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On Tue, Nov 25, 2008 at 10:44 PM, Booth, David (HP Software - Boston) <firstname.lastname@example.com> wrote: > Okay, well, let's assume that "accessible" means that a representation is likely to be retrievable. You have violated the cardinal rule of this group - define your terms, either directly or by citation. You don't say what sense of representation, or representation of what. >... "if there exists an :InformationResource ir with a representation that was retrieved less than 24 hours ago, then ir is a :AccessibleIR". define "with" If :InformationResource is a new term we're defining, it can be defined to be anything. But we already have a set of terms (Accessible, AWWIR, repsentation-qua-AWWW, etc), and I want to see if we can make reasonable stands or refinements regarding them and relating them, based on what we think would be most helpful for communication and for engineered artifacts. >> httpRange-14 permits one to use http: URIs to name things that aren't >> allowed by RFC 2616, but says that any 2xx-responder ought to be an >> AWWWIR. However, incorrect use of the http: scheme so extended can >> result in non-AWWWIRs that are 2xx-responders (e.g. Dublin Core URIs). > > I don't think that's quite the right perspective. I think if a GET on a URI yields a 2xx response, that is conclusive evidence that the URI *does* denote an IR, regardless of anything else that the URI owner may state through other means. I know you have urged people to believe this, but I do not see evidence that any formal document licenses this statement. I know others in the group, including me, expressly disagree, as IMO it contradicts the "URI owner" section of AWWW 126.96.36.199, so please let's just agree to disagree and try to move on. > If the URI owner also declares through other means that the URI denotes Dan's car, then there is a URI collision: > http://www.w3.org/TR/webarch/#URI-collision > Another term for URI collision is "ambiguity", for example, when a single URI http://markbaker.ca/ denotes both Mark Baker the person and Mark Baker's web page. As pointed out on slides 19-20 of > http://dbooth.org/2008/irsw/slides.ppt > this is architecturally identical to the problem that occurs when a URI for the protein AKT is minted, and AKT is later discovered to be three distinct proteins: AKT1, AKT2 and AKT3. And as Pat Hayes has pointed out many times, this kind of ambiguity will never be eliminated. Fortunately, such ambiguity is not a show stopper, because: (a) the ambiguity may not matter to many applications; and (b) when the ambiguity does matter, the ambiguous URI can be related to more specific URIs, using skos:narrower. It is URIs that are ambiguous, not resources. I can't say that one person is skos:narrower than another. If I read Pat and Harry correctly, ambiguity means that one well-meaning agent can take a URI to denote one thing, and another can take it to denote another, and this is, SOMETIMES, either unavoidable, benign, or both. (Still other agents may be formalists, and not care what the name denotes at all, but only what inferences can be drawn about them.) We can argue about that, but the main conclusion I draw is that whenever binding of a URI to a thing (denotation) is in question, you have to talk about who believes what - you have to compare models. Denotation is not objective. Note that in a properly constructed ontology AKT would have a definition as a class, and that definition would stick. If new information contradicted old, that would either be the result of a refutable statement about biology or a refutable statement about curation (failure to respect a definition). Such situations are unavoidable, but should motivate repair efforts (this is the doctrine of "fallabilism"). >> >> But all that aside... one question I have is whether the classes >> Edition and Accessible intersect. > > Strictly speaking, no. But that won't stop people from using the same URI to denote both. That's the ambiguity mentioned above. OK, you and Tim and I now all agree that these classes - i.e. what RFC 2616 calls a "resource" (which we agreed seemed to be what Pat considered the things that can be "accessed") and what AWWW calls an "information resource" - are disjoint. That's HUGE progress! Just because we don't know what kind of thing a URI denotes doesn't mean that some future assertion (using the vocabulary we publish, say) about it might not clear up the matter. If the classes are disjoint, and someone uses the URI one day to mean a member of one class and one day to mean a member of another, that is inconsistent (in the OWL sense) and against AWWW (which says don't use one URI to name two different things). The only way for someone to use a single URI to make statements appropriate to both classes is if the classes intersect. The ambiguity idea just says there may be multiple models that are all OK. It doesn't mean it's OK to be inconsistent. > - an InformationResource is essentially a function from (Time x Request) to Representation; and Not an objective statement. Do you mean "information resource" in the AWWW sense? I don't see how you'd support that. If it's a matter of definition, I wish you'd use a different term, like fftr:IR (which would make this a definition). > - a URI denotes a resource through a two-step mapping from URI, to a set of assertions, to the resource, as described in > http://dbooth.org/2008/irsw/slides.ppt A set of assertions can constrain an interpretation (set of URI -> resource bindings) to the extent that someone might say that they know what the URI denotes (based on assuming the truth of the assertions). But it cannot dictate it. Please don't use "denotes" as if it were an objective fact - unless you are trying to define the term in a new way - in which case it would be less confusing to say so, and define a new term. I don't think we need to put words in the mouths of the authors of RFC 2616, AWWW, or the httpRange-14 resolution. I think it's OK to do a modest amount of "we agree that what they probably meant was" stuff - this should be limited consensus. I think it's OK to disagree, but only if there is some grounds in bibliography or other parts of reality for disagreeing - so that we can find out who's right. I think it's OK to recycle terms used in they see documents as long as we're always careful to say which definition is being used. I think it's OK to make recommendations on how new terms are to be used, and maybe even give recommendations on new ways to use a protocol such as HTTP. But I'm going to cry foul if someone tries to commandeer the meaning of a term, language, or protocol that's already defined and in use. I'll continue to be a broken record for as long as you do. I hope we can work out a common manner of speaking so that we can make progress together. JonathanReceived on Wednesday, 26 November 2008 13:49:53 UTC
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Yesterday we reported that Edgar Ramírez was nominated for an Emmy for Best Actor in a Mini-Series. The Venezuelan actor's received an Emmy nod for his inspirational turn as fellow countryman and revolutionary Ilich Ramírez Sánchez (aka Carlos the Jackal) in the five and a half hour-long mini-series, Carlos. Ramírez took to Twitter to express his excitement. "I'm very happy with this Emmy nomination! Olivier Assayas is also nominated for Best Director for CARLOS – it's a great joy! I am very touched for this Emmy nomination, and most of all that the news was brought to me while I was in my country!" he wrote. It's fortuitous timing for Ramírez, who is in his country for the theatrical release of Carlos in between filming for his forst blockbuster role in Clash of the Titans.
Sofia Vergara, Edgar Ramirez Nominated for Emmy Awards!
This is not Ramírez's first nomination for a big award. He lost (boooo!) to Al Pacino for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Series or Movie at the Screen Actor's Guild Awards earlier this year and was also nominated for a Golden Globe, which he also lost to Pacino. "I want to share this emotion and moment with my whole country and with all of you! Right when CARLOS premieres in Venezuela, it's beautiful!" the 34-year-old gushed. Congrats Edgar! We'll definitely be pulling for you.
LIVE SAG Awards Coverage: Al Pacino Beats Edgar Ramírez for Best Actor

