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CHICAGO – Nareman Taha believes there is power in numbers. She held a sign that said "Respect" in Arabic and stood with a dozen other women with signs that said, "No Muslim registry."
Taha, the director of Arab American Family Services, led a delegation from the southwest suburb of Bridgeview to rally here Jan. 14 with more than 1,000 people worried that the incoming Trump administration will strip away their rights because of religion, ethnicity, immigration status, race, income, gender, disability or sexuality.
"Coming together with other communities and building partnerships is strengthening our voices," Taha said. "We have one common struggle today: How do we stand together against such hatred and racism."
Taha said that her community, and especially the young people and Muslim women who wear a head covering making them easily identifiable, have experienced fear because of the uptick in violence motivated by hate. "We feel it. We see it."
The rally sponsor, the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, said the Chicago action was one of 50 organized across the country. Held at the Chicago Teachers Union hall, rights advocates sought to unite for mutual aid and to protect what they called "vulnerable communities."
The CTU's parent union, the American Federation of Teachers, recently pledged to protect undocumented students from deportation and others who may be threatened by the incoming Trump administration. Mayors of major cities, including Chicago's Rahm Emanuel, vowed to protect undocumented immigrants from the wrath of Trump even as the president-elect said he would pull federal funds from "sanctuary cities."
"The threat of deportation is imminent for our communities," said Cristina Jiménez, executive director of United We Dream and one of the rally's organizers. "We will keep fighting. We're not going back into the shadows."
The protest here issued a platform for "resistance, unity and respect" that included actions to take on the local, state and federal levels.
"Together we say no to deportations, no to a Muslim registry, and no to any tactics that attempt to divide and criminalize our communities," part of the platform states.
Of special concern were the 740,000 immigrant young people across the country who are covered by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, a program started by the Obama administration that offers eligible undocumented youth protection from deportation and a temporary work permit. President-elect Trump has said he would end the program.
Hyeondo Hwang of the Korean American Resource and Cultural Center and a DACA beneficiary said the program means "first and foremost feeling safe in this great country where I grew up in, where I feel love and where I plan on spending the rest of my life."
He said being a proud son of a cab driver and nail salon worker, who had to leave South Korea when life there was looking bleak, DACA gives him "a shot at becoming a scientist." Hwang works at a chemistry lab in order to put himself through school.
"Dismantling DACA takes away young people's dreams and potential. It's damaging to the workforce and economy," he said and urged the audience to support federal legislation called the BRIDGE Act, which would allow DACA-eligible young people to stay and work in the United States. BRIDGE stands for "Bar Removal of Individuals who Dream of Growing our Economy" and is co-sponsored by Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois and Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill.
Syrian refugee Rehab Alkadi said she came to the U.S. one year ago after fleeing the war and violence in her country.
"A refugee is someone who lost everything, who needs to rebuild their life and start a life from zero, or maybe below zero," she said. "When we come to America, we are not trying to be a burden on anyone. We want just to live in peace with our dignity."
Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner announced the state would "temporarily" stop taking in refugees after the Paris attack in November 2015. Trump affirmed he would "temporarily" ban Muslims from coming into the U.S., establish a registry and referred to Syrian refugees as "illegals" in a recent interview with the Times of London and Germany-based Bild.
A group of religious leaders opened the rally with prayers and appeals for the public to stand up for immigrants, workers rights, people of all faiths and refugees.
"Our faith moves us," said Father Tony Pizzo of St. Rita Parish, "and our commitment to the principles of democracy compels us to appreciate, respect and solidify our relationships with all who are of good character and will embrace unity and respect."
Emphasizing the unity of values between those of the Christian, Islamic and Jewish faiths, Ron Taylor, pastor of Disciples for Christ Church, pledged to "stand together in unity."
"These are the values that say 'no' to the politics of divide and conquer," he said. "Regardless of what happens in the coming days, we know that love will conquer all."
Dr. Bassam Osman, chair and co-founder of The Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago, elicited one of the loudest cheers from the crowd when he called out the president-elect by name in an opening prayer: "Lord, this land is your land, it is not Trump's land."
Someone knew: Stock traders made millions short-selling before Oct. 7th Hamas attacks
United Auto Workers calls for 'complete and permanent' ceasefire in Gaza
U.S. repeatedly blocked Ukraine peace deals; is it rethinking its strategy yet?
Framing Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera: Mexico's great revolutionary painters in opera

subset: commoncrawl


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Hi, Welcome to our challenge blog which aims to help you create cards
for the GUYZ, of all ages in your life.
We help you to see that making such cards is not difficult.
Our thanks to the many of you who entered our last challenge
'Something beginning with the letter T.'
We were delighted, amused and entertained with all of your
wonderful entries. There were some which were so tenuous to the letter T
I should have thought of a prize for the most 'way out' .
However Jane has had the most difficult task of choosing the Top 3.
The Top 3 Winners
in numerical order
#3 Liz Cavill
such a clean and simple design and yet so much in it that relates to
our challenge - and perfectly masculine.
# 18 Samantha
Lots of interest, lots of texture, beautifully coloured and constructed
and I loved the T/Tee play on words.
# 26 2amscrapper
I actually loved this card so much that I dreamed about it.
It's so elegant and well thought out. I have several male friends who
work in the theatre and I know a card like this would be perfect for them.
Congratulations ladies, please take a copy of the Top 3 badge from our header bar.
Please say hello to our Guest Designers for August
Hey fellow challenge enthusiasts! I'm Julia Aston and I live just north of Boston, MA in the USA. My mother was an elementary school teacher and my father was a commercial artist so between the two, my sister and I did lots of artsy crafty things starting at a very young age - and it continues into adulthood. I discovered card stamping about 9 years ago and it has become my passion - I love stamping on cards and other objects like boxes, bags and tags! I am just thrilled to be one of the Guest DT's for Cardz 4 Guyz for the month of August and look foward to seeing your inspiring creations linked up here each week! You'll find me on my blog at http://www.createwithjulia.blogspot.com
Hello, my name is Mervi and I'm from Southern Finland. I've tried all kinds of arts and crafts and colours - think all my life, but card making just took my heart and time few years ago. I do everything from cute to shabby vintage and I still want to try and learn new things!
We met Amy last week , now please welcome Sharon
who has also joined our Design Team.
Hi, my name is Sharon. By day I am a forensic chemist and by night I'm an avid crafter. I am Mum to my two boys who are 17 and 12, so life is always hectic and a juggling act, but I wouldn't have it any other way. We live in a small town on the Essex coast in the UK. I also run my own cardmaking and scrapbooking classes in my area, as well as being a Stampin' Up demo. I love all types of cardmaking and I think my style goes in phases, so hopefully I can inspire you. I'm very excited to be joining the DT for Cardz 4 Guyz!!!
A sad farewell to Andrea
Our thanks to Andrea who has been on the Design Team for some time
but is ready to take on different challenges and expand her creative
adventure. We wish her every happiness.
So let's now see what challenge we have in store for you
Andrea has chosen for her farewell challenge
The project must be predominately the colours stated.
Of course it must be suitable for a Male person
The Design Team have once again excelled with their inspirations.
Guest Designers
Thanks to our amazing Design Team for brilliant inspiration.
If you would like to know more click on their names on the side bar,
to go direct to their blogs.
