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The Patents Designed to Make Carving Your Pumpkin a Little Less Messy
A group of innovators set out to simplify how we make classic Jack-o-Lanterns and their ghoulish grins
It's not Halloween until you've carved a pumpkin.
But as the clock ticks down to All Hallows Eve—and you scramble to outdo that smug Heisenberg grin your neighbor carefully carved last weekend—you might have stepped back from the kitchen table, cursing the slimy, stringy gourd innards tangled around your hands, and wondered why you were doing this to yourself.
(Or, perhaps, if the money you dropped on that electric pumpkin carving knife was really worth it).
All arrows seem to point to an old Irish legend about a man named Stingy Jack, who convinced the devil not to send him to hell for his sins when he died. The trick was on Jack, though, when he did die later—heaven shut him out, too, for bargaining with the man downstairs, and he was left to wander and haunt the Earth. Irish families began to carve crude, wild faces into turnips or potatoes come Halloween, illuminating them with candles to scare Jack and other wandering spirits away.
When immigrants brought the tradition to America in the 19th century, pumpkins became the vehicle for ghoulish faces. In 2012, Farmers harvested 47,800 acres of pumpkins in 2012, crops worth $149 million, according to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. This year, the National Retail Federation estimates consumers will spend $6.9 billion on Halloween products, including those handy carving tools and kits.
The genius behind those tools is a group smaller than you might think. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office says there have been fewer than 50 (probably closer to 30) patents issued for pumpkin or vegetable carving tools or kits, most of them issued in the past 40 years.
And while today we've become obsessed with clever ways to carve a pumpkin (yes, extremepumpkins.com does exist) most inventions stick to the classic Jack-o-Lantern face.
One of the earliest patents relied on simple tools — cords, plates and screws— to allow even the youngest and clumsiest among us to create a scary-looking gourd.
Harry Edwin Graves, from Toledo, Ohio—a state that yields the third highest number pumpkins in the United States each year—earned a patent in 1976 for his invention, which he called simply an "apparatus for forming a jack-o-lantern."
Graves knew, according to his application, that "It has been a very difficult, if not impossible, task for small children to make their own jack-o-lantern from a pumpkin" because the thick wall of the vegetable can be tough to puncture using kid-sized hands and arms.
His solution: a metal or plastic contraption that surrounded the pumpkin, with small plates in the shapes of a mouth, nose and eyes. By slipping the invention over the pumpkin, children can turn a screw on the front of each facial feature, engaging a blade that cuts through the shell and then retracts.
But threading plates together—or wielding a steak knife—was still for many a cumbersome task.
And so with the 1980s—along with cringe-worthy neon clothing choices, MTV, Michael Jackson, Madonna and Prince—came a decade bursting with new patents for carving pumpkins.
In 1981, Christopher A. Nauman, of Frederick, Maryland, earned a patent for a method of carving Jack-o-Lanterns that was safer, he said, because it relied on cookie-cutter facial features and not carving objects.
While using cookie cutter shapes wasn't a new idea, Nauman distinguished his design by contouring the cookie cutters to better fit against the curved surface of the pumpkin. And, when users hit the top edge of each shape, the cookie cutter presses directly through the pumpkin, which means users don't have to go searching for pins or knives to pry the cookie cutters out of the pumpkin's face.
Cookie cutter-shapes were also the inspiration for Thomas C. Albanese's design, but his 1987 patent—which he claimed could "overcome the shortcomings of the prior art"—included a detachable handle. The handle gives enough leverage to push the beveled edge of the shapes, from eyebrows to crooked teeth, through the pumpkin wall; the hollow shapes also hold on to the cut piece of pumpkin as it's removed from the gourd, so stray hunks of the shell aren't trapped inside the lantern, though admittedly that last step seems to work better in theory than in practice.
But the real advent of what we know today as pumpkin carving kits came in the late 1980s, thanks to a man named Paul John Bardeen.
Bardeen, according to patent documents, is considered among the first to develop tools that allowed Halloween lovers to carve intricate designs on their pumpkins, instead of crude, block-shaped faces.
He developed new saws and small knives, but more importantly, pattern sheets, which allowed pumpkin carvers to take a lot of the guesswork out of the process.
Bardeen died in 1983, but his children, wanting to continue his legacy, formed a company now known as Pumpkin Masters to sell the kits and continue to dream up ways to simplify or improve the carving process.
Bardeen apparently never filed a patent of his own, but his son, John P. Bardeen, used his father's design to earn his own patent on a pumpkin carving kit in 1989, taking the kit to the mass market for the first time. The kit packaged slightly more sophisticated saws and drills with a number of pattern sheets, decorated with a series of holes in the shapes of facial features and other designs. Carvers used a corsage pin to poke holes through the surface of the pumpkin, and after removing the sheets, connected the dots with cutting tools to form faces or drawings of cats and bats. A bonus: the kit also included an instruction book that detailed which tools to use when carving some of the kit's designs.
Bardeen's kit got traction in the late 1980s when he appeared on "Monday Night Football" with a pumpkin carved to show the likeness of the show's hosts; he reportedly (did he or didn't he? We can't confirm?) went on a "pumpkin tour" in the years that followed, carving pumpkins for "Seinfeld" and the "Today Show," among other stars, and perhaps sparking new imagination behind the lanterns people put out on their porches.
But even after etching words, animals and celebrity faces into pumpkins became all the rage, the market for new pumpkin tools kept chugging to the tune of "Pumpkin Carving for Dummies"- or, more recently, avoiding the actual act of carving all together.
In 2000, John P. Bardeen's former wife, Kea Bardeen, developed a kit that included transfer sheets so consumers could literally "slap and go." Some sheets are pre-made, already stamped with bright colors, while others are drawn without color or blank, so they can be decorated and embellished with markers and paints. The designs are pressed and transferred onto the surface of the pumpkin with a transfer sheet and paste, water solvent or glue.
The beauty of this design, for those who despise the thought of spending days picking stray pumpkin seeds off the floor, is choosing how much work to put into your pumpkin. It would be especially useful for young children, as the kit is essentially a giant coloring book (that makes, compared to paper and crayons, just a bit more of a mess). But going this route—which more or less makes your creation irrelevant after dark—is technically just pumpkin painting, an activity most of us preferred to put behind us come kindergarten.
Enter the lazy man (or woman)'s way to carve.
In 2001, Michael A. Lani developed carving plates that poke holes into a pumpkin's surface, but unlike Bardeen's design, this invention does the hard work for you. The design involves a flexible plastic plate with pins arranged in the shape of a Jack-O-Lantern face, which lets you poke the design into a pumpkin with just a simple push of the plate — much faster than working through dozens of holes with a single corsage pin.
And for those of us for whom pins are too much work — or really need to let out some of that anger from the office— the Halloween pumpkin punch out kit might be the best option. The 2008 design by Laraine and Randy Reffert of Ohio includes metal facial features that you quite literally punch through the surface of the pumpkin, usually with a hammer.
But even pumpkin carving has had to eventually join the electronics age.
In 2009, a group of inventors from Ohio patented an electric knife with a blade adapted to cut through the shell and pulp of a pumpkin—but, thankfully, "not readily cut the skin and flesh of humans."
The knife, though plastic, allows for "faster, more precise carving of pumpkins with less physical force being required." The knife, powered by batteries, is turned on or off with a push button on the front of the handle so you can stop and go as needed.
Now, everyone from Martha Stewart to the Boston Red Sox have printable templates on their site — and there are even ways you can carve any picture into the front of a pumpkin, too.
It seems the bar for Jack-O-Lanterns is climbing each year, and if you want to keep up it could be time to call in the big guns. A Google search for electric pumpkin carving knives didn't yield any products from Emerald Innovations, LCC, to whom the patent is licensed, but similar products are available for anywhere from $4 to $34 — which could just be the price of having the best pumpkin on the block.


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Skin Cancer May Have Driven Evolution of Black Skin
Black skin may have evolved to protect early humans who lived up to 1.8 million years ago from skin cancer, a new study suggests.
The British research team bases their theory on data from today's African pale-skinned albinos — people with genetic changes that prevent the production of the skin pigment melanin.
The researchers believe that pale-skinned early humans from areas of Africa with the highest exposure to the sun's unhealthy ultraviolet (UV) radiation were under strong evolutionary pressure to develop darker skin to help shield against skin cancer.
"Charles Darwin thought variation in skin color was of no adaptive value and other investigators have dismissed cancer as a selective force in evolution," lead researcher Mel Greaves, director of the Centre for Evolution and Cancer at the Institute of Cancer Research, in London, explained in an institute news release.
"But the clinical data on people with albinism, particularly in Africa, provide a strong argument that lethal cancers may well have played a major role in early human evolution as an important factor in the development of skin rich in dark pigmentation — in eumelanin," Greaves said.
Research suggests the evolution of black skin, rich in the eumelanin pigment that most effectively protects against sun damage, occurred in early humans living between 1.2 and 1.8 million years ago in the East African Savannah.
These early humans likely lost most of their body hair to help stay cooler, revealing pale skin like that of chimpanzees, their closest relatives, Greaves and colleagues suggested.
Although skin cancer is rarely fatal at ages young enough to affect reproduction, the study, published Feb. 25 in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, revealed that 80 percent of black people with albinism from African equatorial countries such as Tanzania and Nigeria, now die of skin cancer before they reach the age of 30.
There's also an association between albinism and skin cancer among people in Panama and other tropical countries with high, year-round UV exposure, the researchers pointed out in the news release.
The investigators added that increased production of black melanin could have had other health benefits that helped early humans pass on key genes to future generations — DNA that helped prevent damage to sweat glands or the destruction of folate, a nutrient critical for fetal development.
Looking ahead, the researchers said they plan to continue their investigation of human evolution in order to shed light on why human cancers develop. They will also focus on the development of drug resistance and the genetic diversity within individual tumors.
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides more information on the risk factors for skin cancer.
