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The Extraordinary Catalog of Peculiar Inventions
Julia Suits has assembled a book filled with ads for real prank machines used in fraternal lodges in the early part of the 20th century, complete with an introduction by David Copperfield. This volume is extremely appropriate for readers of mental_floss, as it's full of trivia on weird inventions, the history of pranks, and a very special form of Americana. The book is bizarre and hilariously perverse, packed with clippings from catalogs sent to the high muckety-mucks at the Modern Woodmen of America,
Masons Shriners*, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and all manner of secret societies. And what did these catalogs contain? Crazy, dangerous, occasionally xenophobic pranks!! What could possibly go wrong? (Check the chapter "See You in Court!" for more on what actually went wrong.)
These catalogs were where a secret society leader turned to buy the machines used to
haze AHEM, initiate new members of his order. It's an utterly fascinating glimpse into the minds of these men (and they were men, these being fraternal orders), and hints at a world that's vividly weird (lots of gags involving goats) and dangerous (many of the inventions involve gunpowder and/or electrical current). Here's a snippet from page 120, under the heading "Bang! Crash! Splat! The Mechanicals":
In the nineteenth century, DeMoulin catalog no. 11 offered a revolver for $1.50. A gun was a casual item back then; accidental shootings, especially among small children, were as common as the stubbing of a toe. A Kansas City newspaper bemoaned, "Another babe killed while playing. Guns are dangerous pieces of furniture and must never be allowed into the hands of children." Citizens could shoot guns within the city limits, but they were encouraged to be careful and not fire when people were asleep...that was considered rude. Annie Oakley and Buffalo Bill's Wild West show were at their peak of popularity, perhaps inspiring shooting matches, which were a ubiquitous sight at picnics, dances, and fairs. Gunpowder was also a household item and dynamite sticks were literally a dime a dozen at the general store. How could a guy blast a stump or take out a pond full of fish without it? And what was a town square without a cannon? A cannon without a sense of humor? To wit: A cannon firing a salute, discharged early, sending the steel rammer hissing up Main Street, tearing two big holes through the hotel. -The Oakland Independent,Burt County, Nebraska, 1899
And here's a creepy Halloweeny video demonstrating "The Pledge Altar," a DeMoulin device circa 1914. The initiate kneels in front the altar, and then....
The book's subtitle is The Curious World of the DeMoulin Brothers and Their Fraternal Lodge Prank Machines--from Human Centipedes and Revolving Goats to Electric Carpets and Smoking Camels. It focuses on the DeMoulin Brothers & Co. (as well as a few competing companies); the DeMoulin Brothers produced the most elaborate hazing devices on the market, and their catalogs are works of art (indeed, the illustrations alone are worth the price of admission -- see below for some samples). There's an extensive section of the book devoted to "Factory Goats"; one example being The Ferris Wheel Goat: "This is one of the best Goats on the market, and is made so simple, that it is impossible for it to ever get out of order. It has a Goat body fastened securely in the center of two wheels. The harness is put on a candidate who is strapped on the Goat and wheel so he cannot fall. There are many tricks about this Goat. ..." Many tricks, indeed. I won't spoil them, but let's just say many of the tricks involve hazing some dude while he's riding the mecha-goat (ideally blindfolded).
Through her research for this book, Suits started Tweets of Old (which I starting digging back in 2009) -- a site and Twitter/Facebook/RSS feed of historical amusements found in newspapers. A sample:
There was lots of beer flowing at the Republican meeting, thus it was no use trying to keep away the Democrats. PA1878 -A news brevity from The Altoona Morning Tribune, Pennsylvania, 1878
An Interview With Julia Suits
I posed some questions to Suits, to learn a little more about this curious catalog.
Higgins: How do you go about researching a book like this?
Suits: First get ahold of original raw material and add more: DeMoulin catalogs, actual devices, accounts from folks with first-hand experience. Then sit at your computer and google away.
Higgins: Where do you get access to the catalogs?
Suits: The fabulous online book finder, Via Libri, led me to a mint-condition 1914 catalog; John Goldsmith, the DeMoulin Museum curator lent me a dozen to scan. eBay led me to another, though they are rarely listed there. Scans were made carefully at 1200 dpi. I made some, while the publisher scanned several catalogs.
Higgins: How do you organize all the information relevant to the book?
Suits: A fabulous software program called Writers Blocks and of course, a looong table, three or four large empty walls, lots of copied pages, colored magic markers, and two rolls of Scotch tape.
Higgins: How'd you manage to get David Copperfield to write the intro?
Suits: Once I found his contact person, I was able to discuss the project with him. He is an avid collector of odd and wonderful Americana related to illusion: automata, mechanical fool-the-eye stuff. He might well have the largest collection of DeMoulin prank items. Bruce Webb Gallery, in Waxahatchie, Texas and the DeMoulin Museum in Greenville, Illinois have splendid collections. DeMoulin Museum has documents, photos, and many other things not found anywhere else.
Higgins: What are the collectors of these catalogs like? Are they all men?
Suits: From my limited experience, I'd say most and perhaps all are men. Though I have a very modest collection myself, I am not a serious collector.
Higgins: Do the collectors feel a proprietary interest in how you depict the catalogs and the fraternal organizations involved?
Suits: Intriguing question! I have no idea. The book might spur more interest in these items, increasing their value, adding heat to eBay bidding wars.
Higgins: How did Tweets of Old come about?
Suits: While exploring newspaper archives for fraternal lodge news relevant to the book, I found lots of unrelated, odd bits that were too good to leave behind. Twitter's format was an easy and convenient place to stock pile and back up these bits. Eventually, I decided to put them out there.
Higgins: Are there plans for more stuff along the lines of Tweets of Old, like a book?
Suits: A book proposal is in the works.
Higgins: When did you first decide that the DeMoulin Catalogs were a great notion for a book?
Suits: Sitting in my studio, poring over a 100-year old catalog. "What treasure!" I thought, "This has to be shared!"
Higgins: There's a rich history of men hazing each other, and this book clearly covers a major part of it. Have you looked into any other organizations that have hazing rituals (like college fraternities)?
Suits: A bit. I contacted Norm Pollard, a nationally recognized hazing expert at Alfred University, who helped me understand contemporary hazing and the initiations depicted in the DeMoulin catalogs. Another scholar, Darius Rejali, an expert in torture, steered me to some fascinating information, including the use of an electric carpet (similar to DeMoulin's electric carpet, or made by the company, we might never know) by Seattle police department in the early 1900's in the interrogation of prisoners.
Higgins: Have you personally experienced any of these devices?
Suits: Yes. The spankers (which don't hurt) and I've have seen others demonstrated: The Pledge Altar, the Lung Tester, etc.
Higgins: This is a book about fraternal organizations: groups of men gathering behind closed doors. As a woman, do you feel that you're any better- or worse-equipped to talk about these organizations, simply because you're, by definition, an outsider?
Suits: Gender has no role here, but being an outsider automatically makes you free to disclose the information. A fraternal lodge man might be reluctant to share the information. Google search does not withhold info from me because I'm female.
Higgins: Do you own any of these devices, or catalogs?
Suits: I own a few masks, two spankers, a goat, some robes, a skeleton, et al.
Higgins: Are you doing any author events? If so, where can we follow you to find out more?
Suits: A few radio interviews are planned, and two book signing events in the St. Louis area on Nov 20, 21.
You can follow Suits (who is also a cartoonist for The New Yorker) at juliasuits.net.
Some Images from the Book
The book is full of images from the DeMoulin Brothers catalogs, along with commentary and historical context. I felt this review wouldn't be complete without some of the original catalog images. Have a peek:
If images aren't your thing, you'll likely appreciate the ultra-spooky video Fun in the Lodge Room: Human Centipede ca. 1928 demonstrating one of these devices. Oy.
