have only the state pension to live on, according to a report by the insurer Prudential. Some 20% of women, who often take career breaks or work part time to support families, said they have no other pension provision, compared with 7% of men, the research found.
The Prudential interviewed more than 1,000 people intending to retire in 2014 and found that nearly one in five (18%) people will have an income below the "minimum income standard" as defined by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
The foundation estimates that a single pensioner needs an income of at least £8,600 a year to reach a minimum socially acceptable standard of living; a retired couple needs an annual income of more than £12,500.
The findings follow shake-ups announced by the government for the pensions industry in the three weeks since the budget, which aim to prevent people being placed into workplace pension schemes with high charges as reforms to place people automatically into pensions are introduced. The government has also announced measures to make it easier for people to cash in their pension pot when they retire, rather than having to buy an annuity, which usually guarantees someone a fixed income for the rest of their life.
Vince Smith-Hughes, a retirement income expert at Prudential, said: "The changes to pensions and how people can take their retirement income announced in the budget last month will provide savers and retirees with more choices. However, they don't alter the fundamental fact that many people are not saving enough for a comfortable retirement."


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Are YOU The Bottleneck To Effective Giving?
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Is Your Giving Hampered By A Poverty Mentality?
Kris Putnam-WalkerlyContributor
I'm a global philanthropy advisor and author of Delusional Altruism.
Squeezing every penny into the philanthropic pipeline isn't the same thing as ensuring effectiveness.
You're completely committed to supporting others with your giving, and you're doing everything possible to ensure that every penny of your charitable assets is going directly to the nonprofits that need it. That's how you ensure the most effective use of your philanthropy, right?
Squeezing every penny into the philanthropic pipeline isn't the same thing as ensuring effectiveness. In fact, penny-pinching during the philanthropic process may do more harm than good to those you wish to serve. Many individuals and foundations think they're being good and prudent stewards of charitable assets when in fact they are withholding investments that could open the doors to greater productivity and more access to additional philanthropic capital. I call this operating with a "poverty mentality."
Consider the case of a foundation that strictly adheres to the minimum 5% annual payout to preserve its corpus so that it can continue to invest in the various nonprofits it is honored to support. In addition, this foundation requires all employees to maintain nine-to-five office hours to ensure that they are accessible to grantees and are indeed earning the salaries they are paid. And finally, the foundation only upgrades its technology every 5 years and maintains a bare-bones, static website to avoid costly bells and whistles. These all sound like prudent policies, except for the fact that they are costing the foundation untold sums in lost effectiveness.
Because of its poverty mentality, this foundation is unable to expand beyond its typical payout of 5% when an investment of 5.5% might provide an important tipping point for a key grantee or a set of grantees. Because it is more concerned with justifying salaries than enhancing productivity, it refuses to broaden its infrastructure enough to accommodate remote working for its employees, thereby creating unnecessary burdens and barriers to their individual ability to be more flexible and effective in getting their jobs done. Because it is more concerned about the expenses than the benefits of technology, its slow and clunky systems and poor website add hours of time each month to the tasks of its staff and the interactions with its grantees.
And speaking of grantees, a poverty mentality on the part of a funder can have a negative impact on nonprofits as well. In the example above, a slightly expanded payout could make the difference between building a new state-of-the-art health center or one that is outdated before it ever opens. The office-only policy could mean that a grantee must take two hours out of a busy day to attend a meeting with the funder's staff, even though the coffee shop that's right around the corner from the nonprofit offices is also a 10-minute walk from that staffer's home. And the clunky technology and website mean that the grantee's application takes longer to complete, upload and approve.
What's more, funders with a poverty mentality often don't want to fund things like training, technology, communications or fund development activities for nonprofits, because they want their investments to go to direct service to those in need. While the sentiment is well and good, the fact is that a nonprofit with strong staff development, technology, communications and fund-raising functions in place is much more likely to provide service to many, many more people — and to do so in more cost-effective ways.
Successful businesses constantly weigh the benefits of investing in themselves against the expense of doing so. It's how they grow and become more effective at what they do. So the next time you're considering whether to make an investment in your own philanthropic operations or infrastructure — or in that of a grantee — ask yourself: Are we withholding an investment now that could greatly increase our effectiveness, or our grantees' effectiveness, down the road?
Kris Putnam-Walkerly
I am a global philanthropy expert, author of Delusional Altruism and was named one of America's Top 25 Philanthropy Speakers.