If you would like to be a Guest Designer add GDT on your entry.
We love to give our players the chance of joining us for a month.


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Symphonic metal quintet Kliodna is based out of Minsk, Belarus and consists of Natalya Senko (vocals), Anton Mikhailovskyi (guitar), Andrey Tikhomirov (guitar), Vasily Silura (bass), and Ilya Konopelko (drums). The band formed back in 2013 and debut their first EP Set Me Free and album The Dark Side… the following few years.
After various lineup changes, the group have released a new single titled "Inside Out," which displays a beautifully crafted symphonic section accompanying the metallic rhythm section and Senko's insanely impressive operatic vocal delivery. The guitar solo starting at 3:15 is also quite commendable.


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The punk credentials of Toyah Wilcox aren't really in any dispute, appearing in Derek Jarmans glorious 1978 occult time-travel movie Jubilee and releasing several high energy punk EPs early in her career. However, by the early 80's there's more than a slight echo of Kate Bush (sorry Toyah), a touch of Ziggy Stardust, and a glossier pop production that would bring Toyah mainstream success and platinum level record sales, which in turn made a lot of old punks turn their back on her. What is most surprising is this transformative success was accompanied by a pair of album covers and spin-off media that blend various influences into a punky post-apocalyptic swords-and-sorcery epic.
|Fairy above pyramids with severed head | Toyah Wilcox (1981)
The cover of Toyahs 1981 album Anthem features a dungeonpunk warrior fairy holding what looks like the severed head of one of Frazettas Neanderthals whilst standing on the ruins of a landscape filled with Mezoamerican pyramids (despite the Egyptian influence of the internal art). As an album cover, it's strange mix of Hawkwind and Jethro Tull, painted by Steve Weston (who sadly passed away in Feburary this year) probably best known for his cover illustrations for the UK editions of Anne McCafferys Pern books. We are firmly in the swords-and-sorcery tradition, far more accustomed to being aligned with prog-rock.
As an aside, at the end of the video there is a symbol which looks vaguely similar to the sigil of Slannesh. Perhaps the similarity is just coincidence, both based on the alchemical female. Apart from the quasi-medieval warrior stylings of her band-mates there's also the plot that seems to involve a psionic cleric unleashing various attacks worthy of a scene from Hawk the Slayer that clearly show a bucketload of Dungeons & Dragons influence going on here. The massive feathered hair, and general female sun-symbolism would be strongly echoed in John Blanche's Amazona Gothique. - itself a reaction to the passive role usually given to females in fantasy art (but not escaping the fetishism).
|Pan / fawn by germanic castle | Toyah Wilcox | (1982)
The second, and final, fantasy based art has Toyah in the rather attractive and somewhat puckish theatrical guise of a fawn / daemonette / tiefling. Photographed by Bob Carlos Clarke, Toyah is wearing all-black contact lenses, used to great effect on Ariel in Jarmans Jubillee, and no less weird here. The setting is a somewhat more traditional fantasy fair, a European castle, yet the costume pattern displays an exotic 1980's tribal / aztec influence which contrasts both with the harlequin Peter Pan pantomime expectation and the generally moody gothic feel. It's those kind of contrasts that show genius is at work.
"Anthem" yeah was sort of middle age, medieval times and this new album "The Changeling" is a mixture, and conglomeration of depression, space age and the druids, as you say, the middle ages. It's a mixture of everything.
Because the song The Druids is all about that, it's about all earth's magic and space technology and pagan man, thrown into one. And it's about this meeting to decide who owns which planet, which is what goes on on this singular little speck of dust in the atmosphere, as to who owns which island...
If at this point you\re not rushing to break out Gamma World / D&D / WFB 2nd Edition and run a Science Fantasy Dungeonpunk campaign then either there's simply no hope for you. Maybe some more pictures might help:
|Daemonette of Slannesh | Toyah Wilcox (1982)
|Daemonette of Slannesh | Toyah Wilcox (1982)
|Daemonette of Slannesh | 1990x
Necromunda (1995, Games Workshop) is not really Dungeonpunk, it's more a tribalist version of Mega-City One with the serial numbers filed off and where Dredd and his cronies have fled and left the gangers to run the city. But rather than ignore the similarities between hairstyles sported by la femme Toyah and some character model that goes for over £20 on eBay with a name which is a pun on a less talented but more materially successful 80's pop singer, let's just get this out of the way while we are here.
|Toyah (1982)
|Mad Donna Ulanti (1995?)
|Sorcery Spell Book (only joking!)
So is John Blanche a closet Toyah fan? Is his job as Art Director at Games Workshop really just an excuse to recreate the artwork on 80s pop-punk records? Where's my Imperial Guard army dressed like Adam and the Ants? Come on, chop chop GW.
++++ Zion Zuberon Necronomicon ++++


text: This is a vacation update! I scheduled it to appear on Monday morning. Hopefully as you're reading this, I'm relaxing on the beach watching a million dolphins shoot rainbows and ride unicorns or whatever they do. Go check out my twitter, where perhaps I will have posted some updates from behind a bottle of tequila somewhere.


text:
Faxon Match Series Barrel for G34 w/ Patented Flame Fluting, Competition, Gen 2-4, 9mm, 416-R Stainless QPQ Nitride, Threaded - TiN PVDFaxon
$229.00 $148.85
(You save $80.15 )
Faxon's Match Series pistol barrels for Glock® 34 are machined in-house from stress-relieved 416-R stainless steel. These barrels are then given a black Nitride or PVD coating to increase lubricity, barrel life, and resistance to surface wear. All barrels are conventionally rifled to allow a wider range of ammunition to be used, including cast lead. The barrels drop into factory-spec slides with no gunsmithing required. Better-than-factory tolerances ensure a consistent, tighter lockup than OEM.
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Technical Specifications:
- Handgun Type: G34
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- Barrel Profile: Flame Fluted, Drop In (Compatible with Gen 1-4)
- Barrel Material: 416-R Stainless Steel
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- Crown: 11-degree Target Crown
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*Will not ship to CA
"GLOCK" is a federally registered trademark of GLOCK, Inc. and is one of many trademarks owned by GLOCK, Inc. and GLOCK Ges.m.b.H. Faxon nor this site are affiliated in any manner with, or otherwise endorsed by, GLOCK, Inc. or GLOCK Ges.m.b.H. The use of "GLOCK" on this page is merely to advertise the sale of GLOCK pistols, parts, or components. For additional genuine GLOCK, Inc. and GLOCK Ges.m.b.H products and parts visit www.glock.com.
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- Glock® G34 Gen 2-4
Faxon Duty Series Barrel for G34, Competition, Gen 2-4, 9mm, 4150, QPQ Nitride, Threaded$159.00 $103.35$159.00


text:
This is a short piece of prose about a secret love.
I love to write fiction and beautiful prose. But my stories tend to always stay in one place and never go anywhere in particular. My characters are born and die all in the same gorgeous moment. I will try to write something with an ending soon.
Have a beautiful weekend :*


text:
Monday, October 3, 2011
Cathedral District, Chicago [Holy Name Cathedral]
Holy Name Cathedral
Address: 735 N. State St, Chicago..
Seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago..
