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What do you think? Does this porch pass for the same one as the 1926 photograph of the McClellan home in Tampa?
Friday, December 6, 2013
Same Porch, Years Later
What do you think? Does this porch pass for the same one as the 1926 photograph of the McClellan home in Tampa?
9 comments:
Most definitely the same porch. Same wooden steps. Same doric column. A tree in both pix. Ding Ding Ding -- we have a winner.ReplyDeleteReplies
Ta da! I'll take it! Now...if only I could confirm the location precisely. Unfortunately, Google maps street view is not cooperating with that house address...if the building is even there now...Delete
There are even the same number of rows of brick between the top of the porch floor and the base of the column. I too, think this photo was taken in the "same place" as the other one. Different but equally cute doggy from the one in the wagon though. :)ReplyDeleteReplies
Even the "courses" of brick (the "bond pattern" aligns) and matches exactly.Delete
Wow, Iggy, you took precision to new heights with this comparison! You have me totally convinced!Delete
Glad you spotted the girls' canine buddy there. I have no idea who this one was, nor the one in the wagon--although the wagon dog came closer to the only family pet I knew about: JoJo, the Scottish Terror--um, Terrier. ;)
Has to be the same porch...same column, same brick, same steps.ReplyDeleteReplies
I sure was hoping--though I am not as good at noticing details as some people are. Y'all have given me some confidence that these two pics are for the same place.Delete
Kinda makes me want to go through all the rest of them and see if anything else matches up. I'm thinking this is the home on Jefferson Street in Tampa for sure!
Yes most certainly the same house. From when we lived in Florida plants grow fast! Iggy nailed it with the bricks! :)ReplyDeleteReplies
Didn't know you had lived in Florida, Far Side. What a contrast to where you are now!Delete


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Source: Abbas gets U.S. plan for new Mideast talks
(CNN) -- America's top diplomat is trying to revive dormant peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians, a source told CNN Thursday.
Secretary of State John Kerry presented Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas a formula designed to entice him to the negotiating table, a source familiar with Kerry's talks said.
He also presented the ideas to an Arab League committee. This would serve the purpose of giving Abbas cover and encouraging him to accept.
Kerry traveled to the Jordanian capital of Amman this week and provided an update on Middle East peace to Jordanian and Arab League officials. He met with Abbas twice during his Jordanian trip.
An Israeli official quoted by Reuters news service said Israel agreed to a plan for peace talks based on pre-1967 borders and agreed-upon land swaps. The story also quotes the official as saying that Kerry would announce the initiative if the Palestinians were to accept it. And he would describe a future Palestinian state as one that would co-exist next to a Jewish state of Israel
Mark Regev, the spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, denies the story's content and questions who would have made the assertions. When asked if John Kerry was expected in Jerusalem tomorrow, Regev said "all eyes are on what the Palestinians decide later today." Abbas met with top Palestinians in Ramallah in the West Bank to discuss a resumption of peace talks and to update them on his talks with Kerry.
One Palestinian leader, Abdel Raheem Mlawah, speaking before the meeting, said his group, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, will vote against negotiations.
"There is no horizon with the Israelis. In my own opinion, there is nothing going on," he said.
Bassam Salhi of the Palestine People's Party, said "we want a complete change in the framework of negotiations, according to the U.N. decision in recognizing a Palestinian state." The General Assembly last year voted to grant Palestine non-member observer state status.
Israel took over east Jerusalem, West Bank, Gaza, Sinai, and the Golan Heights after it fought Arab states in the Six Day War in 1967.
Since then, Israel forged a peace treaty with Egypt and returned Sinai to the country. It annexed east Jerusalem, united the historic city and made it the capital of the Jewish state. It unilaterally departed from Gaza, now run by the Palestinian group Hamas.
Israel currently occupies the Palestinian territory of the West Bank and part of Syria's Golan Heights.
For years, Israel and the Palestinian Authority have made attempts to negotiate but have repeatedly failed to get the process moving.
Among the major issues are:
-- The status of Jerusalem. Israel regards the entire city as its capital. The Palestinians regard east Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.
-- Jewish settlements in the West Bank. The land is known as Judea and Samaria in Jewish history, and Israelis say they believe that territory is part of the Jewish state. The Palestinians say the West Bank is Palestinian land. They also say they've been mistreated in their own land for years by Israel's government, military and the settlers themselves.
-- Security. Israel has said it wants to be assured of the safety of its citizens from attacks by Palestinian militants in any peace agreement.
-- The status of the Palestinians, who departed Israel during the war that led to the state's founding in 1948 and after the 1967 conflict. Palestinians say some left on their own but others were forced out.

subset: commoncrawl


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Jobs report misses expectations
A new jobs report released on Tuesday showed the economic recovery continues to be sluggish, and many economists warn that the constant fiscal fights in Washington threaten to make the situation only worse.
The U.S. economy added 148,000 jobs in September while the unemployment rate dropped slightly to 7.2 percent, federal economists reported Tuesday. The report fell short of expectations — economists surveyed by Bloomberg had estimated the number of jobs added would come in at 185,000.
"It's a soft report," Mark Zandi of Moody's Analytics said on CNBC. "The worrisome thing is this is September — this is before the shutdown effects and the brinkmanship effects, and it feels like we're going into [October] with not a lot of momentum."
The September jobs report was delayed by the government shutdown because most of the staff at the Bureau of Labor Statistics were furloughed by the time it was originally set to be released on Oct. 4.
Analysts say the shutdown could cloud the value of the next two monthly reports, meaning that a clear picture of the jobs market may not appear until the December report is released in January.
"The October survey will be compromised by the late survey and the unquantifiable indirect private-sector job losses triggered by the shutdown, and the November numbers will be compromised by the recovery — we hope — of these same jobs," said Pantheon's Ian Shepherdson. "It won't be possible to know exactly what the payroll numbers would have been in either month, absent the shutdown."
The White House said Tuesday that it estimates the shutdown will have led to 120,000 fewer jobs being created while cutting fourth-quarter gross domestic product by 0.25 percent.
"What we did in October was a self-inflicted wound that will subtract from jobs when we eventually learn the jobs number for October," said Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Jason Furman.
Analysts have already been trying to figure out how much of a dent the shutdown put in the economy. Standard & Poor's estimates that the shutdown will cost the economy $24 billion, shaving fourth-quarter GDP growth by 0.6 percent.
And many analysts say it's contributed to an overall sense of consumer uncertainty that could slow down economic growth over the remainder of the year.
While experts say it's normal for consumer uncertainty to spike during political fiscal fights, the frequency at which those fights are occurring is hindering economic growth.
"This has both near- and long-term economic implications, keeping productivity growth weak for longer," said Moody's analyst Ryan Sweet. "Uncertainty also weighs on consumer psyche as well and has led them to spend cautiously."
The White House used the release of the latest employment numbers to call for an end to the recent fiscal standoffs.
"While job growth remained solid in September, there is no question that the focus of policy should be on how to achieve a faster pace of job growth by increasing certainty and investing in jobs, rather than the self-inflicted wounds of the past several weeks that increased uncertainty and inhibited job growth," Furman said in a blog post.
Republicans used the report to slam the president's economic policies.
"Today's report shows the president has more than a troubled website to fix — he has a troubled economy, weakened by years of failed 'stimulus' policies and excessive red tape," Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said in a release.
The monthly jobs report is being closely watched by the Federal Reserve, which is deciding when to begin scaling back its economic stimulus programs. The central bank's policymaking committee next meets Oct. 29 to Oct. 30.
Most analysts believe the central bank will hold off on changing its monetary policy course for a few more months, in part, because of the damage done to the economy by the shutdown and the last-minute negotiations over raising the government's borrowing limit.
"Given the government shutdown, October's payrolls are likely to be weak, too," said Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist for Capital Economics. "That means unless November's gain turns out to be over 300,000, it now looks like the Fed could delay tapering until early next year."
Tuesday's report also contained revisions to the jobs numbers released for July and August. The July employment gains were revised from 104,000 to 89,000 while the August number was revised from 169,000 to 193,000.
The percentage of Americans working or searching for work is 63.2 percent — unchanged from September, and still the lowest it's been since 1978. And 36.9 percent of the unemployed — 4.1 million people — have been jobless for at least 27 weeks, down about 725,000 during the past year.
The jobs number has a margin for error of plus or minus 100,000 jobs, while the unemployment rate has a margin for error of about plus or minus 0.2 percent.
Jennifer Epstein and Ben White contributed to this report.


text: William Joseph Gaston (1778-1844) was born in New Bern, NC, to Alexander Gaston, a native of Ireland, and Margaret Sharpe, a Roman Catholic who emigrated from England. His father died in the Revolutionary War in 1781. In 1791 Gaston was the first student to enroll at Georgetown College, but he left in 1793 because of ill health. He finished his education at the College of New Jersey (Princeton) at the age of eighteen and was admitted to the bar in 1798. A prominent Federalist, he was elected to the NC Senate in 1800, 1812, 1818, and 1819 and to the NC House of Commons in 1807, 1808, 1809, 1827, 1829, and 1831. In 1813 he won a seat in the US House of Representatives, where he expressed his opposition to the War of 1812. In 1833 the NC House of Commons elected him to the NC Supreme Court. Gaston owned slaves and a plantation in Craven County, NC, but as a delegate to the state's constitutional convention of 1835, he favored continued suffrage for free blacks and opposed religious tests for holding public office. He was a University trustee from 1802 until his death in 1844. Married three times—to Susan Hay, Hannah McClure, and Eliza Ann Worthington—he had a son and two daughters by his second wife and two daughters by his third wife (Dictionary of North Carolina Biography 2:283-85).


