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Switching power supplies are now very cheap, but this wasn't always the case. In the 1950s, switching power supplies were complex and expensive, used in aerospace and satellite applications that needed small, lightweight power supplies. By the early 1970s, new high-voltage transistors and other technology improvements made switching power supplies much cheaper and they became widely used in computers.[2] The introduction of a single-chip power supply controller in 1976 made switching power supplies simpler, smaller, and cheaper.
Apple's involvement with switching power supplies goes back to 1977 when Apple's chief engineer Rod Holt designed a switching power supply for the Apple II. According to Steve Jobs:[3]
"That switching power supply was as revolutionary as the Apple II logic board was. Rod doesn't get a lot of credit for this in the history books but he should. Every computer now uses switching power supplies, and they all rip off Rod Holt's design."
This is a fantastic quote, but unfortunately it is entirely false. The switching power supply revolution happened before Apple came along, Apple's design was similar to earlier power supplies[4] and other computers don't use Rod Holt's design. Nevertheless, Apple has extensively used switching power supplies and pushes the limits of charger design with their compact, stylish and advanced chargers.
Inside the charger
For the teardown I started with a Macbook 85W power supply, model A1172, which is small enough to hold in your palm. The picture below shows several features that can help distinguish the charger from counterfeits: the Apple logo in the case, the metal (not plastic) ground pin on the right, and the serial number next to the ground pin.
AC enters the charger
AC power enters the charger through a removable AC plug. A big advantage of switching power supplies is they can be designed to run on a wide range of input voltages. By simply swapping the plug, the charger can be used in any region of the world, from European 240 volts at 50 Hertz to North American 120 volts at 60 Hz. The filter capacitors and inductors in the input stage prevent interference from exiting the charger through the power lines. The bridge rectifier contains four diodes, which convert the AC power into DC. (See this video for a great demonstration of how a full bridge rectifier works.)
PFC: smoothing the power usage
The next step in the charger's operation is the Power Factor Correction circuit (PFC), labeled in purple. One problem with simple chargers is they only draw power during a small part of the AC cycle.[5] If too many devices do this, it causes problems for the power company. Regulations require larger chargers to use a technique called power factor correction so they use power more evenly.
The PFC circuit uses a power transistor to precisely chop up the input AC tens of thousands of times a second; contrary to what you might expect, this makes the load on the AC line smoother. Two of the largest components in the charger are the inductor and PFC capacitor that help boost the voltage to about 380 volts DC.[6]
The primary: chopping up the power
The primary circuit is the heart of the charger. It takes the high voltage DC from the PFC circuit, chops it up and feeds it into the transformer to generate the charger's low-voltage output (16.5-18.5 volts). The charger uses an advanced design called a resonant controller, which lets the system operate at a very high frequency, up to 500 kilohertz. The higher frequency permits smaller components to be used for a more compact charger. The chip below controls the switching power supply.[7]
The two drive transistors (in the overview diagram) alternately switch on and off to chop up the input voltage. The transformer and capacitor resonate at this frequency, smoothing the chopped-up input into a sine wave.
The secondary: smooth, clean power output
The secondary side of the circuit generates the output of the charger. The secondary receives power from the transformer and converts it DC with diodes. The filter capacitors smooth out the power, which leaves the charger through the output cable.
The most important role of the secondary is to keep the dangerous high voltages in the rest of the charger away from the output, to avoid potentially fatal shocks. The isolation boundary marked in red on the earlier diagram indicates the separation between the high-voltage primary and the low-voltage secondary. The two sides are separated by a distance of about 6 mm, and only special components can cross this boundary.
The transformer safely transmits power between the primary and the secondary by using magnetic fields instead of a direct electrical connection. The coils of wire inside the transformer are triple-insulated for safety. Cheap counterfeit chargers usually skimp on the insulation, posing a safety hazard. The optoisolator uses an internal beam of light to transmit a feedback signal between the secondary and primary. The control chip on the primary side uses this feedback signal to adjust the switching frequency to keep the output voltage stable.
A powerful microprocessor in your charger?
One unexpected component is a tiny circuit board with a microcontroller, which can be seen above. This 16-bit processor constantly monitors the charger's voltage and current. It enables the output when the charger is connected to a Macbook, disables the output when the charger is disconnected, and shuts the charger off if there is a problem. This processor is a Texas Instruments MSP430 microcontroller, roughly as powerful as the processor inside the original Macintosh.[8]
The square orange pads on the right are used to program software into the chip's flash memory during manufacturing.[9] The three-pin chip on the left (IC202) reduces the charger's 16.5 volts to the 3.3 volts required by the processor.[10]
The charger's underside: many tiny components
Turning the charger over reveals dozens of tiny components on the circuit board. The PFC controller chip and the power supply (SMPS) controller chip are the main integrated circuits controlling the charger. The voltage reference chip is responsible for keeping the voltage stable even as the temperature changes.[11] These chips are surrounded by tiny resistors, capacitors, diodes and other components. The output MOSFET transistor switches the power to the output on and off, as directed by the microcontroller. To the left of it, the current sense resistors measure the current flowing to the laptop.
One reason the charger has more control components than a typical charger is its variable output voltage. To produce 60 watts, the charger provides 16.5 volts at 3.6 amps. For 85 watts, the voltage increases to 18.5 volts at 4.6 amps. This allows the charger to be compatible with lower-voltage 60 watt chargers, while still providing 85 watts for laptops that can use it.[13] As the current increases above 3.6 amps, the circuit gradually increases the output voltage. If the current increases too much, the charger abruptly shuts down around 90 watts.[14]
Inside the Magsafe connector
The magnetic Magsafe connector that plugs into the Macbook is more complex than you would expect. It has five spring-loaded pins (known as Pogo pins) to connect to the laptop. Two pins are power, two pins are ground, and the middle pin is a data connection to the laptop.
Operation of the charger
You may have noticed that when you plug the connector into a Macbook, it takes a second or two for the LED to light up. During this time, there are complex interactions between the Macbook, the charger, and the Magsafe connector.When the charger is disconnected from the laptop, the output transistor discussed earlier blocks the output power.[15] When the Magsafe connector is plugged into a Macbook, the laptop pulls the power line low.[16] The microcontroller in the charger detects this and after exactly one second enables the power output. The laptop then loads the charger information from the Magsafe connector chip. If all is well, the laptop starts pulling power from the charger and sends a command through the data pin to light the appropriate connector LED. When the Magsafe connector is unplugged from the laptop, the microcontroller detects the loss of current flow and shuts off the power, which also extinguishes the LEDs.
You might wonder why the Apple charger has all this complexity. Other laptop chargers simply provide 16 volts and when you plug it in, the computer uses the power. The main reason is for safety, to ensure that power isn't flowing until the connector is firmly attached to the laptop. This minimizes the risk of sparks or arcing while the Magsafe connector is being put into position.
Why you shouldn't get a cheap charger
The Macbook 85W charger costs $79 from Apple, but for $14 you can get a charger on eBay that looks identical. Do you get anything for the extra $65? I opened up an imitation Macbook charger to see how it compares with the genuine charger. From the outside, the charger looks just like an 85W Apple charger except it lacks the Apple name and logo. But looking inside reveals big differences. The photos below show the genuine Apple charger on the left and the imitation on the right.
The imitation charger has about half the components of the genuine charger and a lot of blank space on the circuit board. While the genuine Apple charger is crammed full of components, the imitation leaves out a lot of filtering and regulation as well as the entire PFC circuit. The transformer in the imitation charger (big yellow rectangle) is much bulkier than in Apple's charger; the higher frequency of Apple's more advanced resonant converter allows a smaller transformer to be used.
Flipping the chargers over and looking at the circuit boards shows the much more complex circuitry of the Apple charger. The imitation charger has just one control IC (in the upper left).[17] since the PFC circuit is omitted entirely. In addition, the control circuits are much less complex and the imitation leaves out the ground connection.
The imitation charger is actually better quality than I expected, compared to the awful counterfeit iPad charger and iPhone charger that I examined. The imitation Macbook charger didn't cut every corner possible and uses a moderately complex circuit. The imitation charger pays attention to safety, using insulating tape and keeping low and high voltages widely separated, except for one dangerous assembly error that can be seen below. The Y capacitor (blue) was installed crooked, so its connection lead from the low-voltage side ended up dangerously close to a pin on the high-voltage side of the optoisolator (black), creating a risk of shock.
