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A third system of the arts? An exploration of some ideas from Larry Shiner's The Invention of Art: A Cultural History
Key words: Shiner, The Invention of Art, Mattick, Art in its Time, third system, modern system, art divided, fine art, craft,
Abstract: I explore some implications Larry Shiner's view (Shiner 2001) that fine art is a modern invention. In part I, I briefly summarize Shiner's main thesis and defend it against some misunderstandings and objections that have appeared in the literature. In part II, I discuss Shiner's remarks about the possible emergence of what he calls a "third system of the arts" I ask what such a system might look like, consider some signs that it may indeed be emerging, and venture a suggestion about what would be required for it actually to come about.
1. Larry Shiner's "art divided" thesis
In The Invention of Art: A Cultural History, Larry Shiner claims that Art with a capital A, Fine Art, was invented in the west in the eighteenth century (Shiner 2001, cited from now on as TIA). The claim is not original with him; he credits Paul Oskar Kristeller's essay "The Modern System of the Arts" (Kristeller 1951-52) as the inspiration for his work. Others have made this claim as well, among them Pierre Bourdieu (1984, 1993), Paul Mattick (2003), and Terry Eagleton (1990). What Shiner has added is a detailed proof of the Kristeller claim using the methods of intellectual, social, cultural, and art history.
In brief, the thesis is this. There was a traditional "system of the arts" in the west before the eighteenth century. (Other traditional cultures still have a similar system.) In that system, an artist or artisan was a skilled maker or practitioner, a work of art was the useful product of skilled work, and the appreciation of the arts was integrally connected with their role in the rest of life. "Art", in other words, meant approximately the same thing as the Greek word techne, or in English, "skill", a sense that has survived in phrases like "the art of war", "the art of love", and "the art of medicine." The usefulness of an art and its products was not limited to the merely utilitarian or decorative (e.g., cooking, clothing, shelter, personal adornment, or warfare), but also included religious worship, cultural instruction and celebration, memorializing rulers, marking rites of passage, entertainment, and many other functions that linked it with intellectual and cultural life. Artisans were often honored in this older system, depending on the nature of their craft (painting ranked higher than the writing of plays), and they were certainly able to express themselves individually and make profound statements through their work, as Michelangelo and Shakespeare did. Nevertheless they practiced a craft, and self-expression was limited to the bounds set by their accountability to their patrons or employers, or in Shakespeare's case, by what the theater audience would pay to see (TIA 47-52). Thus, in the old system, what we call the crafts (e.g., weaving, stonemasonry, ceramics) were more highly honored and were taken more seriously than now, and what we call the arts (theater, painting, musical composition and performance, dance, etc.) were treated more like crafts than they are now. Modern ideas of art had not yet developed. Beauty, in the traditional system, was both highly prized and so strongly connected with utility that Aquinas thought an artifact could not be beautiful if unsuited to its ordinary use. He gives the outlandish example of a glass saw which, he says, could not be beautiful because it would be useless (Summa Theologica I-II, 57, 3c, cited in TIA p. 34). Naturally Aquinas never imagined work like that of contemporary glass artist Rick Beck, who has made his reputation with enormous, useless and (to my eye) often quite beautiful cast glass saws, screwdrivers, nuts, bolts and the like. Beck's work is an excellent example of the kind of thing that could never have existed under the traditional system of the arts.
What Shiner calls the modern system of the arts came together in the eighteenth century partly in connection with the development of a market for art among the growing middle class. In the new system, Fine Art (art with a capital "A") was divided from the crafts as the appropriate object of refined taste, and usefulness became rather a negative than a positive feature for a work of art. Art for Art's sake, the Artist as Visionary Genius, and the unique Aesthetic Attitude/Experience emerged as the distinguishing features of Fine Art. New institutions devoted to the arts, such as galleries, museums, concert halls and libraries were a central part of the new system. The public had to learn that these were places where one must be quiet, and devote one's sole attention to the work (TIA pp. 143-144). Within the new system, Art was exalted, acquiring almost a religious significance by the nineteenth century, while craftwork was devalued and minimized, leaving room for the eventual emergence in the twentieth century of artists in whose work craft skills play no important role. Alexander Baumgarten gave the new category of "the aesthetic" its name in 1738. Kant and Schiller firmed up the philosophical definition of the aesthetic at the end of the 18th century, Kant famously isolating aesthetic judgment from other sorts of appreciation of a work or a landscape, and likewise providing an enduring analysis of the 18th century categories of the Beautiful and the Sublime. Shiner provides a fine review of this crucial passage in his chapter "From Taste to the Aesthetic" (TIA 130 – 151).
In developing and expanding on Kristeller's thesis, Shiner has chosen to preserve that author's reference to a "system of the arts." The language may bother some readers. By "system" neither Kristeller nor Shiner means anything as tight or rigorous as many philosophers have meant by the word; rather the usage is analogous to that in the term "social system". The intent is to indicate the breadth and complexity of the arts in society, in relation to the rest of social life and culture.
The modern system has some awkwardnesses and some internal contradictions. In it all Art is assumed to be of a kind, even though in the traditional system there would be no compelling reason to suppose that the disparate activities of music, painting, sculpture, architecture, and poetry (the five original "fine arts) share a common essence, as opposed to occasional overlaps in respect to form, narrative, imitation, beauty, etc. Arguably this assumption has directed the development of these arts (and of the others that have since been added to the group) in new ways, as well as setting possibly unsolvable challenges to aestheticians who are trying to define that common essence. Internal contradictions arise most generally in regard to the relation of the arts to the rest of life, now that the modern system has forced a partial separation between the two. For example, while often claiming universal human relevance and a transcendent mission, contemporary Fine Art in the modern period has become increasingly inaccessible to most people, for whom the role claimed by art is often filled by what Clement Greenberg disparagingly called Kitsch, or by a somewhat nostalgic attachment to classic works by early moderns like Van Gogh, Cezanne and Monet that were radical more than a century ago but now feel comfortable. In spite of such shortcomings, says Shiner, the modern system of the arts has remained both powerful and totalizing. Its standards and ideals have so taken hold of our understanding that we see the arts of the past and of other cultures through its lenses, and cannot make quick sense of the claim that it was invented in the 18th century. So it is not surprising that practitioners of the exiled popular arts and the crafts (furniture makers, potters, popular musicians, movie-makers, graphic novelists, video-game designers, gourmet chefs, hairdressers, and many more) regularly try to climb over the wall and be acknowledged as Artists. It's the only way to be taken seriously. The system responds by stretching the wall to assimilate a few of them who are deemed to have risen to the level of fine art (e.g., Elsa Schiaparelli from among fashion designers, as reaffirmed recently by a 2003 show at the Philadelphia Museum of Art), leaving the rest outside.
There has always been a resistance to the strictures of the modern system, often focusing on the charge that it separates art from life, and sometimes attempting to destroy the split between Art and the crafts (e.g. Henry Morris, the Bauhaus). Shiner thinks that this resistance is becoming stronger, and that the assimilationist response to it that I've just described may not be working so well anymore. He ends his book by speculating about the possible emergence of a third system of the arts.
Is Shiner's main thesis plausible? A fair evaluation requires attention to the rich tapestry of historical, cultural and philosophical analysis that he has woven in The Invention of Art; I highly recommend such attention to interested readers. For now, because some readers may not be familiar with his work and because I have presented it so briefly, I wish to fend off some misunderstandings that would make his thesis very implausible.
2. Two objections to Shiner's thesis, with responses.
2a. Objection 1: It is implausible to think that Fine Art was invented in the 18th Century west. What about Aeschylus, Praxiteles, Shakespeare, and Michaelangelo? What about the great art of non-western cultures, especially that made before those cultures had much contact with the west?
This is a natural objection to Shiner's claim, but it rests on a misunderstanding. He does not say there is nothing in common between artists or artworks or arts criticism or the experience of art products in the west before and after the 18th century, or between the modern west and non-western cultures. He does not imply that artisans in the old system could not express themselves, or create profound visions of life and the world. That would not be a defensible position. Rather Shiner claims that art was divided in the 18th century west. It was this division that made possible the emergence of Art in the modern sense. So attitudes we now have toward craftwork or interior decoration, and attitudes we now have toward fine art sculpture, might both be appropriate toward, say, a piece by Dellarobbia or a sculpture or salt-cellar by Cellini (TIA p. 38). In many works from the past we recognize the same formal and substantive characteristics for which we now prize Fine Art. Shiner's thesis does not imply that this must be a misrecognition. He only warns that our perception of these past greats and their work, as well as our understanding of the practices and products of other cultures, can be distorted by the controlling power of the Fine Art paradigm. They do not fit the Fine Art paradigm, and their works played a significantly different role in their cultures than Fine Art products play in ours.
Of course if the differences between the traditional and the modern system are too small, if there is too much in common between them, that would indeed defeat Shiner's claim. But arguably the differences are great. Several facts demonstrate this. First, the modern system makes possible much that is genuinely new, and would not be possible without it. By the late 19th century this fact is obvious. Most modernist work (the music of Schoenberg, the novels of James Joyce, the paintings of Mondrian, Kandinsky and Jackson Pollack) would be inconceivable without the development of the Fine Art idea. For such works are valued as Art, independent of any overt social, economic, religious or practical function they might have. They demand intensely focused attention in order to be understood. However conflicted their contemporaneous relationship to it may be, they depend for their existence on the art world; on galleries, critics, and art purchasers, i.e., on those who take art seriously for its own sake and whose cultural identity prepares them to understand and value such work. Even at this historical remove the popularity of most modernist work is limited; at the time of its creation it was restricted to a tiny cultural circle, and this circle would have been offended had they been accused of valuing it for any other reason than as Art. Second, the distinguishing characteristics of the modern system are themselves new, and together they create a dramatically new set of expectations. One of these is the negative value of utility when considering a work of art. Art is supposed to be made for its own sake, not for some other purpose. Of course it may serve a purpose; but in the modern system it only counts as Art if it is valuable on its own independent of that purpose. Shiner gives a number of examples to establish that this expectation is indeed new. Likewise, the notion of the Artist as Creative Genius is significantly altered in the modern system. Genius itself is a very old idea, a version of the idea of divine inspiration. But in the modern system the artist is a genius rather than being inspired by a genius, and what genius generates is not so much preternatural skill as innovation beyond rules. In other words, genius is no longer the characteristic of an artisan. The third defining idea, that of (autonomously) Aesthetic Appreciation, is likewise radically new (TIA 130-153, 213-225). Finally, as already mentioned, the Unity of the Arts is a new thesis, unknown in the past, and it has a major influence on the practice and theory of art. The grouping of music, painting, sculpture, poetry, fiction, architecture and dance as Fine Arts has created the impression that they must share essential characteristics in common, in virtue of which they receive this designation.