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UnBooks:My Summer Vacation in Saudi Arabia
My Summer Vacation in Saudi Arabia
When my friend proposed to go to Saudi Arabia for a week during the summer I had to look it up in the phone book. It's near Egypt and my cousin had gone there and saw the pyramids and said they were nice. It also doesn't seem too far away from India and everyone says that India is a serious adventure to go there so I said let's go to Saudi Arabia. I was a little worried because someone told me that the Queen of Saudi Arabia is married to a really ugly man... but it turned out that most Saudi Arabians are ugly and so it would be shallow of me to discriminate like that. So I packed my bags and got flying!
As it turns out only Saudi Arabian airlines flies directly there. It was a great way to integrate ourselves in the culture. We both had to put on headscarves and I chose a bright pink one while my friend chose a navy colour. We didn't get to have a cocktail on board but they had really nice prune juice. For the meal it was rice with walnuts and sliced lamb. I had never had it, so I can't compare that to anything but it was really okay. The napkins had Saudi Arabian Airlines written on it in red ink and then some Arabic squiggles underneath that said something I couldn't understand even though I tried to read from right to left. Also...I can't read Arabic squiggles. The movie they showed was "Dances with Wolves" though I think it was a different version because I remember the two kissing in the tent and then doing each other but this version didn't have any of that. The flight landed a little early which meant we could spent ten extra minutes in Saudi Arabia which was a total score.
The sights of Riyadh
This city has a bunch of nice skyscrapers. They reminded me of my trip to Dallas but in Riyadh it's with really dark people and none of them are Mexicans. The top of one of the skyscrapers had a nice restaurant. Saudi Arabian mojitos don't taste like rum and they are pretty sweet. We had five and didn't even feel a little buzz. Maybe because Saudi Arabia is in the middle of the ocean, the altitude destroys the alcohol or something like that. We were approached by a lot of nice guys who smiled a lot. We both looked at each other and laughed when we saw their mustaches and tried to take these guys seriously. I was given business cards and expensive jewelry and so was my friend. They all invited us to go for a trip to an abandoned beach but we were tired and wanted to rest our eyes while sleeping. When I wear my pearl bracelets, I sometimes think about how sweaty those guys were.
Going to Mecca
I heard that Mecca is really nice. There is this big black cube that people walk around. We put on white clothes and headed there in a minibus. We don't speak Arabic but the driver took us there. When we were walking, someone in a green costume with a very large gun told us to get into their car. It was air conditioned and it was nice of him to take us to Mecca in it. He was yelling and screaming at us and I think he was just giving a tour and explaining things and also being like a security guard for our protection. The taxi driver kept on saying infidel, but I didn't know which building was infidel. They are so hospitable there. We went to a place that had iron bars and food served on metal trays and we got to stay for two days. The beds were not comfortable but it was like camping.
Mecca was really interesting, I had never seen a sink, a bed and a toilet in the same room before. Then a man from the American consulate told us we were free to leave. I told him that we were enjoying Mecca and that we didn't need to go so soon. He told us that we had spent enough time there and we should consider going home early. He wasn't very friendly. But he did drop us off at our hotel. He wore terrible cologne.
The American Compound
There is an area in town where white people live and also a couple Pakistanis who run the corner shops. We went to say hello to a friend of a friend and they took us to something like a bar but not really a bar because the rules were strange and some other reason I don't remember. The bar looked like an American bar and they served American drinks but we weren't in America so it wasn't an American bar. I saw the cocktail list and chose a sunset on the beach and my friend decided to have a sunset on the beach. Some people talked to us. My friend fell asleep and tumbled off her chair. The people in the American compound were so boring, our presence there was slowly murdering us from boredom. In the Pakistani shop, the attendant suggested that we rent his brothers boat to go for a cruise. He was really nice and he even gave us for free a Pakistani dessert which is sort of like really dry cake with a overly sweet milk thing on top and some dried figs. He was such a nice guy I couldn't throw it out in front of his face so I sort of half swallowed it so I could regurgitate it afterwards. He was really friendly and smiley so we got his brother's number.
The Beach
We headed to the beach and we were wearing our bikinis under our sarongs. When we got to the beach we took off our sarongs and in no time we made a lot of friends with funny mustaches. A little later some guys with machine guns came to us and insisted that we go to the ladies beach where we would be more comfortable. We couldn't bring our new friends but we went anyways. When we got to the ladies beach, it was actually pretty nice. We met nice ladies. Some of the ladies were even topless and had really nice bodies, very plump breasts and asses smoking way harder than our smoking asses. We exchanged gym techniques and they asked us all about our lives at home. They had strange ideas about our lives. I have no idea what a Swedish steam-shovel is but I doubt that I have ever done it. Maybe my friend did. Probably she has.
Meeting a prince
They say Saudi Arabia has over 200 princes. I met one who was really nice. We met him on the bazaar. He took us to his summer palace to have a feast. Someone told us that men and women eat separately so I couldn't eat with the prince. Instead we were with a lot of women who didn't speak English and stared at us the whole time. The food was different but I think I liked it. We did get rather bored. After lunch the prince suggested to show us his private beach. We walked with him along the beach and he talked a little too much. He wasn't really good-looking though his body wasn't bad either, my friend didn't like his body but she though he had a smile that compensated for his stupid mustache. He was a prince so we fooled around for an hour on the beach. Afterwards he said bye and ran away super fast. I think he had Prince stuff to deal with. His driver took us to the hotel and parked in a garage and then went down on us with no strings attached. It was really such a special night.
In the Red Sea
We hired a boat and sailed on the Red Sea with the Pakistani's brother. He was pretty tall for an Arab and handled the boat with confidence. Once we were far away enough from the coast we went snorkeling and saw some nice colourful fish. We had to go back too soon even though we were having fun looking at fish. My friend threw up on the way back. I thought it was sea sickness. She was pregnant. We couldn't get any pills the day after in the pharmacy and so we called the prince and asked him if he knew where to get one. Within ten minutes he had sent ten boxes of them and his driver even gave her a bottle of water to swallow it down. They can be so sweet.
Going back
That week ended so fast I couldn't believe it was over so quickly. We sent off some post cards and I got a toy pigeon and some wooden sandals and dried dates for some friends back home. We had forgotten to take pictures and took some of the desert on the way to the airport. We had forgotten to ride a camel. Maybe next time. The flight back was nice. Once we were home we stopped at McDonald's to have a bacon McMuffin and I had to go to work the next day. I told my workmates about the trip and they didn't believe any of my stories. But that's because they are close-minded and boring. My cousin suggested I go to Israel next summer but I think she was pulling my leg because the Bible was written 200 years ago and Israel isn't even real.
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What does it take for one of the nation's most infamous union-busting Republicans to discover the value of union workers? Apparently, a blown call on Monday Night Football does the trick (thanks to B.W. for the tip).
Republican Gov. Scott Walker, who made a national name for himself by going after public employee unions last year, posted a message on Twitter calling for the return of the NFL's locked-out unionized officials after a disputed call led to a Seattle Seahawks 14-12 victory over the Packers on Monday night."After catching a few hours of sleep, the (hash)Packers game is still just as painful. #Returntherealrefs," Walker tweeted early Tuesday. [...]The NFL locked out the officials in June after their contract expired. The league has been using replacement officials, and through three weeks of the regular season there has been much criticism over the way some games are being handled.Walker's spokesman Cullen Werwie tried to spin the governor's post on Tuesday, saying it wasn't meant as a pro-union political statement.
No, of course not. This is simply a matter of an anti-union Republican, unimpressed by the results generated by the free market, preferring to see qualified, union workers return to the job so they can provide him with a level of skill, professionalism, and expertise to which he's accustomed.
Why would anyone read something into that?


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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Two college students have filed a lawsuit against the University of Southern California, Yale University and other colleges where prosecutors say parents paid bribes to ensure their children's admission.
The lawsuit was filed Wednesday in federal court in San Francisco and alleges the students were denied a fair opportunity for admission.
Erica Olsen and Kalea Woods claimed they were denied a fair opportunity to apply to Yale and USC. The lawsuit also named the UCLA, Wake Forest University, the University of San Diego, the University of Texas, Georgetown University and Stanford University.
The alleged scheme gave unqualified students admission to highly selective universities, said the plaintiffs, who are both currently students at Stanford.
"Each of the universities took the students' admission application fees while failing to take adequate steps to ensure that their admissions process was fair and free of fraud, bribery, cheating and dishonesty," the plaintiffs said in the lawsuit.
Charges were announced earlier this week against 50 people, including coaches and dozens of parents, in a scheme where prosecutors have said wealthy parents paid to rig standardized scores and bribed sports coaches to get their children into elite universities.
The colleges named have cast themselves as victims of the scheme and have moved to distance themselves from the coaches accused of involvement.
"As the indictment makes clear, the Department of Justice believes that Yale has been the victim of a crime perpetrated by its former women's soccer coach." — Yale spokesman Tom Conroy
"We understand that the government believes that illegal activity was carried out by individuals who went to great lengths to conceal their actions from the university," USC officials said in a statement earlier this week.
Yale officials said earlier this week they were cooperating with the investigation.
"As the indictment makes clear, the Department of Justice believes that Yale has been the victim of a crime perpetrated by its former women's soccer coach," Yale spokesman Tom Conroy said.