Completed: 1874
Architects: Patrick Charles Keely, HJ Schlacks, Charles Murphy, Joseph McCarthy ...
Architectural Style: Gothic revival
The cathedral features motifs meant to instill an ambience of physically dwelling in the biblical "Tree of Life."
The massive bronze doors has the "Tree of Life" theme with intricate details. The doors possess a hydraulic system that allows them to be opened with the push of a finger.
Sculpted by Ivo Demetz.
I found some interesting information from it's official website on the musical instruments ...
The entire instrument for the Cathedral was handmade at the workshops of Flentrop Orgelbouw in Zaandam, Holland, including the hand carved decorations, pipe shades and gilded facade pipes. The organ case is made entirely of solid French oak, quarter-sawn. Both the playing action and the stop action are mechanical. The wind system consists of three wedge-bellows, supplying a wind pressure of 78mm for the manuals, and 80mm for the pedal. The temperament is equal at A-440.The instrument comprises 71 stops, 117 ranks, 5,558 pipes, distributed over four manuals and pedal.
Chicago Architecture Info.: Holy Name Cathedral..
Posted by Jyoti at 10/03/2011 04:49:00 AM
4 comments:
- Marc said...
Wow, those are stunning pictures. I hope to visit soon.
- October 6, 2011 at 4:19 AM
- Jyoti said...
Thanks Marcus!
- October 6, 2011 at 5:18 AM
- david said...
This is a great building. Architecture of church is an immortal thing through the history.
- September 28, 2012 at 6:16 PM
- Gigi613 said...
Amazing and beautiful photos!
- February 5, 2013 at 4:01 PM
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
What's up everyone and welcome to what will be a shorter-than-usual blog here on BlueCollarBlueShirts.com. I was going to skip writing about this game, but since I definitely won't be recapping Monday night's game, due to the New York football Giants game & since I have plans for Tuesday night, I figure I'd squeeze in a quick recap here.
It's tough finding a new "angle", so to speak, when recapping these preseason games. (Tonight will be the MSG Networks, more below.) In fact, I've done 8 blogs this week and what more can I say that I haven't said before? Of course, since I mentioned those 8 blogs, I'd be remiss if I didn't plug them. You can check them all out here:
NYR/NJD 9/29 Preseason Game 2 Thoughts: Vesey Makes MSG Debut, Bringing a Hooker to MSG, Who Makes The Team, Exclusive Notes From Behind the Bench, PP Delivers, Pirri Making A Case To Make The Team, Goalies On Point, MSG Needs To Step Up Their Beer Game & More
NYR/NYI Preseason Game 1 Thoughts: NYR's First Line Shines, The Skap is Back, Clendening Making a Case, Greedy MSG, TY NYPD/FDNY & Much More From MSG
The New York Rangers 2016-2017 Preview: Where I Have Been, Thoughts on the Off-Season, What To Look For, Being Realistic About the Club in Year 90, Can Lundqvist Get His Cup, My Approach To Covering Hank This Year & Tons of Opinions About NYR
World Cup of Hockey Tournament Thoughts: Team Europe vs Canada Caps Off a Disappointing Tournament, USA Hockey, Why the WCH Failed in Front of Nearly Empty Arenas, Favorite NY Rangers, IIHF vs WCH & Much More From a Degenerate Who Saw Every Game
NHL 2016-2017 Predictions: Analyzing All 30 NHL Teams, Who Will Win The Cup, Who Makes The Playoffs & More
The Greedy New York Rangers Tell The Families To Go Broke, Think About The Kids, The Stubhub Trick, How The Devils Can Increase Their Fanbase & My Utter Disgust for James Dolan & NYR Ticket Prices
Why I'm Excited About The NY Ranger's Preseason in Two Names: Jimmy Vesey & Pavel Buchnevich
UPDATED- Don't Let History Be Forgotten! Time for The Rangers to Finally Honor The Greatest Ranger Ever, Frank Boucher
The Rangers, after defeating the Devils 3-1 on Thursday night in MSG, lost tonight 5-4, to these Devils of New Jersey at the Rock.
Let me give you the quick ESPN.com box score, before giving you my thoughts and opinions:
1st Period Summary
|Scoring Detail
|Jesper Fast (1)
Assists: Brady Skjei, Adam Clendening
|Beau Bennett (1) (Power Play)
Assists: Kyle Palmieri, Yohann Auvitu
|Beau Bennett (2)
Assists: Taylor Hall, Yohann Auvitu
|Penalty Detail
|Maxim Lapierre: 2 Minutes for Hooking
|Ben Lovejoy: 2 Minutes for Holding
|Ben Lovejoy: 2 Minutes for High-sticking
|Travis Zajac: 2 Minutes for High-sticking
|Adam Clendening: 2 Minutes for Tripping
2nd Period Summary
|Scoring Detail
|John Gilmour (2)
Assists: Ryan Gropp, Philip McRae
|Taylor Hall (1) (Power Play)
Assists: Pavel Zacha, Yohann Auvitu
|Pavel Zacha (1)
Assist: Michael Cammalleri
|John Moore (1)
Assists: Kyle Palmieri, Travis Zajac
|Penalty Detail
|Brady Skjei: 2 Minutes for Interference
|Philip McRae: 2 Minutes for Interference
3rd Period Summary
|Scoring Detail
|Michael Grabner (1)
Assists: Michael Paliotta, Mika Zibanejad
|Mika Zibanejad (2) (Power Play)
Assists: J.T. Miller, Adam Clendening
|Penalty Detail
|Reid Boucher: 2 Minutes for Elbowing
|Ben Lovejoy: Penalty Shot Awarded for Hooking on Breakaway
|Maxim Lapierre: 2 Minutes for Hooking
|Devante Smith-Pelly: 2 Minutes for Tripping
|Ben Lovejoy: 2 Minutes for Holding
So the Rangers lost 5-4. From reading my social media accounts, it seemed many of you guys took the night off and got drunk. Perhaps I should've done the same. In fact, it looks like that's what the Rangers did in the second period.
As I've been saying all preseason, you can't go nuts about a win or a loss. Every team is trying out new things, mix & matching guys, checking out their guys from developmental, etc. The only thing I think you can somewhat get a handle on, is the goaltending. These goalies aren't just gonna let guys score on them, even if they aren't playing the other team's best guys.
If there is anything you can take out of tonight's game, I think it's that MacKenzie Skapski is or should be, the #3 goaltender in the organization. We've heard about Halverson for years, but for some reason, he never gets work in the preseason. Obviously Lundqvist is number 1 and Raanta is number two. However, it's Skapski & Hellberg battling for the starter job in Hartford. Skapski has been great in his two appearances, while Hellberg was ok in his first start and just terrible tonight.
If you're looking for positives in tonight's game, the Rangers PP continued to score goals. Zibanejad had arguably the nicest looking goal of the game. You want to see him produce early, especially after losing fan-favorite Derrick Brassard for him.
Jimmy Vesey, the player I'm really pulling for the most, played well again, but didn't score goals like he was doing in Traverse. He showed off his speed at times, but was burnt on a PK. He also set up another penalty shot attempt for his team, this time feeding Kreider. For some reason, Kreider looked like he was in la-la land during the penalty shot attempt.
