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So, What Are You Freakin' Well Reading Now? part (ii)
An interesting article about Cosmology, outer space under current capitalism, and humanizing the cosmos was recently published in Monthly Review by Peter Dickens. Dickens has a forthcoming article in 2011 in the Journal of Critical Realism.
What's of note are a few things. First of all, it's worth noting that "despite the growing number of critiques of Big Bang, however, the theory remains central to contemporary cosmology." Actually, it's almost an article of faith. Which is a little weird for any science, hmm? "For a vocal minority of cosmologists, the Big Bang actually never happened and the "evidence" for the Big Bang accumulated by COBE remains highly questionable."
Anyway, if you want to read more: For discussion and critique of Big Bang theory, see Eric Lerner, The Big Bang Never Happened (New York: Vintage, 1992); Frankel H. Norris, Out of This World (Ashmore: Cardiff University Press, 2003); Lyndon Ashmore, "Big Bang Blasted!" Booksurge, LLC, http://booksurge.com (no place of publication given). Alan Woods, Ted Grant, Reason in Revolt (London: Wellred Publications, 1995); Peter Mason, Science and the Big Bang: A Critical Review of 'Reason in Revolt' (London: Socialist Publications, 2007); Peter Dickens, "Society, Subjectivity and the Cosmos" (forthcoming), Journal of Critical Realism (2011).
Secondly, Dickens draws attention to the orthodox capitalist approach to space and contrasts that with a humanistic vision of the cosmos. He calls this vision ... "Humanizing Without Colonizing the Cosmos". A more socially just vision of space on the one hand, and, on the other hand, views like the Space Renaissance Initiative (sound familiar?). These latter sorts of views go together with "solutions" to our current ecological and environmental problems in which we get more of the same; these are solutions that seem to "simultaneously exacerbate current social problems while jetting away from them."
Anyway, read for yourself.
Humanization of the Cosmos ... or more of the same? etc.
Oh, I thought that was the "Big Bank Theory" where the idea that they are too big to fail is taken as an article of faith... Thanks for explaining this.
Meanwhile... I am reading "Mounties in Mukluks" by Patrick White. I love these old stories that describe life in the early 20th C. The amount of fish in the seas was astounding back then. The way they thrived and survived is quite interesting to me.
Without electricity... we just might "go native" and sing and dance a little more often instead of just listening to recorded music all the time. More sex too, I bet. But ya, I do appreciate my computer so I can post at Rabble.
Columbine by Dave Cullen. Compelling, yet requires frequent breaks in reading.
Phil Donohue's autobiography.
Nancy Reagan by Kitty Kelly.
Sinclair Lewis, in his 1935 novel, It Can't Happen Here, eerily presages the teabaggers of today.
Right after a description of a street fight between "Minute Men" (Seems the" Spirit of '76" is fertile ground for modern propagandists, whenever they are) and various commies and other degenerates, Lewis describes a gathering of supporters of a populist demagogue at Madison Square Garden:
These past weeks hungry miners, dispossessed farmers, Carolina mill hands had greeted Senator Windrip with a flutter of worn hands beneath gasoline torches. Now he was to face, not the unemployed, for they could not afford fifty-cent tickets, but the small, scared side-street traders of New York, who considered themselves altogether superior to clodhoppers and mine-creepers, yet were as desperate as they. The swelling mass that Doremus saw, proud in seats or standing chin-to-nape in the aisles, in a reek of dampened clothes, was not romantic; they were people concerned with the tailor's goose, the tray of potato salad, the card of hooks-and-eyes, the leech-like mortgage on the owner-driven taxi, with, at home, the baby's diapers, the dull safety-razor blade, the awful rise in the cost of rump steak and kosher chicken. And a few, and very proud, civil-service clerks and letter carriers and superintendents of small apartment houses, curiously fashionable in seventeen-dollar ready-made suits and feebly stitched foulard ties, who boasted, "I don't know why all these bums go on relief. I may not be such a wiz, but let me tell you, even since 1929, I've never made less than two thousand dollars a year!"
