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Cherry Red 2018
Hidden in history: the entire output from original prog axeman's least known project plugs gaps in his dotted discography.
For all the talent he possessed, Peter Banks didn't have a lot of success with any of the bands his guitar was trying to lead to delirium – be it YES, FLASH or EMPIRE – and his solo career didn't exactly took off, so the veteran's experiments on "The Self-Contained Trilogy" couldn't attract the attention those efforts deserved. Still, those endeavors allowed the artist in the final decade of his life to find mutual affinity with a British duo PULSE ENGINE, a brainchild of drummer Andrew Booker and bassist Nick Cottam, and form HARMONY IN DIVERSITY. They rehearsed, they attempted to record improvisations, they played live in 2005-2007 – and they failed, leaving not a feeble, if not too tangible, legacy which is gathered now in a 6CD set to present Peter as situational performer, ready to react to the smallest disturbance in the fabric of music.
What may be perceived as scraping the barrel is, in fact, a triumph of unpredictability and good-natured humor. This is why "The Number Of The Beat" swirls around a wonderfully weird weave of straightforward electronic groove and jazz chords blowing its claustrophobia to bits to thread a tune through intense, albeit somewhat abstract, guitar lines, while the equally playfully "Swing It" has a cinematic twang applied to romantic soundscape. The two-part "Harmogeny" may make slow, expansive lucidity dangerously tangible – despite the message of the cut's proper arrival as "No Harm" on "Trying," the trio's only officially released album – yet it's the trip-hop blues "On The Sixth Attempt They Trod On It" that nails the ensemble's loose method marrying off-the-cuff stylistic unexpectedness to deceptively traditional genres where riffs are mangled to create new shapes, and help the funk behind "Last Run For The Empire" reimagine a piece from Banks' past as something exciting.
In the box set context, "Trying" seems to attain a lot of sense – yet also define the band's ability to concentrate on the substantial and get rid of redundant freefall-formed fringe. As a result, "After You" is tentative to the point of well-poised, density-defying minimalism, drawing on drone and rock idioms at the same time, and "Mind The Doors" bent on wild, vigorous virtuosity that's drowned in a bubbling rhythm – unlike "The Klincher" which is suspended in fractal limbo as opposed to "Sods At Odds" and its motorik charge. Molded similarly, the "Try Again" collection could be the aforementioned album's companion piece, highlighting the group's telepathy and technique on the clearly unfinished cuts like "Some Things Are Best Left Upside Down" – a rave-up for modern era – or "Everything Is Green" where tranquil strum is compromised with a stereo-busting disco scratch across the strings to reach a genuine progressive intent. It's present in full folk-tinctured swing on "Cracking" as well, before "Almighty Dog" bares a rawer, rather reckless edge to the trio's drive.
There's a fusion cocoon in "Everything Ends In Nothing" to pamper the most hardened adventurer and pump energy into new-age-like musing, but if the tracks gathered on the "Struggles Discontinued" disc show focused variety, the four epics that comprise "What Is This?" – such as "Lots And Lots Of Disjoint Dots" whose title is quite telling in defining the deficiency of a duo setting, despite the obvious rapport between Banks and Booker – have some difficulties gelling into engaging patterns, occasional synthetic passage, and a quote from Grieg, notwithstanding. When the bottom end of "Plenty To Hear In Orbit" rises to the surface, its drift and flow will change for the better and, with Dave Speight taking over the drum stool towards the group's breakup, the recordings packed under the "Spontaneous Creation" header embody this cosmic muscularity, their grimy angularity undermined by memorable flow. Yet while "Now Now" rocks unexpectedly hard, "One Night In Budapest" is delicately textured and given vibes to become alluringly otherworldly, and if the multi-layered "Bruno" feels magically glacial at the start, the sparse percussive buzz of "Sitting On The Buffalo" is imbued with musique concrète.
With some studio embellishments applied to the vast majority of these aural experiments, "Hitting The Fans" – a disc capturing the collective's on-stage antics – stands out as an even more impressive snapshot of their spontaneity, and surprising embrace of quieter dynamics. So it's logical, not strange, that "Tropical Moon" is surfing a traditional, although beautifully fractured, wave to achieve an extra dimension and allow the Hendrix-inspired "Out Of The Garage" bristle with insistent figures and familiar melody. "Procyon A" and "Not Over Yet" are referring to previously recorded numbers, but their concert delivery has a fresh finesse to the same rough jive which would hit another height in the crystalline clang of "Dystopian Workshop" or "Industrial Powder Washing" where the kinky machine is inhabited by Ravel's ghost.
It can't be easy listening, of course, but these pieces add unseen features to the portrait of the master who left this world too soon and who could have that elusive success had it all been taken to the extremes of today.


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Recap of Lights Camera Africa Film Festival 2015!!!
Lights Camera Africa Film Festival 2015 was a great event! We had sessions with celebrities like Tunde Kelani, Lemi Ghariokwu, and more. The festival reviewed and presented 25 unique films from all over Africa including, Olu Amoda: A metallic journey, Gone too far, Finding Fela, Timbuktu, Faaji Agba, White Wedding, Boat Girls, Wooden Hands, Beasts […]Read full post

subset: commoncrawl


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For the last several years, we are working in Pakistan on abduction and forced conversion. Every day we experience a new story with continuous agony and pain for the families of such victims.
Huma Younis, a teenage Pakistani Christian girl, was abducted and forcibly married to the abductor on 10th Oct 2019.
In the Civilized world, certain age has been set for marriage, but in Pakistan, there is no active law to regulate such things. From time to time Pakistani democratic and liberal political leaders introduce bills to determine the age at which the girls are eligible for marriage. The pressure and mindset of the Islamist sitting in the parliament constantly denied such laws.
Huma Younis, who was just 14 years old, became the victim of this demonic act. Since her abduction, Younis and his wife Nagina are struggling to get justice from the courts in Pakistan however, the juridical system of Pakistan is unable to provide any relief to their abducted daughter.
There is evidence that Huma was abducted by Abdul Jabbar who happens to be their driver. On the day of her abduction, Jabbar along with few associates entered the house of the family and informed Huma and her younger sister that their parents met an accident and they are in hospital. When both the girls tried to reach out to their father through phone but Jabbar dragged Huma out into the street and forced her into his car.
According to the neighbors who witnessed the whole episode, informed the full details to the police that how Jabbar on Gunpoint was dragging the girl from the house to the car.
When the family contacted the police for the official complaint against Jabbar, Police refused to record any such complaint. According to the Police, the girl is converted and now has willingly married to Jabbar.
We have observed while working in cases like this, such girls were normally never been a return to their families. Unless luckily, they were escaping or Rescued by some organizations like us.


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Necessary things to know when traveling to Hanoi Vietnam
Coming to Hanoi, many people are impressed by ancient streets in Hanoi Old Quarter, bustling atmosphere at the rush hour and poetic lakes carrying cool breezes. Each season in Hanoi brings it owns beauty. To have a memorable journey to discover Hanoi, you should consider the necessary things to know when traveling to Hanoi, Vietnam.
Overview of Hanoi
Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam and the second-largest city in the country after Ho Chi Minh city. Located in the heart of Red River Delta, Hanoi for a long time is the center of Vietnam civilization and used to be the capital of Vietnam feudal dynasties until the 17th century. Hanoi is also known with the title "the city for peace" and with the position as the political, cultural, economic center of the country, this city becomes the favorite destination of many foreign tourists.
Scattered around the city, there are many historical and cultural sites that hide the interesting information about Vietnam history and culture such Temple of Literature, Ho Chi Minh mausoleum, One Pillar pagoda, etc. From Hanoi, tourists can easily get to visit the famous tourist destinations in the north and central Vietnam such as Halong Bay, Sapa, Mai Chau, Hue, Danang, etc.
Hanoi Old Quarter
Weather in Hanoi
In North Vietnam, there are four distinct seasons in the year. Therefore, the Hanoi weather is what you need to care about when traveling here. In summer, the weather in Hanoi is usually very hot while Hanoi has a cold winter. Here the spring usually has drizzle and the climate is quite wet. If you want to experience the difference in weather, you should choose to go to Hanoi in the special season. If not, the fall, from September to November, is the best time to visit Hanoi.
Long Bien bridge in the afternoon
Hotels in Hanoi
Is this the first time that you have traveled to Hanoi? You are advised to experience your stay in Hanoi Old Quarter. It is suggested to select and book the hotels near Cathedral Church, Ma May, Hang Hanh, Hang Trong, Hang Bong and Hang Gai. Here you can easily enjoy the bustling atmosphere of Hanoi.
Those who need a quiet space to relax should book a hotel near West Lake. Then, you can rent a motorbike to reduce your travel expenses. Here you enjoy the freshest air of Hanoi as well as the romantic beauty of West Lake every afternoon.
Means of transportation
- Hanoi has many airlines that offer flights to Noi Bai airports such as Cathay Pacific, China Airlines, Eva Air, Hong Kong Airlines, Korean Air, and Vietnam Airlines.
- For domestic flights, you can use Jetstar Pacific Airlines at very cheap prices.
- To travel around Hanoi, you can use public vehicles (buses), taxis, motorbikes, and cars. Besides, many people choose to do sightseeing around Hanoi by cyclo to watch the streets.
- Hanoi also has railways in the northern provinces and the whole country.
- If you stay long in Hanoi, it is recommended that you should go to Hanoi Old Quarter for the bicycle or motorcycle rental.
Hanoi street
Other tips for traveling in Hanoi
Although Hanoi provides tourists with various high-quality services, you still need to have careful preparation to cope with unpleasant things when using the services here. In particular,
- When shopping, you avoid shopping in the early morning and asking price without buying.
- You should refer to prices from different places and have to bargain to avoid being forced to buy products with exorbitant prices.
- It is also necessary to bring with you a map to measure the distance to avoid being taken with longer distance by cyclo or motorbike. You are advised to ask prices before using services. The best way is to seek help from the reception at your hotel if you need more information.
- To completely enjoy the beauty of nature, magnificent architecture at large temples, you should not go to the pagodas and temples in the festival season.
- Finally, when traveling to Sapa, you should book the necessary services before. In fact, the number of train coaches and hotel rooms is limited. You also should not come here on long holidays in Vietnam. The reason is that on these days, you will have to go to the mountainous markets together with many lowlanders. If so, you will not have many chances to explore the culture of the upland.
Hanoi is a great city to travel to Vietnam. Hope that the information above will help your Hanoi Vietnam tour smoother. If you need further guides, don't hesitate to contact us or visit our website. Please like and share the article with others if you find it useful. Thank you.