Source: HealthDay
Copyright © 2023 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

subset: commoncrawl


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CryptoUK Pressures MPs to Regulate the UK's Digital Currency Industry
A group of British cryptocurrency platforms are putting pressure on several members of parliament to regulate the U.K. digital currency space favourably.
CryptoUK comprises of eight members and aims to create a more transparent and reliable legal status for investors and businesses in the sector.
Regulation Could Either Stifle or Encourage Financial Innovation in the UK
CryptoUK put forward their proposals in writing to the Treasury Select Committee's inquiry into cryptocurrencies today. The inquiry aims to explore how digital currencies are used in the U.K. This will include the risks that the emerging financial innovation will pose to businesses, consumers, and the government.
The self-regulated group of exchanges are hoping that the U.K. will follow a liberal approach to regulation. In today's correspondence with MPs, the group suggested that they should favour regulation that targets exchanges and other such service providers, rather than the digital currencies themselves. They also believe that the governing of the cryptocurrency investment sector should be the remit of the U.K.'s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
In addition, CryptoUK wants the FCA to be responsible for creating and enforcing various new requirements. These will include anti-money laundering rules, operational standards, and checks on the appropriateness of investors.
The chair of the group and current managing director of eToro, Iqbal Gandham, spoke to local news source CityAM earlier today about CryptoUK's suggestions:
"Introducing a requirement for the FCA to regulate the 'on-off' ramps between crypto and fiat currencies is well within the remit of HM Treasury. Based on our analysis, this could be achieved relatively easily, without the need for primary legislation, and would have a huge impact, both in reducing consumer risk and improving industry standards."
He went on to cite examples of countries who had successfully regulated along a similar approach to the one advocated by CryptoUK. The nations mentioned explicitly were Japan and Gibraltar. Finally, Gandham highlighted the importance of the U.K. approaching cryptocurrency regulation sensitively:
"This is a wonderful opportunity for government to take a proactive stance, putting action where there are positive words and reinforcing the U.K.'s role as the world's financial capital."
With the U.K.'s departure from Europe imminent, digital currencies could provide a convenient opportunity to lure businesses to the British Isles. If regulation is handled well and provides companies in the space with sufficient incentive to relocate to the U.K., cryptocurrency could inject much needed capital into an economy that many fear will be worse off following the completion of Brexit next March.
DAstra Network's Launchpad and Token Constructor: Simple and Decentralized
Currently, the world of cryptocurrencies and Decentralized Finance (DeFi) is developing rapidly, offering new opportunities and solutions for various areas of life. Attracting investments was no exception: unlike traditional investment platforms, where all decisions are made by a centralized team, crypto panels are based on blockchain technology, which allows network participants to independently make decisions and control their investments. The trend towards decentralization and increased user control over their data is called WEB3. To promote WEB3, you need simple and affordable solutions – this is what DAstra Network is ready to Tokenization and WEB3 provide.
Tokenization and WEB3
Launchpads, ICOs and IDOs are effective and proven ways to raise investments within the WEB3 paradigm. In exchange for investment, investors receive native tokens of the project, which they can use at their discretion.
Tokenization allows for fractional ownership and liquidity of traditionally illiquid assets, such as real estate or early-stage startups. Tokens can represent shares in a company, access to certain products or services, or have other features and benefits. If this is a GameFi Play2Earn project, then the tokens can represent in-game currency or in-game assets. Ultimately, tokens can be liquid and traded on cryptocurrency exchanges, allowing investors to quickly sell them or exchange them for other assets.
However, despite all the advantages of WEB3, the entry threshhold for using decentralized services remains quite high. For example, most people interested in cryptocurrency still prefer to use centralized crypto exchanges (CEX) such as Binance and Coinbase, but face difficulties when trying to use decentralized exchanges (DEX).
What is DAstra Network?
DAstra Network is a decentralized, but simple to use investment platform that empowers startups and businesses to obtain financial support for their solutions. By harnessing the power of tokenization , the platform facilitates startups in creating and listing tokens to attract funding opportunities. With just a few clicks, startups can now create tokens and list them on the platform to secure funding. This grants them the opportunity to tap into funds from private investors, venture capital firms, and passionate supporters worldwide.
DAstra Network ecosystem consists from 3 modules:
- The Launchpad platform offers a secure way to attract investments and protect investor capital by utilizing smart contracts.
- The platform uses a native DAN token that can be used to pay for services related to the issuance of digital rights. Additionally, token holders can enjoy additional benefits
- Our platform provides an internal exchange where investors can trade and sell digital financial assets of various projects. This exchange facilitates the seamless transfer of assets between investors.
Key strategic decisions on the development of the DAstra Network are made by the Decentralized Autonomous Organization. DAO participants not only take part in the management of Dastra, but also have the opportunity to earn up to 2 percent of the investments they attract to the project. The level of privileges in the DAO is determined by the number of DAN tokens held and involvement in the development of the DAstra Network
Native token
The DAstra Network uses native ERC-20 token called DAN. This token provides holders with various privileges:
- Priority queue for investments in the most promising projects
- Opportunity to participate in the wide selection of business projects for admission to the platform
- Discounts on services for promoting investment projects.
- Reduced fees for companies from attracted investments
The price of the token at the presale is only $0.008, and at the listing stage it is $0.021. This means that investors will be able to receive almost 300% profit!
Our future plans include expanding the DAstra Network platform to become an internationally recognized investment accelerator management system. This platform will feature its own decentralized fund, enabling startups selected by DAO members to receive funding. Our plan is to promote web3 and decentralization, bring more liquidity to the crypto market and venture capital, while keeping things simple and easy.
Our site: https://dastra.network/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DAstra_network?t=lnrLuVW7zW_kNus3zg2nxg&s=09
Main Telegram Channel: https://t.me/dastra_international
Telegram Chat: https://t.me/dastranetworkint
Polkadot reveals future-proof scaling updates at sub0 developer conference
Developers of Polkadot, the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation, will start testing a new process that will provide radical scaling solutions for the network within a matter of weeks.
The plans were unveiled at sub0, the Polkadot Developer Conference, by Sophia Gold, Engineering Lead at Parity Technologies, a leading contributor to Polkadot.
She said asynchronous backing would enable Polkadot to more than triple its number of validators by the end of 2024 to around 1,000, describing this as "the most significant evolution of parachain consensus since we launched parachains almost two years ago."
She added: "What's unique about backing in Polkadot is that it's enshrined – it's implemented natively on the protocol level and not on the smart contract level, which gives us capital efficiency and censorship resistance. Asynchronous backing enables flexible scheduling for our future scaling work through elastic scaling and instantaneous coretime. We have a credible roadmap to get Polkadot to support 1,000 parachains and 1m+ transactions per second. The design is there – we know how to scale Polkadot for the indefinite future."
A release of asynchronous backing is due to be deployed to Polkadot's Rococo testnet in about two weeks.
Habermeier expands blockspace narrative
Sophia Gold was followed on-stage by Polkadot cofounder Robert Habermeier, who unveiled new concepts and architectural components that would enable roadmap features first outlined at Polkadot Decoded in June.
These features, including those known as 'agile coretime' and 'elastic scaling', would enable more flexible and efficient use of Polkadot's blockspace and computing power, better serving innovators at all stages of growth, and taking the network beyond the existing parachain model.
He outlined a proposal for a new process of submitting work to Polkadot that would enable the network to process a much wider range of activity than parachains alone, including the ability to deploy smart contracts directly to a Polkadot core.
He explained: "This is how you would get to the point of cores being used by different parachains or bundled in all these different ways without having to enshrine that directly into Polkadot's protocol. Rather, we make it possible through experimentation at higher levels."
This new model would also enable a much anticipated feature known as atomic composability, enabling simultaneous execution of operations from multiple parachains at a time for more complex cross-chain transactions.
Accelerating smart contract delivery
The second day provided some important updates on the work carried out by OpenZeppelin on the OpenBrush contract library, intended to ease the development of Polkadot's native ink! smart contracts. This includes the creation of easily implementable and extensible smart contract standards and translating Solidity contracts into ink!.
Felix Wegener, Security Services Manager of OpenZeppelin, said: "We made suggestions on how to change design choices, tooling, upgradeability and macros, and moving forward we see great promise in the ongoing developments of the Polkadot ecosystem."
João Santos, Project Manager of OpenZeppelin, said his team had proposed open-source parachain runtimes and underlying FRAME pallets to accelerate the development and deployment of new and secure parachains.
He added: "We believe the initial step here is a generic runtime to allow projects to have a common base and start building immediately. Then we can start taking the learning we had developing this runtime, take the community feedback and then think about what's next."
New Ledger app coming
Juan Leni, CEO of Zondax, a major software developer for the Ledger hardware wallet, explained how his team is developing a new Ledger app for Polkadot that depends on verifiable metadata. He said: "I haven't seen anything similar in other ecosystems. It will feature very minimal updates to the runtimes and to the wallets, we started research and development back in June."
The single Ledger app can support any parachain in the Polkadot ecosystem, a boost for user experience of cold wallets on Polkadot, as previously, a separate app was required for each network. The app will feature clear signing of all transactions for maximum security.
His colleague Fernando Theirs said: "The integration for new parachains should be super simple. If you respect the metadata protocol it should be almost out of the box."
Attendees also heard how Snowbridge, an Ethereum bridge to be built on the Polkadot Bridge Hub, is in position to deploy on the protocol's canary network before the end of the year.
The plan is for each parachain to have its own dedicated messaging channel to Ethereum, unlocking a high degree of flexibility. Snowbridge is a trustless, decentralized mechanism for linking the Ethereum and Polkadot ecosystems, and is designed for general purpose.
About Polkadot
Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. It enables Web3's biggest innovators to get their ideas to market fast, with flexible costs and token options. By making blockchain technology secure, composable, flexible, efficient, and cost-effective, Polkadot is powering the movement for a better web.
