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What's more, the possibility of nuclear weapons falling into the hands of unstable groups and governments is growing, so also is the potential for terrifying destruction and blackmail.
Presented by the Better World Society, the program exposes the burgeoning international black market in nuclear technology and hardware, as well as in plutonium - one of the deadliest substances known to man and the critical ingredient of nuclear weaponry.
Program Credits
Director Claudia Milne
Producers George Case Claudia Milne
Executive Producer Rachel V. Lyon
Commissioning Editor David Lloyd, Channel 4 Television
London Narrator Ted Maynard
Reporter George Case
Cinematographer Mike Whittaker
Sound Greg Bailey
Assistant Camera Jack Holmes
Editors Tim Lewis Francesca Ross Jon Willis
Dubbing Mixer Peter Hughes
Archival Sources Independent Television News Channel 4 Television, London Visnews, Cable News Network, Department of Defense, I.A.E.A., The Government of India
With Support From: The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Funding, The George Gund Foundation, The W. Alton Jones Foundation.
The Terror Trade: Buying the Bomb is a special presentation of the Better World Society and Groupe De Bellerive Production.
The Terror Trade features an exclusive interview with "Eric", an international arms dealer who tells with chilling detachment of underground plutonium buyers gathering at a Sudanese hotel "so full of people, it was like a flea market." He also states in the program that Argentina has had an atomic bomb since 1983, and identifies various countries involved in nuclear black market trading. Israel, Libya, Argentina, South Africa, Iran, Iraq, Syria, India, Pakistan and Brazil - countries which appear to see possession of nuclear weapons as essential to guaranteeing their national security - have sought black market materials.
Former President Jimmy Carter, Senator John Glenn, former CIA Director Admiral Stansfield Turner and former Defense Secretary Richard Perle also appear in the program. According to Admiral Turner, plutonium is indeed available on the black market, though at a stiff price. Twelve kilos, about the size of a cantaloupe is enough to build the equivalent of the atomic bombs dropped on Japan, sells for about $12 million. Though the nuclear industry denies the problem, experts interviewed for The Terror Trade state that plutonium is diverted from civilian nuclear power plants.
"Making the explosive using the information, facilities and materials that are accessible worldwide is relatively easy," says weapons designer Theodore Taylor, "To make something with a yield sufficient to be a weapon of mass destruction, to kill several hundred thousand people is unfortunately credible for a group of terrorists to do.
Former Arms Dealer Exposes Black Market in Nuclear Weapons
He peddled materials that make most covert arms dealers seem as harmless as kids swapping baseball cards. In an exclusive interview "Eric", divulges his knowledge of a thriving black market in nuclear technology and plutonium - the critical raw material of the atomic bomb. Filmed on board his sailing yacht, Eric coolly describes the expensive, illegal race for nuclear weaponry, the winners of which will be capable of destruction not seen since the Enola Gay dropped its deadly cargo.


text: Cortical rhythms have been thought to play crucial roles in our cognitive abilities. resonate to the 20 Hz input and modulate the activity in superficial layers in an attention-related manner. The predicted crucial functions of these cells in attentional gain provide a potential mechanism by which cholinergic drive can support selective attention. Author Summary Top-down signals originate from higher cognitive areas such as parietal BMS-562247-01 and prefrontal BMS-562247-01 cortex and propagate to earlier stages of the brain. They have been thought to be associated with selective attention, and recent physiological studies suggest that top-down signals in the beta frequency band can support selective attention. In this study, we employ a computational model to investigate potential mechanisms by which top-down beta rhythms can influence neural responses induced by presentation of stimuli. The model includes several cell types, reportedly crucial for generating cortical rhythmic activity in the gamma and beta frequency rings, and the simulation results show that top-down beta rhythms are capable of reproducing experimentally observed attentional effects on neural responses to visual stimuli. These modulatory effects of top-down beta rhythms are mainly induced via activation of ascending inhibition originating from deep layer slow inhibitory interneurons. Since the excitability of slow interneurons can be increased by cholinergic neuromodulators, these interneurons may mediate the effects of cholinergic firmness on attention. Introduction It is usually widely comprehended that sensory processing is usually modulated by attention, which effects neural responses in the sensory cortex: Elevated spiking activity [1]C[4] and enhanced synchrony in neural responses [5]C[9] were found to be associated with attended, rather than unattended stimuli. These findings suggested that endogenous signals, presumably generated at least in part in higher cognitive areas, are delivered to lower areas when attentional gain control is usually required. Although neural correlates of attentional gain control are not well comprehended, biased competition has been thought to be an underlying mechanism [10]C[17]. Recent studies show that beta rhythms can be associated with top-down attention [18]C[23]. In this study we used a computational model to address whether top-down beta rhythms can bias competition, and if so how they accomplish this. We leave for a following paper the potential functions of top-down signals in the gamma frequency band, which have also been seen [24], [25], considering here only the induction of gamma rhythms by bottom up signals and how they interact with the top-down beta. Beta rhythms have been reported to be GRK4 generated by local circuits in deep layers, particularly layer 5 (T5) [24], [26]C[28]. A recent study found that three types of deep layer cells (intrinsically bursting (IB), regular spiking (RS) pyramidal cells and a particular class of slow-inhibitory interneuron (LTS cells)) are involved in generating deep layer beta rhythms locally in the main auditory cortex [24], and that beta rhythms generated in higher order (parietal) cortices influence rhythm generation in auditory cortex in a highly direction-specific manner. Cortical slow-inhibitory (SI) interneurons are a diverse subclass of inhibitory cells. Their firing patterns can be regular, accommodating or low-threshold spiking, and their axonal and dendritic morphology also varies greatly from cell to cell. However, the majority of this broad class of interneuron is usually involved in providing inhibition between cortical layers that has slow postsynaptic kinetics comparative to fast spiking interneurons. For example deep layer Martinotti cells have axons that are almost exclusively oriented radially in cortex, passing across multiple local laminae [29], [30]. In addition, Dantzker & Callaway found a class of adapting interneurons in superficial layers that received dominating inputs from deep layers [31]. These factors make SI interneurons ideal candidates for mediating interlaminar interactions, as has been shown for concatenation of deep and superficial beta and gamma rhythms [32]. Additionally, the excitability and spike output patterns in SI interneurons can be potently affected by cholinergic neuromodulation, a cortical process of fundamental importance to attention (observe Research [33] for review). Specifically, Xiang et al. [29] found that acetylcholine depolarized deep layer LTS interneurons, which can enhance interlaminar conversation. Thus, we hypothesized that main sensory T5 cells, resonating to top-down BMS-562247-01 beta frequency inputs can modulate responses of superficial neurons in sensory cortices predominantly through SI interneurons. The model given below supports this hypothesis. Results Fries et al. [5], [6] proposed an experimental plan capable of observing modulation of BMS-562247-01 neural activity induced by top-down attention. They trained monkeys to pay attention to one of two stimuli offered simultaneously, while monkeys managed fixation. By comparing sensory activity when monkeys paid interest to a incitement inside the open field to when monkeys paid interest to a incitement outside the open field, they discovered that top-down interest improved shooting price and modulated regional field possibilities (LFPs). Even more particularly, attention improved spike-field.

subset: commoncrawl


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What all treatments do we provide?
We specialize in the following areas. Please visit following links for info. Naturopathy Yoga Ayurveda Physiotherapy Others Area
Do you provide home visits?
Yes, we provide home visits facility for Yoga & Physiotherapy.
Do you have qualified doctors?
Yes, our doctors are well qualified & certified practitioners holding degrees from best of institutes of Naturopathy, Yoga, Ayurveda and Physiotherapy in the country. For Naturopathy – B.N.Y.SBachelor of Naturopathy and Yogic Sciences (B.N.Y.S.) is a medical graduation in naturopathy and yoga. The total tenure of the course is 5 and 1/2 years (4 and 1/2+1). For Ayurveda – B.A.M.SBachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (B. A. M. S.) provides basic education in the integrated system of modern medicine and traditional Ayurveda. It prepares students of profound scholarship in the science of Ayurveda having basic and fundamental knowledge in different subjects of Ayurveda backed up by extensive practical training. The total tenure of the course is 5 years and 6 months. The B.A.M.S. degree course is of 5 years and 6 months duration. The course is divided in to two parts.1. Main course of 4 years and 6 months. 2. Clinical Course/Internship of 1 year. For Physiotherapy BPTBachelor in Physiotherapy is professional degree course. It is of four years with a sixth-month internship)MPTMaster In physiotherapy is post-graduate degree course. it is of two years duration course.For YogaGraduate/PG Diploma in Yoga
Do you have remedies in alternative medicine for all diseases?
All our services are based on natural therapies which works best with the combo of allopathy in some disease specific cases. We have conducted researched on various diseases like Rheumathoid Arthritis, Oste Arthritis, Diabetes, etc. – where our therapies have definitely improved the condition of the patients. We don't claim complete cure for serious conditions like Cancer or Alzheimer's etc.
Are there any side effects of these treatments?
Not at all, we use natural therapies only which are prescribed to the patient/client post consultation only. We take all the precautions, in case you have any allergy or any specific health condition.
What is empanelment?
Patients can avail treatment and the charges are reimbursed by the concerned empaneled party.
Who is eligible to apply to the empanelment process?
Any person who is an employee of the organization which falls under our empaneled list is eligible. His/her dependent family members whose name are in the medical card are also eligible.
What is the process of empanelment through empaneled hospital?
Patient can avail treatment from empaneled hospital after showing valid medical ID card/office ID card. (Note: Most of the on service patients are on payment and pensioners are cashless.)