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Google For Nonprofits
November 13, 2017 | Nonprofits
There are so many amazing resources for nonprofits across the internet that are not well-known! One of these is Google For Nonprofits, which allows eligible nonprofits access to Google products for free. The products can help nonprofits find new donors and volunteers and work more efficiently! Here are some of the great tools your nonprofit may be able to take advantage of for free:
- Google Ad Grants. Did you know Google provides in-kind advertising for your nonprofit through search? Through Google ads, you can increase your reach and in turn, awareness of your cause and mission.
- One Today. This product allows nonprofits to build fundraising campaigns with no fees and automatic receipting. It allows supporters to quickly give as little as $1 and allows for pay-it-forward gifting credits.
- YouTube for Nonprofits. Google allows nonprofits a number of additional features for Youtube, including use of YouTube spaces across the nation, Link Anywhere Cards, and dedicated email support.
- G Suite For Nonprofits. Google allows nonprofits full access to G Suite, with 30GB of storage per user and 24/7 support.
- Google Earth Outreach. Finally, Google provides custom maps and location data via Google Earth. Google allows nonprofits API access, which lets you display community or donor location data on Google Maps for restricted use.
Did you know about all of these valuable resources for nonprofits? We can help create a digital campaign for you in conjunction with these free resources. Let's chat today!


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The main focus for the Environmental Protection Team is the investigation of statutory nuisances under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
They also deal with air quality, foul and land drainage, contaminated land,caravan site licensing, public and private water supplies, swimming pools, regulated industrial processes, unauthorised encampments, biosolids and insecure buildings.
Environmental Services has various enforcement policies; these policies help officers to decide what action to take when faced with breaches of legislation. The options range from sending informal letters to the offenders to prosecuting them. The policies can be found in one policy document.


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Certified Tutor
I've been tutoring full time since graduating from Columbia in 2015. I've worked at a variety of agencies including Genius Prep, Gooroo, Parliament, The Study Shack, All Ivy Tutors, and The Cambridge Institute.
English: I love tutoring English and writing. I've worked on dozens of high school essays (and a few college ones as well)everything from computer coding to Shakespeare to Jewish history. I've also helped students write high school and college application essays that have landed them in elite schools such as Beacon and Brooklyn Tech. When I'm not tutoring, I spend 4-8 hours a day writing a novel so this is my element!
Test Prep: I've had extensive experience tutoring test prep. I've taught group SAT Verbal courses and 1-on-1 sessions. I know the redesigned SAT format inside and out and I've helped students break 1500. I've also taught the SHSAT, SSAT, and ISEE (middle level verbal and quantitative; upper level verbal); ACT (verbal); and English Regents. I can also tutor SAT subject tests and AP tests (I got five 5's myself, back in the day).
French and ESL: I've taught ESL to students from a wide range of backgrounds at tutoring agencies as well as at the Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees. I understand language acquisition from a global perspective. I lived in France for five years and studied philosophy for the French Baccalaurat. I've tutored many students in written and conversational French.
History: I've tutored several students in U.S. History, from grades 6 through 11. Success stories include helping an exchange student go from failing a course to passing in 3 weeks.
Film and Art: What I got a college education for! I've been making movies and working on sets since I was 13. I've had experience tutoring it as well. I taught a cinematography class to middle schoolers as part of Columbia's SPLASH program. I'm also currently helping a student write and shoot a short film. Writing and editing help (Final Cut, Premiere) still works well online with screen-sharing.
Learning Differences: I've also tutored several students with learning differences, including ADHD and Autism. I adapt my teaching style to whatever the student's needs may be.
Undergraduate Degree: Teachers College at Columbia University - Bachelors, Film
SAT Composite (1600 scale): 1520
SAT Verbal: 750
SAT Writing: 790
Adult ESL/ELL
Adult Literacy
African-American History
British Literature
French 1
Mac Basic Computer Skills
Middle School Reading
Middle School Reading Comprehension
Middle School Writing
Social Sciences
Technology and Coding


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The A-Z Dead Fly Art post is below.
I feel like I'm on a mobius strip. The landscape may change at the twist, but I'm not moving forward. I'm simply going around in circles. Moving from doubt to a fear of disappointing. I doubt everything about my writing. Everything. Then there is the fear of dissapointing. Disappointing who? I don't know. You, her, him, them… everyone I guess. And I know this is preposterous because no one can please everyone all the time. And one may argue that no one can please everyone, period.
I wonder if part of my problem is my background. I have an MS in Entomology. BUGS for Christ sakes. I wrote my thesis on the feeding and foraging behaviors of a specific pest ant species in the hopes, of laying down the foundation for a promising ant bait. A far cry from literature, journalism, creative writing, or anything else related to the page. Now don't get all fired up at me over this. I'm not judging anyone else who may for example, have a computer science background and happens to be an author. That is really great and I'm happy for them, truly. But my thoughts here are projected internally, at my reflection that borders the imposture syndrome. I could go on for another volume or two but I'll stop here. Besides, you all think I'm crazy enough. Now go check out the dead fly art!