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BEIJING - In many countries, being a doctor is regarded as a highly prestigious job. So why are so many Chinese medical students dropping out in the middle of their studies?
According to Li Ling, a professor at the National Development Research Institute of Beijing University who is also China's medical reform expert, "China trains about 600,000 medical students each year, but only about 100,000 of them actually become doctors."
Dr. Zhang Jingxiu, from the MyCOS Research Institute, a Beijing-based education consultancy, believes that the situation is not as serious as it looks, because the 600,000 include students in every medical and health-related field, including those whose specialty doesn't require a medical degree.
However, he agrees that fewer and fewer students regard becoming a doctor as their dream career. Even doctors who have worked in hospitals for years are starting to leave, for various reasons.
The Lilac Garden (DXY.cn), an online community for Chinese health care professionals, doctors and pharmacies, conducted a survey recently and found out that as many as 89% of doctors have entertained the idea of quitting the profession.
Although medical practitioners will only resign as a last resort, undergraduate junior doctors are the most likely to change their mind.
Another survey conducted by Wang Hong Man, professor at the Institute of Medical Humanities at Beijing University, supports the statement. According to the investigation, half of the medical students are not confident about future employment prospects.
Long studies, low salaries, long hours, intense psychological pressure and patient-doctor tensions eventually bring home the realization that this is not what they want to do in life. These are the major factors causing the flight of these "white-coated angels."
Chutian, who graduated in 2006 from the prestigious Beijing University Medical School, quit his hospital job after only four years to become a researcher. He rather enjoys a life which doesn't involve emergency calls and in which he is guaranteed summer and winter vacations.
Qin Xiao only just started to be a physician two months ago. He earns less than $400 a month and is already feeling bitter, in particular because it was his parents who pushed him into medical study, believing it would "guarantee a good income."
Better salaries as medical reps
Many others have decided to leave their hospital jobs to become drug or medical equipment representatives for large multi-internationals like Bayer, Johnson & Johnson, or General Motors. "The income is definitely better than being a doctor while one's medical knowledge is still very useful," explains Zhao Hui who chose to leave.
Chutian says some of his classmates make up to $80,000 a year working as pharmaceutical company representatives, although he talks about their career choice scornfully.
In contrast with the decline in the supply of doctors is the rising need of China's patients. According to China's Health Statistics Yearbook 2012, the number of patients visiting Chinese hospitals increased from 4 billion in 2005 to 6.2 billion in 2011, whereas inpatient admissions soared from 71 million in 2005 to more than double – 152 million in 2011. Meanwhile, the increase in the numbers of practicing physicians is far lower than necessary. Between 2008 and 2011, the number of doctors only increased by 170,000.
China has the biggest number of medical practictioners in the world, according to the World Health Organization (WHO): 2,466,000. It also has the world's biggest population: 1.3 billion. In comparison, America has 0.3 billion people with approximately 750,000 doctors.
Cui Xiaobo, professor at the Capital University of Medical Sciences, says that five years ago China's Ministry of Health had already been alerted to the growing problem of qualified medical graduates refusing to become medical practitioners. The government has not found a way yet to attract doctors back to the medical profession.
Lin Hui, an undergraduate at the China and Beijing Union Medical College, was chosen a year ago to study at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine (UCSF). "In the U.S., doctors are considered as the elite. After four years of university, students have to pass very competitive exams to go into medical school. Therefore the ones who have chosen this path have given it careful consideration, it is not the result of a temporary enthusiasm, or some shallow or one-sided understanding of the profession like some Chinese students. Under such circumstances, it's unlikely they'd ever give up their career as a doctor," Lin Hui pointed out.
Even if the phenomenon of a brain drain of doctors is not immediately obvious, and China's top medical schools still attract a sufficient number of intelligent students, according to a survey of 61 major medical schools conducted by the Economic Observer, overall national admission scores for medical students have decreased in recent years.
"Originally, it was the most intelligent, most generous and most moral who chose to become doctors. Doctors were the rulers of social morality and social welfare. When such people do not wish to become doctors, it's a great sadness for medical education and a country's health system," Cui Xiaobo remarked with great concern.


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Washington, DC—The second annual Sheikh Zayed Institute Award for Innovation in Pediatric Surgery was presented during the Annual Meeting of the American Pediatric Surgical Association (APSA) to a multi-disciplinary team of surgeons, engineers, and innovators in the Department of Pediatric Surgery, College of Architecture and Urban Planning, and Medical Innovation Center at the University of Michigan. They received the award for their work on a prototype isolation bed for pediatric neuroblastoma patients undergoing treatment with a targeted radioactive particle called metaiodobenzyguanidne (MIBG). The bed is designed to protect professional caregivers and families from the side effects of MIBG treatment, while creating a child-friendly isolation that provides the child with safe interaction and electronic distractions from treatment.
The award was given at the 43rd Annual Meeting of APSA and is sponsored by the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation at Children's National Medical Center. It recognizes the most innovative abstract presented at the Innovation Session of the Annual Meeting, as determined by an appointed APSA review committee.
Neuroblastoma is one of the most deadly types of pediatric cancer, with a cure rate of only 25 to 30 percent in children older than 18 months of age. MIBG is one of the only treatments shown to reduce tumor burden and induce remission, however, it has a primary side effect: the children emit radiation for a few days following treatment. Reducing radiation exposure for both professional caregivers and for families taking care of these very ill children presents a challenge. The team designed a portable unit that is placed around the child's bed to create a shield to prevent unnecessary exposure. The unit provides this physical shield so parents and staff can be in closer physical proximity to the child, and also safely removes potentially radioactive body fluids and other materials. Additionally, the system harnesses the latest video-gaming technology to track and monitor patient status, while simultaneously providing an entertainment system for the child.
"This project represents the major challenges encountered in all pediatric device development," said Sabina Siddiqui, MD, a pediatric surgical critical care fellow at the University of Michigan Department of Surgery, who presented the team's work at the APSA meeting. "Like many pediatric diseases, neuroblastoma affects such a small population of children that there will never be a solid business case to take on design and development. Instead, at present, the centers that provide treatment have been forced to improvise solutions. Support from grants and awards such as Sheikh Zayed Institute Award for Innovation in Pediatric Surgery will make it possible for us to move from prototype stages to a final tangible product for all the patients and families who need it."
The design was created by a multi-disciplinary team of clinicians, engineers, and many others including:
"This abstract shows the true spirit of pediatric innovation—a clearly identified unmet need, a multi-disciplinary team who designs a concept looking at all angles, and a laser focus on addressing not only the physical needs of a patient with cancer, but also the unique psychosocial needs of our youngest patients," said Anthony Sandler, MD, Senior Vice President for the Joseph E. Robert, Jr., Center for Surgical Care at Children's National and Principal Investigator in the Sheikh Zayed Institute.
"The American Pediatric Surgery Association was delighted to present the prestigious Sheikh Zayed Institute Award for Innovation in Pediatric Surgery," said Robert Shamberger, MD, the Immediate Past President of APSA. "This award is a joint effort of APSA and the Sheikh Zayed Institute to stimulate the performance and development of truly innovative and 'cutting edge' developments which will have a significant impact on our pediatric patients. This year's recipient was selected from a very competitive group of candidates who presented their work in San Antonio."
The American Pediatric Surgical Association seeks to ensure optimal pediatric surgical care of patients and their families, to promote excellence in the field, and to foster a vibrant and viable community of pediatric surgeons. The Sheikh Zayed Institute Award for Innovation in Pediatric Surgery was created as part of a historic gift for pediatric surgical innovation given by the government of Abu Dhabi on behalf of the country's people to Children's National Medical Center. That gift of $150 million founded the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation, which expands the research of Children's National through multidisciplinary approaches that aim to make pediatric surgery more precise, less invasive, and pain free.
Related Links
Contact: Jennifer Stinebiser, 202-476-4500.
Children's National Health System, based in Washington, D.C., has served the nation's children since 1870. Children's National is one of the nation's Top 5 pediatric hospitals and, for a second straight year, is ranked No. 1 in newborn care, as well as ranked in all specialties evaluated by U.S. News & World Report. It has been designated two times as a Magnet® hospital, a designation given to hospitals that demonstrate the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty outpatient centers in the D.C. Metropolitan area, including the Maryland suburbs and Northern Virginia. Home to the Children's Research Institute and the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation, Children's National is the seventh-highest NIH-funded pediatric institution in the nation. Children's National is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels.
For more information, follow us on Facebook and Twitter.


