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How Mass Tourism Is Destroying Bali And Its Culture
Once an island paradise, Bali is turning into a concrete jungle, threatening its environment, culture, religion, and even language. Can Bali survive tourism, ask the island's worried inhabitants?
BALI – The "island of gods." This paradise wasn't spared its deodorant-commercial-style cliché. For ages, this pearl of the Lesser Sunda islands, an Indonesian archipelago, has embodied the archetypal land of plenty: the natural splendor of its tropical landscapes, its dreamy white beaches, the tormented beauty of its Hindu temples, the friendly and tolerant reputation of its inhabitants. All of the necessary ingredients for the Garden of Eden brought together.
But this idyllic description may soon be a thing of the past. Bali is threatened to the point that it could soon be unrecognizable: the cumulated effects of mass tourism, frenzied consumption and an ecological disaster are forcing the most clear-sighted Balinese to sound the alarm.
So is Bali over? "Yes, if you compare it to what it used to be," is -- at the very least -- what many residents agree on. Indeed, paradises have no future: they are just fragile perfections in an imperfect world. And if you define them as the receptacles of a frozen past, they can only be victims of modernization. Bali, among other "paradises," seems ill-equipped to resist the 21st century's mutations.
The terrible toll of mass tourism
"Bali really became a touristic destination in the 1970s," says Wayan Suardana, a manager at the Walhi NGO, which fights to preserve the environment. "But in the beginning, it was mostly cultural tourism. Today, we are witnessing mass tourism. And that's the very problem!"
Indicators aren't very encouraging: hundreds of hotels absorb a large part of the fresh water reserves. Each room in a four star hotel consumes 300 liters per day. "In 2015, Bali could face a drinkable water crisis," says Wayan Suardana. Over a million tourists visited Bali in 2001, compared to approximately 2.5 million last year. All of this despite the 2002 terrorist attack by a small Islamist group that killed 202 people, including many Australians.
Each year, 700 hectares of land are converted into hotels, luxury residences for rich foreigners, or roads to improve the communication network of this 3.5 million inhabitants island. Each day, 13,000 cubic meters of trash are thrown into the public dumps, only half of which is recycled. Colossal traffic jams created by unchecked car growth congests many arteries: there are 13 % more cars every year, for a mere 2.28 % increase of roads suitable for motor vehicles.
To try and control the impact of mass tourism on the local Hindu culture -- an exception in the mainly Muslim Indonesia -- authorities came up with a "great plan" aimed at passing an environmental protection law: a 150 meter mandatory minimal spacing between touristic resorts and the beach, no hotel less than five kilometers away from Hindu temples -- or puras as they are known -- and their intricate architecture.
This nice idea went unheeded: decentralization was conducted to such an extent in Indonesia -- an archipelago of 17,000 islands populated by 240 million people -- that a disproportionate amount of power was vested in the bupati, the locally elected prefects. They take a dim view of the legislation.
"The environmental protection law was passed, but the bupati, who have financial interests and are in collusion with the real estate developers, did everything to keep the law from being applied. Their obsession is making money to pay off their electoral campaigns," says Ketut Adyana, a member of the provincial legislative assembly.
This affable and unassertive representative in his thirties is one of the only people in Parliament to truly act to try and save Bali. "It is good that Bali attracts tourists, but Bali shouldn't be devoted solely to tourism," he says. "Local authorities have no long term vision, they want a quick return on invested capital. And tourism enables that. The irony in all this is that one day, tourists won't find what they were expecting in Bali anymore…"
In January 2011, reacting to the current deterioration, Governor Made Mangku Pastika decreed a moratorium on new constructions in heavily urbanized areas. He warned: "Bali risks becoming a sterile land bristling with concrete constructions!" Needless to say that the moratorium isn't very popular with investors -- this could turn out to be yet another failed attempt to stem the damage.
"Tourism is a reality that is linked to the attractiveness of our culture: if mass tourism evolves in a way that threatens this culture, our specificity will disappear," says Ida Bagus Ngurah Wijaya, president of the Bali tourist information office. He himself is the owner of a prestigious hotel in Sanur, one of the island's flagship destinations. "Nothing is lost yet," he says, even though he acknowledges that "Our big problems are the lack of roads, access to water, insufficient infrastructures, electrical potential and waste disposal."
"We used culture like merchandise," says Ketut Yuliarsa, a poet and stage director from Ubud. The mischievous fifty-year-old, who writes poems about "exploring the road that leads beyond the world, perhaps to the soul…" is appalled by the evolution of his island. "The Balinese are people who are still deeply attached to their religion and culture, they spend a lot of time in temples, they respect the rites. But mass tourism is disrupting their practices: the diversity of local cultures and the specificity of rituals is being unified, homogenized. We offer a standardized "package" to foreigners." One example: tourist guides use Polynesian practices, like giving out garland of flowers to new arrivals -- as though it was a Balinese custom!"
Changing tourism – and mentalities
The difficulty in curbing these excesses is all the more difficult since tourism does have positive aspects. "People have gotten richer, standards of living have increased. Many Balinese aren't aware of the current changes: most of them say they are satisfied with the evolution of things," says Ketut Yuliarsa.
A part of the youth is distancing itself from cultural constraints, often perceived as overbearing. The status of the farmer is starting to lose value in the face of the positively perceived "globalized urban" figure.
Audrey Lamou, former director of the French cultural center, Alliance Française, in Denpasar (Bali's administrative center) has been observing this phenomenon for several years. "Eighty percent of the Balinese society is still bound hand and foot to daily rites," says the young woman. "But some young people, who have to pay a sort of mandatory monetary compensation to the village when they can't attend these rites, are railing at these restrictive rules."
Audrey Lamou has also lived in Jakarta, and she says Indonesia's current democratization since the end of President Suharto's dictatorship -- when he was forced to step down in 1998 -- has brought many positive aspects that Bali is taking advantage of.
"People can express themselves much more freely than ten years ago, and more and more journalists and organizations are denouncing the corruption and amateurism of certain politicians," she says. However, "Balinese people are increasingly obsessed with easy money. Institutions like the gamelans -- traditional orchestras -- are disappearing and the Balinese language is slowly yielding to Indonesian. With this spectacular evolution, one wonders if the Balinese are culturally driving straight into the wall," she says.
These trends are naturally worrying those who transmit religious and cultural knowledge. "How can religion survive capitalism?" asks Ida Pandita Acharya, the Brahman of a small village temple near Ubud. Here is how he describes the current process: "Traditionally, people lived in fear of the gods. Because the Balinese were aware of nature's forces, rites enabled them to maintain the balance between man and divinity. Now, even though the rites are still respected, an increasing number of people are focused on material possessions. The authorities' policies are causing a loss of collective wisdom, a blurring of reference points and cultural uprooting."
Of course, Bali is still a magical place when compared to other "dream" destinations in Asia, like Thailand, where tourism has disfigured a large part of the coast. But if nothing is done to stop the excesses, the island of gods won't escape the cruel rule that no paradise has a future.
Read more from Le Monde in French
Photo - Jo@net
- Portofino, Avanti! The Italian Village Sets "No Stopping" Zones For Tourists - Worldcrunch ›
- How 7 Vacation Destinations Are Pushing Back Against Over-Tourism - Worldcrunch ›
- Fiumicino Postcard: A Cruise Ship Giant Wants A Seaside Town As Its Own Roman Port - Worldcrunch ›
- Summer Paradises Lost: Seven Vacation Spots That Time Forgot - Worldcrunch ›


