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Doctor Who: Inferno - Special Edition (UK - DVD R2)
The Wilson Bros get the marshmallows ready for their date with Inferno...
Season seven of Doctor Who was going swimmingly - Jon Pertwee's dashing Doctor had brought in a new, more adult audience, along with a not-unattractive intelligent female assistant and a regular cast of supporting characters had given the show a new lease of life. Oh, and the transition to colour helped a bit too. However, changes were around the corner and this did not just related to a trip to a parallel world...
The Doctor has been called in to act as a consultant on an ambitious drilling project that has the potential to harness a vast, untapped source of energy lurking beneath the crust of the Earth. The Doctor's arrival at the site, which also has a nuclear power station, seems to suit his own ends, as he intends to use the power coming from the reactor to conduct experiments on his TARDIS console, in the hope that he can produce a way of travelling through time and space without the need for a pesky dematerialisation circuit (which was half-inched by his fellow Time-Lords when he was exiled to Earth). During a nuclear power surge as the vast robotic drill prepares to burrow its way through the Earth's crust, The Doctor is accidentally transported to a parallel universe where things are decidedly hostile - a fascist Orwellian totalitarian society exists where the power is held by one man and his position is maintained by a heavily-armed militaristic force that keeps the population in control by maintaining a climate of fear. As if all this wasn't enough, murderous creatures have started roaming around the facility, popping the clogs of people attached to the project…
The Pertwee era ushered in a new direction for Doctor Who - The Doctor was forced to regenerate and was exiled to Earth by his fellow Time Lords. This was a handy move on the part of the production, as it meant that less elaborate alien sets and costumes needed to be designed, it also meant that stories could focus upon a newer kind of terror that the general public could identify with.
One of the most memorable stories of the Troughton era was The Web of Fear, which saw the London Underground invaded by the Yeti. This had a profound effect on a generation of kiddies - suddenly, taking a Routemaster around the Big Smoke seemed like a much safer option. It was this sort of home-grown menace that became rife during the first half of Jon Pertwee's tenure as The Doctor. From the very first story, Spearhead From Space, many of the terrors seen would be grounded in some kind of reality - very handy for scaring the shit out of the kiddiewinks (the documentary on the DVD release of Genesis of the Daleks confirms that writer Robert Holmes' personal mission on the show was to scare impressionable little kids!)
Early on in Pertwee's Doctor Who years, a "format-breaker" story was included - and Inferno was the result. Short of allowing the Doctor to actually travel in space and time whilst still in exile, which is what they eventually did anyway, they came up with something that would still be relatively cost-effective, but also very inventive from a storytelling point of view. This story was the fourth and final one of season seven and neatly follows the rules of drama, meaning that in order to play with a format you have to establish and reinforce before you subvert. The subversion here comes in taking characters that the audience has come to know and love and then twisting them into "evil" versions of them and seeing how The Doctor reacts to them all. To writer Don Houghton's credit, he avoids the simplistic black and white approach to good and evil and certain has numerous shades of grey between them, with Section Leader Elisabeth Shaw being a prime example.
Inferno seemed to adopt the Star Trek rule of parallel universe stories - have most of the cast playing (almost) exact opposites of themselves and ensure that at least one of them has some kind of distinctive facial difference (a scar, or some other thing) - the best example of this comes with Nicholas Courtney in the parallel universe; this Lethbridge-Stewart has no moustache and an eye-patch - Courtney usually wore a fake moustache for Doctor Who, but in this story, because the viewer is drawn to the fact that his moustache comes and goes throughout the story, so the fake one he wears as the "real" Lethbridge-Stewart for Inferno looks like a dead caterpillar glued to his (stiff) upper-lip.
The story takes a couple of episodes to get going, but once The Doctor crosses over to the parallel universe, the story really shifts into gear and it becomes a fascinating story of juxtapositions and intrigue. In the parallel universe, the Brigadier is Brigade Leader Lethbridge-Stewart; Liz Shaw is Section Leader Elizabeth Shaw, and so on. Though there are differences between the two worlds, there are many similarities and The Doctor realises that both sides are conducting the same drilling project, and that the consequences could be equally disastrous for both worlds, and The Doctor must try and return to the "real" Earth to avert a global catastrophe.
The story is very inventive, as characters die in one Earth whilst continuing to live in the other - it is this inventive storytelling that keeps the viewer on their toes. What was most appealing was that at a crucial point in the story, The Doctor manages to convince one of the "bad" characters in the alternate reality about the fundamental similarities between her and her counterpart in the other Earth. It is this "humanity" that is what Doctor Who is all about; though The Doctor is an extraterrestrial, he is arguably typifies the more virtuous aspects of humanity than most of the human beings he encounters on his travels.
What makes Inferno such a joy to watch - despite the somewhat bloated seven episode length - is that it is directed by Douglas Camfield, widely acknowledged as being one of the very best Doctor Who directors. Camfield's desire to push things as far as he can is seen in both the location film footage, which features plenty of action and dynamic editing, and is also seen in the more constrictive confines of the studio, where even though the video-cameras used were still cumbersome and only one or two steps up from being powered by coal, Camfield makes the most of the large set at the drill-head and has his actors pitch-perfect with their lines and also in hitting their marks on time so the almost balletic movement of the cameras capture everything perfectly; there are some long and audacious shots for what was effectively "live" recording. Camfield's directorial instructions were so meticulous that when he suffered a minor heart attack just before shooting episode three, that producer Barry Letts took over in an uncredited manner and followed the instructions and nobody noticed much in the way of tonal shift for the rest of the episodes - although Camfield's episodes were slightly more cinematic in our opinion.
There are solid performances from all concerned, particularly Pertwee, who seems to revel in being really able to cut loose with his prickly "I told you so" attitude that seemed to define his characterisation of everybody's favourite Time-Lord. Caroline John gives a great performance, having two very different roles to contend with - unlike Courtney's dual roles, which were his usual Brigadier and Brigade-Leader and required him to be merely "good" or "bad" - John was allowed to be much more subtle, painting her performance of Section-Leader Elizabeth Shaw in shades of grey, rather than black and white; fitting really, as this - sadly - was her last full-time appearance on Doctor Who. Ms John looks particularly fetching in the black wig and fascist uniform, though…
The wonderful Christopher Benjamin appears as bespectacled civil servant Sir Keith Gold and has the unenviable task of delivering much in the way of expository dialogue during the first episode to bring both characters on-screen and the audience up to speed - to his credit, he is able to do this in a manner that seems effortless. Benjamin's Sir Keith has serious doubts about the nature of the drilling in both universes, but a potentially nasty fate awaits him in whichever one he is in…
Inferno also benefits from having a strong antagonist - Olaf Pooley as Professor/Director Stahlman really sinks his teeth into the part(s), giving a performance that will have viewers baying for something nasty to happen to him, though with him playing two versions of the same character, viewers might want something doubly nasty to occur. Stahlman in the alternate universe is little different to his counterpart, only he's a bit more of a bastard and that he has a fascist military police force to back him up, along with secret operatives to covertly bump off those who stand in his way.
Episode six is by far the best in this story, as the parallel world begins to tear itself apart and there is a strong and pervasive sense of impending Armageddon as the end of the world is nigh and the iron-fisted order steadily breaks down, with chaos and confusion presiding over the final moments of that particular Earth. What is also great to watch during this episode is the way that the characters react and change when they all eventually realise that their world is doomed and that they are all facing imminent death; without giving too much away, some are pragmatic, one of them has more in common with her other-worldly self than she realised and one backs up the old maxim that bullies are ultimately cowards.
If there is a little aspect to this story that bogs it down a little, it is that the appearances from the Primords, which just feel like they were conceived as a way of having a "monster" in the story (in much the same way that Russell T Davies would later insist during his tenure); they have a certain charm and it must have been very liberating for actors who had played "straight" characters earlier in the story to cut loose, but they seem to detract from the main storyline.
This particular story was originally released on DVD in 2006 and was the first story to undergo the Reverse Standards Conversion technology; allow us to go back to a review we wrote at the time to explain what we thought of the original release...
"The guys at the Doctor Who Restoration Team kept Inferno on the back-burner (pun intended) until sufficient restoration technology had been perfected so they could restore the story to it's former glory. Like so many of the earlier half of the Jon Pertwee era, many of the stories only exist as distinctly poor quality NTSC copies, as the Beeb in their short-sightedness, were still routinely wiping and reusing the videotapes at the time. Being frank, those expecting it to look like most of their usual work will be a little disappointed, but this is merely due to the fact that the quality of the materials they had to work with weren't exactly marvellous. All previous colour Doctor Who stories released on DVD came straight from the original Quad masters (or from digital copies sourced from said Quads), so the quality was pretty much assured. Because Inferno is such a treasured story, fans will be pleased with the results on display here, but there will be some viewers who will be disappointed. To the nay-sayers, we would urge them to catch Inferno next time it plays on satellite television and THEN ask them what they think of the DVD release.
The Restoration Team have used their Reverse Standards Conversion software on Inferno, designed to "unpick" the drop in quality caused by the conversion from PAL to NTSC. Sadly, the results are not perfect - anyone who has watched Inferno on UKTV Gold will know just how dreadful the materials the guys of the Restoration Team had to work with. The RSC manages to restore the episodes to something approaching the way they looked, but there is a little shimmering on certain parts of the image, most notably high contrast areas. The colours still look off (the tell-tale banding is still present), but there was little that can be done about that once it was converted NTSC (as the great Victor Lewis-Smith once called it Never Twice the Same Colour). Generally speaking, the Restoration Team has made Inferno look as good as it is ever going to look. Maybe we were expecting miracles, but it sure beats the living shit out of watching it on UKTV Gold!"