Solar Dex to relaunch on Quai Network
While many solutions for blockchain scalability have been proposed, they remain unable to crack the blockchain trilemma, sacrificing security and decentralization. Quai is the first blockchain protocol that is simultaneously decentralized, censorship resistant and infinitely scalable. Quai, in contrast to traditional cryptocurrencies, functions as a network of many interoperable blockchains braided together. Due to a breakthrough discovery that occurred during research on proof-of-work, Quai Network utilizes a new consensus mechanism, proof of entropy minima (PoEM), which eliminates all consensus-based forks and enables all Quai nodes to remain in "perpetual consensus."
Solar Dex began as the first United States-based decentralized exchange on Solana, and will now be pivoting to build on Quai as one of its first DEXs. Due to a loss of TVL on Solana and many Solana-based projects moving strictly to NFTs, the Solar team has decided to get ahead of the DeFi curve and take advantage of Quai's low-cost, high-speed decentralized network in order to better position Solar Dex for the next bull run. The team at Solar is building on top of Quai Network to "ensure a more sustainable future for Solar Dex."
Roy Fardin, chief business officer, said: "After talking to the Quai Network team, we have never been more bullish about a layer 1 with scalability and its passion for growth. It was a clear eye-opener that they care about DeFi and want other projects that utilize this network to succeed. The vision behind Quai brings the best of Ethereum and Solana all together into this new network."
Solar Dex will be reworking the DEX into several components as it builds on Quai. The DEX will not only support traditional swaps, but also add in customizable swap themes. In addition, Solar Dex's Solar Sentries NFTs will allow staking as a yield opportunity derived by all exchange fees earned from Sentry Mode projects.
Richard, CEO of Solar Dex, said: "On top of traditional DEX swaps, Solar Dex will be adding limit orders on Quai. "We're doing a total revamp of the website and DEX which should be very aesthetically pleasing and simplistic to onboard new users to DeFi and also Quai."
With Quai's Iron Age Testnet beginning in September 2023, Solar Dex will be prioritizing its deployment on Quai for the coming months. There will be incentives to beta-test Solar DEX on Quai and additional generalized rewards will be provided by Quai for participating in the Iron Age Testnet. On top of this, the Solar team will be adding a surprise feature to the DEX to build excitement for Quai's testnet launch, as well as utilizing its incentive program to reward holders.
With backing from Polychain Capital and an expert team with backgrounds at Apple, GridPlus, Tesla, Consensys, Circle and more, Quai is excited to usher in a new generation of innovative applications that don't sacrifice decentralization.
LeveX Unleashes Next-Gen Social Trading Features, Pioneering a Cohesive Crypto Trading Ecosystem
Unveiling a new era in cryptocurrency trading, LeveX brings to the fore an unprecedented integration of social trading into its platform, fostering a vibrant and connected trading community. Beyond this landmark feature, LeveX also offers a plethora of innovations, enhancing the trading experience like never before.
LeveX: A Leading Edge in Cryptocurrency Exchanges
At its heart, LeveX presents itself as a superior cryptocurrency exchange platform that provides a robust, fast, and efficient interface for trading. Users have access to a wide array of spot and derivatives pairs, including prominent ones like BTCUSDT, ETHUSDT, and LTCUSDT among others, creating an ample scope for diverse trading opportunities. Coupled with professional perpetual contracts offering up to 100x leverage, LeveX stands on par, if not ahead, of other leading exchanges in the crypto landscape.
However, what sets LeveX apart is its pioneering leap beyond the conventional trading experience. The platform does not merely match industry standards but goes beyond to provide additional, unprecedented features. These unique offerings bridge the gap between trading and community engagement, leading to its next innovative feature: Social Trading.
Social Trading Reimagined: Trading, Sharing, and Thriving Together
LeveX introduces a revolutionary social content feed directly integrated into users' dashboards, akin to Twitter, yet optimized for the crypto trading ecosystem:
- Transparent Trading Posts: Influential Traders can share detailed transaction information, such as pairs traded, quantity, direction, price, and date. Media, videos, and specific trade IDs are shareable for seamless follower interaction.
- Custom Tournaments: Both platform-wide and exclusive tournaments created by Top Traders for their followers, with incredible prize pools.
- Custom Funds Creation: Leading traders can curate specific altcoin funds, allowing followers to view details and invest directly.
- Native Analytics Tools: LeveX plans to introduce analytics and data within the platform to provide equal knowledge and access for all users.
- Trader-Influenced Platform Choices: Recognizing the invaluable insights and preferences of its user base, LeveX has integrated a voting system tied to trading volume. Users earn voting power proportionate to their trading activity, allowing them a say in pivotal decisions of the platform. Whether it's casting a vote for the next cryptocurrency to be listed, suggesting novel trading tools, or recommending feature implementations, traders can actively shape their LeveX experience, reinforcing the community-centric approach of the platform.
The innovation of LeveX's social trading stems from the seamless integration of its unique features. This distinct platform eliminates the prevalent fragmentation in the crypto trading community. It no longer requires prominent traders to maintain a presence across various platforms, creating a centralized hub for them to grow their following, share their insights, and directly engage with their followers through custom tournaments and funds.
For users, this cohesiveness amplifies their trading experience as they are equipped with more information and choices than ever before. It's as simple as logging in to see what their trusted veteran trader is doing, copying a trade, or joining a fund or tournament — all in real time. Plus, the forthcoming analytics tools, typically available through separate subscriptions, will now be integrated into the platform and accessible for free.
The cumulative effect of these innovations is a robust and inclusive platform that harmonizes social interactions and trading activities. LeveX thus provides a stronger edge and enhanced opportunities to its users, cultivating an environment where everyone has a chance to thrive.
The LeveX VIP System and Pioneer Phase Campaign
Distinguishing itself from the industry norm, LeveX offers a VIP System with an unprecedented 25 levels of exclusive rewards, allowing traders of all volumes to reap substantial benefits. The perks culminate at VIP25, where spot fees are waived entirely, and traders have the chance to win up to $500,000 in a lucky draw.
In conjunction with the VIP system, LeveX is planning a Pioneer Phase Campaign for the platform's inaugural period. The campaign will consist of multiple rewarding events that encourage and allow users to trade, test, and report feedback, generously rewarding these inaugural platform pioneers with a total of $90,000 for their contributions.
- Top Traders: A Volume-Based Leaderboard with a reward pool of $30,000 USDT, incentivizing active traders and harnessing the energy of competition to refine the platform's robustness.
- Feedback Champions: An interactive program inviting users to share invaluable feedback, with a chance to partake in a $10,000 USDT lucky draw prize pool. This embodies their belief in co-creation, valuing the insights from those they serve.
- Bug Bounty Hunters: A reward initiative with a pool of $50,000 USDT, targeting different aspects like Spot trading, perpetuals trading, and more. It exemplifies the commitment to excellence and trust in the community to help achieve it.
Whether it's through active trading, providing valuable feedback, or identifying system bugs, LeveX recognizes and rewards the combined efforts that go into refining its platform. This initiative is a testament to LeveX's core vision: creating a collaborative trading ecosystem, where innovation is fueled by collective insights and effort. The final systems that will enable this campaign are under development, but users should keep a keen eye on all channels for the eventual announcements.
Users are welcome to become a part of a thriving community and register now at: https://levex.com/en/register
About LeveX
LeveX is a cutting-edge cryptocurrency exchange designed to empower every trader. The platform brings together state-of-the-art trading tools, game-changing social trading features, and an unwavering commitment to transparency, fairness, and inclusivity. Born out of the frustrations experienced by traders on traditional platforms, LeveX redefines the crypto trading landscape by prioritizing user needs and bridging the information gap between professionals and everyday traders. With a strong community focus, LeveX fosters an environment "Where Traders Thrive Together," delivering an unmatched crypto trading experience that puts traders first.
Offchain Labs and Espresso Systems Partner to Bring Transaction Ordering Technology to Ethereum Rollups
Today, Espresso Systems and Offchain Labs announced that they have formed a partnership towards bringing decentralized and open shared sequencing technology to Ethereum rollups. The collaboration will see the teams undertake joint research on Timeboost, a transaction-ordering design previously proposed by Offchain Labs, and will support technical integrations between the Arbitrum technology stack, Timeboost ordering, and the Espresso Sequencer.
Espresso Systems is the lead developer of the Espresso Sequencer, a platform designed to decentralize sequencing for Ethereum rollups, offering developers and users across different rollups a more seamless and secure path to interoperability while maintaining the fast response time available to users today. Espresso Systems, with the support of Offchain Labs, is now prioritizing integration with the Arbitrum technology stack, aiming to support any Arbitrum technology chain that chooses to leverage its decentralized, shared sequencer platform including support for distributed Timeboost ordering.
Timeboost is a new transaction ordering policy designed by Offchain Labs that relies on sealed-bid priority gas auction ordering. The Timeboost system limits harmful forms of MEV (frontrunning) while supporting efficient markets allowing chains to internalize other forms of MEV like backrunning. Timeboost prioritizes user experience and ensures the timely processing of all user transactions. In collaboration with the Offchain research team, Espresso Systems will develop a production-ready, open-sourced, and distributed implementation of Timeboost that can be adopted by any network, including any Arbitrum chain and can integrate directly with the Espresso Sequencer.
The Espresso Sequencer itself is a consensus protocol that supports proposer-builder separation (PBS). This enables other advanced transaction ordering policies to be implemented at the builder level, such as MEV auctions and rebate protocols like SUAVE. Rollups can choose to enshrine a builder protocol (like Timeboost) or, by default, use PBS. Espresso Systems is glad to lend its research and development resources to support a variety of ordering approaches that align with user needs, such as Timeboost.
The Espresso Sequencer recently released its third testnet and currently supports the OP Stack, the Polygon zkEVM stack, and has a dozen independent rollup teams working on integrations with the technology. Support for the Arbitrum technology stack will enable Arbitrum chains to integrate with the Espresso Sequencer and further Espresso's implementation of a neutral and open protocol that is compatible with all of Ethereum's rollups.