To Buy the Book
Head on over to the extraordinary website of Julia Suits for more information. If you're ready to pre-order a copy (it comes out tomorrow), try Amazon, Barnes & Noble, IndieBound, or your local bookseller.
* Update, 31 Oct 2011, 2pm PST: Suits emailed me to note that the Masons did not engage in this sort of silliness. But the Shriners did, hence the update near the top of this post.
Blogger disclosure: I wasn't specially compensated to do this review; I'm a huge fan of Tweets of Old and heard that Suits had a book coming out -- and I couldn't pass up a chance to check it out!


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Mel Gibson -- Armed and Loaded
Mel Gibson had multiple weapons that he turned over to the LAPD, after Oksana Grigorieva accused him of domestic violence ... TMZ has learned.
TMZ has obtained an LAPD document called "Receipt for Property Taken Into Custody," dated July 15, 2010. Judge Scott Gordon ordered Mel to surrender his weapons, after Oksana filed for a domestic violence restraining order. The order to surrender is standard operating procedure when domestic violence is alleged.
Here's what Mel surrendered:
-- A blue steel, semi-automatic 9 millimeter Glock handgun
-- A blue steel, semi-automatic 9 millimeter Beretta handgun
-- A blue steel, semi-automatic 12 gauge Benelli shotgun
-- A blue steel, lever action Winchester rifle
-- A magazine for the Glock
-- A magazine for the Beretta
-- A speed loader for the Glock -- which allows someone to load the gun quicker
Oksana claims Mel waived a gun and threatened her life during their January 6 blowout. Mel denied doing any such thing.


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President Barack Obama and administration officials declared the program a success Thursday, saying it has revitalized the ailing auto industry and finally brought reluctant car buyers back to dealership lots. Originally a $1 billion program, Cash for Clunkers was boosted to $3 billion in early August after heavy customer demand nearly depleted its funds in just one week.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said the program has been "a lifeline to the automobile industry, jump starting a major sector of the economy and putting people back to work." He said the department was "working toward an orderly wind down of this very popular program."
But it has also created problems for dealers, many of whom have yet to be repaid for the clunker deals they have made. Under the program, dealers take rebates of $3,500 or $4,500 off the price of a new car in return for older, less fuel-efficient trade-ins that are sent to the scrap heap. They then must submit a 13-page application with proper documentation of the sale in order to get repaid.
That has left many dealers with unpaid claims worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"It has brought in some traffic that we would not have had, but if you don't get paid, it is all for naught," said Alton Owen Jr., sales manager at Owen Ford in Jarratt, Va. His dealership won't be offering the clunker deals this weekend because it has yet to be repaid for 21 sales.
Obama and LaHood pledged that dealers will get their money back. But government data shows that many claims are still outstanding. As of Thursday, 457,000 sales worth $1.9 billion had been received. About 40 percent of those claims have been reviewed, but only $140 million, or about 7 percent of the claims dealers submitted, have actually been paid.
Government officials said there were no plans to extend the program again. The Monday deadline was set to avoid surpassing the $3 billion funding level, given deals that may be made this weekend and those that are still in the pipeline for approval.
Applications for rebates will not be accepted after the Monday deadline, administration officials said. The Transportation Department cautioned dealers about making sales this weekend, advising them to make sales only where the buyer's paperwork is clearly in order and can be submitted immediately for repayment. Dealers will be able to resubmit rejected applications after the deadline.
John McEleney, chairman of the National Automobile Dealers Association, said he remained concerned that so few dealers had been reimbursed for Clunker deals. But he said the Monday deadline should give dealers time to get their paperwork in order.
"I think if we can get a clean cutoff Monday and get everything processed by then, it will have been a pretty darned successful program," he said.
But Mike Mahalak, who runs a Dodge, Chrysler and Jeep dealership in Winter Haven, Fla., said the Monday end date could lead to a similar rush that nearly crippled the federal government's computer systems that were set up to handle claims.
"That Web site will lock up again once everyone is cramming it again on Monday," Mahalak said. The administration has said it expanded the capacity of the computer network in an effort to improve the process for dealers.
Obama said in an interview Thursday that the program has been "successful beyond anybody's imagination" but dealers were overwhelmed by the response of consumers. He pledged that dealers "will get their money." The administration has said it has tripled the number of staffers sorting through the paperwork.
It remains unclear whether the Monday deadline will create a new rush of sales this weekend and if dealers will continue to make deals knowing their claims have to be filed in four days.
To help cash-strapped dealers, both Chrysler and General Motors said they would begin providing cash advances to help dealers cover any cash shortfalls related to the program. The automakers said they would provide the advances for up to 30 days to dealers who have already completed a sale and that they will be available as long as the program remains in effect.
The program provided at least a temporary boost for the beleaguered auto industry and dealers.
GM announced plans to rehire more than 1,300 workers and automakers have been paying overtime to ramp up production. Hyundai recalled 3,000 workers in Alabama. Many dealers have made hundreds of sales and reported that even customers who don't qualify for the program are visiting lots to buy new cars.
Jeremy Anwyl, CEO of the auto Web site Edmunds.com, said the government incentives could dry up sales in September and October, along with a tight vehicle inventory, higher prices for new models arriving in the fall and consumers who are focused on finding a good deal.
"It's been a nice party for a few weeks. The hangover, I don't think, is going to be anywhere near as much fun," Anwyl said.
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The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
In his wickedly brilliant first novel, Debut Dagger Award winner Alan Bradley introduces one of the most singular and engaging heroines in recent fiction: eleven-year-old Flavia de Luce, an aspiring chemist with a passion for poison. It is the summer of 1950—and a series of inexplicable events has struck Buckshaw, the decaying English mansion that Flavia's family calls home. A dead bird is found on the doorstep, a postage stamp bizarrely pinned to its beak. Hours later, Flavia finds a man lying in the cucumber patch and watches him as he takes his dying breath. For Flavia, who is both appalled and delighted, life begins in earnest when murder comes to Buckshaw. "I wish I could say I was afraid, but I wasn't. Quite the contrary. This was by far the most interesting thing that had ever happened to me in my entire life."
To Flavia the investigation is the stuff of science: full of possibilities, contradictions, and connections. Soon her father, a man raising his three daughters alone, is seized, accused of murder. And in a police cell, during a violent thunderstorm, Colonel de Luce tells his daughter an astounding story—of a schoolboy friendship turned ugly, of a priceless object that vanished in a bizarre and brazen act of thievery, of a Latin teacher who flung himself to his death from the school's tower thirty years before. Now Flavia is armed with more than enough knowledge to tie two distant deaths together, to examine new suspects, and begin a search that will lead her all the way to the King of England himself. Of this much the girl is sure: her father is innocent of murder—but protecting her and her sisters from something even worse….
An enthralling mystery, a piercing depiction of class and society, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie is a masterfully told tale of deceptions—and a rich literary delight.
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Have a Great Time in Lolo
Within walking distance of several casinos and restaurants
Days Inn by Wyndham Lolo/Missoula Area is a great place to spend your vacation. We are located just seven miles from bustling Missoula, near Paradise Falls. With spots to fish, hike, ski, and golf just minutes from our hotel, you will never have a dull moment.


text: Michael_20330001-Edit For Michael Williams-Stark, improving kids' self-esteem is a laughing matter. Michael, who was born with a cleft lip and palate, is the founder of Making Faces, a registered charity whose purpose is to improve the self-esteem of children with facial differences through improv. He teaches them how to eye contact, tell stories and project their voices, all confidence-building skills. "They know I've walked in their shoes and taken the same journey."