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Journal of the Chilean Chemical Society
versión On-line ISSN 0717-9707
J. Chil. Chem. Soc. vol.56 no.3 Concepción 2011
J. Chil. Chem. Soc., 56, N° 3 (2011), págs.: 729-733.
S. FUENTESa,g, R.A. ZÁRATEb, R. ESPINOZAc, P. LEYTONd, D.E. DIAZ-DROGUETTe,fAND V.M. FUENZALIDAE
a Departamento de Química y Farmacia, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Católica del Norte Casilla 1280, Antofagasta, Chile. e-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
b Departamento de Física, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Católica del Norte, Casilla 1280, Antofagasta, Chile.
c Deparamento de Ciencias de Materiales FCFM, Universidad de Chile, Av. Tupper 2069, Santiago, Chile.
d Instituto de Química, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Avenida Brasil 2950, Valparaíso, Chile.
e Departamento de Física, Facultad de Ciencias Físicas y Matemáticas, Universidad de Chile, Casilla 487-3, Santiago, Chile.
j Laboratorio de Ciencia de Materiales, Facultad de Física, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Av. Vicuña Mackenna 4860, Santiago, Chile.
g Center for the Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, CEDENNA, Santiago, Chile.
Hydrated titanium oxides structures have been synthesized successfully from rutile by a single-step hydrothermal process at 130 0C in NaOH at concentrations of 5 M and 10 M, monitoring up to two days. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FEG-SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images indicate that samples treated at 5M were composed of sheet-like structures, while nanotubes were mainly found at 10 M. XRD analysis for both concentrations indicated presence of two phases, hydrated titanium oxide not indexed yet and rutile. Besides, X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of the samples treated at 10 M exhibited high reflections from the nanostructures, i.e., they possess high crystallinity. Thermogravimetry Analysis (TGA) indicated that the nanostructures show crystallized water in their matrix, specifically it was found that this hydrated phase has half molecule of occluded water per unit cell. This result is consistent with Raman spectroscopy that corroborates the existence of crystallization water in the synthesized product, by a deep profile of hydrated titanium oxide.
Keywords: Sheets, Tubes, Hydrothermal, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction.
Titania and sodium titanate nanostructures have been extensively studied because of their potential application in solar cells, high performance batteries, ceramics, gas sensors, catalysis supports, photonic devices, data storage electronics, electrochemical, capacitors, inks, and paint pigments [1]. This large interest in titanium oxides is due to their unique properties, as photocatalysis. In one-dimensional structures and at nanometric scale, some properties can be magnified and new ones can appear due to quantum confinement [2].
The crystalline structure of the as-synthesized nanostructures prepared using a hydrothermal process is still unclear, despite extensive investigations using mainly anatase phase as precursor [3-6]. Rutile [7-9] as well as brookite [10] phases have been also used as precursors, but the same unclear problem about the crystalline structure was found. Lan et al. [7] argued that they used rutile as the precursor because of its higher abundance in nature in regard to anatase or brookite; industry uses this phase more often as well. They synthesized layered structures of hydrated sodium titanate from a reaction between rutile as raw material and concentrated NaOH solution under hydrothermal conditions. Later, the products were converted to anatase nanorods after annealing at 500 0C. Gao et al. [8] synthesized titanium oxide nanotubes and nanorods by a hydrothermal reaction starting with rutile powder; their products exhibited a crystalline structure corresponding to hydrated protonated titanates of the form H2Ti3O72.8ÎH2O, result obtained by TGA. On the other hand, Thorne et al. [9] performed a study of the variation of the hydrothermal synthesis conditions and post treatments; they reported the growth of nanotubes of hydrogenated titanates rather than titania, these structures decomposed in anatase by dehydration below 300 0C. In Thorne's work, the nanotubes presented sharp diffraction lines and Raman shifts, which indicated the high crystallinity of the samples. This fact had not been reported in previous literature devoted to the synthesis of titania derived nanotubes via wet chemical reactions utilizing anatase, rutile and brookite as precursors.
In this article, we present the study of the growth of hydrated titanium oxide nanotubes obtained from a hydrothermal process using rutile as precursor. The properties of the nanotubes have been carefully analyzed by several characterization techniques. Specifically, the water crystallization was evidenced by Raman spectroscopy and Thermogravimetry analysis.
The sodium titanate nanotubes were hydrothermally synthesized in a Teflon beaker containing 25 ml NaOH (Aldrich, 99.99%) at concentrations of 5 and 10 M, placed in a sealed reactor together with 0.21 g of TiO2 (rutile from Aldrich, 99.8%). The resulting solution was stirred for 1 h at room temperature. The mixture was then heated at 130 0C and treated during 12, 18, 24 and 48 h. The obtained powders were washed with 0.1 M HCl aqueous solution and distilled water and were subsequently separated from the solution by centrifugation. This operation was repeated until the washing water showed a pH less than 7.
The XDR data were recorded on using a Siemens D5000 powder diffractometer with CuKcx radiation (40 kV, 30 mA). The Raman spectra were recording out on a WITEC model CRC200 using a 5.5mW laser with a wavelength of 514.5 nm. The AFM images were taken by the same equipment. The morphology of the powder materials was observed by a field emission scanning electron microscope (FEG-SEM JSM-6330F), and a low vacuum scanning electron microscope (LV-SEM, JSM-5900LV), equipped with a X-ray microanalysis detector, used to obtain EDX spectra. High-resolution images were obtained using a FEI Tecnai STwin F20 FEG transmission electron microscope (TEM). The TEM samples were prepared by suspending the powder in ethanol and then collecting it using a carbon grid.
3.1 Morphology
The starting rutile material consisted of spherical particles, and of particles with very well defined faces; the sizes oscillated between 100 nm and 3 μηι. An image of the raw material is not included in this work but the morphology is similar to that shown in Figure 1a. After the hydrothermal treatment in NaOH 5 M, the formation of sheet-like structures is evidenced in of Figure 1. Each particle of rutile is exfoliated in isolated sheets and the coalescence of them gives rise to the larger sheets, which reach widths from 10 to 100 nm and lengths of several μηι (Figure 1a and 1b).
It is well known that the surface strengths on the sheets give initial point to the formation of nanotubes by rolling up of sheets into tubes, this process seems to be very fast, which was proved by a computer simulation [11], therefore it is rare to observe sheet-like structures [11]. Ma et al. [12] proposed a controlled procedure to intentionally roll sheets into tubes directly.
In our case, the process of formation for converting sheets into tubes is relatively slow in a solution 5 M NaOH. After two days of reaction the samples are mainly composed of sheet-like structures of different sizes, some of them are already curved, as shown in Figure 1b and 1c.The morphology of the hydrothermal samples at 10 M showed the presence of cylindrical structures with diameters from 10 to 30 nm and lengths from 500 nm up to several μιιι, as shown in Figures 1d, 1e and 1f. Treatments of 12 h of reaction presented morphology composed of cylindrical-like and a few sheet-like structures with large pieces of the unreacted precursor were still present, as depicted in Figure 1d.
For samples after 24 h of reaction, the morphology was composed of cylindrical-like structures and large pieces corresponding to unreacted precursor, i.e., the transformation from spherical particles into cylindrical-like structures is not complete, as shown in Figures 1e. In other zones of the same sample after 24 h of reaction, the morphology was dominated by cylindrical structures (see Figure 1f). In contrast, the product obtained after 24 h of reaction in a concentration of 5 M mainly exhibited spherical particles. Therefore as already evidenced, the increase of the exfoliation rate depends on the reaction time and of the NaOH concentration.
In summary, the observations performed by FEG-SEM indicated that hydrothermal reaction at 5 M produce only sheet-like structures up to two days of reaction. Besides, the transformation from spherical particles into nanotubes is not complete in both solutions 5 M and 10 M NaOH. A plausible explanation is that rutile is the most stable crystalline phase of all polymorphic forms of titanium dioxides.
3.2 Compositional Analysis
X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) were used to detect the sodium content of the hydrated titanium oxide compounds. The XPS spectra of the products treated in a concentration of 5 M and 10 M revealed the presence of titanium and oxygen, where the sodium content was found to trace level on the surface. Figure 2a shows high-resolution spectra in the Na1s line, which confirmed that the samples contained sodium in their matrix at trace levels, below 0.5 at.%. The atomic percentages of the elements on the surface of the samples are about 77% for O1s, 22% for Ti2p3/2, and the ratio O1s/Ti2p is about 3.5. Therefore, this sample has excess of oxygen and deficiency of titanium on its surface with respect to a pure TiO2 sample. In parallel, EDX was used to study the sodium content in the bulk of the sample, to compare with XPS which is a surface analysis technique. The EDX spectra for samples prepared at 5 M and 10 M exhibited similar atomic percentages of titanium in the Ti(K) line and oxygen in the O(K) line. Figure 2b shows an EDX spectrum of a sample prepared at 10M and 24h of reaction, which presented the following atomic percentages: 34.7% in the Ti(K) line, 65.0% in the O(K) line and about 0.3% in the Na(K) line. In this case, the ratio O(K)/Ti(K) for this sample is about 1.87, therefore the stoichiometry approximately corresponds to the TiO2, with slight deficiency in oxygen and rich in titanium. In conclusion, the oxygen atomic percentage could screen the others elements which explain the difference in percentages in EDX and XPS.
3.3 Thermogravimetry Analysis
Thermogravimetry analysis was used to study the existence of occluded water in the hydrothermal samples. TGA thermogram shown in Figure 3 was only taken to the sample prepared at 10 M and 24 h of reaction, because this presented the highest conversion rate from rutile to the hydrated phase. The limit between adsorbed and crystallization water is not clear, but in general, it is assumed that for temperatures lower than 150 °C, the water is physically absorbed [13].
The peak bellow 120 0C is indicating the elimination of the absorbed water. The loss of weight at temperatures higher than 200 0C mainly comes from crystallization water. From Figure 3, the loss weight about 3% corresponds to water physically adsorbed on the sample, where the limit is indicated by a dash line at 1500C. There are two other important weight losses about 200 and 300 °C, that correspond to a loss of 2.4 wt. % and 2.8 wt. %, respectively. They can be attributed to water molecularly absorbed as crystallized water.
The total weight loss was about 9.0% and it occurred between 50 and 350 0C. If we assume that the sample is composed of titanium dioxide in one of its phases, the occluded water by unit cell of TiO2 corresponds to half water molecule by unit cell, i.e., the new phase occurs as hydrated titanium oxide. A similar result has been informed by Suda et al. [14]. Other researchers have informed that their as-synthesized samples are present as titanium dioxide hydrate phases of the form TiO2*1.25H2O and TiO2*H2O for nanotubes and nanorods, respectively [7]. On the other hand, in the literature there are reports where their as-synthesized samples occurs as protonated titanate hydrate, specifically as trititanate in the phase H2Ti3O7*2.8 H2O [8] and in the phase H2Ti3O70.8Î H2O [9].
3.4 Structural analysis. XRD
The diffractograms of all samples prepared in this work are similar, i.e., they mainly present reflections from the precursor and hydrated crystallographic phases, which to the best of our knowledge, have not been yet been indexed. The samples treated in a concentration of 5M NaOH exhibited diffraction lines of rutile (R) mixed with anatase (A) and the hydrated phase (T). However, the hydrated phase has reflections of low intensity in comparison to the precursor, i.e., the sheet-like structures have low crystallinity, as shown in Figure 4a. After treatment with 10 M NaOH, the diffractograms exhibited sharp diffraction lines of rutile and of hydrated phase (T), but not from anatase (Figure 4b). In this case, the hydrated phase exhibited diffraction lines as intense as the rutile phase, which indicates that the cylindrical-like structures have higher cristallinity than the sheet-like structures obtained at 5 M. Contrarily to our case, it is well known in literature that the as-synthesized nanostructures, grown by hydrothermal processes and using anatase as precursor, exhibit XRD patterns with very low intensity diffraction lines [5-6, 17].
Several research groups working on titanium-derived nanostructures have utilized rutile as precursor. Although their products have been synthesized under similar hydrothermal conditions, the crystalline phases found by them are clearly different to the phases found in this work [7-9]. Moreover, our samples presented intense diffraction lines, which are comparable to the intensity of rutile phase. It is well-known that rutile and anatase have a high cross section in Raman microscopy and XRD techniques in comparison with other oxides like, for example, copper oxides. This fact has not been reported in the literature devoted to the synthesis of titania derived nanotubes via wet chemical reactions, using the titania as precursor in all their phases: anatase, rutile and brookite.
3.5 Structural properties by TEM and SAED
In the Figure 5a shows a low magnification TEM image of a sample prepared by a hydrothermal process in a concentration of 10 M NaOH after 24 h of reaction. This image shows nanotubes of hydrated titanium oxide with diameters between 10 nm and 20 nm and lengths from 500 nm up to several μηι. First, selective area electron diffraction (SAED) was used to calculate the crystalline planes of the hydrated phase. The electron diffraction pattern shown in the top inset of Figure 5a was obtained in a large area containing several nanotubes. From the radii of the rings observed in the diffraction pattern the distances of crystalline planes were calculated, with results of 0.37, 0.19, 0.15, 0.13, and 0.1 nm, respectively. Second, to confirm the crystalline planes previously found, the fringes distances of the nanotubes shown in the TEM image of Figure 5b were measured, with results of 0.36, 0.32, 0.19 and 0.15 nm, respectively. The top inset of Figure 5b is a high resolution (HR) TEM image, which shows a layered structure.
There is no complete correspondence between interplanar distances obtained from HRTEM images and the crystalline planes obtained from the electron diffraction patterns, i.e., interplanar distance about 0.32-0.33 nm were not found by electron diffraction. Moreover, both results previously found do not correspond to the crystalline planes obtained from the XRD patterns. We speculate that the difference could be due to the occlusion water in the samples, which have modified the intershell distances increasing the values presented by rutile [12]. The crystalline planes obtained from XRD patterns are not modified by the radiation that comes from CuKa line, due to the fact that the energy of this ray is not enough for inducing the water desorption. However, the electron beam of the TEM at 200 keV induce desorption of the occluded water.
Such controversies have been also evidenced by others researchers, when their electron diffraction patterns for nanotubes and nanorods do not match with XRD results [12]. It was confirmed that the crystalline planes obtained by electron diffraction do not correspond with neither anatase nor rutile or any other compound previously reported [17]. In conclusion, the fringes should have smaller distances than those of the crystalline planes revealed by XRD. Although the distance of the H-O bond is about 0.097 nm, the crystalline planes of the rutile will be modified depending on the crystal structure formed.
3.6 Raman Spectroscopy
Raman spectroscopy was used in order to study the vibration modes of hydrothermal samples. The result presented in this work corresponds to a sample prepared at 130 0C in a concentration of 10M NaOH after 24 h of reaction. It was chosen, because this sample presented the more intense vibrational bands, as shown in Figure 6. It is well known that Raman spectroscopy can detect all polymorphic phases of TiO2 and the assignment of bands to rutile, anatase, brookite and TiO2-B have been previously reported [15-16]. Anatase, brookite and TiO2-B are not thermodynamically stable and they can transform irreversibly and exothermically into rutile when they are heated to high temperatures [16].
The Raman depth profile markedly exhibited two zones of different grey tones (Figure 6a). The brilliant zone corresponds to the rutile phase (R) and their typical Raman spectrum is shown in the bottom curve of Figure 6b. On the other hand, the grey dark zone corresponds to the hydrated phase (T), which is mixed with rutile, as it is shown in the top spectrum of Figure 6b. The latter spectrum reveals interesting differences in relation to the rutile Raman shifts. The vibrational bands of this sample are localized at 243, 266, 313, 349, 458, 691, 844, 888 cm- 1. However, similar Raman spectrum was not found in literature or data bases, despite an exhaustive search about. Besides, it was confirmed that these vibrational bands correspond to the hydrated material, because the laser beam does not have enough energy to cause water desorption.
Finally, we also found characteristic weak bands at 1657 and 3102 cm-1 attributed to the stretching vibration of OH groups, probably due to crystallization water and to the bending vibration of molecular H2O, respectively. These results are supported by Thermogravimetry Analysis (TGA) and corroborate the existence of crystallization water in as-synthesised samples. It was also found that their empirical formulation corresponds to TiO21/2Î H2O.
Hydrated titanium oxides with sheet-like and tube-like structures have been successfully synthesized from rutile as precursor by a single-step hydrothermal process at 130 0C in a NaOH concentration of 5 M and 10 M, respectively.
It was proven that the samples synthesized at 5 M are mainly composed by sheet-like structures. They were found in samples with up to 2 days of reaction, which constitutes a controversy with the literature. XRD and Raman spectroscopy clearly revealed two crystalline phases in both concentrations with the highest crystallinity of the nanostructures found for samples prepared at 10 M. Although the intensity of rutile lines appeared lowered in approximately a factor of four with respect to the lines of the unreacted rutile, it is unusual to find sharp diffraction lines corresponding to the nanostructures in as-prepared samples for syntheses at moderate temperatures as 130 0C.
The crystalline phase obtained in this work corresponding to the sheetlike and tube-like structures had not been informed and neither indexed yet. Besides, fringes spaces of the tubes obtained from HRTEM images and lattice distances found by electron diffraction (SAED) of nanotubes do not agree with those found by XRD, due to the occlusion water in the rutile matrix which increases the lattice parameters. Also, inside of the TEM this water is desorbed from nanostructures by exposition of them to the electron beam of 200 kV. The existence of the crystallized water was proved by Raman microscopy, which was detected at 1657 and 3102 cm-1. Thermogravimetry analysis confirmed the existence of the occlusion water and permitted to calculate that each unit cell contains half molecule of water.
The authors wish to thank to the FONDECYT grant under the contract N° 1110555. We acknowledge to FUNDACIÓN ANDES for their support to Experimental Physics under the grant number C-13876. Basal Financing Program CONICYT, FB0807 (CEDENNA), Millenium Science Nucleus P06-022-F.
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(Received: January 29, 2010 - Accepted: January 2, 2011).