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Join the STEAM Team!
Why STEAM Engine?
The steam engine exist to aid in ideation, showcase knowledge, foster proficiency, and build creative economy in the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, arts, and math through discussion, entertainment, and education.
Green Bay is home to three major higher education institutes, an international sports icon and an abundance of progressive businesses. The STEAM Engine intends to leverage Green Bay's unique position by showcasing individuals and organizations in the region who are seeking new horizons in the disciplines of Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics. The STEAM Engine is an interactive event held at the Neville Museum that features speakers with exciting projects, new business ventures and cutting edge research. The mission of the STEAM Engine is to improve our creative economy, foster community discussion, and expand our collective knowledge. The events kick off at 6:30pm with presentations and Q & A then is followed by a social networking hour with beer, soda and popcorn.
STEAM Engine Board of Directors
Kent Hutchison
Kent is the STEAM Engine conductor and he's filled with STEAM, loads of it. He may tell you he is a multidisciplinary artist who emphasizes in large scale public works and non-traditional event planning with the intent of elevating community interaction and broadening the artistic horizon in the Fox Valley, but really he's just full of hot STEAM.
Amanda Chu
Amanda Chu - Before, after and in-between chasing around three kiddos, Amanda develops integrative production systems for organic farmers and is also the farm manager of the Sustainable Food and Agriculture program of Northeast WI Technical College. She has farmed in rural and urban settings for over 9 years and understands the vital component of community activism to create a culture that increases food security and builds local foods based economies. With a focus on holistic work/life balance, she actively seeks new skills and cultivates strengths that allow her to support and expand the work of conservation and sustainability efforts locally, nationally and worldwide
Jenny Brinker
Jenny Brinker, CEM recognizes and teaches the importance of saving energy, money and the environment, along with meeting customer comfort and production needs. Jenny has conducted hundreds of commercial energy audits and worked on contracts for energy management programs and utilities. Her work in developing programs involved training energy auditors, which has led to her current role as a sustainability and energy management instructor at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College. Jenny's teaching emphasizes learning from real-life projects. She holds a Master's Degree in Land Resources and Energy Analysis and Policy from UW-Madison and achieved Certified Energy Manager (CEM) certification.
John Arendt
John currently is responsible for seeking and developing relationships within the New North region of Wisconsin to support the mission of EMBI. That mission includes: providing outreach services to businesses and agencies that seek options for addressing environmental problems, enlisting students to participate in campus/community collaborations, and promoting research by faculty and students aimed improving environmental sustainability of the New North region.
John also serves as the supervisor for many sustainability related internships, interacting with the internship sponsoring organization, the student(s) involved, and the Human Resources department at UW-Green Bay. His academic experience and interests include resource management, waste reduction, and sustainability. When not supporting STEAM events in the community, John loves to spend time with his lovely wife Lucy, his three grown sons, and three active granddaughters.
Dr. Lucy Arendt
Dr. Lucy Arendt is a Professor of Business Administration at St. Norbert College. The love of her life is John. Together, they have three adult sons (John, Michael, and David) and three granddaughters (John and Dana's beautiful girls). An expert on organizational and community decision making in the aftermath of natural disasters, Lucy also conducts research on humor and its impacts on health, happiness, creativity, and job satisfaction. Lucy has led students on a travel course to Mexico for many years and is planning to lead students on a travel course to Belgium, France, and Germany in 2018. She received her Ph.D. in Management Science from UW-Milwaukee, focusing on strategic management and organizational behavior.
Lucy teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses in strategic management, organizational behavior, and leadership. She is widely published, belongs to several national and local professional associations, and serves on several Boards of Directors. She's involved in the STEAM Engine because she loves her hometown community and wants to help find ways to connect cool people and ideas.
John F. Katers
John F. Katers is Dean of the College of Science, Engineering, and Technology (CSET) at the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay (UWGB). Katers previously served as Chair of Natural and Applied Sciences (Engineering) and taught courses on pollution control, pollution prevention, waste management, renewable energy, and resource management.
Katers has been at UWGB since 1995, initially working for the University of Wisconsin Solid and Hazardous Waste Education Center as a Recycling Specialist before joining the Natural and Applied Sciences faculty in 1999. He holds a B.S. in Environmental Science and Business Administration and an M.S. in Environmental Science and Policy from UWGB and a Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Marquette University.
Sam Hunt
Sam's claim to fame: on February 21, 2017, he was the first speaker at STEAM Engine I. On that occasion he shared an idea to create an affordable, prepared-food social enterprise that would make it easier for busy people to eat local food and support local farmers. Speaking at STEAM Engine enabled him to share this early stage idea with a large group of people - this led to the formation of a group of initial customers for The Local Food Experiment LLC. When he's not in a commercial kitchen making large batches of food, Sam studies Mathematics and Education at UW - Green Bay and likes spending time with his wife Megan, their three rescue pups, and three backyard chickens. A long time ago, he played golf for the New Zealand national team; although he never made it to the PGA tour, he now has patent application submitted for a golf training aid he invented that can help golfers of all abilities to improve their game.
Matt Buchanan
Matt is an urban planner, geographer, and proud supporter of the arts. Matt works for the City of Green Bay's Economic Development team. Most of his work pertains to brownfield redevelopment and supporting Green Bay's business improvement districts. He is also a member of the Green Bay Public Arts Commission and the ARTgarage Board of Directors.
Matt received a Master's degree in Urban Planning from the University of Kansas, and a Bachelor's degree in Geography and Political Science from the University of Nebraska – Kearney. Up until recently, Matt has lived a nomad's life, having lived in Nebraska; Austin, Texas; Washington, DC; Missouri; Kansas; and Portland, Oregon. In March 2017, Matt finally decided to put down roots in Wisconsin with his partner, Troy, and their dog, Jack. Having lived in so many great places, Matt hopes to bring some refreshing ideas to the Green Bay community.
Amy Soquet
Thinker. Doer. Makes It Happen. Right Brain/Left Brain.
Organized, creative professional with 20+ years in the advertising industry. Experienced in development and execution of multi-faceted initiatives including Producer of Commercial Photography/Video Production at Image Studios, Experiential Media Design at Cineviz, Creative Production Management at Arketype and Advertising Manager at Shopko Headquarters. Amy Soquet serves on the board of American Advertising Federation - District 8 which covers Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
Her community volunteer efforts include serving on several marketing committees including Downtown Green Bay Inc., Olde Main St. Inc., and On Broadway Inc. Soquet has the type of energy that creates contagious passion for community arts and graphic design. Her leadership and ability to inspire others has transformed organizations and the lives around her.


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10/14/2018 / By Mike Adams
A stunning video posted by All News Pipeline — and hosted on Brighteon.com — reveals a shocking "mass hypnosis" session being performed on Democrat activists. In the video, a left-wing organizer states a sentence, and then hoards of Democrats mindlessly repeat the sentence in a zombie-like monotone.
This is why Democrats are increasingly referred to as the "Left Cult." The behavior of leftists increasingly resembles cult-like fanaticism, complete with hypnotic auto-suggestion sessions carried out in plain daylight and caught on camera.
Watch the video below to see the shocking proof of left-wing mind control for yourself:
Organizer: "In 30 minutes…"
Left-wing crowd: "In 30 minutes…"
Organizer: "Meet me to the left."
Left-wing crowd: "Meet me to the left."
Organizer: "If you would like to go to an office…"
Left-wing crowd: "If you would like to go to an office…"
Organizer: "To spend time…"
Left-wing crowd: "To spend time…"
Organizer: "With your Senator…"
Left-wing crowd: "With your Senator…"
Organizer: "…go to that office."
Left-wing crowd: "…go to that office."
You have to see this yourself to believe it. The entire scene reveals an actual real-time mass hypnosis of highly suggestible left-wing activists who appear to be incapable of thinking for themselves.
As All News Pipeline describes it:
And with this creepy video giving us a look into the mindset of Democrats in 2018, where many of them are already transitioning from being merely 'a mob' into being 'domestic terrorists' as we've seen in antifa terrorists vandalizing the GOP's headquarters in New York, we see the results of outright MK Ultra mind control happening before our eyes in this video via neuro linguistic programming, one of the most common forms of mind control
Note that this video would be instantly banned on YouTube, which is exactly why we launched Brighteon.com as a YouTube alternative.
The mass hypnosis scene brings to mind the "You are all individuals" bit from Monty Python's "Life of Brian." A cult classic, this comedy skit mocked the lunacy of the mindless mob… and now that same lunacy has become a political party called "Democrats."
See also Groupthink.news for more coverage of dangerous cult-like "groupthink" that's rapidly rising across society.
Tagged Under: brainwashed, democrats, indoctrination, left cult, Leftists, liberals, mass hypnosis, mind control, MK Ultra, Zombies


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Live Streaming • Virtual Sets • 4K Video • Motion Graphics • Green Screen Studio
These are just some of the newest trends in video production and they are all covered here in Design & Visual Communications (DVC). The goal of our program is to expose students to all phases of video production. On any given day, students could be writing scripts, drawing storyboards, directing a live shoot, producing special segments, operating cameras, or even be in front of the camera as on-air talent. Students will learn the value of working on a team to accomplish a shared goal and make deadlines.
Be sure to check our Vimeo page for on-demand content. Follow us on Facebook to hear about upcoming LIVE streaming events.


text: Push Up and Jump (Training Video) October 21, 2010 by maxadmin Push Up and jump video, how many can you get in 60 seconds??? This is a killer for your cardio… and beats the hell out of a treadmill! Learn How Mark Has Doubled His Studio Every Year For The Last Four Years