Watching this game, the Rangers really didn't have many starters out there. You had Kreider, Vesey, Zibanejad, Girardi, Fast, Miller & Skjei out there, who I think all will be starting come October 13th. The Devils looked like they were looking at their starters more in this game than the Rangers, as the Rangers were more concerned about trying out new pieces & talent.
The Devils originally were going to start their starting goalie, Cory Schneider, for the whole game. However, Schneider was pulled from the game, an hour before puck drop. Devils coach John Hynes pulled Schneider, because as he said, "Schneider had soreness." Instead, Anders Lindback started and played the whole game.
The best player on the ice tonight was NJ Devil Taylor Hall. I know I've bitched about it a thousand times since it happened so what's one more time, but I still don't get why the Oilers traded Hall for practically next to nothing. This trade has been ranked the worst during the entire off-season for the Oilers and has been ranked the best during the entire off-season for the Devils. What was Edmonton thinking?
As a Rangers fan who also roots for the Oilers (In Cam We Trust), this trade just drives me insane. If the Oilers were going to trade Hall, all I gotta ask is where the fuck was Jeff Gorton? Hand-feeding Glen Sather tapioca pudding? I mean the Rangers & Oilers have a rich history when it comes to trading. As I've told you before, when I went to Edmonton, the fans there consider 1994 to be their sixth Cup! The Rangers gift-wrapped Talbot to the Oilers when there were better hauls to be had on the trade market. (And you know me, I gotta say this, the Rangers should've kept Talbot, dealt Lundqvist & his horrible bloated contract, and used the money to spend on offense. Perhaps the Sedins?)
The Devils pillaged Edmonton for Hall. If the Oilers were just going to give Hall up, are you telling me that Gorton couldn't talk Edmonton into a better deal than Adam Fucking Larsson? The Rangers couldn't have dealt Girardi and a pick? Staal and a pick? A pick and a pick? I mean the Rangers could've easily came up with something better than Larsson, as could any other GM in the league. I just don't get what Edmonton was thinking and where the Rangers were to capitalize. The Rangers missed out on a chance to add a top 6 forward that can score to their corps.
If you read my blog on the greed of MSG & my thoughts on how the Devils could capitalize on it, (and if you haven't, you can check it out here: The Greedy New York Rangers Tell The Families To Go Broke, Think About The Kids, The Stubhub Trick, How The Devils Can Increase Their Fanbase & My Utter Disgust for James Dolan & NYR Ticket Prices ) you know that I don't really hate the Devils.
Listen, as a Ranger fan, of course I'm always rooting against the Devils. However, I don't have the same hatred for them as I do the Islanders or Flyers. I can face the facts and be unbiased when it matters. The Devils are a classy organization. They do things right. They know how to win. As a diehard Mike Richter guy, I hate to admit it, but the Devils had either the best or second best goalie of all time, in Marty Brodeur. (I think Roy was two. I give the nod to Brodeur because he was so good, that he actually changed the game when the NHL created the trapezoid.)
Where the Flyers & Islanders haven't won anything in over 30 years (I know, tough talk, 4 cups in 90 years in MSG), the Devils have just been humming along consistently, winning Cups and being a perennial playoff team until recent years. However, if you read my NHL prediction blog, linked at the top of this blog, you can see I'm picking the Devils to finish better than the Rangers & make the playoffs.
The Devils just always have good hockey people running the organization. The Rangers have James Dolan, who is not only the worst owner in hockey, but one of the worst owners in all of sports. If he could figure out a way to hire Isiah Thomas to run the Rangers, he would.
Having the NHL package, I usually use it to watch west coast games. Most of the time I'm watching the Oiler game & watching Talbot/McDavid. If the Rangers aren't on, I use the NHL package to see east coast teams of players that I like, such as Jagr or Ovechkin. Very rarely do I tune into a Devils or Islanders game, unless that game has playoff implications or affects the Rangers in some way.
Living in Long Island, and having been known as stepping into a Long Island watering hole or two or two thousand in my life, I've seen many more Islander games on TV than Devil games. I'm not trying to be sexist here, but I don't find Shannon Hogan, who plays the Bill Pidto/Al Trautwig role for the Islanders, to be of much use. I'm not saying a woman can't do the job, I just don't think Hogan is the person for it. I know her MSG network peers have to say she's great, because that's the PC & right thing to do, but deep down, I think they roll their eyes at her when she confuses players names and doesn't know the rules of the game.
I mean who could forget this:
Listen, I know people make mistakes, but in my opinion, Shannon Hogan is the weakest link in the MSG Networks chain of personnel.
As far as the rest of the Islander staff, Mike Bossy is ok, but just dry. He was a great player, but doesn't translate on TV like a Michael Strahan or like a Peyton Manning would. Butch Goring is the best of the whole lot, because he's like Duguay – never minces words.
I've praised the Rangers MSG network crew before on this blog. Ron Duguay always tells it like it is. I love his bluntless. He will tell you when things are good and he'll tell you when things are bad. He's a good analyst that explains things & catches things that you may have not seen on first glance. That's what you get from a star player as opposed to someone like me, sitting on their coach and pounding Labatt Blue Lights!
I'm a fan of Stephen Valiquette. He came on to the scene recently, and after saying "how did he get a job?" I started to appreciate his takes more. "Vally's View", a way he breaks down the goaltenders is a segment I enjoy. While we all know Cam Talbot was always the best goalie to back-up Lundqvist, I think we can all agree that Vally does a great job in-studio for MSG.
Bill Pidto and his fastest 150 seconds in the National….Hockey….League is always enjoyable. He has a good light-hearted sense of humor.
Sam Rosen is just the best hockey announcer around today. Yes I know who Emerick is, but Sam is my guy. I wish I could get one more game of JD & Sam.
John Giannone has always been nice to me when I met him. I enjoy his work. He's also underrated as a play-by-play guy, but unless he's waiting Rosen out, he'll never get his shot here. Maybe down the line. It will be big shoes to fill, but John is more than capable.
Joe Micheletti seems like a nice guy. Never met him, but you can see he cares about his job and tries. He gives good takes on the Mike Francesa show when Mike introduces him as "Joe Mickle Eddy".
If you're a NY sports fan, Al Trautwig has the best job in the whole world, covering both the Rangers & the Knicks. However, he seems like a dick in real life. I've seen him around a few times, as I have seen everyone I'm writing about, and he seems to be the least personable of the whole lot. Maybe he's just in the zone and so serious. Or maybe he's just a dick. Check this story out: http://deadspin.com/if-you-insult-al-trautwig-on-twitter-hell-call-your-m-1464105302
So basically, Trautwig got mad at some guy for pointing out that Marty Biron isn't spelt as Marty Boron. He called the mother of the guy, despite the guy moving out of his parents house 20+ years ago. Kinda fucking strange if you ask me. And before Al Trautwig calls my mom, I haven't lived with my mother in 9 years, so please don't wake her up. You can email me for my number if you want to vent.
More recently, Al Trautwig got himself in more trouble with this:
According to Al Trautwig, the whole adoption process is a bunch of bullshit and adopted parents aren't real.
I don't know what to make of the guy.
Let me put it this way, I have met Ron Duguay, Vally, countless ex-Rangers and other hockey players. All have been friendly. I have also watched Duguay, Vally and countless ex-Rangers meet kids and other people. In my interactions and watching these guys interact with other people, they've always been friendly, made small talk, and been a good representative of the NYR organization.