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Thanks AEN for the article and the effort for typing out the whole article. When I was reading this article, there is somehow an immediate recognition and understanding of how my six phases of experience can be mapped more appropriately. What that came to my mind may not be what the author was trying to convey but that realization just dawn and it is cool :)
And for this, I am grateful to the article and your effort.
Thanks again!
Please refer to source file for footnotes: http://www.box.net/shared/ck6jba6so5
Fourfold Meditation: Outer, Inner, Secret and Suchness
Yael Bentor (Hebrew University of Jerusalem)
Ever since the discourse on the Four Noble Truths, Buddhist teachings have often taken the form of tetrads. Even when the fourth stage is conceived as beyond all categorization and enumeration, it nevertheless follows the three initial steps. The present article is concerned with tetrads that follow the pattern of outer, inner, secret, and suchness. While outer and inner refer to objects and subject, and suchness to the true nature of things, the secret element varies with the system to which the tetrad belongs. It is in fact the third stage that provides an indication as to which school of thought the tetrad is akin. An important characteristic of the tetrads considered here is that they cross the boundaries of individual traditions. Even though on the whole, the Buddhist tantric tradition tends to draw solid lines of distinction between sutra and tantra, Ratnakarasanti in his Prajnaparamitopadesa does link the fourfold meditation described in the Lankavatarasutra (with that of the Guhyasamajatantra. He also links these with the Avikalpapravesadharani. Around the early 13th century, Lce sgom pa related the tetrad of outer, inner, secret, and suchness offerings with the four stages in his delineation of taming the engagement of awareness (rig pa brtul zhugs kyi spyod pa) by means of meditation on the mandala. We shall review a number of fourfold meditations, such as those of the Lankavatara Sutra with its various commentaries, including those by Kamalasila and Ratnakarasanti, the fourfold meditations presented in the Yogacara treatises ascribed to Maitreya, the meditations on the formless ream, the meditation on the four offerings, and Lce sgom pa's depiction of the generation process. A common thread runs through them.
In a number of his works, Ratnakarasanti describes a gradual meditation in four stages of yoga (rnal 'byor gyi sa, yogabhumi). These works include the Prajnaparamitopadesa, the Prajnaparamitabhavanopadesa and the Madhyamakalankapratipadasiddhi. The four stages of yoga are:
1. Apprehending things to the extent they exist.
2. Apprehending mind-only or mental-process-only (sems tsam la dmigs pa).
3. Apprehending suchness (de bzhin nyid la dmigs pa).
4. Non-apprehending or non-objectifying (dmigs su med pa).
Summarising Ratnakarasanti's explanation of the four stages of yoga:
In the first stage the yogi apply their minds (yid la byed pa) to the diversity of phenomena in the world that are the objects of the six senses. Then they apply their minds to the six senses and the six consciousnesses, in order to comprehend the mental activities that engage with the world. By combining calm abiding (zhi gnas) and penetrating insight (lhag mthong) they reach an understanding of conceptual reflected images to the extent they exist, and discern the modes of apprehending them through the eighteen spheres of perception.
In the second stage the yogis reflect on the perception of all phenomena as products of mental-processes-only (sems tsam), which appear due to habitual tendencies of clinging to objects. Since objects grasped as external to mind do not exist as they are conceptualized, their grasper cannot exist in that way either. By combining calm abiding and penetrating insight, the yogis understand that the diversity of appearances of the eighteen spheres of perception are mental-processes-only, empty of object and subject, and devoid of inherent existence.
In the third stage the yogis apply non-appearance to the false marks of manifest appearances, as meditators on the formless realms pass beyond the perception of form, by perceiving infinite space. Thereby they relinquish all false conceptual marks of the object and subject and view them as space, utterly immaculate and limitless, empty of duality, sheer clarity., They realize that all phenomena are formless, undemonstrable, and unobstructed, their one essential characteristic being the absence of characteristics. By combining calm abiding and penetrating insight, they realize that all appearances are reflected images of emptiness and apprehend the suchness of all phenomena as they are.
In the fourth stage, the yogis pass beyond the subtlest conceptualisation of phenomena. Without exertion and without conditioning, they realize experientially, through a direct perception, the suchness of all phenomena. They realize the complete vanishing of the marks of phenomena and the nature of phenomena, the enlightened wisdom, which is non-dual, free of appearances and apprehension, the supramundane non-conceptual calm abiding and penetrating insight.
Ratnakarasanti links this fourth stage with the yoga of the realization of non-conceptualisation in the Avikalpapravesadharani. This is in contrast to his predecessor Kamalasila, who – as Gomez points out – commented on the four levels of meditation of the Lankavatarasutra in his Bhavanakrama and composed a commentary on the Avikalpapravesadharani without suggesting any relationship between them. Although the Avikalpapravesadharani serves as a scriptural authority for both the sudden and gradual paths to enlightenment, it does offer a graded course of progress towards enlightenment.
According to this text, on their path to non-conceptuality, the Bodhisattvas relinquish marks of conceptuality in stages, by not applying their mind (yid la mi byed pa, amanasikara). First they give up all marks of conceptualisation with respect to inherent existence. But then, the marks of conceptualisation in analysing the antidotes to conceptualisation of inherent existence arise. In the second step the Bodhisattvas relinquish these marks as well. By not applying their minds to them. But then, the marks of conceptualisation in analysing suchness arise. In the third step, the Bodhisattvas relinquish marks of conceptualisation in analysing suchness. But then, the marks of conceptualisation in analysing their attainment arise. In the fourth step, the Bodhisattvas relinquish the marks of conceptualisation in analysing their attainment. Then, the Bodhisattvas engage in unsupported, free of appearances, devoid of cognition and foundation. These are the steps towards non-conceptualisation portrayed by the Avikalpapravesadharani. In this Prajnaparamitopadesa, Ratnakarasanti describes the fourth stage of yoga in his delineation of the four yogabhumi in terms leading towards the non-conceptual level of the Avikalpapravesadharani, and then cites the Dharani itself.
Ratnakarasanti then proceeds by relating the four stages of yogas he describes to the four steps of meditation in the Lankavatara Sutra. The following is a translation of Ratnakarasanti's citation of the Lankavatara Sutra.
Having relied on mental-processes-only (sems tsam, cittamatra), [the yogis] would not conceptualise external objects.
Having apprehended suchness, they would pass beyond even mental-processes-only.
Having passed beyond mental-processes-only, they would pass beyond non-appearances.
The yogi abiding in non-appearances sees the Mahayana.
The Lankavatarasutra served as one of the main scriptural authorities for the Chan-school that is characterised by its sudden path to enlightenment, but this passage obviously offers a gradual path. While the stages of meditation presented in these verses can be interpreted in more than one way, Ratanakarasanti follows here Kamalasila. In this 'First Bhavanakrama', Kamalasila cites this passage as a basis for the graded process of meditation on wisdom (prajnabhavanakrama, shes rab bsgom pa'I rim pa). As has been pointed out by several scholars, here Kamalasila adheres to the words of his teacher Santaraksita who, in the conclusion to his Madhyamakalankara, says:
Having relied on mental-processes-only (citttamatra), one would understand that there are no external entities.
Having relied on this method [Madhyamaka], one would understand that even that [Cittamatra] is completedly devoid of own essence.
Therefore those who ride the chariot of the two methods [Madhyamaka and CIttamatra], while holding the reins of reasoning, attain the true meaning as it is, the state of the Mahayanist.