I take these differences to be sufficient to demarcate the modern from the traditional system of the arts, while allowing that some work could be recognized and valued for similar reasons under both systems. The Shiner/Kristeller view survives this first objection intact.
2b. Objection 2: Shiner moves improperly from the historical emergence to the illegitimacy of the category of Fine Art. In a review of TIA, Paul Barlow faults Shiner for his "…apparent belief that to point out that concepts and practices have histories is in some sense to prove that they are mistaken" (Barlow 2003, p. 107). But, says Barlow, "neither a concept's usefulness nor its truth is determined by how old it is." For example, he says, the notion of schizophrenia emerged at a certain time in the history of psychiatry. But this does not make the notion illegitimate rather than representing an advance in understanding, nor does it mean that there were no schizophrenics in previous centuries.
It seems to me that this criticism of Shiner, like the last one, misses the mark. It is, however, less superficial than it sounds, and deserves a little attention. The comparison with the supposedly scientific category of schizophrenia is unfortunate; presumably whatever the development of the modern western concept of art represents, it is not a form of scientific discovery. But Barlow could easily have chosen better examples. In fact he doesn't need any to invalidate the principles that "concept C has a history, therefore it must be mistaken," and "practice P is of recent origin, therefore it's artificial and unfortunate." These principles are ridiculous. One can be fairly sure in advance that Shiner does not subscribe to them. Fortunately for the strength of Barlow's critique, he goes on to engage Shiner's actual views more seriously. Why, he asks, should we bemoan The Great Divide, and view it as a kind of Fall, or think that it might or should in some way be transcended or mediated? Why not just take it as a development in cultural history, and if we must place a value on it, why not a positive one? Likewise, why not use the categories of Art and especially of the Aesthetic to illuminate our examination of artifacts and practices from the past and from cultures that have not separated out these categories as we have done?
Shiner has answers to these questions, and to me they seem plausible ones. First, he does not see the emergence of the modern system completely or even primarily as a Fall. It is clear that he values much that the modern system has produced. He does not envision or hope for the end of such artistic statements, even if they have no "use" (TIA 303-307). What troubles him is the divisions that the modern system enshrines, the impoverishment of ordinary life that can result from these divisions, and the class and gender biases and cultural imperialisms that the modern system often validates. By his account of the historical origins of that system he means at the least to question those claims to universal validity that it implicitly makes.
Could one maintain that the categories of the modern western system of art are indeed universally valid, in spite of their historical origin? Surely one could. To do so would be to adopt a strategy similar to that of Hegel, or perhaps his modern admirer Arthur Danto. It would be to claim that the concepts and practices of Art and the Aesthetic as they have emerged in the modern west are a truer and deeper and more maturely differentiated form of what was implicit in our human past and in all human cultures. As is the case with many such emergences, once the mature practice develops we naturally stand within it to sort out the confusions of its past. We see it stumbling toward this, in which we now stand. We see the separation between Art, craft, and other skills as part of this cultural maturation. The by now global reach of the modern system might be taken as support for such a view.
Should the emergence of the modern system be seen in this way? Shiner's reasons for saying "no" are not based on the historical novelty of that system, nor merely on a desire to avoid charges of cultural chauvinism. Rather they are grounded in the modern system's flaws, its internal inconsistencies, its inability to maintain the foundational assumptions on which it rests, the ways in which it clouds our understanding or appreciation of the artistic values and practices of other cultures on their own terms, and the separation of art and life in western culture for which he holds it partly responsible. If Shiner is right that the modern system possesses these characteristics, and if they flow, as he claims, from the historically contingent way in which it divides the arts, then he has good grounds to question the universal validity of that system and its assumptions. His thesis survives this second objection as well.
3. A Third system of the arts?
Shiner closes his book by speculating about the possible emergence of a third system of the arts, one in which "the divisions of the fine art system" might be "transcended through a continuing struggle." In what follows I will ask what such a third system might look like, whether there are any signs that it might be emerging, and finally what conditions would have to be met for it actually to emerge.
3a. What would a "third system of the arts" look like? Shiner is wisely hesitant to be too specific about this. Nevertheless one can see what he hopes for, and frame some questions about whether it might be possible. I'll begin by quoting his comments about a third system in the last two paragraphs of The Invention of Art:
The answer to art divided is obviously not to reject such ideals as freedom, imagination and creativity but to unite them with facility, service and function. Yet there is no magic formula for the correct balance. It would be silly to demand that every piece of music, literature or visual art manifest an equal dose of imagination and skill, form and function, spiritual and sensual pleasure. And, rightly understood, there is a time and place for disinterested attention and formal analysis as well as for the renewed interest in beauty (Brand 2000; Scarry 2000). In pluralistic democracies there will probably always be multiple art worlds, including small coteries who will consider only the most daunting and esoteric or the most socially and politically shocking works to be "real art." But most people will participate in several kinds of art worlds, moving across the old divisions and hierarchies and juggling more or less successfully the relationships among art, religion, politics and everyday life.
. …
We cannot resurrect the old system of art. Nor can we simply wish away the break that split apart the old system of art, arrogating intellect, imagination and grace to fine art and disparaging craft and popular culture as the realm of mere technique, utility, entertainment, and profit. Like other dualisms that have plagued our culture, the divisions of the fine art system can only be transcended through a continuing struggle. I do believe we transcend them in practice from time to time; what is harder is naming and articulating what we have done. (TIA p. 307)
On the basis of this textual evidence, as well as other things Shiner says, I take it that the "third system" he envisions would at least have the following characteristics:
a) It would preserve the best of the modern system. I.e., it would still value works of creative genius for their own sake, regardless of their utility; and it would still support the making of such works.
b) The arts would be more integrated with the rest of life than they are in the fine art system. In the right circumstances, utility, profitability and popularity would be positively valued within the new system, rather than being seen as either irrelevant or disqualifying traits. The result might be an "aesthetic of the everyday," like that of traditional Japan, which values the elegant union of form and function. Here is Shiner again, first summarizing and then quoting Yuriko Saito's essay on Japanese aesthetics in the Oxford Encyclopedia of Aesthetics.
"Whereas mainstream western aesthetics can treat a kitchen knife as if it were a work of art so long as function is subordinated to form, an aesthetic of the everyday would attend not only to the knife's visual appearance but also to its 'feeling in the hand…its weight, and balance, but most importantly…how smoothly and effortlessly it cuts'" (Saito 1999, 9)" (TIA 305-306).
c) Thus popular art and music, craftwork, entertainment and design would be included as part of this third system. Nothing would be seen as "not art" merely by virtue of belonging to one of these fields.
d) Finally, the divisions of class, race, and gender which the modern system incorporates would be significantly overcome.
Is Shiner's third system possible, and are there any signs that it is emerging? I will address the second question first. I believe with Shiner that such signs do exist. Since we are talking about a cultural system, the existence of such signs does not by itself establish the cultural possibility that a new system will actually emerge, so I'll close by briefly addressing the first question.
3b. Reading the signs:
3b1) Fine Art vs. popular art and entertainment: The Fine Art idea remains extremely powerful, and there are no indications that it is fading or losing strength. However, it has also spread in recent years, to the point where it plays a powerful role in the popular arts and in entertainment. One may see this as an extension of the assimilation strategy that has characterized the modern system throughout its history. I think that's correct so far as it goes, but more needs to be said. First, what is happening is not always assimilation so much as a transfer of categories from one world to another. Creative people working within the fields of popular art and entertainment see these fields as a battleground between the forces of commercialism and artistic expression, at the same time as the high art world rejects their whole field as "not really art." Yet assimilation does occur; and to the extent that it does, the modern system is taking on some of the character of that which it assimilates. It is becoming harder to dismiss popular art and entertainment as "not art." Quite a few movies, quite a lot of popular music, quite a few graphic novels, a number of television series have the strength, originality, depth and imagination to bolster their claims to be art within the modern system. Yet they are popular, they are entertainment, they are profitable, they are made for the present more than for the ages, and they participate in an aesthetic of the everyday.
Along with the expansion of art categories to the fields of popular art and entertainment, and the presentation of such work in fine art venues, we may note the attention that philosophers and critics have recently been showing to these fields. It is no longer unusual to read criticism of graphic novels in the New York Times, or to see essays on film or rap music or video games in the leading journals of aesthetics, or to see graffiti art displayed in galleries.