I have met Al Trautwig, but I never got a picture or got anything signed, because after all, it's Al Trautwig. However, I've seen little kids ask for his autograph and he blew them off. To be fair, this was in the Delta Club at MSG and Al was on line waiting to get food. Maybe he was on a schedule. Either way, he kinda seems like a dick. Maybe you got to know him to understand him type of thing.
You wanna talk about a nice guy, let me talk about John MacLean. When I was a teenager, me and my friends used to go to MSG and the Coliseum all the time to get autographs and take pictures with our disposable cameras with players. Does anyone remember the disposable camera?
Anyway, John MacLean was very Adam Gravesish with everyone. What I mean by that, is that he stopped and signed and took pics with everyone. I'm going back nearly 20 years now, but I still remember this. MacLean couldn't pick me out of a line-up, but stuff like this I remember picture perfect to this day.
It's amazing the tangents and digressions I go on these blogs, but I told you, this is a preseason game and I needed to find an angle to talk about here!
My point that I'm trying to get to is that I don't watch many Devil games on the MSG network. Tonight's game was 90% a Devils production, with Joe Michelleti making a cameo to give the Rangers perspective.
On another aside, I wouldn't mind this in the future for Ranger/Islander or Ranger/Devil games. Take the best person out of each squad and let them call the game. So for Ranger/Devil games, it would be Rosen/Daneyko and for Islander games, it would be Rosen/Goring. Play up the rivalry in the booth and in the studio. Let Duguay and MacLean throw friendly verbal shots at each other. Let Bill Pidto give Shannon Hogan a wedgie. Let Al Trautwig call Steve Cangialosi's mother on him!
I know some Ranger fans only care about the Blueshirts, but I enjoyed the Devils broadcast tonight. I enjoy Kenny Daneyko. I think he brings a breath of fresh air to a hockey broadcast. His funny stories and just the way he sees things are entertaining for a viewer. Oh and is it me, but does Daneyko's voice sound a lot like Jesse Ventura's?
John MacLean and Stan Fischler were good in their roles in between periods. I really hate when people talk shit about Fischler on twitter. I think Fischler should be featured during Ranger games. This guy is a walking legend and I hate to be morbid, but time isn't on Fischler's side. MSG should be featuring him more. Give him his own MSG wrap-up show or something. Fischler is one of the last few links to the golden years of the Rangers. This guy has interviewed every great Ranger there's been. In fact, it was through a Fischler book where I first learned about the great Frank Boucher, a guy I always think the Rangers have dropped the ball or puck on. RETIRE HIS NUMBER ALREADY!!!!
I mostly see Fischler these days partnered with Shannon Hogan. He seems to enjoy it, but MSG is wasting his talents. The only thing I didn't agree with Fischler on tonight was Rick Nash. Fischler said Nash will have a great season because he's coming back from injury. Not for nothing, Nash's whole Rangers career has been coming back from an injury or concussion. We've seen glimpses of Nash's greatness but if you consider his contract, Nash has been another bust, in a long line of Rangers overpaid busts. It's not to say that Nash can be great, but as of this writing, Nash will be remembered as another Ranger with a bad contract and not as fan favorite.
So in closing on this topic, I just wanted to share that I really enjoyed the work of the MSG crew across the Hudson River. With Hall wearing the red & black now, I'll tune into more games. A great crew really enhances the product and the Devils have that. There's been countless games I've watched on the NHL package where the announcers/crew bored me to tears, such as the Wild, Panthers and Coyotes. The Devils, just like the Rangers, do a great job.
As far as the game on ice tonight, I was impressed with Hall and Zibanejad. There's really not much to say as the Rangers were trying different things out. I don't think the Devils get 5 goals if Lundqvist, Raanta or Skapski played a full 60 minutes. Hellberg was just bad.
What I liked and this probably only happened because guys are playing for jobs, is that the Rangers kept shooting the puck. None of the fancy boy looking for goals shit. It was bombs away.
Girardi and Brodie were scary at times out there. Girardi may have peaked as a player as he has tons of wear and tear on him. The Rangers need me to be wrong on this. There is a lot of money and time invested in Girardi.
As far as other Ranger news, JT Miller returned and looked alright. Lundqvist is back and practicing. No word on Zuccarello, but I'm not worried about him. He will be fine. In fact, I think the Rangers should sew the "A" on his sweater this season. He has more time on the team than half the roster now, has become a league-wide star and he plays his heart out every game.
As stated at the top of this rundown, no blog after Monday night's game due to the MNF Giants game. I still can't believe they choked to the Deadskins. I don't care what anyone says – Eli Manning is the best athlete in NY today. He's got the hardware to prove it. You can't spell ELIte without Eli!
9 more periods of preseason hockey and it's off to the races on 10/13 against the Islanders. That's when shit gets real, especially when you realize that the Halakness Monster, Jaroslav Halak is 9-0 against King No Cup. As it is for any team, it's important for the Rangers to get off to a hot start. Many people, myself included, think that the window is shut on a Cup run. For the Rangers to make a deep go of it, Hank needs to revert to his 2012 days, the powerplay must deliver, the rookies must be better than expected and Zibanejad better make Ranger fans say "Brassard who?"
See ya after the Philly game.
As always, LET'S GO RANGERS
Sean McCaffrey
@NYCTHEMIC on the twitter machine


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Seattle Seahawks Hire USC's Pete Carroll as New Head Coach
What?!!? Pete Carroll is leaving USC? Why the hell would he do that? Well his rumored contract is $35 Million Dollars over the next 7 years. That might be why.
Carroll has had an a great nine year run with the USC Trojans. He was 97-19 as their head coach, with two national championships, seven straight Pac-10 titles, and 3 Heisman trophy winners.
But Still why would he want to leave? He already made a ton of money, and he was on top of the NCAA.
This is Carroll's first opportunity to have full control over a team in the NFL. Something he wasn't able to do before as a NFL head coach.
But why now? Carroll is currently one of the top coaches in the NFL, in one of the best places to live, and can get any high school player he wants.
Lack of interest maybe? My guess is USCs athletic department is becoming a little too corrupt. He was probably sick of the ongoing investigations on athletes getting paid / cars and said this is my opportunity to get the hell out of here before it ruins my career.
The Seahawks ended the season on a four-game losing streak to finish 5-11. Their 5 wins came from teams that didn't make the playoffs. Not a very good season. You can see why Seattle wanted Mora out and Carroll in.
Depending on who Carroll drafts, who his free agents are, and who he cuts will determine a lot on how his season goes. He isn't going to do much with the team he has now. How many USC guys will be on his team next year? How many more USC Trojans will declare this year?
I think he will do pretty good as an NFL coach, now that he has final say in all football decisions. It is going to be an interesting offseason!
Oh, and Kirk Ferentz, PLEASE Don't leave Iowa for any NFL or other College jobs!


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The Supreme Court order restraining the linking of services and benefits to the 12-digit Aadhaar number has placed in doubt ambitious plans by the Centre and several State governments to make the 'voluntary' Aadhaar scheme mandatory for access to services and subsidies. The order was passed on a writ petition by retired justice of the Karnataka High Court K.S. Puttaswamy , along with two other petitions referred from the Bombay and Madras High Courts. In an interview with The Hindu in Bangalore a day after the Supreme Court verdict, the 88-year-old judge-turned-litigant said this was the first time in his legal career, spanning five decades, that he felt the need to petition the courts. Excerpts:
Why did you choose to move the courts on this issue?