What a difference a few years make in terms of the continuing advancement of technology; this new restoration of Inferno really knocks spots off the previous one. There is improved clarity and colour, including more image detail in close-ups of members of the cast. The original release suffered from a distinctly fuzzy, off-air look to the picture, but it has been significantly improved with this version. The film sequences still look like a second or third generation of-air copy, but they are still a marked improvement over what was previously available.
Though the overall quality of episode five doesn't quite match the others (it's not terrible by any stretch of the imagination, but you notice that there is a bit of a drop in resolution and something of an increase in fuzziness), this is still marvellous work that manages to breathe another much-needed breath into a story that was dealt something of a bad hand over the years.
Nothing much to complain about as far as the restoration is concerned, but those with any degree of hearing difficulty will be advised that a creative decision made during production means that for many of the studio scenes set in the thick of the drilling, there is an underlying rumbling sound that tends to drown out (or at least make somewhat difficult to hear) some of the dialogue.
Audio Commentary: As with the recent spate of Special Editions releases, it will come as no surprise that this is another vintage commentary track, in both senses of the term, as the appearance of Nick Courtney and Barry Letts conclusively give away - that you have already heard it is possibly another one. It makes no difference, as it's a pretty damned entertaining way to watch Inferno in the company of people who really were at the top of their game when they made it, and their affection for the show is definitely infectious, with more than a few laughs at all shortcomings, no matter how minor. Oh, and fairly bitter ex-actor John Levene is also on board - well, being towed in his own rowboat behind the ship, anyway.
The gregarious grouping of Nicholas Courtney, Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks provide the bulk of the commentary, the three of them possessing a great rapport, with their memories of the filming, considering that it was (at time of recording) filmed over thirty-five years ago. Actor John Levene pops up now and again (and even gets episode four all to himself) to provide some amusing anecdotes, particularly of note is his blunt admission that he doesn't like actors and that Pertwee had "a bit of an ego" on him. Levene also says that trying to look tough onscreen can be difficult, and probably even more so when Inferno saw him made up to look exactly like the Club Secretary from The Monster Club. His participation really breaks up the flow of things, and whilst there are so good things rattled off by the UNIT stalwart, you have to wonder if it was a considered choice to be recorded on his own or that there was no room left in the booth for others once his ego was safely inside.
Courtney kicks things off as he professes that: "This story…is my own personal favourite, because I get to play two parts - the nice Brig and the nasty Brig". Sure, any actor likes taking a break from their usual character in a series, but few get to play them as broadly as those in the parallel universe. A glaring discrepancy between location worked and material taped at the BBC, this being the size of Pertwee's bowtie, which shrinks when indoors, "Lack of continuity between film and the studio, you see," confesses Letts. "…that's the sort of thing the producer is supposed to notice - but I didn't. Well, I've noticed now, but it's a but late now…" Cue throaty, rasping chuckle from Courtney. "Maybe they can lengthen it digitally…" jokes Dicks, ever one to crack wise.
One of our favourites recollections involves the process of outfitting the Brigadier with suitable clothing for a man of his position, whilst circumventing the problems which special effects would have. Namely, this is how the usual uniform would see Courtney wearing a blue beret, which would make the top of his head disappear whenever Colour Separation Overlay would be employed. The solution? A trip to an expensive tailors in London to get a nice green one instead, keeping the Brig from partial desertion when a particularly fearsome monster confronted him.
For all his ego-driven faults, Levene has very sharp recollections of the filming, never once failing to pick out stuntmen at work and instances of when said professionals came a cropper, including where poor old Alan Chuntz had his leg ripped open by a glancing blow from Bessie's mudguard. "It burst it absolutely wide open," grimaces Levene, "…in fact, it was one of the worst wounds I have ever seen". Levene remembers that even when conveying an obviously fascist dictatorship, they were not allowed to employ the Nazi salute to each other, coming up something akin to an open-fisted version of the Black Panther sign. He loved working with the rest of the cast, and has no shame in telling everyone, even when some of the working conditions were less-than-hospitable, which draws out his feelings towards certain thespians: "I often dislike actors, " he starts, "…who talk about how hard something is, especially these Hollywood actors that earn twenty million bucks a time and say 'oh, it was so tough…' well, for twenty million dollars, it's meant to be". We're sure there are many who would agree with Sgt Benton on that one.
At the start of episode two, Letts and the guys crystallise what most had already worked out, but it's great to hear it from the man himself: "…we always had these recaps," notes the producer. "Just to remind people". With unparalleled timing, Dicks muscles in to finish off Letts' thought-process: "Sometimes if we were running short, we would have a very long recap!" Not to be outdone or talked over, Letts reveals a little extra with: "…I have know occasion where we had to put extra stuff in!" It this kind of playful banter which could only come from people with a good working relationship and deep-rooted camaraderie, and all the more fun for it.
Dealing in the currency of Sci-Fi is something both Letts and Dicks do with a good deal of knowledge between them, with the former more versed in the first part of the term, and the later the fiction end of the moniker, and whilst this can make for a great dynamic in writing, certain frictions arise, evidenced when Dicks mentions the previous traditions of the genre now being discarded, "In Fifties science-fiction," the writer starts, "…Venus was a jungley planet: jungles and water, and monsters and things, and Mars was a dry one, with canals and survivors of an ancient, ruined civilisation - perfectly good conventions - they should leave them alone". Letts then brings science in to deftly urinate all over Dicks' love of pulp Sci-Fi - "Now they know that you've got an atmosphere of sulphuric-acid and carbon-dioxide," he flatly states, "…that would kill anyone who tried to land". Nicely defusing possible tension between them, Courtney blithely interjects that… "I've never been to those places. I've never wanted to, particularly. But I'm not adventurous, I suppose…" Classy stuff!
This is a fun one, and rather an mixed set of emotions hit when revisiting it, as only 50% of those participating are still alive today, but it's great to have them all on disc to put on and revel in their wit and wisdom whenever the mood takes you. This is a damned good commentary track, with all on sparkling form, and even those not yet given over completely to the concept of sitting around listening to something being narrated will be sold on it, as it's a heaping helping of fun to listen to these guys sitting around reminiscing about times which will never come again. Recommended for edification - by order of the Brigade-Leader!
Production Subtitles: What Doctor Who DVD release would be complete without the usual exhaustive set of titbits of information about the filming of the story? Needless to say, you are presented with more info that you could need - for those of you who can multitask, try listening to the audio commentary and reading the production subtitles, but we would advise caution on this one, as absorbing this much cool information at once could cause the human head to explode in a Scanners-type way.
We have rightly come to expect an exacting record of all changes between the script at various stages to be found within the production notes, and there is no need to lose sleep about its possible absence here! Included is absolutely everything which was rejected, discarded, altered or just plain replaced on paper, right down to quoting grandiose descriptions of things written in the script and their ultimately compromised transposition to the screen due to lack of time, money and materials. Does the use of a fire-extinguishers seem to come out of the blue? Well, we find that there was originally a set-up line for them. Also to be discovered are lines of more detailed dialogue from Pertwee about his previous experiences with volcanoes, namely standing on the island in 1883 when Krakatoa blew its top, adding more colour to the Doctor's past lives. We even get a log of all the unscripted ad-libs from the cast, brought in to inject humour or just to make the dialogue flow a little more evenly, including Christopher Benjamin's wonderfully doom-laden line of "…that might not be a bad idea".
The balance and tone of the writing of the subtitle track is a perfect as ever, with the tone light enough for the uninitiated, but more than armed with sufficient authority and information to satisfy the hardcore fan, and all laced with the almost trademark humour these guys do so well. Such frivolity from the set is well-represented too, including the detailing of the prank to make Courtney crack up by all wearing matching eye-patches in wait for him to swivel round in his chair. The ever-professional Brig called their bluff and delivered his lines without even flinching, much to ire of director Camfield, who demanded an expensive retake.
Ever wanted to know where all those technicians working in the background come from? Well, thanks to the limitless fountain of information provided here, we now know that they mainly came from the agency entitled Associated Plays and Players, and you can bet that there was probably simmering resentment towards those who actually got to hold a clipboard rather than just leaning on a desk in the background. We are even privy to the entire itinerary of a typical days' shoot on location, including exactly when breakfast was served - such a repast was also supplemented by a quantity of brandy, on hand to keep out the cold whist filming in freezing conditions whilst on location!
You want complete? Maybe when to look for the shadow of the mike-boom on Pertwee's immaculately-groomed bouffant will suffice? How about a potted history of the Trim-phone so as to enlighten younger viewers why that funny-shaped I-Phone used is still plugged into the charger unit when it's used? By jingo, it's all here and more! There's more smart fun to be found here than Stephen Hawking sellotaping breadcrumbs to a bird-table, and it scrambles the brain to think that this all comes as standard! It's another winner from the dangerously comprehensive mind of Martin Wiggins, and let's all be grateful that he's able to get us all up to speed on the processes of getting Doctor Who from script to screen, and in such an involving, entertaining way. Stick it at the top of your "to-do" list.