3b2) Craftwork is thriving in the west. But this is a different sort of thriving from that of craftwork in the west before the industrial revolution, or in traditional non-western cultures. In those settings, craft is necessary for daily life, and skill and grace tend naturally to be valued in combination (within affordable limits). In the contemporary west and increasingly in the rest of the world, craftwork is not valued because it meets everyday needs, but because it is handmade, individual, and out of the mass-produced ordinary. There is a strong pull to assimilate such work into the category of Fine Art. One sees advertisements for "Fine Craft" shows, and every large city gallery district has galleries which specialize in ceramics, wood turning, Fine Art Furniture, Fiber Arts, and the like. Objects are shown, valued and purchased in these galleries in much the same way that paintings and sculptures are. Consider the example of "You Da Buddha", a meditation seat by fine furniture maker Tom Huang (this and other pieces by Huang may be viewed at http://www.wexlergallery.com/wexler.html. Click on Artists, mouse down to Tom Huang). This piece sold recently for a total of $5,000. The craftsmanship is exquisite, combining skills in woodworking and fiber arts; the object is one of a kind, and its gently ironic blend of humorous title, price, and obvious functionality give it as much meaning as a fine art product might need. Huang's website (http://www2.ku.edu/~sfa/dsgn/industrialdesign/huang/index.shtml) describes his work as "furniture based sculpture". He is an assistant professor of industrial design in a school of fine art, and his work was recently featured in American Craft Magazine. So he crosses the boundaries of the modern system in several ways. The sale price of $5,000 for this object is plainly reasonable, given the quality of the piece and the amount of time invested in the making of it by a highly skilled professional. As art world prices go, it is on the low side. At that price, especially after the gallery takes its cut, Huang would have difficulty making and selling enough such individual pieces in a year to earn his middle-class salary. He needs his day job. On the other hand, a price of $5,000 is forbiddingly high for anyone earning less than a solidly middle-class American income, and thus ironically dissonant with Buddhist ideals of simplicity and nonattachment. No doubt Huang knows all this, and his pop-culture title may be reflecting on the fact.
To some extent, the recent flourishing of craftwork in Western culture represents an extension of the fine art paradigm to cover certain elite products. A clear example of this is the 2002 name change of New York's American Museum of Craft to the Museum of Arts and Design. In announcing the change, the director said "craft" is identified with hobbies and fairs and the Board president spoke of it as associated with "trinkets." (I'm indebted to Larry Shiner for this example.) Replicating the invidious distinctions of the fine art paradigm within the world of craft in this way may be a regrettable development. But once again, assimilation of some craft by the modern system has its effect on the values of that system. Functionality remains as a crucial element in craftwork. This is arguably true even in cases where it might seem not to be. Craft museums, galleries, and craft shows of the kind that are gaining fine art status frequently include examples of nonfunctional objects. Some are innocently non functional; they are sculptures made from clay, fiber, or wood. Some are "in your face" nonfunctional: the pitcher with a hole in its side, the impossible-to-drink-from "Hairy Monster Goblet" I once saw whose body (though not its base or stem) was entirely covered by extruded glass spines. Such playful items shout "I am too fine art! You want me to be nonfunctional, fine! I'm nonfunctional! Pin a medal on me, you dope!" But the skill of the maker, the obvious ability to make items that combine beauty, grace, or meaning with utility, is always evident. They come from a tradition where the elegant combination of form with function is highly valued. Wendell Castle, often credited with founding the modern Fine Art Furniture movement, provides an excellent example. He makes one of a kind objects one might want to display rather than use, but he also markets the Wendell Castle Collection, which while a bit pricey enables one to outfit one's living or dining room with some standard Castle designs (available only through selected galleries). Thus once again the fine art idea has spread, this time into the fields of craft and commercial production which it was supposed to exclude; but in the process it is being transformed to include some of those qualities whose exclusion has helped to define it.
3b3) Design occupies an interesting and in some ways a contradictory place in the modern art world. It owes a great deal to the vocabulary of modern art. It creates and conveys many cultural messages. The symbolic weight and technical skill of contemporary design work frequently earns it a place in fine art museums. It is also commercial if anything is. Industry, advertising, communication, and mass culture depend heavily on design for their power, as Stuart Ewen demonstrates in his classic All Consuming Images: The Politics of Style in Contemporary Culture (Ewen 1988, 1999). Design shapes us; in a way it gives us the feel of who we are. It can work together with values we might approve to spread those values within the culture (the high end of the American office furniture industry, and the US Green Building Council with its LEED standards, do this with environmental values in their designs). Design work is skilled work; one trains for it in art school, one learns it as a craft. In fact it regularly embodies the supposedly contradictory values of free creativity and uniform mass production, since skilled, creative designers are constantly making new styles which are then rushed to market and sold to our desire for freedom and individuality. Here, perhaps, an essential point about the "possibility of a third system" comes unavoidably to the surface. It is the question of the relationship between change in the modern system of the arts and change in modern society more generally. For in spite of their claim to autonomy, the arts are by no means unconnected with the structures of modern society. I now turn to that question.
4. Is a third system of the arts possible?
The signs indicate that the modern system is changing. Some of its distinctions are beginning to break down. Popularity, entertainment value and integral functionality are not automatically locking things out of the art world as effectively as they once did. If these phenomena are not universal, I believe they are prevalent enough to be significant. At least for the examples I've mentioned, the change seems best describable as a spread of the fine art idea to fields it was formerly thought to exclude, along with an expansion of high-culture attention to popular art, entertainment, craft, and commercial design. As a result, at least to some degree, functionality, skill and entertainment value can be seen as positive elements of a work's aesthetic value. This is a significant transformation.
Yet it does not seem to me that these changes alone go deep enough to portend an essential conversion to a new system of the arts. In fact they are ambiguous. One may also see them as a testimony to the strength of the underlying structure of the fine art system. Its dynamics have replicated themselves within the fields of popular music, film, comic books, craftwork and design. This ability of the system's dynamics to spread beyond its original home and to transcend its original limitations should give us pause, and make us wonder if we have misrecognized its fundamental character. Paul Mattick (2003) has argued persuasively that the fundamental dynamic of that system is ideological. To the extent that is true, transformation of the modern system will require transformation as well in the organization of society.
One of Shiner's chapter titles describes the emerging modern system as "Polite Arts for the Polite Classes." The title points to the class origins of the new system, and Shiner gives plenty of evidence for the way this worked in the eighteenth century. He notes that the original dynamic is still at work in the newest trend of "craft as art" on which I've commented above (TIA pp. 274-278). The modern system of the arts is very tightly intertwined with the economic and class structures of the modern way of life. Poverty and class identity continue to limit both the access and the cultural capital necessary to understand and participate in the elite art world, and thus they continue to define sharp divisions within the arts, as in the rest of life. Those divisions are not going away; in one version or another they are replicated in every transformation of the modern system. "Artistic freedom", subjective individual genius, being "avant garde" and resistant to control, are constant themes in modern art. These qualities are seen as contrasting with the stultifying forces of "commercialism," the culture of Kmart and McDonald's. The division between the "commercial" and the "authentic" continues to appear in the values of popular music, the movies, and what I've been calling "fine crafts". It seems to me that the freedom they portend is in part genuine and in part illusory. First some examples of the genuine: When Jimmy Hendrix went to Africa, and the craze for electric guitar playing spread across that continent, and again when Paul Simon visited and made Graceland, many people feared that traditional African music would be replaced by repetitive knock-offs of western blues and rock. Nothing of the sort happened. On the contrary, traditional African musical forms have survived, flourished, and spread around the world (as Ladysmith Black Mombazo sang when I heard them at my university, "Thank God for Paul Simon!") At the same time, new forms developed which blended western influences with African forms to make township jive and other such new musics, and strongly stimulated the development of "world music". The results were unique and wonderful. Art of protest, resistance and social commentary provides many other examples of genuine and often courageous artistic freedom.
In spite of such examples, I think we must recognize the truth of the point Paul Mattick makes so forcefully. Artistic freedom, in the modern system, depends significantly on that to which it is opposed. The more outré the work, the more this rule holds true. The art market depends on large infusions of money from those same commercial forces, whether that money passes through the hands of individual buyers of art or is conveyed directly by corporate purchases and grants. Its freedom does not pass to the poor. It is not correct to say that the arts are pure ideology; they are very far from it. But the unique ideas of the modern system, of art for art's sake, artistic genius, and the autonomous aesthetic come very close to being pure ideology. They do so most effectively, it seems to me, when they are used to divide Art from other things, and to devalue a product or performance as "not really art."
5. Conclusion: So where does that leave us? The poor were hardly better off under the traditional system in the west. Perhaps the question becomes, what role all the arts might play not only in their own transformation but in that of society in general. There can be no easy answer to this question. But one can't help noticing that electronic media have become remarkably affordable, and are beginning to spread rapidly outside the developed world. It is no wild fantasy to suggest that they will be increasingly potent channels for social change. Walter Benjamin's speculations about the work of art in the age of mechanical reproducibility seem if anything more relevant now than they were when he first wrote them. The possibility does exist, within those media, for very wide spread participation in these arts, not only in listening or viewing but in production. And Benjamin's final question remains equally relevant. Will the forces of human creativity, intercultural communication and freedom win out, or will these media become primarily agents of propaganda, commercial interests and the reproduction of the status quo? So long as we are not looking to the arts alone rather than to all segments of society for the answers to these questions, it seems clear, at least to me, that the arts have a crucial contribution to make in our quest. As one small current example from among the fractured diversity of things now called art, I point to the performance art of Damali Ayo http://www.damaliayo.com/ , who has consistently and deliberately found ways to make her work available to anyone who wants it, outside the class-defined venues of galleries and exhibitions, through street performance (e.g., her Panhandling for Reparations project), You-Tube, and so on.
To sum up: Larry Shiner's thesis about the nature and origins of the modern system of the arts is plausible, and survives objections against it. It deserves to be taken seriously. His speculations about the possible emergence of a third system of the arts are intriguing, and there are indeed signs that the modern system is changing in some fundamental ways. Without a more profound analysis of the current relation of that system to the dynamics of wealth and class, speculation about a third system is hard to assess. However, it seems unlikely that a third system of the arts would be able to emerge, without corresponding changes in the class and economic structures of the modern world.
Barlow, Paul (2003) "Review of Shiner, The Invention of Art and MacDonald, Exploring Media Discourse" (in Journal of Visual Culture in Britain 5.1, Summer 2003, pp. 105-115).