The way the government has gone about implementing this project is odd and illegal. In 2011 [over a year after Aadhaar enrolments commenced in the country] the Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance rejected the National Identification Authority of India Bill, 2010, on several grounds. Yet, the government did not attempt to modify the Bill and bring it back for parliamentary approval. It is not constitutional to simply proceed using an executive order to implement a scheme that has been rejected in this fashion.
What is your fundamental opposition to this project?
Apart from the fact that it does not have Parliament's approval, the project infringes upon our right to privacy, which flows from Article 21 that deals with the fundamental right to life. We are required to part with biometric information, iris and fingerprints, and there is no system to ensure that all this data will be safe and not misused.
My other concern, and I believe this is critical, is that it is easy for anyone to get an Aadhaar number. The enrolment centres are run by private operators so anyone can walk in and get one. This means that [undocumented] immigrants can get one too and that's a clear security threat. Part of the political will for this project stems from this motivation because obviously they [undocumented] immigrants are also a vote bank for some
Many critics of Aadhaar (even those whose petitions are being heard with yours) have focussed on other aspects such as the dangers of making this 'voluntary' scheme a mandatory one for access to crucial services and welfare.
Yes, that is also a point. Why must I get an Aadhaar when I already have a ration card? Even at the recent hearing it has been reported that the government submitted in court that the scheme is voluntary. But everyone knows that today you cannot get your LPG subsidy in Tumkur, and other districts, without this number. So, the right hand says it is voluntary and the left says it is mandatory — then it is a plain lie. They're still taking inconsistent stands and look who is suffering — citizens
The government submits that over Rs.50,000 crore has been spent on the project. It is seeking a review of the SC order. Is it too late to turn back now on this scheme?
No. It is not. That so much has been squandered without analysing the benefits or dangers of this scheme shows a disregard for public money. I think they didn't think this through. In fact, there were voices even within the government that were opposed to it. My understanding is that the Supreme Court is unlikely to allow their review petition.
We'll have to wait and see.


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"Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it."
Proverbs 22:6 NLT
RLC Kids
From age one through the preteen years, Renewed Kids Ministry teaches children how wonderfully complex and special God made each one of them. They will learn the importance of knowing and acknowledging the Lord in their lives.
(2-4 Yrs.)
"The Bible App" is an early childhood interactive learning program that includes a special video lesson with exciting characters, key phrases, Bible verses, Bible stories, and worship sing-alongs! Each lesson is equipped with parent guides to help you engage your toddlers to learn about God in fun new ways!
(1st-5th Grade)
"Douglas Talks" is a fun, easy to use program that has a puppet named Douglas who talks to your child about many important questions and subjects that they may have had or experienced. Alongside these short videos is a Devotional and key Bible verses for your child to learn about. The lesson attached to these "Talks" is a simple way for you to interact with your child in discussion to grow in faith!
Jr. High
(6th-8th Grade)
"The Meeting House" is a specially designed program for children transitioning from child to teen. They will learn how to be more independent in their search for God as they begin to discover their purpose through the gifts and talents the Lord has placed in them. Your child will be able to connect with God in a new way with these video lessons taught by age related peers!


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Metagenomic and satellite analyses of red snow in the Russian Arctic
- Published
- Accepted
- Received
- Academic Editor
- Kimberly Bishop-Lilly
- Subject Areas
- Biodiversity, Ecology, Genomics, Microbiology, Virology
- Keywords
- Red snow, Snow, Arctic, Watermelon snow, Viruses, Franz Josef Land, Phage, Metagenomics
- Copyright
- © 2015 Hisakawa et al.
- Licence
- This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, reproduction and adaptation in any medium and for any purpose provided that it is properly attributed. For attribution, the original author(s), title, publication source (PeerJ) and either DOI or URL of the article must be cited.
- Cite this article
- 2015. Metagenomic and satellite analyses of red snow in the Russian Arctic. PeerJ 3:e1491 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.1491
Cryophilic algae thrive in liquid water within snow and ice in alpine and polar regions worldwide. Blooms of these algae lower albedo (reflection of sunlight), thereby altering melting patterns (Kohshima, Seko & Yoshimura, 1993; Lutz et al., 2014; Thomas & Duval, 1995). Here metagenomic DNA analysis and satellite imaging were used to investigate red snow in Franz Josef Land in the Russian Arctic. Franz Josef Land red snow metagenomes confirmed that the communities are composed of the autotroph Chlamydomonas nivalis that is supporting a complex viral and heterotrophic bacterial community. Comparisons with white snow communities from other sites suggest that white snow and ice are initially colonized by fungal-dominated communities and then succeeded by the more complex C. nivalis-heterotroph red snow. Satellite image analysis showed that red snow covers up to 80% of the surface of snow and ice fields in Franz Josef Land and globally. Together these results show that C. nivalis supports a local food web that is on the rise as temperatures warm, with potential widespread impacts on alpine and polar environments worldwide.
Chlamydomonas nivalis is an unicellular snow alga that has been detected worldwide within the upper snow layer in polar and alpine regions (Guiry et al., 2014) and is especially abundant in the Arctic pack ice (Gradinger & Nurnberg, 1996). In these harsh environments, C. nivalis has adapted to intense UV exposure by producing astaxanthin, a UV-screening pigment that produces a visible red hue in snow (Gorton & Vogelmann, 2003; Williams, Gorton & Vogelmann, 2003). C. nivalis spends most of its growth season in its red colored stage (Gorton & Vogelmann, 2003; Stibal et al., 2007; Williams, Gorton & Vogelmann, 2003); this coloration is visible across the snow/ice surface and can reduce albedo to 40% (c.f., fresh snow albedo of 75% (Thomas & Duval, 1995)). The lower albedo increases local temperature, promoting snow and ice melting and increasing the abundance of C. nivalis (Thomas & Duval, 1995). Through this positive feedback loop the abundance of C. nivalis amplifies snow and ice melting. C. nivalis also contributes to local carbon cycling by fixing CO2. However, if there is a red snow associated heterotrophic viral and microbial community, much of this newly fixed carbon may be released via respiration (Bardgett, Freeman & Ostle, 2008). C. nivalis-produced dissolved organic carbon (DOC) may also contribute to priming when the melt water washes into the ocean (Geller, 1986; Hamer & Marschner, 2002; Madigan, Martinko & Parker, 1997; Van Nugteren et al., 2009) and lead to increased CO2 release.
Satellite images are useful for studying remote or expansive areas that are otherwise difficult to reach and for detecting land surface changes over time. Remote sensing methods using satellite imagery are applied to a wide range of studies including urban expansion (Wang et al., 2014), agricultural land use change (Dong et al., 2015), and glacial retreats (Wei et al., 2014). Many data sets are free, easily accessible, and have adequate resolution for its purpose. Thus, remote sensing provides an ideal tool for quantifying white and red snows at large spatial and temporal extents. Here we describe the use of remote sensing to quantify white and red snows at large spatial and temporal extents. Metagenomic comparisons of white and red snows were also performed to investigate whether these snows differed in their microbial ecology.