Where should I apply for empanelment of hospital?
You can ask the concerned authorities of your organization. You can also find further information on the website of the department of CGHS/DGEHS/PSU's searching list of empaneled hospital. (Note: There is separate procedure for each empanelment.)


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|Zoo Babies Stamp Set
Lots of fun this week...
This is a ZOO BABIES card!
There's a challenge over at Just Add Ink - make a card with STRIPES!
I wanted to CASE (Copy and Share Everything) a pretty card I'd seen on Pinterest made by the very talented Sue Wdowik - you can see her gorgeous card here.
I started with some paper with LOTS of STRIPES;
Then I got out my new Fringe Scissors to make some grass... (all hippos need grass)
|Grass made from Fringe Scissors
and I added a cute birthday greeting:
and voila, my card was done - I love the upside down monkey!
|Zoo Babies all piled up!
And the inside too of course - more stripes!
I'm loving the Just Add Ink challenges - a fabulous way to get that creativity happening!


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CAIRO — The self-styled Libyan National Army seized most of the eastern coastal city of Derna from extremist groups who have controlled it for years, a spokesman said Friday, amid fierce fighting since late April.
The LNA forces have captured "more than 75 per cent of Derna and forced out terrorists from most of the city," Ahmed al-Mesmari told The Associated Press.'
"Our forces already control the seaport of the city and much of its eastern coast," he said. "Just a few pockets remain under control of extremist groups and the armed forces have been clearing them," he said.
He added that the forces have been advancing on the city from all sides. The LNA released a video footage on Wednesday showing fierce battles raging, apparently inside a neighbourhood in Derna.
Field Marshal Khalifa Hifter, who leads the LNA, announced in May that his forces launched a military operation aimed at "liberating" Derna from extremist groups led by the Derna Protection Forces, an alliance of Islamists and anti-Haftar fighters.
Hifter's forces have surrounded the city of 150,000 people for years. Hifter said Monday that "the hour of victory is approaching, as is the announcement that the city of Derna is free of terrorism."
The United Nations human rights office voiced concerns on Friday over the escalating risks to the population in Derna. Spokeswoman Elizabeth Throssell said the city's only hospital has been closed since June 5 and they have documented the deaths of three women as a result of the lack of oxygen supplies.
"There have been increasing allegations that civilians have been arbitrarily detained, while others have been prevented from leaving the city," she said.
The U.N. Support Mission in Libya said last week that fighting has killed at least 17 civilians, including two children, and wounded 22 others in Derna since May 16. UNSMIL said dozens of families were forced to leave the city.
It urged the warring parties to ensure "unimpeded humanitarian access and facilitate the safe exit of civilians wishing to leave the city."
Libya descended into chaos following the 2011 uprising that toppled and later killed long-time ruler Moammar Gadhafi. The country is now split between rival governments in the east and west, each backed by an array of militias. Hifter is allied with the eastern-based administration that is at odds with the U.N.-backed government based in the capital, Tripoli.


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Alluring Eyelash Extensions for Every Occasion
Enhance Your Best Side with Eyelash Extensions
As Nashville's premier medical day spa, we only utilize the very best beauty products, ensuring beautiful results for every client. Our choice for eyelash extensions is just more of the same. We would never apply less-than-superior lash extensions as we want to extend a level of peace of mind to each client. With this priority in mind, we choose Xtreme eyelash extensions for their high-quality, comfort and long-lasting beauty. Contact us for special pricing and availability. We specialize in special occasions but call early to ensure your desired appointment time.
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7 Misinterpreted Verses from the Bible about Money
7 Misinterpreted Verses from the Bible about Money! ( share this! )
1) "Money is the root of all evil."
2) "I can't bring money into God's house because it's evil"
Seriously? Then why does the LORD command us to bring it into His house in the first place for the benefit of His people? Malachi 3:10 "Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it."
3) "Money doesn't grow on trees"
4) "The meek shall inherit the Earth"
5) "Rich people are evil?"
6) "If I make money I'll lose my friends"
7) "I can't out earn my parents"
(BONUS Quote #8) "Money doesn't buy happiness but DEBT does?"
Really quick! Want to come hang out with me and the gang in Texas? Come to out annual event August 10 – 12th! Click here for more information.
~Rick the Electrician


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Excel-to-Revit® Data Import and Links
Autodesk Revit plug-in Excel2R significantly speeds up the Revit project documentation process.
- Creates/updates table in Revit drafting view according to the selected table settings;
- Keeps these MS Excel settings: Cell width and height; Text size per cell; Text font per cell; Text style per cell (Bold, Italic, Underline); Text alignment within the cell (Left, Center, Right, Top, Middle, Bottom); Merged cell; Three cell border line thicknesses (Thin, Medium, Wide).
- Has a possibility to use Revit text fonts instead of those created in MS Excel;
- Creates a stable link between MS Excel and Revit;
- Location of the imported MS Excel file is stored in Revit project;
- Has a possibility to map Text and Line Styles between MS Excel and Revit project;
- Has a possibility to update MS Excel data;
- Informs user when the MS Excel file was modified and will be updated in Revit project;
- Informs if the original MS Excel file was deleted or moved to other place.


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Gateway Band?
The Gaslight Anthem
Favourite Album Ever?
On The Impossible Past by The Menzingers and/or The '59 Sound by The Gaslight Anthem
Guilty Pleasure?
My mum will hate me for saying this but the song I always request at weddings is Living On A Prayer by Bon Jovi. If that's not guilty enough then I quite enjoyed listening to Justin Timberlake's Justified at work the other day.
Favourite Gig?
I think this is the hardest question of all for me to answer… so much so that I don't think I can even answer it. I went to more gigs last year, 2016, than in any year previously – and I don't think I'll ever go to more in a single year. So, I'm just going to list those that stick in my mind from last year:
- Less Than Jake at Fest 15
- The Menzingers playing On The Impossible Past in full at Fest 15
- Bangers last ever gig at The Lexington in London (August)
- Faintest Idea at The Owl Sanctuary in Norwich (April)
Favourite Venue?
I'm going to cheat again here and pick a few venues from different towns:
London – The Old Blue Last
Manchester – The Zombie Shack (It's a frickin' tiki bar!)
Milton Keynes – The Craufurd Arms
Norwich – The Owl Sanctuary
Silliest Thing Done For Punk Rock?
I don't think it's silly but most people thought I was crazy for going all the way to Florida for a musical festival… but not going to Disneyland. Hey, those people are the silly ones! It's FEST!! I can't think of much else besides spending a lot of my free time and money going to gigs.
What To Buy You If I See You At A Gig?
I'd probably say 'I'm fine, thanks.' but if you insist then a lemonade or water would be welcome.
Band You've Seen The Most?
Frank Turner (& The Sleeping Souls)
Band You Wish You Could Have Seen?
Default punk rock answer but – The Clash.
What Punk Rock Means To You?
I don't know how to answer this question or at least how to articulate it properly. Punk rock just quite simply makes me happy – whether that be listening to an album or attending a live show or even just talking about it with other punk fans (OR just fellow music fans in general). The punk scene feels like a place where I belong – I feel comfortable. In recent years I have realised that I like punk music more than I like graphic design and that's a big statement for me… not that the two things are interchangeable.
Other Interests?
Being a graphic designer and general admirer of good design, Japanese history and culture, befriending any cat that I see (because rented living means I can't have my own), practising yoga and swimming so often that people refer to me as a fish, reading fantasy fiction – plus nature, walking and exploring.
See the other members of the CPRW team here.


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Mention the name Herman Raucher to most people today, and they'll probably respond with a blank stare—perhaps ask if he's a politician, or a German philosopher, or maybe an athlete on a team you don't follow in a sport that isn't really your scene. That's a shame—because forty years ago, in that fantastically turbulent era we've only ever been able to explain as "the seventies," Herman Raucher was one of the names in popular entertainment. Few celebrities today can boast of the success he enjoyed—the 1971 film Summer of '42, penned by Raucher and based on his own adolescence, became a cultural touchstone that won an Oscar and was the 6th highest grossing film of the year. His novelization was so popular that bookstores literally sold out of it—it had to be reprinted twenty-three times between '71 and '74 to keep up with demand. The remainder of the decade saw him hit the talk show circuit, publish four more novels, and pen four more screenplays. His books were subversive pop-lit at their best: Blackly comic rom-coms that went off the rails in the final chapters, sexy romps through the post-WWII entertainment scene, darkly introspective looks at social stigma and intolerance in the Deep South. Raucher never wrote the same story twice, and picking up his latest offering was to see whether this go-round was a trip to the heights of hilarity or the depths of despair—or, maybe, both at once.
And then, as suddenly as he had erupted into the popular consciousness, he was gone. Maybe it was the newfound culture of sincerity that proved inhospitable for Raucher's edginess; maybe it was the sudden emphasis on family values and veneration of Rockwellian Americana that his works so often deconstructed; whatever it was, the 1980s ate him wholesale and never spit him back out, leaving behind only a legacy of paperbacks at your local used bookstore.
Which is where I found him, on sale at Half Price Books in the Summer of '05.
Back in college, my brother and I liked to kill time by writing letters to lesser-known celebrities, under the belief that, the less busy the schedule, the higher the possibility we might get a response. A clever enough idea, though most of the people we tried writing to either turned out to be too busy or too dead. While my brother didn't share the same fascination with Raucher that I did, I figured I'd give it a shot, and sent him a letter telling him how much I'd enjoyed his books and asking him a few questions about him and his life. Much to my delight, he replied. The letter contained all of the wit and humor of his books, and he politely answered all of my questions. There was one particular line, though, that leaped off of the page, and which I've never forgotten: "Surely you know that there's a writer swimming around in your innards. Let him out."