Brand, Peggy Zeglin, ed., 2000. Beauty Matters. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Mattick, Paul (2003) Art in its Time: Theories and Practices of Modern Aesthetics (London & New York: Routledge)
Saito, Yuriko (1998) "Japanese Aesthetics" in Encyclopedia of Aesthetics, ed. Michael Kelly (New York: Oxford University Press)
Scarry, Elaine (2000) On Beauty and Being Just (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press)
Shiner, Larry (2001) The Invention of Art: A Cultural History (Chicago, University of Chicago Press)
http://www.wexlergallery.com/wexler.html, click on Artists, mouse down to Tom Huang


text:
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South African Journal of Science
On-line version ISSN 1996-7489
Print version ISSN 0038-2353
S. Afr. j. sci. vol.106 n.11-12 Pretoria Nov./Dec. 2010
How could South Africa produce more PhDs?
The Academy of Science of South Africa's PhD report, released in October, provides an incisive analysis of why the country's doctoral production remains low. Most of its recommendations are sound, although that of large-scale training of South African doctorates overseas is probably a pipedream.
Last year, South Africa had 10 499 PhD candidates registered at its 23 universities, of whom only 1224 (12%) graduated, compared to the 3500 one should expect if the degree took the expected three years to complete. Despite the setting up of a PhD project by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the National Research Foundation (NRF) six years ago, the number of doctoral graduates, which grew to a peak of 1274 in 2007 after an initial injection of funds, has declined slightly since then. Unless large-scale interventions are made, the project's goal of graduating 6000 doctorates annually (half in the natural, health and engineering sciences) by 2025 already an extension of the original target date of 2018 seems increasingly unlikely.
So which interventions are likely to be successful? The report's (www.assaf.org.za/?p=2813) first recommendation, that large numbers of South Africans should be sent abroad for their PhDs, is impracticable (page 7; webref to commentary article by Mlambo), the support of the NRF President notwithstanding (http://www.businessday.co.za/Articles/Content.aspx?id=123463). The NRF and its predecessors have funded a small number (currently 40) of doctoral students to study abroad since the mid-1980s, with the criteria being merit and a dearth of local supervisory capacity in the field which the candidate wishes to pursue. While overseas study remains an option for such students, as well as candidates who win scholarships, this is likely to remain confined to a relatively small number of students. No cost analysis for extending such a scheme on a large scale is presented in the report, and it is difficult to imagine how it could be more cost-effective for government than if such students were funded locally. Indeed, one of the report's interesting findings relates to the high proportion (18%) of doctoral graduates at South African universities who come from other African countries presumably at least partly because it is cheaper to study here than overseas. It appears unlikely that foreign governments even collectively would fund the training of South African doctorates on a large scale.
Two of the report's other main recommendations are very sound. Unsurprisingly, one of these is to make more bursaries available for doctoral studies, with the specific aim of increasing the number of full-time candidates. The NRF is currently supporting only 1983 doctoral students, a number that is declining both in nominal terms and as a proportion (currently 19%) of candidates nationally (see page 5; webref to news article by Cherry). NRF bursaries are crucial as they are the mechanism through which the vast majority of full-time doctoral students are supported, and it is these candidates who are more likely to complete their degrees timeously. The report found that in the natural and agricultural sciences and in engineering (fields with more full-time students), 22% and 26% of candidates, respectively, completed their degrees before the age of 30, whereas for both humanities and social sciences, by comparison, only 3% of doctoral graduates fell into this age category. Most critically, the report identifies that almost 70% of doctoral candidates are not full-time students at the time of registration, with a third of the remainder entering employment before they complete their degree. Efforts to reduce both categories should be a priority, and the DST's recent allocation (see page 5; webref to news article by Cherry) for this purpose, though a drop in the ocean, is at least a step in the right direction. Presumably a large proportion of part-time doctoral students fall within the ranks of the two-thirds of South African academics who do not yet hold a doctoral degree, and enabling them to do so would be the quickest way to raise doctoral production in the short term.
The other important recommendations relate to what the report describes as the PhD 'pipeline'. Most striking, of course, is the fact that only 15% of those who pass the senior certificate qualify for university entrance. Of those who obtain a first degree, 42% go on to obtain an honours degree. This may seem relatively high, but examination of data from individual institutions shows that for Black students this level remains a bottleneck, whereas most White students proceed to honours degrees (sadly very few in either category register for teacher's diplomas instead). In this context, the NRF's decision to increase the number and value of honours bursaries next year is to be welcomed. Of honours graduates, just over a third go on to master's degrees, and again at the next level, a similar fraction proceeds to a PhD. But according to the report, the proportion of master's graduates progressing directly to a PhD differs greatly between fields, from three-quarters in the natural sciences and agriculture, to between 30% and 40% in all other areas. The report recommends that, in addition to funding an increased number of doctoral bursaries, the value of these bursaries be increased, and that, in line with the differentiation of higher education, specific institutions with track records in graduating PhDs should be prioritised (83% of doctoral graduates are currently produced by only nine institutions).
The report addresses the issue of supervisory capacity only cursorily by noting that only 5191 (one third) of South African academics have doctoral degrees; and that of these potential supervisors, the average ratio of doctoral students to supervisors across institutions is 2:1. This figure tallies with the simple ratio of registered students to potential supervisors nationally the more interesting question is how many of these potential supervisors are capable of providing adequate supervision? Here the upper limit will be set by the number of academics with doctorates; the lower limit may be considered the NRF's corps of 2140 'rated' researchers. But even within this corps, this journal has documented declining support over the past three years for those clearly competent to train more doctoral students (. 2009;105:8384). Roger Southall of the University of the Witwatersrand is correct in identifying funding for supervisors (http://www.businessday.co.za/Articles/Content.aspx?id=123594) as the major constraint on the country producing the increased number of doctorates it badly needs.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Use Pirate Bay to find or swap files? If so, about 4 million of you have just had your accounts hacked and user names, e-mail and Internet addresses compiled by a 23-year-old Argentinian (and two pals) exploiting the site's SQL vulnerabilities. The lead hacker, identified as CH Russo, said he didn't hack for profit or malice, but awareness, which is somewhat suspect. Russo said no accounts, including those of several The Pirate Bay site administrators and moderators, were changed or modified during the hack.
"As any other Website, as any other system or mechanism, www.thepiratebay.org has robust parts and soft spots," Russo wrote on his blog, detailing the hack complete with video. "We believe that the people behind this community always acted with the local laws on their side, and so have we. The community caused problems to huge companies and corporations which turned into threats between this companies and them. What we have done, we did not do it with anger, or for commercial value. As always, we saw the change, the moment and decided to take it. The protocol or procedure done to achieve this wasn't anything out of the ordinary."
While many assumed that Russo could make money off the hack by selling the information to the Recording Industry Association of America or the Motion Picture Association of America, who both have legally threatened and prosecuted file sharers for copyright infringement in the past, Russo says that's not his goal.
"Probably these groups would be very interested in this information, but we are not [trying] to sell it," Russo told KrebsOnSecurity.com. "Instead we wanted to tell people that their information may not be so well protected."
While Russo stated the hack was to create awareness of site vulnerabilities, the reality is that Russo is an entrepreneur who created a software vulnerability exploit service called Impassioned Framework, where he sells a browser exploitation kit license for around $1,762 a month (1,399 euros.) His stunt probably guaranteed him enough free advertising and a spike in sales that will probably enable him to move out of his parents' Argentinian equivalent of a basement.


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Do you know where Lamar Jackson shows off his elite running skills next to Mark Ingram?
Lamar Jackson and Mark Ingram make up the best rushing offense in the NFL, averaging over 200 yards per game on the ground. Much of that success has to do with Jackson's electrifying running style that puts him at the top of the MVP race.


text: UV Fused Silica Ground Glass Diffusers are comprised of high tolerance, quality ground glass making them ideal for a variety of industrial applications. A 220-grit sandblast is used to create a diffuse surface on the UV fused silica substrate of these optical diffusers. Undergoing two orthogonal passes during this sandblast process yields even diffusion across the surface.The scattering is a compromise of low scatter loss and medium diffusion. Typical applications for these optical diffusers include use in screens, illuminator diffusion, and targets.


text:
The first annual Advanced Research and Creative Highlights (ARCH) Symposium gets under way Monday, April 15th.
The symposium offers all Ozarks students a chance to showcase their hard work as well as affording the campus community an in depth look into student research. The event, which runs from April 15-18, is divided into three sections: oral presentations, visual arts, and poster presentations.
Prizes will be awarded in four categories: Outstanding, $200 awarded to awarded to the top presentation(s) regardless of discipline; Distinguished, $150 awarded to presenters in a discipline that has not received recognition as Outstanding; Achievement, $100 to be awarded to presenters in any discipline; and Merit, $50 awarded to presenters in any area.
A "People's Choice" award will also be available. Audience members will be able to provide feedback and vote for their favorites following each section.
Oral presentations will be Monday, April 15 beginning at 6 p.m. in the Rogers Conference Center. Eighteen students will present research and projects from a wide variety of disciplines. There will be three presentations running simultaneously, so everyone is encouraged to map out the presentations they wish to attend in advance.
Visual arts presentations will be displayed in the Seay Student Center Purple and Gold Room on Wednesday, April 17 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Poster presentations will be displayed in the Rogers Conference Center from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 18th.
Fine Arts performances will take place on April 27. Details of the performances will be announced later this month.
A full schedule of events is below.