Can You Hear The Earth Scream?: This 35 minute documentary takes an in-depth look at the making of this highly-regarded story. Many of the participants from both in front and behind the camera share their memories of making Inferno. The genesis of the story - which started kicking around at the fag-end of the sixties - is explored and how Hammer Films writer Don Houghton was brought onboard (Terrance Dicks knew him from his Crossroads days), along with the inspiration for the story, which involved those dastardly Ruskies and a drilling project. The clippings from the local newspapers about filming in Hoo, Kent are interesting, as we lived relatively near that area, so it's a bit of local colour! The documentary also explains Pertwee's insistence on getting his Doctor to be more action-orientated; this decision led to the ultimate example of this dictum - the near-pornographic chase episode during Planet of the Spiders. Douglas Camfield's heart attack and Barry Letts' stepping into the breach to direct the remaining episodes is also discussed, during which Letts modestly admits that Camfield's directed episodes were better than his. A couple of the pranks that were pulled during the shoot are mentioned, including one that involved a coin on a piece of string that Pertwee tried to chase around the room, which chimes with Tom Baker once saying that Pertwee was physically incapable of putting his hand in his pocket to buy a round. Can You Hear The Earth Scream? was included on the original DVD release of this story and it's depressing that several of the participants of this documentary are now no longer with us, with Barry Letts, Nick Courtney and Caroline John all sleeping in eternity and watching this makes you miss them all the more, but you can't help but have a smile on your lips as you hear their priceless reminiscences.
The UNIT Family: This is a really fun documentary, tracing - in 35 minutes - the origins of the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce from their first skirmishes with the Yeti, through to the events of Inferno. There are interviews aplenty, with series regulars Nicholas Courtney, Caroline John and John Levene, along with many prominent people behind the camera, including Terrence Dicks, Barry Letts and Derrick Sherwin, all contribute stories relating to their time as part of the UNIT family. All of this is illustrated with numerous clips from this golden era, with welcome excerpts from the Troughton era, along with the expected footage from the Pertwee years, including black and white footage from Ambassadors of Death, which is now available in colour.
Pertwee Years Intro: The opening of The Pertwee Years documentary is included here, mainly because it has Pertwee himself - standing outside BBC Television Centre - giving an introduction to the final episode of Inferno. Make yourself feel very, very old by watching this and remembering just how far into obsolescence video has slid over the last decade.
Deleted Scene: This didn't go out in the original BBC transmission, but it did feature in overseas broadcasts and was in the version played numerous times on satellite in the UK. It is painfully obvious that the identity of the Lord Haw-Haw-like radio announcer has a name that sounds not unlike Ron Bertwee. A wise edit, but nice to see it included here all the same.
Visual Effects Promo Film: Now this really IS a time capsule from a bygone era, a short promotional film showing how some BBC visual effects are achieved. Complete with groovy bongo-driven music and mid-Atlantic voiceover (you know the sort of thing where there is heavy emphasis on adding "r" to the end of almost every word), this is a fun little thing, which has a Doctor Who connection because of the shots of several Silurian heads and footage from the apocalyptic climax of episode five of Inferno. What is particularly fascinating (for us, at least) about this is that it features being-the-scenes footage of the shooting of a water-based sketch with the late, great Marty Feldman.
Photo Gallery: Presented in the usual fashion of having music play from the story playing over the images, this six-minute selection of stills from the show are quite fascinating. The black and white photographs have an eerie quality to them that is quite striking, and there are numerous candid pictures, which show Pertwee in quite a favourable light. There are also several vintage pictures of the Doctor Who production team posing in their office, which are quite cute to look at - you almost expect Barry Letts to be posing with the telephone to his ear in one picture...
Hadoke Vs Havoc: This 27 minute documentary sees writer and die-hard Doctor Who fan Toby Hadoke doing his Justine Lee Collins bit (we're talking Bring Back... and not the more nefarious things reported about in the newspapers) by getting several key members of the Havoc stunt team back together and actually coach the self-confessed "card-carrying coward" to perform a stunt worthy of the outfit.
Mr Hadoke assembles four members of Havoc, including boss Derek Ware, and he explores the history of each member, along with what they are doing now; the most interesting life story out of the four old pros comes from stuntman-turned-actor Derek Martin, who would eventually find national fame in Eastenders. Martin recounts his early years as a ne'er-do-well in the East End and how being arrested for robbery allowed him to put his acting abilities to the test in court and realised that he could be an actor when he was found not guilty. Ware himself was eventually forced out of Doctor Who when the Beeb realised that they could just hire Terry Walsh to double for Pertwee and arrange the stunts himself, and the writing was on the wall for Havoc when rival stuntmen went to Equity and ruled in favour of their members being prevented from being agents. A sad end to a impressive outfit.
Once Hadoke gets of the old gang are back together in a very Blues-Brothers-like fashion, they make for an airstrip on a farm where Toby tests his mettle and perform a high(ish) fall from a platform into a couple of mattresses on top of a large number of cardboard boxes; Hadoke usually has a wit drier than a sandpaper Martini, but the nerves begin to show when he scales the scaffolding to perform this reasonably straightforward act of submitting to the forces of gravity - the transition from the sort of gag that Mr Hadoke is usually know for to doing the sort of "gag" that stuntmen refer to is fascinating as you can see that Mr H is doing the old actorly thing of not trying to make yourself look a complete wimp in front of seasoned veterans, who are now in their late seventies and early eighties and the guys don't make it easy for him, with the usual degree of stuntman banter designed to gently unnerve the initiate. Veteran Havoc man Roy Scammell does the stunt first, and at twice Hadoke's age, almost reinforces the sense of shame that would be felt if he bottled out of it.
The fall is a genuinely tense moment, as a middle-aged man with no previous stunt experience and a palpable sense of fear performs something that would be seen in many eyes as a pretty straightforward stunt. We won't reveal how things go in order to create a sense of suspense, but Mr Hadoke is seen wearing a neck-brace near the end of this documentary. This is a wonderfully nostalgic look back at the glory days of Havoc and there is a sense of joy as you watch these old compadres get together for what it almost certainly one of the last times - Mr Hadoke's sense of fear, mixed with his dry wit is a potent cocktail that many will have great pleasure in savouring. This is most assuredly another winner from Chris Chapman and Toby Hadoke.
Doctor Who Forever! Lost in the Dark Dimension: This instalment of the fascinating and entertaining series looks upon Doctor Who's cancelation and subsequent attempts to return to television. Starting with the opinions from people connected with Doctor Who Magazine (and fanzines) and even the infamous "day of action" that was organised by the fans is covered (which ended up pretty much convincing the BBC that Doctor Who only really had a small, hard-core bunch of nutters for fans and it wasn't worth bringing back). One of the most bizarre instances during those desperate times was the announcement that actor and local radio personality David Burton has been cast as the new Doctor - what is made even more astonishing is that the guys behind this documentary actually managed to track him down and he is interviewed on-camera! He talks about being approached, having a three-month contract, what the intentions of the producers were (including changing the TARDIS into a red telephone box), but any plausibility that his story might have had is blown out of the water when he claims that "two full... episodes" were filmed and subsequently destroyed/wiped when it fell through, including - conveniently - no photographs taken and confidentiality agreements; being perfectly frank, Burton seems like a nice guy, but the needle on our Bullshit-O-Meter is now slightly more to the right than the late Margaret Thatcher.
The depressing (and short-lived) saga of The Dark Dimension is brought up and discussed in a tantalising amount of detail; the writer speaks about what the project was exactly supposed to be, along with a detailed description of the plot and there is even an interview with all-round good-egg Graeme Harper, who was attached to direct the thing. The growing interest in the project from the BBC elevated it to casting (Rik Mayall was attached to play the villain), to possibly having a theatrical release and the eventual scrapping are discussed in painful detail - the project ultimately shook itself apart as the ballooning budget failed to materialise properly (Harper has his suspicions that Amblin trying to buy the rights was responsible for killing the project). As if the interview with would-be Doctor David Burton wasn't astonishing enough, there is some brief location-scouting footage for The Dark Dimension included here! It's wonderful, yet depressing to see it.
The bubbling rumours of a feature-film are addressed (one of us was going through 25 years of newspaper cuttings recently and found one about a film with Caroline Munro and Donald Sutherland!), along with the rumours - and subsequent failure - of the Paul McGann film and how things went from there, leading all the way to the announcement of New-Who, which contains an amusing story about Big Finish head-honcho Gary Russell being the only one who DIDN'T know it was returning. This really IS wonderful, with plenty for those who didn't know everything that went on during this fallow period and some concrete confirmation for die-hard fans who had heard rumours about this stuff; this is the kind of in-depth, above-and-beyond-the-call-of-duty thing that you only get from Doctor Who and the passion of people behind it is abundantly evident.
PDF Materials: For those of you watching Inferno on either a PC or a Mac, you have the option to check out the listings for Inferno that were published in the Radio Times and the 1971 Doctor Who annual for good measure.
Coming Soon Trailer: Holy shit! It's The Mind Of Evil! And it's in colour! That's all we really need to say!
This closer to season seven is one of the crown jewels of the Pertwee era - an exciting, intriguing story is fleshed out with engaging performances and inventive direction - the guys at the Doctor Who Restoration Team have broken out the Windoleen to ensure that this particular crown jewel shines more brightly than ever. Good on ya, guys!