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Nov 8
Convocation: Carly Bad Heart Bull
Carly Bad Heart Bull is Bdewakantunwan Dakota and Muskogee Creek, and a proud citizen of the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe in South Dakota. A lawyer, Dakota preschool and kindergarten teacher, and child welfare advocate, Bad Heart Bull has been instrumental in promoting the well-being of Native communities in her region. As the Native Nations activities manager at the Bush Foundation, she is advancing Native self-determination. With her twin sister Kate Beane, Bad Heart Bull recently worked to champion the cause of restoring the Dakota name Bde Maka Ska (from Lake Calhoun) in her ancestral homeland of Bde Ota (Minneapolis). Through names and narrative, we experience physical places in profound and sometimes unseen ways. A name can evoke a concept, a sense of home, connect us, and have deep meaning for communities and families. Bad Heart Bull believes that the dominant narrative of history should be updated and rewritten to honor the languages, lives, and legacies of its Indigenous peoples. Bad Heart Bull comes to Carleton, located on Dakota ancestral land, to share her story and her message titled 'A Lasting Legacy: Acknowledging Dakota Resiliency in Mni Sota.' This convocation is sponsored by the Office of Intercultural and International Life.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Paul Revere of Boston, in the Colony of the Massachusetts Bay in N.
England of Lawfull age doth testifye and Say: that he I
in Boston on the Evening of the 18th of April 1775, that I was sent for by
Docr. Joseph Warren about 10 oClock that evening, and desired, "to go to Lexington
and inform Mr. Samuel Adams, & the Hon. John Hancock Esqr. that there was a number
of Soldiers composed of the Light troops and Grenadiers marching to the bottom of the common, where was a number Boats
to receive them, and it was supposed, that they were going to Lexington, by the way of Watertown to
take them, Mess. Adams and Hancock or to Concord." I proceeded imeaditly & was put across Charles River in a
private Boat , and Landed at Charlestown Battery. Went into
the Town and their got a Horse, while in Charlestown I was informed by Richd. Deavins Esqr.
that he, that Evening after sun sett, mett 9 officers of Gages Army, well mounted &
Armed going to wards to Concord. I sett off it was then about (about 11 oClock) the Moon Shone bright. I had
got allmost got over Charlestown Common towards Cambridge when I saw two officers on horse back standing under the
shade of a Tree, In a narrow part of the Road. I got near enough to see their holsters & Coc-
-kades. When one of them started his horse towards me and the other up the Road as I
supposed to head me, I turned my horse short about & Rid upon full gallop for Mistick
Road, he following me about 300 yards, and finding he could not catch me, stoped. I proceeded
to Lexington throu Mistick, and awaked Messr. Adams & Hancock, and delivered my message.
After I had been there about half an hour, Mr. Daws came arrived, who came from Boston over
the neck. We sett of together for Concord, and were overtaken by a Young Gentleman
named Prescot who belonged to Concord, and was going home when we got about half way from Lexington to Concord, the Other two
Stopped at a House to awake the Man. I kept along, when I had got about 200 Yards
a head of them, I saw two officers under a Tree as before. I imeaditly called to my
company to come up, saying here was two of them, (for I had told them, what Mr. Devens
told me and of my being Stopped) in an Instant I saw four of them officers who rode up to me
with their Pistols in their hands & said God damn you Stop if you
go an Inch farther you are a dead man, imeaditly Mr. Prescot came up, he turned the butt end of his whipp. We attempted
to git thro' them but they kept before us & swore if we did not turn in to that
pasture, they would Blow our brains out, (they had placed them selves opposite to a
pair of Barrs and had taken the Barrs down) they forced us in, and when we had got in, Mr.
Prescot said to me putt on, he turned to the left, I turned to the Right, + [See additional information provided by Paul Revere at the bottom of page 1.] towards a
wood in the bottom of the pasture, intending when I reached that, to jump my horse &
Run afoot. Just as I reached it out started Six others on horseback, wrode up to me with their
Pistols in their hands put them to my Breast siesed my bridle and ordered me to dismount, which I did. One of them who appeared to
have the command there, and much of Gentleman, asked me where I came
from, I told him, he asked me what time I left it, I told him, he asked me said Sir may I crave your
Name, I answered my Name was Revere, he said what Paul Revere, I said yes, the others the others abused me much, but he told me not to be afraid, they should not
hurt me. I told him they would miss their Aim. He said they should not, they were after sour deserters
that were on the Road. I told him I knew better, I knew what they were after, that I had alarmed
the Country all the way up, and that their Boats had catched aground, and I should have 500
men their soon. He seemed supprised and rid imeaditly up to the Road to them that stopped me. They came
down on full gallop, one of them (whom I have since learned was Major Mitchel of the 5th
Regt.) clapd his pistol to My head, and said he was agoing to ask me some Questions, & if I
did not tell the truth, he would blow my brains out. I replied that I calld my self a Man of
Truth, and that he had stopped me on the high Way, & made me a prisoner by force I knew not by what right.
I would tell the truth, for I was not afraid. He then asked me the same questions that
that the other did and many more but more particular,
I gave him the same answers; after he and two
more had spoke together in a low voice he orderd me to mount my horse, but they first
searched me for Arms. When I had mounted, the Major rode up to me & took the reins out
of my hand & said by God Sir you are not to ride with reins, and gave them to an officer
upon my right to lead me. I asked him to let me have the reins, & I would not run from
him, he said he would not trust me, he then orderd four men out of the Bushes, whom
I found were Country men, which they had stopped and to mount their horses, and then Ordered
us to march. He came up to me and said: "We are now going towards your friends & if you
attempt to run, or we are insulted, we will blow your Brains out." I told him he might
do as he pleased. When we had got into the road they formed a Circle & ordered the prisoners
in the centre, and to lead me in front. We rode down to ward Lexington prittie smart.
I was often insulted by the officers calling me damned Rebel &c. &c. The Officer who ledd
me said I was in a d-m-d critical situation I told I was sensible of it. When We had
got about a mile, I was delivered to a Serjant, who was Ordered to take out his Pistol (he
rode with a hanger & should I run to excecute the Major's Sentance. Whe [When] we got within
about half a mile of Lexington meeting-house we heard a Gun fired, the Major ask-
-ed what that was for, I told him to alarm the Country, he then Ordered
the other 4 prisoners to dismount, which they did. They cut the Bridles & saddles off
the Horses, drove them away, and told the men they might go about their Business.
I asked the Major to dismiss he said he would not. He then ordered us to march.
When we got within sight of the Meeting-house, we heard a Volley of Guns fired as
I supposed at the Tavern, as an Alarm, the Major ordered a halt, he asked me
ho [how] far it was to Cambridge. I told him, after Asking me a number of questions he
Asked the Serjant if his horse was tired. He answered Yes, he ordered him to take
My horse which he did. Then after cutting the Saddle & Bridle off the Serjants horse
they told me they should make use of my horse for the Night and rode off, towards Cambridge.
I then went to the house where I left Messr. Adams & Hancock & told them what had
happined, thier Friends advised them to go out of the way, I went with them, went about
two miles a cross road & their stopt, after resting my self I set off with
another man, to go to the Tavern, to enquire wither the troops had come, or were
coming. When we got there, a Man who has just come up the road, told us said they were
within two mile. We went into the Tavern to git
a Trunk of Papers belonging to Col. Hancock, before we got out the I saw the
Ministearal Troops from the chamber window, coming up the Road. We made
haste, and had to pass thro our Militia, who were on a green behinde the Mee-
ting house, to the Number as I suppose of 50 or 60. it was then Daylight. I passed thro' them, as I
passed I heard the Commanding officer, say words to this Effect "Lett the Troops
pass by & donot molest them with out they bigin first." As I had to go a cross road
I had not got half gun shot distance, when the ministeral Troops appeard in Sight, behind
the Meeting house. They made a short halt. When one Gun was fired, I saw the smoake
in the front of them, they imeaditly gave a shout rann a few pace & then fired.
I could distinguish first iregular firing and then platoons. At this time, I could not
see our Militia, for they were covered by a house at the bottom of the Road.


text:
Aristotle and the scientific revolution
Monday, December 24, 2012
Nagel and his critics, Part VI
Aristotle and the scientific revolution
16 comments:
Great article. And I can't wait to read that new piece on intentional forms--I hope it'll be available to non-subscribers.ReplyDelete
Anyway, Merry Christmas to Prof. Feser and fellow commenters.
- EduardoDecember 24, 2012 at 8:55 PM
Merry Christmas Rank.ReplyDelete
Of all the blogs that I read... Yours are consistently the longest ones i will ever read. I'm about 2/3rd through it and i will get back to it tomorrow! I requested 3 of your books as Christmas gifts, so can treat them as gifts from a wise man? ;)ReplyDelete
Merry Christmas Ed Feser!
- AnonymousDecember 25, 2012 at 7:23 AM
"Philosophy isn't party politics". I can think of one prominent regular reader of the NewAPPS blog who didn't get the memo.ReplyDelete
- George R.December 25, 2012 at 9:11 AM
Schliesser on Aristotle:ReplyDelete
His final causes are rooted in the worldly natures of worldly things.
Bzzzt! Wrong. He's got it exactly backwards. Final causes are not rooted in the nature of things; rather the nature of things are rooted in final causes. If A is rooted in B, then A presupposes B. But this would be absurd in the case of final causes; for it would mean that the reason for a thing's existence would presuppose the existence of the thing, which is completely unintelligible. It's like saying a cause depends on its effect.
- UntenuredDecember 26, 2012 at 6:15 AM
One of the commentators in that thread accuses you of being "sleazy and disingenuous" because cite Nancy Cartwright as a "Thomist", even though you have repeatedly said that philosophers such as Cartwright would have no truck with your Thomism even though their ideas point in its general direction.
Party politics much?
- UntenuredDecember 26, 2012 at 9:56 AM
This Nagel flap makes it necessary, I think, to coin a new phrase: Theophobia.ReplyDelete
Theophobia is a form of cognitive bias where a naturalistically inclined philosopher refuses to grant any degree of credibility to a proposition that is:
a)Inherently plausible
b)Has valid supporting arguments
c)Does not directly imply theism
d)Is perceived to indirectly support theism.
Bonhoeffer coined the term "Cheap Grace" I've always toyed with the concept of "Cheap Rationality".ReplyDelete
The idea one become instantaneously rational by mere denial of "gods".
I guess it's related to Theophobia?
"The idea one become instantaneously rational by mere denial of "gods"."
The power of magical, superstitious thinking at its strongest.
- EduardoDecember 26, 2012 at 2:48 PM
Woah Nancy works in the department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method...ReplyDelete
They have a department just for the method... t_t tears have run down from my eyes, this is awesome.
- EduardoDecember 26, 2012 at 3:19 PM
Actually I personally can understand why they think that being an a-theist = begin rational.ReplyDelete
I think it has something to do with the concept of emancipation/freedom. A person feels that most people are slaves of their religion so they reject the idea altogether and then look for reasons to make their rejection justifiable. After they found reasons that pleases their needs they just get amazed on how people didn't caught up to that, and that obviously people are not really rational since they don't test their beliefs, which leads the person to conclude that HE is rational especially because he got rid of the greatest scam in society (religion), and now they find themselves free at least in their minds, while others are just ideological zombies going with the flow.
So people seek new ways to guide themselves, some people join some militant group to fight for the greater good, others join skeptic sites to be part of a select group free and critical thinkers, others go Carpe Diem until they die, others join philosophy sites, other joins science sites; but very few go all the way to the end of the rabbit hole and try doubting their cherished beliefs and analyse what other people have to offer and what they have to offer.
After all the idea was never to doubt everything but just to justify their disbelief, hence the pathological behavior, they don't wanna be slaves of religion ever again so they are ready to go high and low to avoid that.
Kant, rather than rejecting the rationalist and empiricist extremes and returning to the Aristotelian middle ground position -- mind-independent necessity, knowledge of which is grounded in experience -- for all practical purposes embraced the anti-Aristotelian aspects of both rationalism and empiricism and chucked out the remaining Aristotelian bits of each: Conceptual truths reflect no mind-independent necessity (at least as far as we can possibly know) and are not grounded in experience but are a priori.ReplyDelete
Oh, wow.
Okay, I'm a regular reader just de-lurking to say that I tried to explain the above criticism of Kant to a philosophy professor I had once. Or something close to that.
But I was an amateur (still am, really). The professor didn't really buy, and finally I just gave up. Now I'm kicking myself. But thank you, Dr. Feser, for crystallizing for me the problems I had with Kant's epistemology.
Merry Christmas to prof. Feser and commenters. Happy birthday to you sweet little Jesus, my Lord and my God. The blog is great, TLS and POM too. Greetings from Croatia!ReplyDelete
Dr. Feser,ReplyDelete
I am delighted to hear of your forthcoming 'Kripke, Ross, and the Immaterial Aspects of Thought'. I trust you'll let us know through this blog when the relevant issue of the ACPQ appears. I suspect it will have a strong bearing on my own chief (amateur) philosophical pursuit, which has to do with reinterpreting semiotic constructs and so-called 'emergent properties' in terms of a model conceptually similar to the OSI networking model. If that sounds like gobbledygook, it probably is; but I have a strong intuition that there is an interesting discovery to be made in that area, and I haven't been able to find that anyone has yet made it.
Meanwhile, I recently finished reading your Aquinas: A Beginner's Guide, and found it helpful and rewarding, but alas, all too brief and cursory. I wonder if you could recommend a good book that would help the autodidact bridge the gap between your Aquinas and the level of knowledge required to digest the Summa Theologiae directly. I ask here, rather than by email, because I know you are extremely busy and others of your blog readers may be interested in your answer.
Merry Christmas, and thank you for the light you have shed.
I recommend Prof. Feser's TLS and Oderberg's Real Essentialism. If you're working yourself up to read Aquinas straight, those two books are pretty important.
Thank you, RS. I already knew about TLS, of course, but I'll look up the Oderberg.ReplyDelete