Oral Presentations - Monday, April 15
Time: 6:00 p.m.
|Project Title
|Caitlin Lambert, Sociology
|"Critiques of Family Relationships in Invader Zim"
|Dr. Jesse Weiss, Associate Professor of Sociology & Environmental Studies
|Hanna Room
|Ala'a Abu-Rmaileh, Accounting
|Journey of Discovery: Asperger's Syndrome
|Betty Stockton, Coordinator of Autism Spectrum Disorder Services
|Bruning Room
|Lauren Ray, Environmental Studies
|Activity of Mantled Howler Monkeys Associated with Location Within a Tree
|Dr. Kim Van Scoy, Associate Professor of Life Science Education
|Bean Room
Time: 6:20 p.m.
|Project Title
|Scotti Burnside, Environmental Studies
|Amazon: Study Abroad
|Dr. Kim Van Scoy, Associate Professor of Life Science Education
|Hanna Room
|Amanda Rushing, Spanish
|Organizing the Spanish Country Presentation
|Dr. Bill Clary, Associate Professor of Spanish
|Bruning Room
|Paul Morgan, Composite Science and Chemistry
|Mutations Induced by Gamma-radiation on the Wild Type Drosophila melanogaster
|Dr. Salomón Itzá, Associate Professor of Physics
|Bean Room
Time: 6:40 p.m.
|Project Title
|Carlos Ramirez, Marketing and Art
|Creare's Promotion Strategy for the University of the Ozarks
|Deb Sisson, Assistant Professor of Business & Accounting
|Hanna Room
|Alejandro Andino, Biology
|Honduras, Moldova, and the U.S.: A Comparison of their Healthcare Systems
|Dr. Sean Coleman, Professor of Biology
|Bruning Room
|Cason Ray, Accounting and Mary Wolfe, Early Childhood Education
|Opportunities for High School Students to Learn about College
|Phyllis Johnson, Assistant Professor of Business Education
|Bean Room
Time: 7:00 p.m.
|Project Title
|Tess Montgomery, Biology and Environmental Studies
|A Pilot Study on Supplemental Dietary Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) on Mother's Milk and Offspring Behavior
|Dr. Frank Knight, Professor of Biology
|Hanna Room
|Megan Whorton,
Rachel Turner, Tamara Wilkett,
Jessica Robison, Jessica Prater,
Debbie Sosa, Maegan Bell,
and Callie Edwards, Early Childhood Education
|Reading Strategies: A Children's How-To
|Dr. Michael McManus, Assistant Professor of Education
|Bruning Room
|Melody Cochran, Music
|Hildegard Von Bingen: The Hidden Treasure of Medieval Europe
|Dr. Sharon Gorman, Walton Professor of Music & University Organist
|Bean Room
Time: 7:20 p.m.
|Project Title
|Elodie Adams, Biology and Secondary Education
|Investigating Project-Based Inquiry Science in a Middle School Summer Camp
|Dr. Kim Van Scoy, Associate Professor of Life Science Education
|Hanna Room
|Emily Toombs, Biology
|Analysis of the Water Quality of the White and Buffalo Rivers
|Dr. Sean Coleman, Professor of Biology
|Bruning Room
|Andrea Avalos, Physical Education and Strategic Communication
|The Crossroads of the Fourth Estate: Where Art meets Craft
|Susan Edens, Director of Broadcasting/RTV Instructor, KUOZ Channel 6 & KUOZ 100.5 Advisor
|Bean Room
Time: 7:40 p.m.
|Project Title
|Alejandro Cordoba, RTV and Strategic Communication
|Backpack Journalism and Chateau Aux Arc
|Susan Edens, Director of Broadcasting/RTV Instructor, KUOZ Channel 6 & KUOZ 100.5 Advisor
|Hanna Room
|Glendon Jenkins, Mathematics
|Basic Computer Programming
|Dr. Shaymaa Al-Shukri, Assistant Professor of Computer Science
|Bruning Room
|Stephen Adams, Mathematics
|RSA, Malwares, and Algorithm
|Dr. Matt Myers, Associate Professor of Mathematics
|Bean Room
Fine Arts Visual Arts Displays - Wednesday, April 17
Displayed from 9:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. in the Purple and Gold Room, Seay Student Center
|Project Title
|Art Display Number
|Carlos Ramirez, Marketing and Art
|Hands of Ozarks
|Tammy Harrington, Associate Professor of Art
|Elizabeth di Paola, Art and Secondary Education
|Loving Portraits
|Tammy Harrington, Associate Professor of Art
|Alejandro Andino, Biology
|Ozarks, Home We Love
|Emma Bottorff, Director of Campus Activities and Aerie Yearbook Advisor
|Abby Kern, Art
|A Sculptural Investigation of Various Aspects of the Human Condition
|Dawn Holder, Assistant Professor of Art
Poster Presentations - Thursday, April 18
Displayed from 9:00 a.m. - 7 p.m. in the Rogers Conference Center
|Project Title
|Poster Number
|Paul Morgan, Composite Science and Chemistry
|Analysis of the Business Cycle from a Calculus Perspective
|Robert Wofford, Associate Professor of Business & Economics
|Glendon Jenkins, Mathematics
|Schrödinger's Cat's Quantum Computation
|Dr. Matt Myers, Associate Professor of Mathematics
|Lauren Ray, Environmental Studies
|Association Between Land Use and Butterfly Diversity Depends on Plant Family Composition
|Dr. Kim Van Scoy, Associate Professor of Life Science Education
|Ana Hernandez, Management/Administration and Environmental Studies
|The Effects of Consumerism in Nature and in the Human Spirit
|Dr. Douglas Jeffries, Professor of Biology and Environmental Studies
|Morgan O'Neil, Political Science, English, and Environmental Studies
|Environmental Ethics from Children's Literature: A Look into Little House on the Prairie
|Dr. Kim Van Scoy, Associate Professor of Life Science Education
|Trent Ueunten, Environmental Studies
|Distribution and Abundance of Semi-Aquatic Turtles in Johnson County, Arkansas
|Dr. Kim Van Scoy, Associate Professor of Life Science Education
|Paul Morgan, Composite Science and Chemistry
|The Effects of 2-(4-morpholinoanilino)-6-cyclohexylamniopurine (Reversine) on the Regeneration of the Posterior end of the Eisenia fetida
|Dr. Sean Coleman, Professor of Biology
|Ana Hernandez, Composite Science and Chemistry
|The Spark Initiative Project: Teaching the Next Generation of Entrepreneurs
|Dr. Rickey Casey, Professor of Management and Business
|Katie Kloepfer, Biology
|A Pedigree Concerning Heart Disease and Cancer for Katie Kloepfer
|Dr. Sean Coleman, Professor of Biology
|Olivia Logan, Psychology of Human Behavior
|The Benefits of Equine Assisted Therapy
|Dr. Joel Hagaman, Assistant Professor of Psychology
|Will Davenport, Biology
|E. coli Contamination and its Resistance to Antibiotics and Detected Levels of Triclosan and 17β-Estradiol in the White and Buffalo Rivers
|Dr. Sean Coleman, Professor of Biology
|Jacob Brown, Undeclared
|Disaster and Emergency Preparedness in the Ozarks Outdoors Program
|Jamie Hedges, Director of Outdoor & Environmental Experiences
Topics: Student Events


text:
Grace College, Winona Lake, Ind., has handed the reins of the school's women's tennis program to Larry Schuh, adding to his current responsibilities as the men's tennis coach at Grace.
Schuh has transformed Grace's men's tennis program into an annual contender in the Crossroads League during his tenure.
Schuh, in his fifth season as the men's coach, led the Lancers to a share of the regular season league championship in the fall – the program's first title in 23 years.
Prior to Schuh's arrival, the Lancers had not earned a league victory in four years. But under Schuh's guidance, the Lancers have advanced to back-to-back league tournament championship matches. He was named the Coach of the Year in the league in 2009.
"I felt God's leading to take the position a few weeks ago. I have a four-year plan in place to get the women's program in the upper bracket of conference with the ultimate goal of winning it," Schuh said. "But most importantly I look forward to leading the women into seeing tennis as simply an avenue through which to glorify God. Tennis is an awesome sport, but it is also a way to reflect our Lord and Savior."
Grace's women's tennis team has finished in the top half of the league standings in three of the past five seasons.
The Lady Lancers' current roster features young talent. Kristin Cassidy, a sophomore, was the team's No. 1 singles player, and freshman Taryn Wuensch played No. 2 singles.
"I am really excited to have Larry lead both of our tennis programs. He's done an incredible job with our men, and I expect he will do the same with the women's team," said Grace athletic director Bailey Weathers. "Two of Larry's strengths are growing individual players and pulling together the tennis community's resources to maximize the opportunity for our student-athletes to excel and thrive. I couldn't be happier than to see Larry coaching the women at Grace."


text:
FAU researchers develop the next generation of endoscopy technology
Biotechnologists, physicists, and medical researchers at FAU have developed technology for microscopic imaging in living organisms. A miniaturised multi-photon microscope, which could be used in an endoscope in future, excites the body's own molecules to illuminate and enables cells and tissue structures to be imaged without the use of synthetic contrast agents. The findings have now been published in the renowned journal 'Advanced Science'.
Laser used to illuminate molecules
It is often necessary to examine tissue samples under the microscope to diagnose diseases. This involves taking such samples using colonoscopy, for example, and applying contrast agents to distinguish different types of tissue effectively. Biotechnologists, physicists and medical researchers at FAU have now developed a process that could greatly simplify examinations of the colon and other organs. They have miniaturised multi-photon microscopy to such an extent as to enable it to be used in endoscopes. 'A multi-photon microscope emits focussed laser pulses at very high intensity for an extremely short period of time', explains Prof. Dr. Dr. Oliver Friedrich from the Chair of Medical Biotechnology. 'During this process, two or more photons interact simultaneously with certain molecules in the body which then makes the molecules illuminate.'
Multi-photon microscopy offers decisive advantages over conventional methods. Patients do not need to take synthetic contrast agents for the imaging of parts of connective tissue as the body's own markers illuminate due to the excitation by photons. In addition, the multi-photon laser penetrates deep into cells, for example into the walls of the colon, and provides high-resolution three-dimensional images of living tissue, whereas conventional colonoscopy is restricted to images of the surface of the colon. The procedure could supplement biopsies or even make them superfluous in some cases.
Multi-photon technology in a portable device
Multi-photon microscopes are already in use in medical applications, especially on the surface of the skin. For example, dermatologists use them to look for malignant melanoma. The challenge for using these microscopes in endoscopic examinations is the size of the technical components. Researchers at FAU have now successfully managed to house the entire microscope and femtosecond laser in a compact, portable device. The objective lens is housed in a cannula that is 32 millimetres long and has a diameter of 1.4 millimetres. The focal point can be adjusted electronically to vary the optical penetration. A prism is located on the point of the needle allowing a sideways view into the colon, which means various rotational images of the tissue can be made from the same position.