Ben Fisch, co-founder and CEO of Espresso Systems, said of the partnership: "We are excited to have Offchain Labs' support in bringing an open, freely accessible shared sequencing platform to all ecosystems on Ethereum and it is a pleasure to partner with their team to improve user experience on rollups as we innovate on transaction ordering policies. Offchain Labs has pioneered many of the breakthroughs behind the most widely-adopted scaling solutions in the industry, and it is a privilege to partner deeply with them."
"We're thrilled to work with the Espresso team on researching Timeboost and bringing shared sequencing technology more broadly to Ethereum rollups," added Steven Goldfeder, Co-founder and CEO of Offchain Labs. "The technology will enable fair and efficient ordering policies and open possibilities for deeper integrations among rollups which opt to participate in shared sequencing."
Offchain Labs and Espresso Systems will be sharing a roadmap soon for their research and implementation of the Timeboost builder module and for the ability to integrate the Espresso Sequencer with Arbitrum technology chains. The two teams look forward to the advancement of the partnership as they share a vision for the decentralized, and user-aligned future of shared transaction sequencing on Ethereum rollups.
Follow along with the work @OffchainLabs and @EspressoSys on Twitter and on the Arbitrum Research Forum for more.
About Espresso Systems
Espresso Systems is the lead developer of the Espresso Sequencer, a platform offering decentralization, speed, scale, and interoperability to rollups. The Espresso Sequencer currently has testnets that are compatible with the OP Stack and the Polygon zkEVM ecosystems with 10+ rollup teams actively building integrations. Espresso Systems is backed by over $30mm from funds including Electric Capital, Greylock, and Sequoia.
About Offchain Labs
Offchain Labs is a venture-backed, Princeton-founded company that has dedicated over five years to blockchain research and development. As the original contributors to Arbitrum, Offchain Labs has been instrumental in revolutionizing the industry through this leading network scaling solutions. The team continues to build upon this foundation by innovating and enhancing products such as Prysm, Arbitrum Orbit, Stylus, and Arbitrum Nitro. In October 2022, Offchain Labs acquired Prysmatic Labs, the leading consensus client for Ethereum, further cementing Offchain Labs alignment with Ethereum.
CipherBlade and MacNerd Unite to Fortify Blockchain Security
CipherBlade, a leading name in blockchain forensics, will collaborate closely with MacNerd, a pioneering force in blockchain technology and software development. While both companies bring unique strengths to the table, this collaboration will predominantly focus on bolstering crypto security and investigation services.
CipherBlade's track record of recovering millions of dollars in stolen cryptocurrency, coupled with MacNerd's technical prowess, creates a formidable alliance. This partnership will offer:
- Enhanced Blockchain Security: MacNerd and CipherBlade's collaboration will result in heightened security measures for clients involved in blockchain technology. By pooling their resources and expertise, they will provide increased protection against cyber threats, making the blockchain ecosystem safer for users.
- Comprehensive Crypto Forensics: CipherBlade's proficiency in investigating cryptocurrency-related crimes will merge seamlessly with MacNerd's technical capabilities. This union ensures a more thorough and effective approach to detecting and recovering stolen crypto assets.
- Rapid Response: In the event of cryptocurrency incidents, clients can count on a swift response from MacNerd and CipherBlade. Their joint resources, including exchange partnerships, legal support, advanced technology for risk detection, and top-tier expertise, ensure a quick and efficient response to mitigate losses and initiate investigations promptly.
Steve (Mac) McKeon, CEO of MacNerd, expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership: "This is an exciting collaboration between two pioneering companies in the blockchain industry. Working with CipherBlade gives us the opportunity to strengthen our existing client relationships and cultivate new ones. This partnership will help protect them all from black hats and bad actors, and keep their data, networks and servers secure."
"We are excited to partner with MacNerd to expand our reach and offer our services to a wider audience," said CipherBlade's CEO of America, Justin Maile. "Our partnership with MacNerd reflects our commitment to delivering actionable solutions that empower individuals and organizations to protect their digital assets. Together, we're taking a proactive stance against crypto-related crimes, and our expertise will shine a light on the path to a more secure blockchain ecosystem."
About CipherBlade
CipherBlade is a blockchain forensics agency that provides cutting-edge solutions in cryptocurrency investigations. With a team of experienced investigators, they track cryptocurrency in all cyber enabled cases using blockchain forensics. CipherBlade's services cover a variety of ways to tackle cryptocurrency related crimes, from the basic scam cases to extensive cryptocurrency exchange hacking incidents. Their record of success and close collaboration with law enforcement, regulators, cryptocurrency exchanges, intelligence communities and law firms make them the go-to agency for digital asset investigations. For more information, please visit https://cipherblade.com.
About MacNerd
MacNerd is a software development company specifically dedicated to security in the blockchain space. The company was created to explore the near-endless application possibilities for the technology and to ensure that the security this technology provides underscores its need for adoption. A part of the FBI InfraGard, MacNerd also works hand-in-hand with local and federal organizations on certain cases, providing deep technical forensics to help resolve data breaches, cyberattacks and hacking incidents. For more information, please visit macnerd.io.
Alchemy Pay Deploys on Polygon zkEVM as an Early Stage On-Ramp Provider
Alchemy Pay is deploying its payment services on Polygon's new zkEVM chain, to be one of the first fiat-crypto on-ramp providers to support the zkEVM ecosystem. Users of the network from all over the globe can now purchase cryptocurrencies using their preferred local fiat payment methods.
Developers building on the new zero-knowledge proof network can now benefit from Alchemy Pay's direct-to-customer plugin, which can be easily integrated and deployed by dApps and platforms with minimal cost and hassle. Alchemy Pay has supported tokens and projects on Polygon mainnet since 2021, and as one of the world's premiere fiat-crypto payment gateways, it has been selected as one of the first ramp providers to integrate its on-ramp service on Polygon's new chain.
"It's exciting to see projects like Alchemy Pay help to improve the onboarding and usability of the Polygon zkEVM blockchain" Jack Melnick, Head of DeFi BD at Polygon Labs, "Alchemy Pay truly acts as a user-friendly gateway to the crypto spaces for users. The Polygon zkEVM ecosystem is very excited for this deployment."
Polygon zkEVM Architecture & Benefits
Polygon zkEVM is an Ethereum Layer 2 scalability solution that uses cryptographic zero-knowledge proofs to offer validity and quick finality to off-chain transaction computation, also known as a ZK-Rollup. Developers on Polygon zkEVM can use the same code, tooling, apps, etc that they use on Ethereum, but with higher throughput and lower fees.
The ZK-Rollup executes smart contracts transparently, by publishing zero-knowledge validity proofs, while maintaining opcode compatibility with the Ethereum Virtual Machine. This documentation explains the finer details of zkEVM's sub-components, including the zero-knowledge Prover (zkProver), the State Machines used in the zkProver, the zkEVM Bridge smart contract, and the special toolings that enable the Polygon zkEVM to achieve its objectives.
Developers are able to deploy their existing smart contracts to the zkEVM, and users can deposit assets from Ethereum and transact off-chain. These transactions are grouped into batches with zero-knowledge proof attesting to the validity of each transaction. This means the network inherits the security of Ethereum.
Alchemy Pay: Truly Global Fiat-Crypto Services
Alchemy Pay's payment gateway enables payments using Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and Diners Club across 173 countries, along with domestic transfers and mobile wallets in developing markets. Its user-friendly KYC process, low fees, and exceptional conversion rates make buying and selling cryptocurrencies with local currencies as convenient as any typical online payment. Alchemy Pay's extensive network features over 300 fiat payment channels, allowing its checkouts to go beyond card payments and tap into local mobile wallet options.
Founded in Singapore in 2017, Alchemy Pay seamlessly connects crypto with traditional fiat currencies with its on & off Ramp solution, NFT checkout, white label crypto-funded cards and crypto payments.
Polygon zkEVM Further Information
About Alchemy Pay
Founded in Singapore in 2017, Alchemy Pay is a payment gateway that seamlessly connects crypto with traditional fiat currencies for businesses, developers, and end users. With its On & Off Ramp solution, NFT Checkout, Crypto Card and Crypto Payments, Alchemy Pay supports payments in 173 countries. The Ramp is a one-stop solution to buy and sell crypto and fiat, easily integrated by platforms and dApps according to requirements. The NFT Checkout enables direct purchases of NFTs using fiat payment methods. The Crypto Card solution empowers businesses and token issuers to provide users with branded virtual and physical cards for instant global spending. ACH is the Alchemy Pay network token on Ethereum and BNB Chain.
zkPass pre-alpha testnet opens for public testing
In a significant stride towards revolutionizing data privacy and verification, zkPass, the innovative privacy-preserving protocol for private data verification, announces that its Pre-alpha Testnet is open for public testing.
A Glimpse into the Future: zkPass Pre-alpha Testnet
The zkPass Pre-alpha Testnet presents a transformative approach to private data verification. Built on the bedrock of Multi-Party Computation (MPC), Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKP), and Three-party Transport Layer Security (3P-TLS), zkPass introduces TransGate—a gateway empowering users to selectively and privately validate their data from any HTTPS website. This encompasses diverse data types, including legal identity, financial records, healthcare information, social interactions, work history, education, and skill certifications. zkPass achieves these verifications securely and privately, obviating the necessity to reveal or upload sensitive personal data to third parties.
The Power of Scalability
zkPass can be readily incorporated into multiple application scenarios, including composable decentralized identity passes, DeFi lending protocols based on off-chain credit, privacy-ensured healthcare data marketplaces, and dating apps featuring verifiable zkSBTs, etc. Wherever there is a need for trust and privacy, zkPass can provide a solution.
By employing cryptographic technologies like MPC, ZKP, and others, zkPass enables users to validate their private data through the verification of their HTTPS-based web session—eliminating the need for file uploads or the exposure of sensitive details.