For a writer—let alone one whom I admired—to give me that sort of encouragement was a turning point in my vision of myself as a future author. It gave me the confidence and the drive to take a shot at something I thought might be sort of stupid at a time when I wasn't sure whether to play it safe. Though I didn't meditate upon those words when time got tough or return to it for more encouragement when I got rejection letters, it was the spark that started the fire. My work for 20/20 Magazine, Rue Morgue, Scream Magazine, The Optician's Handbook, my short fiction—I can't say that it wouldn't have happened without reading those words, but, they sure as Hell helped.
Earlier this year, while researching another article, the idea randomly snapped into my head to Google Herman Raucher and see if he was still out there. I was happy to see that not only is he still alive and well, but that he'd launched his own website selling reissues of his old books. You can find it HERE.
For anyone who lived through the decade and enjoyed Raucher's books in their first run—or, for those like me who found them later—it's a sheer delight to log on and see new editions of his novels on sale (with new cover art!) for the first time in decades.
Yet, while Raucher's stories are being told, his story never really has. While his books may make occasional intimations (and Summer of '42 is a snapshot of one particular Summer in his life), Raucher lived a lifetime before his 70s heyday. He rose through the ranks of Mad Men-era Madison Avenue to become creative director of several agencies. He helped to advertise the launch of Disneyland. He worked with Anthony Perkins on Broadway. He wrote for television when that meant a twenty-minute play brought to you by Kraft Cheese.
At 88, Herman Raucher's mind seems as sharp as it ever was, and if it's dulled at all with age it must've been of ginzu quality back in the day. Funny and thoughtful, our conversation provoked floods of memories, and rather than attempt to interview him I let him reminisce on a given topic and allowed his train of thought to take us to whatever depot was next on the line. It seemed it'd be a shame to try and artificially change the course of things; better to preserve the mind, wit, and wisdom of the man.
When I asked Mr. Raucher if I could interview him for this site, I had two objectives in mind: One was to at last tell the story of one of pop culture's quietest success stories. The other was to introduce him to a new generation of readers. Time, page clicks, and, I suppose, book sales will ultimately determine whether I succeed on either or both of those goals. But I'm just taking up space now. Ladies and gentleman, Mr. Herman Raucher…
Herman Raucher: My father was a war hero. World War I. Had a bayonet wound across his forehead. He was always traveling. My mother was a housewife. In those days we had an iceman, would come with a big block of ice, and that was your freezer. I was a Depression kid. I had an older sister who I never understood and who never understood me, and we got along fine. I grew up in the streets. We had our own versions of street wars, but we never had guns or knives. We had fights. I went to high school, won art awards. I started out writing in my apartment house in Brooklyn where I lived with my mother. I had no desk. I wrote on my bed with my knees side saddle to one side because I couldn't fit them under. I did all those things. I got the rejection slips. At NYU I did cartooning for the school newspaper and magazine. Everyone thought I was gonna be an artist, but I wasn't good enough there. Matter of fact I had my own comic book I did the writing for because you had six panels, and the artist got $8 and the writer got $6, and I figured "I can write thirty six-panel things in the time it took me to do one eight-panel cartoon." I found my way. Went to Fox after I graduated college. First job was $38 a week. You'll remember those things, I promise you. The lean years were very tough but things broke for me. I was always driven as a young man, and that served me well because you really had to go for it. You were rejected and turned down so many ways. Everything was a quirk. There's an Irwin Shaw quote I remember from the Young Lions, there's two soldiers talking, one says to the other, "Do you know what the equation of life is? Man plus his intentions equal accident." And I think that is so true. And I think that a lot of—all of—our lives are influenced by accident. Some people call it luck. But I think accident more fully attacks the problem, or the subject. That's my adventure into philosophy for today.
Preston Fassel: How to Succeed in Advertising Without Really Trying could tell the story of Herman Raucher, who enjoyed a meteoric rise in both the post-war advertising world and in the burgeoning new television market…
HR: I was an office boy at 20th Century Fox in New York. I'd studied advertising at NYU. I started to write plays—TV plays—on the side, when television was very new. We're talking about the 50s. I couldn't type, I didn't have a typewriter, so I wrote copy in pencil. (laughs) What I remember is not auspicious. I moved up at Fox, spent two years in the army, uh, let me see. Went to Fox, got a call after the service from Walt Disney, they wanted me—I don't know how they ever found out about me—but they wanted me for an advertising job in New York, and I ended up in New York and California, flying back and forth. We were establishing Disneyland. It was a very exciting time. I sold about six TV plays to shows like Studio One, one hour live dramas in the 50s that Paddy Chayefsky spearheaded, and a lot of us younger guys decided we'd try out. Because I was writing plays on the side they thought I was a very good ad man. They had nothing to do with one another, but it protected my career. Everybody thought it was interesting to have someone on their advertising campaigns who could write plays... (laughs) but I let them believe what they wanted to believe… I had some plays on Broadway. I wrote a play called Harold, with Tony Perkins. I let a lot of people do it who were not professional. The worst thing was, it was at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis, and all Broadway Shows died. We hardly got off the starting blocks and we closed in three weeks. [Then] I wrote a play called Sweet November which was never produced because some agent got hold of it and gave me a lot of money to sell it to Warner Bros…
PF: While Sweet November may sound familiar as the title of a mediocre Keanu Reeves/Charlize Theron movie, that film was in fact a remake of a much better, much more successful film starring Anthony Newley and Sandy Dennis. Coming out a time when societal dropouts and boho living were just beginning to catch on, the movie tells the story of a button-down, Madison Avenue nine-to-fiver who falls in with a proto-hippie from the village. Believing that Newley's character is really a free-spirit at heart, Dennis proposes an awkward arrangement: He moved in with her for a month and gave her the opportunity to "fix" him. More lighthearted than the self-serious Reeves/Theron remake, the film's sudden shift into tragedy in the final act was all the more jarring…
HR: When I was writing the screenplay, I didn't want to redescribe the set, because it was very elaborate, so I just cut it out from my play script and pinned it into my movie script. I was surprised to see they built the script exactly the same way. (laughs) I had great faith in the movie technicians. They could do anything. I became great friends with Tony Newley, who played the lead opposite Sandy Dennis. Tony was the only actor I ever worked with who asked me to come by after he'd committed to do the movie, who asked me to come by and explain the script, specifically the lines he had to do. I never had an actor who had to do that. But Tony was an Englishman and he didn't want to lose any of the humor. The most accomplished man, I think the most talented man I've ever known. We became great friends. My youngest daughter was his godchild… Sandy was a delight. And we were shooting Sweet November when she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for Virginia Woolf. She and Tony just knew how to do that script. They just knew it. And I stood along the sidelines trying not to trip over the wires. It was fabulous, watching how instinctively they knew how to read every line. They never rehearsed together. Tony liked to be in love with whoever his leading lady was, but Sandy was involved at that time with someone else, and wanted no part of that. But they still managed to do it. I've always tried to write stories where you come in one door and you go out the other. You come into what looks to be a comedy, then you suddenly realize—if we do it well—it suddenly segues, without any of the seams showing, into a drama. Sweet November was the first one, and I really loved that film… I don't remember it being a great big hit until television took it on. It aired on Turner a couple of times and I still get fan mail on it.
PF: Sweet November proved to be an unexpected success. Coming out at the height of the Vietnam War, the tale struck a chord, and seeing the movie with their girlfriends, wives, or lovers became something of a bittersweet ritual for departing young soldiers. On the heels of the film's success, Raucher and Newley set to work on "Can Hieronymous Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness?" A sort of Terrence Malick-meets-LSD biopic of Anthony Newley's life and loves, it took home an award from the Writer's Guild of Great Britain for Best Screenplay, and has since become a cult memento of late 60s experimental filmmaking.
HR: That was Tony's… he always wrote about the totems in his life. After Sweet November we struck up a partnership and I put together the screenplay with him, and we shot it on Malta for about $12. NOBODY knew what to make of that film, except we had a good time. It was kind of a marvelous film, but nobody knows what to do with it, when they talk about old films. It was very special because Tony wrote the music but could never read music. He wrote songs in his head and played them on a thing called a mellophone, which looked like a huge hero sandwich, and his partner would write the lyrics and he would sing the songs. It was a very brave effort. I think I won some British Writer's Guild Award for best screenplay, but Tony was so gracious because he gave me full credit for it. We remained friends until his death. I miss him. He was funny and he was loyal and he was very gifted.
PF: At the dawn of the 70s, Raucher found himself working on a radically different project: The race relations movie Watermelon Man, about a casually bigoted suburbanite who wakes up one morning to find out that he's become a black man overnight. The film introduced Melvin van Peebles to mainstream America and served as an awkward prelude to Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song. Raucher recalls that his experiences working on the movie—and with van Peebles—wasn't quite what he expected.