In current experiments on small animals, the light emitted from the laser is transmitted via a rigid system. More research is needed to integrate the system into an endoscope. 'Special photonic crystal fibres are required to guide the laser pulses', says Friedrich. 'Furthermore, in addition to the objective lens, the entire scanning mechanism must be miniaturised to allow it to be integrated into a flexible endoscope.'
Multi-photon organ atlas and pathologies
Multi-photon microendoscopy is not only useful for examining the colon. It could also be used in other areas of the body such as in the mouth and throat or in the bladder. The aim of the new method is to enable the doctor to detect whether organ cells and parts of the cell wall have changed on the micrometre scale. Complex dyeing processes and time-consuming biopsies can thus be limited. Prof. Friedrich's team aim to provide doctors with an image database providing a multi-photon 'atlas' of organs and various diseases.
The project was funded by FAU's Emerging Fields Initiative (EFI), which was set up in 2010. The aim of the initiative is to provide flexible funding to outstanding research projects as early as possible. Special consideration is given to interdisciplinary projects.
- DOI: 10.1002/advs.201801735: 'Label-Free Multiphoton Endomicroscopy for Minimally Invasive In Vivo Imaging'
(Please find the original article here.)
Further information:
Prof. Dr. Dr. Oliver Friedrich
Phone: +49 9131 8523174
Dr. Sebastian Schürmann


text:
Amanda Warren
Activist Post
The blinds are down. The doors are bolted. You slept in. You still bask in the euphoria of a pleasant evening with friends, family, and grateful feasting. Maybe you even helped others.
Congratulations – you had a great Thanksgiving! And you didn't cave to the pressure to freeze in the cold night, suspend empathy and stampede your fellow man, pregnant woman*, child, old lady, disabled veteran, for overpriced made-in-China trinkets.
So you're indoors, away from Black Friday's most dangerous zombies – these ones can run! – and maybe wondering what you could give your loved ones that circumvents the mainstream fishies' way of life. There's still a pressure to get the coolest gadget and maybe you've gotten or made handcrafted gifts that seemed chintzy and cheap. Ever notice how thrilled people are when someone has donated to a charity in the recipient's name? Not so much.
I could kick myself, because, again, I put stock in consumerism to show a token of friendship with gifts. I bought bulk organic makeup for my non-prepper friends – it wasn't – it claimed it was from the Amazon with clay – it wasn't – and I wasted money for foreign crap thinking it was a better way through the season. And I felt like a cheap snob. I quit!
I mean, I really want to walk away from it all, no matter how difficult. Isn't it too late to be yearning for things that won't matter in the upcoming months concerning the times we live in? Too late to condone the 5-sense way of life with fake money? If I give a gift it will be one they can actually use to prepare for the future, or a gift that includes making a memory.
My father inspired me with his new hobby of making birdhouses and what some call "junk art." People have offered him money for it – now there's a thought. Instead of watching TV he used his spare time to do something he enjoyed, that others will later enjoy.
Here are some gift ideas for your friends that will be there when the time is right and that your non-prepping friends and family won't spit on (mostly):
Things that are storable, but do not take up too much space:
- Seeds, kitchen herb garden sets
- Silver
- How about colloidal silver
- Prepping type books
- Classic books, or print out a free .pdf book and bind it
- Recipe book, assemble, print, done – try outdoor cooking, camp burner, dutch oven ones
- Food storage sampler
- Ammo – NOW is the time, it's running out
- Gardening gift sets you assemble with separate items in a basket
- DIY body care products
- DIY anything
- Simple alkalizing detox bath, could be a footbath. Simple recipe: 1/4 cup Epsom salts, 1/4 baking soda – could add herbs or just a couple drops of essential oils
- Essential oil and homeopathic emergency or coldcare kits
- Any kind of coldcare package
- A month of organic food delivery or fresh farm co-op membership – or just buy the stuff and make sampler baskets
- Upcycle some clothes – lots of blogs and Pinterest pics on that
- Upcycle the giftwrap, boxes, and ties – better yet, use prep tools like paracord
- Use jars to mix up the dry seasonings & other ingredients for a dinner or dessert and include the recipe
- Could also make jars with sauces, dressings, and marinades – if you made it, it's gourmet
- A microbrewery kit
- With some meal prep, you could deliver frozen meals, homemade ready meals, homemade pie
- Make winterwear – sometimes as easy as just cutting some fleece
- Upcycle junk into something else
- Burn a CD with shared favorite songs or an online music mix
- Photobook – easy to make online. Many women say that photos are the one thing they wish they could carry from a burning house
- Different colored duct tapes are really in right now, especially among youth
Things that aren't things:
- Coffee and dessert at home
- Create a video with a favorite song and pictures for the backdrop
- Local music or event
- Farmers market trip
- Work on a project together – see all ideas above
- Take a cooking or meal prep class
- Try something new together
- Refinish something
- Write something
- Repairs
- Host a movie night with a meaningful movie (Like They Live! Kidding)
- Shooting range time, or Women in the Outdoors and Project Appleseed events
- Grab a friend and both do something for someone else together – do you know how many elderly are completely alone? Go on a mission to find them.
- Just visit
Use any type of skill, gift or talent to contribute to another person – it shouldn't go unappreciated. Giving gifts isn't the only Love Language.
Anything that involves not buying prepackaged garbage and does not support overseas money or economic gobblers here. Your family "who doesn't get it" might roll their eyes, but wouldn't they be grateful later? You think about their well being enough already, you can show it without actually showing what you're doing. And if people have the gall to scoff at those thoughtful gifts, then maybe ask Santa for new friends.
Please add your own in the comment section below!
*True story: I know a young girl who was 7 months pregnant out on Black Friday who got slammed and toppled over by a ruffian and she had to go to the hospital for early contractions! The older man did not help her but instead shouted "Iss not my fault! I didn't do that! Y'all saw it – you can't sue me!" Then everyone blamed her for going out. Wait a second, shouldn't a pregnant woman be able to shop without the fear of losing her baby? But, as for me: PASS.
Read other articles by Amanda Warren Here
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I had a customer today who had problems using Tomcat sessions after configuring his application to run through mod_proxy_ajp. Everything worked correctly when hitting the application correctly on port 8080, but any attempts to hit the site through Apache and mod_proxy_ajp would result in the sessions not being saved, and a new session being created on every request.
The problem is that Tomcat is sending a Set-Cookie header with the Path that it knows about – which is different than what the browser is requesting.
The application is at http://www.mydomain.com/, and mod_proxy_ajp is redirecting that to http://localhost:8009/myapp/.
Here is the HTTP Response Headers that Tomcat is sending
HTTP/1.1 200 OK Date: Sun, 28 Oct 2007 01:39:44 GMT Set-Cookie: JSESSIONID=TOMCAT_SESSION_ID_HERE; Path=/myapp Content-Type: text/html;charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Length: 11234 Connection: close
You can see in the Set-Cookie header that it is setting a cookie path of /myapp. The browser receives this and will only send that cookie back on requests sent for requests beginning with /myapp. Fortunately Apache 2.2 includes the ProxyPassReverseCookiePath directive to rewrite the Set-Cookie headers on these requests. You can configure a virtual host like this:
<VirtualHost *:80> ServerName www.realdomain.com ProxyRequests Off ProxyPass / ajp://127.0.0.1:8009/myapp/ ProxyPassReverse / ajp://127.0.0.1:8009/myapp/ ProxyPassReverseCookiePath /myapp / </VirtualHost>
And now the HTTP Response headers look like this:
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Former US Marine Takes A Big Uncut Cock Up The Ass
Dirty Tony has a really hot new video out featuring former US Marine Logan Blake getting fucked hard by Connor Maguire. Logan is a former Marine with a built body. Not only does he have big guns, but he also has a big cock and a juicy muscle ass. Connor Maguire is a tall hunk with an enormous uncut cock, and if you've been reading our blog for any length of time, you know that we have a major hardon for Connor. He's the complete package. In this new video Connor starts with giving the former Marine a nice massage. With Logan lying on his stomach, Connor rubs his big hands all over Logan's back, shoulders and arms. When he gets to Logan's ass, he pulls Logan's jeans down to reveal that muscular Marine ass. Connor rubs Logan's ass, kneading it like bread dough. When he spreads Logan's ass cheeks and sees that tight hole, he dives in head first and starts tonguing the Marine ass. He sticks his tongue deep inside Logan's hole. Logan moans in pleasure with the rimming that Connor is giving him. When Connor is done eating that hot muscle butt, he pulls out his cock and slowly forces his big uncut cock up Logan's tight hole. Once he is fully inside of him he starts pounding the Marine ass harder and harder. After some intense and rough fucking, he flips Logan over so that he can fuck that hole even deeper. I've seen Connor fuck before, but never have I seen him get this aggressive with an eager hole. Connor pounds the hell out of Logan's ass with his massive cock. Logan's toes curl with each thrust of Connor's big uncut cock. As Connor massages Logan's prostrate with his big uncut cock, cum starts flying out of the Marine's cock and landing all over his hard abs. Connor pulls his big cock out of Logan's ass and shoots his load right into the Marine's open mouth, giving him a tasty treat. Logan swallows all of Connor's hot cum as the two start kissing passionately. Fucking hot! I want some of that Marine ass too!
Click here to download this full length Marine getting fucked in the ass gay porn video and hundreds more amateur gay porn videos at Dirty Tony.


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It's hard to put a price on the opportunities that come from working as a White House intern. But the cost of not being paid is very real.
One intern borrowed thousands of dollars from his parents. Another dipped into what little retirement money he had generated from two years of working full-time before he left his job to take the vaunted internship.
I was a White House intern during the summer of 2010, and it cost me about $4,500 to be there.
The high out-of-pocket expense of the experience has spurred young people into action. The Fair Pay Campaign, a grassroots lobby set to launch around Labor Day, is calling on President Obama to set an example by paying his interns.