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|Reviews for The Skywalker Prophecy: A Destiny Renewed
| 82935555 chapter 18 . 4/1/2013
I'm so glad this story exists. I love reading AU stories that include Anakin & Padmé with the twins... it's incredibly refreshing, and regardless of what happens in your next instalments I just love this family dynamic and I hope it stays this way.
Your writing is just magnificent. Thank you for sharing.
| Atlasina7 chapter 12 . 7/10/2011
I've just found this story & I am really enjoying it. Generally, I don't like OC characters, especially if their contribution is at the expense of the original characters, but that is not the case with your OC Skywalker children. They add another dimension to the Skywalker family. Very well written: riveting plot, excellent characterizations, and lack of grammar issues. Thank you for sharing your talent with us other SW fans.
| skowler chapter 18 . 5/6/2010
Only one nit-pick for this story.
Breaks between points of view, or breaks in timing, are not clearly enough marked. Perhaps try a line of nonsense non-letter characters, or extra space between paragraphs or even just
This will make your writing much more clear and readable.
Otherwise, it was a very enjoyable fic and I'm looking forward to reading more of this series. In the meantime, I work graveyard shift, so I'm off to bed.
| Lisilgirl chapter 18 . 7/24/2009
God I love how you write. It's selfless and absorbing, yet so enchanting when compared with the whole universe of Star Wars in general. I love how it's not suffocating one character, but completely broadens the perspective. And it's not smutty. :D
Believe me, I am such a long way from achieving this goal. It is certainly one of the best fics I've ever read, and I can't believe I forgot to favorite it all those years ago.
| Rigil Kent chapter 17 . 1/15/2008
Just discovered this today and I've gotta say, its really neat! Well done all around.
| floppy chapter 1 . 4/30/2006
I loved this story! You are a superb writer. It has everything - suspense, adventure, romance and more. At first I was hesitant about the two OC kids of Padme and Anakin, but they fit beautifully into this story. You were creative in how some of the characters used the force and I enjoyed it. I've just began reading the second story in your trilogy and am looking forward to completing it.
| Hieiko chapter 17 . 8/6/2005
That was absolutely beautiful. (And now, Episode V is next!)
| Hieiko chapter 12 . 8/6/2005
Very impressive. Your descriptions of space combat and military tactics are incredible.
Plus, Ani and Padme are so cute! :)
| Hieiko chapter 8 . 8/6/2005
Anakin had won the title fifteen consecutive years? Whoa, he certainly is the undisputed Lightsaber Champion, isn't he? ::grins::
And as for Luke? Well, like father, like son. :)
| Hieiko chapter 2 . 8/6/2005
Mara Jade is Anakin's Padawan? That is simply awesome! And I had some reservations at first about the OC Skywalker kids, but just from this chapter I already find them interesting. And aww, Ani still calls Padme his angel. :)
| Hieiko chapter 1 . 8/6/2005
Oh, so that's how Leia becomes an Organa. Very creative! But that last part was the best. Daddy, indeed. :)
| AngusH chapter 18 . 3/24/2004
Thank you for writing such a wonderful story. It's beautiful, it has depth and humor and drama and is a really good read.
The way that you've taken the canon characters and changed them is perfect. Just enough to make them fit into this new universe yet carefully enough to retain the attributes that make them who they are.
I really enjoyed reading it and I am off to read the next story right now. :-)
| The Fink chapter 18 . 3/19/2004
This is a wonderful, fantastic piece of writing. It's everything a story should be; tightly plotted, brilliantly executed with just the right inserts of humour to lighten the inevitable darkness.
So often in these kinds of stories, the original characters are two dimensional at best, but your original characters are well rounded, fully three dimensional people. In tandem with this is your characterisation of the characters we know and recognise from the original movies which is both spot on and subtly different as necessary for the different roles certain of the characters have taken on.
Finally, the whole scenario is an absolutely intreaguing and tantalising 'what if' scenario that had me completely gripped and on the edge of my seat since I stumbled across it yesterday lunch time.
Truly, excellent work; roll on, episode V.
Thank you :)
| Marajsky chapter 1 . 1/7/2004
I love this story! But I can't get to chapter 14, can you check to see if it's still there? I keep getting a timed out message.
| GoldenEcho7287 chapter 18 . 12/14/2003
Wow, I read a Bumpier Road, and now you have a sequel, woohoo! I can't for the next one