HR: I wrote Watermelon Man as a screenplay first, as an original screenplay because I was involved in the black movement to some degree and I wanted to put my two cents in. This is '69, I think, and Columbia was afraid to make it without a black director, of whom there were not many. And they found Melvin van Peebles in Europe somewhere. He'd done a film called Story of a Three Day Pass. So Melvin was given the job of directing and it became, under his aegis, more of a black power film than I'd wanted. Melvin and I squared off a lot. I didn't really care for the film as much as I do other things I have done. I wrote the novelization afterwards because, if I passed and didn't want to write it, Melvin could write it, and I thought it would just be too flammable. So in an odd way I wrote the novel in self defense. Melvin went on to do other things that were more to his liking and we never were great friends, but he was gifted and he was driven. God bless him but, I didn't want to work with him anymore…
I don't know how close you are to that film, but, Estelle Parsons played Godfrey Cambridge's wife. It was about a white man who turns black because he's a bigot. And his wife was always liberal until he becomes black and is having trouble being black, and she becomes less supportive. And he says, "I thought you were liberal?" And she says, "I am… to a degree." And that's where I wanted to put my coin, because I thought that was the hypocrisy of many white people who were liberal to a degree, but they weren't when the chips were down. Now that was a big slice of ego for me to try and put that into a film. The line is in there, but I don't think the point I was trying to make ever surfaced. (laughs) I was up for black writer of the year. I had to call them and tell them I wasn't black, but I would try out another time. (laughs) And they said goodbye to me.
PF: With two films in the can, Raucher found the stage set for what would prove to be his biggest success: The Summer of '42. Though audiences didn't realize it at the time, the story of a teenage boy and his friends carousing on the beach and falling in love with an older war widow was a roman a clef for Raucher's own experiences on Nantucket Island in '42. It was Raucher's most personal project, and one he'd been trying to get made since the early 60s.
HR: We had something like 49 rejections over a seven year period. I wrote it for my friend Oscy [Oscar Seltzer], who was killed on my birthday in Korea. I was drafted in 1950 and served with great lack of distinction. And yet my friend Oscy… we were very close friends. He was a medic, and was killed, and given the Silver Star posthumously because he was tending to a wounded man when he was killed and the wounded man lived. I really wrote that screenplay for Oscy. It's really so weird he was killed on my birthday. It was screaming for me to do for years. I'd wanted to write about that. And Dorothy got in the mix. And Mulligan rode it out. When I was given the academy award nomination, Bob sent me a really beautiful letter about, "first come the words," and I've never forgotten it…
It got to be about an event that happened to me when I was 14. Warner Bros., when we made the film, said that's too young, you've got to make it fifteen. I said, by the time you're fifteen, you know everything. Anyway, it didn't seem to bother people. Again, that was a piece that started out funny and ended up very serious. It bothered me a great deal because I never saw Dorothy again. People always ask about that film. When the picture was finished, it was shot, and it was in the can, and it took a year for postproduction- opticals, music, stuff like that. Somebody said, 'why don't you write a book to help publicize the film?' So I just did this almost stream of consciousness and wrote the book in something like six or eight weeks, and as fate would have it, the book comes out and becomes a best seller. So when the movie is finally released, the ad line is 'based on the national best seller.' Which is absurd because the book was written after the movie! That's when I knew that Hollywood was a pretty silly place for me, and you should not put too much hope in whatever you do, but just work as hard as you could, do the best you could, and stand by and watch because it seldom turns out the way you thought. Nobody thought Summer of '42 would make a dollar, and we did very well with it… what happened was Warner Bros. had new management at the time, and they were looking for product, and it was low budget. We had sent the script to Bob Mulligan, who did To Kill a Mockingbird, and Bob fell in love with the screenplay, he did a budget, had it all under his arm. They asked how big a budget it was, he said a million dollars. They said go make it, they never read the script, they left us alone. It never rained. Bob took a fragile screenplay and some young people and did a hell of a job. He did a marvelous job, and as a matter of fact he never got a nomination from the Director's Guild, let alone the Academy. I think one of the great oversights out there. A very, very gallant man, very gifted. We both came out of live television. It was pretty much flying by the seat of your pants in those days.
PF: Summer of '42 turned Raucher into a bona fide success. The book sold out in droves and he had a high-profile appearance on the Mike Douglas show alongside Tennessee Williams. Readers across the US waited to see what an exciting new voice in popular literature would produce next. The result is arguably his best work. A Glimpse of Tiger tells the story of "Tiger," a teenage girl from the Midwest who runs away from home and winds up in early 70s Greenwich Village. She falls in with an older ne'er do well named Luther, a trust-fund boy who pulls con jobs and lives on department store free samples just for the Hell of it. What begins as a wacky romantic comedy veers into more serious territory when Tiger realizes it's time to settle down, leaves Luther, and gets a job as a secretary. It would be a disservice to the book to go into further detail, other than to say that the book undergoes a rapid genre shift in the final act that deconstructs the rom-com and leads to a cold-sweat sort of twist ending. The novel got the attention of Eliot Gould, himself a rising star, and it seemed as though Raucher was set for his second great success in as many years. What happened next is Hollywood lore…
HR: [Tiger] was very dark. It was a dark piece I wrote about some people I knew who were involved with drugs, and we had sold the screenplay—this is very complex—I sold the play to Eliot Gould who was very hot at the time, and Eliot hired [director] Tony Harvey, who had good credits. Eliot was to play the lead opposite Kim Darby, and Eliot just got messed up on the set with some other people who'll remain nameless. Warner Bros. shut it down [after a week] and we never started shooting it again. I was told to come out and start rewriting Eliot's part for Barbara Streisand. (laughs) So I said fellas, you're gonna have a very loveable lesbian, this is a role for a man. So I started rewriting it, and worked with a couple of directors, and the next thing I knew the piece was taken away from me and it became What's Up Doc with peter Bogdonavich. So that became a big lesson to me, although, I don't know what I learned. So we never made that picture. We never started again. It just… disappeared. That's the fate of many, many scripts… I have no idea [if the footage still exists]… It became a completely different film, even though Peter Bogdonavich announced in the trade papers it was Barbara Streisand and Ryan O'Neil in Herman Raucher's A Glimpse of Tiger. But that never happened.
I was fascinated with Hollywood. I spent some time living out there but I'm an East Ender at heart. I suppose my career could've gone further had I lived out there but I had two young children and the drug society was very big at the time in LA, and I didn't want to expose my family to that. So I stayed in the East and did pretty much what I wanted to do. I had a lot of trouble with people in Hollywood. When I had been an advertising executive I learned how to work with people and I found that a lot of them out there—I made a lot of money, so this sounds rather self serving—but I'm always prompted to remember a phrase by a French philosopher, I don't know, who said, "It is not enough to succeed, one must see one's best friend fail." That kind of outlook kind of persisted out there. People rooted against their friends, not understanding that every picture that failed made it more difficult for you to make yours. I had learned to always root for my friends. I had a lot of writer friends out here and we all rooted for one another. I never got that feeling out there. Perhaps my fault or my shortcoming, I don't know. But the few times I was out there I worked very hard and got home as fast as I could.
PF: After the Tiger debacle, Raucher returned East, oblivious that a song he'd heard on the radio would lead to his next project. Ode to Billie Joe was sweeping the charts, mystifying listeners with the cryptic tale of a young man's apparently unmotivated suicide and his fellow townsfolk's complete apathy to his death. It's a testament to the song's power that a decision was made to adapt it into a film, and the man responsible—Max Baer Jr.—had one person in mind to write the script...
HR: If you hold onto your chair, I'll try to tell you about Billie Joe! I got a call from Max Baer Jr… He said I want you to write me Ode to Billie Joe. And I had no time for it. I really didn't want to do it. I said, I love the song, but I don't want to. He said, "What do I have to do to get you to write the screenplay?" I said, tell you what, Max, send me a check for $100,000 and I'll write you a screenplay. He sent me a check for $100,000. I went out there and we met with Bobbie Gentry, who's this delightful, very pretty girl, and I said "Tell me what the lyrics are about." And she said, "It's about nothing." I said, "But you have characters, you talk about them." She kept saying, it meant nothing. So I was left with the task of making it sound like a story. And in chatting with Bobbie she mentioned things like she had a doll named Benjamin when she was a little girl, and I started to put it together because I had to. I gravitated towards a homosexual thing because nobody was really writing movies about that as of yet to any great degree, and I went for it. So we cast a lot of people from Mississippi and we made the film. (laughs) I think I wrote the screenplay in ten days. And then I figured I was finished with it and Max would never get it made, but he took it to Warners, who had a warm place in their heart for me, and they said, yeah!
PF: Following Billie Joe, Raucher unexpectedly became a footnote in science-fiction history. Sidney Sheldon, one of Raucher's literary contemporaries, was enjoying a tremendous success with his novel The Other Side of Midnight. Raucher was hired to adapt the novel into a film, which was projected to be 1977's biggest box office draw. Such was the anticipation for Midnight's release that the studio used it in order to force movie theaters wanting to exhibit the picture to show another film alongside it, a sci-fi b-movie that was expected to lose huge amounts of money unless it was attached to another, more profitable film. That b-movie was a little picture called Star Wars. History writes the rest; I asked Mr. Raucher if he had any reminisces about working on Midnight…
HR: Not any good ones. I wrote the screenplay, and I saw a rough cut when they finished shooting, and all I told [the producer] was, "cut it." He said, "What do you mean?" I told him, "When you're on thin ice, go fast." Emmerson said that, and he meant it. And it got very bad reviews.
PF: Turning his pen back to original works, Raucher embarked on what would become his most ambitious novel. There Should Have Been Castles is an epic romp through the 1950s entertainment industry, told through the occasionally intersecting stories of two young artistic hopefuls: Ben, an aspiring writer, and Ginnie, an aspiring dancer. In addition to being Raucher's longest work—the events of the book span several years and contains a cast of dozens—it's also his most autobiographical besides Summer, drawing on his own experiences in Hollywood and also incorporating elements given to him by his wife, MK Raucher, a Broadway dancer.