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ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Quick: What would you do if you impaled yourself with a large, sharp, piece of wood? If your tooth fell out? If you fell from a high ladder? If your friend had a severe allergic reaction?
Even if you don't have first aid training, there are simple things everyone can learn to do in emergency situations. "You really could save somebody's life," says Dr. Assaad Sayah, chief of emergency medicine at the Cambridge Health Alliance in Massachusetts.
Think of it as "first aid for idiots" -- five things to remember if you otherwise know nothing about first aid.
1. Don't remove a foreign object.
It happens more often than you might think: a child impaled by a pencil or someone stepping on a nail or even someone being stabbed. Particularly after storms, debris is also an impalement hazard. Among injuries that cause ER visits, punctures rank fourth behind falls, car accidents and being struck by an object, according to the CDC.
The doctor's advice: Leave it in and call 911 (unless it's something small, like a splinter).
"It may be plugging a hole in an artery or vein, and as soon as you take it out, you could bleed to death," says Dr. David Beiser, an emergency medicine physician at the University of Chicago Medical Center.
2. Don't apply a tourniquet to stop bleeding.
Apply pressure and don't put on a tourniquet unless you've been trained to do so.
"If you don't know what you're doing, you could destroy that limb," Sayah says.
3. Do ask around for an epinephrine auto-injector in case of allergic reaction.
If someone has an allergic reaction, ask if he or she has an epinephrine pen. They may have one but forgotten. "People get very panicked when they can't breathe," Sayah says. "If they don't have one, ask other people who might be nearby."
Sayah says these auto-injectors are easy to use even without training. "It's like a ballpoint pen that clicks," he says. And of course, call 911.
4. Don't clean a tooth that's fallen out.
"You're cleaning off important structures like nerves and ligaments," Beiser says.
Put the tooth in milk and head to the emergency room, says Dr. Richard Bradley, a member of the American Red Cross advisory council on first aid, aquatics, safety and preparedness.
As an alternative, you can try to hold it in the socket where it fell out, he says, adding that if a child loses a baby tooth, doctors will not try to put it back in -- it's gone for good.
5. Don't move someone who's fallen from a high place.
Anyone who's fallen from an elevation is at risk of sprains, fractures and worse, internal injuries.
"If they're in back or neck pain, leave them in the position they're in," Bradley says. "If you need to move them, do a log roll so you're moving their head, body, and legs all as one unit."
For more first aid basics, go to the guides from the Mayo Clinic and the Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide. To get trained in first aid, visit your local chapter of the American Red Cross.
Got a comment or an idea for a column? We'd love to hear from you. Talk to us at mail to:email@example.com
CNN's Jennifer Pifer and Sarah Edwards contributed to this report.


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Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson, and Rachel Korine have been promoting Spring Breakers all across Europe. Gomez, obviously, is the highest ranked player in the group. And you can tell by the styling. She's been dressed in Gucci, Versace, several top end labels through this tour. Hudgens meanwhile is getting some second tier clothing. Certainly not major luxury labels (unless she buys it herself) but on the level of Naeem Khan (which she's wearing here in Madrid) and maybe, like, Monique Lhuillier. The other two...you know. There's a difference between wearing Topshop by choice, like the Emma Stones of the industry, and wearing it by necessity.
This is why Hollywood is so fascinating for human observation.
Because these are deeply narcissistic personalities having to live by a hierarchy that presents itself in every facet of their professions -- from wardrobe to party invitations to seating arrangements to agency attention -- and it's a lot to handle for those fragile egos, regardless of gender. And especially with this generation, a demographic seemingly genetically engineered to famewhore (verb). See the Twilight cast, and Ashley Greene's attitude towards Kristen Stewart. That's not to say that, guaranteed, the Spring Breaker girls, who are friends, will end up sabotaging each other, but it makes for a very interesting sample to study over time. In 5 years, how will it all shift? Who's the Amanda Seyfried of this group? Who will be the Lindsay Lohan?


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We are holding our yearly security conference in Darmstadt on the 22nd of March – that's next week – together with our partners from Fraunhofer SIT and CAST. This time, the focus subject will be DevOps and cloud technologies, including both operations and development preparation for the security in the cloud. The speakers are prepared to talk about a range of things from threat modeling and management down to massive tests, so I expect it will be rather interesting. We will also have a couple of presentations from companies talking about how they do things in their own cloud software in practice, so it will not be all theory either.
The conference is as usual mixed in German and English, we may ask the presenters to speak English only when we have people who do not speak German in the audience, so let us know on site. All details of the conference are here: https://www.cast-forum.de/workshops/programm/244
Come over to Darmstadt, join our conference, you will be very welcome!