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Texans release veterans Demps, Weaver, Salaam
Texans release 3 veterans
Cutting Demps, Weaver, Salaam frees cap space
Published 6:30 am, Thursday, February 26, 2009
The Texans are coming and going through a revolving door as NFL teams approach the start of free agency Friday.
On Wednesday, the Texans reached an agreement on a three-year contract with starting free safety Eugene Wilson and released defensive end Anthony Weaver, offensive tackle Ephraim Salaam and safety Will Demps.
Quarterback Sage Rosenfels is going to be traded to Minnesota for a fourth-round draft choice Friday.
By releasing Weaver, Salaam and Demps, the Texans saved $3.995 million against the salary cap.
Help wanted
The Texans are looking for a left defensive end in free agency or the draft to replace Weaver, who started the last three seasons after playing his first four seasons at Baltimore.
"I'm saddened because I built a lot of good relationships in Houston and made a lot of friends," Weaver said. "I'm disappointed because I didn't get to finish what we started, and that was to make the playoffs.
"I have no animosity, zero hard feelings. It was a blessing to be here. We just had a difference of opinion. I wanted to be here, and they wanted to go in a different direction."
Weaver could end up with the New York Jets or Denver Broncos. His defensive coordinator in Baltimore was Mike Nolan, the Broncos' new defensive coordinator. Weaver's defensive line coach at Baltimore was Rex Ryan, the Jets' new head coach.
"It's too early to say right now," Weaver said. "This just became official. I do think I'll play somewhere, but I just don't know where."
Like Weaver, Salaam signed with the Texans as a free agent in 2006. He was scheduled to back up rookie Charles Spencer, but Spencer suffered a season-ending injury and Salaam replaced him for 14 games. He started every game in 2007.
Last season, Salaam received a lot of playing time as a backup to rookie Duane Brown.
"It's a business, and I can't control it," Salaam said. "It's something that happens. I'm sorry I didn't reach my goal of helping the Texans make the playoffs."
Opportunity for Butler
Rashad Butler, who has been with the Texans the last two seasons, will have to step into Salaam's role as the swing tackle behind Brown and Eric Winston.
"Gary (Kubiak) told me they want to see how he (Butler) develops," Salaam said. "I didn't know I was getting in the way of his development. I believe I'm still capable of playing and playing at a very high level when I get another chance. Right now, I don't know where that chance will be."
Demps played two seasons with the Texans. When Wilson and Nick Ferguson were inserted as starters last season, Demps was demoted and didn't resurface. The Texans expect to re-sign Ferguson as a backup to Wilson and second-year strong safety Dominique Barber.


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Description: Info provided by:
Balclutha is a steel-hulled squared rigged sailing ship, built in 1886. She is named after the town of Balclutha in New Zealand and is currently preserved at San Francisco, California.
The Balclutha was built in 1886 by Charles Connell & Co. Ltd., of Glasgow in Scotland, for Robert McMillan, of Dumbarton in Scotland. Designed as a general trader, Balclutha rounded Cape Horn 17 times in 13 years. During this period she carried cargoes such as wine, case oil, and coal from Europe and the East Coast of the United States to various ports in the Pacific. These included Chile for nitrate, Australia and New Zealand for wool, Burma for rice, San Francisco for grain, and the Pacific Northwest for timber.
In 1899 the Balclutha transferred to the registry of Hawaii, and traded timber from the Pacific Northwest to Australia, returning to San Francisco with Australian coal.
In 1902 the Balclutha was renamed the Star of Alaska and joined the salmon fishing trade, sailing north from the San Francisco area to Alaska in April with supplies, fishermen and cannery workers, and returned in September with canned salmon. For this trade she carried over 200 crew, as compared to the 26 man crew she carried as the Balclutha. Her last voyage in this trade was in 1930.
In 1933, the Star of Alaska was renamed the Pacific Queen. In this guise she appeared in the film Mutiny on the Bounty starring Clark Gable and Charles Laughton. She then eked out an existence as an exhibition ship, gradually deteriorating.
In 1954, the Pacific Queen was acquired by the San Francisco Maritime Museum, who restored her and renamed her back to Balclutha. In 1985 she was designated a National Historic Landmark. She is now one of the exhibits of the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park and is to be found moored at the park's Hyde Street Pier.
The Balclutha also played the ship Bounty in the classic film, Mutiny on the Bounty.
General characteristics
Gross tonnage: 1689 tons (1716 tonnes)
Overall length: 301 ft (91.7 m)
Length of deck: 256.5 ft (78.1 m)
Beam: 38.6 ft (11.8 m)
Depth: 22.7 ft (6.9 m)
Height of mainmast: 145 ft (44.2 m)
Category: - Ships/Boats/Submarines
State: - California
Country: - United States
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Post 2: The Fix Is In???
Hi folks,
This is a post I've been meaning to compose for weeks now, but I've been having trouble finding the right way of framing it. I feel like the context is still eluding me, but with only two weeks to go before November 2nd, I can't sit on it any longer. So bear with me.
First up, let me again praise Steve Soto of The Left Coaster for his continued, careful analysis of the numbers behind the numbers in Gallup's polling results. Despite his detailed breakdowns of the demographics of their samples, which diverge significantly -- and always in ways beneficial to Republicans -- from the actual turnout in the last few presidential elections, Gallup continues to be regarded as the "most respected" polling firm in the country by several media outlets, most notably CNN.
But Steve Soto's latest post leaves little doubt that Gallup's polling methods are deliberately unrepresentative, designed to give the GOP an edge. Read the post; it's important -- and damning.
I've discussed this at length with a few family members and friends, and they all seem to regard Gallup's distortions as an effort to sway public opinion; and with that in mind, several have asked me if I really thought polls could make a difference in the way the public (undecideds, really) will vote on November 2nd.
Yes, I do. People like to back a winner, like to feel like they're part of a positive trend. And let's face it, with such a stark choice this year, many undecideds must be looking for ANY reason to pick a candidate. In fact, I imagine the large number of undecideds this late in the day is in large part DUE to the closeness of the race throughout the year.
But I don't think that's the primary reason for Gallup's skewed polling samples.
Please have a look at this site: vote2004.erpioste.com. It's an exhaustive account of many (though probably not all) of the Republican efforts to disenfranchise voters and discourage turnout in this year's Presidential election.
Maybe you've heard about the ripped-up Democratic registration forms in Nevada. Or the Ohio Secretary of State's insistence that registration forms submitted on anything lighter than 80-weight paper stock would not be valid. Or a Fox News crew telling students in Arizona that they were "breaking the law" by registering fellow students to vote -- when they were, in fact, most assuredly within the law. But if you see this ever-growing list of Republican dirty tricks in total...
Well, I have to say, it's the first time all year that I've felt truly pessimistic about our chances. I do think Kerry will win handily -- if all the votes are properly counted. But the Republicans are stooping to new lows this year. And frankly, they don't care who knows it. Their voter registration effort in South Dakota was embroiled in scandal, forcing six staffers to resign. Even the former governor - a Republican himself -- condemned it. What happened to the staffers?
The Republican party in Ohio immediately snapped several of them up to help with their voter registration efforts in that all-important swing state...
By all accounts, the Kerry campaign has already amassed a truly impressive roster of lawyers -- I've heard the number 10,000 bandied about, when speaking nationally -- to help them defend against these underhanded, disenfranchising tactics. But I just don't know if it will be enough. I'm beginning to get the feeling that we're fighting on so many fronts that we can't possibly prevail.
And those polls? Here's my point: I see them as a way of inoculating Republican candidates against charges of vote fraud. If the race LOOKS tight in the final week or two of the campaign, then either candidate could claim a legitimate victory, right? But wait, isn't that what recounts are for...?
Welcome to the wonderful world of electronic voting. Why do you think the companies who make the devices and the software have been fighting tooth and claw to prevent states from introducing printouts -- a paper trail that could verify votes in the event of a recount?
When you buy something, don't you usually want a receipt? When you make a deposit at an ATM, don't you want a receipt? Yet these companies insist that their systems are so perfectly designed that a paper trail -- a voter receipt, essentially -- is unnecessary.
Maybe this sounds like "tinfoil hat" conspiracy theory stuff. But bear in mind: both Max Cleland and the Democratic governor of Georgia were favored to win their races in 2002. Both lost by remarkable last-minute upsets -- swings by as much as 16 percentage points according to some polls. And that was the first election in Georgia with widespread use of electronic voting machines. And the first time in more than 100 years that the state elected a Republican to govern it.
I should probably mention here that days before that election, a representative from the company (Diebold) that made the election devices "upgraded" the software on the machines without notifying the state, and the machines were not retested and recertified before the election.
Oh, and some enterprising online sleuths discovered an unprotected Diebold FTP site hosting a number of files with very curious names. Names like "robgeorgia."
Don't believe me? Go to blackboxvoting.org and read about it for yourself.
The secretary of state of Florida -- Glenda Hood, the 2004 equivalent of Katherine Harris -- has actually made it illegal to do any kind of recount on electronic voting machines in that state, despite the fact that another state law (which came significantly into play in 2000) requires that a recount be done if the margin of victory is too narrow. Now you see why I wrote earlier that Kerry should have just written off Florida this year...?
Look: as long as the polls are close, the conventional wisdom will always be, "Anything can happen." And as long as it seems like "anything can happen," the Republicans will stop at nothing to ensure that their victory does "happen." I believe that's why we're seeing these heavily-GOP skewed voter samples in national polls, and why several "surprise" polls have sprung up in states like New Jersey and Maryland (which have invested heavily in electronic voting technology -- despite warnings about their flaws). Both seem to have fallen back into the Dems' column, which is where they belong, but I can certainly imagine Republicans' dredging up those outlier polls to justify their "win" if Bush suddenly and inexplicably comes out ahead on the 2nd.
Sorry to anyone who thinks this limb I'm going out on is just too thin or crazy. But again, check out vote2004.erpioste.com and see for yourself the lengths that Republicans are going to this year to keep turnout low at the polls, especially in swing states. High turnout traditionally means more Democratic votes. So we need to make sure that no one is discouraged from voting because of doubtful polls, or any other reason -- especially intimidation.
If you live in a swing state, please consider becoming a poll monitor. Or volunteering for a GOTV campaign on November 2nd. Or if you live in a state that has early voting, encourage left-leaning friends to cast their vote ASAP. We have momentum on our side. And yes, we have a lot of lawyers in our corner. But we should consider them a last resort. The important thing is to make sure that our side turns out in unprecedented numbers, and to stop any efforts to disenfranchise voters ON NOVEMBER 2ND.
Sleep tight,


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Actor Tommy Ford (l) and Philanthropist Hank Stewart talk with CBS Radio Atlanta's Maria Boynton about the 15th Annual White Linen Affair in Atlanta this weekend. (Credit: Maria Boynton/CBS Local)
A whole weekend of events for just $100. It's the 15th Annual Hank Stewart White Linen Affair in Atlanta August 5-7.
The Emmy Award winning poet and philanthropist tells me that it will be "3 days of purpose, power, and pleasure". Those seeking information about the event can go to the Hank Stewart Foundation website.