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Personal tools
From Time Machine
The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) is a NASA science mission that was launched into space in February 2010 to provide uninterrupted observations of the Sun at high spatial and temporal resolution. The broad range of research topics enabled by SDO aims to provide a deeper understanding of how the variability of our nearest star affects life on Earth. This research is achieved by investigating how the Sun's magnetic field is generated and structured, and how this stored magnetic energy is converted and released into the heliosphere and geospace in the form of solar wind, energetic particles, and variations in solar irradiance.
The data shown here comprise images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) instrument on board SDO, which provides 4096x4096-pixel images of the solar corona at a rapid cadence. Each image was taken using one of several narrow-band filters, most of which transmit wavelengths located in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Due to the thermal structure of the solar corona, light emitted at these particular wavelengths is indicative of the presence of matter at specific temperatures. Names of AIA channels, such as "171", "193", "211", "304", and "1600" channels shown here, correspond to the approximate wavelength of light [in Angstroms] transmitted by the respective narrow-band filters.
Some of the most prominent features in AIA data, in particular the 171, 193, and 211 channels, are coronal loops - typically showing up as bright, arch-like structures. These structures are believed to be parallel to magnetic field lines permeating the corona. Loops that contain matter heated to a particular temperature are visible in the various AIA channels: the 171, 193, and 211 channels show matter that has been heated to 1 MK, 1.5 MK, and 2MK respectively. Evolution of the coronal magnetic field is evident in an apparent adjustment of the coronal loops; some loops appear to brighten as others fade. Usually such adjustments occur smoothly and steadily, but at other times the reconfiguration of the coronal magnetic field is achieved by violent eruptions that cause bright flares accompanied with matter being ejected into space.
Other features include filaments, the dark, mostly linear structures that often extend over long distances across the solar disk. Movies of AIA data show that, after days of remaining largely intact, filaments can suddenly destabilize, as the cool, dark matter of the filament is observed to be accelerated upward away from the Sun. Some of this matter leaves the Sun's gravitational field and enters interplanetary space, and the rest is observed to stream back down toward the visible surface. Why and how such filaments destabilize and erupt is a subject of active research.
Watch a filament eruption. (Best viewed in the 304 Å wavelength band).
Watch coronal loops. (Best viewed in the 304 or 171 Å wavelength bands).
Images captured over a 24-hour period on December 6, 2010. Individual frames in this video were captured 24 seconds apart, and are displayed here at 25 frames per second, for a timelapse speedup of 600x.
Imagery courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA science team at the Lockheed Martin Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory.
Thanks to Michael Sims from NASA Ames, Estelle Dodson from Lockheed Martin, Marc DeRosa, Neil Hurlburt, and Ralph Seguin from LMSAL, and Todd Hoeksema from Stanford Solar Observatories Group for their generous assistance creating and documenting this feature.


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Porsche GT3 Cup driver Jeroen Bleekemolen did something stupid while qualifying for this weekend's Baltimore Grand Prix: he drove himself off the track into a narrow run-off zone and lost a tire. Then he did something brilliant: he got out of the car and put the tire in his passenger seat. What?
Bleekemolen races in the GTC class and was quickly making his way around the Baltimore street course when a mistake sent him into a run-off zone. Rather than back up he tried to drive through a pair of tire-wall chicanes too narrow to fit his wide Porsche. Oops. When he finally emerged from the chicanes he realized he was missing one of his wheels.
No worries. He just jogged back, picked it up, and chunked it in the passenger's seat like it was a bag of oranges picked up from the grocery store and in doing so secured his victory.
Despite his bad luck, Bleekemolen was clear-headed enough to remember you're forced to the back of the pack when the race starts if you don't qualify on the same tires you start with. By picking up the tire and reattaching he assured himself a pole position in his class and, ultimately, a win in the race.
You're so clutch, Bleekemolen.
(Hat tip to porsche9146!)


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Carnival Triumph Woes Punish Passengers Worse Than Investors
Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) is a company that is having more issues than might seem to be fair, but this is the risk of catering to hundreds or thousands of people simultaneously out on the high seas. The dead-sail status of the Carnival Triumph may not be as bad as Carnival's Costa Concordia disaster, but the reality is that Carnival is barely a year past that accident. Now word is out that one of the tugboat lines used to tug the ship back to Alabama has broken and that may cause yet another delay.
What is amazing is that Carnival shares have hardly budged if you consider how bad the public relations is from this latest incident. When the Concordia crashed in January of 2012, Carnival's stock fell from over $35 to briefly under $30. Shares recently hit $39 and the stock is down only at $37.35.
Carnival's market value is $29 billion, but the issue to consider is that Carnival has now cancelled 12 cruises for the Carnival Triumph for travel dates February 21 through April 13. That is going to lead to lower earnings for two different quarters, and that does not include any last-minute cancellations brought on by the negative public relations. With a refund being given and discounts being given for future cruises, this may even hurt margins longer than just the period covered.
Thomson Reuters has estimates of $0.06 EPS on $3.54 billion in sales for the current February-end quarter, and $0.31 EPS and $3.7 billion for the quarter ending in May. We do not expect a massive crash in the stock from this incident and it needs to be recalled that this is an accident that would be deemed a nuisance rather than a tragedy. Ship conditions have been reportedly terrible to atrocious, but again this was not a crash that sank the ship nor that brought on passenger deaths.
At $37.20, the 52-week range is $29.15 to $39.95 and the consensus analyst price target from Thomson Reuters is listed as $42.44.
Rival cruise operator Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) trades at $35.60 versus a 52-week range of $22.12 to $38.56. Its shares have slid 2.7% from the peak two days ago while Carnival shares are down about 4.7%.
The newly-listed Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ: NCLH) may have risen 30% after its $19 IPO price in recent weeks. This stock's post IPO range has been $24.16 to $29.54, and this is down at $28.81 after peaking just on Wednesday.
This cruise liner issue for Carnival may have put a cloud on how the media reports on the bad luck, but all in all this is not looking like it will wreck the same sort of havoc that the Costa Concordia accident caused.
Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Compensation, Consumer Goods, Consumer Product, Corporate Governance, Entertainment, Labor, Labor & Unions, Media, Transportation Tagged: CCL, featured, NCLH, RCL