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December 9, 2010
kids like him
The person I was speaking with (was it a nurse? a parishioner? you? I don't remember.) said sweetly, "Yes. Kids like him are usually so happy and content, even with all their problems."
Kids like him.
It felt so patronizing and judgemental. I don't know if she realized it right after she said it, but I think she did. Oh! All the little retards - they're so cheery, aren't they? It's like they don't even know how miserable they should be.
Maybe you read Conversion Diary's post about an intellect's experience having a mentally disabled son. The article is very good, and worth the trip to her blog. The part that was most interesting and alarming to me was what a commenter found about Martin Luther's understanding of "special needs" kids.
Eight years ago [in the year 1532] at Dessau, I, Dr. Martin Luther, saw and touched a changeling. It was twelve years old, and from its eyes and the fact that it had all of its senses, one could have thought that it was a real child. It did nothing but eat; in fact, it ate enough for any four peasants or threshers. It ate, shit, and pissed, and whenever someone touched it, it cried. ... I said to the Princes of Anhalt: "If I were the prince or the ruler here, I would throw this child into the water–into the Molda that flows by Dessau. I would dare commit homicidium on him!" ... the changeling child died in the following year…. Such a changeling child is only a piece of flesh, a massa carnis, because it has no soul.
Source: Martin Luther, Werke, kritische Gesamtausgabe: Tischreden (Weimar: Böhlau, 1912-1921), v. 5, p. 9.
When JF was still in the NICU I would look at him and think, "You are a changeling. My real son died inside of me, and you were swapped into his place." Of course that is dangerous thinking and I never allowed myself to linger too long there, but I was deeply troubled when I saw that Luther gave children like my son a similar name. This is not to say that agree with Luther about throwing anyone in the river, or believing that JF has no soul! Only the use of the word "changeling" is the same.
I am starting to feel exhausted. I am tired of calling doctors' offices. I am tired of cleaning up the contents of JF's stomach. I am tired of fearing that he'll throw up at any minute. Basically, I feel like I'm failing at mothering him. I don't know what I should be doing better, but my best is definitely not good enough.
Travis and I have decided it's all the fault of the g tube. Damn g tube.
17 comments:
Wow Bonnie. I obviously have nothing to say to make you feel better because there are no magic words. I'm sorry that you had to hear such a hurtful comment.ReplyDelete
What a crazy quote from Martin Luther! Very disturbing. He obviously never met James.
- AnonymousDecember 9, 2010 at 9:37 PM
You are not failing! It's different, it's hard, it is.ReplyDelete
AND whomever said that to you is so wrong. Babies, newborns, with severe brain injuries are often very fussy. Developmental people would call it "poor state control." They are easily overstimulated, not smiley, calm and happy. James is not retarded and no one should make reference to him as that.
James is at the perfect time for early intervention and could shock everyone. Kids like him are not miserable. Kids like him walk, talk, and live normal lives. Some kids like him may not, but that is something that will not be known for a long time. This is no time for anyone to say he can't do everything that all kids do.
James is capable! p.s. you're right g-tubes do stink! :)
I've wanted to say so much for so long [since dear James arrived], and I haven't known quite what to say, just that everything I felt like saying was altogether opposite of all the audible celebration I saw from comments posted here.
James should absolutely, positively, be celebrated each and every day! Don't miss a second of that sweet boy. But, there should be grief too, and that is okay.
My brother has Down syndrome. He is nine. In many ways, the lives of my family members, and many lives intertwining amongst those members, have been incredibly blessed by knowing Mark. He is a blessing and God works through him. But reality is also that Mark is bullied and can't communicate this to my mom. Reality is things like poopy underwear being sent home in his backpack from an overworked and underpaid teacher as a form of passive aggressiveness or complicated discipline and security issues. Reality, like the messy g tube and ignorant comments and bills and contradicting advice and dreams deferred, is a reality your family will live with and your commenters won't [while they will have their own struggles]. It would have been ridiculously easy for me to fill your blog with celebratory comments each day I read what's new with James. But, I wouldn't have been true to what I know because it's just simply not that easy.
I guess I can only be myself. While I would love to sit with you in your home and listen to you and let James wrap his precious fingers around my own, I can only say from afar that I hear every word you are saying- I may not know your struggles, but I know your grief AND your celebration. So mixed. So raw. A reality ripped and yet stunningly beautiful simultaneously!
Bonnie, I am praying for strength for you right now. I know you are allowing God to shine through you. He is and He will!
I wish so bad I could give you a hug right now. A really strong, hard hug!
P.S. My goodness, I hope this makes sense.
I just spent a good 15 minutes writing a lengthy and ... brewingly honest comment. And then was denied to post via some sort of message informing me of said inappropriate length. It should never take someone 15 minutes to comment!
I know "brewingly honest" doesn't sound like a good thing, but I think it is, and although I'm too frustrated [and nearing bedtime] to rewrite my comment, I would like to this weekend.
Would you be able to email me at firstname.lastname@example.com your email address when you get a chance or let me know of an avenue to reach you outside this restricting comment box. It's just not big enough for Ashley Anderson's thought processes.
For now, prayers and love are being sent your way daily!
Actually, its more the fault of the fact that he is unable to have breastmilk. The immune properties that kept your other kids from getting these sorts of bugs at this age are simply not available to him. I'm not sure whether they were correct in instructing you to stop feeding him breastmilk because of what it did to the thickener in his feeds or not, but certainly the fact that he isn't getting the immune benefits makes a difference to his gut. Of course, I'm not sure that you'd feel less tired and stressed if you were spending much of the day pumping for him either. To be fair I think that babies with older siblings are simply exposed to more germs than he more protected first borns. Of course James has also spent more time in doctors' offices and the ER where the germs are just rampant.ReplyDelete
I will say an extra prayer for your fatigue and discouragement. I seriously doubt that you are failing in mothering him, I just think that right now you're tired and discouraged.
I never knew that about Luther. I guess he really was the precursor to Hitler.
Bonnie - You are absolutely not failing as a mother. I know that's how you're "feeling" but feelings lie all the time. Remind yourself of the truth - James is doing so well today in large part because of you and Travis being amazing parents and caring for his needs appropriately. Can you even imagine his condition if you weren't competent in caring for him? I continue to pray for each of you as you move forward on this journey of healing.ReplyDelete
What a ridiculous statement about "kids like him!" Some babies are just happy. I am pleased to hear that James is one of them.ReplyDelete
And breastmilk or not, younger siblings tend to pick up more bugs from the older ones. I will pray for your endurance.
Not sure what to say Bonnie, but I want to give you a BIG hug! :) Without a doubt I know that James would not be where he is today without the love, support, encouragement, and care that has come from you and Travis! And of course, prayers help too :)ReplyDelete
Ashley....I recently had a child born with Down Syndrome and I appreciate your comment more than you will every know. It is refreshing to hear the the 'brewingly honest' - Thank you!
- AnonymousDecember 10, 2010 at 10:06 AM
"Martin Luther. The influential church reformer was not only an avid storyteller, but -- as his own writings demonstrate -- he was also a true believer in changelings. Luther was very much a product of his own times with respect to superstitious beliefs and practices. He sincerely believed that Satan was responsible for the malformed children known as changelings, and that such satanic child exchanges occurred frequently. {footnote 9} In Luther's theological view, a changeling was a child of the devil without a human soul, "only a piece of flesh." This view made it easy to justify almost any abuse of an unfortunate child thought to be a changeling, including the ultimate mistreatment: infanticide. Luther himself had no reservations about putting such children to death. {footnote 10}"ReplyDelete
"The advance of science during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries slowly but surely eroded the popular belief that malformed and retarded children likely were not human at all, but rather the offspring of some demonic being, offspring that could be neglected, abused, and even put to death with no moral compunctions. As these theological explanations for retardation gave way to medical explanations, community values and personal attitudes changed to such an extent that the very word "changeling," its synonym "killcrop," and their equivalents in other languages now have become historical curiosities, survivals of beliefs and practices that helped our northern European forebears -- for good or for bad -- face the problems of life and death when confronted with mentally or physically defective children."
- AnonymousDecember 10, 2010 at 12:20 PM
I don't know if this helps, but the only thing I ever found that helped my kids' cradle cap was Burt's Bees Baby Wash and Shampoo. I had been advised to use t-gel (didn't work and burned my baby's eyes once). A fine-toothed comb with a good soak of the Burt's Bees baby oil (let it soak) then scrubbed and scrubbed with the shampoo eventually (quickly) got rid of it.
Amanda G.
Wow. I can't even imagine how hard this must all be for you, even with as well as you write and convey your emotions.ReplyDelete
I have a friend named Lindsay, who is a special education major here at my college. She loves the students that she works with and told me one day, that she believes children and adults with special needs were put here by God because they are the only people who can love with their whole selves. She said that they are the only people she've met who love people unconditionally and that the world needs their love.
James, with his sweet personality that you have described, is just so full of love.
I don't know if this helps or anything. But whenever I think of what Lindsay says, it makes me smile and wish that I could love like those children do.
- AnonymousDecember 10, 2010 at 5:03 PM
Kayla, I really like what you said. I have two first cousins with down-syndrome and they are extremely sweet, loving children. Their families would be devastated if anything ever happened to them. As far as Martin Luther is concerned, what he said and believed is absolutely disgusting.ReplyDelete
With the cradle cap, for my kids, baby oil has worked great if I rub it in really well, comb through it a few times, then do a regular shampoo later. Within a couple days, it is usually much better. (It won't disappear immediately after you shampoo it). I always heard that cradle cap doesn't hurt the babies, though, just the moms!
Bonnie, I am so sorry things are so hard right now. My kids have been sick and I know how much it wears a mom out to have sick kids, even though I have no idea how hard it must be for you with the extra worry about sweet little James. He even looks really sweet in his pictures! You would have no idea what the poor little guy has been through by looking at his pictures.
Please try to take one day at a time. Don't look too far ahead into the future. The present has enough troubles of it's own. Realistically if we knew everything that was going to happen in the future, we would be scared to death all the time. God doesn't always let us know what is in our future, because He knows better than us what we can and cannot handle. He will give you the grace to get through all of this. With God all things are possible. You have no idea what little James will be like when he is older. He might be able to do everything you and Travis wanted for him. The point is, try not to worry about it right now. Focus just on getting through each day. That is more than enough for now. Just keep telling yourself there is time to worry about all of this later. When later comes, maybe things won't look as bad as they do now. God bless you!
- AnonymousDecember 11, 2010 at 8:36 AM
"I never knew that about Luther. I guess he really was the precursor to Hitler."ReplyDelete
I'm sorry that Luther's "wisdom" brought you pain, but his thoughts were from a different time and context. Even up until the mid 1900's, if you remember, those with mental and physical were abandoned, institutionalized, mistreated, and ignored. This was because of the horrible and ignorant beliefs of the time. Luther, and I would guess, most religious leaders of the time, were no different.
Bonnie, I ask you to ignore all comments about the mentally/physically disabled from history - it will probably always bring you pain. I want to remind you, too, that we have no idea what the future will bring to James (words meant to be encouragement, not criticism). I still pray for his complete recovery.
Thinking and praying for you.
Love, Em
P.S. James is beautiful.
You are doing great, give yourself some credit! What that person said is awful, but remember at this point we don't know what James is going to be. He is still developing and unlike the adult brain his brain has the oppurtunity to do some healing. James is a good baby because that is James and not because of anything that happened to him! Remember the positive, like how good his MRI was for what he had been through! Hang in there, praying for you all!
- AnonymousDecember 11, 2010 at 12:05 PM
Just have to wonder...do you have a family member who can come & stay for awhile...maybe over Christmas break...if nothing else than to help with the two older children? Our parish has a ministry of women who come everyday or whenever you want to help...Don't be afraid to ask for & receive help. It doesn't mean you're "failing", it just means you're human.ReplyDelete
You are not failing, you are experiencing the challenges of parenting a child with special needs. EVERY mother in your situation has those thoughts - the "changling" stuff and so on. Seriously, it's not talked about, but it's there. Your best is all God wants from you and it absolutely is good enough. I hope you are using the support network that was in place when James was in NICU- you can't do this without taking care of yourself and taking breaks.ReplyDelete
You're doing an amazing job, James is so lucky to have a mom like you!
Hey Mom! These feelings suck and they are NOT the truth. Praying for Our Blessed Mother to give you a huge hug and lots of consoling graces. Baby Tess & I are cheering you guys on from Washington D.C.!ReplyDelete


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We're looking to hire three new people to join our team working on the role of landscape structure and biodiversity in the provision of ecosystem services. The new positions include a postdoc to work on developing models of ecosystem services, a PhD position in historical ecosystem ecology, and a (part time) project manager. We're working in the Montérégie, a lovely agricultural landscape just southeast of Montreal.
For more about the project, check out our website: http://www.monteregieconnection.com/
Here's more detail on each of the three positions:
Postdoctoral researcher
We are seeking an outstanding postdoctoral researcher to be a part of a dynamic multi-lab team that is mapping and modeling past, present, and future provision of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the agricultural landscape around Montréal. The primary research project would involve synthesizing historical and current geospatial data to evaluate how landscape configuration effects the provision of ecosystem services in this region. This analysis will inform the development a spatial model of the provision of ecosystem services under different land use/land cover configurations in the greater Montreal region.
A successful candidate will have a PhD in a related field (e.g., Geography, Ecology); experience with ecosystem modeling techniques, including GIS and computer programming; and be familiar with the literature on ecosystem services. The applicant should have a good publication record and a demonstrated ability to work independently and as part of a large team. Capacity to read and speak French is a plus.
The successful applicant would be primarily based in the lab of Dr. Elena Bennett at McGill's Macdonald Campus, but would also be supervised by the co-PIs on the project, including Dr. Jeanine Rhemtulla (Geography), Dr. Andrew Gonzalez (Biology), and Dr. Martin Lechowicz (Biology). An office on McGill's downtown campus will also be provided. Salary will be $35,000 per annum plus standard McGill benefits. We encourage applicants of all nationalities to apply.
Applicants should submit a CV, a statement detailing how their research interests align with the focus of the project, and the names and contact information for three references. Start date is targeted for January 2012. Please submit applications by September 1, 2011 to: Elena Bennett (elena dot bennett at mcgill dot ca)
PhD Student in Historical Ecosystem Ecology
We are seeking a PhD student interested in historical ecology, landscape ecology, and ecosystem services to be a part of a dynamic multi-lab team that is mapping and modeling past, present, and future provision of ecosystem services in the agricultural landscape around Montreal. The student's project would involve examining historical records to estimate past provision of ecosystem services, interpretation of historical air photos and other maps, and modeling relationships between land use, spatial configuration, and ecosystem services through time. There is considerable room for a student to develop their own project within these general parameters.
A successful candidate should have an MSc degree in a related field, experience with GIS, remote sensing, or other ecosystem modeling techniques, and an ability to work independently and as part of a large team. Ability to read and speak French is a plus.
The successful applicant could be a PhD student in either Geography or Natural Resource Sciences at McGill University and would be co-supervised by Dr. Elena Bennett and Dr. Jeanine Rhemtulla. McGill University, located in Montreal, QC, is one of Canada's top universities and boasts a large international student population.
Applicants should submit a CV, a statement of research interests, a copy of their transcripts, and the names and contact information for two references. Start date is targeted for Fall 2012. Please submit applications to: Jeanine Rhemtulla and Elena Bennett (jeanine dot rhemtulla at mcgill dot ca) and (elena dot bennett at mcgill dot ca)
Project Manager (Part Time)
We are seeking an organized, energetic, and enthusiastic project manager for a new project about biodiversity, connectivity, and ecosystem services in the settled landscapes of the greater Montreal region. The project involves a large team of professors and their students (~30 people total) working on both the fundamental and applied aspects of this research. Our project seeks to understand how past and future land use change will affect habitat connectivity, biodiversity, and the provision of multiple ecosystem services. Policy makers and managers often must make decisions with limited rigorous information about how to manage for sustainable landscapes. In order to improve the link between science and decision making our project includes actively engaged partners from local cities, counties, NGOs, as well as regional and provincial government. Our research will improve both the science and decision-making required to manage for sustainable and resilient landscapes.
Project management would include:
- Managing the activities and people associated with the project and ensure that we are meeting project goals
- Ensure communication across the researchers involved with the project
- Management of GIS data central to the project, creation of geodatabases
- Coordinating and tracking the project budget
- Maintaining communication with our project partners
- Identify opportunities for improving and enhancing the project
We seek a project manager who is self-motivated, extremely organized, and has experience running a major research project or managing a research team. Because the project manager would also have a role in managing geodatabases for the project, experience with GIS and geodatabase management is also important. A graduate degree (M.Sc. or PhD) in environmental sciences would be an advantage. The position will involve considerable communication with our local management partners, so the successful applicant must be bilingual (French/English).
We envision a part-time (up to 3 days/week) position with a salary of approximately $20,000 per annum.
Applicants should submit a CV, a statement of interests and experience, and contact information for three references. Start date is targeted for Fall 2011. Please submit applications by July 1, 2011 to: Elena Bennett (elena dot bennett at mcgill dot ca)