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Important takeaways from the December 2013 FOMC minutes (Part 1 of 8)
The Federal Reserve usually releases a more detailed account of its Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meetings a month or two after the initial meeting
When the Fed meets for its FOMC meeting, it usually puts out a press release that hits the highlights of the decision and gives a brief economic synopsis. Sometimes the release accompanies a press conference. Analysts will usually compare the current statement with the previous one and try to divine the Fed's thinking by noting any changes in language. The FOMC minutes of the meeting are much more in-depth and are usually ten to twenty pages long, with graphs and a discussion of both sides of the argument. Instead of simply giving the argument for dissenters, it gives the analyst a feeling for the current discussions. Commercial REITs like Simon Property Group (SPG), Boston Properties (BXP), Kilroy (KRC), Vornado (VNO), and S.L. Green (SLG) are highly interest rate–sensitive, and therefore will parse the minutes to get a read on the economy and the Fed's intentions.
Bond reaction to the minutes
Bonds were already heavy from the stronger-than-expected ADP jobs numbers, and the FOMC minutes pushed them over the edge. The ten-year bond yield intraday increased about a basis point and then ended up falling back about half a basis point. Overall, the mystery of Fed tapering has been largely taken out of the market after the December move, and the market has absorbed the idea that the Fed will continue to reduce asset purchases in a measured fashion.
The Fed sees diminishing benefits from asset purchases
In the minutes, a number of Fed participants noted that the law of diminishing returns was beginning to take effect in quantitative easing: "A majority of participants judged that the marginal efficacy of purchases was likely declining as purchases continue." Participants also worried about the unintended consequences of asset purchases, especially "excessive risk taking in the financial sector." The size of the Fed's balance sheet recently passed the $4 trillion mark, which is a massive increase from the sub-$1 trillion mark it had prior to the crisis.
Browse this series on Market Realist:


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802.11 ac wireless is fast – as much as twice the speed of the previous 802.11 n wireless of the built-in MacBook wireless card. This high-speed wireless provides streaming video, video conferencing with no hiccups, fast media file downloads and nearly instant web browsing.
QuickerTek makes the upgrade easy. Any MacBook Pro or Air running MacOS X 10.8.4 and a PCIe bus, (which includes most newer MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models) is a candidate. The QCard2 package comes with complete instructions (additional instructions are also available on the QuickerTek website). The QCard2 also comes with all the tools necessary to install the upgrade. Thanks to the engineers at Apple, and their well thought out design, it's very easy to install the QCard2. And by doing it yourself, you save money – no "hidden costs" for repair shop labor.
The QuickerTek acHex antenna upgrade brings the wireless signal strength of 6 external antennas to the Apple AirPort Base Station and Time Capsule products. This combination provides a powerful wireless system for home or office and are natural upgrades providing a complete wireless speed update.
For all those users who bought a MacBook with 802.11n wireless, the QCard2 is a quick and easy fix. Instead of suffering with slow wireless, those users can now upgrade and continue to use the MacBook that is ideal in every way except wireless speed.
QCard2 Features
* Delivers the fastest wireless speeds to slightly older MacBooks
* Leaves USB ports free
* No extra hardware to carry
* User installable
* Very low cost
* V1 for the MacBook Air
* Dimensions: 39mm x 19mm
* Ports: 2
* V2 for the MacBook Pro
* Dimensions: 45mm x 18mm
* Ports: 3
* QCard Replacement Wi-Fi card
* T5 Torx Screwdriver
* Pentalobe Screwdriver for MacBook
The QCard2 is currently part of a money-saving bundle. For a limited time, the acHex 6-antenna upgraded Apple Base Station or Apple Time Capsule is bundled with the QCard2.
Limited Time QCard2 Offers:
* QCard2 and acHex upgrade for customer's Apple AirPort Base Station or Apple Time Capsule Extreme $298
* QCard2 and acHex upgrade for new Apple Time Capsule $497
* QCard2 and acHex upgrade for new Apple 2TB Time Capsule $697
* QCard2 and acHex upgrade for new Apple 3TB Time Capsule $797
(Users without a PCIe bus may substitute the QuickerTek acNano USB external antenna, so no one is left out.)
QCard 2:
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Wednesday, September 30, 2009
The heating finally went on yesterday, but without the awful feeling of impending doom. September was beautiful and the leaves are only just turning to gold. I am hoping to stretch the late fall as far as possible. I have this little internal bet that I don't get to experience the joys of anything below -30C before we head to Europe in December.
We're going home for Christmas and it will be the first time we've seen my side of the family in more than 3 years. I start to tear up just thinking about it. We have 4 new babies to meet! My grandad is looking forward to our trip 'if God spares him'. Which he's been saying for as long as I remember so I can only hope. So it is Christmas in England, Scotland for New Year and then to France for 3 months. (My husband is on sabbatical and planning to do some collaboration in a lab there).
After that we are a little unplanned. Visiting relatives, friends, maybe other research labs? Eating Walker's Crisps and my mother's gigantic Sunday lunches? And after we get back to Canada and pick up the dog (if God spares him :) we're heading out west for a month's research at another marine lab on Vancouver Island. More friends to catch up with and beautiful places to visit.
Of course, all this craziness requires careful planning and I am trying to write a book here. Better get on.
Any grand plans for the rest of you...?
Posted by Toni Anderson at 9:03 am
2 comments:
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Writer's Block
I don't get writer's block, but there are days when I wander around my house wanting to bash my head off a wall rather than actually writing a complete sentence. BUT it isn't the actual writing. It is the story.
I'm a plotter. If I don't know exactly where I'm going, if I don't know the twists along the way, then I find it very hard to make myself write. I guess this is my personality type, whether baking a cake or conducting a scientific experiment (in my dim and distant past) I like all the steps written out in front of me. I like direction. It doesn't mean I'm inflexible. I can change the recipes or the cook time as needed, and fine tune experiments, but I need the structure as a basis.
So this week I learned (again) that the preparation time is vital to my writing speed and although it means it takes longer to get a project underway, in the long run it is faster.
Anyone else have this problem? Or is it just me?
Posted by Toni Anderson at 1:42 pm
1 comment:
Labels: writer's block, writing
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Even with the kids home I've been working all summer and I found my groove. But I've had plenty of rejection--enough to hurt (yeah, I know 'it isn't personal'--like a thousand paper cuts :). I've also had compliments about my writing from people I respect in the industry and that is a wonderful counterbalance.
But now I'm in a bit of a dilemma. I have 3 full single title manuscripts so I'm looking for another agent/or publisher and I'm going to try writing another category (next person who tells me there's a formula to those babies I'm going to stuff--dead or alive--into my smallest suitcase and mail to Churchill, Manitoba, for the polar bears to chew on).
And I think I've found my voice, it took a while and working with my former agent was both a blessing and a curse. I learned a lot. But there were drawbacks.
I'm over the drawbacks :)
Kids go back to school tomorrow. I have a hell of a lot to do by Christmas because we're going to Europe for 6 months. I'll have my laptop and I will write, but I don't know the circumstances so I want to get as much done here as possible.
Chow :)
Posted by Toni Anderson at 12:04 pm
2 comments:
Labels: writing
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Benn Update
My beloved pooch had his first check-up yesterday and he's doing (in the words of the vet) BRILLIANT!!!! The tumor is shrinking fast. He's not out of the woods, but he's improving. The vet couldn't believe the difference a week makes. The poor old dog shuffled out of there a week ago and bounded back in yesterday.
Benn's being fed extra food, gets oodles more attention from everyone, daily walks despite the swarming mosquito levels, a new bone, dog biscuits.
Life is good.
A funny point came at the vets when me and DH were pretty sure Benn only had hours left. We were both fussing over him and telling him what a good dog he was when up pipes this incredibly piercing six-year-old voice. "Except when you shout at him."
Ah, the honesty of children :) Hopefully we are making it up to him now.
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Yes, Virginia, there will be aerial fireworks for the Fourth of July.
With Christmas less than a week away, the Manteca City Council on Tuesday approved a $16,800 contract with Zambelli Fireworks International for Independence Day aerial fireworks in 2013.
Councilman John Harris was the only dissenting vote for the contract. It's not that Harris is a scrooge when it comes to fireworks. He just doesn't believe any city funds should be spent on fireworks.
The city will tap into a $40,000 account set aside for supporting community events in the parks and recreation operations general fund budget to pay for a portion of the overall celebration's costs that could run in excess of $20,000. A $2 entry fee for those 12 and older who enter the Big League Dreams sports complex that day helps defray some of the costs. So does a portion of the funds the Manteca Police Officers Association raises from selling fireworks at a booth located at Union Road and Yosemite Avenue.
Those two sources of revenue are combined with sponsorships and vendor fees to help cover the largest chunk of the expenses the city incurs for staging the Fourth of July celebration. The Independence Day celebration in previous years has attracted between 6,000 and 10,000 people.