In his commentary Madhyamakalankaravrtti, Santaraksita provides a scriptural authority for his position by citing the same verses from the Lankavatarasutra that were quoted above (Ichigo, 1989, p.156), and Kamalasila reproduces them in his own commentary Madhyamakalankarapanjika (ibid.). But, while the Madhyamakalankara is mainly concerned with theory, Kamalasila's Bhavanakramas are devoted to meditative practices. Still, this presentation of meditation in structured steps would seem to fall within the theory of practice rather than within the practice itself.
Kajiyama (1978) has suggested tha Kamalsila's presentation of the four steps of meditation in the Bhavanakrama follows the doxographical exposition of tenets and corresponds to the positions respectively of (1) the Sarvastivada and Sauntrantika, of (2-3) the two schools of 'Mind Only', the Satyakaravada and Alikaravada, and of (4) the Madhyamaka. The interesting question is whether the fourfold meditation was modelled on this doxographical structure, or whether it is possible that the tradition of the fourfold meditation formed the paradigm for the system of the four tenets. Kamalasila's explanation of the verses from the Lankavatarasutra may be summarised as follows.
In the first stage, the yogis investigate material phenomena (chos gzugs can, rupino dharmah), that others conceptualise as external objects, and analyse them into their components, until they do not see them. Thereby they realise that all external objects are results of mental-processes-only (cittamatra). Since they no longer apprehend the distinguishing features that allow their apprehension, they relinquish the conceptualisation of material phenomena.
Then the yogis analyse immaterial phenomena. Since these are mental-processes-only, there are no objects, and since subjects need objects with which to relate, there could be no subjects. Hence, the yogis pass beyond the notion of subject as well and abide in the non-dual knowledge of the absence of dual appearances.
In the third stage, the yogis pass beyond even the knowledge of the absence of dual appearance. They relinquish their attachment even to the knowledge of non-duality, and abide in the knowledge of the non-appearance of the knowledge of non-duality alone.
In the fourth stage, the yogis abide in the realisation that all phenomena are devoid of own essence and thereby enter non-conceptual concentration (nirvikalpasamadhi). Since they do not see by means of the ordinary eye, they see the sublime suchness, and since they do not cling to things, they see them through the wisdom eye. Since they look through the wisdom of meditative equipoise, they do not apprehend (mi dmigs pa, anupalambha) any phenomena, and this is the supreme non-apprehension. Since they do not apprehend any essence, they neither conceptualise any thing nor any non-thing.
Both Kamalasila and Ratnakarasanti interpret the four stages of meditation they present on the basis of the passage from the Lankavatarasutra. Both explain the first stage of the yoga as non-conceptualisation of external objects and the second as realisation of mental-processes-only. Their interpretation of the third stage is similar, yet while Kamalasila emphasises non-duality – the yogis abide in a non-dual knowledge of the absence of dual appearances, Ratnakarasanti underscores non-apeparance of the false marks of phenomena. With regards to the fourth stage, Kamalasila stresses that even the knowledge of non-duality is untrue; hence the yogis abide in the knowledge of the non-appearance of the knowledge of duality. Then they enter non-conceptual concentration where they see without seeing that all phenomena are devoid of own essence and attain the realisation of suchness. Ratnakarasanti emphasises here a direct perception that is beyond the marks of both phenomena (dharma, chos) and of the nature of phenomena (dharamata, chos nyid). This is the terminology that appears in the Guhyasamajatantra. Immediately after citing the verses from the Lankavatarasutra (X 256-58), Ratnakarasanti declares:
The Guhyasamajatantra teaches this very thing in one verse: "When you examine your mind, [you realise] that all phenomena abide in the mind. These phenomena abide as the sky-vajra. There are no phenomena and the nature of phenomena" (Derge, p.321, Peking, p.249.4).
Ratanakarasanti then relates the sutric meditation on wisdom to the tantric meditation of the Guhyasamajatantra, emphasising their identity:
1. In both [the Lankvaatarasutra and the Guhyasamajatantra] the first stage of the yoga is not explicit. Because as long as [the yogis] do not grasp that all phenomena are these [as they appear], so long they would not be able to grasp their emptiness. Hence, understanding that all phenomena are these [as they appear] is the first stage of the yoga.
2. Developing resolute faith that they [all phenomena] are mental-processes-only, empty of the grasped and the grasper. This is the second [stage of the yoga] that is accompanied by appearances.
3. Since in that very [stage, the yogis] develop resolute faith in the non-appearance of the marks of phenomena, viewing [all phenomena] as clarity is the third [stage of yoga].
4. Since in that very [stage] all the marks of phenomena and of the nature of phenomena do not appear at all, this insight is the fourth [stage of the yoga] (Derge, p.322, Peking, p.249.4).
Ratnakarasanti goes on to interpret the verses from the Lankavtarasutra in terms of both this fourfold yoga of the Guhyasamajatantra and of the four stages of the yoga that he outlined above. He begins with the second stage.
2. Here, the meaning of 'mental-process-only' is to know apprehension as mental-processes-only. This is the meaning of the 'second stage of the yoga'.
1. The meaning of '[the yogis] would not conceptualise' refers to external objects that are conceptualised in the first stage of the yoga, and the meaning of 'they would pass beyond' refers to the other.
3. The meaning of 'apprehension of suchness is the wisdom by which one apprehends suchness. This is the meaning of 'the third stage of the yoga'.
4. The meaning of 'passing beyond mental-processes-only' is to train in the example of a precedent. It is not accomplishing something without a precedent. The meaning of 'passing beyond non-appearances' is accomplishing without a precedent. Further, the meaning of 'non-appearances' is the non-appearances of the marks of phenomena. This is the meaning of 'apprehending suchness'. If you ask: "How does one pass beyond that?" – one abides in non-appearances. That is to say, one is endowed with the insight that the marks of [both] phenomena and the nature of phenomena do not appear at all. This is the meaning of 'abiding in the fourth stage of yoga' (Derge, p.322, Peking, p.249.4f).
Ratnakarasanti embeds in this interpretation vocabulary that appears in the stanza from the Guhyasamajatantra: "There are no phenomena and no nature of phenomena." Finally, he interprets that verse from the Guhyasamajatantra in terms of the fourfold meditation:
Further, 'examining the mind' is the second stage of the yoga. 'Abide' means that all phenomena are appearance of your own mind. This is understood as: your own mind is appearing, while not existing. 'Sky-vajra' is the two non-appearances [of phenomena and of the nature of phenomena]. 'Abiding there' is abiding in non-appearances of phenomena and the nature of phenomena, successively. The non-apeparance of the inherent nature of phenomena here is the third stage. The non-appearances of the inherent nature of the nature of phenomena is the fourth stage [Derge, [.323, Peking, p.250.1).
In his commentary on the Guhyasamajatantra, the Kusumanjali (Toh.1851), Ratnakarasanti again interprets the verse from the Guhyasamaja in terms of the four yogabhumi. The following is a very tentative translation of a few sentences from this commentary on the verse in question.