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Movie Review: Shudh Desi Romance (SDR)
Starring: Vani Kapoor, Fake baratis, Rishi Goel Kapoor, Pari-neeti Chop-ra and Sush-ant Sing-h Raj-put! Also Starring- Loo's, random loose characters, 27 kisses!
September 13, 2013 Entertainment , Film Review 35 Comments
The autor is half Human, half machine. Go Figure or just revel in what I write
Nice review.
Let me watch the movie first.
Business Line
Sure. Do come back to share ur feedback. Wud love to hear ur opinion!Delete
hyped movie ! i watched it and counted 27 is just a promotion stunt .. not in real :DReplyDelete
Really? I too tried counting but then gave up after 4...lolz...Delete
Nice review - I loved reading this even though am not sure whether I'll like the movie and anyway my little one grows up a little, it has been difficult to watch movies in a theater and hence relying largely upon reviews. Thank you.ReplyDelete
Do not take ur little one to this movie..hahaha. Telling you in advance warna- Hoga Chokra shaitaan! :)
Not seen it, but you have done a great job in the review.. may watch it on Idiot box when it comes there...ReplyDelete
Thanks soo much :)
Sure do watch. I am not aware about your pick for movies but if you like romantic comedy, it will work :)
I watched the movie, and I found it a good entertainer ... something like Mere Brother Ki Dulhan.ReplyDelete
Yup...I found Mere brother ki dulhan tad more loud and irritating at places. This one is better than that, for me.Delete
Loved the style and frankly, after reading the first part, was WTH?? The second part, enjoyed it.. have not seen the movie yet, interesting from the Review.ReplyDelete
Thanks :)
The movie is one time watch for sure. It's fun and "leave your brains behind" type.
Nice Review..quiet detailed and interestingReplyDelete
Thanks Gaurav! Glad that you liked it! :)Delete
Loved the first part of this post, absolutely enjoyed the review in that 'sing song' accent if I might call it that :D
As for the movie itself, I just don't care :)
:) So much thanks :)
A very detailed review!
Even I am planning to write a review of Shudh Desi Romance. But, am yet to watch it!
I did post my views about what the movie propagates- Videshi idea of Live-In-Relationship!
Do check it out-
http://www.indiblogger.in/indipost.php?post=275296 :)
Hey, will sure check your post too and yes, pl go ahead and write a review too. I will love to read it:)Delete
looks like fun....im going to watch it just for SSRReplyDelete
Sure. Let me know ur views too!Delete
I am watching this one todayReplyDelete
SO how was it?Delete
It was over hyped and I am saying this without watching it! The live in part was clear from the songs and promos, but hello how many times have they shown groom n bride running away?ReplyDelete
Hahahha..You must watch it...I thought u will love it!
They have shown them running away enough times to lose audience' interests.
haha...nice one...I'm yet to watch this...lets see when will I be able to gather enough guts to watch this... :PReplyDelete
Guts? You need them to watch something like Satyagraha or any movies of ahem, let me not name here.
Just go ahead and watch.
There should be a spoiler alert before the start of the post :P
loved the way you write though, and good to find people having the same taste as yours.
Ooops will do next time :)
Thanks for your feedback, keep visiting and lets discuss on things we can write more :)
Beautiful Review. Loved your post!!ReplyDelete
Thanks soo much Arjun!Delete
Spam no more lady!ReplyDelete
I watched the movie. I liked it. Unlike stereotyped movies, where hero and heroine meet, fall in love and live happily thereafter, in this movie there is a fresh approach. None of the protagonists, follow the beaten path. Commitment phobia is real. Movie explores that aspect of our lives. Yes there are things that may look unreal in the movie. That remains in all movie. The issue is real. That is all that matters.ReplyDelete
Yup...the movie is indeed a change than...than...yup Kuch kuch hota hai. People are commitment phobia. They also have phobia for so many other things incl integrity..lolz!Delete
Well... commenting on a pretty old post of yours. Loved your review. Initially it seemed like you are gonna give it a big time bashing, but then again you held on to your sense of unbiased judgement. Good one, especially those intricately woven, comma separated lines. The fact that I love every Parineeti Chopra movie doesn't make it great! ;)
blog on!
Thanks so much Dream Peddler, you see it is better late than never and you are not that late :)
Yup I wanted to bash this off but there were quite good things about this movie as well and much better film than the likes of grand masti etc. Besides such movies gives many messages to many people directly or indirectly :)
Just A Murder, A Killing or Heinous Crime? A pregnant elephant died after being fed a cracker laden pineapple in Kerala. And no it was...


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In a bit of a bombshell late Wednesday afternoon, the Chicago Bears announced they had broken off negotiations with one of the franchise's (and the NFL's) all-time greats, Brian Urlacher.
After his selection as the ninth overall pick in the 2000 NFL Draft, Urlacher became a dominant star, a true leader, the heart and soul of Chicago's great defense. Fans adored him for all the right reasons. He was the most beloved sports figure in Chicago since Michael Jordan.
But take a deep breath. When you get past the human element, this is a great day to root for Chicago. This is a great day to recognize that you are in excellent hands with general manager Phil Emery and head coach Marc Trestman.
My respect level and admiration for Urlacher is sky high. It always has been and always will be. He was such a consistent force, great tackler and a true Energizer Bunny on the field.
But he's not the same player. Emery and Trestman are cognizant of that. They deserve a standing ovation.
There's going to be a lot of back and forth over the next few days. Urlacher took to the airwaves on SiriusXM NFL Radio with Jim Miller and Alex Marvez and said, "I guess I just wasn't one of their guys." He added that he has yet to meet Trestman, who was just named Bears coach in January. Urlacher said on SiriusXM that he asked for $5.5 million to return to the Chicago defense. Emery, according to Urlacher, finally got around to making a counter-offer this week -- to the tune of $2 million. Urlacher referred to it as an "ultimatum, not a negotiation."
Urlacher's spot on. And while this sounds cold, good for Emery.
Emery is in his second year as Bears GM. He's a pure football guy and very detail-oriented. He watched Urlacher last year. The iconic linebacker missed time due to injury and didn't play at the clip that will put him in the Hall of Fame on the first ballot. At this stage of Urlacher's career, I don't think he's worth more than the $2 million Chicago offered. To Urlacher -- and in the court of public opinion -- were the Bears really better off not offering the 34-year-old linebacker a deal at all? I don't think so. Emery assigned a number to a player based on performance and projection. It was justified.
I think the toughest thing for a sports executive to do is detach himself from emotion when dealing with a legend. There are countless examples of tough decisions, from Ted Williams to Peyton Manning. I always reference when former New York Rangers executive Dave Checketts parted ways with Mark Messier, who captained the team that ended the franchise's 54-year Stanley Cup title drought. Upon being grilled by Mike Francesa on WFAN, Checketts said, "How long do I have to keep paying for the Cup?"
Actually, Bears fans should feel lucky that Emery, Trestman and new defensive coordinator Mel Tucker don't have a history with Urlacher. This allowed them to make an educated and intelligent decision, looking at 2013 and beyond. Lovie Smith coached Urlacher in so many huge games; those two were together for so many battles. I don't know if Smith could've removed all emotion and made the right decision.
Brian Urlacher was a great player, but those days are clearly in the past.
Sure, teams like the Dallas Cowboys, Oakland Raiders and Minnesota Vikings could use another linebacker. Honestly, though, I don't anticipate there being a big market for Urlacher. He's a star player in the twilight of his career. Urlacher's emotions are still raw and he isn't sure what's next. My crystal ball says he will spend the 2013 season in a television studio somewhere. Credit Emery for realizing this before Urlacher.
And thus, Bears fans should smile and breathe easy. The past was great because of Urlacher. Emery and Trestman will keep the future bright.


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21 June 2013 | News | By BioSpectrum Bureau
BMS and Simcere to develop and commercialize arthritis drug in China
Singapore: Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) and China's Simcere Pharmaceutical have expanded their strategic relationship formed in 2010. The companies have agreed to collaborate in China on the development and commercialization of the subcutaneous (SC) formulation of Bristol-Myers Squibb's biologic medicine, Orencia (abatacept), for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Orencia SC is already on the market for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis in the US, Europe and Japan.
Under the terms of the agreement, Simcere will perform and fund all development and regulatory activities required to obtain market approval for Orencia SC in China, based on a pre-agreed development plan. The companies will share responsibility for commercializing Orencia, and will share profits and losses related to Orencia SC in China. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Orencia SC is the third program in our R&D collaboration with Bristol-Myers Squibb, underscoring our joint commitment to our broad strategic partnership," commented Mr Hongquan Liu, CEO of Simcere. "Combining Orencia SC with our existing portfolio in rheumatoid arthritis treatment, we are committed to delivering more innovative and effective medicines to Chinese patients."
Mr Hongquan Liu further commented, "Moving forward, we will continue to execute on our partnering strategy and to bring in more late-stage programs and products already approved outside of China, to complement our R&D pipeline and strengthen our in-market portfolio."
"We are pleased to partner with Simcere on Orencia SC, moving beyond our companies' original focus on early development activities to a partnership focused on the clinical development and commercialization of one of our currently marketed products," said Mr Beatrice Cazala, executive vice president, Commercial Operations, BMS. "If successful, not only could Orencia SC bring a new option to Chinese patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, but also it could become Bristol-Myers Squibb's first biologic medicine for the Chinese market."


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Lee Joon Gi Was Blacklisted By The Former South Korean President
It was recently revealed that actor Lee Joon Gi was blacklisted by a former South Korean president.
Former president Lee Myung Bak is suspected of blacklisting people who were against his conservative views.
Lee Joon Gi's name was listed among them, and fans began to worry for his well-being.
Fans suspect that he was banned because of his role in the movie called "May 18", where he played a rebel among the massacre of Gwangju.
Others speculate that Lee Myung Bak was unhappy with the actor's opposition against his support of importing U.S. beef in 2008.
According to reports, the blacklist was created to persecute a list of celebrities who were against the president's opinions.
Other famous celebrities were included in the list, such as Kim Gu Ra and Kim Je Dong.
Lee Joon Gi took to Instagram to reassure his fans that he's doing well despite the blacklist controversy.
"☻?♀ JG always OK.? Don't worry n Thankyou all ………..☄When I read All of your consolation, I was so touched by your words. ???❤??"
— Lee Joon Gi


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Filter by Topic
Filter by Format
- (-) Remove Essays and Theses filter Essays and Theses
Thesis: A Contextual Understanding of the Definition of Science in South Korea
Despite the minor differences in the inclusiveness of the word, there is a general assumption among the scientific community that the 'pursuit of knowledge' is the most fundamental element in defining the word 'science.' However, a closer examination of how science is being conducted in modern-day South Korea reveals a value system starkly different from the value of knowledge. By analyzing the political discourse of the South Korean policymakers, mass media, and government documents, this study examines the definition of science in South Korea.
Format: Essays and Theses
Subject: Places
Thesis: Surprising Religious and Republican Roots to Planned Parenthood: An Arizona Case Study
The social and political history surrounding Planned Parenthood Arizona illustrates the interplay between politics and the reproductive rights movement throughout the twentieth century. The contextualization of major historical events during the development of Planned Parenthood Arizona gives insight into the current political and religious beliefs regarding the reproductive rights movement.
Format: Essays and Theses
Subject: Organizations, Places, Religion
Thesis: Socioeconomic and Cultural Ideas of Endometriosis in Low and Middle-Income Countries: A Narrative Literature Review
Endometriosis is a condition characterized by the growth of the endometrium, or the tissue that lines the uterus, outside of the uterus, and it is diagnosed through the presence of endometriotic lesions in the pelvic region. The disease is most often associated with abnormal and painful vaginal bleeding.
Format: Essays and Theses