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September 24, 2008
Was There Really Rain On Mars?
About four billion years ago, there were lakes on Mars which may have been fed by short-lived rivers that were, in turn, fed by precipitation. These lakes filled craters that were formed by the impact of meteorites. Water accumulated in places where rivers broke through the crater rims. Deltas were formed at the mouths of the rivers, similar to how they are formed where rivers flow into lakes or seas on Earth. These are the findings of an international team of researchers led by Ernst Hauber of the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum fr Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR), who analyzed the latest image data of the Martian surface. They discovered delta deposits in these images, relatively unaffected by erosion, inside the craters.
The scientists explored the Xanthe Terra area located near the equator in the Martian highlands. "For years scientists have been suspecting that the current appearance of the landscape has, in part, been shaped by rivers that cut into the surface," explains Mr Hauber. The geologist of the DLR Institute of Planetary Research (DLR-Institut fr Planetenforschung) in Berlin-Adlershof led the research efforts and their results will be published in the scientific journal Planetary and Space Science. "We can see layered sediments where these valleys open into impact craters. The shape of certain sediments is typical for deltas formed in standing water."The researchers analyzed images from three Mars spacecrafts. These images were taken by the German High-Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on board the European Mars Express mission, by the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) on board NASA's Mars Global Surveyor Mission and by the HiRISE and CTX camera experiments on board NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) mission. The HRSC, which is operated by DLR, enables the high-resolution and "3-D" representation of large contiguous areas. So-called digital terrain models can be derived from these representations and the topography of the Martian landscape can be calculated. The data recorded by the HiRISE camera on board MRO make it possible to explore small, specifically selected areas in images which show details on Mars that are not much more than a meter in size.
Rivers carry eroded material downstream. When the flow rate drops, there is not enough energy left to transport this sediment load and it will be deposited. Because this typically happens in places where a river flows into a larger basin, and where the flow rate nearly completely drops to zero, sedimentary deposits form in such locations. The type of deposit then depends on the nature of the basin. If the basin is filled with water - a lake or a sea - deltas are formed. If on the other hand the basin is dry, for instance in the desert, the river slows down and gradually seeps away, in some cases forming so-called playas in the process. Deposits in such dry areas are called alluvial fans. Analysis of sedimentary bodies can therefore show if there were lakes on Mars.
The Xanthe Terra highlands in the equatorial region of Mars are traversed by deeply incised valleys. Scientists have suspected for a long time that these were formed by water erosion (see also related article "Nanedi Valles valley system on Mars"). A particularly beautiful delta can be found here in a small crater with a diameter of only five kilometers. The Nanedi river opens into the crater from the south (in the lower part of the image), where the sedimentary material is distributed over a fan-shaped area. The crater is almost completely filled with sediments. Topographic data derived from the stereo images recorded by the HRSC camera show that the layer of material is at least 50 meters thick and the deposits cover an area of about 23 square kilometers.
Very thin layers can be seen along the edge of the deposits. Such thin layers are also typical for deltas on Earth. A particularly interesting discovery is the small valley which leaves the crater towards the east (towards the right in the images). This provides evidence that water must have indeed been "standing" in the crater. "If the water flowed into the crater and back out again, it must have filled it up as well", says Mr Hauber. He points out that it is quite rare to see something like this on Mars: "In this and in a few other cases, we are fairly certain that there were lakes on Mars."
The researchers can also narrow down the period when the craters were filled with lakes. In order to do so, they analyze the statistical distribution of impact craters of different sizes. These give an indication of the age of a planetary surface. The more craters are counted on a surface, the older the area is. The crater counts revealed that water was flowing through the valleys between about 3.8 and 4 billion years ago. The valleys themselves could have formed relatively fast. Maarten Kleinhans of the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands, who also participated in the research study, calculated that depending on the water volume, the deposits could have formed over a period ranging from decades to millennia. According to Mr Kleinhans, even if the water flow was very low, it would not have taken more than a few hundred thousand years for the deltas to reach their current dimensions. Compared to other geological timescales, especially in planetary geology, this is a very short period of time.
Thus, there must have been precipitation on early Mars. This precipitation then flowed over the surface - this is also one of the findings of the joint research effort. "This is actually not at all self-evident: for a long time, scientists have been trying to figure out whether the valleys on Mars were formed by groundwater seepage and headward erosion, or by surface runoff caused by rainfall or snowmelt", says Mr Hauber. In recent discussions, the role played by surface runoff has been emphasized again. "Our findings also point in this direction and we are convinced that both processes have played an important role in Xanthe Terra".
However, this situation did not last very long. Between 3.5 and 3.8 billion years ago, the precipitation became less intense and the valleys dried up. Erosion on Mars has been minimal ever since, which has contributed to the fact that deposits can still be observed although they should in fact be very susceptible to erosion. Today, Mars is a dry desert planet and water is no longer flowing through its valleys.
Image Caption: The Nanedi valley, in the Xanthe highlands on Mars, opens into an impact crater with an approximate diameter of five kilometers. The maple leaf-shaped deposits inside the unnamed crater show that in the past, water must have flowed through the Nanedi valley, depositing its sediment load in the crater basin. A group of researchers, led by DLR planetary geologist Ernst Hauber, discovered this from images recorded by three Mars satellites. This particular image was recorded by the "Context Camera" on board NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) mission.
It is thought that, 3.8 to 4 billion years ago, the crater may have been filled to the rim with water, forming a lake in the Martian highlands. The crater rim ultimately could not withstand the water pressure, so its eastern section (to the right of the image) was breached, allowing the water to flow northward through a smaller valley. The crater is located at 8.6 degrees north latitude and 312 degrees east longitude.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
On the Net:


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Syria Feature: The Life and Death of a Citizen Journalist (Hanano)
Amal Hanano writes for Syria Deeply:
On April 25, 2011, a man held up a video camera in Deraa. He was not an experienced videographer and he did not have a tripod.
He stood in front of a group of Syrian army soldiers with tanks and filmed them shooting their machine guns towards civilian targets. Each time he watched the clip on his laptop, he noticed the footage was shaky due to his trembling hand, so he would go back to his exposed vantage point to film once more.
He did this 24 times before he made this passably stable clip:
His name was Mohamed "Abu al-Nimer" Masalmeh.
On January 18, 2013 --- after 22 months of reporting as a citizen journalist from Deraa --– he was killed by army snipers in the village of Busra al-Harir.
He was armed with a microphone and his camera.
Once, before the revolution ignited from his home city, Mohamed, 32, had been detained for four months in the Air Force intelligence center in Damascus.
He was released during the first weeks of the Arab Spring in time to witness an ousted dictator in Tunisia and a roaring Tahrir Square threatening Mubarak.
A group of underground activists, including Mohamed, began meeting at a farm to discuss how to begin a similar revolution in Syria.
As they did, 15 schoolboys --- influenced by both their older brothers' secret discussions and the protests in Egypt and Libya --- famously wrote on school walls in Deraa, an event many call the official start of the uprising.
"The people want to topple the regime," they scrawled. They were arrested and tortured.
On Wednesday, March 15, 2011, Mohamed joined a group of 30 men to protest the schoolboys' arrest in Deraa's main square, in front of the courthouse.
Intelligence officers had already heard about the plan, and swarmed the area. The protest was silently aborted. On March 18, they tried again, this time emerging from the Hamza and Abbas Mosque after Friday prayers, chanting: "freedom, freedom, freedom!"
Thousands joined them. Security forces opened fire, two protesters were killed, and a revolution was born.
Mohamed picked up a camera to film the events unfolding in the city. He joined the growing Sham News Network (SNN) as a citizen journalist.
His reports were tributes to the destruction of his city. He took to wearing disguises during his television reports: a black wig; a scarf; large sunglasses.
But this son of Deraa, with his round face and kind eyes, was known to his city and to the circling shabiha. He was a wanted man.
Last year, Mohamed began reporting for Al-Jazeera. He felt Deraa had been forgotten in the media as violence raged across the country.
His reports from the ground exposed the suffering of southern Syria.
A week before his death, his wife returned to Deraa to visit him. They took walks on the snow-covered streets and he drew a heart in the snow.


text: NonIdet 40 is a non-ionic detergent that prevents hydrophobic non-specific interaction (amon other things) A particularly clean version is available from Pierce Chemical (PierceChem at mcimail.com) oregon.edu (Lara Endres Baxley) says: >Does anyone know what Nonidet P-40 is for and where I can get it? It's in >a purification protocol which calls for 0.01% Nonidet P-40 in all of the >buffers. >Thanks, > >Lara


text:
Gorditas Dona Tota opened recently at 7053 San Pedro Ave., in the location that formerly housed Nadler's Bakery. We made a quick visit and found that word already is out about the Mexican-based chain whose San Antonio location is the first in the States. There was a long line waiting to place orders at the counter, though no one had to wait to be seated.
If you generally avoid fried food like gorditas, you'll be glad to know that these gorditas are grilled, rather than fried. Prices also are quite reasonable; a side order of rice or guacamole, for example, was 35 cents. Call (210) 375-8200 for more information.
— Karen Haram


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Many coven leaders, coven council members, and regular coven members have multiple accounts. Generally these sorts of shared members is what builds the relationships between sister covens.
Covens are about community, this whole site being the biggest coven here. I don't know of any current coven leaders which state that you cannot be a member of another online coven, however many request that you tell them what covens you are a member of and/or aliases.