The meaning [of this verse] is as follows: When the Bodhisattvas see a dream, the ysettle their quipoised mind in that dream and investigate it [as follows]. Because in this dream there are no object whatsoever to be grasped, nothing graspable, there is no grasper either. Well now, this mental-process-only of dualistic appearance with regards to non-duality is but a deception… Because they indeed are like dream, all phenomena are mental-processes-only… All those appearances of phenomena of forms, feelings and so on, are your own mind alone endowed with aspects of forms, feelings and so on. Still there is no object to be grasped by the mind that is external to the mind… Following that [the Bodhisattvas contemplate], since there is no grasped, there is no grasper either. That being so, there is no duality. Therefore, [the Bodhisattvas] thoroughly relinquish the deceptive causes for dualistic appearances of all phenomena, which are one taste, empty of duality… and engage in perfect mental application. Because they proceed with this mental application, their minds rest in meditative equipoise on that which is spontaneously accomplished, unconditioned… empty of duality and free of mental proliferation. That was explained to be the supra-mundane pristine wisdom of emptiness, free of mental proliferation, non-conceptual, the ultimate thought for enlightenment… As for [the line] 'there are no phenomena and no nature of phenomena', there is no appearance in the manner of phenomena, because when the cause for all phenomena vanishes, there is appearance as emptiness alone. There is no appearance in the manner of the nature of phenomena either… The emptiness of phenomena is the nature of phenomena (Derge, pp.82.7-84.3).
Thus, the verse from the Guhyasamajatantra, which in itself contains no explicit fourfold structure, is explained by Ratnakarasanti in his commentary on the Tantra in terms of our fourfold meditation.
In his Hevajrasadhana entitled "Relinquishing Deception" (Bhramahara, 'Khrul pa spong ba, Toh.1245), Ratnakarasanti provides practical instructions for the meditation on emptiness that precedes the generation of the mandala. Here the fourfold meditation is actually applied in a tantric practice. Note that a few of the clauses here appear as well in the passage from the Kusumanjali cited above.
Then having made all phenomena into the object of [their] mind, [the practitioners] should investigate [them in the following way]. This is just mind, which appears deceptively in various forms, as in a dream. There is nothing to be grasped by the mind, which is external to the mind. Since there are no grasped entities, the mind as well is not a grasping entity [does not grasp]. Hence all phenomena have mind as their essence. Their emptiness of grasped and grasper is the Highest Truth. Having determined this unequivocally, [the practitioners] should relinquish the deceptively superimposed and deceptively marked aspects of all phenomena, and then they should see just their nature alone, which is characterised by non-dual awareness, limitless like an immaculate crystal and the pure autumn sky at midday. This is taught to be the ultimate thought for enlightenment, the supramundane pristine wisdom of emptiness, devoid of mental proliferation and free of conceptualisation (Derge, pp.378.7 – 379.3, and Isaacson, in preparation).
Fourfold meditations like those that appear in Ratnakarasanti's works are common in Yogacara writings, and are considered to be typical for expositions of this school. Among these are Vasubandhu's Trimsika (vss.28f) and Trisvabhavanirdesa (vss.36f.), and the Madhyantavibhaga (vs.6). Davidson (1985:295-97), Jackson (1987:348-51 and notes there) and Lindter (1997) have pointed to still other parallels. A few examples will be sufficient here. The sixth chapter of the Mahayanasutralankara describes the following path toward the realisation of things as they are. After understanding that there is nothing but the mind, the wise realise that the mind does not exist either. And after understanding that there is no duality, the wise abide in the dharma-sphere. A similar fourfold meditation is found in the fourteenth chapter of the same work (vss.23-28).
Another consonant fourfold meditation is found in another work among the treatises known by Tibetans as "Five Works of Maitreya". The Dharmadharmatavibhaga outlines the four aspects of engagement in the perfect practice.
1. Dmig pa'i sbyor ba, upalambhaprayoga,
2. Mi dmigs pa yi sbyor ba, anupalambhaprayoga,
3. Dmigs pa med dmigs sbyor ba, upalambhanupalambhaprayoga,
4. mi dmigs dmigs pa'I sbyor ba, nopalambhopalambhaprayoga.
It is possible to interpret these puzzling phrases in more tht one wa, but the traditional interpretation is found in Vasubandhu's commentary, the Dharmadharmatavibhagavrtti:
1. Through apprehending mere cognition.
2. Through non-apprehending objects.
3. Through non-apprehending mere cognition when there are no objects, since when there are no objects to be cognised, cognition is not possible.
4. Through non-apprehending duality, non-duality is apprehended.
We have seen that Ratnakarasanti employs four stages of meditation not only in his explanation of meditations according to the system of the Perfection of Wisdom, but also in the system of the Guyasamajatantra. Another author who makes use of fourfold meditation in a tantric context is Lce sgom pa who, around the early thirteenth century wrote the Man ngag rin chen spungs pa devoted ot the netire Buddhist path (Sorensen 1999, Bentor 2000). In the description of the tantric path included there, Lce sgom pa portrays the practices for taming the engagement of one's awareness (rig pa brtul zhugs kyi spyod pa) that are performed for enhancing the experience of those who have attained a slight stability in their formal meditation. One of these practices, which is carried out with proliferation of mental constructs (prapanca), consist of actually acting out of the mandala. Yogis and yoginis occupy the seats of the Buddhas in the mandala, meditate there, and make four kinds of offerings. What is the purpose of this practice?
Tantric practices may be expressed as transformations of the practitioner's place (gnas), body (lus), enjoyments (longs spyod) and deeds (mdzad pa). These are called the four complete purities (yongsu dag pa bzhi, yet another fourfold presentation that begins with outer and inner). T he complete purity of place refers to the transformation of the practitioners' environment into the mandala of their yi dam; the complete purity of body to the transformation of the practitioners themselves into their yi dam; the complete purity of deeds, to the transformation of the practitioner's ordinary emotions and cognitions into pure enjoyment free of any affliction.
When enlightened beings make and receive offerings, both the giver and recipient are said to experience perfect enjoyment untainted by any trace of such affliction as attachment, miserliness, or jealousy. Therefore, offerings and meditation on the practice of offering form an essential component of the tantric practice. For the transformation of their enjoyment, the yogis and yoginis make the four offerings outer, inner, secret, and suchness. The outer offerings are said to transform ordinary enjoyments into sublime ones, by generating a special immaculate bliss as object of the five senses.
The inner offerings of the five fleshes and five tantric nectars, which are no different from the five male and female Buddhas of the mandala, serve for overcoming ordinary conceptions of attractiveness and repulsiveness. The secret offerings are the bodhicitta of the Father-Mother enlightened beings in embrace that descends along the central channel of the subtle body. When it reaches the four cakras, the four joys are experienced whereby ordinary desire is transformed into great bliss. The offerings of suchness are accomplished when the mind that experiences this sublime bliss sees emptiness directly. By making these four offerings, the practitioners engage in the transformation of their enjoyment through a proliferation of mental constructs.
Another practice for taming the engagement of one's awareness is performed completely without proliferation of mental constructs. Lce sgom pa describes it in the following words.
Thoroughly comprehending the outer, inner, secret, and suchness, they tame their ordinary conceptual thoughts by means of their awareness. They fuse all the external and internal phenomena into the assemblage of enlightened beings of the mandala as mere conventional illusion. They then realise that all these enlightened beings are emanations of their own minds. In the highest truth, the mind as such is not apprehending, therefore they penetrate the equanimity of emptiness. Hence this is called the practice of engaging in the taming of awareness (p. 122).
Here the four kinds of offerings have been endowed with a new level of meaning .The meditation on the generation process (bskyed rim) is interpreted here in four steps that correspond to the outer, inner, secret and suchness offerings. In the outer step all phenomena are transformed into the mandala and the enlightened beings dwelling in it. In the inner step, the practitioners understand that this mandala is but a product of their own mental processes. In the secret step, they realise that the mind as such (Sems nyid) does not apprehend (or does not objectify, mi dmigs pa); and in the step of suchness they penetrate the equanimity of emptiness. These steps are obviously the fourfold meditation we encountered above.