Materials and Methods
Analysis of satellite images
Remote sensing methods were used to estimate abundances of red snow at eleven locations around the world (see Supplemental Information 1). Landsat satellite images were acquired from the USGS Earth Explorer site (http://earthexplorer.usgs.gov/) and image analysis methods were adapted from Takeuchi et al. (2006) as described in the Supplemental Information 1. Red to green reflectance band ratios with wavelengths 630–690 nanometers and 520–600 nanometers, respectively, were used to detect red snow in the satellite images. The spectral reflectance of red snow shows that it has higher reflectance in the red band than in the green band, while the spectral reflectance of white snow and ice has higher reflectance in the green band than the red band (Takeuchi et al., 2006). Therefore, red to green reflectance band ratios that are less than 1.0 are more likely to signify white snow or ice while band ratios that are greater than 1.0 are more likely to signify red snow or ice.
ArcGIS version 10.2 was used to calculate the reflectance band ratios. Previous research indicates areas with reflectance band ratios >1.02 are bright red when observed in the field (Takeuchi et al., 2006). For this analysis, areas with reflectance band ratios greater than 1.0 were considered to have a significant amount of red snow because such values have been shown to have an algal cell volume of 100 ml m−2 (Takeuchi et al., 2006). Using the positive linear correlation between algal cell volume biomass and reflectance band ratio, it was assumed that the higher the reflectance band ratio, the higher the algal cell volume biomass. With this in mind, the reflectance band ratios were divided into five categories for optimal visualization of various levels of concentrations of red snow (Table S1 and Fig. 1B).
Algal biomass
To estimate the algal biomass for each location, the surface area belonging to each reflectance band ratio category was multiplied by the mean algal biomass of that category. Although the extent of the area of interest is the same for all three images, they have varying amounts of surface area where red snow can exist due to shifts in snow and ice coverage. Therefore, in addition to the total algal biomass, the total area of snow coverage and the percentage of the total area of snow that was covered with different abundances of red algae were calculated. A pixel was categorized as snow if its normalized difference snow index (NDSI) was greater than 0.4 and, to mask out water, if its near-infrared reflectance value was greater than 0.11 (Sibandze et al., 2014). The number of pixels that meet these conditions was multiplied by the area of the pixel to get the total area of ground covered by snow/ice. To calculate the percentage of the total area of snow that is covered with algae, the total area with each algal abundance level was divided by the total area of snow coverage.
Metagenomic sequencing
Permitting for this work was from the Russian Federation (Ministry of Education and Research #71; June 3, 2013). Red snows were sampled on Nansen Island ("Nansen") and Greely Island ("Greely_1" and "Greely_2") of Franz Josef Land. Red snow samples were examined with microscopy to confirm the presence of C. nivalis based on morphology (Muller et al., 1998). Three red snow samples of ∼15 L were collected, melted, and passed through a 0.22 µm sterivex filter. Greely_1 and Greely_2 represent two different sterivex filters that were both extracted from the same homogenized sample. Total DNA was extracted in the field using the Soil DNA Isolation kit with a custom vacuum manifold (cat# 26560; Norgen BioTek Corp.,Thorold, Ontario, Canada). From the total DNA, a NexteraXT library kit was used to prepare DNA libraries for sequencing on the Illumina MiSeq. The Nansen, Greely_1, and Greely_2 libraries had 135,749 reads, 86,932 reads and 47,507 reads, respectively (see Table S2 for MG-RAST IDs to obtain unfiltered data). Each metagenome was passed through the following quality control pipeline. PrinSeq was used to quality filter reads below 100 bp in length and below an average quality score of 25, and to remove duplicates and sequence tags (Schmieder & Edwards, 2011b). Reads assigned as human were removed using DeconSeq (Schmieder & Edwards, 2011a). Post quality control, the Nansen library contained 121,455 reads, Greely_1 contained 69,918 reads, and Greely_2 contained 40,344 reads. Seven publicly accessible white snow metagenomes from Svalbard glaciers (a.k.a., 'white snow' throughout manuscript) sampled April through June were downloaded from MG-RAST (see Table S2 for MG-RAST IDs), and reads were quality filtered using the same pipeline as the Franz Josef Land red snow libraries (Maccario, Vogel & Larose, 2014). Metagenomes were analyzed using KEGG and M5NR databases within MG-RAST version 3.3 (Meyer et al., 2008). The red snow and white snow libraries were compared to the KEGG database to assign reads to KEGG pathways (e-value <1 × 10−5; >60% identity; >15 aa minimum alignment length). Estimations of taxonomic composition of communities were based on translated comparisons to the non-redundant protein database M5NR (e-value <1 × 10−5; >60% identity; >15 aa minimum alignment length). The dataset was normalized to ensure similar numbers of reads were used for each sample, and then raw read counts were log transformed. Statistical differences between red snow and white snow in the numbers of reads assigned to KEGG pathway groups were identified by ANOVA. Multivariate statistics were performed in R using the vegan (Dixon, 2003), clustsig and the stats packages. The adonis function was used to compare metagenome compositions; vegdist was used to generate distance matrices; simprof was used to cluster metagenomes based on similarity; and prcomp was used to perform Principal Component Analysis.
Results and Discussion
Detection of red snow in a global sample of satellite images
Satellite images with spectral reflectance data were used to approximate snow and ice cover, and red algae abundance (Takeuchi, 2009; Takeuchi et al., 2006) over several years in Franz Josef Land, as well as eleven other regions of United States, Canada, Greenland, Norway, Austria, India, and New Zealand (Fig. S1). Red snow was detected at all eleven locations in all the years (Fig. 1A). The total area of snow and ice were lowest in the most recent year (2013, 2014 or 2015, depending on the location; Fig. S2; Greenland was the exception to this trend). At least 50% of the total snow/ice area was covered with red algae for the most recent year analyzed (Fig. S2; exception New Zealand and Franz Josef Land). In seven of the locations, over 80% of the total snow and ice fields were covered in red algae in the most recent year analyzed (Fig. S2).
A walking transect from sea level to the glacier on Nansen Island in Franz Josef Land was performed in August 2013 (to be described in a separate manuscript). Therefore, this region was targeted for more detailed analysis. Around and on Nansen, the total red snow algal biomass increased by 124% from 1986 to 2002 and by 15% from 2002 to 2006, then decreased by 63% from 2006 to 2015 (Fig. 1B). These changes in algal cover co-occurred with a total decline in the snow and ice cover (Fig. 1B). Visual inspection of the snow and ice on Nansen Island in August of 2013 confirmed the presence of red colored snow and microscopy of red snow samples showed C. nivalis cells. Taken together, these results show that even as total snow and ice cover declines, red snow cover is still highly prevalent or increasing both in Franz Josef Land and other alpine/polar regions.
Microbes present in white snow and red snow
For metagenomic sequencing, red snow samples were taken from Nansen and Greeley Islands, respectively. Seven white snow metagenomes from Svalbard glaciers were also downloaded and analyzed for comparison (see 'Methods' & Table S2 for MG-RAST ID numbers). The genus-level taxonomic compositions of white snow and red snow were significantly different (ADONIS; F = 4.567; p = 0.007). When samples were clustered according to their taxonomical similarities, one red snow sample taken at Greely Island grouped with a Svalbard glacier sample; otherwise the red snow and white snow samples clustered separately (Fig. S3). This indicates minimal overlap in microbial composition at the genus level.