For example, through zkPass, Alice can prove:
- Based on her server response to the Steam/GOG website, she has purchased 10+ games with 100+ hours of gameplay and is not required to disclose any other private information about her account to a third party.
- Based on her server response with the Harvard Alumni website, she has a Bachelor's degree and is an alumnus of Harvard University, but does not disclose any of her other superfluous personal data.
- Based on her server response with the Porsche website, she owns a Porsche, but does not disclose her frame number, purchase order, or other private data.
- Based on her server response with the bank's website, she owns assets greater than $100K, but does not disclose any of her specific account assets, transfer records, or other private data.
zkPass can be applied in various scenarios to enhance user experience, trust, and privacy:
- The Metaverse/GameFi program is looking for gaming ambassadors to participate in a test and offer a reward, and they can easily verify that Alice is their target user.
- Alice can seamlessly access the Alumni DAO via her zkPass zkSBT while ensuring privacy and trustworthiness.
- Alice leveraged her RWA ZKPs to establish a reputation for high ratings, which allowed her to access a DeFi lending platform and secure lower mortgage and borrowing rates, ultimately boosting her capital efficiency.
By redesigning the TLS protocol to Three-party TLS, zkPass makes it seamless for any HTTPS-based website to be used as a trusted data source for provenance of zero-knowledge metadata without having to authorize any APIs.
Open Invitation to Shape the Future
zkPass launched its Pre-alpha Testnet in July, receiving an overwhelming response with over 200,000 waitlist signups. Currently, tens of thousands of whitelisted users have already generated more than 100,000 zero-knowledge proofs, each representing their respective private data, identity, or ownership.
User feedback holds immense importance as it helps refine and enhance their solution. The public release of the Pre-alpha Testnet extends a warm invitation to technology enthusiasts, privacy advocates, and individuals who deeply value secure data practices. This invitation aims to shape the future landscape of data privacy alongside zkPass collectively.
Participating in the Pre-alpha Testnet not only grants users early access to an advanced solution but also empowers them to actively contribute towards its improvement. This collaborative effort is a key driver in tailoring zkPass into a privacy-focused protocol that empowers users in an increasingly data-centric world.
How to Get Involved
Getting involved in zkPass's Pre-alpha Testnet is simple:
- Users can Install the TransGate Extension from Google Chrome Web Store.
- Interested users join pre.zkpass.org to be a part of the Pre-alpha Testnet and experience firsthand the power of private data validation.
More tutorial details can be found on the doc wiki and engage with the zkPass community. Users are invited share their insights, and become an integral part of shaping this groundbreaking technology.
About ZkPass
zkPass is an advanced privacy-preserving protocol for private data verification. It allows users to securely and selectively validate their data from any HTTPS website, making it highly versatile for various applications, including banking and DeFi lending protocols. zkPass is the ideal solution whenever trust and privacy are essential.
Offchain Labs Brings Multi-Language Support via Arbitrum Stylus
Offchain Labs, the initial contributor to Arbitrum, today released the code and testnet for Arbitrum Stylus, a new technical implementation that allows developers to build smart contracts in Rust, C, and C++, alongside previously offered EVM languages. Multi-language support encourages developers to build on Arbitrum Nitro, the leading scaling solution for Ethereum, by utilizing the familiar WASM-compatible languages and facilitating cheaper dApp interactions due to lower gas costs. Offchain Labs will make Stylus available to the Arbitrum DAO for a vote on adoption of the tool.
For software engineers looking to enter the blockchain space, a constant barrier to entry is the limited number of languages in which they can code. Currently, there are estimated to be 3 million developers using Rust and 12 million developers using C, both of which will now be available via Stylus, compared to approximately 20 thousand developers using Solidity. Stylus removes this barrier by letting programmers use one chain with various programming languages alongside the unparalleled security, maturity, and scalability of Arbitrum technology. An entire new class of developers can now access the largest community of protocols and partners in the Ethereum ecosystem.
"Growing and building the most inclusive developer community is incredibly important to us," commented Steven Goldfeder, CEO and Co-Founder of Offchain Labs. "We want to open access for as many people as possible to create new applications and there is uncapped potential for innovation on the chain and technology stack. I look forward to a continuously flourishing ecosystem and collaborative community that will push the Web3 space forward."
Blockchain use cases that were previously impractical will now be possible due to Stylus' computational speed, improved cost efficiency, and access to the mature WASM ecosystem. Having a faster runtime than the EVM, WASM results in a faster execution – generally, a 10x improvement has been seen for contracts using WASM languages compared to contracts using EVM-based Solidity. Cryptography, mobile applications, high-compute gaming, and AI projects are specifically primed to take advantage of Stylus' language flexibility and improved computational efficiency. Additionally, Stylus will offer security benefits to avoid exploits, as reentrancy is disabled by default and can only be manually overridden.
In the future, any systems programming language that can compile to WASM is expected to be supported. While there are other blockchains execution environments that support a WASM virtual machine, Arbitrum's Stylus upgrade is unique as it is a dual virtual machine that can process both EVM and WASM contracts while also maintaining interoperability and provability over Ethereum.
For more information, please visit the Offchain Labs blog: https://medium.com/offchainlabs/stylus-now-live-one-chain-many-languages-eee56ad7266d
About Offchain Labs
Offchain Labs is a venture-backed, Princeton-founded company that has dedicated over five years to blockchain research and development. As the original contributors to Arbitrum, Offchain Labs has been instrumental in revolutionizing the industry through this leading network scaling solutions. The team continues to build upon this foundation by innovating and enhancing products such as Prysm, Arbitrum Orbit, Stylus, and Arbitrum Nitro. In October 2022, Offchain Labs acquired Prysmatic Labs, the leading consensus client for Ethereum, further cementing Offchain Labs alignment with Ethereum.
Yield IQ Announces Launch on Arbitrum
Maximizing earnings from liquidity provision and strengthening the Arbitrum ecosystem
August 31, 2023 — Yield IQ, the revolutionary liquidity provision tool that seeks to unlock new revenue streams for cryptocurrency token holders, is now live on the Arbitrum chain. Developed by a team of visionary developers and innovators in the DeFi space, Yield IQ limits impermanent loss and opens up new possibilities for individuals to effortlessly earn through liquidity provision.The launch presents an unprecedented opportunity for token holders, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), and other DeFi projects to maximize their earnings through Yield IQ's innovative strategies of yield optimization and liquidity management—while actively contributing to the growth and resilience of the broader Arbitrum ecosystem.
Arbitrum was chosen for this latest launch due to its scalability and efficiency, which will allow Yield IQ to maximize performance and better empower liquidity providers to generate substantial returns with improved liquidity, reduced costs, and enhanced trading opportunities. Yield IQ Vaults are also available on the Ethereum and Polygon networks.
Among the myriad benefits, Yield IQ's introduction to the Arbitrum chain offers liquidity providers:
- Improved Liquidity: Pairing Arbitrum tokens (ARB) with another token of choice can both enhance liquidity and foster a healthier, more vibrant ecosystem.
- Additional Earnings for DAOs: When a Yield IQ deposit widget is integrated to a partner's frontend paired with Chainlink Automation, projects become eligible for an additional 5% of the trading fees generated by the token's pool. These earnings flow directly into the users' DAO treasury, strengthening their financial position.
- Lucrative Returns: To ensure a promising investment opportunity for DAOs seeking stable and reliable returns, Yield IQ offers a 25% Internal Rate of Return (IRR) for ARB deposits paired with ICHI over the next 12 months, backed up with up to 50k ICHI tokens.
"Right now, arbitrage traders are winning the battle over liquidity," said Coburn Murray, CEO of values-driven investment firm Ethos Capital. "For most providers, it is not profitable or practical to ensure liquidity. Yield IQ, however, empowers providers to earn the most from their deposits, and we are excited to partner with the Arbitrum community to deliver optimal results and trading opportunities."
Developed and launched by Offchain Labs in August 2021, Arbitrum was designed to improve transaction speeds, enable scalability and ensure increased network privacy. The ecosystem sparked industry conversations earlier this year by airdropping $120 million worth of tokens to projects built on its network—and, in the process, both highlighting the potential for blockchain projects to utilize incentives and rewards for participation.
Since inception, Yield IQ has achieved remarkable success—boasting a median 30% annualized return on Polygon and partnering with Retro—a leading ve(3,3) DEX and a new automated liquidity management marketplace. By accessing Yield IQ via Retro's front end, users are able to lock their tokens for voting and gain influence over emission destinations, earning fees and rewards from the pools they support. This incentivizes users to thoughtfully consider their votes and helps steer the DEX in the right direction, promoting a community-driven ecosystem.
Yield IQ efficiently deploys liquidity to Uniswap V3 concentrated liquidity pools. With a single token deposit, projects can passively earn returns while the algorithm actively manages their preferred token and generates trading fees from liquidity pools. By leveraging a fully automated, on-chain liquidity provision strategy, Yield IQ enables liquidity providers to mitigate common challenges in generating consistent profits, capital inefficiencies, and a lack of expertise in liquidity provision strategies.
The launch on Arbitrum further strengthens Yield IQ's commitment to empowering users and contributing to the growth and resilience of the broader DeFi ecosystem. When ARB tokens are deposited into Yield IQ Vaults, token holders contribute to the strength and growth of the entire Arbitrum ecosystem. This means more stable prices, more efficient trades, and a wealth of opportunities for projects to flourish.
Learn more by visiting the ICHI Website, Medium, Twitter, Telegram, or Discord.
About Yield IQ
Yield IQ is a fully automated, single sided concentrated liquidity provision strategy. By making rebalancing decisions based on token composition instead of token price, Yield IQ limits impermanent loss and generates industry leading results. True to the spirit of DeFi, Yield IQ is governed by a self-executing smart contract, ensuring impartiality and decentralization. This ensures unrestricted, permissionless access and unalterable protocol behavior, serving as a truly decentralized financial tool.
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Author and Curator: Ritu Saxena, Ph.D.