HR: As I indicated earlier, I try and write a different book every time, or a different screenplay every time. And the whole world thought it was about my wife and me but it was not. The character of Ginnie was made up of a lot of dancers I knew because I knew them through my wife. I got anecdotal stories from all of them. I am mostly me. That is autobiographical to a very great degree. But the character of Ginnie is made up of a lot of different girls. My wife was not involved at all except helping me write it because she knew what dancers went through and told me so many things she had endured, and I just let the barrel roll. Because it was very sexy—I didn't mean it to be—but I decided, I'm just gonna tell the truth about how people talk, and what they did, and a lot of the early TV stuff was true. I mention some people who were actors at the time who were in my TV plays. There was a conglomeration, or a milligan stew, of everything I knew or heard or had been force fed to me, and it evolved… we never got that one made [into a movie]. People were afraid of it. They thought it was too dirty. I said, "That's the way it was, folks." I mean, It's what I remembered. I've never backed off of anything I started to write if it didn't go well.
PF: 1979 saw the release of The Great Santini, a male-targeted tearjerker about a young man's volatile relationship with his father, a heroic yet emotionally abusive US Marine. For years, Raucher has been credited with ghost-writing the screenplay, and a credit for him appears on both IMDB and Wikipedia.
HR: Not true. The man who wrote it was Louis John Carlino, who is a very nice man. What happened was, I was supposed to write a TV series of it. And I had written a couple of pieces and we had a big disagreement, and just nothing happened. But I did not write it. It's Wikipedia. And I've told them that's not my credit. I love it when people write and say "Of all your work, we love The Great Santini the best."
PF: 1979 also saw the release of Maynard's House, which would prove to be Raucher's final published book. Radically breaking genre from his previous works, Maynard is a metaphysical horror story about a recently discharged soldier who learns that a deceased war buddy left him a house in his will. Going to claim the house, the soldier discovers the house is the domain of a coven of witches who have plans beyond his comprehension. The book was perhaps his least well received, though one that studios seemed particularly eager to adapt to the big screen—as recently as 2001, Studio Canal was trying to turn it into a supernatural thriller called "Ara/Froom."
HR: When I got out of the army, a friend of mine let me have his house up in Maine at Mt. Katahdin, up in that area, where lumber companies wouldn't even go, the woods were so tangled and difficult that it wasn't even worth it to try and get lumber out of there. And I stayed in that house close to a month by myself. I had a Winchester, a .38, and a twelve-gauge shotgun, which I never needed. The mailman used to bring food and put it in the mailbox. I had a root cellar. I loved it, living alone, after having been in the army. And then I left it there. Years later, I went up to visit my kids in a summer camp in Maine, in that area, and on the way back my wife and I stopped off in Salem. And I said, why don't I put together what I remember about that house I was in, and the witches. So almost thirty years after I had been in the house I superimposed the witch stuff on top of it, and out came Maynard's House, which people don't understand at all. It's probably my fault, not trying to say what the witch succeeded in doing. But like everything else I've done it was a different kind of writing. I try not to use the same pen every time I go to work. That was a good book. I was very proud of it, because my research was there. And I remembered everything about the house, the sounds, what kind of animals were there because I could track them in the snow. And the world left me alone while I came up from down below.
PF: After Maynard's House was released, Raucher continued working. However, he'd never have another book published, and aside from some adaptations of his work over the years, it seemed as if Hollywood was done with him as well…
HR: I tried to do other things that were not very well received, and then certain things were but never got to be… and I guess I had a reputation as being difficult. I kept turning down adaptations of other people's works, but I wanted to do my own. And then I just got tired. I'd been working most of my life. So, I kinda stopped. I took joy in doing other things. We traveled. Summer of '42 was supposed to be a musical, it didn't make it for a lot of reasons, not the least of which was 9/11 happened. We were on the stage on Broadway and nobody went to the theater anymore for a long time and we had to close… and [after] Harold, years before, and the Bay of Pigs blew that one out of the water, I decided, I better stop writing for Broadway, because I'm gonna destroy the world. I'd love to do a play but it calls for too much effort, and I just don't have the energy anymore.
It's never just retiring. It's working on things which intrigued me and not being able to feel as though I did them well enough to submit, and those I did submit other people didn't want. I wrote a play called Ginger, about a man who fell in love with a bear, but nothing came of it because he was Catholic. (laughs) You have to stop for a moment. It was one of the best things I've ever written. It got bought by New Line, but they never made it for whatever reason, and they still own it. It was very funny and very touching, but, nothing came of it.
When you've had years, and your last book or movie was ten years ago, whether you like it or not you are looked upon as 'over.' And I had one lady, I forget who, at a publishing house, tell me "You still write well but you're old fashioned." I said, Oh God. Okay. So I'm considered old fashioned. And at this point I am. And I'm comfortable with it.
PF: Though the remake of Sweet November was the last of Raucher's works to be adapted to the screen, he still retains the rights to the majority of his work—and would still like to see it finally adapted, albeit forty-some years too late.
HR: I'd like to see every one turned into films, but there aren't that many for openers… the only thing I don't own the rights to is Sweet November because, I always joke, when it surfaced and someone paid money for it I had just mortgaged Baltic Avenue. (laughs) If you remember your Monopoly. That's how bad it was. And so I sold all the rights. The only thing is if it were to become a musical I would be able to write the book. Interestingly enough, Michel Legrand, who's written the music to three of my movies, was desperate to produce it as a Broadway show. We knew how to do it but we got all tangled up in lawyers and I just lost interest in it. Michel and I are still friends. God, there's a talent! He did Summer of '42, he did a lot of the interim music on Billie Joe, he did Sweet November, he was, and still is, a great jazz pianist.
I don't think I have the energy to say, "You guys gotta look at this again". It's now forty, forty-five years since they were in the daylight. I think they're probably gonna rest. I get some lovely emails on books that I've written, that're being purchased now because of my website, and a lot of people remind me they saw the movie all those years ago, read the book, that's all very warming. That's very nice to see and hear. But moviemaking is very difficult and it demands great energy and a lot of the ability to compromise, which was never my strong suit. If you disagreed with me you better be prepared to have a big argument because that's what I offered.
PF: With our time winding down, and Raucher's tales of adventures in writing at a close, I figured I'd leave things off there. Unusually, in a society built on regret, mourning for lost youth and desperate for either radical advancement into some blind tomorrow or a return to a yesterday that never was, I found a man at peace with himself and his legacy. He has his children, his grandchildren, happy memories, and a fine body of work—work which, hopefully, has yet to reach its' full audience…
HR: I have no complaints about the life I've led. It's been very good. I think I've been very lucky—accidents were very bad for me in the beginning but turned around for me in my favor. I think I've been honest to myself. I don't think I've ever knowingly done anything bad to anyone. Most of my friends are gone now. My daughters and I are very, very close. One lives around the corner with my granddaughter. The other lives in New York, and she works in the business in a sense. And I've done everything that I've wanted to do, and I don't cry to the Heavens in any way. So from that standpoint, I think I've done pretty well. And I hope I didn't bore the hell out of you.


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Published on Jun 24, 2014
Liberia's president, entrepreneur from India also honored
Richard Thaler, Charles R. Walgreen Distinguished Service Professor of Behavioral Science and Economics at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, has been selected as one of three recipients of the 2014 Global Economy Prize from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy.
In addition to Thaler, this year's other recipients are Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia's state president and a Nobel laureate, and Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, a biotechnology entrepreneur from India. The award is given to "honor policymakers, economists and entrepreneurs who have made a name for themselves with their pioneering spirit to establish a market economy society that is open to the world."
"It was truly a great honor to receive this award concurrently with these two extraordinary women who have each made amazing accomplishments in their chosen fields," Thaler said. "The prior winners of the academic prize are a group any economist would be proud to join."
Thaler, one of the founders of the field of behavioral economics and finance, also researches the psychology of decision-making and is the director of Booth's Center for Decision Research.
"Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness," Thaler's most recent book — which was written with Cass Sunstein, a professor at Harvard Law School — has sold more than 750,000 copies.
The trio was celebrated for their pioneering work aimed at solving global problems at an award ceremony June 22 at Haus der Wirtschaft in Kiel, Germany.
"In their professional environment, all three prize winners constantly focused on people, their behavior and well-being," said Dennis Snower, Kiel Institute of the World Economy president. "Richard Thaler, [one of the creators] of behavioral economics, shattered a number of fundamental assumptions in the field of economic sciences that are based on selfish and rational behavior of human beings."
"The award is intended to deliver certain impetus with a view to resolving and overcoming the major world economic challenges of our time in dialogue with the various societal groups in a creative fashion," the Kiel Institute said in a news release.
Thaler has been at Chicago Booth since 1995.


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Friday, September 12, 2008
Jesus and Obama - historical revisionism
The Democrat recently trotted out the comment that "Jesus was a Community organizer and Pontius Pilot was a Governor". This was done to contrast Obama with Palin. Here is the problem with the analogy. Jesus, unlike Obama, was not paid by the government to organize a future Christian community. Jesus was view with suspicion and eventually executed as a threat to the state. Pontius Pilot was not a governor but a prefect, an appointed guardian of Roman interests. Pontius Pilot was not elected by the people he ruled - quite the opposite.
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It's Friday, April 29th and you're a poorly drawn, slightly hipstery looking guy with claws for hands...what are you gonna do?
You could:
A) Get drunk on Mountain Crest, watch Royal Wedding, pass out at 8:00
B) Take pictures of cat dressed up as Mexican bandit, post them in totally awesome Facebook album titled "My Pal Pablo!!"