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SAN FRANCISCO -- They are classic "frienemies," collaborating when the interest is mutual and going for the other's jugular when the opportunity presents itself. So it was that on Monday Apple made clear that it's willing to cut ties with Google if that's what it takes to move its own agenda forward.
Among the product and technology announcements made at its annual developer conference here, Apple said it is expanding its Siri voice assistant software, as well as offering a complete rewrite of its maps app. Apple also added deep integration to Facebook to its phones and tablets. If it all works out as Apple wants, the net effect will be to extend Apple's lead at Google's expense. Here's how:
Perhaps nowhere is this more apparent than in regard to the new version of Maps for iOS. Apple yanked Google maps from all its mobile devices, and took that function in house.
Perhaps nowhere is this more apparent than in regard to the new version of Maps for iOS. Apple yanked Google maps from all its mobile devices, and took that function in house.
The results were striking. A new 3D feature lets users swoop around cities and see buildings using photography Apple captured on its own. Google demoed what was essentially the same thing in detail during a press conference last week, with a pledge to bring it to iOS later this year.
The move is just part of a larger effort by Apple to differentiate its mobile OS from Google's at a time when the two companies are at war with each other for the pockets, and pocketbooks, of consumers. That clash began on store shelves when the two companies started competing in the mobile-device arena. It has since spilled out into courtrooms, with Apple attacking Android device makers along with patents related to Android features.
Where this can really hurt Google is in the flow of information. Information about areas people are searching for and what types of information they want is absolute gold when it comes to product development and advertising. Apple happens to have its hands in both of those pots, and now it doesn't have to share data with a rival.
Apple is also doing something different by positioning its mapping app as a marketplace of sorts. During today's keynote, the company said it will feature location apps made by other companies right through the app -- though that simply could have been a concession to roadkill it made out of the other GPS apps for the platform.
The we-can-do-better-than-Google theme began almost immediately, with a demo of Siri that opened up the conference. The sassy voice assistant made cracks about Google and its products before the company's executives even took to the stage.
"Hey, any of you guys been working with ICS (Ice Cream Sandwich) or Jelly Bean?" the software asked in a prerecorded video that started the show. "Who's working up these code names? Ben & Jerry?"
Apple made it clear it wants to transform Siri into something far more than an iPhone app. That starts with Siri for Apple's third-generation iPad, and will extend to cars within the next 12 months. Several automakers, including BMW, General Motors, and Honda, have signed up and will integrate Siri into steering wheels. This competes more with the Microsoft Sync technology, which is built into some automobiles. But in the way Apple is currently demoing it, everything will run through your iPhone, something that competes more directly with Android's special car mode.
Put simply, Siri is becoming Apple's search engine. It may send users to Google or Microsoft's Bing for some queries, but the idea is the same: It's taking user queries and directing them toward something. Today that functionality expanded to new types of information, like movie times, restaurants, and sports. Arguably, those are three things users might have turned to Google for, and no longer have to. Other features, like being able to launch apps, were catch-ups to features Google has had on Android.
Name-calling goes only so far, which is why Apple made an effort to point out that its strategy of selling a more limited group of iOS-capable hardware (the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch) resulted in more users staying up to date, compared with people using rival mobile devices.
"Almost all of our users are running iOS 5," Apple's senior vice president of iOS, Scott Forstall, told developers, while standing in front of a large pie chart. "Now if you compare that to the competition, they released dairy product 4.0 about the same time we released iOS 5."
That played well to the audience of developers for a good reason: with more users on the same OS, it makes developing easier. There's no reason to produce multiple versions of the same app, with only certain features available to specific users -- something Apple has harped on Google for in the past, specifically with tablet apps.
In March, for instance, Apple CEO Tim Cook slammed Android's tablet efforts, calling a number of third-party Android applications shoddy.
"It kind of looks like a blown-up smartphone app," Cook said, while pointing to an on-screen example of Twitter's Android app. "Because that's exactly what it is."
Today that message came back around in terms of the number of apps available to consumers, which now stands at 650,000 on the App Store, with 225,000 of those made for the iPad. And perhaps more importantly, the payout: Apple's paid out more than $5 billion to developers since launching the App Store, Cook said.
Apple's move to integrate Facebook into iOS isn't a direct hit at Google, but it unites two companies against a common enemy. The new features let iOS 6 users post right to Facebook from within apps, as well as sync up their Facebook lives to their phone. Things like contacts and calendars get automatically ferried between the two companies.
Apple also integrated Facebook into iTunes and the App Store. This is more promotional than anything, but it's also a strong sign that besides Twitter, Facebook will be the only social network Apple is giving users to promote its content.
"We believe the biggest takeaway is that Apple is strengthening not only the interaction within its own ecosystem but also creating a consortium of powerful Web partners to offer an experience that largely falls outside of Google's walls," Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster said in a note to investors today. "We believe this focus on integrating important Web partners continues to meaningfully differentiate iOS from Android."
In other words, the real move here is in just how many places Facebook is present in iOS 6, and in the upcoming version of Apple's desktop OS. The idea is that if you want to share anything, you can do it basically from anywhere. For a company that was once determined to keep app developers within the confines of its mobile Web browser, it's arguably just as big to let others into similarly hallowed ground.
At this stage, Apple still prefers to talk around the hard edges. But make no mistake: Tweaking Google to get a few laughs out of the crowd hinted at the bigger stakes in this competition. For Apple, a roll of the dice is well worth the risk. In a race with Google to see who can get out the better technology first, Apple believes it has grabbed post position. Game on.
Source: cnet


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There are a couple of beautiful results in finite group theory that look trivial, at least on a first glance, but require non-trivial facts to prove. I am basically interested in whether these results actually have relatively easier proofs to the ones I will outline below. More specifically, I am interested in whether these results may be proven without the aid of the powerful subnormality theory.
The first, and perhaps most beautiful result, is due to Horosevskii:
Let $\sigma\in Aut(G)$ where Aut($G$) denotes the automorphism group of a non-trivial finite group $G$. Then the order of $\sigma$ in Aut($G$) in less than $\left|G\right|$.
The second result, though perhaps more specialized, actually is an important ingredient in the purely group-theoretic proof of Burnside's $p^aq^b$-theorem:
Let $t$ be an involution in a finite group $G$, and assume that $t\not\in {\bf{O}}_2(G)$, where ${\bf{O}}_2(G)$ denotes the 2-core of $G$. Then there exists an element $x\in G$ of odd prime order such that $txt=x^{-1}$.
(I think that this result is due to Matsuyama but please do not take my word for this because I am not completely certain. For definiteness, I will refer to this result as the "result on involutions".)
Now the only proof I know of the second result (on involutions) relies on Baer's theorem in subnormality theory. For reference, Baer's theorem states that:
Let $H$ be a subgroup of a finite group $G$. Then $H\subseteq {\bf{F}}(G)$ if and only if $\left\langle H,H^x \right\rangle$ is nilpotent for all $x\in G$.
(Here, ${\bf{F}}(G)$ denotes the Fitting subgroup of $G$ and $H^x$ denotes the conjugate of $H$ by $x$; that is, $H^x = \{x^{-1}hx|h\in H\}$.)
The proof (at least the one I know) of the result on involutions uses Baer's theorem, but actually, it really only uses a very special case of Baer's theorem: the subgroup $H$ in the statement of Baer's theorem is chosen to be $\{1,t\}$ in the proof, where $t$ is the involution quoted in the result. (The proof also uses a very easy fact about dihedral groups.)
This leads me to wonder whether there exists a "Baer-free" proof of the result on involutions. More specifically, my question is:
- Question 1: Does there exist a proof of the result on involutions independent of subnormality theory?
It would be interesting if such a proof existed since Baer's theorem relies on the non-trivial Wielandt "zipper lemma" (which I will quote at the end of my question) - and the zipper lemma really looks unrelated to the result on involutions.
Now Horosevskii's theorem relies on another non-trivial consequence of subnormality theory: Lucchini's theorem. For reference, Lucchini's theorem states that:
Let $A$ be a cyclic proper subgroup of a finite group $G$, and let $K=\mbox{core}_G(A)$. Then $\left|A:K\right|<\left|G:A\right|$, and in particular, if $\left|A\right|\geq \left|G:A\right|$, then $K>1$.
What is amazing, at least to me, is that a fact that one might consider fundamental about automorphisms (Horosevskii's theorem) relies on a result (Lucchini's theorem) that at least on a first glance seems very specialized. My second question is nearly identical to my first:
- Question 2: Does there exist a proof of Horosevskii's theorem independent of subnormality theory?
(What follows is not really subsumed in my question, but it may be useful for answering my question.)
Succinctly, the proof of Baer's theorem (at least the proof I know) relies on the amazing Wielandt "zipper lemma" which states:
Suppose that $S\subseteq G$, where $G$ is a finite group, and assume that $S$ is subnormal in $H$ for every proper subgroup $H$ of $G$ that contains $S$. If $S$ is not subnormal in $G$, then there is a unique maximal subgroup of $G$ that conains $S$.
Likewise, the proof of Lucchini's theorem relies on Zenkov's theorem on intersections of abelian subgroups, the proof of which in turn relies on Baer's theorem. Zenkov's theorem states:
Let $A$ and $B$ be abelian subgroups of a finite group $G$ and let $M$ be a minimal member of the set $\{A\cap B^g|g\in G\}$. Then $M\subseteq {\bf{F}}(G)$.
(Note that "$B^g$" denotes the conjugate of $B$ by $g$; that is, $B^g=\{g^{-1}bg|b\in B\}$.)
(Note: I am well aware that there may be other theorems due to Baer, Lucchini and Horosevskii that are referred to as "Baer's theorem", "Lucchini's theorem" or "Horosevskii's theorem". However, I hope that by stating the results above, no confusion arises. For proofs of the theorems quoted, please see the book Finite Group Theory by I. Martin Isaacs. More specifically, please see Theorem 2.9., Chapter 2, Section 2A, page 50 for the statement and proof of the Wielandt "Zipper Lemma", Theorem 2.12., Chapter 2, Section 2B, page 55 for the statement and proof of Baer's theorem, Theorem 2.18., Chapter 2, Section 2D, page 61 for the statement and proof of Zenkov's theorem, and Theorem 2.20., Chapter 2, Section 2D, page 63 for the statement and proof of Lucchini's Theorem.)