Manhattan peasants. Kind people, industrious people, generous to their aged, eager to find any desperate cure for the sickness of worry over losing the job.
Wow, I am reading the same book right now, al-Q. Along with Dracula. What a fun book! (Dracula, I mean. ICHH is fun too, I suppose, but in a much different way.)
I'm re-reading "How Israel Lost It's Soul". by Maxim Ghilan, printed in 1974 by Pelican. He was quite a courageous journalist who exposed the assassination of the Moroccan nationalist Mehdi Ben-Barka by the Israeli Mossad and was jailed for that and 3 times for his various journalistic endeavors. It's content which includes many of the original documents of the Zionist leaders is enthralling. He died a few years ago.
My next rereading is another Pellican book titled "The Arabs" by Edward Atiya, a remarkable book on the Arab world first published in !955. A Lebanese-Christian academic active in the Arab east who at one point organized the Arab Office in London. Obviously not one of the Mullahs.
Just to refresh my memory of the background to the present catastrophic and dreadful events in the theocratic-Israel/Palastinian tragedy.
I just finished up On The Road by Jack Kerouac. I really enjoyed it.
Right now I have the Lazarus Project by...some dude from Serbia, I think? and Steppenwolf by Herman Hesse. I'm going through Steppenwolf at the moment and I'm about 50 pages in. Maybe it was the translator, I can't speak to a German reading of the book, but the prologue/intro was kind of Lovecraftian. Should I expect a violinist who looks into the void of nothing but terror cropping up at any point?
Hmm, this is either really eerie, or really mundane. I read On the Road at around the same time I read just about the complete works of Hermann Hesse.
Please tell me you don't listen to The Doors these days too.
[url=www.sexatdawn.com]Sex at Dawn[/url]=The Prehistoric Origins of Modern Sexuality.
Mainstream science—as well as religious and cultural institutions—has long maintained that men and women evolved in nuclear families where a man's possessions and protection were exchanged for a woman's fertility and fidelity. But this narrative is collapsing. Fewer and fewer couples are getting married and divorce rates keep climbing while adultery and flagging libido drag down even seemingly solid marriages.
Several types of evidence suggest our pre-agricultural (prehistoric) ancestors lived in groups where most mature individuals would have had several ongoing sexual relationships at any given time. Though often casual, these relationships were not random or meaningless. Quite the opposite: they reinforced crucial social ties holding these highly interdependent communities together.
Very interesting book.
Hmm, this is either really eerie, or really mundane. I read On the Road at around the same time I read just about the complete works of Hermann Hesse.
Please tell me you don't listen to The Doors these days too.
Lots of Sun-Ra and jazz? I'm not sure if that is a step better or worse.
I dunno, man. That sounds like a symptom of too much tea and soft foods and goofy kicks on the cool order.
How did you know I have a cup of, erm, steaming....early grey?
Is The Simpsons on in your timezone, too?
A.E. Van Vogt, The Anarchistic Colossus (1977)
In The Anarchistic Colossus a future Earth operates as a mixed anarchy controlled by computers; aliens perceive the conquest of Earth as the payoff to a wargame. The anarchist Earth society is an extraordinary hybrid of socialist, capitalist, and bohemian variants of anarchism; it had apparently been instigated by the rightists, who still control two thirds of the economy. 'Techs' had contributed the elimination of crime: sensors detect violent intent before the event, and intercept the attacker (all other actions are free from control). The 'Caps' and the 'Coops' are apparently able to work together; they collaborate on universal military training, so that everyone has a basic understanding of 'the ethics of an anarchistic state of war' - indeed 'Anarchistic space warcraft' are programmed with anarchist war ethics (c. 31).
Van Vogt in this work finds anarchism all-pervasive: it is not only the norm in Earth society, the human brain itself is a 'colossal anarchistic complexity' (c . 35), and at the other end of the scale 'The universe itself is in a colossal anarchistic condition' (c . 27). Typically Van Vogtian, this is one of the most bizarre visions of anarchism in all sf.