Review by Wilson Bros
GavSalkeld Member Join Date: August 2005 Location: United States Posts: 439
Possibly my favourite Who story, and one of the best pieces of TV drama of all time. I am so looking forward to picking this up.
Wilson Bros Reviewer Join Date: August 2004 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 1,183
You'll love the improvement in picture and sound quality over the original release. Buy with confidence!
Kevin & Nick W
Kevin & Nick W
General viewing, but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children
Disc Details
Release Date: 27th May 2013
Discs: 2
Disc Type: Single side, dual layer
RCE: No
Video: PAL
Aspect: 1.33:1
Anamorphic: No
Colour: Yes
Audio: Dolby Digital 2.0 English
Subtitles: English
Extras: Audio Commentary, Production Subtitles, Can You Hear The Earth Scream?, The UNIT Family: Part One, Visual Effects Promo Reel, Deleted Scene, Doctor Who Forever! Lost in the Dark Dimension, Hadoke Vs Havoc, Coming Soon Trailer, PDF Materials
Easter Egg: No
Feature Details
Director: Douglas Camfield & Barry Letts
Cast: Jon Pertwee, Caroline John, Nicholas Courtney, Christopher Benjamin
Genre: Sci-Fi
Length: 173 minutes
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text:
For the first time, AOGS (Asia Oceania Geosciences Society) and the EGU (European Geosciences Union) are holding a joint conference together, New Dimensions for Natural Hazards in Asia being held in Tagaytay, Philippines 4-8 February 2018 with abstract submission deadline 31 August 2017: The conference web page and abstract submission is at www.nathazards.org.
This international conference brings together students, early career and established scientists from all areas of the globe, and is the first time the Asia Oceania Geosciences Society and the EGU will have a joint conference. The conference will discuss current advances in knowledge and new perspectives relevant to natural hazard in the Asian region. This AOGS-EGU joint international conference is held at the Taal Vista Hotel in Tagaytay, Philippines, renowed for its cool weather and its spectacular view overseeing the Taal Lake and the Taal Volcano. EGU Steering Committee members have visited the site venue, and it is indeed breathtaking in its environmental setting.
We invite contributions covering the complete spectrum of natural hazards, from the practical to the theoretical, from geo-scientists, geo-engineers, and hazard practitioners (with encouragement to social scientists, economists, policy actors and educators also to contribute) with the below cross-cutting interdisciplinary themes:
Natural hazards in the megacity
Transient and long-term effects of catastrophic perturbations
Hazard development under a changing climate
Multi-hazard interactions (cascades)
Black swans and grey swan events
General Contributions
We also have a variety of field trips covering a range of hazards planned and to a variety of destinations.
Please see the web page www.nathazards.org, for further details of the above themes and abstract submission and the recent EGU blog discussing the conference at http://blogs.egu.eu/geolog/2017/08/0...nt-conference/. For more information on the conference: email@example.com
We look forward to your submissions and seeing you in the Philippines for this international AOGS-EGU conference.
Steering Committee
Bruce D MALAMUD (King's College London, EGU NH Division past president)
Niels HOVIUS (Helmoltz Centre Portsdam, GFM German Research Centre for Geosciences, EGU Geomorphology past president)
Adam SWITZER (Asian School of the Environment, past AOGS Council Member)
Carlo ARCILLA (University of the Philippines Diliman, Council Member, AOGS Solid Earth president)
David HIGGITT (Lancaster University, AOGS President and Council Member)
AOGS-EGU Conference
Web Page: www.nathazards.org
For more information: firstname.lastname@example.com
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/806159229546795

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Wynn wrote:It goes really poorly if Explode misses I just learn that the hard way
Mawder wrote:So I accidentally completed the Nishi quest. Is there another tamer that I can use for power leveling (until daily reset)?
Mairin wrote:Soooo..maybe I'm jumping the gun a bit here but while Nishi was working fine yesterday, since today's mini-patch the abandon button seems to have joined the rest of the greyed out tamers for her. In the past it's just been a bug you could fix with relogging but even that's not doing it. Anyone else having similar issues?
Edema wrote:I hope you all know Mumper has already stated on Twitter this is an exploit they are tring to fix.
So good work on cheating.
Delinda wrote:Damn, they finally fixed daily quests powerleveling. Back to boring leveling on crickets and bandicoons.
By the way, can a person that doesn't have any 25 lvl pets buy a 25lvl and learn it?
Ryazan wrote:Or alternatively, start figuring out combos which can be used against (Pandaria) tamers in order to get all exp to the pet which is getting leveled. Since Blizz changed NFD's school, my previous combos went down the drain but I already began to think other effective combos. Now this won't be nearly as effective as Nishi and doesn't give you many lvl 25s per day, but at least it won't be boring and you can get your pet dailies done while at it.
Misstic wrote:Can you please share? I too used to level on the other trainers with 2 level 25s and a leveling pet but cant seem to now. What did you mean by "Since Blizz changed NFD's school, my previous combos went down the drain?'" Thanks!
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text:
Jane Lui (http://janelui.com) already has a strong list of accomplishments. A respected Singer/Songwriter, with 3 solo albums, 2 of which were nominated for a San Diego Music Award in 2011 and 2008, over 20,000 subscribers and almost 3 million views on her channel (www.youtube.com/LuieLand), that earned her the title of Youtube's "Unsigned Pick-2009." Many of her innovative music videos have gone viral, including her collaboration with "cdza"- "History of Lyrics That Aren't Lyrics" with over 1 million views in the last year, or her "Cartoon Medley" that has her and fellow multiinstrumentalist Paul Dateh jumping from instrument to instrument in an arrangement of 10 classic 80's theme-songs. But Ms. Lui has found herself exploring a whole new realm of creative expression as an actress of Stage and screen.
"I had actually been a fan of hers for quite a few years...." says Andy Lowe, Director/Producer of Chinese Pirate Productions. Lowe cast her in her as leading lady "Penny," a role made famous by 'geek starlet' Felicia Day in Joss Whedon's 2008 web Musical Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. Lowe's Comic Con themed stage adaptation in 2011 was Lui's stage debut. "She has always had a very natural and charismatic stage presence. Even in her concerts, she never just sings a song, she lives through it. So there has never a doubt to me that she wouldn't adapt to theatrical work!"
Now, over a year later, and properly bitten by the acting bug, not only does she appear in two films featured at the Pacific Arts Movement's (www.Pac -Arts.org) San Diego Asian Film Festival (the Documentary "Uploaded: the Asian American Movement," and the romantic narrative "Daylight Savings" featuring fellow singer/songwriter Goh Nakamura) but she also stars in the pivotal role of "Julie" in the local premiere of "John Doe The Musical, The Ultimate Mid-Life Crisis" opening on November 9th. With no formal training as an actress, Lui adapts her musical vocabulary to her performing craft.
"To me a show is like a blown up version of a song arc, it takes you somewhere else by the end, in emotion or narrative." Lui has been working with John Doe Director Michael Schwartz, and Choreographer Courtney Corey to develop multiple versions of her character "Julie" as seen by different characters in the play.
"...the most shocking difference is the collaborative process across disciplines that is rare in music. Aside from fellow actors and director, I couldn't believe the combination of movement, lighting, use of space, music, and visual composition, used to tell the story... it makes me look up from my introverted musician-self and see storytelling in a bigger way."
JOHN DOE: THE MUSICAL (the Ultimate Mid-Life Crisis) November 7 - 25
PRESS OPENING, FRIDAY NOVEMBER 9th - 8:00pm
For RSVP, or to schedule interview, contact: [email protected]
or John Doe Productions Press Representative, Alejandra Enciso: [email protected]
Five personalities find themselves in a hospital waiting room. Each of them is part of the psyche of JOHN DOE, a mystery patient suffering from a traumatic brain injury that has split his mind and cut off his ability to communicate. As each fragment attempts to unravel their true identity, JOHN DOE's will to live is challenged as memories of his life and the mystery behind his near death are revealed. Only through their shared will, can JOHN DOE take back his identity, his life and bring his assailant to justice!
Featuring 18 original musical numbers written and composed by 15 time Emmy-Award Winning producer Robert Moutal.
John Doe: the Musical is an original production in its first public staging. Directed by former Michael Schwartz(director of RENT National Tour), With Musical Direction and Arrangements by Andy Ingersoll(MixTape) and Choreography by Courtney Corey(Diversionary's Pippin).
John Doe: the Musical (the Ultimate Mid-Life Crisis)-One Sheet
Who: Producer - Robert Moutal
Associate Producer - Chinese Pirate Productions
What: John Doe: the Musical (the Ultimate Mid-Life Crisis)
Written and Composed by Robert Moutal
Director Michael Schwartz
Musical Director Andy Ingersol
Stage Manager Deborah Climo
Production Designer Nadja Lancelot
Choreographer Courtney Corey
Lighting Designer Lila Lace Flores
Sound & Projections Kevin Anthenill
Five personalities find themselves in a hospital waiting room. Each of them is part of the psyche of
JOHN DOE, a mystery patient suffering from a traumatic brain injury that has split his mind and
cut off his ability to communicate. As each fragment attempts to unravel their true identity, JOHN
DOE's will to live is challenged as memories of his life and the mystery behind his near death are
revealed. Only through their shared will, can JOHN DOE take back his identity, his life and bring
his assailant to justice!