Problems with Apple's chargers
The ironic thing about the Apple Macbook charger is that despite its complexity and attention to detail, it's not a reliable charger. When I told people I was doing a charger teardown, I rapidly collected a pile of broken chargers from people who had failed chargers. The charger cable is rather flimsy, leading to a class action lawsuit stating that the power adapter dangerously frays, sparks and prematurely fails to work. Apple provides detailed instructions on how to avoid damaging the wire, but a stronger cable would be a better solution. The result is reviews on the Apple website give the charger a dismal 1.5 out of 5 stars.
Macbook chargers also fail due to internal problems. The photos above and below show burn marks inside a failed Apple charger from my collection.[18] I can't tell exactly what went wrong, but something caused a short circuit that burnt up a few components. (The white gunk in the photo is insulating silicone used to mount the board.)
Why Apple's chargers are so expensive
As you can see, the genuine Apple charger has a much more advanced design than the imitation charger and includes more safety features. However, the genuine charger costs $65 more and I doubt the additional components cost more than $10 to $15[19]. Most of the cost of the charger goes into the healthy profit margin that Apple has on their products. Apple has an estimated 45% profit margin on iPhones[20] and chargers are probably even more profitable. Despite this, I don't recommend saving money with a cheap eBay charger due to the safety risk.
People don't give much thought to what's inside a charger, but a lot of interesting circuitry is crammed inside. The charger uses advanced techniques such as power factor correction and a resonant switching power supply to produce 85 watts of power in a compact, efficient unit. The Macbook charger is an impressive piece of engineering, even if it's not as reliable as you'd hope. On the other hand, cheap no-name chargers cut corners and often have safety issues, making them risky, both to you and your computer.Notes and references
[1] The main alternative to a switching power supply is a linear power supply, which is much simpler and converts excess voltage to heat. Because of this wasted energy, linear power supplies are only about 60% efficient, compared to about 85% for a switching power supply. Linear power supplies also use a bulky transformer that may weigh multiple pounds, while switching power supplies can use a tiny high-frequency transformer.[2] Switching power supplies were taking over the computer industry as early as 1971. Electronics World said that companies using switching regulators "read like a 'Who's Who' of the computer industry: IBM, Honeywell, Univac, DEC, Burroughs, and RCA, to name a few". See "The Switching Regulator Power Supply", Electronics World v86 October 1971, p43-47. In 1976, Silicon General introduced SG1524 PWM integrated circuit, which put the control circuitry for a switching power supply on a single chip.
[3] The quote about the Apple II power supply is from page 74 of the 2011 book Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson. It inspired me to write a detailed history of switching power supplies: Apple didn't revolutionize power supplies; new transistors did. Steve Job's quote sounds convincing, but I consider it the reality distortion field in effect.
[4] If anyone can take the credit for making switching power supplies an inexpensive everyday product, it is Robert Boschert. He started selling switching power supplies in 1974 for everything from printers and computers to the F-14 fighter plane. See Robert Boschert: A Man Of Many Hats Changes The World Of Power Supplies in Electronic Design. The Apple II's power supply is very similar to the Boschert OL25 flyback power supply but with a patented variation.
[5] You might expect the bad power factor is because switching power supplies rapidly turn on and off, but that's not the problem. The difficulty comes from the nonlinear diode bridge, which charges the input capacitor only at peaks of the AC signal. (If you're familiar with power factors due to phase shift, this is totally different. The problem is the non-sinusoidal current, not a phase shift.)
The idea behind PFC is to use a DC-DC boost converter before the switching power supply itself. The boost converter is carefully controlled so its input current is a sinusoid proportional to the AC waveform. The result is the boost converter looks like a nice resistive load to the power line, and the boost converter supplies steady voltage to the switching power supply components.
[6] The charger uses a MC33368 "High Voltage GreenLine Power Factor Controller" chip to run the PFC. The chip is designed for low power, high-density applications so it's a good match for the charger.
[7] The SMPS controller chip is a L6599 high-voltage resonant controller; for some reason it is labeled DAP015D. It uses a resonant half-bridge topology; in a half-bridge circuit, two transistors control power through the transformer first one direction and then the other. Common switching power supplies use a PWM (pulse width modulation) controller, which adjusts the time the input is on. The L6599, on the other hand, adjusts the frequency instead of the pulse width. The two transistors alternate switching on for 50% of the time. As the frequency increases above the resonant frequency, the power drops, so controlling the frequency regulates the output voltage.
[8] The processor in the charger is a MSP430F2003 ultra low power microcontroller with 1kB of flash and just 128 bytes of RAM. It includes a high-precision 16-bit analog to digital converter. More information is here.
The 68000 microprocessor from the original Apple Macintosh and the 430 microcontroller in the charger aren't directly comparable as they have very different designs and instruction sets. But for a rough comparison, the 68000 is a 16/32 bit processor running at 7.8MHz, while the MSP430 is a 16 bit processor running at 16MHz. The Dhrystone benchmark measures 1.4 MIPS (million instructions per second) for the 68000 and much higher performance of 4.6 MIPS for the MSP430. The MSP430 is designed for low power consumption, using about 1% of the power of the 68000.
[9] The 60W Macbook charger uses a custom MSP430 processor, but the 85W charger uses a general-purpose processor that needs to loaded with firmware. The chip is programmed with the Spy-Bi-Wire interface, which is TI's two-wire variant of the standard JTAG interface. After programming, a security fuse inside the chip is blown to prevent anyone from reading or modifying the firmware.
[10] The voltage to the processor is provided by not by a standard voltage regulator, but a LT1460 precision reference, which outputs 3.3 volts with the exceptionally high accuracy of 0.075%. This seems like overkill to me; this chip is the second-most expensive chip in the charger after the SMPS controller, based on Octopart's prices.
[11] The voltage reference chip is unusual, it is a TSM103/A that combines two op amps and a 2.5V reference in a single chip. Semiconductor properties vary widely with temperature, so keeping the voltage stable isn't straightforward. A clever circuit called a bandgap reference cancels out temperature variations; I explain it in detail here.
[12] Since some readers are very interested in grounding, I'll give more details. A 1KΩ ground resistor connects the AC ground pin to the charger's output ground. (With the 2-pin plug, the AC ground pin is not connected.) Four 9.1MΩ resistors connect the internal DC ground to the output ground. Since they cross the isolation boundary, safety is an issue. Their high resistance avoids a shock hazard. In addition, since there are four resistors in series for redundancy, the charger remains safe even if a resistor shorts out somehow. There is also a Y capacitor (680pF, 250V) between the internal ground and output ground; this blue capacitor is on the upper side of the board. A T5A fuse (5 amps) protects the output ground.
[13] The power in watts is simply the volts multiplied by the amps. Increasing the voltage is beneficial because it allows higher wattage; the maximum current is limited by the wire size.
[14] The control circuitry is fairly complex. The output voltage is monitored by an op amp in the TSM103/A chip which compares it with a reference voltage generated by the same chip. This amplifier sends a feedback signal via an optoisolator to the SMPS control chip on the primary side. If the voltage is too high, the feedback signal lowers the voltage and vice versa. That part is normal for a power supply, but ramping the voltage from 16.5 volts to 18.5 volts is where things get complicated.
The output current creates a voltage across the current sense resistors, which have a tiny resistance of 0.005Ω each - they are more like wires than resistors. An op amp in the TSM103/A chip amplifies this voltage. This signal goes to tiny TS321 op amp which starts ramping up when the signal corresponds to 4.1A. This signal goes into the previously-described monitoring circuit, increasing the output voltage.
The current signal also goes into a tiny TS391 comparator, which sends a signal to the primary through another optoisolator to cut the output voltage. This appears to be a protection circuit if the current gets too high. The circuit board has a few spots where zero-ohm resistors (i.e. jumpers) can be installed to change the op amp's amplification. This allows the amplification to be adjusted for accuracy during manufacture.
[15] If you measure the voltage from a Macbook charger, you'll find about six volts instead of the 16.5 volts you'd expect. The reason is the output is deactivated and you're only measuring the voltage through the bypass resistor just below the output transistor.
[16] The laptop pulls the charger output low with a 39.41KΩ resistor to indicate that it is ready for power. An interesting thing is it won't work to pull the output too low - shorting the output to ground doesn't work. This provides a safety feature. Accidental contact with the pins is unlikely to pull the output to the right level, so the charger is unlikely to energize except when properly connected.