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New books have moved into my little home library and here they are.
20 October 2012
Buying books is fun - five new books
New books have moved into my little home library and here they are.
16 comments:
Someone has been buying many books lately ;)ReplyDeleteReplies
True. :) And I don't fell bad because of it!Delete
I'm really curious how you'll like The Pleasure Palace - at the moment I'm searching for great historical romances and it does sound interesting.ReplyDelete
Greetings, MelanieReplies
Let's hope that I will like it, I'm normally not the biggest fan of stuff surrounding the Tudors, but I still hope that this story will work for me.Delete
You got some cool books! I'm curious about The Lies That Bind and The Native Star. Happy Reading!:)ReplyDeleteReplies
Thanks! The Lies that Bind is the third book in a cozy mystery series and The Native Star the first one in a fantasy series, Im super excited for both books.Delete
Today I also bought books xD firstly "Before I Fall" and "Pandemonium" by Lauren Oliver :) I'm very excited to read more from her, because I've read "Delirium" very fast und love that book! :) then "Divine by Mistake" by P.C. Cast, that was a impulsively purchase xD in addition I'm happy about "Rapture" by Jacquelyn Frank :)ReplyDeleteReplies
Yay, another bookaholic. :) Enjoy your new books, I have "The Spindlers" by Lauren Oliver at home and hope that it will be great.Delete
The Kate Carlisle series is on my wishlist. Have you read the first two?ReplyDeleteReplies
Yes, I thought that the first one was great and that the second one was good.Delete
Love buying books!! Looks like a good haul. :) New GFC follower.ReplyDelete
Christine x
Rainy Day Reads
Hi and welcome to the blog. It's always nice to meet other bookaholics. :)Delete
Happy Reading!
Looks like an awesome pile of new books, except the Blessed issue is really sad. Can't believe how anybody can sell ARCs without thinking about the consequences for authors, readers and publishers...just very sad!ReplyDeleteReplies
So true, I heard in the last days that it's quite common in the marketplace area on amazon.com. In moments liked this I want to believe in bad karma. ;)Delete


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Adding a few more logs to the fire in the Madonna/Alex Rodriguez scandal, former Yankee Jose Canseco has stepped forward with claims that the Material Girl begged him to impregnate her because "she wanted a Cuban child."
The ball player, who has said of A-Rod that he "hates his guts" for hitting on his wife back when they were teammates, alleges to Us Weekly that Madonna tried to seduce him in 1991, even though he was married at the time. He says he first met the pop icon when her "people" approached him and set up a meeting at her L.A. home. Jose recalls: "We went downstairs [at her house in the Hollywood Hills] and she came over and said, 'What would you do if I kissed you?' and then sat on my lap and kissed me."
Jose claims he resisted Madge's come-ons because he was married at the time, and told her "if I left her I would lose a lot of money and she said, 'I have lots of money. Don't worry about that'."
He was able to resist her advances, but the two remained "friends" for several months thereafter. However, unlike A-Rod, who came to believe he and Madonna were soulmates, Jose was under no delusion as to why the singer was interested in him. "I'm Cuban 6-foot-3, athletic, built and she wanted to have a Cuban child."
Several years later, Madonna got her wish when she hooked up with personal trainer Carlos Leon, who fathered her daughter Lourdes. Looks like Madonna's "Isla Bonita" is Cuba, after all.


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Celebrating the final season of Audible Interruptions, CAM's yearlong series of sound art exhibitions featuring the work of St. Louis-based sound artists, the Museum presents The End of Sound, a silent performance by current Audible Interruptions artists. Sarah Paulsen, Cam Fuller, and Van McElwee will debut two works of moving image and color projected through five video channels in CAM's Performance Space. Throughout the night, Sarah Paulsen and Cam Fuller will build a small-scale sculpture while seated at a table, producing movement and activity through the act of creating. Van McElwee will mix and display interactive maze environments designed by hinself and built by Ryan Sullivan using the video game Minecraft.
Drawing inspiration from the current Audible Interruptions exhibition's use of video, all artists' work and activity will be processed and projected by Kevin Harris and Chad Eivins using analog image processing and synthesis. The Performance Space will be transformed into a theater of dynamically produced video that explores the improvisation, creation, and collaboration simutaneously taking place.


text:
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text:
What are the drawbacks?
You won't get to count points and you can't drink a bottle of wine every night. You might think it's expensive, but if you add up what you would normally spend on food when you buy lunches and snacks and if you eat out, it actually works out quite cheap!
Continued below...
What do you do on the Go Lower diet?
All you need to do is go to the website www.golower.co.uk and order a box of Go Lower. It will then be delivered direct to your door weekly or monthly, along with suggestions of what to eat with the meals, what to choose from menus if you're eating out and a telephone hotline to call if you have any queries.


text:
Picture: Primeur, © Paul Winch-Furniss
The buzz
Primeur is a local-favoured London bistro, housed in a former garage – the original 'Barnes Motors' frontage is still intact – serving a small-plate selection with French and Italian flourishes. Depending on where you're coming from, it's a bit of an effort to reach (the nearest station is Canonbury on the London Overground, half a mile away) and in the middle of an enviable residential setting: wide, leafy streets and towering Victorian townhouses. Once you've arrived, you'll soon be wishing N5 was your neighbourhood.
Picture: © Paul Winch-Furniss
The lowdown
The atmospheric interior provides the perfect cover for an evening of over-indulgence, whether you fancy some charcuterie and cheese or several courses. Sit up at the pass, where names and reservation times are helpfully chalked onto the table, and watch the chefs at work; larger groups can take over the basement. The name comes from the French term en primeur (used to describe the method of purchasing wine early, while still in the barrel and considerably cheaper than it is likely to become) – and you can hedge your bets with the many bottles that come by the glass, before committing to a full 75cl.
Picture: © Paul Winch-Furniss
Menu highlights
The frequently changing menu is written up in chalk every night and posted on the restaurant's Instagram account; expect diverse offerings such as tuna tartare with sesame, beetroot with horseradish and hazelnuts, and bream on a bed of fennel. The star of the night was the pork belly, a dish usually so heavy but in this instance lightened with chard and a magic minty green sauce.
Perfect for… cosy catch-up suppers on weeknights or long weekend afternoons where the small plates keep coming.
Book it
Primeur, 116 Petherton Road, Canonbury, London N5 (020 7226 5271; primeurn5.co.uk).
Santini, Ebury Street
Farmshop, Bicester Village
Forest on the Roof, Selfridges


text:
The new X4 is part of BMW's SUV programme, which has recently seen a refreshed X3 launched
The front bumper features larger, more aggressively-styled vents than the X3
More than 200,000 X6s have been sold; BMW hopes the X4 will replicate that model's success
A range of four- and six-cylinder petrol and diesel engines will be offered
It is expected to make a debut at the New York motor show in April
An eight-speed automatic gearbox will be fitted as standard
The X4 will form part of a revamped BMW SUV lineup for 2014
BMW is to launch two new SUVs this year - and its M division is also planning two more.
First up is a debut for the production version of the X4 at the New York motor show in April. This more sporting crossover model is to the X3 what the X6 is to the X5. It follows a thinly veiled 2013 concept car of the same name.
A range of four-cylinder and six-pot petrol and diesel engines will be offered, as will an eight-speed automatic gearbox and a variable sports steering system.
Following the X4 will be an all-new X6, reaching the UK in November after a debut at the Moscow motor show in August.
More than 200,000 examples of the first-generation X6 have found homes since it was launched in 2008. The new model is set to build on this success with what insiders claim is a more muscular, sporty and athletic design.
A full-blown X6 M version will be launched at the end of the year alongside an X5 M. More aggressive and sharper styling are promised.
They will use the twin-turbo 4.4-litre V8 engine of the first-gen X5 M and X6 M models but with power and torque increased from the current 547bhp and 502lb ft. Economy and CO2 emissions will also be improved.
Additional reporting by Stuart Milne, 26 February 2014