A number of former interns who contacted me after I covered the campaign last week said the cost of the coveted positions -- in terms of rent, cost of living in Washington, transportation and so on -- could run anywhere from $4,000 to $9,000.
Related: White House under pressure to pay its interns
All of the interns I spoke with, who wished to remain anonymous, agreed that the experience was worth it.
"People treat you as if you have been dipped in gold upon returning home," said one.
The general consensus was the professional opportunities they had after the internships were a direct result of having worked at the White House, and that the skills they learned better prepared them for their next job.
"The internship completely changed my life. It was directly responsible for my next career move, and I've been exposed to opportunities that I 100% would not have had were it not for being a White House intern," one former intern said.
"Some of the coolest stuff I've ever been exposed to came in a 7 a.m. meeting or a frantic e-mail chain nearing midnight before a major event."
But many felt like that leg up was also one that most people couldn't afford.
Most pieced together the thousands of dollars needed to survive the summer through part-time jobs, loans from proud parents and various scholarships. Some worry that such a valuable career starter is only an option for those who have the luxury of using these last-resort funds to cover the unpaid stint.
"The fact is that it alienates some of the brightest and [most] talented students who simply do not have access to capital," one said.
Another said it was an experience he wouldn't want to pass up, but it made him wonder how many people don't apply because they know they can't possibly afford it.
While most agreed with the Fair Pay Campaign's mission, some were concerned about what it might mean for the program if the White House did have to start paying interns.
"I would hate to see the internship become paid if that meant even one less person got to experience it, or if it altered the program in any way," one said. "They can't even pay their employees!"
The White House did not respond to requests for comment.


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Are you looking for some adventurous activities during your holidays? Longboards have great utility for individuals engaged in the activities like sliding, downhill racing, slalom racing, cruising, etc. Dimension of longboard can vary with regard to the purpose and utility of individual willing to purchase it from the market. If you are thinking about a vacation full of fun and adventurous activities, longboard stores must be found out to get the perfect equipment. The representative of the stores will help you install the longboard anywhere you want to place it.
Proper guide for purchasing longboard If you visit online longboard stores, you can easily view a wide range of boards with different size, dimension and colors. You can even get the price written against each longboard available in online shopping sites. Wheels of each longboard will be different in dimension and size. Along with the price, features of each product will be displayed along with the specification. You can either pick your longboard by collecting different parts of the product from the longboard stores or ask the representative to provide you with complete product and deliver it at your home.
Construction of Toy machine skateboard decks The construction of Toy machine skateboard deck is really interesting to know. In order to make this product, you would require seven plys of hard rock maple wood. These plys are then put to a high temperature. This procedure reduces the effect of de- lamination allowing the glue to stick really well. Again the process of cross grain lamination takes place for providing the product with extra strength. Toy machine skateboard will be capable for better performance and pop. You can look at the graphics collected and associated with Toy machine. You can either select the product with simple art or pick up the skateboard with more graphics. You can now select the template according to your wish from the toy machine template.
Images on Toy machine skateboards Are you satisfied with the handful collection of skateboard? If not, you can easily choose variations in Toy machine skateboard and satisfy your want. If you visit the website, portrays of a lady, monster, image of a cartoon character will be displayed in the skateboard. Since each individual has different taste, one or two varieties can never satisfy wants of millions of people in the society. Thus, it is important to get the product from such a manufacturing company that has wide collection of skateboard according to the taste of millions of individuals around the world.
Author of this article is a longboarding enthusiast who writes on all things Toy machine skateboard. Check out which is one of the most popular longboard stores.


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Hardtail hero and occasional Dirt blogger Ace Woodley came out of hibernation to make the 350 mile round trip from his home in Grimsby (or is was it Somerset? I think he has two) to the Core Bike Show in Northamptonshire.
Words and Photos: Ace Woodley
The CORE show in the UK is the sign that winters ending and new stuff is filtering into the shops, and some hints of new things lurking in the shadows for 2014 and beyond. As usual the CORE is industry only and laid on in a posh golf club venue next door to Silver-stone GP race track, bike shop staffers and press only.
After looking at the weather i went on Sunday, later looked worse so 5am Sunday start it was, after making the car swim out to the motorway, things improved, no snow, and it stopped raining, and the car had dried out and stopped making funny noises, needed some new underwear after hitting a large volume of floodwater. While recounting the tale of swimming cars with the www.sueme.com staffers they decided i should test out there Eco friendly underwear, nice sense of humour there, nearly write off the car, get new skids (bad joke there) they even throw in a pack of Beech tree seeds, so when i go for a dump in the woods while out on the bike (come-on hands up, we all do it) i can plant a tree, trees are good, they hold up race tape, not so good when you wrap yourself round one, but i got a couple of trees to plant as well.
Don't think Billy thought i was going to start with pants, best add some shiny stuff. It was busier than expected, i reckon most had checked the weather as well and as we came from all corners of the UK, today was best. As ever could do with more time, so much got missed, so much to see, but hard to see and talk to everyone. Got some chat time with the Banshee crew, good to see the name back here, it never really left but legal issues forced a rename to "Mythic" for several years. Dirt mag have had a Rune in for a while to test out, and the Legend DH frame with Ti pivot bolt and rear axle kinda caught my eye.
Can't skip hard-tails, Banshee always had some heavy hitters, nice little dirt jumper from them as well.
What next, Thomson, David came over from the states again, due to things beyond his control the dropper seatpost wasn't there on Sunday, they hoped it would be there later in the day, or first thing Monday, so i had to rob a file photo from LH Thomson's website for you. Expected release date is April 1st (yes really) for the 30.9 and i think it was 31.6 sizes, a stealth routing cable version is to follow fairly soon for those with interrupted seat tube bikes, and in June a smaller 27.2 version should be ready. With 2 posts over here all-ready being winter tested and DIN testing complete and as many wacky variation's of what they think punters might subject the post to, they are just sorting packaging and ready to go (didn't find out how much mind). The handlebar range is doing well, carbon in photo, last year was all pre-production test samples, this year was finished gear, talk of another riser bar coming, sure David said Ti as well, i could be wrong, bit hectic in there, but some bars and seat-post changes to come, and a new post format for them as well coming. As always this is the neat part of getting to these trade shows, you get to meet the people that make the gear we ride.
Carbon is everywhere, Halo had a set of unmarked carbon rimmed wheels (semi hiding) they have been 4x race testing, super light super strong, my camera had issues with the surface finish and they wouldn't let me walk off outside with it to get a better photo in daylight, so maybe another report on them later or in the mag. Another hardtail, the AKA with 650b shoehorned in, few 650b lurking about this year.
The Mogul has been refined from last years Halo BDS race season, angles slacked off, which we all expected anyway, so an even more privateer friendly race rig. New stem and Kamon pedal from Gusset as well, and new Vapour wheel-sets and hub updates too, the Vapour rims in black on the AKA but some brighter choices as well.
Found this on the Hope Team DH racer, neat little racing cassette, no price, no promises, but very likely very soon, or maybe not….. they did get asked about this lots, so if demand is there ?
Evil had the best display stand, loved it, needed some goth girls handing out stickers for a full 10 out of 10, even had a little dry icer puffing out mist for extra effect.
New forks from Formula, just arrived in time for the show, haven't had a chance to read up on them yet.
And another new player in the fork world, and an absolute stunner to kick off with from DVO with the Emerald USD, still a prototype, so no price, expected target weight is 2900grams, air main spring with coil negative, and a quick flick through the catalogue….."Twin tube open bath cartridge, hi-lo speed compression and hi-lo speed rebound adjusters" and the lower shields are carbon fibre, and the arch is designed to add torsional stiffness by 50% at the wheel. Expected late summer 2013. Doubt i will ever get a go on a set, but they do look good, like these a lot.
Bit more on the DVO, flicking through the stuff i picked up at the show, travel is 203mm with both 26″ and 27.5″ (650b) wheels, looks made to fit a Hope team bike that does.
Found a race face, Steve Larkin, ex student and Wide-open mags hard-tail animal and 4x racer, now working for Hot-lines and very keen to show me the new Ragley Blue Pig. OK we have history as we have raced together, and i fancied a go on a Ragley Bagger288, turns out the 288 is no more, so lost the chance there, and the Blue Pig has been tweaked angle wise for a more burly fork, the head tube gussets have been reworked and it's taking the role of the 288. Loved the new jewel like head tube badges, some neat little trick finishing touches here and there. Picking the bike up was a pleasant surprise too, just the thing for doing the No-Fuss events Downhill enduro at Fort William. Yes i would race that, would batter it senseless but looks a lot of fun. Wonder if Hot-lines do loaners.
Must be running out of blog space, too much to cram in. Caught up with Damian from Upgrade bikes and DMR, again it's whats on the bubble thats not on show, talk of another new DH fork in prototype stage (not at show) and i quizzed him about the DMR Omen project DH hardtail frame, again not on show, 2 where raced last season, and another 2 tweeked frames are ready for this season, longer and slacker and lower, no production plans…yet, but they will be cropping up at races this season, always my complaint, the bikes i race on could do with being a touch longer up front, so something else i would like to have a go on. (along with a BTR Belter)
Been out of the loop for a few months so not up to date with armour stuff, this caught my eye from Dainese, didn't spot a price tag, only information i have to hand is it's called a Hybrid neck brace, and it's carbon fiber, and some google-fu tells me a RRP of £349
Going to sign off on weird stuff, granted i am Surly rider so like them, with all the crap weather and snow then maybe this will float your boat, or just float you over the snow, the Blue one is a Karate Monkey in 29″ (got one, normal rims) the yellow is the Pugsley running 3.8″x26 tyres 80mm rims, no moon-lander this year, that's the real fat one, 100mm rims and 4.7″ tyres, OK Pugs and Lander are specialist bikes, but the new spangly green Krampus 29+ appeared, so that's 29″ rims and 3″ tyres on 50mm rims, which might work if i rigid raid Glencoe mountain again this year as i am crap at riding in snow.
Ed is floating about on Monday and Tuesday so expect more, maybe to come.