[17] The imitation charger uses the Fairchild FAN7602 Green PWM Controller chip, which is more advanced than I expected in a knock-off; I wouldn't have been surprised if it just used a simple transistor oscillator. Another thing to note is the imitation charger uses a single-sided circuit board, while the genuine uses a double-sided circuit board, due to the much more complex circuit.
[18] The burnt charger is an Apple A1222 85W Macbook charger, which is a different model from the A1172 charger in the rest of the teardown. The A1222 is in a slightly smaller, square case and has a totally different design based on the NCP 1203 PWM controller chip. Components in the A1222 charger are packed even more tightly than in the A1172 charger. Based on the burnt-up charger, I think they pushed the density a bit too far.
[19] I looked up many of the charger components on Octopart to see their prices. Apple's prices should be considerably lower. The charger has many tiny resistors, capacitors and transistors; they cost less than a cent each. The larger power semiconductors, capacitors and inductors cost considerably more. I was surprised that the 16-bit MSP430 processor costs only about $0.45. I estimated the price of the custom transformers. The list below shows the main components.
Component | Cost | |
MSP430F2003 processor | $0.45 | |
MC33368D PFC chip | $0.50 | |
L6599 controller chip | $1.62 | |
LT1460 3.3V reference | $1.46 | |
TSM103/A reference | $0.16 | |
2x P11NM60AFP 11A 600V MOSFET | $2.00 | |
3x Vishay optocoupler | $0.48 | |
2x 630V 0.47uF film capacitor | $0.88 | |
4x 25V 680uF electrolytic capacitor | $0.12 | |
420V 82uF electrolytic capacitor | $0.93 | |
polypropylene X2 capacitor | $0.17 | |
3x toroidal inductor | $0.75 | |
4A 600V diode bridge | $0.40 | |
2x dual common-cathode schottky rectifier 60V, 15A | $0.80 | |
20NC603 power MOSFET | $1.57 | |
transformer | $1.50? | |
PFC inductor | $1.50? |
[20] The article Breaking down the full $650 cost of the iPhone 5 describes Apple's profit margins in detail, estimating 45% profit margin on the iPhone. Some people have suggested that Apple's research and development expenses explain the high cost of their chargers, but the math shows R&D costs must be negligible. The book Practical Switching Power Supply Design estimates 9 worker-months to design and perfect a switching power supply, so perhaps $200,000 of engineering cost. More than 20 million Macbooks are sold per year, so the R&D cost per charger would be one cent. Even assuming the Macbook charger requires ten times the development of a standard power supply only increases the cost to 10 cents.


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Identity area
Reference code
- 1993-05-20 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
1 videocassette (7:51 min.) : VHS, col., sd., stereo
Context area
Name of creator
Administrative history
Between 1965 and 1974 the BCIT Student Association was primarily concerned with student's social and recreational activities, particularly sports. Funding for Student Association activities were provided by an activity fee of $15 levied against each student. In 1966 the Association produced its first year book. In 1969 the SA successfully lobbied the provincial government for the construction of a Student Activity Centre. The construction of the Centre was completed in 1971. In 1983, phase 1 of the new Campus Centre was opened. The building was to include racquet ball courts and office spaces. Phase 2 would include a new pub and cafeteria.
BCIT Student Society executives include the following individuals:
1965-1966 Kenneth McLean
1966-1967 Eric Schultz
1967-1968 Douglas Hall
1968-1969 Brian Hall
1969-1970 Julio Russo
1970-1971 Edgar Rhomberg
1971-1972 Laurie Jack
1972-1973 Tony Schelling
*1973-1974 Grahame Fane
1984 Antoine Van Dierendonck 1985 Donald Rippon
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Videorecording of a skit performed at the 1993 Student Association Pizza Bash. The skit was performed to demonstrate negative student experiences from the academic orientation and what the ideal experience is for students.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Playback of physical tape restricted for preservation reasons.
Conditions governing reproduction
Copyright: BCIT; expiry unknown
Language of material
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
- video/mp4
- some warping along bottom of video at various times
Finding aids
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Notes area
File size: 0.62 GB
Title taken from original
Alternative identifier(s)
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Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- BCIT. Student Association (Subject)
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
S. Holland, Archival Assistant, created 2018-11-16
Digital object metadata
Media type

subset: commoncrawl


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Business Listings: Critical Data For Online
Business Listings: Critical Data For Online
Business Listings for Local SEO
If you want to rank well in local search, you need consistent NAP data, website, hours, and more across all major listing directories. This is essential for search engines to validate you as a credible local business.
The more accurate and consistent data there is about your business across the web, the more search engines will trust the validity of the business. And the more the search engines trust the business, the higher they will rank in local SERPs (Search Engine Results Page).
According to Moz in their 2017 Local Search Ranking Factors survey, 13% of professionals list citation signals as the most important element in Local Pack Ranking factor.
Moz, 2017
What's in your online business listings?
The information contained in business listings can vary across verticals and directories—but some key pieces of information hold true across them all.
NAP Data
The most crucial data held in a business listing is the NAP data—name, address, and phone number information. NAP data is critical for the online visibility of any business, and every listing source contains this information for the businesses listed. Having correct NAP data ensures that not only will consumers find your business online, but that consumers will also have accurate, up-to-date information on how to contact you.
NAP data is also important for search engines like Google to display your business in geo-targeted searches. If someone is searching "good seafood" in the Boston area, the local Boston seafood places with correct NAP data will appear. Of course Google gives search ranking priority to business with correct NAP data—how else are they supposed to tell where you are, what you do, and if you're even a legitimate business at all?
The stats
Consumers are looking for your business! What exactly are they looking for?
- 53% of mobile searchers are looking for directions
- 50% are looking for business addresses
Despite the importance of accurate NAP data, our data shows that many businesses are failing even at this basic step into the world of listings.
- 86% of businesses have either missing or incorrect company name information listed across all listings sources
- 72% of businesses have either missing or incorrect address information listed across all listings sources
- 71% of businesses have either missing or incorrect phone number information listed across all listings sources
Data taken from the 140,000+ local businesses in our system
Hours of Operation
One of the most important details about your business to include besides NAP data is the hours of operation. When a consumer is searching for their business (or their goods/services), they have a high purchase intent, and are likely searching for an immediate need.
The consumer will likely a visit a business after the business is shown as "open" on their Google search.
If your business listings have no hours listed, the consumer would have to go out of their way to find out whether you're open or closed from their website, or a phone call. Or, worse yet, they drive to visit your business and find that you're closed! Now they're not only inconvenienced by not knowing your business hours, but they're also upset for wasting their time. Let the negative reviews commence!
If your competitor has their business hours listed, they'll likely capture that consumer. People just want their needs fulfilled—they'd be happy to spend their money at a business that has their hours correctly listed if they were coming in-store to make the purchase.
The stats
- 73% of purchases that result from mobile searches happen within the same day, and most (63%) within a few hours
- 76% of consumers report that they expected hours of operation information when conducting a search
- Over 60% of consumers find that knowing the business hours helps them make their purchase decision
Consumers are often looking to make purchases the same day that they're searching, so make sure they know your store is open when they go looking!
Does your business have a central "hub" of information to direct users to online? Throw that website link into your business listings. Consumers will often travel from Google search into a business website to get a feel for the business, and learn more about what they're offering. So obviously, including a link to your website is important for their online presence.
The stats
- 93% of businesses have either missing or incorrect website information listed across all listings sources
- Only 7% of businesses have their website information correct across all listing sources
- Nearly half of small businesses don't have a website (Clutch)
Website accuracy by industry
If a user can find your website, they'll get a better impression of your business, and likely have a more positive experience. With nearly half of small businesses not having a website, you can make your business stand out on the SERP by including your website data in the listing information.
Other business listings information to include
Depending on your business vertical, there may be other pieces of information important for you to include in their online business listings.
- Payment methods
- Services
- Brands
- Holiday hours
- Photos
- Social profiles
- And more!
The more information you include across all business listings sources and directories, the easier it will be for consumers to find your business and purchase your products and/or services. Contact Riggs Agency today to improve and monitior your online listings today.


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Today is the first birthday of the Midleton Farmers Market – a whole year has whizzed by since we set up our stalls for the first time behind the court house. After initial discussions about the location with the local community it was set up with the full support of the Chamber of Commerce and the Urban Council. From an initial twelve stalls the market has blossomed and gone from strength to strength. The Country Market joined in from the very beginning.