In his description of the four stages of yoga, Ratnakarasanti uses the example of meditation on infinite space for the sake of passing beyond the perception of form. Did Ratnakarasanti perhaps have in mind the meditative absorption of the four formless realms as a further model for his four stages of yoga? The meditation on the four formless realms is another example for a fourfold meditation with a pattern of outer, inner, secret, and suchness. The important feature for this meditation, for our purposes, is that it is shared by non-Mahayana and even non-Buddhist systems, and may have served as a kind of prototype ofr most of the fourfold systems of meditation we have encountered above. The meditative absorptions of the four formless realms consist of meditative absorption on infinite space, infinite consciousness, nothingness, and neither perception nor non-perception. Buddhist literature attributes these last two meditations to the two meditation teachers of the Buddha with whom he studied before attaining enlightenment (Nakamura 1979, Bronkhorst 1986). Hence these are considered to be pre-Buddhist forms of meditation adapted by Buddhism or early Buddhist teachings that were eventually superseded and then attributed to non-Buddhist teachers. Certain terms used in these meditations on the four formless realms are preserved in later systems of fourfold meditation. Among these terms are 'applying' and 'not applying the mind' (manasikara, yid la byed pa and amanasikara, yid la mi byed pa) to 'divesity' (nanatva, sna tshogs), and 'passing beyond' a certain meditative state (atikram, 'da' ba or bzla ba). This consistency in terminology may indicate conscious continuity and change in these meditative practices.
A fondness for numerical categorisation is a constant within most Buddhist systems of thought. Even some of those who wish to do away with categories nevertheless resort at times to various categories, as does the "Heart Sutra" in teaching emptiness. In continuing a long Indian tradition, and out of their tendency towards comprehensiveness, various Buddhist systems try to find links between the distinct numerical categories. The most celebrated system among them is of course tantra, which constantly seeks correlations, as the meaning of its name 'weaving thread' suggests. Though it may be impossible to make rules for how they function, there are certain numerical categories that structure much of Buddhist thought. One important example is the three bodies of the Buddha that find cosmological parallels in the three realms of desire, forms, and the formless; mental parallels in the three types of consciousness according to the Yogacara – the consciousnesses of the six senses, the klistamanas and the alayavijnana; and according of the Great Perfection they find parallels to their models of being in the three modes of the mind – emptiness, clarity and non-obstruction. The fivefold system that underlies much of tantric thought is well known. Here are correlations among the five aggregates, the five physical elements, the five afflicting emotions, and the five male and female Buddhas of the mandala together with the five wisdoms and so on. The fourfold classification of mediations is another such fundamental configuration that finds constant expression in Buddhist thought.


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Pho (Vietnamese Noodle Soup)
Pho is one of Vietnam's most well-known dishes. For many families, the cooking of the dish is a true labor of love and care. With its aromatic broth, slurpable rice noodles and many delicious garnish options, it is very easy to customize a bowl to suit your tastes. —Taste of Home Test Kitchen


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Photo: Lincoln Barbour
Marble subway tiles cover the walls in a remodeled kitchen. (above)
Every been trying to decide between the right wall paint color, tile color, countertop color combination in a kitchen or bath? Well here is a solution…eliminate one of the surface color choices by just using tile for the whole wall. To keep a kitchen or bath design simple but stylish, try tiling all the way to the ceiling. A tiled wall makes a luxe design statement…so why not give it a try?
Photo: Style at Home
A cute kitchen with Ikea cabinets and a green yellow and grey square glass tile backplash creating a colorful feature wall!(above)
Photo: Jessica Helgerson
An elegant bathroom sink area features elegant floor to ceiling white subway tiles.(above)
Photo: Mabley Handler
Grey glass subway tiles wallpaper the walls and compliment the shiny metal stand alone tub in this chic master bath. (above)
Happy Friday!
P.S. Check out the COCOCOZY FACEBOOK PAGE today…a reader needs more of your help deciding on her kitchen backsplash. If you are not a fan of COCOCOZY on Facebook, then please "Like" the page and then you can weigh in with your opinion on her kitchen remodel!


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Still hankering for the day that you pulled your new PC out of the box, plugged it in and it just worked? Over time and use, your PC can slow down. This could be due to obsolete or corrupt hardware, software issues or all of these things. UserBenchmark.com can can identify many of these problems and help you to achieve the best performance possible from your Windows PC. This user guide answers the following questions:
UserBenchmark.com can quickly establish whether your PC is underperforming and suggest likely hardware and software issues. Test how fast your processor, graphics card, storage drives and memory are by running the free UserBenchmark Speed Test.
The test may take a up to few minutes to run depending on your PC. After completion, your results will be available on UserBenchmark.com.
The following section explains how to interpret the results for an example UserBenchmark run.
This particular PC has a reasonable desktop score of 39% so it is suitable for most day to day activities such as using Microsoft Office and web browsing. Depending on exactly how the PC is used, it may also be sufficient as a minimal workstation PC 28%. However, the system is unsuitable for PC gaming as it only scores 17%.
Full details on each of the category calculations are available here.
The high level summary at the beginning of the results page explains the relative performance of this PC compared to other PCs with the same components (PC Status). This is useful in highlighting whether there is a performance issue with this particular PC's hardware. The summary also points out other significant items such as the type of tasks this PC is most suited to.
In this example, the PC is in reasonable condition, performing as expected and running the latest version of Windows. The processor is highlighted in amber, indicating that its performance is about average. The summary also suggests that the graphics capabilities are on the low side and that consideration should be given to incorporating a SSD boot drive.
This AMD FX-6300 processor scores a benchmark of 51.3% based on single, quad and multi-core speed tests. This is higher than the average of all other benchmarks for this processor (47%). The graph shows that this CPU is actually performing in the 86th percentile, which is way above expectations.
As emphasized in the high level summary, the graphics for this PC are weak, scoring an underwhelming 9.81% which is a bit on the low side but still reasonably consistent with the average score for the HD 7750 (11%). Playing 3D games would be a struggle, if not an impossibility with this card and it may even be an effort to play some HD movies. This PC's graphics score, and therefore gaming experience, could be improved by upgrading to a better GPU.
In absolute terms, this Toshiba hard disk seems is performing reasonably well with a benchmark of 77.1% but the average score for all Toshiba DT01ACA100 drives (based on 108,253 samples) is 84% so this particular drive is in the bottom 31st percentile. It's possible that there were some background processes accessing this drive during the benchmark or it may be that the benchmark was run on a slower innner partition. Re-running the test after a reboot would reduce the chances of background processes interfering with the benchmark results.
You can take the following basic steps to improve the speed of your PC if your components are performing below their potential.
If poor performance is stemming from a low CPU or boot drive status, some free and effective ways of improving PC performance involve clearing out unwanted software and files. You may like to try the following:
Uninstall redundant programs. Use Windows Task Manager and check disk load (Windows 8 onwards) to identify unnecessary active programs consuming processing power. Remove the programs via the Control Panel.
Reduce the programs that unnecessarily automatically start when the PC is powered up, thereby reducing the PC start up time. This can be accessed via the task manager 'Start up' section for Windows 8 onwards or by typing 'msconfig' in the startup menu for earlier versions.
Purge unnecessary files from the drives using Windows Disk Cleanup (user guide). Access hard disk cleanup via settings, control panel, administrative tools and then Disk Cleanup. Delete unnecessary program files and system files (e.g. previous Window installations) via this method.
Troubleshoot Windows via the control panel action centre to help identify Windows-related performance issues e.g. installing a Windows update may be advisable.
Check Windows Event Viewer. This is a record of the PC's alerts and notifications, that can be sorted in order of importance. In Windows 10, this can be found by right clicking the Windows start icon (or from the Win+X power menu) and selecting 'Event Viewer'. A full log of 'Administrative Events' is listed under the 'Custom Views' directory, or for a more salient list of events, look under 'Windows Logs' then 'System'.