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All-in-One Automation
By Mike McLeodMotion Control Omron
Omron's Machine Automation Controller integrates multiple controllers while maintaining high performance.
In November, Omron Industrial Automation announced what the company billed as a new category in automation control, the Machine Automation Controller (MAC). While similar to established categories (e.g. PLC, PAC and Industrial PC), the company says the MAC incorporates aspects of each but combines and coordinates the various functions to create an architecture unmatched in the industry.
To fill this newly created category, Omron unveiled its Sysmac NJ-Series MAC, a high-end controller that integrates and synchronizes motion, logic and vision in one unit. Like a PLC, the NJ-Series is "hardened" for industrial environments but houses a fanless processor at its core like an Industrial PC.
Comparatively, says Omron commercial engineer for PLCs and IO, Johnston Hall, the NJ-Series MAC is most like an enhanced version of the Programmable Automation Controller (PAC); the MAC handles the same functions but can coordinate motion, logic and vision synchronously and at an exceptionally high speed.
"With a PAC, you add software to a controller for all the different functions, but the different software still has to 'talk' to each other and, therefore, aren't really synchronized," he says. "With the MAC, the three processes are unified and synchronized; that way there is no time loss."
According to Omron, the NJ-Series updates motion, network and user application updates in the same scan to ensure synchronicity. In addition, it handles more axes (16, 32 or 64) than typical controllers but its response time remains very fast—1ms for applications up to 32 axes and 2ms for 64 axes.
Part of that speed is due to the NJ-Series' hardware. The controller runs a 1.66 MHz dual core Intel Atom processor running an embedded real time operating system (RTOS) in non-volatile RAM.Added to that, the MAC leverages the speed and determinism of the EtherCAT protocol. While the industrial Ethernet protocol transmits standard 802.3 Ethernet frames, it adds a unique data packet that EtherCAT compatible devices (up to 192 nodes) read and inject, on the fly. In addition, a slave clock in each node allows the master controller to use the timestamp of income and returning packets to determine propagation delay offset and thereby ensure accurate synchronization between devices with less than 1 microsecond jitter.
To communicate less time sensitive data, the Omron's MAC also "speaks" the popular EtherNet/IP protocol, facilitating remote access; interface with HMIs and SCADA software; and tie the controller into the larger peer-to-peer network.
EtherNet/IP also serves as the communication conduit to the last piece of Omron's MAC puzzle: Sysmac Studio, the company's software that serves as an IDE programming environment as well as for configuration, simulation and monitoring. Compliant with the IEC 61131-3 standard, Sysmac Studio supports ladder logic, structured text and function block programming languages. The package also includes a CAM editor for programming of motion profiles and a 3D sequence and motion simulation environment to assist debugging.
"Customers told us they were having trouble integrating the three technologies as well as maintaining machines because there were too many software packages and too many cables," Hall says. "Now, with the MAC, a user can program, back up and tune from a single point."
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Gardening is known by most men and women to be a relaxing and therapeutic interest. Getting the proper soil and gardening products, as properly as when to set in your seeds, are crucial issues you ought to know. Some fundamental guidance will give budding gardeners the data required to get started.
Start off your seedlings in pots within and then transplant them into your garden. After the plant is hardy sufficient, plant it in your backyard garden. This method also presents you the flexibility of tightening time intervals among every planting. As shortly as you harvest the experienced crops in your backyard, your new seedlings will be huge ample to plant outside the house!
Bugs and different yard pests can be avoided by generating your soil wholesome. Healthful plants are more robust and a lot more able to resist both pests and illness. To enhance your garden's likelihood of making robust and healthy plants, use higher-high quality soil made up of minuscule amounts of chemical compounds, which will at some point collect salts.
Use both biennials and annuals to insert color to your flower mattress. These rapidly expanding bouquets permit you alter how your flower bed seems season to period. In addition, they perform well as gap fillers between other locations, as lengthy as people locations receive loads of sunlight. Focus-acquiring possibilities exist this kind of as sunflowers and petunias.
Transfer your preferred plants inside of so they endure the wintertime. This is especially useful if you have a certain plant that you really like or was expensive. Often be mindful when digging close to the roots, and put the plant in a suitable pot.
As you now have found, gardening can be a exciting, successful and fulfilling exercise if you make investments a little time into gaining a little bit of understanding ahead of you commence. As prolonged as you put into action the suggestions and tips that you find out, you will have great final results. Just take these tips and utilize them to your yard and you are heading to be overjoyed with the benefits.


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New Painting Release – The Shelter Island Shipyard, Richmond, BC, Canada
Earlier this week John M. Horton C.S.M.A. F.C.A. Marine artist and owner of one of Commodore's Boats current projects; Steveston Lifeboat visited the shipyard as he usually does to monitor the progress on his boat's refit. John surprised the shipwrights by revealing his latest painting release – The Shelter Island Shipyard, Richmond, BC, Canada.
It is a 20" x 30" oil on board depiction of the shipyard and some of the boats that are repaired at Shelter Island. Included in the piece are two of the boats that Commodore's was commissioned to repair.
On the very right of the painting John has depicted the Lofoten – 56′ fish boat which had some repair work completed in December 2015. On the left side of the painting is one of Commodore's current projects The Schooner Maple Leaf.
The photo of that painting that is the feature image of this news web article does not do the original painting justice as the color is spectacular. It is amazing to me how John captures the various shades of color not only in the sun but in the puddle of rain water sitting on the cement dock. Looking at the painting is like looking out from the window office of Commodore's Boats. John's attention to technical accuracy and detail is legendary.
John's oils are highly prized by galleries, museums and private collections the world over. He has earned the hard-won respect of buyers, mariners and colleagues alike. He is a member of the Canadian Society of Marine Artists, the Federation of Canadian Artists, and The Honourable Company of Master Mariners of Canada. In the late Dennis Brook-Hart's definitive Twentieth Century Marine Painting, he is the only Canadian marine painter mentioned. In 2002 he accepted the Canadian government's invitation to record the nation's navy in action against terrorism in the Arabian Gulf. Through his work Horton assists many worthwhile charities.
John won a commission with his design of a ketch that was released as a commemorative coin in the "Tall Ship" collection as produced by The Royal Canadian Mint.
For more information on John Horton, marine artist and to see the other spectacular paintings John has created please visit www.johnhorton.ca


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Is Tyler Henry, the "Hollywood Medium" a fraud?
You don't need to be psychic to predict that every time a psychic or medium or spiritual teacher of one type or another makes it big on the silver (or small) screen, the haters, skeptics and cynics are going to come out of the woodwork, crying foul, fake and fraud in LARGE capital letters.
The truth is, there ARE in fact many fake psychics, mediums and spiritual gurus of one type or another…and some are more obvious than others. The problem, of course, with this type of article (the one below calling Tyler Henry a "fake") is that they always begin their argument, and attack, with a fallacious and foolish claim. NO ONE, they'll always begin, is psychic – and NEVER have psychic abilities been proven to exist. Full stop.
Of course this is 100% untrue – and there have been countless scientific studies of psychic abilities that are FAR more credible and evidential than the vast majority of skeptics, or cynics, even know…..let alone understand.
(here is a LONG list of published papers, many in peer reviewed scientific journals, on the reality of psychic experiences, abilities and tests, often in very controlled lab settings)
And invariably of course, NONE of these attack articles are by folks who have ever had personal experiences with the subject of their skepticism, they just act the part of the proverbial armchair quarterback (or critic) and lob insults and appear to understand EXACTLY what folks like John Edward, Tyler Henry and others are doing in incredible detail, even though they've never met them in person, or been affected or impressed personally by the evidence that they offer behind the scenes. (Claiming it's all "cold reading" – a boring a tired trope of skeptics of all things that would appear to suggest that "spirit" exists, or that consciousness itself – something even modern neuroscience can't explain or agree upon – couldn't possibly be outside of the body or brain)
Do YOU believe Tyler Henry is a fake? To me, it's almost besides the point. I happen to be impressed with Tyler – but I simply don't know enough about him, in a personal and private way, to know if he's as good behind the scenes, as the TV cameras would suggest. But the idea that ALL psychics are frauds, as a place to begin ANY exploration of authenticity, says more (sadly) about the skeptics and cynics who claim to know it all, than it does about those they criticize from a far.
You can read the whole article, at the link below.
Each episode of Hollywood Medium consists of individual readings of three or four celebrities. Henry explains that he's being shipped off to read a celebrity client with no knowledge of who he's going to read.
We're repeatedly reminded that Henry doesn't know much about pop culture or celebrities to begin with, due to his small-town upbringing. "I don't watch much TV," he tells his subjects, apologetically. "Tyler is just a simple kid whose idea of a good time is sitting on the porch of the family farm in Hanford and looking out at the trees," Corbett told TV Insider.
The readings always take place on the celebrity's turf, with a friend or associate sitting in a nearby room and watching on a monitor. The sessions last at least an hour, Henry told The Outline, and are edited into a much shorter segment, intercut with scenes from "backstage" and a confessional-style, straight-to-camera testimonial from the subject after the reading.


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Toy Art & 3D Sculpture, With Travers Cooke
Weekly Inspiration: Diversity
This week, Michelle is drawing major inspiration from the diversity of the world around her. Consider for a moment the thousands of species of life on our planet and how innumerable the differences between them. There are even hundreds of animal and plant species that have yet to be discovered. Now zoom in on the humble Homo sapiens. The immense diversity in skin tones, belief patterns, and cultural expression within our single species is a reminder that there's tremendous beauty in the differences that exist among us. Diversity is a gift, especially when we unify to build creative communities and relationships that celebrate and utilize our differences.
The art of toy making with Travers Cooke
Toy sculptor and connoisseur Travers Cooke gives The Cultured Crew an inside look at the world of toy art and its many subcultures—from the Bootleg scene, which creates new toys by swapping out parts and pieces from existing products, to the Kaiju scene, which draws inspiration from 80s Japanese monster toys.
During his conversation with Michelle, Travers explains how his love of science fiction cinema and 80s pop culture inspire the custom toys he designs. He walks us through the process of creating art toys, whether through digital sculpting or by using traditional materials like casts, molds, oil-based clays, and waxes.
Travers originally wanted to be an astronaut. But after developing an intense fear of heights as a teenager, he decided to let his love for sci-fi lead him to film school instead. This kickstarted a creative journey that led from filmmaking to comics to sculpture and finally to the weird and wonderful world of art toys. The consistent thread in Travers' creative journey is a complete trust in his gut instinct to follow his passion wherever it might lead.
With toy art being the niche industry that it is, Travers is no stranger to using entrepreneurial savvy to forge a career. In recent years he has capitalized on his skills in sculpting and 3D designs to create one of a kind collaborations with local artists in other mediums, like Atlanta-based illustrator, sQuishiepuss.