Community DNA sequences were further compared using multivariate analyses with the top 10 most variable taxa (Fig. S4). The first two principal components explained 70% of the between-sample variation in microbial community members. The first principal component described red snow as having higher abundances of species from the bacterial genera Pseudoalteromonas, Alteromonas, Vibrio, and Pedobacter, whereas white snow had higher abundances of species from the eukaryotic genera Aspergillus and Neurospora, as well as the bacterial genera Nostoc, Bacillus and Spirosoma. Red snow had greater overall abundances of Bacteria and viruses (Fig. 2A) and a lower abundance of Eukaryotes (Fig. 2A). The bacterial communities associated with red snow have also been observed in an alpine region (Thomas & Duval, 1995) and are probably supported by photosynthate from the C. nivalis. Evidence also suggests that bacterial cells may physically attach to the outer mucilaginous coating of C. nivalis in red snow, forming an Arctic holobiont (Bordenstein & Theis, 2015; Remias, Lutz-Meindl & Lutz, 2005; Thomas & Duval, 1995).
The metagenomes were also used to verify the presence of Chlamydomonas in snow samples (Fig. S5). Of the sequence reads assigned to Eukaryotes, the proportion of reads assigned to the Chlamydomonas-containing phylum Chlorophyta was higher in red snow than white snow (Fig. 2B). Conversely, the proportion of reads assigned to the fungal phylum Ascomycota was higher in white snow (Fig. 2B).
Functional capabilities of microbial communities in red snow and white snow
The metagenomes were also analyzed for potential metabolic functions. The functions encoded by the red and white snow samples clustered into 8 significant groups, with the red snow samples from Greely and Nansen Islands forming a significant cluster (Fig. S6). Four white snow samples formed a cluster and the remaining white snow samples clustered individually. Multivariate analysis of the top 10 most variable functions showed that the first two principal components explained 82% of the variation in the abundances of functional pathways (Fig. S7). The first component (70% of the variation) showed that the red snow had higher abundances of genes involved in membrane transport, carbohydrate metabolism, nucleotide and amino acid synthesis/degradation, and energy metabolism. White snow communities were shifted toward cell growth and death, folding sorting and degradation, transcription, transport and catabolism pathways and pathways annotated as important in neurodegenerative diseases (i.e., mitochondrial functions in Eukaryotes).
In order to examine whether microbial communities in red snow encoded completely different functional capabilities from those in snow, the numbers of reads assigned to all KEGG pathways were compared using a matrix of Bray-Curtis dissimilarities. Overall the abundances of level 1 KEGG pathways were not significantly different between red snow and white snow (ADONIS; F = 2.135; p = 0.12). However, separate analyses that compared individual pathways (at level 2) between red snow and white snow identified several pathways as significantly different, including pathways related to sugar biosynthesis and metabolism and energy metabolism. Red snow communities had higher abundances of genes that encode lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis and peptidoglycan biosynthesis (Fig. 3A). Red snow also had a higher proportion of reads assigned to oxidative phosphorylation, methane metabolism, carbon fixation in photosynthetic organisms and carbon fixation pathways (Fig. 3B). White snow had higher relative abundances of genes that encode glycan biosynthesis and related pathways such as GPI-anchor biosynthesis, other types of O-glycan biosynthesis and various types of N-glycan biosynthesis (Fig. 3A).
Taken together, these results support the hypothesis that red snow communities include primary producers with a large, heterotrophic community including viruses. These red snow communities are photosynthesizing and fixing carbon, and also metabolizing methane, processes that could accelerate snow melting. In contrast, white snow communities appear to be dominated by fungi, maybe eating refractory organic carbon delivered with the snow (Clarke & Noone, 1985; Rosen, Novakov & Bodhaine, 1981; Thevenon et al., 2009). These white snow communities are lacking the signatures of primary productivity.
Microbiology of snow and ice fields has a long history, including a reference to red snow by Aristotle. However, until now we have not had the tools to determine the full extent and makeup of these communities. Here we use a combination of satellite and metagenomic approaches to show that red snow covers up to 80% of the examined ice and snow fields. Metagenomics of red snow from Franz Josef Land, one of the most remote polar land masses in the world, show that these communities support a full food web ranging from algae to heterotrophic microbes to viruses. Because of the reduced albedo associated with these communities, red snow creates a positive feedback loop that increases its abundance while simultaneously melting ice and snow (Fig. 4). In addition to the direct effects on sunlight absorbance, the heterotrophic activity (including viral lysis) will increase local temperatures. Together, these effects may significantly increase ice and snow melting in the Barents Sea region that is already one of the fastest-warming regions on earth. Projections for global red snow coverage and its influence on warming patterns should be investigated further.
Supplemental Information
Supplementary methods
Satellite image sites
Black points indicate the locations analyzed for red snow content. Harding Ice Field, United States (1); Olympic National Park, United States (2); Rocky Mountains, Canada (3); Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, United States (4); Glacier National Park, United States (5); Mittavikkat Glacier, Greenland (6); Svalbard Archipelago, Norway (7); Grossglockner Mountain, Austria (8); Nansen Island, Franz Josef Land (9); Himalaya Mountain Range, India (10); Mt. Cook, New Zealand (11).
Time series comparisons
A time series comparison of the total area of snow and sea ice, total algal biomass, and percentage of total snow that is covered with algae at ten different study sites.
Taxonomic similarities-Clustering
Clustering of snow and red snow communities based on similarities in taxonomic composition. Colored branches indicate significant clusters, with each color representing one cluster. Labels with 'SVN' correspond to white snow samples and 'Greely 1', 'Greely 2', and 'Nansen' correspond to red snow samples.
Taxonomic similarities-PCA
Plot from principal components analysis of red snow and snow community taxonomic composition. Arrows indicate over-representation of certain taxa (red text) in particular red snow or snow communities (black text). Labels are described in the legend for Fig. S3.
Bar plots showing genus level comparisons of reads assigned to Chlorophyta. The y-axis shows the proportion of reads assigned to the phylum Chlorophyta for each genus. Red bars indicate data from red snow samples and khaki bars indicate data from snow. Snow metagenomes did not contain any reads from the following genera: Scenedesmus, Pyramimonas, Dunaliella, Prototheca, and Pseudendoclonium.
Functional similarities-Clustering
Clustering of snow and red snow samples based on similarities in functions encoded by each community sample. Colored branches indicate significant clusters, with each color representing one cluster. Labels are described in the legend for Fig. S3.
Functional similarities-PCA
Principal components analysis of red snow and snow community functions. Arrows indicate over-representation of certain functional categories (red text) in particular red snow or snow communities (black text). Labels are described in the legend for Fig. S3.
Predicting algal abundance
The relationship between reflectance band ratio values, C. nivalis biomass, and the proposed level of algae abundance, extrapolated from a positive linear correlation between reflectance band ratio and algal biomass that was shown in previous research (Takeuchi et al., 2006).
Metagenomic samples
Landsat IDs
This file lists the Landsat IDs used for satellite image analysis of snow/ice/red snow abundances. Images can be acquired freely at: http://earthexplorer.usgs.gov/.