C) Write heart wrenching love songs about girls you used to stalk
OR! You could throw on some plaid, lace up those Chucks, and head over to the 2nd annual GREAT TWIN CITIES POETRY READ from 7:30 to 9:30 at the Normandale Community College Theater.
Hosted by poet Dobby Gibson and PD Volume Three contributor Matt Mauch, the night will feature live readings from TONS OF REALLY GREAT AND AWESOME AND NEAT AND TALENTED POETS including Lightsey Darst, Matt Ryan, and Heid Erdrich.
Also, the "Officially unofficial launch of Poetry City, USA, Vol. 1: poems read at the inaugural Great Twin Cities Poetry Read + essays, reviews, and interviews."
We're co-sponsoring the event along with Graywolf, Lowbrow, and Coffeehouse Presses, and others, which means it's cool kids time up in hurr.
Finally! Poetry readings are also great places to meet poorly drawn, slightly hipstery looking, claws for hands girls. And you know what that means, don't you, you little hastily rendered poorly drawn guy....
Ps. Thanks for kindly ignoring my crappy drawing and picture cropping skills. "What month is "APRI"?? I'm so confuuuussseed!!"


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From now on,
"In-flight food has never been especially exciting, but we have decided to change all that. In close co-operation with nutrition experts and our catering company, we have developed some much tastier products which are at the same time healthy and 100 percent organic," says Michael T. Hansen, Commercial Manager at Sterling Airlines A/S.
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Every day, you can choose between a delicious brunch on the morning flights, and two kinds of sandwiches during the rest of the day. The menu varies and is altered every second week, so you can try something new every time. Our organic Brunchbag costs EUR 8, and an organic sandwich EUR 6,50.
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At the end of 2007,
A Funny Meal is full of children's favourites, such as a roll with salami, and raisins from Urtekram. For dessert, the children get a mini chocolate muffin from Emmery's. There are also toys in the pack, in the form of a colouring book and pencils. The price of an organic Funny Meal is EUR 7, and you do not need to order it in advance.
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December 16, 2008Nonlinear Phenomena in Activator-Inhibitor Systems: Stem Cell Self-Organization and Cardiovascular Calcification
Professor Arik YochelisDepartment of Chemical Engineering, Technion & Department of Chemical Physics, Weizmann Institute of Science
AbstractThe self-organization of patterns is fundamental to biological morphogenesis, although its origin and mechanisms are still unclear. One intriguing morphogenetic mechanism was suggested in the pioneering work of Turing. He suggested that chemical 'morphogens', interacting as activators or inhibitors, and diffusing through a medium, give rise to a chemical pre-patterning. Recently, several experimental groups indeed suggested a relationship between activator-inhibitor approach and biological self-organization through examples of spatially extended periodic patterns. In my talk, I expand the spatiotemporal theory of morphogenesis beyond Turings' paradigm by uncovering the pattern selection mechanisms in the nonlinear regime. The methods are taken from dynamical systems and pattern formation theory, including local and global bifurcation theory. In particular these allow prediction and creation of a novel isolated localized self-organization in a preparation of vascular-derived mesenchymal stem cells. The biochemical mechanisms of pattern formation suggest therapeutic strategies applicable to bone formation in atherosclerotic lesions in arteries (where it is pathological) and to the regeneration of trabecular bone (recapitulating normal physiological development).
July 20, 2008Essential spectrum of difference operators on periodic graphsProfessor Vladimir Rabinovich, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Mexico
Abstract (Link)
May 26, 2008The profile of bubbling solutions of the Q-curvature equation Professor Gilbert Weinstein, Department of Mathematics, University of Alabama at Birmingham
AbstractWe study a class of fourth order geometric equations defined on a 4-dimensional compact Riemannian manifold which includes the Q-curvatu- re equation. We obtain sharp estimates on the difference near the blow-up points between a bubbling sequence of solutions and the standard bubble.
May 5, 2008Well-posedness of nonlinear diffusion models in image processing Dr. Lorina Dascal, Computer Science Department, Technion
AbstractPartial differential equations (PDEs) have led to an entire new field in image processing and computer vision. PDE-based image processing techniques are mainly used for smoothing and restoration purposes. The Beltrami framework for image processing and analysis introduces a non-linear parabolic problem, called in this context the Beltrami flow. This flow is a particular case of a degenerate parabolic equation. We study in the frame- work for functions of bounded variation, the well-posedness of the Beltrami flow. We prove existence and uniqueness of the weak solution in the BV space using lower semi-continuity results for convex functions of measures.The solution is defined via a variational inequality, following Temam's technique. Joint work with Shoshana Kamin and Nir Sochen.
March 31,2008Extensions of smooth functions and Lipschitz selections in jet spacesDr. Pavel Shvartsman, Technion
February 8, 2008Well-posedness of Einstein-Euler equations in asymptotically flat spacetimeDr. Lavi Karp, ORT Braude College, Israel
AbstractThe Einstein-Euler system consists of two coupled evolution equations: one describing the gravitational fields and the other one the evolution of the fluid. In order to determine the system it is necessary to specify a relation between the pressure and the energy density (equation of state). I will discuss how these equations can be written as symmetric hyperbolic systems, the influence of Einstein constraint equations on the initial data in asymptotically flat space-time and some of the technical tools which enable us obtaining a well-posedness under minimal regularity assumptions. This is a joint work with U. Brauer.
January 14, 2008Using Operational Calculus for modeling Water Waves Prof. Yehuda Agnon, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Technion, Haifa, Israel
AbstractThe study of linear and nonlinear diffraction and shoaling of irrotational water waves by uneven bottom topography has received considerable attention. Phenomena such as edge waves, harbour resonance and surf-beats are a few of its manifestations. Spatio-temporal evolution equations are powerful in the study of focusing and of rogue waves. In the case of slow spatial evolution, one can eliminate the vertical coordinate, z. The solution of a three-dimensional (3D) flow field is replaced by a simpler, (approximate) 2D problem. In spatially homogeneous problems (e.g. rectangular basins with an even bottom), the waves are conveniently represented in the wavenumber domain, leading to the formulation of the Zakharov equation. Non-uniformity in space due to non-periodic spatial evolution or to bottom slope, and the study of more general basins, can be accounted for through representation in the frequency, rather than wavenumber, domain. For linear shoaling, fully dispersive models include the mild slope equation (MSE), the extended, and the modified MSE (Chamberlain and Porter, 1995). Most of the work on nonlinear shoaling has been based on the assumption of weak dispersion, either by using Boussinesq type models or by assuming narrow spectra in Schrödinger equation models. This is because the full dispersion operator is an integral operator in space and its pseudo-differential representation involves spatial derivatives to infinite order.Agnon et al. (1993, 1998) and Kaihatu and Kirby (1995) have studied a nonlinear MSE - in which the linear dispersion is exact, but the nonlinear interaction is only accurate for resonant interaction. This, apparently, limited the model's applicability to near resonance quadratic interaction, since it introduced an error in the bound waves that was too large to allow extension of the model to include cubic (four-wave) interaction. Agnon and Sheremet (1997) have derived a stochastic nonlinear MSE. Mei (1999) has derived a nonlinear MSE for long waves induced by short waves. Shemer et al. (2001) have derived a spatial Zakharov equation. Rasmussen and Stiassnie (2001) have derived a discretized spatio-temporal model on an even bottom.Accounting for the dispersive nature of water waves in spatial models complicates the solution and requires consideration of high order derivatives (essentially to any order) of the depth and of the potential. The inherent difficulty of the problem stems from the need to account for non-local interaction. A new model for linear and nonlinear shoaling has been recently derived (Agnon, 1999; Agnon and Pelinovsky, 2001), using operational calculus. It systematically accounts for the effect of terms in high order derivatives of the bathymetry without calculating them. This is done by utilizing the fact that the dynamics of the system is governed by resonant interaction. After deriving a pseudo-differential equation, we expand the nonlocal operator in a small parameter - the detuning from resonance. The result is that the nonlocal operator is approximated by low order differential operators. Here we extend this approach to obtain more accurate nonlinear shoaling .The present work differs from the previous derivations of MSE and its linear and nonlinear extensions: no assumption is made regarding the vertical structure of the wave field (except for the lack of 'global' evanescent modes). This results in a model of very general validity. The derivation provides insight regarding in which regimes the use of existing and new models is appropriate. We study an augmented nonlinear MSE which accurately accounts for the bound waves (subharmonics and superharmonics). This enables the enhancement of the nonlinear MSE to include cubic interaction. Cubic interaction is important in the evolution of ocean waves and is known to play a central role in subharmonic resonance of edge waves. We derive the waves which are induced by the bottom variations, and show that there exists no general MSE-type equation for describing Class II Bragg resonance (i.e. linear in the wave amplitude and quadratic in the bottom variation). We study Class III Bragg resonance (i.e. quadratic in the wave amplitude and linear in the bottom variation) over bathymetries that are not gentle, and derive an extended nonlinear MSE, and a modified nonlinear MSE. The performance of the different models in calculating resonant double-frequency harmonic generation on an oscillatory bottom variation is compared. Spatio-temporal equations are obtained directly from the spatial evolution equations by discretization of the frequency spectrum.


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Read the first report copied below (from ArabNews.com) and weep in despair for Muslim children because of cowardly Islamic clerics; read the second (from the Middle East Media Research Institute) to regain some hope, courtesty brave Muslim intellectuals such as Ibrahim Al-Buleihi.
1. Scholars hotly debate treatment of apostates
Badea Abu Al-Naja
Arab News; April 30, 2009
SHARJAH: In a session here on religious freedom, Muslim scholars from around the world yesterday debated how apostates should be treated according to Islamic law.