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Recommend me a laptop. • Page 3
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nickthegun 72,999 posts
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Dirtbox 90,002 posts
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Haha, I wish I could afford to do that
Bad time to buy a laptop. There are lovely windows 8 machines right around the corner.
Yeah, but Windows 8 will be cheap to upgrade to, so whatever.
I dunno �200-�300 maybe? Depends, I could stretch further if it's something special.
mrpon 34,218 posts
Seen 57 minutes ago
Registered 11 years ago
Upgrade existing laptop with an SSD and get Dropbox.
So now the insurance has paid out, I've narrowed my choice down to two laptops from *shudder* Comet:
Asus N55SL-S2019V.
Can we do a quick compare and contrast? I get the trade-off between RAM and HDD space, but I'm a bit lost on the processor and the (frankly pish) graphics card description on the Asus. Also- can't find much on the monitor specs...
Edited by Immaterial at 20:51:31 25-07-2012
Edited by Immaterial at 20:52:08 25-07-2012
You don't say.
http://www.eurogamer.net/forum/thread/239001 for background, and one of the above 2 is going to be the only machine I have available for games.
I hate to agree with Billy, but please do fuck off,unless you've got a clear view on the Acer/Asus comparison. I doubt it, but life is full of surprises.
Morning! Looking to purchase a laptop for my fiance's birthday (stealth ive got a fiance yadda yadda) so she's got something to use while im on the main pc.
My budgets going to be around �400 but i reckon i can stretch to �450. For that i'm not expecting much but anything will be better than her current 7 year old hand-me-down.
I've been eyeballing this �400 Fujitsu from Comet *shudder*, but if anyone has any better suggestions for the money im all ears. Cheers!
Edited by Buztafen at 09:09:49 20-08-2012
so for your fiance's birthday, you are planning to buy her something which enables YOU to play games and ignore her?
THFourteen wrote:If she questions my motives i'll just explain that the laptops to help her plan her perfect wedding day without the stress of having to wait 17 days for her current one to boot up.
so for your fiance's birthday, you are planning to buy her something which enables YOU to play games and ignore her?
/holds aloft 'Most Awesomest Hubby Medallion'
Also found an ACER with a 630m GPU for �440. Close to my budget limit but is the 630m alot better than Intels HD4000 which the Fujitsu comes with...will we notice any difference?
EDIT: This one!
Edited by Buztafen at 09:53:54 20-08-2012
Looking at those 2 i linked to above, other than the 630M GPU on the ACER...isn't the Fujitsu just a more up to date laptop all round for �40 less?
Fujitsu has a 3rd gen i5 (2.1ghz), 3 x USB3, 6GB Ram, 500GB HD, Intel HD 4000 1.6GB mem and upto 6 hours battery.
ACER has a 2nd gen i5 (2.5ghz), 1 x USB3/2 x USB2, 4GB Ram, 500GB HD, GT 630M 1GB mem and upto 4.5 hours battery.
Apologies for all the questions but im not up to date with the latest laptop tech out there.
Buy an iPad instead.
if she's not playing games then the fujitsu seems like a no-brainer. the sandy bridge cpus weren't all that great.
you'll easily be able to play old games and football manager on the hd4000 (i am )
Tonka wrote:Hmmm, I don't think 64gb of memory will hold all her photo's let alone anything else!
Buy an iPad instead.
Edited by Buztafen at 10:47:49 20-08-2012
THFourteen wrote:That's what im thinking, a little gaming power is good but im not wanting to play Witcher 2 or Metro 2033!
if she's not playing games then the fujitsu seems like a no-brainer. the sandy bridge cpus weren't all that great.
you'll easily be able to play old games and football manager on the hd4000 (i am )
Just out of interest what are the general compromises she'll need to deal with if i get an iPad? other than storage space...
Edited by Buztafen at 10:56:13 20-08-2012
@Buztafen Ah, yeah. Photostrage is a bastard. Handling photos in general is a bitch with an iPad.
Here's HD4000 benchmarks if you are interested
I have both ipad and laptop. i find when i'm in bed,or on a plane or train with limited space, and i need long battery life (ie 10hours) then the ipad is ideal. it also doesnt heat up and burn your bollocks. The screen is great and its good for surfing the internet, reading magazines / comics, watching netflix / youtube and playing crappy ios games (the mrs likes to play coin drop and piyo blocks repeatedly).
However when i am at home, i prefer to play games on my laptop, like the full version of football manager, or civilization, or random stuff i've bought on the steam sale.
I also wouldnt use the ipad to store all your photos on, it resizes them etc, its a nice photo viewer but not a store-r
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text:
|Reviews for Assistants Can Have Fun Too
| Shayde Revelle chapter 1 . 8/7/2015
You made the most amusing spelling mistake; Poopy, instead of Poppy.
| meggymoo4 chapter 9 . 4/15/2014
This was a great story, I hope you write some more :)
| Of Wrath and Angels chapter 9 . 12/31/2013
Loved the ending! Sweet! :)
| murasakibaras chapter 6 . 8/25/2013
Harriet, you can fuck off. No one likes ya
| murasakibaras chapter 3 . 8/25/2013
Dani is a frigging cutie :3 why this fic has only four reviews, I just don't know
:) xoxo
| steph chapter 9 . 4/8/2013
right, just finished. It was a nice read! Only thing is sometimes you switchex to an 'I' narrator instead of a third-person narrative. But that did not really bothet anyway.
So thanls for the writing!
| steph chapter 3 . 4/8/2013
Hey, just thought maybe you'd like a translation for your French part. I am French. Don't even know if you're still around but here's my attempt:
Sir, I am fluent in French. I have known the language since I was young, it was my second language. I can hold a conversation and speak so quickly and coherently that most English speakers would not understand me, Sir.
Monsieur, je parle déjà français couramment. J'ai appris quand j'étais jeune, c'est ma première langue étrangère. Je peux suivre une conversation facilement et la plupart des anglophones ne me comprennent pas en français parce que je parle trop vite pour eux.
Here you go, I'll go back to reading :)
| AnaleighJames chapter 5 . 9/4/2012
Yay another chapter, thank you so much.
Damn almost a kiss for Freddie and Dani, tension is growing slightly. I can't wait to see how you're going to allow Freddie to react because I mean she's got big news.
Glad to see Poppy is changing from her Malibu self. And she's treating Dani better, which is good :)
I'm excited to see how your gonna spin things next, still have a lot more to go.
Thanks for another amazing chapter, made my day :D
| AnaleighJames chapter 4 . 9/4/2012
Oh my god, update, update, update. Please ie been waiting forever for a Freddie oc story and finally I found one. And your is amazing; I love that Dani is so un-Poppy-like. It really adds To your story.
Pleae update soon, you can't leave me hanging here.


text:
30 May 2011,
Hong Kong, HKCEC Grand Hall
Price realised HKD 45,460,000
Attributed to Frères Rochat
The only publicly known matching pair of mirror-image gold, enamel, agate, pearl and diamond-set singing bird pistols, made for the Chinese Market
Rectangular gilt brass movements, chain fusées, circular bellows, double-barreled pistol-shaped cases, the grips with translucent scarlet enamel over engine-turned background, set with one pearl and diamond-set and one diamond-set rosette, split pearl-set lower edges, the upper edges decorated with black enamel and pearl-set laurel wreaths, the grips' reverses embellished with gold and black enamel pattern and pearl-set scroll and foliage motifs, both pistols centred by split-pearl framed gold plates chased with a lion on one side and a stag on the reverse, the top edges set with half pearls, gold matted and engraved hammers, the heads of the flint vises engraved with lion's heads, gold vise nuts terminated with diamonds, agate flints, gold pan covers with polished interiors, the outsides engraved with acanthus leaves, their springs terminating with diamonds, opening under the right pan covers for sound, the blue enamelled double barrels decorated with paillonné and laurel foliage simulating damascene works, three barrel-like ramrod pipes to the undersides, the ramrods containing the keys for the bird movements, the birds released by the percussion of the hammers when the triggers are depressed, the front covers opening and revealing painted varicoloured enamel bouquets of flowers over turquoise enamel, the birds set with realistically multicoloured feathers, lifting to the top of the barrels, turning, flapping their wings, opening the beaks and moving their tails, in time to a lifelike imitated bird song, when the song has finished the birds will automatically retreat inside the pistols and the covers will close, unsigned (2)
New York +1 212 636 2000
London +44 (0)20 7839 9060
Hong Kong +852 2760 1766
Shanghai +86 21 6355 1766
Angel Ho
+852 2978 9920
Annie Lee
+852 2978 9994
With two presentation cases and three keys.
A stunning marriage of 19th century Swiss automata technology and exquisite craftsmanship, this pair of singing bird pistols epitomizes the creativity of watch makers in Europe to satisfy the ever-growing demands for clocks and automata by the Imperial court and its courtiers in China, as well as European aristocrats and royal families, particularly in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Barely a handful of single singing bird pistols are known in the entire world and they are found in the world's most prestigious museums and private collections. One single pistol is found in the Museum for Islamic Art in Jerusalem which houses the Sir David Salomons Magnificent Collection of Clocks and Watches (see The Art of Time - The Sir David Salomons Collection of Watches and Clocks by George Daniels and Ohannes Markarian, L.A. Mayer Museum for Islamic Art, edition 2009, p. 62). Another single pistol is recorded in the Maurice Sandoz Collection in Switzerland. The Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva, Switzerland owns two single pistols, one of which was purchased at Christie's in 1989.
The present pair is the most advanced version of this type of singing bird pistols attributed to Fres Rochat and the only publicly known examples of their kind in a matching pair. Thier stunning beauty and perfectly preserved condition render these pistols amongst the greatest rarities in the world of automated objects. As renowned Swiss watchmakers and historians Chapuis and Gelis so aptly wrote in their book e Monde des Automates (The World of Automatons), still regarded today as the ultimate reference on automatons, "Among the objects incorporating singing birds, these very fine pistols present the greatest difficulties, both in their conception and execution."
This pair of singing bird pistols was prominently displayed at the recent landmark exhibition The Mirror of Seduction - Prestigious Pairs of Chinese Watches, curated and held in 2010 at the celebrated Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva.
Ever since the late 16th century, when the Jesuit missionary Matteo European powers saw this infatuation as their chance to gain access to the highest reaches of the Chinese court by selecting clocks or watches as tributes or gifts. To satisfy the Chinese market, master goldsmiths, enamellers and technicians, from England, France and Switzerland respectively, combined their skills and artistry to manufacture increasingly lavish and whimsical timepieces and objects of fantasy in all guises.
The present pair is attributed to Frères Rochat, three brothers who worked in Geneva, Switzerland from 1800 to 1835. They were most famous for perfecting the highly complex singing bird mechanism and placing it in cages, mirrors and even pistols. The ingenuity of these pistols is beyond description: each pistol features a bird that shots out of the double barrels, pivots, moves its wings and tail, and opens its beak to sing and then disappears again. With the spectacular combination of sumptuously decorated cases and exceedingly intricate movements, these matching pistols are the perfect example of such coveted decorative objects made for discerning dignitaries and royalty in China and Europe.
Formerly in the Asprey Collection.
Prominently described and illustrated in the exhibition catalogue of The Mirror of Seduction - Prestigious pairs of "Chinese" Watches, Patek Philippe Museum, Geneva, pp. 78 - 81, and in Flights of Fancy - Mechanical Singing Birds by Sharon & Christian Bailly, p. 225.
The Mirror of Seduction - Prestigious pairs of "Chinese" Watches, Patek Philippe Museum, Geneva, 15 May - 16 October 2010.
This 'great-great-grandfather' of Patek Philippe's perpetual chronograph series — one of only 281 ever crafted — is being offered in Dubai on 23 March
A striking example in the storied Calatrava line, the ref. 2526 was the first Patek Philippe wristwatch with an automatic movement
Why Vintage Heuer chronographs made between the 1930s and the 1980s are so highly regarded
Exploring the appeal of watches made for the legendary American store that were specially designed for fishing, hunting and sailing
Why was the art of the ancient Mezcala civilisation so fascinating to the Nobel Prize-winning scientist Ilya Prigogine?
On the first anniversary of his death, Michael Watts looks back at a long and extraordinary life
RELEASE: Christie's Hong Kong Sale of Important Watches Offers Exceptional and Rare Timepieces Estimated to Fetch over HK$ 80 Million