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You may recall a year ago, when the Globe and Mail's Rick Groen reported that Gaspar Noé was excitedly asking around at the 2009 Toronto International whether anyone had seen Brian De Palma in the audience for Noé's Enter The Void. This weekend, Enter The Void has finally opened in select North American theaters, and Noé has been mentioning De Palma to interviewers as a key influence on his latest film, which he worked on for about a decade. Discussing his film with Filmmaker Magazine's Brandon Harris this past summer, Noé stated he had in mind Kenneth Anger's Inauguration Of The Pleasure Dome "or some of Brian de Palma's movies," adding, "I really like aerial shots and everything in the one with Nicholas Cage. Snake Eyes I think." Harris then confirmed the movie title, and added that "Snake Eyes also has a bravura long tracking scene," to which Noé replied, "A good one."
Noé discussed his use of the camera as a point of view in the film with Prospect Magazine's Justin Villiers, explaining that Irreversible was a kind of experimental preparation for the new film:
I was working on Enter The Void many years before Irreversible, so I had been thinking about using such a free-flowing camera. It's been done a lot before, but never in such an expanded way. There are many shots in Brian De Palma's movies when the camera is flying over someone's head, there is a similar shot in Taxi Driver, as well as in Lars Von Trier's Europa or even in Mishima by Paul Schrader. There's also, in Minority Report, one long shot that hangs above the set. I like those shots, but I'd always dreamed of having a movie where for one full hour you'd be flying above the sets. I'm happy that no one else did it before me.
When asked by IFC's Nick Schager where the central idea for Enter The Void came from, Noé laid out his influences from the beginning:
You don't see many movies that really impress you during a lifetime, but "2001" was maybe my major cinematic shock. Then among the latest ones, "I Am Cuba" convinced me that the movie had to be shot with master shots. I saw it before shooting "Irreversible," but "I Am Cuba" affected both "Irreversible" and this one.
Noé further elaborated to Schager on his inspirations for his use of point of view shots:One day many years ago, maybe when I was in my late teens or early 20s, I took some mushrooms with friends, and then I went back home and they were playing "Lady in the Lake" on TV. That's when I decided that the first part of the movie should be shot in first-person perspective. When it comes to the flashbacks, that doesn't come from any other movie. I just thought that, in my own memories or in my dreams, I always see myself like a shadow on the right or left side, but I feel my presence. My dreams aren't constructed like POVs, but that's the way I perceive my own past or my own future or my own dreams. I'm sure that's the same for most people, so I decided to leave it that way.
When it comes to the actual visions, I was just inspired by all these accounts of out-of-body experiences, as well as images -- like I said -- from Brian De Palma, and "Zentropa" [the U.S. title of Europa] by Lars von Trier, who had some aerial shots that were really pretty.
Noé also mentioned De Palma while discussing the difficulty of describing in words the visual experience of art:
There are movies that are more cinematic and movies that are more narrative in a literal way. I guess it's easier to talk about "Irreversible" or about "I Stand Alone" than to talk about this one, because maybe the best parts of the movie are some visual aspects that are more difficult to transfer to words. For example, my father is a painter, you see his paintings in the movie. The painter pretends to paint paintings that actually were my father's paintings. Sometimes I read reviews about his exhibitions and think, "How can people describe abstract or expressionist painting?" and yet, this movie had many references. When I started shooting it, I was thinking of course of "2001: A Space Odyssey," of "Videodrome," of "Altered States," some shots in Brian De Palma's movies where the camera is floating above or "I Am Cuba" for the long master shots. But also, I had in mind Kenneth Anger's "Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome" and "Eraserhead," which are dreamy movies that are very hard to describe. You cannot describe colors, not when you have 20 colors, so you just say "it's colorful." I knew this movie should be more visual than the previous ones, but that's also why people are more pissed off, because for some people, it's too visual, too experimental. I got much better reviews than I've ever had in my life with this one, but I also got the worst reviews I've ever had with this one. One (critic) said, "This is the worst piece of sh*t that has ever been shown in the Cannes Film Festival" just because of the flickering effects, the out-of-focus effects, at a point make you feel very stoned. For people who don't like feeling stoned, then they refuse the experience and they feel as if they've been brought somewhere they didn't want to go.
You can see some of the shots being discussed above on a YouTube video put together by BUF, the company that did many of the visual effects in the film.
(Much thanks to Peet!)
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The Dark Knight Rises: Batman Does Occupy Wall Street
[There was a video here]
Here it is, the big moment you've been waiting for, the trailer for the last of Christopher Nolan's Batman movies. Apparently it's about a bunch of villains fomenting revolution to put awful rich people in their place. Uh, a bunch of Hollywood fat cats are going to make $17 bajillion off of Occupy Wall Street? Great!
Oh, but you know you're going to see this. We're all going to go see this. I just jumped into the future to order tickets to the first midnight screening on opening night. We're going to feed the beast and grow the 1%. Why? Because this looks fucking cool as shit. The exploding football field is a little hokie, but definitely ambitious.
Even Anne Hathaway looks good as Cat Woman (even though we were skeptical) and Joseph Gordon-Levitt looks good in the one scene where he does something, but it doesn't matter because he's hot. As for Tom Hardy's Bane, initial reports that the mask over his face makes him hard to understand seem to be true. Uh oh. Who cares? I'm still the first in line, even if it means digging the income inequality grave even deeper.


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Many people undergoing cancer treatment receive some form of radiation therapy to shrink and kill a tumor. A relatively new type of radiation therapy used at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center — called image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) — utilizes high-tech imaging with extremely precise radiation beams, ensuring that radiation targets the tumor, sparing nearby healthy tissue. IGRT can be used to treat many types of cancer, including those that develop in the spine, lung, prostate, brain, bladder, esophagus, liver, and bone.
"Image-guided radiotherapy is probably the biggest advance in the field of radiation therapy in the past decade," says Josh Yamada, a radiation oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center who specializes in the use of IGRT. "It is revolutionizing how radiation treatment is being given."
How IGRT Works
At its most basic level, the goal of radiation therapy is to cause permanent injury to the DNA of cancer cells, which, in turn, causes the cells to die. And when higher doses of radiation are used, it is more likely that cancer cells will be killed. However, high doses of radiation have the potential to also damage nearby healthy tissues.
In the past, when tumors grew near areas such as the spine, using radiation was not possible because the risk of damaging the spinal cord was too great. Doctors are now able to use IGRT to safely deliver very high doses of radiation to places previously considered impossible to treat. IGRT accomplishes this by combining two technologies — image-guided verification and highly conformal radiation treatment.
At the beginning of an IGRT session, the treatment team performs a CT scan and other x-rays to verify the exact location of the tumor in the patient's body. The scanner rotates 360 degrees around the patient, providing a 3-D view of the tumor. Imaging the tumor immediately before the delivery of radiotherapy and throughout treatment reduces the margin of healthy tissue exposed to radiation to as little as two millimeters, sometimes even less. The radiation "conforms" to the precise outlines of the tumor, allowing doctors to deliver higher doses.
As Dr. Yamada explains, "What makes it all possible is being able to fuse together the ability to give very conformal radiation — in other words, radiation that very precisely follows the 3-dimensional shape of the tumor — with our ability to deliver that radiation with submillimeter accuracy."
The delivery of IGRT requires a team of experts working together and using their expertise to devise the optimal approach for each patient.
Using IGRT to Treat Spine Tumors
While IGRT is used to treat many types of cancer, it is one of the most common treatments for tumors that begin in the spine as well as for metastatic spine tumors (tumors that spread to the spine from another part of the body). According to Dr. Yamada, more than 3,000 patients have been treated with spine radiotherapy at treatment centers worldwide, and 90 percent of these patients have experienced long-term control of their tumors — meaning that their tumors do not come back.
"IGRT is used to treat spine tumors by focusing multiple beams of radiation that converge on the tumor," says Dr. Yamada. "We have the capability to sculpt that radiation so that it conforms very tightly to the target." Once the location is determined, high doses of radiation are delivered directly to the tumor, while potential damage to surrounding normal tissues is avoided. This means fewer side effects, less toxicity, and fewer complications of treatment for patients.
IGRT can be used as the sole curative treatment; or it can be used in combination with chemotherapy, surgery, or both. When used as a combination treatment, radiation therapy is often used first to shrink a tumor to make surgical removal possible. IGRT is also useful in the treatment of tumors that have not responded well to conventional radiation therapy.
Another advantage of IGRT is that fewer treatment sessions are necessary for the patient because the doses of radiation are so high. Treatments that used to take more than seven weeks to administer using conventional delivery methods can now be given in one afternoon. This is especially important for patients who are traveling a distance to receive treatment.
Using IGRT for Symptom Relief
In some instances, the goal of treatment is not to cure the patient's cancer but to improve his or her quality of life by relieving symptoms — this is known as a palliative treatment. For example, patients with a metastatic spine tumor often have significant back pain, but surgery is not an option for a variety of reasons. Dr. Yamada explains that for these patients IGRT can be used as a noninvasive treatment approach to alleviate those symptoms and prevent them from getting worse.
"Tumors cause pain and loss of function — these are all dramatic, negative impacts upon quality of life," he says. "If any type of therapy can get rid of a tumor, you're going to get rid of the patient's symptoms, and his or her quality of life will improve."
IGRT Going Forward
Despite the many advantages of image-guided radiation, it is important to remember that there is still an important role for conventional radiation therapy. Dr. Yamada notes, "IGRT isn't always beneficial or even desirable for all situations. This is something that patients need to discuss with their physicians."