More than 200 delegates representing 60 countries are discussing diverse issues in the light of Shariah at the ongoing International Islamic Fiqh Conference hosted by Sharjah ruler Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al-Qassimi.
The event at the Zahra Hall Auditorium at the University of Sharjah has been organized by the International Islamic Fiqh Academy (IIFA), an offshoot of the Jeddah-based Organization of the Islamic Conference.
While several scholars demanded a review of the punishment for apostates in the light of the changing modern values, others refuted their argument saying the original Islamic texts call for harsh punishments.
"Religious freedom is a right that should be guaranteed to every human being. We have come here to present and discuss different viewpoints and we should do it in order to reach the right solution," said Mahmoud Zaqzouq, Egypt's minister of endowments.
Some participants doubted the validity of texts quoted in support of the beheading of apostates. On the other hand, several others were adamant in their refusal to the demand for a lighter approach toward apostates in the name of freedom of religion.
"The view that Islamic scholars of the past had different views on how to punish apostates is incorrect. They only disagreed on how soon apostates should be executed; should it be done in three days, one week or few months. The waiting time is left to the discretion of the ruler," said Muhammad Al-Nujaimi, a professor at the Higher Institute of Law in Riyadh.
Referring to criticisms from international human rights organizations, he said: "These groups will never stop attacking Islam even if we were to agree to all their demands. Their lack of sincerity is clear from their attitude to the atrocities committed by the Israeli government in occupied Palestinian territories. We will never allow others to dictate our religion to us."
Abdul Salam Al-Ebadi, secretary-general of the IIFA, said the topic of religious freedom was given priority in yesterday's deliberations because several countries, particularly the ministries of Islamic Affairs and Foreign Affairs in OIC member countries, demanded a clarification on the correct stand toward apostates. He said a six-member committee of scholars has been entrusted with the task of studying the issue and submitting recommendations. OIC Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu and IIFA Chairman Saleh Bin-Humaid, who is also chairman of Saudi Arabia's Supreme Judicial Council, are participating in the forum.
2. Saudi Intellectual: Western Civilization Has Liberated Mankind
The Middle East Media Research Insititue (MEMRI)
April 29, 2009; No. 2332
In an interview published April 23, 2009 in the Saudi Daily 'Okaz, reformist thinker Ibrahim Al-Buleihi expressed his admiration for Western civilization. The interview was posted on the same day on the Elaph website. Al-Buleihi calls on the Arabs to acknowledge the greatness of Western civilization, and to admit the deficiencies of their own culture. He states that such self-criticism is a precondition to any change for the better. Ibrahim Al-Buleihi is a member of the Saudi Shura Council. [Note: the notes in brackets in what follows were added by the translator.]
Following are excerpts from the interview:
'Okaz {Interviewer}: "I begin with the crucial issue which distinguishes your thought and which your opponents always raise against you - namely, your being completely dazzled by the West, while you completely belittle Arabic thought. Truly, this is the most outstanding feature of your writings. There is also extreme self-flagellation which many see [in your writings]. What is the cause of this?"
Buleihi: "My attitude towards Western civilization is an attitude based on obvious facts and great accomplishments; here is a reality full of wonderful and amazing things. [Recognizing] this doesn't mean that I am blindly fascinated. This is the very opposite of the attitude of those who deny and ignore the bright lights of Western civilization. Just look around… and you will notice that everything beautiful in our life has been produced by Western civilization: even the pen that you are holding in your hand, the recording instrument in front of you, the light in this room, and the journal in which you work, and many innumerable amenities, which are like miracles for the ancient civilizations.… If it were not for the accomplishments of the West, our lives would have been barren. I only look objectively and value justly what I see and express it honestly. Whoever does not admire great beauty is a person who lacks sensitivity, taste, and observation. Western civilization has reached the summit of science and technology. It has achieved knowledge, skills, and new discoveries, as no previous civilization before it. The accomplishments of Western civilization cover all areas of life: methods of organization, politics, ethics, economics, and human rights. It is our obligation to acknowledge its amazing excellence. Indeed, this is a civilization that deserves admiration. … The horrible backwardness in which some nations live is the inevitable result of their refusal to accept this [abundance of Western ideas and visions] while taking refuge in denial and arrogance."
'Okaz: "Sir, you can admire this civilization as much as you want, but not at the expense of others, especially our own civilization."
Buleihi: "My admiration for the West is not at the expense of others; rather, it is an invitation to those others to acknowledge their illusions and go beyond their inferiority and liberate themselves from backwardness. [Those others] should admit their shortcomings, and make an effort to overcome them; they should stop denying the truth and closing their eyes to the multitude of wonderful achievements. They should be fair towards those nations that achieved prosperity for themselves but did not monopolize it for themselves and instead allowed the whole world to share the results of this progress, so that other nations of the whole world now enjoy these achievements. Furthermore, Western civilization has given to the world knowledge and skills which made it possible for them, the non-Western nations, to compete with it in production and share markets with it. Criticizing one's own deficiencies is a precondition to inducing oneself to change for the better. Conversely, to glorify one's backward apathetic self is to establish and fortify backwardness, to strengthen the shackles of apathy, and to eradicate the capabilities of excellence. Backwardness is a shameful reality, which we should resent and from which we must liberate ourselves."
'Okaz: "This may be so, and I'm with you in this demand but, sir, would you summarize for us the reason for your admiration of Western culture, so that we can have a basis for discussion?"
Buleihi: "There is no one reason, there are a thousand reasons, which all induce me to admire the West and emphasize its absolute excellence in all matters of life. Western civilization is the only civilization that liberated man from his illusions and shackles; it recognized his individuality and provided him with capabilities and opportunities to cultivate himself and realize his aspirations. [Western civilization] humanized political authority and established mechanisms to guarantee relative equality and relative justice and to prevent injustice and to alleviate aggression. This does not mean that this is a flawless civilization; indeed, it is full of deficiencies. Yet it is the greatest which man has achieved throughout history. [Before the advent of Western civilization,] humanity was in the shackles of tyranny, impotence, poverty, injustice, disease, and wretchedness.
"It is an extraordinary civilization, and it is not an extension of any ancient civilization, with the exception of Greek civilization, which is the source of contemporary civilization. I have completed a book on this great extraordinary civilizational leap, titled The Qualitative Changes in Human Civilization. Western civilization is its own product and it is not indebted to any previous civilization except for the Greek one … It has revived the Greek achievements in the fields of philosophy, science, literature, politics, society, human dignity, and veneration of reason, while recognizing its shortcomings and illusions and stressing its continuous need for criticism, review and correction."
'Okaz: "In your words here, you completely wipe out all the endeavors and creativity of previous civilizations such as the Islamic one, by stating that the West not indebted to it."
Buleihi: "Indeed, it is not, nor is it indebted to any other previous civilization. Western civilization has its foundation in Greece in the sixth and fifth centuries BC; then it stopped in the Middle Ages, but resumed its progress in modern times, when its benefits have come to include all nations. It is really extraordinary in every meaning of the word - excellence, uniqueness, and novelty… It has components and qualities which distinguish it from all previous and subsequent civilizations. It is the product of philosophical thinking invented by the Greeks. The Europeans have based themselves on this kind of thinking, especially on its critical aspect, which developed the capability of producing objective knowledge that is always open to review, correction and progress…"
'Okaz: "Some Western thinkers wrote that Western civilization is an extension of previous civilizations. How can you, a Muslim Arab, deny this?"
Buleihi: "When we review the names of Muslim philosophers and scholars whose contribution to the West is pointed out by Western writers, such as Ibn Rushd, Ibn Al-Haitham, Ibn Sina, Al-Farbi, Al-Razi, Al-Khwarizmi, and their likes, we find that all of them were disciples of the Greek culture and they were individuals who were outside the [Islamic] mainstream. They were and continue to be unrecognized in our culture. We even burned their books, harassed them, [and] warned against them, and we continue to look at them with suspicion and aversion. How can we then take pride in people from whom we kept our distance and whose thought we rejected?...
"As for the question of cultural development, there are two approaches. According to one approach, civilization is the product of a cumulative process. However, this approach is contradicted by the facts of history. According to the other approach, a quantitative change does not become a qualitative one, except through an extraordinary leap. This is the correct compelling approach, which I adopt. Quantity cannot possibly turn into quality spontaneously. …
"The only civilization which possesses the ingredients of perpetual progress is Western civilization, with its Greek foundation and its amazing contemporary formation. … Western civilization believes that it is impossible to possess absolute truth and that human perfection is impossible, so man must strive to achieve it while recognizing that it is impossible to reach. Thus it is the only civilization which is constantly growing and constantly reviewing and correcting itself and achieving continuous discoveries. …"
'Okaz: "Let me ask you about your complete fascination with Western civilization."
Buleihi: "The light of this civilization is very bright and only a blind person can be oblivious to its brightness. Anyone who is capable of sight and insight is inevitably fascinated by it… We should give credit where credit is due. Has any previous civilization dreamt of the astounding revelations and exact silences and complex technologies [achieved by Western civilization]? Have previous generations imagined the possibility of opening the human chest or head and conducting intricate surgeries on the heart and brain? Could they imagine the deep understanding of the living cell and the way it is formed…. Did they imagine airplanes, cars, telephones, and innumerable accomplishments of this civilization? Would you want us to go back to writing on parchment and papyrus and using wooden sticks for pens, and riding donkeys? …
'Okaz: "Sorry, no one has asked you to return to the era of donkeys, but it is necessary to pass historical judgment in a fair and balanced way. You are saying that you want 'to give credit where credit is due,' but, in fact, you deny any credit to whatever existed before Western civilization, and while everybody recognizes that human achievements are cumulative in nature, you negate that axiomatic rule when you speak about Western accomplishments."