Introduction: Mitochondrial fission & fusion
Mitochondria, double membranous and semi-autonomous organelles, are known to convert energy into forms that are usable to the cell. Apart from being sites of cellular respiration, multiple roles of mitochondria have been emphasized in processes such as cell division, growth and cell death. Mitochondria are semi-autonomous in that they are only partially dependent on the cell to replicate and grow. They have their own DNA, ribosomes, and can make their own proteins. Mitochondria have been discussed in several posts published in the Pharmaceutical Intelligence blog.
Mitochondria do not exist as lone organelles, but are part of a dynamic network that continuously undergoes fusion and fission in response to various metabolic and environmental stimuli. Nucleoids, the assemblies of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) with its associated proteins, are distributed during fission in such a way that each mitochondrion contains at least one nucleoid. Mitochondrial fusion and fission within a cell is speculated to be involved in several functions including mtDNA DNA protection, alteration of cellular energetics, and regulation of cell division.
Proteins involved in mitochondrial fission & fusion
Multiple mitochondrial membrane GTPases that regulate mitochondrial networking have recently been identified. They are classified as fission and fusion proteins:
Fusion proteins: Members of dynamin family of protein, mitofusin 1 (Mfn-1) and mitofusin 2 (Mfn-2), are involved in fusion between mitochondria by tethering adjacent mitochondria. These proteins have two transmembrane segments that anchor them in the mitochondrial outer membrane. Mutations in Mitofusin proteins gives rise to fragmented mitochondria, but this can be reversed by mutations in mammalian Drp1. Mitochondrial inner membranes are fused by dynamin family members called Opa1.
Fission proteins: Another member of the dynamin family of proteins, dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp-1) mediates fission of mitochondria. Drp-1 is activated by phosphorylation. Drp-1 proteins are largely cytosolic, but cycle on and off of mitochondria as needed for fission. Fission is a complex process and involves a series of well-defined stages and proteins. Cytosolic Drp-1 is activated by calcineurin or other cytosolic signaling proteins after which it translocates to the mitochondrial tubules where it assembles into foci through its interaction with another protein, hFis1. Once Drp-1 rings assemble on the constricted spots, outer membrane of mitochondria undergoes fission through GTP hydrolysis. Drp-1 is now left bound to one of the newly formed mitochondrial ends after which it slowly disassembles before returning to the cytoplasm.
Control of mitochondrial fission & fusion
- Mitochondrial fission and fusion are controlled by several regulatory mechanisms. Few of which are mentioned as follows:
- Drp-1 activation by Cdk1/Cyclin B mediated phosphorylation during mitosis – triggers fission
- Drp-1 inactivation by cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) in quiescent cells- prevents fission
- Drp-1 activation after reversal of PKA phosphorylation by Calcineurin- triggers fission
- Ubiquination of fission and fusion proteins by E3 ubiquitin ligase- alters fission
- Sumoylation of fission proteins – regulates fission
Imparied mitochondrial fission leads to loss of mtDNA
Mitochondrial fission plays an important role in mitochondrial and cellular homeostasis. It was reported by Parone et al (2008) that preventing mitochondrial fission by down-regulating expression of Drp-1 lead to loss of mtDNA and mitochondrial dysfunction. An increase in cellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) was observed. Other cellular implications included depletion of cellular ATP, inhibition of cell proliferation and autophagy. The observations were made in HeLa cells.
MicroRNA regulation of mitochondrial fission
Although several factors have been attributed to the regulation of mitochondrial fission, the mechanism still remains poorly understood. Recently, regulation of mitochondrial fission via miRNAs has become a topic of interest. Following miRNAs have been found to be involved in mitochondrial fission:
- miR-484: Wang et al (2012) demonstrated that miR-484 was able to regulate mitochondrial fission by suppressing the translation of a fission protein Fis1, leading to inhibition of Fis1-mediated fission and apoptosis in cardiomyocytes and in the adrenocortical cancer cells. The authors showed that Fis1 is necessary for mitochondrial fission and apoptosis, and is upregulated during anoxia, whereas miR-484 is downregulated. Underlying mechanism involved transactivation of miR-484 by a transcription factor, Foxo3a and miR-484 is able to attenuate Fis1 upregulation and mitochondrial fission, by binding to the amino acid coding sequence of Fis1 and inhibiting its translation.
- miR-499: miR-499 was reported by Wang et al (2011) to be able to directly target both the α- and β-isoforms of the calcineurin catalytic subunit. Suppression of calcineurin-mediated dephosphorylation of Drp-1 lead to inhibition of the fission machinery ultimately resulting in the inhibition of cardiomyocyte apoptosis. miR-499 levels, by altering mitochondrial fusion were able affect the severity of myocardial infarction and cardiac dysfunction induced by ischemia-reperfusion. Modulation of miR-499 expression could provide a therapeutic approach for myocardial infarction treatment.
- miR-30: It was reported by Li et al (2010) that miR-30 family members were able to inhibit mitochondrial fission and also the resulting apoptosis. While exploring the underlying molecular mechanism, the authors identified that miR-30 family members can suppress p53 expression. When cell received apoptotic stimulation, p53 was found to transcriptionally activate the fission protein, Drp-1. Drp-1 was able to induce mitochondrial fission. miR-30 family members were observed to inhibit mitochondrial fission through attenuation of p53 expression and its downstream target Drp-1.
Mitochondrial fission & fusion as a therapeutic target
Since alteration of mitochondrial fission and fusion have been reported to affect various cellular processes including apoptosis, proliferation, ATP consumption, the proteins involved in the process of fission and fusion might be harnessed as therapeutic target.
Mentioned below is a description of research where dynamics of the mitochondrial organelle has been utilized as a therapeutic target:
Inhibition of mitochondrial fission prevents cell cycle progression in lung cancer
A recent article published by Rehman et al (2012) in the FASEB journal drew much attention after interesting observations were made in the mitochondria of lung adenocarcinoma cells. The mitochondrial network of these cells exhibited both impaired fusion and enhanced fission. It was also found that the fragmented phenotype in multiple lung adenocarcinoma cell lines was associated with both a down-regulation of the fusion protein, Mfn-2 and an upregulation of expression of fission protein, Drp-1. The imbalance of Drp-1/Mfn-2 expression in human lung cancer cell lines was reported to promote a state of mitochondrial fission. Similar increase in Drp-1 and decrease in Mfn-2 was observed in the tissue samples from patients compared to adjacent healthy lung. Authors used complementary approaches of Mfn-2 overexpression, Drp-1 inhibition, or Drp-1 knockdown and were able to observe reduction of cancer cell proliferation and an increase spontaneous apoptosis. Thus, the study identified mitochondrial fission and Drp-1 activation as a novel therapeutic target in lung cancer.
Research articles-
News brief:
Related reading:
Reviewer: Larry H Bernstein, MD, FACP
Author and Curator: Larry H Bernstein, MD, FACP http://pharmaceuticalintelligence.com/2012/09/26/mitochondria-origin-from-oxygen-free-environment-role-in-aerobic-glycolysis-metabolic-adaptation/
Reporter and Editor: Larry H Bernstein, MD, FACP
Author and Reporter: Ritu Saxena, PhD
Author: Ritu Saxena, PhD
Author and Reporter: Ritu Saxena, PhD
Reporter: Venkat S. Karra, PhD
Reporter: Aviva Lev-Ari, PhD, RN http://pharmaceuticalintelligence.com/2012/08/01/mitochondrial-mechanisms-of-disease-in-diabetes-mellitus/
Author and Curator: Ritu Saxena, PhD; Consultants: Aviva Lev-Ari, PhD, RN and Pnina G. Abir-Am, PhD


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Lufthansa at Zurich Airport
The modern infrastructure of Terminal 1 ensures short transfer times at Zurich Airport. You can find more information about Lufthansa at Terminal 1 and services at Zurich Airport here.
Terminal 1 at Zurich Airport
The modern and well-designed infrastructure and the tasteful ambience in Arrivals Hall 1 at Zurich Airport offer you the best possible comfort, friendly and efficient processing and the shortest transfer times.
See for yourself just how comfortable the terminal at Zurich Airport is:
Services at a glance
Thanks to the quick check-in process online or via our app and the numerous security lanes, you'll get to your departure gate in no time. It will only take you a maximum of 20 minutes from check-in to your departure gate.
In addition, if you are going abroad, the centrally located passport control ensures speedy processing.
Enjoy shorter distances: after landing, neither you nor your baggage have far to go. And a central exit will then swiftly get you to the airport railway station or car park.
We do everything in our power to make your journey run as smoothly as possible. And with this goal in mind, we have optimised the connections to and between destinations all over the world.
We have arranged a special counter for you that is ideally adapted to your needs. Of course, you'll also find all the adapted facilities you will need throughout the rest of the terminal, such as accessible toilets, telephones and fax machines.
Have a great time shopping and relaxing. Take your time and enjoy your stay in the Airside Center with its more than 60 shops, restaurants, bars and lounges.
Zurich Airport, with its over half a million visitors a year, both young and old, is one of the most popular and impressive destinations in Switzerland for family outings. Enjoy fascinating insights into, and views of, aircraft-related activity.
The entrance to the observation deck is located beside Check-in 2 in the public area. The entrance will take you straight to the observation deck.
Further information about Zurich Airport
You can find a lot more information about Zurich Airport, for example regarding arrivals by car or public transport, at the following link:


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Thursday, August 31, 2017
Wednesday, August 30, 2017
Tuesday, August 29, 2017
Hellboy and Abe
Posted by Jeff Victor at 3:53 PM 5 comments:
The Extraordinary Stan Lee
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Friday, August 4, 2017
Posted by Jeff Victor at 9:50 AM 2 comments:
Emperor Derp
Happy 25th Anniversary Batman: TAS
Tuesday, June 13, 2017
Friday, June 9, 2017
Marty and Doc
Posted by Jeff Victor at 10:31 AM 6 comments:
Riggs and Murtaugh
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Thursday, June 8, 2017
Wednesday, June 7, 2017
Tuesday, June 6, 2017
Party on Wayne.