Farmers Markets are set up for the express intention of providing an outlet for farmers and small food producers to sell local seasonal produce to the consumers who are desperately seeking this kind of food. These markets are different from some of the established markets, they do not sell clothes, cd's, tools, bric-a-brac… they simply sell local food to local people , the producers themselves or an appropriate representative must man the stall. They enable farmers and food producers to sell their goods locally which benefits both them and the local community. They keep the money circulating within the local area and attract people to adjacent retail businesses. Farmers Markets benefit the environment by encouraging sustainable agriculture and small scale less intensive production. They reduce the effects of the long distance transport of food and the need for excess packaging.
The variety of produce is amazing and of course most abundant during the growing season. As you enter the market area, Mrs. Burns who has been a trader for many years sells a variety of local vegetables, bundles of fresh carrots and turnips…… in season. Wendy English and her mother are next with their table piled high with freshly baked scones, cakes, biscuits, jam and chutney. Next comes Frank O'Neill with a variety of goodies, carrot cakes, delicious little pies, some beautifully grown vegetables from his own garden and little pots of jellies and jams.
The Ballymaloe Cookery School Gardens stall is next, with organic vegetables, lots of free range eggs, brown bread, jams and chutneys. Little bunches of sweet pea, Nora Aherne's duck, Frank Krycwzk's salamis, chorizo, fresh herbs, salad dressings, elderflower cordial and occasionally organic free range pork from our own saddleback pigs. Frank Hederman from Belvelly near Cobh has a tempting array of smoked fish, chicken,duck, and mussels. Sarah Mossman swings into action by his side making crepes which literally sell like hot cakes. Fiona Burke who does three markets a week, Macroom and Bantry, as well as Midleton, sells a gorgeous selection of Irish farmhouse cheese, as well as carefully chosen Continental cheese, eg. aged Gouda, Comte, Double Gloucester and some seaweed products, and Fingal Ferguson's Gubbeen Bacon. Clodagh McKenna from Ballymaloe House has a little stall sandwiched between Fiona Burke and the Yorks. She sells delicious home made fresh pasta, parsley pesto, tomato fondue, toffee apples, brown soda bread and seasonal soups and dressings.
Tim and Fiona York have recently joined the market and sell a tantalizing array of organic vegetables and plants and plan to expand their range. Local cheesemaker Jane Murphy sells a fresh and a mature version of her exquisite Ardsallagh goat cheese – a delicate gorgeous cheese that tastes of the rich pastures that the goats are fed on. The irrepressible plantsman Ted Murphy trades beside her with an colourful selection of pot plants, herbs and flowers. Helen Aherne and Frances Lucey man the Country Market stall brimming with cakes and biscuits and occasionally a few duck eggs and wild mushrooms in season.. David and Siobhan Barry have a truck full of vegetables and fruit. Kate O'Donovan, of the market, sells her delicious homemade marinades, dressings and dips, and Margaret Keane's quiches, side by side with Marog O'Brien of the Farmgate Restaurant here in Midleton, who sells Declan Ryan's fantastic breads – soda, yeast and sourdough and some of her own famous chocolate cake. Next comes local farmer Dan O'Neill and his wife Anne. They invested in a refrigerated truck and now sell their organic beef. He responded to the numerous requests for free range organic chickens and now can scarcely fulfill the demand. Oren Little of the Little Apple Co. drive down from Kilkenny every Saturday to sell their cooking and eating apples and delicious apple juice. Chris Cashman's cakes made with butter sell out in no time and finally Willie Scannell sells his Ballycotton potatoes, he like many others was a victim of the supermarkets' central distribution policy, now the Midleton Farmers Market allows him the opportunity to sell his potatoes directly to the consumer, his future is secure, and this year he will have a selection of vegetables including lettuce, cabbage, white turnips, radishes and onions. The variety of produce is truly amazing. The market has been enthusiastically supported, not only by the local community, but by the local shops who report an increase in business on market day.
Midleton Farmers Market is held every Saturday from 10am-2pm on Hospital Road.
Ardsallagh Goat Cheese with Rocket Leaves, Roast Pepper and Tapenade Oil
Serves 5
10ozs (285g) Ardsallagh goat cheese (or a similar fresh mild goat cheese)
seasoned flour
beaten egg
flaked almonds
white breadcrumbs
2 large red peppers
Extra virgin olive oil
Tapenade Oil
4 ozs (110g/3/4 cup) stoned black olives
1 tablespoon (1 American tablespoon + 1 teaspoon) capers
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Freshly ground pepper
6 fl ozs (170ml) olive oil
A selection of lettuces and rocket leaves
4 tablesp. (5 american tablesp. + 1 teasp.) extra virgin olive oil
1 tablesp.(1 American tablesp. + 1 teasp.) Balsamic vinegar
1/2 clove garlic crushed
salt and freshly ground pepper
Wild garlic flowers in season
First divide the Ardsallagh goat cheese into 25 balls, chill. Next make the Tapenade oil Coarsely chop the stoned black olives, add the freshly squeezed lemon juice. Whisk in the olive oil as you whisk and process to a course or smooth puree as you prefer. Coat the cheese in seasoned flour, beaten egg, flaked almonds, breadcrumbs. Arrange in a single layer on a flat plate. Cover and chill well. Roast the peppers in a preheated oven 200C/400F/gas mark 6 for approximately 20 minutes. Put into a bowl, cover the top with cling film and allow to steam for 5 or 10 minutes. Peel, remove seeds and cut into strips. Next make the dressing Whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl. Heat the oil in a deep fry or a pan to 200C Fry the goat cheese croquettes in batches until crisp and golden. Drain on kitchen paper. Toss the lettuces and salad leaves in a bowl with just enough dressing to make the leaves glisten. Divide between the six plates. Put five croquettes on each plate, decorate with strips or red pepper, rocket leaves and a drizzle of Tapenade oil. Scatter some wild garlic flowers over the top and serve immediately
Globe Artichokes with Melted Butter
Whole Globe artichokes are quite fiddly to eat. First you pull off each leaf separately and dip in the sauce. Eventually you are rewarded for your patience when you come to the heart! Don't forget to scrape off the tickly 'choke'; then cut the heart into manageable pieces, sprinkle with a little sea salt before you dip it into the remainder of your sauce. Simply Delicious!
Serves 6
6 globe artichokes
2 pints (1.1L/5 cups) water
2 teasp. salt
2 teaspoons approx. white wine vinegar
Melted Butter
6 ozs (170g/) butter
Freshly squeezed juice of * lemon approx.
Some restaurants do very complicated preparation but I merely trim the base just before cooking so the artichokes will sit steadily on the plate, rub the cut end with lemon juice or vinegar to prevent it from discolouring. Have a large saucepan of boiling water ready, add 2 teaspoons of vinegar and 2 teaspoons of salt to every 2 pints of water, pop in the artichokes and bring the water back to the boil. Simmer steadily for about 25 minutes. After about 20 minutes you could try testing to see if they are done. I do this by tugging off one of the larger leaves at the base, it should come away easily, if it doesn't continue to cook for another 5 – 10 minutes. Remove and drain upside down on a plate. While they are cooking simply melt the butter and add lemon juice to taste. To Serve Put each warm artichoke onto a hot serving plate, serve the sauce or melted butter in a little bowl beside it. Artichokes are eaten with your fingers, so you might like to provide a finger bowl. A spare plate to collect all the nibbled leaves will also be useful.
Globe Artichokes with Vinaigrette Dressing
Ingredients as above excluding the melted butter.
Vinaigrette Dressing
2 fl ozs (50ml/) wine vinegar
6 fl ozs (150ml/) olive oil or a mixture of olive and other oils, e.g. sunflower and arachide
1 level teasp. (* American teasp.) mustard (Dijon or English)
1 large clove garlic
1 scallion or small spring onion
Sprig of parsley, finely chopped
Sprig of watercress, finely chopped
1 level teasp. salt
Few grinds of pepper
Put all the ingredients into a blender and run at medium speed for 1 minute approx. or mix oil and vinegar in a bowl, add mustard, salt, freshly ground pepper and mashed garlic, chopped parsley, spring onion and watercress. Whisk before serving. Cook the artichokes as above. Serve little bowls of vinaigrette dressing with the warm artichokes.