Cast: Keala Miles, Austin Holden, Jason Perkins, Geoffrey A. Cox, Michael Parrott,
Rachel Propst, Albert Park, Michael Nieto, Susan Hammons, and Jane Lui.
When: November 7th – 25th, 2012
WED NOV 7 @ 7:00 pm
THU NOV 8 @ 7:30 pm
FRI NOV 9 @ 8:00 pm RSVP - [email protected]
(reception to follow)
PERFORMANCE RUN (No performance Thanksgiving Day Thursday November 22)
Where: Lyceum Theatre, The Space
79 Horton Plaza
San Diego, CA 92101
Tickets: Available at the Lyceum Box Office
Or call 619-544-1000
Website: www.JohnDoeTheMusical.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/johndoethemusical
YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/johndoethemusical


text: It's that time of year when Tokyo based game culture shop METEOR hosts their annual My Famiscase Exhibition, an art show unlike any other, featuring custom Nintendo Entertainment System cartridge designs. Entrants not only design original artwork, but also the creative concept behind the imagined video game. This year's show marks the exhibitions 10th year and features talent from across the globe. It's an interesting mishmash of video game culture and design with a unique twist on the traditional gallery experience.


text:
Reviewed by Tyler T. (age 8)
I like this book because it talks about planes and I like airplanes. I also like the illustrations because they are very detailed. You can learn a lot of interesting things by reading this book.
I would recommend this book to all the people who like airplanes.


text:
Trailing by one with 1:23 left in the second half, Olasewere took a feed from junior Jason Brickman and converted on a spin move in the paint to give the Blackbirds (13-11, 8-4 Northeast Conference) a lead they would not relinquish.
Brickman also had a standout performance, scoring 14 points and dishing out nine assists, including seven in the first half.
Following a flagrant foul on the Terriers (9-14, 5-7) and two free throws from freshman E.J. Reed with 56 seconds remaining, Olasewere went to work again and connected on a bank shot in the lane to up LIU's lead to 80-75 with 28 seconds to go.
St. Francis missed three-point attempts on the next two trips while the Blackbirds hit three of four free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
LIU Brooklyn controlled much of the first half and entered halftime with a 44-33 lead. Senior C.J. Garner was the primary scorer in the period for the Blackbirds, registering 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting.
A 10-1 run toward the end of the half, capped by a three-point play from senior Kenny Onyechi, put the margin at 14 - the largest of the game.
The pesky Terriers would not go quietly, however, and came out with a defensive mindset in the second half. After committing just four turnovers in the first half, LIU turned the ball over 10 times in the second half, with a number of those leading to fast-break opportunities.
Akeem Johnson, a Brooklyn native, finished with a game-high 22 points for St. Francis, while Santavenere closed with 16 points on a perfect 6-for-6 from the floor.
LIU Brooklyn continues NEC play on Thursday, Feb. 14 at Monmouth. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.


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Getting more than 1:1 macro from 1:1 lenses
Posted 09 October 2005 - 03:31 AM
Posted 11 October 2005 - 09:09 AM
Can someone tell me if I am right in the following assumptions:
1) 60mm + 2x Tele = 2:1 at same working distance as 60mm 1:1
2) 105mm + 2x Diopter = 2:1 at same working distance as above.
So depending on the length of the Teleconverter both should be able to fit in the same port ?
So which is a preferable way to go to get 2:1.
Sorry if I've got this all wrong but I find the subject quite confusing.
Is there a primer anywhere on diopters and Teles ?
Confused !
Lighting: 2 x Ikelite DS-125, 2 x Manual controller
My Pictures
Posted 11 October 2005 - 09:40 AM
60mm + teleconverter = 120mm f/5.6
105 + diopter = ~90mm f/2.8
So the 60mm + teleconverter will have more working distance.
BUT the 105 + diopter will have larger aperature thus AF will work better and the viewfinder will be brighter making MF easier.
Which method is better is somewhat personal prefrence but I would argue that the 105mm + diopter is better.
Canon 5D Ikelite Housing and strobes
15FE | 24/2.8 | 35/1.4 | 85/1.8 | 150/2.8 macro
Posted 11 October 2005 - 06:18 PM
Ikelite and Aquatica Housings
Nikon 12-24 mm, 10.5 mm, 16 mm, 60 mm, 105 mm, 200 mm micro. Sigma 14 mm. + stacks of diopters and teleconverters
Many outdated flashy thingys with aluminum tinker toys to connect them to the cameras.
Posted 28 February 2006 - 04:29 AM
I don't have a +4 dioptre but just placed my old Nikonos closeup lens (which is about +4,2) in front of a Canon 100mm macro.
from frame size (width) +4 was not enough to reach 2:1. pics shot with full frame sensor.
100mm macro @1:1 only:
100mm macro @1:1 + nikonos closeup lens:
Posted 28 February 2006 - 06:04 AM
Author, Catalina Island - All you Need to Know
Posted 28 February 2006 - 06:05 AM
Author, Catalina Island - All you Need to Know
Posted 20 June 2006 - 07:25 PM
i have used it topside with and without the Canon 1.4x (which requires a 12.5 extension to make it work) on the 105 macro - for prints up to 13x19 you'd have a very hard time telling either one (or both) is present
my recommendation is:
1 - Kenko TC so you have full focus range (the Kenko pro gets very good recommendations and costs almost as much as the Canon)
2 - if that doesn't get close enough, add the 500D which should still let you focus out to about 3 feet (as i recall)
3 - the Canon 2x with 12.5 extension tube is not terrible, and again you can add the 500d (if you've got the right port extension and can find a focus gear -- do not expect this combination to autofocus -- actually, the 105 doesn't autofucus for macro well in any configuration) - and i'd be suspect of the 3rd party 2x extenders
Posted 17 September 2006 - 05:21 AM
Kenko teleconverters and extension tubes all work fine. A few sample images, all uncropped:
Canon 100+ 3x teleconverter + diopters to achieve approximately 5x magnification:
Canon 100 + 3x teleconverter:
Nikon 105 + 3x teleconverter:
The most difficult challenge with teleconverters is finding the appropriate port extensions and manual focus gears to permit manual focusing. Once you've got that tackled, you just need to keep your hands steady and squint really hard!!!
Canon 5DMkII, 7D, 1D MkIV, Zillion housings + way too much other junk.
Posted 17 September 2006 - 07:20 AM
Chiming in a bit late here, but I shoot a lot with more than 1:1 using the old Nikon 105 macro in film days, and now with the Canon 100 USM macro.
Kenko teleconverters and extension tubes all work fine. A few sample images, all uncropped:
Canon 100+ 3x teleconverter + diopters to achieve approximately 5x magnification:
Canon 100 + 3x teleconverter:
Nikon 105 + 3x teleconverter:
The most difficult challenge with teleconverters is finding the appropriate port extensions and manual focus gears to permit manual focusing. Once you've got that tackled, you just need to keep your hands steady and squint really hard!!!
Wow!!! Very impressive results in the links and also in your site.
Do you find a significant decrees in quality because of the teleconvertors?
Nikon D200, Ikelite housing, Dual SB105.
Posted 17 September 2006 - 09:34 PM
I try to take down a 2-3x teleconverter set up on most dives, lately pushing to even higher magnification. If you try a set up like this, the best thing is to find a nice, quiet boring area that no one else wants to dive, reasonably shallow so you have light, but not too shallow so you have swells. Then just practice, practice, practice on any fish. It's amazing how interesting many normal fish look at such high magnfication.
Canon 5DMkII, 7D, 1D MkIV, Zillion housings + way too much other junk.
Posted 28 May 2007 - 06:23 AM
Posted 30 August 2007 - 08:44 PM
However, i do find that the filters do work with a 60mm, this is an example of 60mm with a +4. True, i had to get right on them to get this full frame but..it worked...luckily they were turned this way
nice shot Mike ,you must have been up their ass with a +4 and 60mm
good one
Komodo diving - Bali diving - Burma diving - Maldives diving - Sulawesi diving - Raja Ampat diving.
Posted 11 September 2007 - 01:36 PM
Last sunday i was looking for a solution with the sigma 50 mm and a tamron 2x converter
In Holland most off the time , the vis. is very poor, so we need a close working distance for macro.
The sigma works great but.......... I also have a tamron 90 mm.
The test last weekend, seaslugs with the 50 mm and converter , nice shots but not as sharp as I wanted.
Tonight playing with my cam , i used the tamron 90 mm and a diopter + 1 , I have the same working distance but I think the pictures are sharper.
Any one else testing the 50 mm and 2 x converter ??????
Posted 12 September 2007 - 05:16 AM
As you can read here, there are people using 3X TC´s and combos of 2X+1.4X and diopters and stuff, I dare to say with a 50mm or 60mm that is almost close to impossible.
That said, I find good diopters as 4T, 6T and 500D more usefull for supermacro than TC´s if you have to choose between one or another, of course a TC+diopter is always an interesting combo challenge producing amazing results.
Edited by rodriguezfelix, 12 September 2007 - 05:21 AM.
Posted 15 September 2007 - 07:59 PM
This is the 105 by itself:
I took this as a base pic to establish 1:1 magnification.