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Monday, June 5, 2017
Wednesday, May 31, 2017
Monday, May 15, 2017
Friday, May 12, 2017
Thursday, May 11, 2017
Wednesday, May 10, 2017
Mini Thor Evolution
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Tuesday, May 9, 2017
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Tuesday, April 18, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #1
These characters ARE my childhood, and I can't express to you enough how absolutely beloved they all are to me. I have spent my lifetime watching the Star Wars movies over and over, collecting all the characters as action figures, studying dozens of books filled with information on how these characters were conceived, learning information about the performances, watching countless hours of interviews with the actors, and even traveling to fan conventions all over the world to greet the actors and get a personal perspective. My greatest dream is to do some official illustrations for Star Wars in some capacity.
I hope you enjoyed this list of favorite movie characters, and hopefully it brought back some good memories of your own favorite movie characters. If you'd like, let me know some of your favorites in the comments-I'd love to see how your list compares with mine! :)
Posted by Jeff Victor at 10:41 AM 1 comment:
Monday, April 17, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #2
Christopher Reeves' Superman was my first childhood hero. There was something so wholesome, so endearing, so human about him, that just made you want to be his friend. In these cynical times it's become popular to mock his earnest wholesomeness, but to a kid like me growing up, he was the perfect hero. Superman is more than just his power levels, he's an ideal we should all aspire to be. To help others, to fight for justice, and inspire the good in humanity.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 11:09 AM No comments:
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #3
#3 Marty McFly
Michael J Fox absolutely kills it as Marty in Back to the Future. So many classic moments, what's not to love?
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #4
#4 Peter Venkman
TRUE confessions: when I first saw Ghostbusters as a tot, a lot of the jokes sailed over my head. I didn't even realize it was meant to be a comedy. I thought it was a straight up horror movie. When I got a little older I realized just how hysterical it was. Oh, and Bill Murray is brilliant in it.
Friday, April 14, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #5
We've now entered the TOP 5! I hope you guys have been enjoying this countdown so far!
For me, Indiana Jones represents the ultimate fantasy character. (Sorry James Bond). He runs around the world having crazy adventures, falling in love with beautiful women, and punching Nazis. (Let's just pretend that the 4th movie never happened...haha)
Thursday, April 13, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #6
"Get away from her you bitch!" Coming in at #6 is Sigourney Weaver's signature role, Ripley from the Alien franchise. Ripley is tough as they come, but she's also incredibly smart, resourceful, mothering, and most importantly of all, she loves cats.
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Wednesday, April 12, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #7
ET was probably the first movie I distinctly remember seeing in the theater, and it left a huge impression on me. I remember sobbing in my seat at the end, and even when I watch it today, it totally triggers tears every time. Incredibly well designed to be at first scary and then sympathetic, I just can't help but love that squishy little potato alien.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 11:49 AM No comments:
Tuesday, April 11, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #8
I never get tired of watching Fargo. It's an absolute masterpiece, don'tcha know. My favorite movie by the Coen Brothers, Fargo is a pitch perfect black comedy. Frances McDormand gives a Oscar winning performance as Marge, perfectly balancing humor and pathos.
Monday, April 10, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #9
All through high school, I, like many kids, felt unpopular and unappreciated. I escaped into comic books and movies to deal with my feelings, but I always secretly loved the idea of taking revenge on my high school tormentors. However, I'm not a violent person, and I worked through my issues in a healthy way. Watching it again recently, Carrie really strikes a nerve with me. I can completely sympathize with her, and Sissy Spacek's performance is incredibly powerful.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 10:55 AM 1 comment:
Sunday, April 9, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #10
Some of you may be thinking, who's this? It's Humphrey Bogart's character from one of my favorite classic movies, Treasure of the Sierra Madre. An absolutely gripping tale about how gold warps a man's soul, Bogart gives an unforgettable performance as he lets his greed run away with him and eventually leads him to murder. His face muddy, his hair disheveled, Bogart leaves his movie star vanity at the door and delivers one of the greatest characters in film history.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 10:46 PM No comments:
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #11
Prior to Pulp Fiction I had seen Samuel L. Jackson pop up as a character actor in some of my favorite films (Goodfellas, Coming to America, etc), but it wasn't until his fiery turn as hit man Jules in Pulp Fiction that he blew my mind and became one of my all time favorite actors. No one delivers Tarantino's dialogue better, and his character's arc of redemption is an incredible thing to behold.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 10:45 PM No comments:
Friday, April 7, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #12
"Some men just want to watch the world burn." A lot of actors have portrayed the Joker over the years, but for my money, Heath Ledger's interpretation is the best. A reinvention of the character from the ground up, Ledger brings an unhinged chaotic edge to his performance. As he licks his lips with homicidal glee, he's less of a goofy clown, and more of a psychotic gangster. His "interrogation" scene with Batman is a highlight.
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Thursday, April 6, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #13
I wasn't sure what to expect when I first sat down to watch Kill Bill, but Quentin Tarantino's action epic hit me harder than a five point palm exploding heart technique. A delirious mix of kung fu, anime, and spaghetti westerns, the stand out character certainly was Uma Thurman as "The Bride". An absolute badass fighter, yet possessing tons of heart, Thurman makes her a complex, layered character.
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Wednesday, April 5, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #14
When I was a kid, I really wanted to be an actor. I did a lot of musical theater, and it was mainly inspired by my obsession with Little Shop of Horrors. I often would sing the songs to myself, dreaming of one day playing Seymour on Broadway. Life had other plans in store for me, but Seymour remains a beloved character. (And I still know all the songs by heart!)
Posted by Jeff Victor at 11:03 AM 8 comments:
Tuesday, April 4, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #15
#15: Ferris Bueller (aka Abe Froman, the Sausage King of Chicago)
The lead of one of my favorite 80's comedies, Ferris Bueller is the perfect high school role model. Sadly, I was more of a Cameron in high school than a Ferris, but I've always idolized Ferris' ability to get away with anything. Totally charming, popular without putting other kids down, and possessing the ability to get everyone in the city of Chicago to start spontaneously dancing, Ferris is the kind of guy everyone wants as a best friend.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 5:55 PM 1 comment:
Monday, April 3, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #16
The most recent character to make my list, I fell in love with Imperator Furiosa immediately. Charlize Theron has always been a great actress, but there was something really unique about this particular character. One of the most bad-ass women in film history, she stole the entire movie away from the male lead. While I can take or leave Tom Hardy as Mad Max, I would absolutely love to see more adventures with Furiosa.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 11:37 AM 1 comment:
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #17
#17: Rocky Balboa
"Yo, Adrian!" Man, I love this movie. If all you remember of the Rocky movies are the super cheesy, hyper-patriotic ones, give the first Rocky another look. It's a beautifully heartfelt drama and Sylvester Stallone has never been better.
"Yo, Adrian!" Man, I love this movie. If all you remember of the Rocky movies are the super cheesy, hyper-patriotic ones, give the first Rocky another look. It's a beautifully heartfelt drama and Sylvester Stallone has never been better.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 11:31 AM 1 comment:
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #18
Julie Andrews gives the performance of her career with Mary Poppins. (She is so great, you can almost overlook Dick Van Dyke's horrible accent, but I digress. Mary is charming, loving, and funny, the practically perfect nanny.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 11:29 AM 4 comments:
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #19
Robert DeNiro's most indelible character, Travis Bickle, from Taxi Driver, is endlessly fascinating. Self described as "God's Lonely Man", anyone who finds themselves disenfranchised with society can find something to relate to in Bickle's persona. The ambiguous ending only heightens the mystery of his madness.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 11:25 AM No comments:
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters: #20
Appearing as the Tramp or, as Chaplin used to call him, "the little fellow", in movie masterpieces such as Modern Times, City Lights, The Gold Rush, and the Great Dictator, Chaplin imbued his character with boundless humor and pathos. His films are still immensely entertaining and relevant nearly 100 years after they were made.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 9:58 AM No comments:
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #21
When I watched the first half of Silence of the Lambs on VHS, it was about 4 months before I saw the end. It was so disturbing to me, I really didn't want to see the finale. Hannibal was a big reason for that. While Buffalo Bill is a more 'realistic' killer, Hannibal is a masterful creation. Depraved, cunning, and ferocious, but also refined, polite, and intelligent. (Plus he was a pretty amazing artist. I couldn't draw the Duomo from memory nearly as well, haha.)
Posted by Jeff Victor at 10:38 AM No comments:
Tuesday, March 28, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #22
When I first saw Beetlejuice I was amazed at Tim Burton's boundless creativity in crafting an entire world full of scary yet humorous creatures. However, none are as indelible as Michael Keaton's tour de force performance as "Bio- Exorcist" Beetlejuice. Funny, annoying, and disgusting all at the same time, Beetlejuice is one of film's most memorable characters ever.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 8:19 AM 1 comment:
Monday, March 27, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #23
When I first saw Beauty and the Beast as a kid, Belle was a revelation. Disney princesses had up until then had been passive characters, not having much personality or agency. Ariel was the first to break the mold in the new generation of Disney women, but Belle really drove the point home. She was smart, kind, empowered, and romantic. (Full disclosure: as a young teen, I also may have had a slight crush on her too.)<3 p="">3>
Posted by Jeff Victor at 10:42 AM 1 comment:
Sunday, March 26, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #24
Jim Carrey is absolutely hysterical as Lloyd in Dumb and Dumber. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in a movie theater. I really don't know what else to say, he's just hilarious.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 1:57 PM 1 comment:
Saturday, March 25, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #25
I fully recognize that a lot of people now think Mel Gibson is an unbelievable jerk, but when I saw Braveheart back in 1995, I was blown away. Gibson's largely mythological portrayal of Scottish freedom fighter William Wallace totally captured my imagination. I'd never seen such an incredible portrayal of medieval combat on screen before. Plus, he gives arguably the most rousing pre-battle speech in cinema history.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 11:28 AM 2 comments:
Friday, March 24, 2017
Top 30 Favorite Movie Characters #26
Appearing in 3 Sergio Leone westerns, Clint Eastwood made a name for himself appearing as "The Man with No Name". He's called Blondie in the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, so that's what I'm calling him here. Possessing a super relaxed attitude, Blondie is tough, lethal, honorable, and funny, and it's no wonder the character made Eastwood a huge star.