Gooseberry and Elderflower Sponge
Serves 6-8
3 eggs, preferably free range
3 fl ozs (75ml) water
8 ozs (225g/1 cup) sugar
5 ozs (140g/1 cup) flour
1 teasp. baking powder
1 lb (450g) green gooseberries
2 elderflower heads
1/2 pint (300ml/11/4 cups) cold water
1 lb (225g/1 cup) sugar
4 fl ozs (110ml/1/2 cup) whipped cream
2 teasp. icing sugar
Separate the eggs. Whisk the yolks with the sugar for 2 minutes in a food mixer and then add in the water. Whisk until light and fluffy, 10 minutes approx. Gently Fold in the sieved flour and baking powder into the mousse in batches. Whisk the egg whites until they hold a stiff peak. Fold them in very gently. Bake in two greased and floured 8 inch (20.5cm) sandwich tins in a moderately hot oven 190C/375F/regulo 5 for 20 minutes. Next make the filling, first top and tail the gooseberries. Tie 2 or 3 elderflower heads in a little square of muslin, put in a stainless steel or enamelled saucepan, add the sugar and cover with cold water. Bring slowly to the boil and continue to boil for 2 minutes. Add the gooseberries and simmer just until the fruit bursts. Allow to get cold. Fill the sponge with whipped cream and well drained gooseberry and elderflower compote.* Sieve the icing sugar on top before serving. * You may have some over, reserve and serve with cream as a separate dessert.


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Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
NEW YORK (AP) - Time magazine selected Pope Francis as its Person of the Year on Wednesday, saying the Catholic Church's new leader has changed the perception of the 2,000-year-old institution in an extraordinary way in a short time.
The pope beat out NSA leaker Edward Snowden for the distinction, which the newsmagazine has been giving each year since 1927.
The former Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected in March as the first pope from Latin America and the first Jesuit. Since taking over at the Vatican, he has urged the Catholic Church not to be obsessed with "small-minded rules" and to emphasize compassion over condemnation in dealing with touchy topics like abortion, gays and contraception.
He has denounced the world's "idolatry of money" and the "global scandal" that nearly 1 billion people today go hungry, and has charmed the masses with his simple style and wry sense of humor. His appearances draw tens of thousands of people and his (at)Pontifex Twitter account recently topped 10 million followers.
"He really stood out to us as someone who has changed the tone and the perception and the focus of one of the world's largest institutions in an extraordinary way," said Nancy Gibbs, the magazine's managing editor.
The Vatican said the honor wasn't surprising given the resonance in the general public that Francis has had, but it nevertheless said the choice was a "positive" recognition of spiritual values in the international media.
"The Holy Father is not looking to become famous or to receive honors," said the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi. "But if the choice of Person of Year helps spread the message of the Gospel _ a message of God's love for everyone _ he will certainly be happy about that."
It was the third time a Catholic pope had been Time's selection. John Paul II was selected in 1994 and John XXIII was chosen in 1962.
In Argentina on Wednesday, Padre Toto, one of the many "slum priests" the pope supported for years as archbishop of Buenos Aires, praised Time magazine's selection.
"I think the recognition of Time magazine is good news, because Pope Francis embodies one of the values of a church that's more missionary, closer to the people, more austere, more in keeping with the gospel," Toto said. "He had the genius of knowing how to express this sense of the church and hopefully his way of being will catch on with other political leaders, business executives, sports figures. His leadership is inspiring."
Besides Snowden, Time had narrowed its finalists down to gay rights activist Edith Windsor, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Syrian President Bashar Assad.
President Barack Obama was Time's selection for 2012.
Time editors make the selection. The magazine polled readers for their choice, and the winner was Egyptian General Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, who didn't even make the top 10 of Time's final list.
Associated Press writers Nicole Winfield in Rome and Rodrigo Abd in Buenos Aires contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)


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If you've been paying attention to the news in any form, you know that Debtageddon is on the horizon. What's Debtageddon? It's the day we hit our debt ceiling, the day we can no longer borrow money as a country and coincidentally the day before my birthday.
Tonight the House of Representatives were unable to pass a vote to raise the debt ceiling. The deadline before we hit true crisis mode is August 3rd. After that, no one knows just how badly our economy will be affected. Michelle Bachman thinks everything will be fine, while economists everywhere else are sounding the alarm.
By the way, pretty sure this is just the Grand Old Party, aka the Republicans and John Boehner, trying to screw me out of a great birthday. You can look at it one of three ways.
- My birthday will be followed by the absolute financial crash of America and we will remember it as the day before the end.
- Or, if you're an optimist, all that will happen but we will remember it as the day we no longer gave a damn and had one hell of a party!
- Unlikely option, they agree to raise the debt ceiling and August 3rd is uneventful.
Whatever happens, the following clip from the West Wing illustrates what is going on.
It's scary how many times I have been able to look back at this show and go, oh yeah, that exact thing is happening right now. I have a conspiracy theory that, in an effort to stay relevant a decade after his show would be canceled, Aaron Sorkin traveled to the future. There (here) he ripped headlines from Reuters and brought them back to 1999.
Or perhaps the West Wing is so accurate because it has happened 74 times before…


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by Toba Hellerstein
March 9, 2016
The quagmire that is contemporary Syria is as infinitely complex as it was when it emerged from the ruins of the Ottoman Empire. Its medley of cultures and ethnicities coexisted peaceably under the sultans, but the European powers that inherited the land after World War I were unfamiliar with — and uninterested in protecting — Syria's unique brand of pluralism. Decades of autocratic rule followed. Today, the warring factions that populate the Syrian battlefield speak to the unraveling of Syria's once-cohesive society, but the lessons of the Ottoman Empire remain. Moving forward, those lessons may be the best hope for turning a failed state into a nation at once unified and diverse.
After centuries of Ottoman rule, Syria emerged from World War I in an entirely new form. Under the Ottomans, the area known today as Syria hadn't been a single entity but rather a collection of "wilayats," or provinces, that at times included areas of modern-day Lebanon and Israel. Nor was the population homogenous. The wilayats of Ottoman Syria each comprised an array of ethnicities, cultural identifications and economic structures. After 400 years of rule under the Ottomans, certain particularities of the political system became ingrained. In modern-day Syria before the civil war, cities were divided into culturally distinct quarters: one where you would find the Armenians, another populated by Assyrians. I especially remember the Kurdish markets, where vendors would come dressed in their bright colors to sell fruits and vegetables from the countryside.
In fact, the way in which Syria was governed reinforced the autonomy of these distinct ethnic and religious communities. The Ottomans enforced a policy of pluralism, intended to appease different nations and quell the rise of nationalist movements, in which Jews, Christians and Muslims were all empowered to assert their own identities and therefore had no need to vie for power. Each religious community, known as a "millet," had a representative in Istanbul and was allowed to organize its own affairs, including its people's education, social services and charities and even some of the legal standards by which they lived. The millet controlled all internal disputes such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, and the distribution and collection of taxes. The residue of this community-specific system remained in modern Syria; for example, everyone knew you went to the Armenian quarter to get your silver.
After World War I, however, the European powers divided up the land once ruled by the defeated Ottoman Empire. To be sure, the Europeans had been gradually infiltrating the Middle East for years, enjoying the tax breaks and security ensured by capitulation contracts between their governments and the Ottomans. But after the war, European powers negotiated clear partition lines defining their spheres of influence in the region. The resulting, secret agreement, named for the British and French diplomats who negotiated it, Mark Sykes and Francois Georges-Picot, was signed in spring of 1916. The borders drawn within Sykes-Picot didn't respect the history of the region or the political concerns of the groups within it. Instead, the agreement focused on divvying up the Middle East between the British and the French. In fact, the way in which this agreement broke up the Middle East makes it relevant to a number of post-WWI conflicts. France was determined to remain a power in the Middle East, and through the French Mandate it ultimately controlled southeastern Turkey, northern Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. The population in what had been Greater Syria was artificially divided and at times displaced.
Under the French Mandate, life in Syria changed dramatically. The autonomy that groups had enjoyed under the Ottomans greatly diminished as the French centralized the government and restricted newspapers and political activity. In addition, France pursued a divide-and-rule policy under which some minority groups enjoyed newfound privilege and others watched their freedoms disappear. The French favored minorities, particularly the Christian Maronites, to protect themelves from the Sunni majority. Even though Syria claimed independence in 1944, the new government adopted the autocratic bent of the French officials it had displaced, and the new rulers marginalized minorities such as the Shiites, Kurds, Assyrians, Druze and Armenians. The invasive Syrian intelligence services, the Mukhabarat, became a prominent fact of life for the Syrian people, for whom the country's independence brought little relief.