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Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Frontiers and Force Projection
I think this issue is not specific to Eve Online. Almost every sandbox game ends up with a similar problem. People want to be out on the frontier, to stake a claim, and watch that claim grow. It's very much the myth of the American West. But inevitably, these games run out of frontier.
But Eve has hundreds of star systems. At first glance, it seems that surely a frontier can still exist. The problem in Eve is that it is too easy for an empire to project force anywhere in its claimed space. If at any given time, the empire can bring its entire force to bear without repercussions, then warfare essentially becomes about who is larger. And the empire will always win that battle against a small corporation.
Let's say you have a large null-sec empire. A small corporation takes one star on the border. What happens? The empire drops its entire fleet on that star. There is generally no real downside to doing that.
But imagine there was a downside. Let's say it takes two weeks of real-time travel to get from the heart of an empire to its border. Now, the empire cannot send the entire fleet, because if another empire invades, it would take the fleet over a month to get back. Instead the empire has to send just enough ships to deal with the small corp. And the resulting battle might actually be won by the smaller corp, if the empire miscalculates.
The empire has to be able to be stretched "too thin" for smaller corporations to be able to exist alongside it. But so long as it is easy to project force, so long as distance does not really matter, the empire cannot be stretched too thin.
To be honest, I don't think this problem can be solved without significant travel time that lasts longer than a single play session. Significant travel time introduces logistics, supply lines and military strategy, as opposed to just military tactics. But significant travel time is highly inconvenient. I really doubt that anyone really wants to take two weeks or more to reach their destination.
But without significant travel time, it becomes a numbers game, and then a game of covert actions to influence that numbers game.
Frontiers cannot exist without meaningful distance. If you want your game to have a frontier, the price is the inconvenience of distance. And I don't think that players will accept that price.
9 comments:
It's not a bad idea to make the distance between the center to the edge of a star empire be more than a single day's worth of game time. It would give the game a sense of space that would sorely be lacking if a player could travel from end to end of the entire game within a few hours. An RPG like Traveller took care of that by effectively bringing back the Age of Sail via the jump drive, wherein players are stuck a week in mid jump. Considering that jump drives could only go a limited distance, a fast courier ship going from the Spinward Marches to the heart of the Imperium would take months. The projection of Imperial power, consequently, was very difficult out in the border regions.ReplyDelete
The problem with this idea is the players themselves. Once flying mounts came to life, players have gotten used to zipping back and forth with tremendous speed. (Summons? Who needs a summons?) Asking players to --in effect-- give up instant travel would push some players out of the game.
- Anonymous3:32 AM, February 14, 2013
Good point.ReplyDelete
The other big thing is what happens if an empire holds an area and then either has internal dramaquits or a lot of the organisers just get bored and move on. In a lively sandbox, you tend to assume that as soon as one landholder slacks, others will come to quickly grab the undefended areas.
But what if the smaller groups are busy holding their own land, or no one notices. You can easily end up with a map that looks as though every area is held, but a lot of them are just non active.
- Anonymous4:02 AM, February 14, 2013
You can only project force to 'connected' systems, but you will probably only be connected to a dozen systems at a time, and there are 2500 of them.
Also, the force you can project is quite strictly limited - 3 capital ships is your limit, or 6 if you're prepared to bring them home the (very) long way.
Did I mention that a wormhole connection never lasted more than about 48 hours?
EVE has a permanent frontier.
- Anonymous6:31 AM, February 14, 2013
I've been doing some Eve research and I have to wonder at the second order effects. Big, stable empires are likely not in the best long-term interest of CCP or the players so something will probably be tried. If you simply increase travel time how does the economy function? From what I see the market is based on you going to the goods or someone moving the goods to you.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous7:44 AM, February 14, 2013
One idea would be a non-trivial "fuel" cost of traveling large distances. This would hit attackers as well, so is pretty fair.ReplyDelete
Another is some sort of upkeep cost associated with territory, to approximate the general administrative costs that come with an actual empire without requiring all of the tedious legwork. So each system would cost some ISK per day, and if you ran short there would be some in-game repercussions. I speak as a total EVE outsider, so I'm not sure of specifics.
@Spinksville, the issue is that there is no real concept of defense without significant travel time. So long as you can drop a fleet in from the heart of the Empire, you don't really need to defend an uninhabited system in the traditional manner. All you have to do is claim it, and not have your claim contested by another power with equal forces.ReplyDelete
@covops.net, from my understanding, the problem with wormholes is that the same factors which make it hard to project power also make it hard to grow. Growth is an essential part of the frontier dream. Can your corp become a 2-system kingdom in wormhole space?
They can kind of do so, but because the connections between systems in w-space are not constant, it's not really the same. They're 2 independent star systems, not 2 parts of one kingdom.
Wormhole-space is all independents and no empires. Null-sec is all empires and no independents. The grail is a space where there are some empires and some independents, and where some independents can grow to become empires.
- Anonymous3:55 AM, February 15, 2013
The thing with travel time is that it isn't very fun to have no access to your character for a week while it is travelling from one end of the empire to the frontier, especially if you get there only to find that the enemy went somewhere else so you don't even get any fleet action out of it.ReplyDelete
And imagine trying to be a guild leader who needs to encourage a decent sized PvP force of players to do this regularly to defend the borders.
- Anonymous4:06 AM, February 15, 2013
Another way to implement a similar idea (there is a delay involved in frontier fights) is to force the attacker to declare where the action will be a day or so in advance (I think pirates of the burning sea did something like that) -- you can explain this as their warp drives leaving traces or something. Or make attackers have to hold an area for 24 hours before it flips, to give defenders a chance to get out there.ReplyDelete
One thing you do see from all this is that a game needs to take a stance on whether attackers are favoured over defenders. Like, if you own and fortify an area, do you get defenders advantage. Could a small attacking force turn up at 3am and flip your whole empire?
- Anonymous9:28 PM, February 16, 2013
This also assumes that the other empire has no other constraints on its force allocation. My understanding is that this is probably untrue in EVE, since you can arrange for distractions for the enemy fleet (like, say, paying off another alliance to attack them).ReplyDelete


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LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) -- The latest development news, culled from recent wire reports:
Looking to keep track of all the various projects in development? Click here to visit our signature "Devwatch" section. There visitors can view our listings by network, genre, studio and even development stage (ordered to pilot, cast-contingent, script, etc.). It's updated every day!
Annie Wersching will recur on "Extant" as "a member of the Yasumoto Corporation board who endeavors to insure that in our race toward a technologically advanced future, we don't leave our humanity behind" (TVLine.com); Erik Valdez has booked an arc on "Graceland" as the "Grade A psychopath" son of a powerful cartel leader (TVLine.com); Beth Broderick will reunite with fellow "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch" alum Melissa Joan Hart on "Melissa & Joey" as "Mel's (Hart) doctor, who has shocking news for her" (THR.com); Nazanin Boniadi will recur on "Scandal" in a yet-to-be-revealed role (THR.com); Patrick Fabian likewise will turn up on "Grey's Anatomy" as "a pediatric surgeon who comes in to help Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital" (TVGuide.com); and Ron Canada will drop by "Elementary" as "a retired high school teacher from a crime-plagued Brooklyn neighborhood who's dedicated his life to improving his community and keeping his students away from gangs and drugs" (TVGuide.com).