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What Was Possible
Tariq Goddard on outsider publishing and capitalist realism today
Tariq Goddard on outsider publishing and capitalist realism today
Tariq Goddard is an English writer and publisher. Along with the late cultural theorist Mark Fisher (1968-2017) and others, he launched Zero Books in 2009, a left-wing publishing imprint dedicated to the idea that "in the unthinking, blandly consensual culture in which we live, critical and engaged theoretical reflection is more important than ever before." In 2014, Tariq and Mark left Zero to form Repeater Books, where this mission continues. His latest novel is Nature and Necessity (2017). Forthcoming titles of note on Repeater include Stolen: How to Save the World from Financialisation by Grace Blakeley, McMindfulness: How Mindfulness Became the New Capitalist Spirituality by Ronald Purser and Darkly: Blackness, Blues, and the American Gothic by Leila Taylor. In November 2018, Repeater also published an exhaustive compendium of Mark Fisher's work entitled k-punk: The Collected and Unpublished Writings of Mark Fisher (2004-2016).
In 2011, I published a book about the author Michel Houellebecq on Zero. It was during that process that I first met Tariq. After several years in which we didn't see one another (part of the reason being that I'd moved to America from the U.K.) we finally caught up again properly at the start of 2019, when he arrived in Chicago as part of a tour to promote the k-punk collection. The interview which follows covers his experiences in publishing, "mainstream" intellectual culture before and after the financial crash, Mark Fisher and the legacy of the Zero project. It was conducted via email in February and March this year.
—Ben Jeffery
Ben Jeffery: Let's start back in 2009, with the formation of Zero Books. I'm sure not many of our readers will know much about what the intellectual environment was like in the U.K. ten years ago and what made the creation of something like Zero feel necessary. Could you fill in some of the background for us?
Tariq Goddard: Starting Zero was a last resort. I'm a novelist, and the idea of being a publisher on top of that had seemed like an encumbrance and a distraction to begin with. But the very dire state of late-noughties publishing convinced me that it was imperative if the kind of books I thought should be in print would ever stand a chance of making it. Mainstream publishing in Britain—which had already reverted into its standard risk-free posture by the time of the financial crash—reacted to the economic downturn by becoming radically allergic to challenging, original or stimulating work. Anything that resisted easy categorization or quick summation got ignored, basically. With a few notable exceptions, imaginative writing was rigidly formulaic and tasteful, politics written in journalese, and philosophy proudly self-referential and academic. The sense that Zero was addressing a need, or that at least there should be a need for Zero, was what got the ball rolling. We felt that if it wasn't us that took up the mantle, then who?
In terms of logistics, I'd first discussed the idea of starting up a publisher with Matteo Mandarini and later Nina Power in the mid-Noughties, but no publisher I ever mentioned it to took the idea seriously (or perhaps couldn't take the idea of me as a publisher seriously) until John Hunt, who ran the Mind, Body, Spirit publisher O-Books, agreed to support the idea of Zero. Although our relationship turned sour from the very start, his intervention was crucial. This was in 2008. The original team was me, my wife Emma, Matteo and Mark Fisher—and with Mark leading the charge, we began to assemble our first list of authors.
BJ: How would you characterize that (real or projected) need for what Zero was offering? I interviewed the philosopher Mladen Dolar last year about the relationship between intellectuals and the modern university—and that topic obviously brings up the question of what the purpose of "public intellectual" is, or ought to be, in the first place.
Now, let me quote the opening line of the Zero Books mission statement: "Contemporary culture has eliminated both the concept of the public and the figure of the intellectual." Clearly you saw something pretty morbid in that situation.
TG: Yeah, it had somehow become cool to be bland and harmlessly amusing in public life. As I said, academics were slotted away in their intellectual ghettos and popular critical engagement had been more or less replaced by lifestyle journalism. On the other hand, unashamedly intelligent writing aimed at a broad audience was considered almost embarrassing—deeply out of touch with the market and zeitgeist, perhaps even wrong in its very ambition. I could see from the internet that exciting new writers with a potentially large readership were out there, but the overground had gone from simply closing the door to them to actually denying that this kind of writing could serve any purpose at all. We wanted to reconfigure the mainstream. We hoped that the books we released would influence and alter the world, although that also felt pretty fanciful, because none of us were certain we would leave any mark at all. In that respect there was a strange desperation and hopelessness feeding the desire to strike out, too. Success always came as a surprise to us.
In any case, getting the voices that I had encountered in blogging into print was primarily a practical matter for me. I didn't have a particularly evolved or programmatic view of what the role of a public intellectual ought to be. But to the extent I did, I thought that they should look and sound like our authors, and not the lightweights we were seeking to displace.
BJ: How do you feel now looking back on the first generation of Zero books? I'm thinking of titles like Owen Hatherley's Militant Modernism, Nina Power's One Dimensional Woman and of course Mark Fisher's Capitalist Realism—which I imagine must still be the most famous Zero publication.
TG: Given the number of readers in the last ten years who have told me that these titles made a definitive impact on them, inspired them or just got them thinking—in spite of most of those authors going on to write other, and usually better, books—I think that initial wave has a cultural importance and impact that's kind of separate from their artistic quality. For me, those titles are more like a band's first album than masterpieces. Their value lies in their boldness and cheek, and in how they showed a different approach could succeed commercially, rather than whether they made original or lasting contributions to the canon of great writing. But even for those of us who had been published before, like David Stubbs and myself, a Zero book meant a pass to experiment without any fear of editorial consequences, and although not everything published was a winner, I think they all deserved their day in the sun, if just to show what was possible.
As you say, Capitalist Realism is still the most famous and bestselling Zero title, and I am certain it will always be. At the time I saw it as the flagship book the others would coalesce around, reflecting Mark's position in the blogging community, and that if it took off it would give the rest of the list a boost, but the chord it struck was deeper and more lasting than any of us had expected. People had had enough, and Mark's book very clearly laid out what they had had enough of.
BJ: Yeah, I want to come back to how Capitalist Realism (and Zero more generally) anticipated the leftward shift in culture over the last decade. But before that I have a couple of questions about form. As you've alluded to, the first generation of Zero authors were all more or less creatures of the internet—people who had built up their audiences through blogs, mainly. But then you have this big threshold moment with the emergence of Zero itself where there's a kind of digital-to-analogue transition. So on the one hand we have this vibrant new area of discourse made possible by the internet and yet at a certain point it has to leave the internet behind in order to really flourish. How did you think about the relationship between the two mediums?
TG: I thought then, as I still do, that a book is an unimprovable form of communication. The internet and blogs were an excellent way of being able to talent scout and find authors that were geographically scattered in sometimes far off and disparate places—but in order to be taken seriously by the mainstream, to reach an audience that wasn't online and properly go public, publishing a book was still the gold standard. I also felt that while blogging encouraged people to write without fear, experiment in a way that they might not have been able to if they were employed by a newspaper or magazine, distilling and putting together one's thoughts in a book calls for a level of commitment and focus that usually tends to produce a more interesting result. So despite dealing with many authors who had a strong emotional attachment to blogging, I rarely found anyone who took much persuading to make the switch, as there seemed a tacit consensus that by the late Noughties the possibilities of blogging had been taken as far as they were going to go.
BJ: I've thought before that what the U.S. had instead of something like Zero was the resurgent "little magazine" scene—starting with the launch of n+1 in 2004 but going on to spawn Jacobin, the New Inquiry, the revival of the Baffler and others (not least The Point). As with Zero, what you find is an assortment of intellectual writers, generally on the left-hand side of the political spectrum, who are having trouble finding a home in either academia or the mainstream press. And in each case the internet seems to serve as a catalyst for turning these people into a network. But over here, at least, I'd say it still feels very doubtful whether such networks are ever going to grow to the point where they might represent a real institutional alternative for people who want to try and make a life out of thinking and writing. What's your impression of the situation in the U.K.?
TG: The Quietus, Novara Media and New Socialist are all examples of credible online magazines in the U.K.—but they're exceptions. For writers, I think the practical difficulties of getting paid working for a site with free content (and making a living out of that) intervene, plus the worry that your work will just get lost online. On top of that, a lot of people who might be potential readers view the Internet as synonymous with work, and can't wait to get offline. So although the internet is still an effective way of bypassing the middle man and creating networks, those networks don't have the same cultural centrality as buying a book in a high-street store. As you put it, the digital-to-analogue is still, for me, the next step; being online is a great way of testing the water, but I don't know if there will ever be a substitute for a book. The parts of the net that are still popular—Twitter and Instagram—don't threaten the primacy of books in the way blogging and online sites once appeared to. It should also be said that the mainstream media in the U.K., unlike mainstream publishers, started to pick up on the new names coming through quite quickly and give them jobs, which of course stole momentum from the internet scene.
BJ: It's really interesting to notice how comfortably you're using the word "mainstream" in all of this. Not that it doesn't make sense—but there was a moment roughly concurrent with peak blogging and the beginning of Zero where it really seemed possible that the old mainstream/subculture model was going to get overturned in favor of something less rigid. Instead, it seems as if what we ended up with is either essentially the same thing or an even greater centralization of power. Along the same lines, the big story in the last decade of the internet has been the transition from the rhizome-y phase of the web to the social media era, in which the bulk of online life is locked into the orbit of a handful of supermassive gatekeeper corporations.
TG: You're right, the internet is even easier to manipulate than the older forms of communication and information ever were. It may be a law of gravity that vastness shrinks to controlled and concentrated spaces, and where there is control there are gatekeepers, profits and profiteers. What I think happened in the moment you mention is that the exceptional weakness of the mainstream (both in terms of its content and in its sluggishness to take charge of and impose itself on the internet) gave birth to the temporary illusion that the old distinctions were collapsing, when in actual fact a decadent system had merely slowed down and been caught off guard. From our point of view, the advantages of challenging and trying to influence, and ultimately becoming "the mainstream" always outweighed the dangers of being absorbed and neutered by it. By contrast, free downloading and free content, open access, the refusal to engage with or acknowledge the mainstream in any way whatsoever—those seemed like guerrilla tactics destined to limit the number of people you could reach. We wanted to penetrate and alter the structure itself. As Mark Fisher wrote, our model was The Jam appearing on Top of The Pops, and not whatever happened to be in the lower end of the indie charts that week.
BJ: That brings me back to Capitalist Realism and what really does seem to have changed over the last ten years—which is that even if it's true that much of the old power structure has survived, its ability to tranquilize hearts and minds is just nothing like what it was. You mentioned that the seismic event which coincided with the launch of Zero was the financial crash. But the crash was a strange kind of crisis. I don't think the scale of what happened became "real" for a lot people until several years down the line, with the election of Trump and various nationalistic emergencies in the E.U. And so it's one of the funny things about Zero, although you say you never expected success, looking back it seems almost like a harbinger of this profound transformation in public discourse.
TG: The immediate political reaction to the crisis was to shore up the system, leave the structures that led to the implosion unchanged and then introduce austerity to pay for it. At the time, there didn't appear to be a widespread public desire for change, and in that sense our books were outliers for a readership that had yet to discover its political clout. The sales of our titles showed that disenchantment was rising, but it still wasn't being mobilized or reflected in any of the main political parties. "Capitalist realism" had succeeded to an extent where an immediate and revolutionary response to the crisis would have been deemed completely unrealistic. Our own doubts about whether we would succeed were a sign of how deeply that outlook had affected us as well. What I can see now is that our books were softening up a cultural and political landscape that was slowly, but decisively, becoming sympathetic to the kind of arguments our authors were making—to a point where they are now very much a fixed part of our political landscape and public life. That isn't down to one publisher, obviously, rather the failings of capitalism itself. But I agree that we were certainly in the vanguard of a process that is now making the running on both sides of the Atlantic.
BJ: What does the term "capitalist realism" mean to you, these days?
TG: A state of affairs whose time has come and gone, I am relieved to say. Neoliberal free market fundamentalism—confused for common sense—has limited what we think of as possible in arts, culture and of course politics for the last thirty years. But it is teetering. I'm not idealistic enough to think that anything and everything is possible, but there's a hell of lot more than what we've been encouraged to settle for and believe in. Capitalist realism has, I think, already struck its high-water mark. It is now just one point of view, rather than the horizon under which we all exist, and it's increasingly associated with fading figures like Tony Blair and Hillary Clinton, who are close to becoming anachronisms in their own lifetimes. The doctrine's greatest strength was always its sense of inevitability and finality. Having lost those, it will doubtless have to perform the same self-criticisms, and undergo the same efforts to moderate and reform itself, as all the leading ideologies of our age have had to. I'm sure we haven't seen the last of it, because fearfulness, which capitalist realism has always "positively" appealed to, will be a powerful political argument for as long as society exists. But as an ontology it's on the back foot. And the more we talk about it ending, the more likely it is to expire.
BJ: As for yourself, you've since left the husk of Zero behind but carried the spirit of the project with you to Repeater Books. How would you evaluate your ten years of work in publishing? Are your goals any different today? I'd be interested to know how much further you think the kind of ethos represented by Zero (and now Repeater) can go in public life.
TG: I started publishing as an emergency measure and have never regarded it as my primary calling or thought I would be doing it for ten years. My preferred response to being alive is still writing fiction and there's no avoiding the fact that becoming a publisher has taken me away from that a bit—both time-wise and in terms of being in the right frame of mind (the day-to-day of publishing being about as inspiring as any other business venture).
So far as evaluating whether it was worth it or not, on a basic level just knowing that we didn't take life lying down and had a go feels nice—not exactly a hugely ambitious goal, but the least that can be done to maintain self-respect. I also think that our success in empowering potential writers to become actual writers, and in developing something like a coherent opposition to what we were against, means that we fulfilled the original mission statement. Not going bust was good too. And formally, with Repeater, we're now bringing out more attractive, thoroughly-edited and better produced books in general. That all constitutes progress—even if our aims are basically the same as they were at the start of Zero. Mainly though, I think there are many ways of becoming a successful publisher, but doing it with books that you actually love is one of the hardest. If we can keep that up going forward, then I haven't neglected my writing in vain.
Projecting beyond that isn't something that comes naturally to me, but I guess continuing to discover new talent and take risks that other publishers are reluctant to would constitute ongoing success. Survival, which for Zero was the goal, has been replaced by a desire to compete at a comparable level to other established imprints.
BJ: Of course, there's a terrible poignancy to the fact that you began Zero Books with Mark Fisher and now, ten years on, you've just published a landmark collection of his work that doubles as a memorial to him. I imagine the feelings must be pretty complicated.
TG: I've felt a tension between allowing Mark to rest in peace but also wanting as large an audience as possible to discover his work—though it ought to be said that the k-punk collection was initially driven by demand more than any sense that Mark's legacy needed flagging up. Certainly, Mark's critical reputation and moral authority in blogging circles were why we could attract most of our best authors, and his role as our ideologue was pivotal in building our foundations. Without him, Zero would never have got out of the starting blocks, and although by the time of Repeater his contribution was as often symbolic as it was practical, he remained a talismanic figure to the end. The quotidian work of publishing never particularly appealed to him, but the platform that it gave him was something that he first embraced enthusiastically, later grew more ambivalent about, and finally turned his back on entirely, believing he was unworthy of his renown. Something I didn't and don't agree with, of course, but by the end it had become a negative article of faith for him.
BJ: Yeah, one of the tragic ironies of it being that—in terms of his work—Mark was among the most fiercely committed people you could ever meet to the idea of public thought as a force for life. That's part of why he functioned as a talisman, I suppose.
TG: Perhaps that's true. But as I said, Mark started to have serious reservations about becoming a public figure in the last couple of years of his life, despite all of the things he'd done to establish himself as one. Unfortunately, in the end all his great critical energy was directed away from the world and turned back on himself in the form of unforgiving self-censure—which seen close up, was closer to madness, I think, than depression as it's commonly understood. Even so, none of that stopped his output or example from being brilliant when he had the wind behind him, whatever he thought about his own value. He is one of the few people I have met who I think was possessed by genius. There was a goodness and decency about him, too, that was just as important as his intellect. "What would Mark have done?" is a question I still ask myself in my day-to-day life as a publisher. It's another way of keeping our conversation going.
Image credit: Malcs P (CC / BY Flickr)
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Beyond Comprehension
Alexander Nehamas recently retired from Princeton University, where he was a professor of philosophy and comparative literature for over thirty years. In his 2007 book…
Progress Studies
"You ban the poets? You want to be like Sparta? Those are big issues."
Try Something Out
"I can't account for what kind of encounter someone will have with what I write in turn. All I can do is have a good…