O&O ShutUp10 is a portable antispy tool for Windows 10 that helps to retain control over personal data as well as reducing bloatware that ships with default installations of Windows. Highly recommended for new builds.
LatencyMon checks a PC's core responsiveness by measuring the latencies and hard page faults of installed drivers. Latency problems can result in audio distortion such as clicking and crackling as well as jerky graphics and an unresponsive system.
Switch off the computer from time to time as opposed to just putting it to sleep (which maybe the default in your PC's power plan). Switching the PC off forces all programs to close, including those which may be running surreptitiously in the background, and clears out the memory.
Keep the PC physically clean by clearing dust from air vents and the surrounding environment. Too much dust can cause hardware to overheat and work sub-optimally.
If you require greater performance from your PC or you suspect that your hardware is faulty, you may look to upgrade some components. Whilst the example PC discussed above is adequate for many desktop activities, it only scored 17% for gaming and did not have a SSD boot drive. Depending on how this PC is used, it may benefit from a new GPU and SSD. UserBenchmark can help identify the best options whichever PC component is being considered for upgrade.
UserBenchmark's full list of components for: CPUs, GPUs, SSDs, HDDs, RAM and USB drives can be sorted by performance, value, popularity, budget, age etc. and filtered by brand, capacity, vendor etc. to help identify specifically which components are best for your needs.
Narrow down the selection and compare two components side by side, or one component against the average of the top tier components with UserBenchmark's comparisons.
As an example, a comparison between two mid-range popular GPUs: the Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti and AMD R7 370, instantly reveals that the GTX 1050 offers significantly better value for money.
To see how the upgrade may affect the UserBenchmark overall PC score before making a purchase, use the Custom PC Builder tool.
From your User run results page, simply click on the 'Add to PC Build' button which conveniently adds the various components included in the results to the baseline build in the Custom PC Builder tool.
Play around with component upgrades in the 'Alternative build' column and see the prices and expected impact on PC benchmarks.
Also explore the real world benchmark results of your proposed PC by clicking on load baseline/alternative benchmarks. As well as showing real world performance, these benchmarks reveal popular, and unpopular, component combinations. An uncommon combination may show that there is little point in adding a cutting-edge component to an ageing PC and a wildly unpopular combination may indicate incompatibility.
In the following example, upgrading to a 1050 Ti would approximately double the gaming score to a respectable 33% at a cost of $155.
Spending a further $120 would buy the punchy NVIDIA GTX 1060-6GB and would raise the expected gaming score to 52% if so desired.
The UserBenchmark Build tool quickly and freely allows the experimentation of any number of PC setups before making the ultimate purchase. For inspiration, check out some of the great builds featured here:
So you've taken on board the suggestions: you've cleaned up your PC, and you've upgraded your graphics card. Now it's time to measure the results of your hard work.
Run the Userbenchmark speed test again and compare the latest results to your previous run results which can be saved to your profile.
Good luck with your PC improvement journey and thanks for reading!
We sincerely hope you have found this guide helpful. If you have, why not share UserBenchmark.com with your friends: make sure their PCs are performing optimally and compare benchmarks.
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Film Friendly initiatives are designed to encourage a dialogue between all stakeholders involved in film and television production and to facilitate filmmaking in Sydney and around the State.
Screen NSW provides a liaison service between the industry, State government and Local government and assists all parties with training and advice on the film friendly principles.
For more information please view the following links:
Local Government Filming Protocol
Film Permit Contacts (A comprehensive listing of film contacts in State, Local and Federal government authorities in New South Wales)


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The earthquakes that rocked Tohoku, Japan in 2011, Sumatra in 2004 and Chile in 1960 — all of magnitude 9.0 or greater — should not have happened, according to seismologist's theories of earthquake cycles. And that might mean earthquake prediction needs an overhaul, some researchers say.
All three earthquakes struck along subduction zones, where two of Earth's tectonic plates collide and one dives beneath the other. Earlier earthquakes had released the pent-up strain along Chile's master fault, meaning no big quakes were coming, scientists had thought. Japan and Sumatra both sat above on old oceanic crust, thought to be too stiff for superquakes.
And records of past quakes, combined with measurements of the speed of Earth's tectonic plates, suggested the Tohoku and Sumatra-Andaman regions couldn't make quakes larger than 8.4, almost nine times smaller than a magnitude 9.0 temblor.
"These areas had been written off as places incapable of producing a great earthquake," said Chris Goldfinger, a marine geologist at Oregon State University in Corvallis.
But the events of 1960, 2004 and 2011 showed that these faults were capable of producing some of the most destructive earthquakes in recorded history, suggesting earthquake researchers need to re-think aspects of how they evaluate a fault's earthquake potential.
"It's time to come up with something new," Goldfinger told OurAmazingPlanet.
Faults are like batteries
When two tectonic plates collide, they build up strain where a fault sticks, or locks, together. Earthquakes release this strain, which is a form of energy.
For decades, scientists assumed faults acted like rubber bands, steadily building up strain and then releasing it all at once, Goldfinger said. The longer the time since the last earthquake, the larger the next earthquake would be, the model predicted. [ Video: What Does Earthquake 'Magnitude' Mean? ]
The problem was researchers failed to recognize that faults can store energy like a battery, Goldfinger said. And just like batteries, they can discharge energy in small amounts, or all at once, he explained.
Goldfinger and other researchers now think if a "small" quake hits, it may not release all of the accumulated energy in a fault. (On a subduction zone, a small quake can still register in the magnitude-8.0 range, which is devastating to nearby cities.)
Thus, a fault can "borrow" stored energy from previous strain-building cycles, generating larger earthquakes than expected, such as those that hit Sumatra and Tohoku, Goldfinger and his colleagues propose in a study published in the January/February 2013 issue of the journal Seismological Research Letters.
"Those models were already being called into question when Sumatra drove one stake through their heart, and Tohoku drove the second one," said Goldfinger, the lead author of the study.
Superquakes and supercycles
Goldfinger said scientists' failure to recognize that faults could store energy comes from a lack of data. Historic earthquake records go back only 100 years, he noted. Geologists are only now getting histories that reach back thousands of years, via techniques that decode evidence of past earthquakes in sediments.
"What is happening on a short-term timescale is actually imposed on a long-term cycle," he said.
Goldfinger calls these long-term histories supercycles, and the unusually large and rare earthquakes that discharge the battery are superquakes. The sequence, size and location of quakes vary from one supercycle to the next, he said.
Seismologist Marco Cisternas first proposed that faults could store energy in 2005, with a study showing that the magnitude 9.5 Chile earthquake in 1960, the largest on record, released more energy than had been stored since its most recent quake, in 1837. Tsunami deposits in Chile indicate the last superquake occurred in 1575, and smaller quakes since then had only partly released the strain built up on the fault, his study found.
In Sumatra, south of the Andaman region, analyses of corals uplifted and killed during earthquakes also indicated that the subduction zone undergoes supercycles, according to a 2008 study led by geologists at the Earth Observatory Institute in Singapore. Each series of quakes in the region lasts between 30 and 100 years, according to the study. The supercycles unfold every 200 years or so.
Forecasting the future
Goldfinger and his colleagues have evidence that the Cascadia Subduction Zone, which stretches from Northern California to British Columbia, is also in the middle of an earthquake supercycle.
Over the past 10,000 years, 19 superquakes and four supercycles have occurred along the zone, Goldfinger said.