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(J) uhh (A) uh-uh (Y) uh uh-uh
Ah ch-ch ah, ch-ah, ah uh-uh
Ah ch-ch ah, ch-ah, ah uh-uh
It's that hop I'm talkin bout right here Timbo!
I can't be stopped when it hop like this family, uhh!
(Uno, dos, tres, cuatro!)
They say hola' hovito
That's what they sayin when I roll up with my people
My music bangin like - them vatos locos got rap in a chokehold
And I won't surrender it with, beats by Timbaland
Calle de la boca, my baby
All I wanna, do is, stroke ya all crazy
My, dick game is vicious, insane at bitches
Mami keep comin back cause mami came vicious
Catch Hov' in the drop, nasty thang lane switchin
Once you turn your neck for a sec your dame's missin
Bujando, bujando, the cops is comin
Got that rap patrol behind yo, get to runnin
I'm unstoppable Hov', untoppable flows
I'm the compadre, the Sinatra of my day
Ol' Blue Eyes my nigga, I did it my way
If y'all not rollin with Hov' then hit the highway
(Hola' hovito!) Yeah, yeah (Hola' hovito!)
Yeah that's what they sayin when that music get to bangin
Put it down for my peo-Ple!
(Hola' hovito! Hola' hovito!)
Yeah that's what they sayin when that music get to bangin
Put it down for my peo-Ple!
[an extra "yeah" before the 5th line first time, 2nd line second, and the 5th line the third time]
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah naw I don't fuck around, stay on my J. O.
Hov' been about that dough since I was a day old
Oh, push perrico if I need to for the rule of evil
Was born in the belly that's the way the streets breed you
One life to live - notice you get no sequel
So I truly got to live this like my last movie
Six oohie, jewels drippin, big toolie
I ball for real, y'all niggaz is Sam Bouie
And with the third pick - I made the earth sick
M. J., hem Jay, fade away perfect
I rhyme sicker than every rhyme spitter
Every crime nigga that rhyme or touch a mic because my mind's quicker
I'm a eighty-eighter, nine-six to "Reasonable Doubt"
Temper short, don't take much to squeeze you out
Yeah you shinin but the only thing you're leavin out
You're a candle in the sun - that shit don't even out
Hold up; naw muh'fuckers - y'all muh'fuckers
Better run to the post office and get a job muh'fuckers
A star muh'fuckers, cause Jay's been the only one
Eatin thus far sub-par muh'fuckers
Naw even though y'all hate I love y'all muh'fuckers
"Friend or Foe," y'all all my muh'fuckers
If you haven't heard, I'm Michael Magic and Bird
All rolled in one - cause none got more flows than Young
Plus got more flows to come
And if I ain't better than Big, I'm the closest one
So move over - hoes, choose Hova
My food for though so hot it give you dudes ulcers
Rovers, roasters, poseurs
Gettin it in with me, livin like they supposed tah
Watches, chain, front row at the game
Sold out arena, all screamin my name, c'mon


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Black Friday retailers hope for silver lining
While a survey showed fewer shoppers are expected, a sharp drop in gas prices may leave some with some extra cash to spend and deals may draw out others.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Black Friday shopping is expected to decline slightly, but pent-up demand and lower gas prices may provide a small silver lining for the suffering retail industry, according to a survey released Tuesday.
Up to 128 million people said they will shop on the Friday, Saturday, or Sunday after Thanksgiving, down from 135 million the previous year, according to a survey by National Retail Federation (NRF).
But with some consumers holding out for the best deals and a sharp drop in gas prices giving some consumers a little bit of extra cash, retailers are hopeful.
In fact, a full 49 million people said they would "definitely" head to stores, while 79 million said they would decide after seeing the weekend deals.
Despite the decline, NRF called the number a "welcome surprise" after months of suffering retail sales.
"Retailers realize that low prices will get consumers into stores this holiday season, and this could be the most heavily promoted Black Friday in history," said NRF Chief Executive Tracy Mullin, in a statement.
NRF said it will release the results of its Black Friday weekend survey by 4:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 30.


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Summertimearr. Mark Hayes - Alfred Music Publishing
Summertimearr. Mark Hayes - Alfred Music Publishing
This soulful ballad from Gershwin's "Porgy and Bess" deserves only the finest choral arrangement - this one is magnificent! �Absolutely glorious with either piano accompaniment or full orchestration, it captures all the drama of the original with such polished professionalism, it will be the definitive choral setting for years to come. Highly recommended!
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Showing Collections: 1 - 1 of 1
Zane Grey papers
Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: Vault MSS 507
Scope and Contents Includes 35 literary manuscripts of published and unpublished Western romances and sports writings. The bulk of the items are first draft pencil holographs written on one side of legal sized paper. Of those in print their publication dates range from 1912 to 1963. Some of these titles include "Desert Gold," "The Rainbow Trail," "The Border Legion," "To the Last Man," "Tappan's Burro," "The Shepherd of Guadaloupe," and "Robbers' Roost." The collection also includes some minor...
Dates: 1912-1939
Found in: L. Tom Perry Special Collections


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A major issue for college students in the 2012 presidential campaign was the possibility that interest rates on federal subsidized Stafford loans would double from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent on July 1, 2012. With student debt hitting $1 trillion and becoming the second largest form of consumer debt, a doubling of interest rates would only further harm struggling students and negatively impact the economy.
To remedy this potential problem, President Obama—with bi-partisan support – proposed an extension of the 3.4 percent rate for one year. After a one-year reprieve, interest rate hikes for those in the Stafford Loan program are again staring lower and middle class students dead in the face. This time around, however, the only proposed solutions will increase student debt.
College students and graduates currently have limited options to address the debt issue: let the one-year extension expire on July 1, 2013 and see interest rates double; accept plans to further delay rate hikes; or accept the president's proposal to tie student loan interest rates to market conditions, which would effectively raise student loan interest rates as the economy recovers.
With consensus on a long-term solution far off in Washington DC, both the House and the Senate have proposed plans to delay the rate hike for two years or indefinitely postpone it. If the government cannot come up with a long-term solution, skyrocketing student debt will continue to adversely affect students in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE).
According to the Project on Student Debt, two-thirds of graduating students in the United States in 2011 had an average debt of $26,600. Seventy-seven percent of students graduating from PASSHE universities in 2011 took on student loans; the average student graduated with $26,047 in student loan debt, with an estimated $20,727 coming from federal student loan programs. Students are graduating with significant debt, and allowing rates to double will only make matters worse.
Let's assume a student graduates with $10,000 in subsidized Stafford loan debt. If interest rates were to double, that student would pay an extra $2,000 in interest over the life of their ten-year loan. While this scenario may be frightening, the proposed solutions may end up being worse.
In President Obama's budget request on April 10, the president proposed changes to the way interest rates are calculated for subsidized and unsubsidized Stafford loans, as well as Parent PLUS loans. The president's "market-based solution" would peg the interest rate on these loans to the current 10-year bond rate plus an additional amount for each loan type. Inside Higher Ed describes how these formulas would apply:
"The interest rate would be the 10-year Treasury yield plus 0.93 percent for subsidized Stafford loans, plus 2.93 percent for unsubsidized Stafford loans, and plus 3.93 percent for PLUS loans for parents and graduate students."
The logic behind the proposal is that students will graduate with low interest rates during hard economic times and higher rates when the market is healthier. However, what looks to be a short-term win for prospective and current college students and recent graduates can actually turn into a Trojan Horse years down the line.
Considering that current interest rates for unsubsidized Stafford loans are 6.8 percent, Parent PLUS is 7.9 percent and the 10-year Treasury yield is at 1.84 percent, this formula would be a benefit for parents and students at the present moment. But when the economy picks up again, parents and students will most likely be paying more money for interest for all three government loans. In the years leading up to the recession, 10-year interest rates peaked at around 6.6 percent in 2000 and hovered around 4.5 to 5.25 percent in the immediate run-up to the recession. If the economy fully recovers, students will be facing interest rates that may be much higher than current rates. Using the formula quoted above, if 10-year treasury rates were between 4.5 and 5.25 percent, Subsidized Stafford loan rates would be between 5.43 and 6.18 percent, unsubsidized Stafford loan rates would be between 7.43 and 8.18 percent, and parent PLUS loans will be between 8.43 and 9.21 percent. If Treasury rates returned to their pre-recession peak, interest rates would be even higher.
With the economy still "depressed" and student debt at an all-time high, policymakers and students should be discussing reforms to the way interest rates are calculated. These reforms should focus on long-term affordability and accessibility. Education advocates worry about the government using these loans, which serve lower and middle class families, as means to generate long-term profits. ThinkProgress noted that the federal government is set to make $34 billion off of student loans in 2014, and the government makes 12.5 cents on every subsidized Stafford loan dollar. Nearly two-thirds of those in the Stafford loan program are from families with an annual income under $50,000; education advocate Ethan Senack said, "[h]igher education loans are meant to subsidize the cost of higher education, not profit from them, especially at a time when students are facing record debt." Tying interest rates to market conditions, while possibly providing short-term relief, may be counter to this mission in the long run. Student should demand more lasting, meaningful reform.
We need to update you on where Truthout stands this month.
To be brutally honest, Truthout is behind on our fundraising goals for the year. There are a lot of reasons why. We're dealing with broad trends in our industry, trends that have led publications like Vice, BuzzFeed, and National Geographic to make painful cuts. Everyone is feeling the squeeze of inflation. And despite its lasting importance, news readership is declining.
To ensure we stay out of the red by the end of the year, we have a long way to go. Our future is threatened.
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MIRA Books announced today the official launch of Park Row Books, an exclusive line of thought-provoking and voice-driven novels by both celebrated and new authors. Park Row Books will be led by Margaret Marbury, Vice President, General Fiction Editorial, and Erika Imranyi, Executive Editor. Park Row Books will publish unique voices and powerful stories that inspire discussion. Inaugural titles are slated for release in summer 2017.
"With the success of MIRA's rapidly expanding literary fiction program, we decided to establish a dedicated imprint that focuses on the incredible novels we are publishing," said Marbury. "Park Row Books allows us to create new opportunities for talented literary writers who want a boutique publishing experience with the support of a powerhouse commercial publisher."
"We are aggressively growing our imprints that publish hardcover and trade paper original fiction," said Loriana Sacilotto, Executive Vice-President, Global Publishing and Strategy at Harlequin. "Park Row Books is acquiring powerful and compelling novels by talented writers who are looking for a house that will shine a spotlight on their titles."
The name Park Row Books was inspired by the landmark street that runs through downtown Manhattan and ends at the Woolworth Building, the former home of Harlequin's New York office for many years. Once known as "Printing House Square" and the location of many of New York's major newspapers, Park Row has a rich heritage of fostering free expression, creative ideas and important voices.
"MIRA Books has a long history as an industry leader when it comes to publishing commercial fiction," said Imranyi. "The passion and innovation of the MIRA team is second to none and we have seamlessly parlayed our strengths as a commercial publisher into our literary fiction program. It is a great privilege to be spearheading the expansion of MIRA's powerful list with the launch of Park Row Books, which will be an exciting destination for talented literary voices whose books have broad mainstream appeal."
The launch title for Park Row Books is the blockbuster debut novel The Original Ginny Moon by Benjamin Ludwig, which Park Row acquired in a significant preemptive deal. The highly anticipated novel follows a recently adopted teenager with autism who is desperately plotting to get herself kidnapped by her birth mother. Told in an extraordinarily fresh and wholly unique voice, The Original Ginny Moon is a compulsively readable and unforgettable story about finding a place to belong in a world that doesn't always add up. It will be published around the world in 11 territories and counting.
Park Row Books will also be home to the much-buzzed-about new novels by New York Times bestselling authors Mary Kubica and Heather Gudenkauf. Kubica's book, a psychological thriller about a young widow's pursuit of the truth in the wake of the devastating crash that took the life of her husband, takes readers inside the dark, twisted corners of a psyche plagued by grief. Her first novel, The Good Girl, has sold over half a million copies and has been published in two dozen territories worldwide. Gudenkauf's next book, a high-concept crime thriller about a protagonist with profound hearing loss, features the bestselling author's most compelling heroine to date. Gudenkauf's first novel, The Weight of Silence, was an instant New York Times bestseller, spending 22 weeks on the list.
Other exciting titles forthcoming from Park Row Books include When I Think of You, from award-winning journalist and bestselling author Karma Brown, exploring how a woman's life falls apart over a random act of courtesy; Hanna Who Fell from the Sky, a breakout literary novel set in the fascinating and unknown world of a polygamist society from award-winning Canadian author Christopher Meades; Undertow, by British journalist Elizabeth Heathcote, the much-buzzed-about debut domestic thriller in the vein of The Widow; and a new novel from Phaedra Patrick, the author of wildly acclaimed The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper, that follows a down-on-his-luck jeweler whose life is changed when his estranged teenage niece makes a surprise visit to his quiet village.
Agents with manuscripts that feature strong, unique voices and groundbreaking content with mainstream appeal may send material to Erika Imranyi or Park Row Books editor Liz Stein.
MIRA Books is an imprint of Harlequin and features a lineup of some of the bestselling authors across North America as well as industry-anticipated debut authors. MIRA Books is committed to publishing the very best in commercial fiction, including women's fiction, suspense and psychological thrillers, literary bestsellers, and historical. In 2015, 24 MIRA Books titles placed on bestseller lists (New York Times, USA TODAY and Publishers Weekly) for a total of 194 weeks. MIRA publishes approximately 100 books per year in hardcover, mass-market and trade paperback formats.
Harlequin (Harlequin.com) is a global publisher of commercial fiction and a worldwide leader in romance fiction, with titles issued worldwide in as many as 32 languages and sold in up to 93 international markets. The company publishes more than 110 titles monthly and more than 1,300 authors from around the world. In 2016, HQN placed 27 titles on bestseller lists for a total of 115 weeks. Harlequin is a division of HarperCollins Publishers, the second largest consumer book publisher in the world with operations in 18 countries. For more information, please visit Harlequin.com and Facebook.com/HarlequinBooks. Follow Harlequin on Twitter: @HarlequinBooks