Modern Realities
Now, five years into Syria's civil war, some of the same historical challenges persist in the region. Syria remains an arena in which world powers battle for influence and an array of religious and ethnic communities make their homes. Prior to the war, Syrians' varied cultural heritage was a source of great national pride. Today, that diversity has become a source of violence. When Syria's political structure transforms at the end of the war, these groups will vie for power within the new system, which, like the former French colonial rule, may well be characterized by centralization and oppression. But there is another option. The new Syrian government could instead take its cues from its pre-World War I rulers, empowering various communities through autonomy and possibly even partition.
Even President Bashar al Assad embodied some of the Ottoman respect for minority groups. Under al Assad's rule, the arbitrary division of ethnic and religious groups into modern states was balanced by his consideration for the needs of these communities. I saw this firsthand in Damascus, where I befriended some U.N. peacekeepers who escorted Druze students from Syria to Israel and back every summer, just so that they could visit their families across the border. The small Jewish community that remained in Syria was also allowed to visit family in Israel.
Going forward, a new Syria must embrace the same pragmatism. Its leaders will have to accommodate the varied ethnic and religious groups whose presence there long predates the rise of the modern state and whose claim to the land draws on cultural heritage over and above legal right. The borders drawn by the Sykes-Picot agreement a century ago may well have outlived their usefulness — if ever they were useful — and rethinking them in light of deeper social and political realities could be the beginning of an effective, lasting resolution to Syria's war.
— What Modern Syria Can Learn From the Ottomans is republished with permission of Stratfor.


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How John Oates Escaped the Trap of Rock Star Excess
John Oates of Hall & Oates admitted the trappings of rock 'n' roll excess took their toll on his life in the '70s and '80s, and said that suffering a financial disaster was one of the best things that ever happened to him.
Before that, he'd indulged in so many sexual encounters that he had no idea how many women he slept with in the era.
"I'm sure it was thousands, I've lost track," Oates, 71, told Page Six in a new interview, adding: "If you didn't live through the '70s and '80s, if you weren't a rock star during that time, there's no way you can comprehend what it was like. There were no cell phones and people taking pictures of everything you did. There was no social media. It was much more innocent… I used to meet girls in various towns and sort of have a relationship. I might see them and then see them six months later."
Meanwhile, he said, he and Daryl Hall avoided any problems with "ubiquitous" cocaine because they'd found that it wasn't for them. "Both Daryl and I knew that we were going to be musicians for the rest of our lives and the only way for us to be musicians for the rest of our lives was to keep our shit together," he reported.
Disaster struck when he found himself "cash poor" despite owning a string of properties, an airplane and a collection of vintage cars. He accepted it was "embarrassing" but that he'd been "swept up in being a pop star" at the time and it had been "too easy to party."
He described the subsequent financial adjustment as a "blessing in disguise," noting: "If I had stayed with the accoutrements and just continued to live that lifestyle, who knows where I would be." His new start included shaving off his famous mustache, which he called a "ceremonial" moment. "I didn't want to be that '80s guy with the giant mustache… I became someone else."


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Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo began their mutual love affair with the Fender Jazzmaster more than two decades ago. Since the early eighties, Sonic Youth have used an assortment of cheap and cheerful instruments to accommodate their myriad alternative tunings, among them a couple of then deeply unfashionable Fender Jaguars.
When the band's first Jazzmaster arrived, its longer scale length proved to be better at handling the string tension of those unusual tunings central to the Sonic Youth sound. Their first shows with Dinosaur Jr also helped persuade Moore and Ranaldo of the potential of a guitar that even then, in the hands of J Mascis and Tom Verlaine and Elvis Costello, was an instrument for a very different kind of guitar hero.
We're pretty sure that there are some readers who scoff at the very idea of Sonic Youth signature Fenders, particularly with retail prices in excess of £1,800. However, Fender has a history of recognising contributions to the evolution of the instrument from players outside of the traditionally revered blues canon.
Indeed, even the curmudgeonliest Sonic Youth detractors must admit grudging admiration for their insistence on making music strictly on their own terms for nigh-on three decades.
The biggest irony is that in practice, both Moore and Ranaldo's Jazzmasters incorporate streamlined designs that make the model much more accessible to more conventional guitarists. Gone from both guitars are the complicated rhythm circuit and that troublesome roller bridge, which would all-too-often see strings pop out when subjected to any kind of right hand aggression.
In addition, the single volume and three-way toggle switch arrangement dispenses with any wiring complexity and contributes to a pair of guitars that have all the offset aesthetic charm of the original Jazzmaster design, but none of the quirks that can make the instrument a fear-filled live proposition.
These are real player's guitars, honed by decades of gigging.
A simple design tweak, such as making sure the toggle switches operate from side-to-side rather than up/down not only proves more logical in use but makes it far less likely that you'll accidentally flip the pickup selector to the wrong position in the heat of battle. However, if you prefer to use the more traditional up/down operation, it's easy enough to remove the scratchplate and change the orientation.
Moore's Jazzmaster takes inspiration from a guitar built by his tech from various parts, that he's used live since 2007, while Ranaldo's 'Jazzblaster' echoes not only his genuine Fenders - modded with Seth Lover-designed Wide Range humbuckers - but also a pair of guitars built for him by luthier Saul Koll.
While the original Koll models were thinlines, Ranaldo and Moore's signature Jazzmasters both feature solid alder bodies, finished in a thin satin nitro-cellulose.
While neither the blue nor green hue here would be our first choice finish for a Jazzmaster - tastes here lean towards Fender's more classic sunbursts and car paint shades - the thin paint job and relatively light bodyweight in both cases makes for a resonant, open response when strummed acoustically that's much livelier, with more sustain, than many Jazzmasters we've played - including vintage examples.
Both guitars feature cool black anodised aluminium pickguards; the Moore model's Jaguar-style split control assembly is a result of his tendency to break Jazzmaster pickguards when thrashing around onstage - his guitar tech has learnt the hard way that it's easier to replace a smaller section than it is a whole plate.
An acoustic workout reveals just how much difference fret gauge can make to the way a guitar feels. Both satin-finished necks have an identical vintage-style 7.25-inch fretboard radius, but it's the green Thurston Moore model with its jumbo fretwire that feels much more welcoming to our fretting hand.
The blue Ranaldo Jazzmaster's vintage frets make for less comfortable bends in our opinion, particularly in higher registers, but it's simply a matter of personal taste. The Ranaldo model's Mustang bridge - the addition of which is a very common Jazzmaster and Jaguar mod - provides roomier string spacing than the Gibson-style adjust-o-matic bridge on the Moore model.
Combined with the contrasting fret gauges this gives the impression that - while both guitars are very close in feel - the Moore model is marginally better suited to aggressive lead styles, with the Ranaldo model leaning towards chiming arpeggios and chordal parts. If we had to express a preference on looks alone, we'd take the body and neck from the Moore model, and Ranaldo's choice of pickups and bridge.
A Thurston/Ranaldo Jazzmasterblaster, anyone?
Case candy includes the usual vintage-style thin leather strap, strings and lead. Alongside this is a real treat for fans in the shape of a sticker sheet and exclusive magazine.
The sticker sheet allows for instant DIY customisation with designs by the artists themselves and inspired by those affixed to their instruments over the years, while the magazine contains interviews with the band's guitar techs about the instruments themselves, a discussion on string gauges and information about tunings used on many Sonic Youth songs, in the shape of reproductions of the techs' own annotated setlists: a great addition.
When the physical elements of two guitars are so similar it provides a useful platform for examining the differences between the pickups installed. Indeed, these aren't ordinary Jazzmaster pickups or Wide Range humbuckers.
The Seymour Duncan Antiquity II units in the Moore Jazzmaster are resplendent with bags of twang and attitude, but there's a more cultured edge to proceedings here than, for example, the hotter, brasher units installed in the Classic Player Jazzmaster. Given the price difference, you'd expect this to be the case, but all the same this is a great sounding instrument by any standards.