Then I add a 4T diopter:
As we can see it covers near 17mm, so magnification provided is 1.4:1
Adding a 2X to the 105mm we have this:
See that it covers close to 12mm, providing magnification of 2:1, prooving that the multiplier works equal for the focal lenght as for the magnification factor.
If we put this three together, we going to obtain this:
Covering 8mm I dare to say that magnification provided is 3:1
I also did some test with the Sigma 17-70mm macro:
Here`s the lens by itself:
Wich provides 1:2.3
And adding the 2X TC we get really close to 1:1
This is not intend to be a cientific post ,so I know I could use a tripod and other things to provide a more accurate result, but I think this help.
Posted 16 October 2007 - 11:11 AM
The extension tubes will allows closer focusing resulting in higher magnification, this without loss of opticall quality but the drawback is proximity, you end up being much closer so use only with longer focal lenght.
Posted 15 March 2008 - 06:57 AM
Current rig: Sony SLT-alpha55 in Ikelite housing, Sigma 105mm f2.8 DC Macro w/ Ike 5505.58 flat port or Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM behind UWCamStuff custom 5" mini-dome. Dual INON z240 Type IVs triggered with DS51 for TTL mimicry, or DS51 alone with home-made ringflash assy for macro.
Topside, unhoused: Sony SLT-alpha99,
Sigma 150-500mm + 1.4TC (Saving for Sony 70-400 G2), Sigma 15mm diagonal fish, Sony 24-70mm f2.8 CZ, Tamron 180mm f2.8 Macro...all the gear and nary a clue...
Posted 22 August 2008 - 06:28 AM
Posted 03 September 2008 - 03:02 PM
My question has to do with macro-photography. It is rather general, but please bear with me. My wife is a marine biologist and conducts regular photo surveys of coral reefs. So far, we have been using a Canon 20D with the Ikelite housing and DS-200 strobe. The setup was adequate for her needs which -- essentially -- required taking pics of algae or corals at a distance of approximately 1 meter.
But our needs are evolving and we now require much more detail. I just got a 5D body and have been agonizing over the choice of an adequate lens for macro photo. In a nutshell, it seems that the Canon 100mm f2.5 Macro lens is the best fit. I am not crazy about the Canon 50mm Macro/Lifesize combo because it reportedly has a tendency to hunt at certain focal lengths.
The requirements are to be able to take pictures of algae or corals with the maximum detail possible (corals identification can require getting down to the corallite level). In your opinion, is the above combo adequate? I would prefer a 60mm Macro, but it only exists in the EF-S version. The 100mm is quite bulky, but the reviews generally report that this is a very good lens.
Reading this forum, I am starting to wonder if we would not be better off with a non-macro lens equipped with a doubler....
Any comments and pearls of wisdom or experience would be welcome :-)


text:
We hire energetic university math students to run the classes and all lessons and activities are planned by university math professors. All math professors and guest lecturers are unpaid volunteers. Lessons involve a blend of instruction in fundamental math concepts, enrichment activities and preparation for math contests. We have also arranged for mathematicians to speak about accessible math topics to the children.
From September to April we run weekly classes out of a church that rents to us at low cost. In addition to our regular after-school program, in collaboration with the University of Winnipeg's Wii Chiiwaakanak Learning Centre, we ran a two-week "Math Readiness Workshop" in inner-city Winnipeg in August, 2013.
Parents of children in our regular program are typically charged a (low) registration fee to cover essential costs. With the help of the CMS endowment grant, this year we were pleased to be able to offer several bursaries based on financial need. Our two-week math readiness camp at the Wii Chiiwaakanak Learning Centre was offered free of charge to families from inner-city Winnipeg.
More information about our program can be found on our website; see http://archimedesmathschools.com".
Assessment of Effectiveness:
In September of 2012 we launched six classes for Grades 4 & 5 students, which ran weekly for 28 weeks. For the 2013-2014 school year we expanded and are now offering nine classes for Grades 4, 5 & 6 students that will again run for 28 weeks. In our inaugural year, with very little advertising, our program attracted 65 students. Almost all of these students returned to complete another year with us and we received extremely positive feedback from parents and children in the program. This year, our program is at capacity with 109 students and a significant waiting list. We believe that this suggests that our program has been effective in achieving our goals of nurturing the mathematical abilities and confidence of the children in our program. It also seems to clearly demonstrate the need for this type of organization in the community.
As we are working with children, our program has the potential to greatly benefit many students in the community and to foster long-term engagement of youth in mathematics. Many of our instructors are training to become teachers or intend to pursue graduate studies in mathematics. There is a significant training component to our program since math professors Anna and Ross Stokke work closely with the university students, offering support and feedback regularly. As well, our program provides an excellent opportunity for these university students to gain valuable experience in teaching math to children. In the 2012 -2013 year we employed four university students and have increased this number to seven students for the 2013 -2014 school year. At a very grassroots level, our program is thus benefitting the mathematical community not only by promoting math to children in the community but also by directly training future mathematics teachers.
Beyond the CMS Endowment Grant, we are grateful to have received a $2000 Outreach Grant from the Fields Institute. The University of Winnipeg also provided $1,220 to help pay for the costs of the summer math readiness program that we provided. We have also received a provincial Career Focus grant from Manitoba Children and Youth Opportunities to supplement the wages of two of our six students, which amounts to $3 per each hour worked. Since the CMS Endowment Grant was the first grant received by our organization, we believe it was instrumental in attracting this further funding.
Our program was featured in two public articles in Winnipeg. One appeared in a community edition of the Winnipeg Free Press, called "Lessons from Archimedes": http://bit.ly/10Lvvxs. Note that the Winnipeg Free Press article mentioned the support from the Canadian Math Society.
The other article was featured on the University of Winnipeg website: bit.ly/1fy1ig0.
Future Plans (if any):
Ultimately, we would like to run classes out of several additional locations in Winnipeg, chosen in the heart of communities. To help attain this goal, we would like to eventually be able to hire a permanent manager to assist with overseeing the program since math professors are currently doing all administrative work as volunteers. This will be expensive but we will need to have this component in place before further expansion is feasible
In the short-term, we are interested in working to expand our regular program to include weekly classes at the Wii Chiiwaakanak Learning Centre in Winnipeg's inner city. Working in collaboration with our partners at the University of Winnipeg, we hope to be able to offer these classes free of charge. As well, we intend to continue to annually run free "Math Readiness Programs" each August at the Wii Chiiwaakanak Centre. The funds that we have received from the CMS Endowment Grant will help us to achieve these goals.
|2013-2014 (in progress/projected)
|Student Employees
|Facility rental
|Administrative costs (criminal checks, insurance, payroll, etc.)
|Guest speaker honorarium
|Other Sources of Funding
|Fields Institute
|Fields outreach grant
|Manitoba government
|Career focus grant, Manitoba Children and Youth Opportunities
|Up to $1,800
|University of Winnipeg
Note: We also charge parents tuition of $340 per child for 28 weeks to cover costs. We award bursaries to families who cannot afford the tuition fee.
Options for unused funds
Ultimately, we would like to reach more children by expanding our program. To help attain this goal, we would like to eventually be able to hire an additional person to assist with overseeing the program since math professors are currently doing all administrative work and management as volunteers. We are trying to save money to hire a manager on an ongoing contract to assist with this. We would ultimately like to reduce the tuition fee for parents in the regular program but this will have to be supplemented on a regular basis through outside funding. As well, unused funds can be used to offer a greater number of bursaries based on financial need, and will be used to run free classes out of the Wii Chiiwaakanak Learning Centre for families who are unable to afford math programming for their children outside of school.
Contact Name: Anna Stokke
[September 28, 2013]


text:
Well-Stocked and Welcoming: Make Your Kitchen Happy!
A well-stocked kitchen is a happy kitchen. Maybe that's why we're such suckers for HomeGoods: With so many essential pieces, global flavors and styles, it's like a wander through a sublime gourmet market. You can score everything from Italian olive oils to gourmet spices to gleaming copper pots and top-notch cookware, all at great values — not to mention cheery canisters, glamorous barware and ingenious gadgets. Forget ho-hum tableware and workaday spices: This is a well-stocked kitchen that's well-traveled, too.
HomeGoods has everything you need for your kitchen, no matter your taste.
Here's our checklist for the well-stocked, happy kitchen...
Stovetop Mainstays. Sometimes cookware is too gorgeous to put away. Whether it's a charming cast-iron skillet, a quirky tea kettle or a high-shine cooper pot, keeping something on the stove 24/7 adds lived-in charm.
Whole Spices. Add a mortar and pestle or an electric spice grinder, and you'll be ready for from-scratch spice blends that take your taste buds around the world.
Beautiful Basics. We love a fun china pattern, but food always looks delicious on white — especially when it's showing off summery colors like cherry tomatoes and fresh basil pesto.
Impromptu Happy Hour Treasures. A last-minute cocktail party loves eye-catching barware and no-fuss nibbles. Stock up on shakers, stemware and unique snacks like jarred bruschetta toppers and potted patés, and you'll be all set to entertain.
Pantry Staples (in Pretty Packages!). We think your kitchen should inspire you to cook — that's why we keep basics like grains, pasta and nuts in beautiful jars and canisters. (Oh yeah, they keep everything organized, too!)
Check out HomeGoods' Pinterest board for inspiration, then head to your nearest HomeGoods to see what delectable deals await!