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Although states are not required to report fetal deaths in accident data, between 300 and 1,000 unborn babies die in car accidents each year. This accident fatality rate is about four times the rate for victims between infancy and four years old, said Stefan Duma, head of the Virginia Tech ¬¬- Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Science (SBES). http://www.sbes.vt.edu/
"There is no silver bullet to solving these problems," Duma added.
However, in response to these numbers, Ford Motor Company has worked with SBES for the past three years to gather data in support of future development of a computer-aided model of a pregnant woman for virtual crash test simulations. The effort builds on 15 years of Ford research that helped lead to one of the first adult whole body computerized crash models. These virtual crash models combine advanced computer simulations and medical research to virtually test how crash forces affect the human body.
The model being developed could help Ford safety researchers better understand how crash forces specifically affect pregnant women. The "pregnant" crash test model would add to Ford's use of computerized adult test models in safety research. Computer models show how crash forces might injure skeletal structures, internal organs and even the brain. Starting in 2010, Ford, Lincoln and Mercury models will include owner's guide information and instructions specifically to help pregnant women buckle up properly.
The nearly complete Ford-funded research project with SBES is now expected to provide Ford's safety researchers with important data about pregnant women and their developing babies, such as abdominal shape and tissue properties. The data, collected by SBES, will help in the continuing development of the realistic "pregnant" human body model for virtual crash test simulation.
Duma said that despite the fact that the automobile industry is 15 years away from new technology that will help protect the unborn, "this project is another example of how industry and academia can work together to conduct important safety research."
"Traditional crash dummies are very important, but the computerized human models allow us to see underneath the skin inside the body during a crash," said Stephen Rouhana, senior technical leader, Ford Passive Safety Research and Advanced Engineering. "Not all virtual models are the same. We chose to work with Virginia Tech and Wake Forest because we believe they better understand the biomechanics of pregnant women and could translate that into effective computer crash test models."
The virtual models used in this research project simulate regions of the body such as the head, neck, rib cage, abdomen, thoracic and lumbar spine, pelvis, and the upper and lower extremities, as well as the internal organs of the chest and abdomen. The models contain detailed representations of the bones and soft tissues of the human body.
"We developed new methods and techniques for this project in order to collect detailed internal pregnant geometry from MRI and CT scans, including accurate size and location of the uterus, placenta and fetus," said Dr. Joel Stitzel, program leader and director of the Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University Center for Injury Biomechanics (CIB). CIB performs research investigating human tolerance to impact loading, especially as it relates to automobile safety, military restraints, and sports biomechanics.
About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. With about 200,000 employees and about 90 plants worldwide, the company's automotive brands include Ford, Lincoln, Mercury and Volvo. The company provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company. www.ford.com
About Virginia Tech-Wake Forest School of Biomedical Engineering
The Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School for Biomedical Engineering and Sciences is a joint graduate research and education program that offers MS, PhD, MD/PhD, and DVM/PhD degrees. The 40 biomedical engineering faculty have active research programs in injury biomechanics as well as tissue engineering, imaging, medical physics, nano-medicine, and surgical simulation. http://www.sbes.vt.edu/


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The well known "Sum of Squares Function" tells you the number of ways you can represent an integer as the sum of two squares. See the link for details, but it is based on counting the factors of the number N into powers of 2, powers of primes = 1 mod 4 and powers of primes = 3 mod 4.
Given such a factorization, it's easy to find the number of ways to decompose N into two squares. But how do you efficiently enumerate the decompositions?
So for example, given N=2*5*5*13*13=8450 , I'd like to generate the four pairs:
The obvious algorithm (I used for the above example) is to simply take i=1,2,3,...,$\sqrt{N/2}$ and test if (N-i*i) is a square. But that can be expensive for large N. Is there a way to generate the pairs more efficiently? I already have the factorization of N, which may be useful.
(You can instead iterate between $i=\sqrt{N/2}$ and $\sqrt{N}$ but that's just a constant savings, it's still $O(\sqrt N)$.


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The International Women's Day
Our dear customers,
The first days of spring are devoted to the most pleasant celebration! We congratulate all women with International Women's Day! We wish you luck, happiness and love! Let all your wishes come true as soon as possible!!!
Due to this wonderful celebration Gymnastics Fantastic store won't be working till March, 9th. But you can still place your orders at our website www.rg-leotard.com or you may contact our manager at firstname.lastname@example.com. All your orders will be processed after the celebration days!!!
Thank you for understanding!
Have fun during the International Women's Day!
- Find your own leo among our girls gymnastics clothes.
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Coming off a solid first two weeks of the year, investors head into the thick of corporate earnings season.
Some of the world's largest banks will provide a snapshot of the global economy they help finance, when they report results from the last three months of the year. Bank of America (BAC), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Citigroup (C), Goldman Sachs (GS) and Morgan Stanley (MS) are all on tap to report. The financial sector is expected to be a standout in what has been a lackluster quarter for earnings growth.
Banks likely got a boost from Americans rushing to refinance their mortgages, locking in low interest rates.
S&P 500 companies are expected to report overall earnings growth of 2.4% for the last three months of 2012, according to FactSet Research. That's better than the 1% decline in the third quarter. Excluding the financial sector, earnings growth for S&P 500 companies is estimated to be just 0.2%.
Beyond the banks, eBay (EBAY), Intel (INTC), American Express (AXP), UnitedHealth Group (UNH) and General Electric (GE) are also set to report earnings throughout the week.
Investors will also have several key economic numbers to digest. Retail sales and consumer sentiment will be released throughout the week. They and will show whether last month's fiscal cliff fears weighed on consumer confidence and spending during the holiday season.
Manufacturing data will also be in play, with reports on business inventories, empire state manufacturing and producer prices set to come out.
U.S. manufacturing had fluctuated throughout 2012, but activity rebounded in December, according to the Institute of Supply Management. The December expansion marked only the third time the sector grew in the last seven months.
Several reports on the broader state of the U.S. economy are also due out this week, including one from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve, the Federal Reserve's beige book and the state unemployment report.
Last week, markets logged their second positive performance in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 added 0.4% for the week, while the Nasdaq rose 0.8%.