It's obviously never going to be a go-to guitar for AC/DC or Metallica covers, but through a 'Blackface' Fender with spring reverb, wobble that waggle stick and we're in surf and Spaghetti Western heaven. Back off the 'verb and stomp on a fuzzbox and it's the sound of those old Sub Pop seven-inches you own, which have been gathering dust since the dawn of the iPod.
As we mentioned previously, those great big frets and the stable bridge assembly do facilitate more conventional blues-rock playing styles, and with the neck pickup in combination with a loud clean tone, you get very nice sound for those Axis: Bold As Love-style rhythm embellishments.
Switching to the Ranaldo model, anyone who hasn't played a guitar with Wide Range 'buckers in before should be mindful of the fact that while these units were designed by Seth Lover, they are very different animals to PAF-style pickups. Also, Ranaldo's hot-rodded Jazzmaster sound is very different from that achieved by the popular Cobain-style mod of dropping a Seymour Duncan JB into Fender's offset body guitars.
That said, Ranaldo's re-voiced Wide Range units do give the guitar a great deal more midrange push than the Thurston Moore model, but this is a more open, airy, dynamic humbucker sound, with more chime and top-end than the uninitiated might expect.
We think the green Thurston Moore guitar might just be the perfect player's Jazzmaster. Retaining the, ahem, sonic identity of the model, it streamlines the design by removing or replacing the parts that can prove a liability for all but the most polite guitarists. A few mainstream finish options and we think this is a winner.
Those big nickel-covered humbuckers look and sound great in the Ranaldo model, but by definition they remove much of what makes it sound like a Jazzmaster, or indeed a Fender. If you like the offset look but want more mid-range muscle, this is of course a good thing, but we can't help feeling that Ranaldo's guitar will be more niche in terms of its appeal than Moore's.


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CAD/CAM Milling Digital Expert
The specialization course about Digital Workflow
Target group: | Experienced Zirkonzahn zirconia and system users | ||
Duration: | 3 days | ||
Participants: | 4 | ||
Place: | Zirkonzahn Education Center Brunico, Education Center Neuler, other venues on request |
Content: | We will explain the handling of the Detection Eye intraoral scanner and explain the correct integration and positioning of all patient data (including X-ray data and STL data) in the software as well as the virtual articulation with the PlaneFinder®. During practical exercises, we explain you the interaction of the single Zirkonzahn.Softwares and go through the complete digital workflow. We create individual impression trays, surgical guides and design a temporary restoration. Moreover, you will learn many hints and tricks for a useful workflow design. |
Programme overview – Course schedule
Day 1 (all-day)
- Introduction to the handling of the Detection Eye intraoral scanner
- Import of the data into the Zirkonzahn.Software
- Integration of 3D face scans and 2D photo material
- Matching of the data and virtual articulation with the PlaneFinder®
- Explanation of the digital workflow
- Creation of surgical guides
Day 2 (all-day)
- Transfer of the planned implant position with scanmarkers into the Zirkonzahn.Modellier software
- Planning of a temporary restoration as a wax-up based on the planned tooth restoration
- Introduction to the use of ScanAnalogs and White Scanmarker
- Integration of the obtained data into the Zirkonzahn.Software
- Introduction to the CAD/CAM Model Maker software module
- Creation of models with ScanAnalogs
- Introduction to the Zirkonzahn.Tray software/creation of individual impression trays
Day 3 (all-day)
- Repetition of the learned contents
- Time for practising: Autonomous matching of all data of a patient case in the Zirkonzahn.Software
- Insight into the network technology
- Explanation of the composition of the Zirkonzahn CAD/CAM system
- Converting Dicom data into STL format
- First insight into Zirkonzahn.Modifier software and design of a mock-up
Education Center
Education Center Brunico* South Tyrol – Italy T +39 0474 066 650 firstname.lastname@example.com |
1st day: 08.30 a.m. – 06.00 p.m. 2nd day: 08.30 a.m. – 06.00 p.m. 3rd day: 08.30 a.m. – 06.00 p.m. |
1.050,00 € (excl. VAT) | Arrival instructions | |
Education Center Neuler Neuler – Germany T +49 7961933990 email@example.com |
1st day: 08.30 a.m. – 06.00 p.m. 2nd day: 08.30 a.m. – 06.00 p.m. 3rd day: 08.30 a.m. – 06.00 p.m. |
1.050,00 € (excl. VAT) | Arrival instructions |
*Also in Brunico upon request
Visit of the Heldencampus, Laboratory Steger in Brunico, Zirkonzahn headquarters in Gais


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Conference Chairs
Plenary Speakers
Keynote Speakers
OverviewMedicinal Chemistry is a highly collaborative, interdisciplinary topic with focus on traditional organic synthetic chemistry with the broader goal of drug discovery and optimization. The event aims to expand and integrate your knowledge by providing insights into the latest developments and innovations in field of medicinal and pharmaceutical chemistry.Who Should Attend This event will bring together scientists from industry and academics together at a platform to discuss and share medicinal chemistry related research and facilitate collaborations among scientists from across the globe. This event should be of interest to all scientists and researchers working on the major topics incuding
Sponsorship Options: Companies willing to participate in this event as Sponsors should contact the Exhibition Manager. Sponsorship options with Delegate Participation are also available.


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Tuesday, October 12, 2010
The Only Nasty Thing I Like is a Nasty Groove
With the first kid, we were grossed out for months. But by the third? You just don't give a shit.
Pee? As long as it's below my elbows, we're cool. Easily washable. Thankfully.
The closest I've gotten to being grossed-out this time around was when Emerson angrily pooped on me a few weeks back (when I was still on antibiotics for my mastitis, and boy howdy did those drugs make him an angry pooper) and it was everywhere: my shirt, my pants, my arms, the floor. I think I even got some on my shoulder and in my hair.
But I calmly changed him. Stripped down. Strapped him into his vibrating chair and took a shower.
Given how overdue I am for a shower, this situation is sounding rather lovely right now.
And spit up? Last week I dreamed I was on Dancing with the Stars and Mark Ballas was my dancing partner. He didn't like me much, probably because I kept interrupting the dancing to nurse Emery (and because I bitter that I didn't get to dance with Maks). Right before it was stage-time, he got really pissed because I was just covered in spit up. So the makeup artist decided to glitterize me. Because that was the only way to disguise the amount of dried spit up I was sporting.
That would have come in handy this morning, while at the grocery store I realized my left arm looked like a white, powder-y mess. The big, dried wet marks across the shoulders just highlighted my awesomeness.
8 comments:
- Sarah Jackson said...
I call those white wet marks my mama accessory.
- Tuesday, October 12, 2010
- lori said...
but good lord look how CUTE he is! No one is looking at your spit up stains when there is a cute baby nearby....
xo - Wednesday, October 13, 2010
- Vintage Tea Time said...
Oh, he's gorgeous though! I'm at the granny stage now - we show daughters' partners embarrassing photos of them as a baby whenever we can (;) ) - you'll be able to direct E's partners to your blog for the full grossed-out story! You've got a great sense of humour!
- Wednesday, October 13, 2010
- Unknown said...
ok, but look at that gorgeous face!!!
- Wednesday, October 13, 2010
He's so cute! Nicky was a constant spitter-upper. I ran out by myself to go to the store once, and saw a cute baby in the checkout who kept laughing at me. Eventually I realized there was spitup all over my left shoulder. No wonder he was laughing.
- Wednesday, October 13, 2010
- Jersey Knitting Mama said...
Yeah, I am so desensitized with kids poop and puke. I pay it no mind. Sorry you had mastitis!!!!!! That must suck so bad. I had it with my first kid too. Fever for 4 days. NO FUN.
Hang in there mama. They stay so young for so little time. Emerson is quite a cutie pie. Just look at that face.
Hope you are getting some rest too.
Sonya - Wednesday, October 13, 2010
- Keyona said...
I'm right there with you. I just wish I were skinny enough to fit a change of clothes for myself in Kobi's diaper bag.
He's awesomely totally perfectly cute. ;) - Sunday, October 17, 2010
- Heather @ The Beating Hearth said...
Next time convince your dream to change partners to Maks. I mean, what a disappointment to miss out on that sweet goodness. Pinch his tush for me while you're at it.