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The first tremors were felt in the car last night – calling home after 2 days at a conference in Philly, a relatively innocuous statement about problems getting on the Internet. How many times have I fixed that, thought I?
After setting up a home network this summer with reasonable success, and having only minor problems since then, I was not prepared for a Three Mile Island meltdown. OK, a bit of an overstatement. But I'm sure an outside observer would have been quite amused at the assortment of wires, computers, and other paraphernalia as I spent the whole morning troubleshooting.
It seemed obvious that the router had experienced a visitation from some other planet, and decided to make a voyage to where no router has ever gone before. Fortunately, I had another one on hand from a previous attempt to set up a wireless node, so, with some phone coaching by a neighbor (who does this stuff for a living), I finally got the new router in place.
Still no Internet.
Then I noticed that the little DSL light on the modem, which indicates that, yes indeed, it is talking DSLish to the outside world, was not lit up. Uh oh. Another call, this time with skillful navigation through an endless "if you are…please press 2" menu put in place by the DSL provider, finally got me through to an actual helpful human being who diagnosed that, yes indeed, DSL was no longer being spoken by my line (another extraterrestrial visitation?), and then, amazingly, she got it re-configured "live" as we spoke. She may or may not have been halfway across the planet – it didn't matter. Via electronic network, she was able to access and "heal" my connection on the spot. That was cool.
More monkeying with Windows settings and playing around with wires, and finally, home and work computers were basically back to working (mostly) properly. Chernobyl averted once again.
I hope tomorrow is a bit more….productive.