text:
"Expore the Heart of Annapolis" Tour via Urban Adventures
Annapolis Urban Adventures has partnered up with us the to offer you personal service to arrange your tour of Annapolis:
Take an Annapolis walking tour to learn your way around beautiful, historic downtown Annapolis. On this Annapolis Urban Adventures tour you'll discover the charm of this waterside city. Stroll along Maryland Avenue, passing quaint shops, homes and historical landmarks. Step onto the grounds of the United States Naval Academy. Discover City Dock, an area famous for its wealth of impressive boats, and site of the Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Memorial.
Cost: $29 per person.
Please review the details at Annapolis Urban Adventures


text:
Today is Black Friday. Has it been everything you hoped for, or a nightmare come true?
Yesterday was Thanksgiving. I hope you enjoyed your day and didn't eat yourself into a stomachache.
Today is Black Friday. Has it been everything you hoped for, or a nightmare come true?
My daughter and I have gone out on Black Friday only to end up irritated by lack of parking, befuddled sales clerks and all-around chaos. On the way to our first store, I turned off sports talk and tuned into a local radio station. They had people call in and report the goings-on of store patrons.
The last two years, however, I've decided to forgo this tradition. The last time we went, I picked up two sweaters (they were super cute, and I got a great deal on them), got home around 3 a.m., was back to work by 9 a.m., then took my parents to a Canton Charge game that night. Yeah, I was so tired I couldn't think straight.
What did I get for going through this? A headache, complete exhaustion and a bad mood. Somehow it doesn't seem worth it.
Unfortunately, Black Friday brings out the often-hid insanity of us humans. Remember years ago when parents were punching each other in the face over the last Tickle Me Elmo? Thought it couldn't get worse than that? Think again.
According to an ABC News story last year, two people were shot outside a Tallahassee, Fla., Wal-Mart. Two others were run down in a store parking lot in Covington, Wash.
In San Antonio, Texas, two men got into an argument over who would get to be first in line at Sears. The first guy punched the other one in the face, and in retaliation the punchee pulled a gun out, causing the first guy to flee the scene. Guess that $100 flat screen ultimately wasn't worth it.
In Myrtle Beach, S.C., a woman said a man pulled a gun on her and robbed her of $200 as she got out of her car to go inside a Best Buy store.
In Maryland, a 14-year-old boy told police he was robbed of his Thanksgiving night purchases by five men in the parking lot of a Bed Bath & Beyond.
In Massachusetts, Kmart employees tried to locate a shopper over the intercom after a 2-year-old was reported to be alone in a car, left there by the child's mother's boyfriend.
Before you get all high and mighty, Black Friday shoppers in this area don't act much better. Remember two years ago when a bloodbath ensued in front of Victoria's Secret simply because the line opened up? I don't know about you but if I am up at 4 a.m., the last thing I want to do is punch anyone out. If I am awake, I am not happy about it. How about the woman who pepper sprayed the crowd at Wal-Mart, then tried to take off with an Xbox?
I'm too old for this nonsense. If I were my daughter's age (23), I'd still be too old for it. She didn't argue with me about not descending into the madness.
Don't take this column as a bashing to anyone engaging in Black Friday shopping. To each his own. I just don't understand it anymore. The world gets crazier every year, and I am not interested in putting myself at risk.
Fox 8 News had a segment about three men who were camped out Nov. 19 in front of a store, way ahead of the Black Friday crowd. One guy was in line to get an $177 laptop. Another, a $200 flat screen TV. I admit, the cheapskate in me is intrigued totally by this but not enough to spend more than a week in line anywhere for anything at any time. I've often wondered about people who camp out like that. If they have a job, how do they get all that time off to sit around in a tent, and at what point do they realize they probably stink?
Unless you are a family member, I am not telling you what to do. If you went out on Black Friday, more power to you. If you are like me and chose to stay home and go to sleep, remember, most stores offer free shipping today, and Cyber Monday is just around the corner.
Merry Christmas shopping to all, and to all, good luck.


text:
#1 Grassley has Damning Gunrunner Documents
- Join Date
- Aug 2005
- Posts
- 22,889
Devastating e-mail exchanges between a senior official with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Phoenix, AZ and a cooperating gun shop operator have been revealed by Senator Charles Grassley in a letter sent late yesterday to Attorney General Eric Holder.
In light of this new evidence, Grassley tells Holder, the Justice Departments claim that the ATF never knowingly sanctioned or allowed the sale of assault weapons to straw purchasers is simply not credible.
The CBS Gunrunner story, which focused on the ATFs Phoenix offices alleged mishandling of an operation dubbed Fast and Furious, and news coverage of the Northwest arrests came just hours after Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley sent a 31-page letter to Attorney General Eric Holder and Kenneth E. Melson, acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, telling them that Congress needs to get to the bottom of this.
Agent Dodson and other sources say the gun walking strategy was approved all the way up to the Justice Department. The idea was to see where the guns ended up, build a big case and take down a cartel. And it was all kept secret from Mexico.
Grassley: Congress needs to get to the bottom of this
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text:
|2010-06-27, 21:46
|Link #11881
Join Date: May 2009
|2010-06-27, 22:26
|Link #11882
Mystery buff
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Gone Fishin!
|2010-06-28, 01:20
|Link #11883
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Meta-Meta-Meta-Space
By the way... I'm not sure where to put this so I thought I'd just put it in the least-touched thread for now.. but..
I was going over the EP6 end roll ( replicated here: http://umineco.info/?%E7%AC%AC%E5%85...96%87%E7%AB%A0 )
And I noticed besides the victims of the first twilight which includes Battler, Kanon is listed as having died in the 2nd twilight. Both Shannon and Jessica are listed as still alive at the pause of the game... so, if the 2nd twilight is supposed to have been the tearing apart of the two who were close, who is Kanon supposed to be close with?
I wouldn't say Erika as I don't want to killed by the hordes of fangirls she's not listed as either dead or alive... and it can't be Battler as that's exactly what some people would want he's already listed as dead.
Ok, it was a rather irregular game and it was interrupted... but I wonder if there was even a plan for a second victim?
|2010-06-28, 01:30
|Link #11884
Mystery buff
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Gone Fishin!
There wasn't a second victim in episode 5 so that's at least consistent.
It seems like the people who died in the second twilights mirrors games 1 and 2 though at least for one of the victims. I guess the culprit of the Chiru games had a different interpretation for "tearing apart the two who are close". Or maybe he just didn't want to kill two people for some reason.
This suggests the culprit is following the epitaph begrudgingly and is cutting corners.
|2010-06-28, 01:36
|Link #11885
Intellectual Rapist
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: 3 12151805142615
You are right, Judoh. But the answer is quite obvious, if one person dies and there was a person close to him/her then they would be 'torn apart'.
Anyways, if Nanjo is an impostor it does not mean he has to be Beatrice. I happen to think he was killed rather recently because that means Nanjo's body could be used without it being fake and the impostor could run around killing still.
|2010-06-28, 01:38
|Link #11886
Mystery buff
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Gone Fishin!
I don't see why we'd even need an impostor when nobody cares about the Doctor anyway. They stow him away on the third floor like he's not even wanted. It's an old theory anyway and it's really not all that necessary even for the Kinzo death faction.
The second twilight for episode 7 is going to be Maria I just know it.
|2010-06-28, 01:43
|Link #11887
Intellectual Rapist
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: 3 12151805142615
We don't need an impostor. We are giving out input on this story and what might possibly be a solution.
Maria has already been killed during a second twilight, I believe. Episode 3 wasn't it? Oh never mind, you are saying it will be a mirror of episode 3.
|2010-06-28, 01:57
|Link #11888
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Meta-Meta-Meta-Space
Well, not that the end roll is part of the in-game explanation but notice that Battler was considered to be 'dead' as part of the end roll... yet we know he was really walking around, setting traps, removing chains... It's not the same as being declared dead in red, but it seems like the Witches' End Roll is really about them being picked to fake their deaths. What happens to them afterwards is not part of the end roll... so their ACTUAL death just sometimes coincides with their fake deaths...
In other words, someone has (maybe yet another separate) plan to 'display' all of the twilights and it seems and this forms the end roll if it successfully occurs. Maybe. Whether people really died before or after the deciding of the twilight is irrelevant to this person/group of people.
Sorry to bring up yet another topic but... I just saw and remembered the ending after the credits roll by in EP6 ????. I think all of us have seen this before, one way or another but... further to our earlier discussion:
"Bernkastel picks up a black piece, the 'Beatrice' piece as it were. Sometimes a King, sometimes a Queen and sometimes a Knight. But only if it was promoted. Until then it is on the level of a Pawn, a worthless piece. Start with the arrangement of the pieces. And then from that point it is the start of the Witches' game.
And so Bernkastel takes the Beato piece... gently raises it... "Starting position. d8 Beatrice."
Umineko no naku koro ni: No one is left alive."
Anyways, doesn't this suggest that 'Beatrice' is a mere pawn, like some of us were thinking? Like more than that she is the scapegoat, and more than that the idea of her is used by people for their own ends, but we were starting to think that the person herself who was connected to Moetrice (Shannon?) is herself a pawn in all the schemes?
|2010-06-28, 02:05
|Link #11889
Intellectual Rapist
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: 3 12151805142615
This is partially the problem with impostor culprit theories. Maria has a friend on the island, a human, who pretends to be Beatrice. Maybe it is not pretending but the person actually thinks the he/she is Beatrice. But there is a person on that island who assumes that identity, at least one. We combine that with Maria usually being one of the later deaths and it points to 'Beatrice' being a killer.