- Monday, October 18, 2010


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Service and Repair of Volkswagen Vehicles
As a manufacturer of vehicles such as the iconic Volkswagen Beetle, VW has a well-established history of popular and reliable automobiles. In 2017, VW was the largest auto manufacturer in the world, selling over ten million units alone and surpassing Toyota, the previous record holder. Driving an iconic VW means you care about quality and innovation, so keeping your vehicle running at peak performance should also be important to you. Here at Permian Basin Transmission, Inc in Odessa our team of VW mechanics is well qualified to service all models of Volkswagen cars and SUVs. These European model vehicles are fun to drive and are given special care by service technicians who have the right skills and equipment.
Some top Volkswagen cars we service include the VW Jetta, Passat, Beetle, Golf and Arteon. We also provide service for the VW Atlas, Touareg and Tiguan SUV models.
Join our Odessa drivers in choosing a team that will service your VW with the care it deserves providing you with many years of driving new longer. True maintenance done right will ensure you have fewer costs and more quality time behind the wheel on the road. Our team of highly qualified technicians has the diagnostic equipment and the training as well as experience to get any service, maintenance or warranty work required done promptly and efficiently. Trust our team at Permian Basin Transmission, Inc in Odessa with any sort of repair or maintenance you need and enjoy the exceptional customer service that comes with that vehicle service. We always use OEM quality parts, and we specialize in excellent customer service. Next time your Volkswagen is in need of maintenance or repair, call or stop by Permian Basin Transmission, Inc.
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For more information on the Volkswagen brand visit: www.vw.com
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Court Ruling-Major Victory for Marriage Equality
In an enormous victory for marriage equality advocates, a federal judge in Boston ruled on Thursday in two separate cases that a critical portion of the federal Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional.In one challenge brought by the state of Massachusetts, U.S. district judge Joseph Tauro ruled that Congress violated the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution when it passed DOMA and took from the states decisions concerning which couples can be considered married.
In the other, Gill v. Office of Personnel Management, he ruled DOMA violates the equal protection principles embodied in the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. The case was brought by Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), the group that won the landmark gay marriage decision in 2003 before the Massachusetts Supreme Court. GLAD represents eight married couples and three widowers in the suit.


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- At least 11 scooter deaths have been recorded since the beginning of 2018, 9 of which occurred on rented vehicles.
- In the US alone, riders took 38.5 million trips on rentable scooters in 2018.
- Bird, Lime and their competitors have racked up massive valuations as they expand globally.
- Uber and Lyft have got into the business too, with both companies buying bike and scooter operators last year.
Andrew Hardy was crossing the street on an electric scooter in downtown Los Angeles when a car struck him at 50 miles per hour and flung him 15 feet in the air before he smacked his head on the pavement and fell unconscious.
The 26-year-old snapped two bones in each leg, broke a thighbone, shattered a kneecap, punctured a lung and fractured three vertebrae in his neck, in addition to sustaining a head injury.
"My brother thought I was dead," said Hardy, who wasn't wearing a helmet.
Doctors told Hardy he'd likely be paralyzed for life. Five months later, he has learned to walk again. But he says he'll never ride another scooter.
"These scooters should not be available to the public," Hardy said. "Those things are like a death wish."
As stand-up electric scooters have rolled into more than 100 cities worldwide, many of the people riding them are ending up in the emergency room with serious injuries. Others have been killed. There are no comprehensive statistics available but a rough count by The Associated Press of media reports turned up at least 11 electric scooter rider deaths in the U.S. since the beginning of 2018. Nine were on rented scooters and two on ones the victims owned.
With summer fast approaching, the numbers will undoubtedly grow as more riders take to the streets. Despite the risks, demand for the two-wheeled scooters continues to soar, popularized by companies like Lime and Bird. In the U.S. alone, riders took 38.5 million trips on rentable scooters in 2018, according to the National Association of City Transportation Officials.
Riders adore the free-flying feel of the scooters that have a base the size of a skateboard and can rev up to 15 miles per hour. They're also cheap and convenient, costing about $1 to unlock with a smartphone app and about 15 cents per minute to ride. And in many cities, they can be dropped off just about anywhere after a rider reaches their destination.
But pedestrians and motorists scorn the scooters as a nuisance at best and a danger at worst.
Cities, meanwhile, can hardly keep up. In many cases, scooter-sharing companies dropped them onto sidewalks overnight without warning.
Regulations vary from place to place. In New York and the U.K., electric scooters are illegal on public roads and sidewalks, even though riders routinely flout the law. Last week in the Swedish city of Helsingborg, a rider was struck and killed by a car just one day after scooters were introduced there, leading to immediate calls for a ban. And in Nashville, Tennessee, where another rider was killed, the city's mayor warned scooter operators they had 30 days to clean up their act or he would propose a ban.
Fed up with the thousands of scooters flooding Paris streets, Mayor Anne Hidalgo announced new regulations Thursday limiting the number of scooter operators and imposing a 5 mile-per-hour speed limit in areas with heavy foot traffic. The city has already imposed a 135 euro ($150) fine on anyone who rides scooters on sidewalks.
Isabelle Albertin, a pianist at Paris' famed Opera Garnier, suffered a double fracture of her right arm after she was run down by an electric scooter on May 17. She is suing the city and has started an organization to push for a ban.
"On the sidewalks of Paris, it's a total madhouse. We pedestrians are totally insecure," she told Le Parisien newspaper.
Data on injuries or fatalities linked to scooters is hard to come by because the industry is so new. In Austin, Texas, public health officials working with the Centers for Disease Control counted 192 scooter-related injuries in three months in 2018. Nearly half were head injuries, including 15% that were traumatic brain injuries like concussions and bleeding of the brain. Less than 1% of the injured riders wore a helmet.
Bird, one of the largest scooter-sharing companies, dropped its scooters on the streets of Santa Monica, California, in September 2017 and within a few months riders were showing up at the emergency room, according to Dr. Tarak Trivedi, an emergency room physician in Los Angeles and co-author of one of the first peer-reviewed studies of scooter injuries. The following year, Trivedi and his colleagues counted 249 scooter injuries, and more than 40% were head injuries. Just 4% were wearing a helmet.
"I don't think our roads are ready for this," Trivedi said.
Bird and Lime both recommend that riders wear helmets, and they've handed out tens of thousands for free. But last year, Bird successfully fought a California proposal that would have required helmets for adults, maintaining that scooters should follow the same laws as electric bikes that don't require adult helmets.
Bird says helmet requirements are off-putting to riders and could lead to fewer scooters on the road. Almost counterintuitively, the company argues that it's better to have more riders than less because it forces drivers to pay attention to them.
"There's a safety in numbers effect, where the motorists know that there's people out on the street, so they act accordingly," said Paul Steely White, director of safety policy and advocacy for Bird.
Getting people to wear helmets is a challenge. Riders don't want exposure to lice or germs that could be found in shared helmets, and many make a spontaneous decision to scoot while they're already out and about.
That was the case when Drew Howerton, 19, hopped on a Lime scooter on a whim last October in Austin. He recalls signing a waiver that said he should wear a helmet, but he didn't have one on him.
"I didn't show up in Austin thinking I'm going to ride a scooter today, better bring my helmet," Howerton said.
Scooter-sharing companies generally restrict riding to those 18 years and up, but some children, or their parents, have found ways around that. A 5-year-old boy died in Oklahoma after he fell from a scooter he was riding on with his mother and was struck by a car.
Bird and Lime are taking steps to try to make scooters safer. After observing that scooter-related fatalities often occur after midnight when riders may have been drinking, Bird ceased operations after midnight. Lime halts rentals overnight in some markets but in most its scooters are available all night.
Lime has also been updating the design of its scooters, with a broader wheel base and better suspension and braking; Bird is including more durable brakes and reinforced hardware to prevent failures.
Both companies have been pushing cities for more bike lanes and better infrastructure as their riders navigate roads and traffic under conditions that were designed for cars and trucks.
"The reality is, cars continue to kill more people annually than any other mode of transportation," Lime said in a statement. "We must address this issue together with cities, get people out of their vehicles, and build cities that put people first, with smarter infrastructure to protect riders."
For Howerton, his first experience with a scooter left him scarred. Even though he read the warning not to ride downhill, he did it anyway since hills are hard to avoid in Austin. When he tried to brake, he flew off the scooter and hit his head on the pavement, blood gushing into his eyes.
"These companies, for the large part, they show up in cities and they just kind of dump these rideshare devices," Howerton said. "They tout them as this really cool, innovative, public transportation thing that's cheap and affordable and yeah it is, but they're dangerous and they don't think about the potential health consequences."