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ASUS announced the Transformer Book Duet that offers consumers the best of both worlds when it comes to technology and operating system preference. The ASUS Transformer Book Duet can run both Windows 8.1 and Android. While a dual-OS tablet is something they have already offered, its previous generations products featured a tablet that ran Android, and when docked with a keyboard (which included an onboard Intel Atom processor) would switch to Windows seamlessly. However, the Transformer Book Duet can switch between Windows 8.1 and Android 4.1 at the touch of a button — in either tablet mode or when docked with the keyboard. Do this all effortlessly as the inside of the machine is a Core i3 for the base model along with a gorgeous 1366×768 display. If you want to add on the options, you can select up to a Core i7 processor, 128GB SSD, and a 1080p display.
Abt Exclusive CES 2014 January 9, 2014


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On August 13th of this year, Other Half Brewing teamed up with The Veil Brewing to release one of the strangest, most seemingly paradoxical beers ever made. By now, both the Brooklyn and Virginia breweries are some of the most famed IPA makers in the country, proponents of the hazy Northeast-style "juice bombs" that are de rigeur these days. And on that Saturday in August, geeks were champing at the bit to acquire cans of their latest collaboration, Topical Depression. Now for the kicker: the IPA had a reported zero IBUs.
Standing for International Bitterness Units, IBUs were at one point the purest measure of hoppiness in a beer. If Scoville Units told you how scorching a hot sauce was, IBUs told you how hoppy an IPA was. Then, over the last few years, as breweries started relying on hop varietals that were fruity, not bitter—like the Galaxy and Citra used in Topical Depression—IBU numbers, and perceived bitterness, began dropping. Likewise, dry-hopping became a crucial weapon in an IPA brewer's arsenal, adding an intense aroma and flavor, but not raising IBUs one lick. Thus, an unheard of zero IBU IPA suddenly became not just possible, but sought-after.
Still, I long for the days when IPAs were actually bitter, not just alcoholic fruit juice. That was the case back around the turn of the decade, when "hop bombs" were arising with punishing names like Palate Wrecker and Tongue Buckler. The average IPA then used to register around 70-100 IBUs, with most folks believing anything over 100 to be imperceptible and just a theoretical measurement. But that didn't stop an array of brewers, from Denmark to Delaware, from battling it out to hold the crown as makers of "the hoppiest beer ever."
Here, we take a look at the 10 hoppiest beers of all time, as defined by IBUs—that brewing statistic that has almost become obsolete.


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HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky on Wednesday was sent to serve his child molestation prison sentence at an institution in far southwestern Pennsylvania that includes most of the state's death row inmates.
The Corrections Department said Sandusky was transferred to Greene State Prison after being evaluated at a facility outside Harrisburg. Prison officials said he will be housed in protective custody.
"We make individual decisions based on facts," Corrections Secretary John Wetzel said in a written statement. "Given the high profile nature of this individual, coupled with the nature of his crimes, this makes him very vulnerable in a prison setting."
Sandusky, 68, was convicted this summer of 45 criminal counts for sexual abuse of 10 boys during more than 15 years. He has maintained his innocence and is pursuing appeals.
The 30- to 60-year sentence imposed Oct. 9 means he faces the likelihood of dying in prison.
He will not have a cellmate and will be subject to heightened supervision and an escort when not in his cell. He will get an hour of individual exercise five days a week and three showers a week.
He will eat meals in his cell. Prison services such as counseling, religion, medications and treatment programming also will occur in his cell.
All visits will be non-contact, meaning no touching is allowed. He may have a TV, radio and other property, according to the Corrections Department, if he is deemed to be in "compliant adjustment."
Messages left for his attorneys were not immediately returned Wednesday.
The State Correctional Institution at Greene, as it is formally known, is a maximum-security prison that houses 1,800 inmates and employs 700 people.
Sandusky was arrested a year ago after a lengthy investigation, along with two university administrators accused of lying to the grand jury that handled the Sandusky case and failing to properly report his suspected child abuse.
Tim Curley, the athletic director on leave until the last year of his contract expires, and retired vice president Gary Schultz await trial in January and deny the allegations.
The Sandusky scandal led to the firing of longtime coach Joe Paterno, who died in January of lung cancer, and the ouster of university president Graham Spanier, who has not been charged with any crime. It shattered the football program's image and led to significant changes in the university's policies and governance.


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Town Square
District Budget
Original post made by George, Castlewood, on Apr 15, 2008
Comments (4)
a resident of Another Pleasanton neighborhood
on Apr 16, 2008 at 7:25 am
George, thanks for sharing your thoughts. I've been following this issue for years. We have two children in Pleasanton public schools. I would like to see the Weekly or another paper publish all compensation for PUSD administrators. I believe we have far too many highly paid administrators. However, without public disclosure, we, the tax paying public, have no idea how much we are spending. The San Jose Mercury News(4/15/08)exposed massive overpaying of San Jose city employees - over 35 employees make over $200k per year. This pattern of scarce resource abuse follows throughout the region - I suspect we have this issue with our city administration as well- I fear that our local papers ("Hello Weekly") are far to cozy with the powers-that-be to get involved in important investigative reporting. The State of California Supreme Court recently ruled that all public agencies must publish all employee salaries. We, the people, need to take back our government. Do I hear anyone saying "Stop The Madness"?
a resident of Another Pleasanton neighborhood
on Apr 16, 2008 at 7:39 am
The only way to know how many administrative positions we have in PUSD is by getting an organizational chart, one that has the position (without naming the person) and its salary next to it.
Just by looking at the PUSD website, you can get an idea of the large staff, but we need an organizational chart (just take a look at the Public Information Department, Human Resources for instance to get an idea - there are Assistant Superintendents, Directors, Administrative Assistants to these people.....)
I like the idea of sending those highly paid administrators back to the school sites. If they have to be a Principal at one site, they will realize the need for the staff that works DIRECTLY with the kids, and perhaps even realize just how top management (at the district office) should learn how to be more efficient, consolidate duties and stop unnecessary positions and expenses.... do most of us working in the corporate world get meal and gas stipends? (because for some reason, our superintendent, already making a healthy salary, thinks he needs meal and car stipends, an interest-free loan for his house!)
a resident of Another Pleasanton neighborhood
on Apr 16, 2008 at 7:57 am
Resident, it's interesting to note how communities justify the ever escalating salaries and perks. Our leaders talk about competition for the best talent. True enough. However, top pay and perks should not be the driving factors in attracting the best talent to this town. Pleasanton is a terrific place - safe, friendly, clean, etc. Let's be honest, if you had a choice between working for PUSD or any number of bay side districts - San Leandro, Hayward, Oakland, etc., where would you want to work? Compensation is not always about $$, quality of life still counts.
I still want to see our local papers dig into the compensation issue. I recall several stories in the Weekly a few years ago, but the stories only scratched at the edge of the issue. We deserve full disclosure now - from city, PUSD, county, state and fed.
a resident of Another Pleasanton neighborhood
on May 1, 2008 at 8:07 pm
Dear Real Progress,
What you want is public information. Just call the district and ask for it. You don't need to wait for a newspaper to investigate it.
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DHS Quietly Delivers Hacker Footprints to Industry
A little-known firewall-protected website exchanges sensitive cyber intel between companies and agencies.
A little-known website sitting behind a firewall has been exchanging sensitive hack intelligence between companies and agencies at a rate of one new threat hallmark per hour, a top Homeland Security Department official said.
The Cybersecurity Information Sharing and Collaboration Program, launched in 2011, virtually convenes about 70 critical industry and analytics organizations – think energy companies -- as well as federal departments. The result is bulletins provided in formats that computers can "read" so they can apply the appropriate protections. And containment recommendations are pumped out in plain text that people can read.
"It enables us to identify those threats or organizations" that are a danger, said Roberta Stempfley, DHS acting assistant secretary of cybersecurity and communications. "We have shared through this program more than 26 unique indicators a day. You wouldn't think that that sounds like a large number. But it's unique indicators in a day. That's more than one an hour."
She was speaking at a Washington, DC cybersecurity event hosted by FedScoop.
"Those are things that aren't typically widely publicized activities," Stempfley said. "They are generally unclassified indicators."
Even as data breaches become more extensive, industries, such as major retailers, struggle to talk about the threats they are seeing. The reasons for the silence include fears about liability, government snooping and injured reputations.
On Wednesday, Stempfley acknowledged this tension among potential victims is a problem.
"The biggest challenge to collaboration today is to handle it honestly -- we each come to the conversation with your issues and you hold it close, she said "And collaboration becomes a negotiation. It's difficult to collaborate when you are negotiating."
(Image via scyther5/Shutterstock.com)
NEXT STORY: DHS warns of fake help-desk scams


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Here you have the twice-a-month newsletter with our most popular blog posts. Please remember that you can subscribe to receive this Newsletter by email, simply by submitting your email at the top of this page.
Have you ever wondered how we can maintain SharpBrains' website, blog and newsletter without selling any products and with only limited advertising? The answer is, we offer market research to organizations such as healthcare providers, research centers, technology developers, venture capital firms, consulting and training companies, and more.
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Market News
The Cognitive Health and Fitness Market On The Move: As you have probably seen, the Cognitive Health and Brain Fitness field is rapidly evolving. Here we highlight some of the main developments affecting the field over the last 6‑months: public policy initiatives in Canada and the US, the growing role of computerized assessments, several venture capital rounds, major initiatives by insurance companies, and significant research findings.
The Big Picture
Executive Summary of the Brain Fitness Market: Let's step back and ask ourselves, "Why is the field evolving in such a fast way? What is hope, what is hype, what is reality?" A spate of recent global news coverage on brain fitness and brain training reflects a growing interest in natural, non drug-based interventions to keep our brains sharp as we age. This interest is very timely, given an aging population, the increased prevalence of Alzheimer's rates, and soaring health care costs in the US that place more emphasis than ever on prevention and lifestyle changes. This article summarizes the main market dynamics, open questions, and top trends to watch for.
Nourishing Our Brains and Minds
Philosophy as the Missing Link in School Curricula: Kimberly Wickham answers provides some good answers to the question, "Why would anyone want to teach philosophy to pre-adolescent children? that will engage your critical thinking skills.
A User's Guide to Lifelong Brain Health: Drs Simon Evans and Paul Burghardt hope (as we do) that the emerging emphasis on cognitive exercise and fitness helps complement ‑not substitute- other lifestyle factors important for the "physical health of the brain and all the systems it communicates with". Think: nutrition, exercise, sleep.
Excellent Reader Comments: Our last newsletter generated a round of excellent comments by readers on cognitive training, Posit Science and Alzheimer's Australia, gerontology and the brain, and the value of videogames. Come enjoy this collective wisdom and participate as you wish.
Brainy Haikus:
river with haikus
flowing in since the summer
keeping us afloat
The Challenges of Gerontology?: The World Economic Forum has asked me, as one of the 16 members of the Global Agenda Council on the Challenges of Gerontology, for "an 800 word summary of your most compelling actionable idea on the challenges of gerontology." Feel free to help me out by offering your own actionable ideas, either related to the discipline of gerontology itself or on ways to best engage the growing number of brains over the age of 60 in our planet.