Now, what if the roulette corresponded with whose deaths were faked and someone else is killing the people whose deaths were faked afterward? People are supposed to be revived when the gold is found. So, I am thinking that the culprit is an asshole and 'Beatrice' is innocent. The idea of Beatrice is taking on the identity of that one gang in Higurashi IMO, so meta-Beatrice plays the part.
King, Queen, and Knight... a mastermind, a co-conspirator, and a killer/guardian? That's what I think the terms mean, I am less sure about the Queen part. Pawn seems hard to misinterpret. King might also mean head of the family.
I am confused by what Battler thinks of 'the truth' he knows what is happening but he honors his promise to Beatrice rather than showing the killer for who he/she really is. There is no doubt that there is a killer and the person has murdered a big chunk of Battler's family. Episode 6 looks like a big cover up for the culprit. To me, it just seems like Battler is covering for the culprit, why would he do that?
Last edited by Smeckledorf; 2010-06-28 at 02:20.
|2010-06-28, 02:37
|Link #11890
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Meta-Meta-Meta-Space
Although in real chess the King can kill if you get too close. I just had an image of Maria biting whoever comes close to her... (like pervert-Battler.)
So I thought that Kanon had something to do with Beatrice, and this was one of the biggest secrets and can lead to 'The Truth.' And now that I think about it maybe we're mired in the Mystery-style 'How' of how Kanon can do the things he can do, but if we think more about what it means and we stumble upon the Truth, we can use that to unlock the Mystery.
It could be that the Truth that Battler reached in EP5 had something to do with Kanon directly, but... maybe the better percentage is that it was something else and the funny going-ons with Shannon, Kanon and Battler, etc were all obvious consequences once you know it...
|2010-06-28, 02:47
|Link #11891
Back off, I'm a scientist
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: In a badly written story.
|2010-06-28, 02:58
|Link #11892
Intellectual Rapist
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: 3 12151805142615
I once thought Kanon had a twin on the island, but that's a crazy thought.
I meant that question in a different way, though. Let me use a bit of an exaggeration.
"Hey, I murdered your family. Do you mind covering for me, Broseph?" - Culprit
"No problem, Abroham Lincoln." - Battler
Even without an exaggeration, it makes no sense. I can see why Battler would forgive an orchestration of people faking their deaths but not their actual murders.
Battler is more of a jester than a king, and I don't know about Maria as a king either. However, Kanon's unusual movements definitely make him a knight. I think I made a mistake on my take of the pieces.
The King would be a mastermind if you thought about what a King literally is. However, a King in chess is the most valuable piece but relatively weak. The queen is literally a consort to the King, sorry if it sounds sexist. But in chess a Queen is the most powerful piece and second most valuable. A Knight is literally a guardian and in chess it would be a unique piece.
|2010-06-28, 03:06
|Link #11893
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Sleeping
Age: 27
It's coming up with reasons why that would be the case that has been bit more difficult. (I do have one in mind, but I'll probably have to post it another day as it's getting late and it'll take a while for me to write all of it out).
|2010-06-28, 03:13
|Link #11894
Intellectual Rapist
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: 3 12151805142615
I was thinking about Battler as a king and episode 6. The deaths have to be faked for a reason... to have someone find the gold? I am not sure but we know who the last target always seemed to be. (Battler) Now, what would making Battler think people are dying do? Punish him for leaving the family? I don't know.
Now with episode 5 and 6, we have people in the same room as Battler faking their deaths and Battler himself faking his death. Could it be that he is getting people to fake their deaths? Battler has a lot of opportunities to set some of the letters. Something about that feels wrong. But yet it clicks with what episode 6's difficulty says. I think what feels wrong is that Battler would know the trick to the closed rooms. Any other thoughts?
|2010-06-28, 03:34
|Link #11895
Back off, I'm a scientist
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: In a badly written story.
The engagement ring scene in Ep1 says that "Under the guidance of the honorary director, Kinzo, the orphanage offered excellent graduates a chance to live a life of service. If they were accepted, they would be able to leave the orphanage and work as servants for the Ushiromiya family." But there is no way that any orphanage graduates people at 6, which is when Shannon had to have started working to be working for ten years, which is referenced multiple times. In fact, no orphanage would graduate children until they're of majority age. It's a bit more fluid in Japan than in other places, due to how various legal ages are spread out, but at least 18 would expected.
At the same time, Jessica says in the same Ep1: "Everyone Grandfather selected [from Fukuin] was young, about the same age as Shannon and Kanon." But for Kanon to be selected when he's the "same age" as Shannon, he has to have been selected at 6.
The following emerge as possibilities:
Possibilities 2 and 3 make Kanon in particular more mysterious than Shannon because of the 8-year gap, and more likely to be connected to the murders, at least, if we leave aside the possibility of Shkanon.
|2010-06-28, 04:15
|Link #11896
Back off, I'm a scientist
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: In a badly written story.
Random. Timing issues.
I'm trying to recover the daily schedule for October 4th and having some problems. So far, I get something like this for what would be a normal October 4th:
The things I don't get...
EDIT: Correction. The airport they should be departing from is definitely Chofu Airport.
Last edited by Oliver; 2010-06-28 at 08:13.
|2010-06-28, 04:28
|Link #11897
Wild Speculator
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: 13th Hierarchical City Kagutsuchi
Mmm, two ideas Oliver
First, in reference to Kanon supposed graduation age, is there a possibility that Jessica is being really vague when she says about the same age as Kanon and Shanon? I haven't read the Japanese text, but isn't there both the possibility that when Jessica says about the same age as Kanon and Shanon she's referring to their current ages (16) or that she just means relatively young people (ages 6-14 apparently)? This of course would still raise questions as to why the hell were Shanon and Kanon selected when they were.
Second thought, that 3 hour gap with the waiting is relatively easy to explain if you think that the family is working under the impression that Kinzo is still alive? I mean, Krauss has to keep up appearances and so would at least pretend to wait for the "head" of the family before starting dinner. Considering Kinzo's influence and for appearances sake, at least some of that time could be eaten up by waiting for the phantom head. I don't know how long that would really be but if they wait an hour and eat a really slow dinner with lots of talking over 2 hours, we can sort of explain the time discrepancy?
edit: holy crap I just realized that the difference between getting called and them starting to loiter is about 4 hours. That's epic length and I'm not so sure anymore that the idea still has weight.
|2010-06-28, 04:42
|Link #11898
Back off, I'm a scientist
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: In a badly written story.
With the way Kinzo is ascribed such a high status in the family, it is really impolite to start a family dinner without him when he is expected to take part in it. The only thing that falls through is that none of the cousins seem complain that the old man none of them particularly liked anyway caused them to stay hungry for what, an extra hour? Two hours?
Also, the appearance is best maintained by the following sequence:
|2010-06-28, 05:03
|Link #11900
Wild Speculator
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: 13th Hierarchical City Kagutsuchi
I'll take a stab and say that the complaining could be at least muted out of the fear Kinzo that would beat the crap out of you, afterall, I wouldn't put it past Kinzo =P. I don't know how much of a hold that kind of fear still has on those who aren't in on the Kinzo phantom plot, but it has been repeated pretty often that even the adults still cringe at the memories. Still doesn't explain that extra hour though.
Maybe Krauss delays for longer than 10 minutes under the pretense of waiting for Kinzo in order to help with preparations with some plot going on in the background? Cause this 4 hour long dinner has the convenient side effect of freeing up many of the servants to do suspicious stuff without the possibility of getting caught. Afterall, all the Ushiromiya's are essentially trapped in the dining room for the entirety of the meal. As to what those actions could be, I have no clue.
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text:
A Cool & Convertible Home Theater
Let's be honest, give some guys a dark room with a huge screen and the rest of the décor doesn't always matter much. But for the owners of this home theater space that is far more cultivated than cavernous, life is truly sweet. Below are some tips and resources for creating your own luxurious lair.
Rich and Julie Rose, a graphic and lighting designer respectively, made the most of their joint expertise to find creative solutions for setting up a movie-watching spot on the bottom floor of their industrial loft without sacrificing the style and multi-functionality of the room.
• The vintage Polish movie posters that decorate the walls are bolted between sheets of plexiglass and the screen is revealed when the poster is removed from its specially-designed brackets. Similar vintage posters can be found at Posteritati.
• The ceiling-mounted projector is easily overlooked when it's turned off, allowing the room to function as an additional seating area. For instructions on mounting a projector on the ceiling, read this post on Unplggd.
• Rich and Julie's vintage fireplace may be not be real, but the faux flames still warm up the space. Check out Malm fireplaces for a classic working version.
• Rich took the photograph that covers the sliding doors and hides a small office and most of the media equipment. He had the image printed locally at I O Labs and mounted on plywood. Search large format printers online to find one near you, or try an online printer like megaprint.com that will turn your photographs into wallpaper.
• The video of Andy Warhol's Screen Tests shown in the photographs — beautiful video portraits of subjects including Edie Sedgwick, Dennis Hopper and Lou Reed set to music — is available from Amazon and is fantastic wall décor in and of itself.
Stay tuned for a full tour of Rich & Julie's fantastic loft next week.
(Images: Sarah Rainwater)