Buleihi: "Humanity lived thousands of years ruminating on the same ideas and living in the same conditions, using the same tools and instruments. It could have continued forever in this way if it were not for the emergence of philosophical thinking in Greece in the sixth and fifth centuries BC. Civilizational progress at its current level cannot be achieved by accumulation; rather, it is the outcome of great revolutions in the fields of thought, science, politics, society, and labor. …
"What pushes man out of his routine is the struggle of ideas, the freedom of choice, and equal opportunity. The best proof of this is that many peoples today live in the depth of backwardness, despite the availability of science, technology, and ideas. They witness the examples of prosperity, and despite this, these backwards peoples are unable to abandon their trenches and free themselves from their shackles. In other words, they are unable to emulate those who are prosperous and they are completely unable to invent and initiate."
'Okaz: "There is a crucial question in our debate: do you understand by civilization only its material aspect?"
Buleihi: "The most important achievement of Western civilization is the humanization of political authority, dividing it into separate powers, and establishing and keeping a balance between the separate powers. Western civilization has given priority to the individual and subordinated its institutions, laws, and procedures to this principle, whereas in the old civilizations the individual was a cog in a machine."
'Okaz: "A cog in a machine? Do you believe that this is true also of Islamic civilization?"
Buleihi: "We sharply distinguish between Islam in itself and what people do in its name. The great principles of Islam and its sublime doctrines that emphasize and uphold human value and dignity have not had a chance throughout history to establish themselves. Ever since the end of the period of the rightly-guided Caliphs, man's individuality was eradicated in Arab history and his value has been linked to his political, religious, regional, or tribal affiliation… The only civilization which acknowledges and respects man as an individual is Western civilization… Behavior in any field is not the outcome of teachings, as such, but rather of practice and actual experience...."
'Okaz: "Has this been the case throughout all of Arab history, in your opinion?"
Buleihi: "Yes, all of Arab history can be characterized in this gloomy way, except for the period of the rightly-guided Caliphs and discrete periods such as the reign of Omar ibn 'Abd Al-'Aziz. One should not confuse the sublime principles and doctrines of Islam with its history, which is full of mistakes, transgression, and tragedies. When the Abbasids overcame the Umayyads, they covered the bodies of the dead with rugs and held a feast over the bodies in a display of vengeance. When [Caliph] Al-Ma'mun defeated his brother Al-Amin, he flayed him like a lamb. This scene recurs throughout our history. Political power is the pivotal value in Arab culture. In our age, there have been recurrent military coups in the Arab world, in a struggle for power, but not in an attempt to bring about a change for the better. Each successive regime is worse than its predecessor."
'Okaz: "Mr. Buleihi, haven't you read in the history of your people about hundreds of scholars who had significance and impact and whose lives are studied to this day, even though they possessed no power, tribe, or religious affiliation, and who are valued for their scholarship?"
Buleihi: "This is a general statement which is not backed by fact. Arab history, with the exception of the period of the rightly-guided Caliphs, was dominated by politics. When the Fatimids took over Egypt and North Africa, these areas became Shiite, and when Salah Al-Din Al-Ayyubi [i.e. Saladin] put an end to the Fatimids, he drove out everything that had any relation to Shiism. The same happened when the Safavids converted Iran to Shiism, which then led the Ottomans to act the same way [in imposing Sunnism]. Thus Arab history, or Islamic history, in the wider sense, is the outcome of political ups and downs…."
'Okaz: "Let me pause here for a moment. You are reducing Islamic history just to political history. Even Islamic political history for all its tragedies, is not as bad as you described it. You also overlook the scientific and cultural aspects of Islamic history, which created a great civilization even while Europe suffered under the rule of feudalism, the Church, ignorance, and backwardness."
Buleihi: "We have inherited certain clichés about our history and the history of other nations without reading our history critically and without reading the history of others fairly and objectively. The luminous Greek civilization emerged in the sixth century BC and reached the peak of its flourishing in the fifth century BC. In other words, Greek civilization emerged many generations before the Islamic one, and Greek philosophy was the source from which Muslim philosophers derived their philosophy. Those individuals in whom we sometimes take pride, such as Ibn Rushd, Ibn Al-Haytham, Al-Razi, Al-Qindi, Al-Khawarizmi, and Al-Farabi were all pupils of Greek thought. As for our civilization, it is a religious one, concerned with religious law, totally absorbed in the details of what Muslims should do and shouldn't do in his relations with Allah and in his relations with others. This is a huge task worthy of admiration, because religion is the pivot of life. We must however recognize that our achievements are all confined to this great area. Let us not claim then that the West has borrowed from us its secular lights. Our culture has been and continues to be absorbed with questions of the forbidden and the permitted and belief and disbelief, because it is a religious civilization…"
'Okaz: "They [the Muslims] learned from the Greek civilization and this is not a fault, this is the way young civilizations are, they learn from previous civilizations and build upon them. Is it expected that they should have abolished the achievements of the Greeks and started from zero?"
Buleihi: "I am not against learning [from others]. What I wanted to clarify is that these [achievements] are not of our own making, and those exceptional individuals were not the product of Arab culture, but rather Greek culture. They are outside our cultural mainstream and we treated them as though they were foreign elements. Therefore we don't deserve to take pride in them, since we rejected them and fought their ideas. Conversely, when Europe learned from them it benefited from a body of knowledge which was originally its own because they were an extension of Greek culture, which is the source of the whole of Western civilization."


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It can be seen because it's Pretty Damn Obvious. Clearly, the biosphere below us is completely entangled, such that nothing is merely what it is. For example, flowers cannot be exhaustively explained without recourse to bees, and vice versa. Who are we to say a bee isn't just an "external organ" of the flower? Nature is filled with such symbiotic arrangements. When you pet your dog, your blood pressure goes down. Chickens and cows would likely be extinct if they weren't so tasty.
Surprisingly -- especially to materialists -- it's the same with physics, which has proven beyond doubt that everything is likewise entangled at the quantum level. There are no unambiguous objects over there or right now. Rather, everything blends into everything else because mass is energy, and energy is whatnow?
A word. As they say, physics can tell us everything about energy except what it is. Likewise biology and life, psychology and mind, theology and spirit. Just because we have a word for something doesn't mean we know what it is. Analogously, Europeans had a name for Africa before any of them set foot inside.
"Each creature wakes up and is stunned at the news of its own existence. It's the kind of news you never really get over" (O'Herron, in Schmitz). That's a bit of an exaggeration, for this is true only of conscious creatures, AKA, man. And even then, it seems that many people quickly get over the shock and pretend everything is normal. BUT IT'S NOT! I don't mean to shout, but THIS IS REALLY WEIRD, OKAY?
I guess there are two types of humans: those who appreciate the weirdness, and those who sleep right through it, AKA the Normals (and now the plague of Subnormals).
Here is a rock-bottom truth: "consciousness becomes self-consciousness when one looks into the eyes of another who looks back" (ibid.). Absent this intersubjectivity, man would not be man, regardless of how "intelligent."
Indeed, human intelligence -- as discussed in yesterday's post -- is always intersubjective and object-related. Objects "give" their intelligibility, just as we "receive" it with our intelligence. Intelligence is to intelligibility as... bee is to flower. It completes the cosmic circuit, at least in potential.
Any difference implies difference as such. To recognize difference is to be alive, for the very first itsy bitsy that teenies its little weenie has a boundary -- a semi-permeable membrane -- between inside and out, self and other. Life, you might say, is the recognition of otherness. Absent life, it's All The Same, just an undifferentiated blob. True, life can at times be a bit too exciting. But without it the cosmos is a complete snooze.
To paraphrase Professor Ibid, does a painting or song give us any more enjoyment if we give it a name? Does Will explain Why if we shake his beard? No! The supposedly solid morphyl man is inunderated and disselves unto the swimminpull of divine otherness.
Recall that life starts with boundary and difference. Transposed to the key of persons, it is the Face that serves this purpose: "only human beings have faces. This is because the face is a structure that shows forth meaning" (Schmitz).
Note also that every non-liberal person is different, so one of the intrinsic meanings conveyed by facehood is uniqueness and individuality, from which it isn't a great leap to dignity and intimacy (for our deepest selfhood can only be given, never stolen or taken forcibly).
"A person's face is meant to be the signature of the character within; one cannot disengage the face from a certain interiority. A face has depth; it is not all surface" (ibid.). And yet, "depth is not a thing at all," just a vector, so to speak. It is a "direction" which travels both in and out. Thus, the face doesn't just convey individuality as such, but interiority as well. "In philosophical terms, the face displays a spiritual reality" (ibid.).
For the baby, the mother's face is the first map of the world, except this is not a geographical map but a pneumagraphical one. We call a person who cannot read the interior map autistic.
This also goes to why for most of western history, actors -- because of the ability to deceive with the face -- were considered suspect, whereas now we are more tolerant and just think of them as crazy.
So, Person means a great deal. When you say it, you've said a mythfull, for example, Narcissus, who fell in love with his own face, meaning that he was confined in a closed system of self-regard. Likewise the dunce abane acrime president who was sunk in an offal orifice of hypertrophed self-regard, where no one else could enter but his talking jarrot.
But personhood really means "the manifestation of meaningful depth, the distinctiveness of the individual, the intimacy of direct personal encounter, and the dignity associated with the divine and with the specifically human." We are "haunted by uniqueness, intimacy, and dignity" (ibid.).