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by Victor Miclovich for EuroPython 2011
Everyday we enjoy great experiences when we access websites that help the user in every aspect of interaction. Some web users prefer to get recommendations, suggestions and much faster contextual searches when they access a website or web application. This track talk shows you some great techniques that can be used to better improve website usability and will also include a demonstration with Django.
The goal of this talk is to encourage many web masters, developers or engineers to use the best in analytics that Python has to offer (i.e. NLTK, numpy, scipy, etc.) The richness of python in this area is one no other language can compete with.
Prerequisites to this track talk are knowledge of functional programming in Python, some mathematical concepts (graph theory, statistics) and basic understanding of OOP.


text: All Hallows by the Tower is a small church going back to Saxon times, built on the foundations of a Roman residence. They have a small display in the crypt museum which includes Roman goods found at the site from the residence, as well as unique items relating to the church. This is the church where John Quincy Adams was married, and William Penn was baptized. http://www.ahbtt.org.uk/visit/


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Look! Come quickly! Wallace Shawn is pointing at the moon!
Oh, all right, it's not really Wallace Shawn. (So they say.) It's Budai (or Hotei), the Laughing Buddha. He's pointing at the moon to remind us about a story from the Shurangama Sutra:
The Buddha told Ánanda, "You and others like you still listen to the Dharma with the conditioned mind, and so the Dharma becomes conditioned as well, and you do not obtain the Dharma-nature. This is similar to a person pointing his finger at the moon to show it to someone else. Guided by the finger, the other person should see the moon. If he looks at the finger instead and mistakes it for the moon, he loses not only the moon but the finger also. Why, because he mistakes the pointing finger for the bright moon.
This is a big moment for The Buddha because he's making a point that's going to end up in Enter the Dragon:
(How much more fun the Shurangama Sutra would be if that story began: 'The Buddha told Ánanda, "Kick me!"')
We've started, a little unexpectedly perhaps, in the world of Buddhist teaching and martial arts, because I was interested to try and discover the origins of a proposition contained in remarks made during a recent talk by Ken Robinson: a sermon on 'passion', as part of the popular series of secular sermons at the Conway Hall in London, organized by the excellent School of Life. Robinson is someone who keeps popping up lately, though I only really started paying attention when a few people on Twitter made a fuss, rightly, about this gorgeous animated film based on a recent Robinson talk on the premises and structures of education: it's startlingly cogent and ultimately rather moving.
I really recommend watching the whole of Robinson's sermon, too, not least for his easy, charismatic way with "public speaking", to which he is clearly (quietly) virtuosically accustomed. Getting everyone to sing along with 'Eye of the Tiger' may have more than a touch of David Brent about it, but once Robinson simply starts to make contact with his congregation, his easy, laconic, anecdotal style is very easy to warm to and the whole talk is a pleasure. Anyway, the bit that particularly leapt out at me (it starts at about 25 minutes in to the video, if you want to skip straight there) was this:
I'm convinced that the most distinctive feature of human life is [the] power of imagination. ... If you take a small baby into the garden ... at night, and point at the moon, the baby will look at the moon. If you take your dog into the garden and point at the moon, the dog will look at your finger. ... Human beings are born with expansive imaginations, and a sense of reference and possibility.
Those who know me too well will already have guessed where this is going. Much though I take Robinson's point about the significance of expansive imagination, I'd have to say I'm basically on the side of the dog in this.
I don't know whether Robinson's source here is the teaching of the Buddha, or Bruce Lee, or direct personal experience with a set of babies and dogs under laboratory conditions, or what; but I do think it's important to look again at that Buddhist parable: in which it is not simply that we are encouraged, as Lee suggests to his hapless protégé, to look at the moon rather than missing the point (so to speak) by fixating on the finger; rather, we are told not to mistake the finger for the moon. Other renditions, particularly in Zen teaching, make this more explicit: the words of the teaching are not the point of the teaching, and understanding the teaching and understanding the words from which it is composed are not at all the same thing.
But the lack of expansive (or, we might say, extrapolatory) imagination in the dog, who does not in this instance comprehend the sign of the pointing finger, is not a mistake -- in fact, it is more or less the opposite of the mistake we are warned against. Whereas the baby interprets the pointing finger as a sign, a metaphor, the dog sees the finger as a finger, no more no less.
In a recent post I set up a binary -- slightly specious, like most binaries, but a workable distinction for thinking with -- opposing 'the window' and 'the wall' as two tendencies in poetic language-use. The window approach asks us to look through and beyond language, to treat it as transparent (or maybe, in poetry, translucent, or a little textured perhaps), a technology offering the empathetic spectator access to something beyond; the chicken, I guess, crossing the road in order to get to the other side. Others meanwhile ask us to look at the wall, to confront language as a material in itself, as a stuff in its own right, which does not refer to some remote picture, but presents pattern, texture, substance, colour, temperature. Most of these elements require us to get up close, to touch, to feel, to make contact. If we are looking for the window in the wall and cannot find it, we may initially think that there is nothing here to be seen, that we have come to a dead end with which no communication is possible. But actually, an intense experience of material presence, here and now and occurring wholly in reference to the range of creative means we have at our disposal for coming into relation with an object, is immediately and totally accessible to us.
I don't know that "the window and the wall" is quite sophisticated enough a model to have much use except as a provocation: but I think "the finger and the moon" does something similar, and to more nuanced effect. We shouldn't take it as read that the dog, or the student, who sees the finger and not the moon, has missed out on the chance of beauty.
For reasons I won't go into right now, I've been thinking a lot lately about haecceity, about how art can bring us into a relationship not only with metaphor, with the exercise of expansive or speculative imagination, but also with the 'thisness' of stuff: and this is not a constrained or stupefied reaction to a material encounter or event but rather an invitation to apprehend in the highest fidelity what it is that we meet in meeting the world. Nor is the secularism of this materialist task so militant that it can't yield its own reflective and even devotional pleasures -- think for example of Gerard Manley Hopkins riffing on Scotus in 'As kingfishers catch fire':
Each mortal thing does one thing and the same:
Deals out that being indoors each one dwells;
Selves—goes itself; myself it speaks and spells,
Crying Whát I do is me: for that I came.
(Yes, I'm afraid I too wonder whether the Speak & Spell was named after Hopkins's poem...)
In other words, even if Bruce Lee's advice -- "Don't think, feel!" -- were at all to be trusted, it's not as if "seeing the finger" is wholly cerebral in its promise (or perceiving the beauty of the moon, for that matter, a sub-rational act).
Moreover, even if we accept and value Robinson's fairly explicit premise that the expansive imagination is what separates humans from other animals, I am interested in the extension response that mines downwards rather than travelling outwards. In our example, I suppose this would be the dog that sees the finger and the sign, but does not produce out of this recognition any impulse to treat the sign as an instruction to be obeyed and (by the same extension) a catalyst, whose purpose is wholly instrumental and whose import vanishes on use, a message that will self-destruct. This dog sees the finger and understands at some level that the owner-operator of the finger is using rather than simply showing the finger, or is not merely showing the finger but is intentionally showing the finger. It is a finger that, as well as speaking and spelling itself, speaks of wanting. As Hopkins suggests, it cries with the intensity of the noun becoming a verb.
The baby that follows the finger but immediately dispenses with it except in respect of its utility value, and by extension (or expansion) sees the moon, and might or might not find the moon 'beautiful', is learning how to go to the (Hollywood) cinema, and how to read most mainstream poetry. The (admittedly slightly enhanced) dog that sees the finger, and, rather than interpreting its semiotic significance, instead appreciates and reflects on the fingerness of the finger, its connotation of gesturality at all, and the human desire out of which the technology of gesture arises, has invented theatre. (But of course in saying 'cinema' and 'theatre' here I am describing kinds or qualities of relationship that may have nothing to do with particular instances of the events that might take place in buildings bearing those names.)
And so, after the Cat Test, the Dog Test. The dog does not fail to see the performance matrix (in Michael Kirby's terms), and does not require that the matrix is eliminated or disavowed. All it asks in return is that it be allowed to establish its principal (and perhaps only) line of relation with actualities. The object is not dependent on its place in a system that requires it always to signal beyond itself to an ulterior meaning. The object suffices in itself. This allows the dog, too, to suffice, and to exist on the same plane as the object. The Dog Test, like the Cat Test, is an experiment in acceptance; it describes an uncapitalist space, wherein our first thought is of the thing itself, not of what it can be exchanged for.
So I really want to see those fingers.
No animals were harmed in the making of this post.