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This week in Yetzirah (and in Beyt Shteelim!), the Shteelimers reviewed many of the skills, techniques and Ivrit (Hebrew) vocabulary they learned throughout the year. It's interesting to see what they remember, how they've improved and how they do things differently this time around. Several Shteelim girls showed off their Ivrit (Hebrew) writing skills by painting the אותיות (otiot- …
Category: Keshet
Jun 06
A Year of Yetzirah Revisited
Feb 01
Guest Blog Post from Beth Niestat
From Rebecca: Beth Niestat is mom to a Nitzanimer (1st grade) and a fourth grader. When I heard about their family's Torah study based on our Keshet exploration this fall, I was on intensely curious how it would turn out. I love how Beth captures the reality of home life as a full-time working parent …
Dec 05
The After-Party: Everyone Invited!
When Shirah/Tefillah (Singing/Prayer) ends at 5:45, the after-party begins. It started with a group of (now) first grade girls who would stay and play for a half hour while their moms chatted. But this week, one of the moms was out of town, one of the four-year-olds dozed on his mom's lap during Shirah/Tefillah, and …
Nov 30
א and ב with our גופים (Gufim – Bodies)!
Some children in Shteelim were itching for an Ivrit (Hebrew) challenge this week. We decided to see if we could make the letters א and ב with our bodies! The children had to try it out a few times and help each other position their גופים (gufim – bodies) until it was just right. Do …
Nov 28
Joyful Keshet
Nov 20
Listening to What Our Children Notice
Yesterday in Shteelim, the מורות (morot – educators) overheard children talk about how it gets dark much earlier in the day. We took this opportunity to listen and create an unscheduled activity – shadow puppets. The Shteelimers worked in pairs to be/create חיות (chayot – animals) with their bodies, animals that made it onto the …
Nov 20
Imagining a Scene in Hebrew
Nov 20
Proud Smiles
Nov 18
Our Keshet
This week in Shorashim we used all of our senses to learn about the tzevaim (colors) in the keshet (rainbow). After making rain sounds with our hands, feet, and voices, we searched our room for the tzevaim of a keshet. Together, we shouted and whispered the names of each tzeva. Our exploration culminated in drawing a keshet together!
Nov 16
Nitzanim and Shteelim Learn Together
Shteelim and Nitzanim have both been working with the story Achbar Mitzayer (Mouse Paint), and this week Nitzanim came in to perform a story drama for Shteelim. The Shteelimers practiced story drama all together after the performance of the key parts of the story. From this experience, the Shteelimers began their exploration of story drama, …


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The NCAA Championships continue to rage on in Stanford, California, where the 2011 NCAA Division I Tennis Championships are now through to the semifinals. In men's action, top-seeded Virginia and two-time defending champion USC will try to continue their march by holding off Ohio State and Georgia, respectively.
But before the matches begin, TennisRecruiting.net casts an eye to the future - and the top recruiting classes that will arrive this coming fall. With more than fourteen hundred committed seniors, the majority of schools have completed their recruiting for this year's class.
Today, the Tennis Recruiting Network announces the Top 25 men's recruiting classes for the Class of 2011.
Media Poll
The Tennis Recruiting Network has again enlisted the aid of junior tennis experts to determine the top classes. Reporters, national and international tournament directors, referees, ranking chairmen, and writers from across the country have donated their time and talents to vote on these top classes. Panelists for this voting period are shown below.
Each of our panelists submitted his/her take on the Top 25 recruiting classes. Schools received 25 points for each first-place vote, 24 points for each second-place vote, on down to 1 point for each 25th-place vote. The panelists were told not to consider incoming transfer students in their voting.
Top 25 Men's Recruiting Classes (through May 6)
Here are the Spring Rankings of the top men's college recruiting classes, presented by the Tennis Recruiting Network. The Top 25 classes are shown in order, with the point totals and previous ranking from the winter in the two columns at right. The number of first-place votes is shown in parentheses next to the school name.
New recruits for schools are shown in bold italics. These lists are based on all commitments reported through May 6, 2011.
Also Receiving Votes
Other men's programs receiving votes are: Oklahoma State (37), Fordham (30), Johns Hopkins (21), George Washington (17), Brown (14), Yale (14), Clemson (4), Navy (3), Arizona (2), UC Irvine (2), Texas (1).
Close voting at the top of the rankings tipped in favor of the UCLA Bruins in May. Head Coach Billy Martin and his staff were able to reel in two big-time prospects from California - Marcos Giron and Dennis Mkrtchian. Giron has been on fire so far this year, winning titles in Claremont and Carson as well as the Easter Bowl Championship. The UCLA recruiting class collected eight first-place votes against five for No. 2 Vanderbilt, who was the top vote-getter in our Winter Rankings.
The South Carolina Gamecocks check in as the No. 3 recruiting class in the nation, followed by No. 4 Tennessee and No. 5 Cornell, who each garnered one first-place vote.
The More Things Change
There are three new teams in our Top 25, with Louisville gathering the most votes. The Cardinals leaped up to No. 16 in this voting period on the strength of their four-man class that includes a pair of 5-Star recruits and two international players.
Other programs new to the Top 25 are Texas A&M (No. 18) and Ohio State (25), who picked up Blue Chip recruits Jeremy Efferding and Christopher Diaz, respectively.
Conference Call
The newly-minted PAC-12 leads the way with five recruiting classes in our Top 25. In addition to traditional members UCLA (No. 1), USC (8), Stanford (10), and Washington (23), the Utah Utes, who officially join the PAC-12 on July 1, are No. 12 in our rankings.
Close on their heels is the SEC with four ranked recruiting classes, including three of the top four.
The other high-major conferences - ACC, Big East, Big 10, Big 12, and Ivy League - each have three programs in the rankings.
Finally, it is interesting to note that UC Santa Barbara - with Blue Chip recruit Gregory Scott and two international commitments - is the only mid-major program to make the list. The Gauchos check in at No. 24 in our rankings.
Panelists for May 2011
The 15 panelists for this voting period are shown below alphabetically. We sincerely appreciate them donating their time and talents to this effort. Please join us in thanking them when you see them out and about in the tennis world.
Rankings, Rankings Everywhere...
These are only the first of our Recruiting Class Rankings. Rankings for the women's classes will be released next Monday, May 30th, followed by rankings of Mid-major as well as NCAA Division III schools.
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More Recruiting Class Rankings
2023 Top NCAA D-III Women's Classes
We wrap up our recruiting class ranking series with another look at NCAA Division III programs. Today we present the Top 25 NCAA D-III Women's Recruiting Class Rankings for the Class of 2023.
2023 Top NCAA D-III Men's Classes
TRN continues its recruiting class ranking series this week with a look at Division III. Today we present the Top 25 NCAA D-III Men's Recruiting Class Rankings for the Class of 2023.
2023 Top Mid-Major Women's Classes
The Tennis Recruiting Network continues its recruiting class ranking series this week with a look at the mid-majors. Today we present the Top 25 Women's Mid-Major Recruiting Class Rankings for the Class of 2023.
Full Listings: Boys' Commits & Girls' Commits


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it's Friday!! woo hoo!!
seemed apropos to end this week contrariwise.
have i said lately how much i lovelovelove becoming art yarn!!
yes, indeedy, i do!
i have plans this weekend...we're going to a Patsy Cline musical revue here, dinner with the family on Saturday, and breakfast with a friend that i haven't seen in an age on
Sunday...i'm so looking forward to catching up with her.
Sunday...i'm so looking forward to catching up with her.
and you?? anything fun planned?? do tell!
wishing you a fun and fab weekend!! xoxo
This communicating of a man's self to his friend works two contrary effects;
for it redoubleth joys,
and cutteth griefs in half.
mad color weave sock pattern by Tina Lorin
in Becoming Art 'Contrarywise'


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Snowflake Cookies
I believe that cold snowy days are perfect for baking something decadent. The winter storm that hit Ohio encased us in ice and blanketed us with snow. The roads were a mess, so we were glad when most things were closed and we were granted a snow day. Indulging in the occasion, I pulled out my favorite sugar cookie recipes and made a batch of Snowflake Cookies. The entire morning went by in a blur of snowflakes both outside my window and inside my kitchen. The fragrance of butter, sugar, and vanilla that filled our home was decadent. We ate these pretty little cookies throughout the day and I am convinced that there is no better way to warm up your home during a blustery winter storm.
Snowflake Cookies
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups butter (room temperature)
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons of butter, softened
1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
an assortment of food coloring and sprinkles
In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla; beat well. Stir together the dry ingredients. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture until completely blended. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to 1/4 an inch thickness. Cut with various sized snowflake shaped cookie cutters dipped in flour. Gently transfer cookies to an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350° for 10 to 12 minutes. Cool the cookies on wire cooling racks.
Mix together the sugar, butter, vanilla, and milk. Add more milk in small increments if the icing is too thick. Add food coloring to the icing if desired. Use a cake decorating piping set to decorate the cookies and sprinkle them with sprinkles.
In a pinch you can fill a ziploc bag with the icing and cut a small hole in one of the bottom corners. It works fairly well if you do not have a piping set.