Posted by Jeff Victor at 8:53 AM No comments:
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text:
Home Page Chess Life Online 2011 May American Chess Academy Hosts 1st Annual Open
|American Chess Academy Hosts 1st Annual Open
|By Kostya Kavutskiy and Jerry Yee
|October 5, 2011
American Chess Academy(ACA) , continued his efforts to promote chess this past weekend in Los Angeles with the 1st Annual Open in Glendale, California. The unrated event was held at the prestigious Armenian Society of Los
Angeles and drew a turnout of 58 players that included 3 GM's, 5 IM's
and a WGM. The high profile players in this group were GM Varuzhan Akobian, GM Melikset Khachiyan, IM Zhanibek Amanov, IM Andranik Matikozyan, IM Jack Peters, IM Timothy Taylor, IM Anthony Saidy, IM Larry Remlinger, and 2011 U.S. Women's Championship runner up, WGM Tatev Abrahamyan.
IM Armen Ambartsoumian, founder and Head Coach of the
IM Ambartsoumian's two year search for a venue that could match the usual comfortable hotel settings seen for typical chess events like this one....ended when the Armenian Society of Los Angeles offered its sponsorship in the middle of this past summer, just a few months after the completion of the building's construction and grand opening. The building's beautiful architecture and plush overall design feels like a cross between an upscale luxurious hotel and a private art gallery.
The event coincided with this past week's local celebration of Armenia's 20th anniversary of their Independence Day by Glendale's Armenian community.
1st-3rd: GM Varuzhan Akobian, WGM Tatev Abrahamyan, NM Garush Manukyan 4-1
1st U2200: Craig Clawitter, 2nd: Jay Stallings, Daniel Mousseri
1st U2000: Daniel Lin, 2nd: Ryan Polsky, Spartak Ohanyan
1stt-2nd U1800: Leo Kamgar, Sherif Toma, 3rd: Jackson Stallings, Annie Wang,
1st U1600: Razmik Hambarttsumyan
It was rumored that the President of Armenia, who is a big fan of chess and also the Chairman of the Armenian Chess Federation, was supposed to make an appearance in support of the event. This was the case, but at the last moment the visit was cancelled due to security reasons. The U.S. Secret Service explained to Armen that they would need to evacuate the building and do a security sweep prior to the president's arrival. Seeing as how this would be impossible during a chess tournament, the appearance was cancelled. Nevertheless, the casual event had plenty of excitement!
That the tournament was unrated did not stop the top players from trying their best to prove their skills in rapid chess. GM Akobian started out strong with 3/3 but then got scalped for two draws in the final two rounds by IM Zhanibek Amanov and NM Garush Manukyan, who earlier in the tournament defeated GM Melikset Khachiyan.
WGM Tatev Abrahamyan lost to Akobian in round 2 but then won 3 straight, including a last round upset of IM Andranik Matikozyan.
For more on the ACA, see the official website at http://achessacademy.org/.


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Bluegrass 101
Mileage: 25.6
September mileage: 294.2
If there's one thing Alaska will never have a shortage of, it's live bluegrass music. You can't wheel a cart down the frozen food aisle without bumping into someone who plays in some kind of bluegrass band. I personally work with more than a handful of such musicians. Tonight we went to the Island Pub for thin-crust pizza and ended up spending a couple of hours watching the stylings of a decent Juneau bluegrass band, "Bluegrass 101." Most of the musicians were inexplicably dressed like mod hipsters, dancing around the stage as they shared a single microphone. But in the back, almost lost in shadows, was the female bass player. Decked out like an extra in "Annie, Get Your Gun," she stood with quiet dignity and plucked at the strings as the whirlwind swirled around her. It made me wish I never gave up the bass.
It happened in the seventh grade - a terrible time to take up any instrument, really, let alone such a social monstrosity. But that's how things happen with me. I showed up at Orchestra 101 on the first day of school and sat in quiet confusion as they doled out all the string instruments. After a while, my bespeckled string-bean of a teacher held up a bass. Nobody volunteered. He looked pleadingly at the class, in such a way that without even saying a word, he somehow convinced me that I would be adored and showered with As if I accepted the strange challenge. I remember the decision being motivated by a misguided attempt to be a teacher's pet. But I think there were early sparks of an inherent desire to be unique. Either way, my reluctant hand crept into the air.
I didn't quite realize the gravity of my mistake until the teacher assigned everyone an hour of practice per night. He said this as I stood next to my instrument, towering a full two feet above my 5-foot, 90-pound frame. But it didn't sink in until he handed me the body-bag-sized carrying case.
In middle school, I lived literally behind my school building. It was a two-minute walk if I dawdled. But the prospect of hoisting that thing across the soccer field, past the fence and into my house filled me with the kind of terror that only 12-year-olds can appreciate. I've been trapped beneath an overturned raft in churning whitewater. I've ridden out a swirling storm at 13,000 feet in a turboprop plane. Those later experiences don't even come close to the kind of scary I was facing as I stood in the empty orchestra room and contemplated my walk home from school.
So there I was, the end of my first day in middle school, waiting and waiting and waiting in the dark room until I was certain that either the building had cleared out or the apocalypse had come. I crept into the empty hall, first dragging the bass behind me, then bear-hugging it as a waddled slowly foward. When I reached the door, I lifted it over my head with all the strength my tiny arms could muster and broke into a full-out, no-holds-barred sprint. I truly believed that by running fast enough, I would somehow become invisible. My lungs burned and biceps ached, but they were no match for the searing humiliation, the indignity of it all. I don't know that I've since run so hard, or experienced a 200-yard commute that took so long. But I made it home, wheezing, panting, sinking into the numb realization that this was what my life was going to be like every day from now on.
Well, the next day my mom put in a call to the school and came to an agreement that they would give me two basses, one to keep at home and one to play at school. That first-day bass run was the only one I ever did, but the damage was done. Any chance I ever had for musical passion had burned out in a flash of embarrassment. I was, from that day forward, the surly, scowling adolescent slumped over a string bass in the back row.
Do you ever wonder how your life would be different if one single day, one simple humiliation had somehow worked out differently? That's what I wonder sometimes about the upright bass. Maybe I wouldn't have become one of those people that obsessively rides a bicycle every day. Maybe I'd be in a band called Bluegrass 101.
It almost seems strange that I'll never know.
7 comments:
I used to play the violin.ReplyDelete
No, let's re-phrase that............
I held the violin under my chin and tortured my music teacher with it.
it's never too late....ReplyDelete
peace out, yo!
Life is a strange and wonderfull thing. Great post.ReplyDelete
I love the image of you sprinting with the bass over your head...while in the midst of 7th grade angst.ReplyDelete
Luckily, my dad found me a used flute....
I'd be able to pee in a public urinal...ReplyDelete
I had to play the upright bass in college, because the electric bass was not considered a legitimate instrument. I was older and wasn't embarrassed about it, but it was like transporting a canoe around with you! And because of this, I left it in the locker at school a lot. And because of this, I could never make a pleasant sound out of it. And because of this, I ditched orchestra a lot... Thankfully I was allowed to play electric bass in the jazz band, which I really enjoyed. If I remember correctly though, you could take the peg out of the bottom of the bass and replace it with a wheeled peg, making it easier to get it to my pickup truck in the rare event that I took it home to practice.ReplyDelete
I don't understand why people don't enjoy the bass more, I'm a Junior in High School in Alaska, and I've played the bass in many of the bluegrass bands the writer talks about, it's great! :DReplyDelete


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An Introduction to Jewish Voice for Peace's Portland Chapter
Through grassroots organizing, education, advocacy, and media, Jewish Voice for Peace works to achieve a lasting peace that recognizes the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians for security and self-determination.
Jewish Voice for Peace is the only national Jewish organization that provides a voice for Jews and allies who believe that peace in the Middle East will be achieved through justice and full equality for both Palestinians and Israelis. With offices in New York and California, 100,000 online activists, chapters across the country and an Advisory Board comprised of numerous prominent Jewish thinkers and artists, JVP supports nonviolent efforts here and in Israel-Palestine to end Israel's Occupation, expand human and civil rights, and implement a US policy based on international law and democracy.
- Conducts global campaigns to defend and free Israeli and Palestinian human rights activists
- Fights McCarthyite censorship of debate and misuses of the charge of anti-Semitism, especially in the Jewish community
- Supports the growth of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement through divestment from companies that profit from the occupation
- Works in coalition with others including Arab, Muslim, Palestinian and Christian groups to fight bigotry and end the occupation
- Facilitates Congressional outreach regarding policy in the region
- Supports alternative Jewish rituals that include Palestinian narratives
National JVP Contact Information
National JVP Staff and Board
National JVP Advisory Board
National JVP Mission Statement
Frequently Asked Questions about JVP
JVP Policy Statements


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On 30 August 2004, SandroHawke upgraded the MoinMoin install to the latest in Debian Testing, with occasional comment from DanBri and DanConnolly.
The character encoding was changed from iso-8859-1 to utf-8, to allow full unicode. We ran "iconv" on all the data/text pages, so they should be okay, but this doesn't show up in the wiki's version control. Older version were not iconv'd.
Report any problems here, please.It seems the conversion was not very successful, for example on RecentChanges my name appears ISO-8859-1 encoded and the <meta> element also declares ISO-8859-1 but the HTTP header declares UTF-8 which results in garbage. Similar on BjörnHöhrmann, my name in the <title>, in