Good day out, bit manic, but get to catch up with people from all over the country (and world) nice way to start the biking new year.


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Colts are 7,000 tickets short of a sellout for Saturday
At one point, it appeared that the Broncos and Peyton Manning had a chance of returning to Indy for the wild-card round of the playoffs. If that had happened, the Colts wouldn't be hustling to sell tickets to the game.
But with the Chiefs coming to town for the first Colts home playoff game of the post-Peyton era, the locals have yet to rush the box office.
According to Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star, the Colts have roughly 7,000 tickets to sell in order to lift the blackout for Saturday's playoff game.
League rules require all non-premium tickets to be sold within 72 hours of kickoff in order to lift the blackout. Typically, an extension of the deadline is granted only if a commitment has been made by the team and/or its sponsors to buy any remaining tickets at 34 cents on the dollar. Given that Indy's deadline lands on New Year's Day, the league could grant an extension without a commitment to buy the excess tickets.
Owner Jim Irsay has pointed out on Twitter that "MANY" tickets went on sale at 10:00 a.m. Monday. Ultimately, the question may be how "MANY" tickets he's willing to buy at a discount to allow folks who can't or won't go to the game to enjoy watching the home team play in the playoffs.
UPDATE 10:19 a.m. ET: The Colts have announced that an extension has been granted, due to the holiday. The press release states that more than 6,000 tickets remain.


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This post is part of an ongoing series on cleansing. To catch up, read part 1, part 2, and part 3.
I'm into day 6 of my spring "healthy eating and detox" cleanse and was inspired by a reader (thanks, Laura from Chicago) to focus on some specific detox nutrients. To be on the safe side, I'm going to stick with food sources and skip talking about specific supplements. We'll keep it natural, gentle and simple.
I won't go into too much detail, but the liver is considered the most metabolically active and important organ when it comes to detoxing. It filters blood at a rate of about 1.5 quarts per minute (you read that right). There's a lot of action going on throughout the body when we detox, but the liver is the workhorse. There are two blood sources to the liver, one that carries newly absorbed nutrients, drugs, microbes, toxins, and other icky things from the gastrointestinal tract. It detoxs alcohol and chemically alters or excretes thyroid hormones and steroid hormones (estrogens and aldosterone). The liver has to "decide" what to do with all these substances, so keeping it in good shape keeps us in good shape. Here are a few simple and effective detox rejuvenators to help us do that.
*Again, check with your health care provider before embarking on a detox cleanse or before taking these products. Just because they are natural doesn't mean they're always safe. There may be conditions in which you should not take these products and some should only be taken for a short time. Many herbal products should not be taken during pregnancy — please consult your physician if you are pregnant or nursing.
Detox rejuvenators
The following organic herbs are believed to help support the digestive tract, liver, kidneys, blood, and/or lungs to promote healthy detoxification.
Sarsaparilla root gives root-beer it's root-beery flavor (what would you call that flavor?) and promotes the excretion of fluids and increases energy (Chi) flow.
Milk Thistle (also called wild artichoke) stimulates new cell growth in the liver and helps protect it from toxins. It also protects the gall bladder and kidneys, both of which are involved in detoxing. Milk thistle is also good for adrenal problems, psoriasis and helps boost immune function.
Ginger root is protective to the liver and stimulates circulation. I chop, mince, or zest whole ginger root and put it into all kinds of things, including my tea.
Dandelion root (celiacchick Kelly mentioned this in my first post on cleansing) stimulates bile production. The liver helps break down and eliminate toxins by producing bile, which is stored in the gallbladder. Bile is part digestive secretion and part excretory product. We want healthy bile flow. It's rather unattractive looking camo-colored goop, but it's very important.
Red clover helps support liver and kidney function and has anti-inflammatory properties. It also boosts immune function and helps with skin disorders.
Rosemary leaves help detoxify the liver, stimulate circulation and digestion, and provide antioxidant protection.
Fenugreek seeds stimulate and lubricate the intestines and act as a laxative.
Garlic enhances immune function, improves circulation, supports liver and digestion, and helps detoxify the body.
Cilantro will have its own post in a few days.
Burdock root (I saved my favorite for last)
I'm actually not sure why, but I love burdock root and have been using it (whole) for a long time. It's unattractive and isn't all that tasty, but I use it on a regular basis. I sauté it in coconut oil and pureé it with stock to add depth and thickness to soups and stews. Because I live gluten-free and never add flour for thickening, I use things like cooked potatoes or burdock root, which provide a healthy alternative.
Burdock root acts as an antioxidant and aids in the elimination of excess fluid and toxins. It helps purify the blood, supports liver and gallbladder function, stimulates digestion, boosts immune function, helps with skin disorders, and may help relieve PMS symptoms. It can also be used as a rinse to promote hair and scalp health. Good stuff all the way around. I prefer getting my nutrients through organic food sources (rather than supplements) as it's easier to know what you're getting and control what you're ingesting.
Burdock root can interfere with iron absorption if taken internally as a supplement, so, "ask your doctor if burdock root is right for you." (Sorry, I couldn't resist.)
*The above photo shows a piece of brown burdock root (carrot sized) alongside coin shaped pieces I cut from the root. These are ingredients I used to make burdock root soup a few days ago. This is one of the mainstays of my detoxing routine. I don't really have a recipe as it's something that comes out different every time I make it (depending on what I have on hand). If any of you are more interested in that, I'll make some, pay attention to what I do, and create a real recipe.
There are numerous herbal adaptogens, but I'll stick with this short list of the ones I feel may help with this type of cleansing. Most of these come in organic herbal tea form, so they're easy to find at your local "natural" market.
Go forth and do some spring cleaning!


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Damon Houx
Who is Going to Direct the 'He-Man' Movie?
Sony recently admitted they need franchises as they're plotting to pump out a new 'Spider-Man' movie every year. It seems another possible franchise for the studio is a big screen adaptation of 'Masters of the Universe,' and now that Jon M. Chu is off the project, they've narrowed their list to three filmmakers who could bring us the adventures of Prince Adam and his alter ego He-Man.
'The Stand' Big Screen Adaptation Now on its Fourth Director
In a cinematic landscape where franchises and known properties are a studio's biggest priority, some projects cannot be killed no matter how hard it is to get them made. Witness Warner Brothers' big screen adaptation of 'The Stand,' which now has a fourth director in talks to helm the production.
'Ghostbusters 3′ is Moving Forward After the Death of Harold Ramis
With the passing of Harold Ramis, it seemed another monkey wrench had been thrown into the plans of the long rumored 'Ghostbusters 3,' which co-writer and star Dan Aykroyd has been working on for over twenty years. Now it's been revealed that commerce trumps tragedy as Sony and director Ivan Reitman are definitely moving forward with the project.
'Point Break' Gives Break to New Johnny Utah Luke Bracey
The cult classic 'Point Break' is being remade, and finally they've found the man who will step into the shoes of Keanu Reeves' Johnny Utah. That man: Luke Bracey, who you've probably never heard of.
'Space Jam 2′ is Moving Forward with LeBron James
LeBron James has long been compared to Michael Jordan as he's one of the most gifted players in basketball today. Those comparisons will now extend to cinema as James has signed on for 'Space Jam 2,' a sequel to the film that had MJ playing basketball with Bugs Bunny and the other members of the Looney Tunes.
'Doctor Strange' is Close to Getting a Director
With all the success Marvel is having with their recent advertising campaign for 'Guardians of the Galaxy,' it appears that audiences are ready for phase three of Marvel's movies, which means meeting some of the weirder and more obscure characters from their collection. It can't get much odder than 'Doctor Strange,' and he appears to be next on the docket as Marvel has a shortlist of directors for
Will Smith is Looking to Star in the Sci-Fi Thriller 'Brilliance'
Though he's been adept in all genres, it's worth noting that Will Smith has had some of his biggest hits while making genre films, specifically science fictions movies. Perhaps that's why he's circling the lead role in Universal's 'Brilliance.'
Edward Norton's 'Motherless Brooklyn' is Finally Happening
Jonathan Lethem's book 'Motherless Brooklyn' came out fifteen years ago in 1999, and Edward Norton has been trying to turn it into a movie ever since. After adapting the screenplay himself, now Norton finally has backing and the film will go in front of the cameras later this year.
'Divergent' Winter Olympics Trailer: Shailene Woodley's on the Hero's Path
As young-adult films often focus on contests and matters of life and death turned into sporting events, it's fitting that 'Divergent' -- which stars Shailene Woodley, Kate Winslet, and future Kyle Reese, Jai Courtney -- released an extended Winter Olympics trailer.
'The Walking Dead' Creator Robert Kirkman and Norman Reedus are Bringing 'Air' to the Big Screen
'The Walking Dead' creator Robert Kirkman has conquered the small screen with the AMC adaptation of his comic book, and now he's looking to bring his talents to the big screen as he's set up to make 'Air,' a film he'll produce and which will star Djimon Hounsou, and 'TWD' regular Norman Reedus.


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<img src="http://i.imgur.com/I18OP.png1" border="0" />
Get ready for the Global Football Challenge.
Two footballs. Two sides. An age old debate. Which football is the better game? The American version or the European?
Here's your chance to promote your type of Football. Stand up for your way of the game.
Select your football and play to keep it in the air as long as you can. +1 for every touch that prevents the ball from falling to the ground.
Use not words in your fight, let your high scores do the talking. Post a screen shot of your high scores on Facebook.com/PardyPandaStudios and let your European/American friends know what you stand for. You stand for your style of the game. You stand for your right! Do they?
Free version of the app serves un-intrusive full-page ads, shown only when you decide to quit your current session. No interfering banner ads.
Follow us, for latest updates on upcoming games and more:
facebook - PardyPandaStudios
twitter - PardyPanda
Known issue with Android 2.2 (Froyo) devices - The game doesn't run. Opens with a blank screen and exits. We're working on fixing that.
If you face any other issues, before publishing a review, please contact us at enquire[at]pardypanda[dot]com
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