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The Summit is the place for major players to gather and advance offshore wind development throughout the Great Lakes region. Meet the leading developers, equipment manufacturers, legislators, financiers and key stakeholders as they carve out this new industry and build an economic hub for this nascent industry.
Foley Partner Mary Ann Christopher will deliver the program's opening remarks and serve as the moderator for the panel discussion: Dealing with Multi-Jurisdictional Regulatory Regimes.
FRESHWATER WIND 2010 will take place July 19-21, 2010 at The Wyndham Cleveland at Playhouse Square, Cleveland, Ohio.


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Hannah Fraser, Entomology Program Lead (Hort), OMAFRA
Brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) adults have been steadily moving out of their overwintering sites since mid-April and have been captured in a pheromone trap located in one of our hot spots in Hamilton, ON, over the last couple of weeks. Adults have also been collected off garden plants in the same area, where some feeding injury has occurred. Include BMSB in scouting activities for early crop pests, particularly in peaches. Make sure to monitor border areas and check for BMSB on buckthorn, which seem to be an important season-long host in Ontario.
As of 2014, BMSB has been identified as established in the Hamilton / Burlington area, Windsor, London, St. Catharines and Newboro. Surveys conducted by OMAFRA, the University of Guelph and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in 2013-2014 have also trapped this pest on farms located in Beamsville, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Niagara Falls, St. David's, Waterdown, Smithville, Cedar Springs, Essex. In addition, there have been numerous homeowner finds in Brampton, Fort Erie, Grimsby, Oakville (photos only), Milton, Niagara Falls, Stoney Creek, Toronto, Vaughan, Cedar Springs, Welland (photos only), Delhi, Kincardine, Maidstone, Paris, Tecumseh, Ottawa and most recently in Kitchener. We will be continuing our survey work in southern Ontario over the next few years (2015-2017). The project "Sustainable Management and Survey for Brown Marmorated Stink Bug in Ontario " which was submitted in response to the recent call under the OMAFRA – U of G Research Program has received funding. For more information, visit our website at www.ontario.ca/stinkbug and check for regular updates in Hort Matters.
Early detection is important to the long term success of management programs. We need to have a better understanding of where this pest is and how well it is established. There is a monitoring network for this pest; however, we have a better chance of finding pockets of small populations if more people are looking. Tracking the distribution and spread is essential. When BMSB is confirmed in a new location, this information can be added to distribution maps, providing growers in the area with an early warning system.
A sample or high quality pictures are required for identification. Pictures of BMSB and look-alikes can be found at www.ontario.ca/stinkbug. If you think you have found BMSB (particularly outside of the Hamilton area, where we have lots of data), contact the Agriculture Information Contact Centre at 1-877-424-1300 or email firstname.lastname@example.com, and we will provide you with instructions on what to do with the sample. To preserve the specimen, and to prevent it from becoming crushed or dried out, place it in a small container and freeze to kill it, or place it in rubbing alcohol or vinegar.


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Jaguar XJ 2010 v1.0
This Jaguar XJ 2010 super car is fully standalone and available at Mercedes showroom.
Credits: Azorax Modding
Compatibility: ETS2 latest version
How to install mod for ETS 2:
- Download this mod.
- Extract it!
- Paste the .scs file(s) into your My Documents/Euro Truck Simulator 2/mod folder.
- Run game ~> Mod Manager ~> Enable mod.
- Enjoy!


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|From: MJ Ray (markj at cloaked.freeserve.co.uk)
Date: Sun Aug 11 18:44:25 EDT 2002
Benderjg2: > One difference though is the semantics of pattern matching for attributes: > with PLT's match, if you give a pattern like (@ (attr1 ,v1) (attr2 ,v2)), > both attr1 and attr2 must be present in the element being matched--and you > can't give a default value (that I know of) if they are absent. As well, > these can be the *only* attributes on that element. I allow pattern matching > of attributes where the selected attributes must be either present in the > element or be "defaulted"-- and the element may include other attributes. Not really. One uses a second matcher on the attribute list if one doesn't want to constrain which attributes must be present or the order in which they must appear. A major problem that I have when using XML transformations written in the currently popular languages (eg XSLT) is that they are normally written in too general a manner and often result in unforseen "collatoral damage" when used on real data. Actually, this is one case where I think it's possible to draw a distinction in the roles of attributes and elements. Where the order, presence, etc of data attached to the current tag is not important, attributes are useful. The match ability to "hide" the entire attribute list behind one match variable is useful here. > link? will match (link "... contents ..."). It will not match something > constructed with a:link or b:link-- which would produce a locally named > element (from a:link) or an element in a different namespace (from > b:link). I think this makes sense. I do wonder how we're going to cope when we're using the second or third version of some XML syntax. In places where this is already happening (eg RSS), it's quite a mess at the moment. -- MJR
|Posted on the users mailing list.


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Finance & Insurance
The financial sector is going through profound transformation worldwide. Both regulation and new players (BigTech and FinTech) are considerably changing the landscape. Banks are still the primary players of financial services, a position that is an advantage in the race for the opportunities created by the new financial market landscape.
On the other hand, this privileged position is not enough to face new challenges, and a proactive response to recent pressures is key to ensure banks are still the central pillars around which financial activities gravitate.
Market Trends
Regulations such as PSD2 and Open Banking are promoting a shared marketplace, where new players can create innovative financial services that compete or complement traditional banking offers. A shared marketplace connects all participants, and an API economy is emerging that requires banks to modernize their current core IT systems into modern architectures and technologies.
- Modernize legacy core IT systems to simplify the innovation of new products and services
- Provide similar functions to different banking channels
- Integrate solutions from other players into new offers of products and services
- Develop a business model around an API economy, using modern monetization approaches
Millennials (and soon, Digital Native) generations are increasingly adept of digital experiences for day-to-day activities. The expectations in user experience set traditionally by retail applications, and more recently by the new financial players, is pushing Banks into reviewing their proposed physical and digital banking solutions.
- Understand user pain points and improve current user experience in all user journeys
- Improve current application portfolio according to a mobile-first approach
- Develop an omnichannel experience financial customer activities
- Create new applications that promote customer loyalty and reduce churn
Advances in Artificial Intelligence and techniques to process large sets of data, together with the increase in availability of customer-related data online, are opening opportunities to generate new and deep insights around the customer base. Being able to use this data effectively will be key to discover new revenue streams and differentiate current offers from the competition.
- Integrate new sources of data and apply new algorithms on previously untapped data
- Define new and more granular segments ("segments of one") to enable hyper‑personalization of products and services, and better targeting of campaigns
- Identify customer life events and opportunities for upselling and cross‑selling products and services (the right product, at the right time, for the right customer)
- Improve decision and compliance with better insights for Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti‑Money Laundering (AML) checks
The offers of new players are distinct in their simplicity and speed of usage, their personalized experience, and their competitive fees. Banks are looking into Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) to bring intelligent automation into products and processes, hence not only improve their efficiency, but also reduce costs associated with currently allocated resources.
- Develop modern Business Intelligence (BI) pipelines that combine traditional systems and data sets with modern big data tools and most recent AI/ML analytics techniques
- Support internal experts in activities such as risk modelling, for the design of investment funds and portfolios
- Improve efficiency and reduce costs of processes between different parties with intelligent automation (e.g. settlements, trade execution & routing, …) and new technologies (smart contracts)
- Integrate intelligence in internal tools (robo-advisors supporting branch transformation) and customer applications (wizards to assist users during their interaction, financial assistants)
The transformation in Banks can only be effective and successful if supported by a structural modernization. The traditional organizational and delivery models are slowing down innovation and making difficult to deliver better products ahead of the competition. The run of the daily operational processes represent a significant part of the budget: reducing the costs of those activities will allow banks to invest in initiatives to gain the sought differentiation factor from the competition.
- Use Agile methodology and frameworks to redefine delivery teams and accelerate the delivery products and services
- Adopt Cloud and DevOps to reduce infrastructure costs and enhance autonomy of delivery teams
- Implement a behaviour-driven development (BDD) approach to Quality Assurance to ensure a seamless interpretation of product features between all participants in the delivery
- Reduce costs of running business processes through outsourcing (BPO) and Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
Do you have any questions about the company or our services? Contact us!
Please send us your request via our contact form. We will get back to you soon.