"These would typically be of a magnitude from about 8.7 to 9.2, really huge earthquakes," Goldfinger said. "We've also determined that there have been 22 additional earthquakes that involved just the southern end of the fault. We are assuming that these are slightly smaller, more like 8.0, but not necessarily. They were still very large earthquakes that if they happened today could have a devastating impact," he said.
The present cycle seems like it's gently ratcheting downward, Goldfinger said. "This would suggest that we're not due for a giant [quake] anytime soon, but the model has no predictive value," he said.
The battery model of earthquake energy storage and discharge makes it difficult for scientists to forecast future earthquakes, as there's no explanation yet for why faults would behave this way, Goldfinger said. Plus, it's hard to say how much energy a fault's battery stores. "We haven't yet figured out how to effectively put a voltmeter on a fault and say how charged it is," Goldfinger said.
But with more detailed records of past earthquakes, such as those in Sumatra and Cascadia, Goldfinger believes scientists can give better estimates of seismic hazards, and prevent surprises like Sumatra and Tohoku.
"The long records are revealing very useful things," he said. "We're not sure what's driving the long-term cycling, but at least we can tell people what to prepare for," Goldfinger said.
Reach Becky Oskin at firstname.lastname@example.com. Follow her on Twitter @beckyoskin. Follow OurAmazingPlanet on Twitter @OAPlanet. We're also on Facebook and Google+.


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GENEVA – Neutral Switzerland is among the best-armed nations in the world, with more guns per capita than almost any other country except the United States, Finland and Yemen.
At least 2.3 million weapons lie stashed in basements, cupboards and lofts in this country of less than 8 million people, according to the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey.
On Sunday, Swiss voters made sure it stays that way, rejecting a proposal to tighten the peaceful Alpine nation's relaxed firearms laws.
The decision was hailed as a victory by gun enthusiasts, sports shooters and supporters of Switzerland's citizen soldier tradition.
"This is an important sign of confidence in our soldiers," said Pius Segmueller, a lawmaker with the Christian People's Party and former commander of the Vatican's Swiss Guard.
In Switzerland, where all able-bodied men are required to perform military duty, many choose to take their army-issued rifle home with them even after completing military service.
Gun clubs, too, remain a popular feature of village life in rural parts of the country, with children as young as 10 taking part in shooting competitions.
Doctors, churches and women's groups tried and failed Sunday to require military-issued firearms to be locked in secure army depots. They also wanted the Swiss government to establish a national gun registry and ban the sale of fully automatic weapons and pump-action rifles, arguing this would help cut incidents of domestic violence and Switzerland's high rate of firearms suicides.
The clear defeat of the proposal — 56.3 percent of voters rejected it — may seem surprising for a peaceful nation that hasn't been at war with its neighbors since Napoleon invaded two centuries ago. But this is a country that cherishes the myth of William Tell and its soldiers' supposed defiance of Nazi Germany in World War II.
The measure had little chance of winning over the independent-minded Swiss, who have resisted the lure of joining the European Union and recently shocked the world with a vote to ban the construction of minarets.
"Switzerland is different," said Dora Andres, president of the country's sport shooting association. "In many countries the government doesn't trust its citizens and feels it has to protect them. In Switzerland, because we have a system of popular referendums, the state has to have faith in its citizens."
Martine Brunschwig-Graf, a national lawmaker with the left-of-center Social Democratic Party, blamed the defeat of the measure on women's reluctance to vote on an issue she says affects them most.
Women are the main victims of domestic violence, and are also the ones left behind when their fathers, husbands or boyfriends commit suicide with an army weapon, she said.
About a quarter of Switzerland's 1,300 suicides each year involve a gun, and those calling for tighter rules claim military weapons, such as the army-issued SG 550 assault rifle, are used in between 100 and 200 suicides a year.
There are signs, however, that even in Switzerland attitudes to guns are changing. Young people are among those most likely to favor curbs on gun ownership.
In most shooting clubs the average age is "closer to 50 than to 40," says Gerhard Schneider, president of the pistol shooters association in Bueren an der Aare.


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A rhizome is the root-like base that anchors the fern. Licorice ferns most commonly grow from the trunks and horizontal limbs of old deciduous trees such as big-leaf maples, but they'll also colonize rocks, logs, and other support structures. A network of rhizomes, often hidden beneath a thick carpet of moss, spreads across damp, forested habitat, sprouting fronds as it creeps along. To harvest, you peel back the moss, locate the rhizome, and gently pull it off its support. A single rhizome can be more than a foot long, with several ferns attached. Native Americans chewed them for their sweet, licorice-like taste and also as a medicinal that was thought to cure ailments such as colds and sore throats.
Broiled Halibut with Licorice Fern Beurre Blanc, Truffle Butter & Root Medley
This dish is adapted from a lunch I had at Etta's Kitchen not too long ago, except that Etta's used lingcod and some preserved lemon, and the licorice fern is my addition. It's an easy yet elegant preparation, comfort all the way. The root medley, especially the parsnip and fennel, adds sweetness to echo the licorice fern in the sauce.
Beurre Blanc is a sauce every home cook should know. It's a simple way to gussy up a basic meal of fish or vegetables, and it's suitable for fancier occasions, too. Lately I've been playing with the ingredients and amounts without any of the problems that typically plague other more persnickety French sauces, and I have yet to break one despite experiments with lobster stock, extra wine, lemon juice in place of vinegar, and varying amounts of butter. You can make a butter extravaganza if you like, but I really prefer it a little less creamy.
truffle butter closed the deal.
The sauce here is a modified Beurre Blanc without the usual butter assault. As mentioned, I like this sauce slightly brothy, though no one would ever call it thin.
1 heaping tbsp shallot, finely diced
1/4 cup champagne (or white wine) vinegar
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 cup stock, divided (chicken, vegetable, lobster)
1 stick cold butter, cut into 8 - 10 sections
2 tsp lemon juice
salt & white pepper
1. Combine fern root, shallots, vinegar, and wine in small saucepan over medium heat. Reduce to 2 tablespoons.
2. Add half the stock and reduce to a few tablespoons. Add remainder of stock and reduce again.
3. Turn heat to low and start adding cold butter one section at a time, whisking frequently. Add another piece when the previous one has melted into the sauce. Don't overheat or sauce will break. You can adjust the consistency by adding more butter or stock. For this dish I prefer it soupy. Finish the sauce with a splash of lemon juice off heat, whisk again, and strain.
Serves 4 modest portions.


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Apple has announced its earnings for the first calendar quarter of 2009, and while no company is likely recession proof, Apple is certainly recession-resilient. The company posted revenue of $8.16 billion and a net quarterly profit of $1.21 billion, which is huge. Mac sales were a much better than expected 2.22 million units, and though that's down a pretty meaningless 3 percent, year over year, it's enough for 3.36 percent worldwide market share. (In the year ago quarter, the Mac accounted for just 3.26 of all PC sales worldwide.)
US market share, of course, is harder to gauge since Apple doesn't break out US numbers explicitly. Looking at IDC (1130 units) and Gartner's (1135) estimated sales figures for the US, Apple's Mac has about 7.49 percent market share in the US. That's a bit more vague of an estimate, of course, but it seems reasonable.
Either way, the Mac's in great shape, despite the economy.
More impressive, perhaps, is the iPhone. Sales of the iPhone more than doubled year over year, with Apple selling 3.79 million units (according to AT&T, 1.6 million of them in the US).
iPod sales were up an inconsequential 3 percent, suggesting that the new iPod shuffle hasn't been a fast seller. It's rare for Apple to completely replace an iPod model in the first quarter (they usually go after the full lineup each September) but it doesn't look like it made much of a difference. Maybe the next shuffle could be bigger and have a real UI.


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