John Steinbeck Novels 1942-1952
The Moon is Down (just finished this one which is about resistance in an unnamed Nazi-occupied country in Scandanavia) I figure this might come in handy for practical advice here in North America. Steinbeck had originally intended to write a book about Nazi occupation of North America but changed the topic on the request of the publisher. Maybe if he had written it we'd have had a model for such a story and would have had fewer idiot movies involving the late Pat Swayzey saving aMerrrica from Sov bloc invasion.
Cannery Row, The Pearl, and East of Eden.
Here is the first, famous paragraph from Cannery Row
Cannery Row in Monterey in California is a poem, a stink, a grating noise, a quality of light, a tone, a habit, a nostalgia, a dream. Cannery Row is the gathered and scattered, tin and iron and rust and splintered wood, chipped pavement and weedy lots and junk heaps, sardine canneries of corrugated iron, honky tonks, restaurants and whore houses, and little crowded groceries, and laboratories and flophouses. Its inhabitants are, as the man once said, 'whores, pimps, gamblers and sons of bitches,' by which he meant Everybody. Had the man looked through another peephole he might have said, 'Saints and angels and martyrs and holy men,' and he would have meant the same thing.
I think there might be! Thanks for the line to MY NEW BLOG, catchfire! :)
When Atheism Becomes Religion: America's New Fundamentalists [Paperback]
by Chris Hedges
I am about 1/4 through "Last Child in the Woods" by Richard Louv.
Just finished Thomas Geoghegan's excellent travelogue/rant/politico-economic thesis "Were You Born On The Wrong Continent?" (NY: New Press, 2010) It is a meditation on what life might be like for the average member of the hard-pressed, now vanishing American middle class if they were to live in a European social democracy. Geoghegan is a Chicago labour lawyer who has become familiar with Europe, especially Germany, over the years. While his book rambles and contains a bit of Michael Moore-type faux-naivete, it's superb at uncovering all the hidden injuries inflicted by the brutal Anglo-American variant of capitalism. While we in Canada haven't succumbed (yet) to its worst excesses, it's still a bit of a shock to see the petty slights and impositions we unquestioningly accept laid bare.
Geoghegan's no cheerleader. He acknowledges the manifest problems in the German model. But he also points out its amazing resilience and success. As of 2009, Germany, with its 80 million citizens, rigid labour markets, and millstone Eastern sector, exported more goods by value than any other nation on Earth, including those let-'er-rip capitalist paragons America (pop. 300 million odd) and China (1 billion plus). The reason? In large part, social democracy. As he notes, "German worker control contributes to a group interaction that over time not only builds up but protects a certain amount of human capital, especially in engineering and quality control. It's the kind of group knowledge that our efficient 'flexible' labour markets so readily break up and disperse. We spend vastly more on basic research than the Germans do...We spend more on higher education. But with our flexible labour markets, we're unable to capitalize on this research and education...What's distinctive about Germany is the privileged position the worker has within the firm. And it's that privileged position that explains how our own middle-class way of life can survive....With our flexible labour markets we cannot develop the human capital or knowledge needed to wean ourselves away from turning out crap. In global competition the U.S. has almost every comparative advantage over Germany, but the one great advantage Germany still has over us is that it is a social democracy."
What makes it galling for an American is that Rhineland capitalism was an invention of the United States, or more particularly the US Army of occupation after the war. Distrusting German big business, but fearful of the Reds, the Americans evolved a system of worker consultation and control that checked and balanced corporate and union demands. This cleverness reflected the fact that the US Army was in 1945 a citizen army and had many New Dealers in its upper echelons. So the irony today of being able to walk into a local of IG Metall and find that (!) Dwight D Eisenhower is considered not so much a foreign general as a founder of the post-war labour renascence. And much of Geoghegan's research was funded by the German Marshall Fund, an offshoot of the original fund proposed by General George Marshall. Hard to imagine such a pair at the Pentagon these days.
One quibble. The book has a good index, but no bibliography. You'll have to run down sources yourself. But I'd recommend this book to anyone, most of all to those pur-et-dur leftists who think that social democracy is some plot to co-opt working-class energy. Read these pages to realize what an immense, yes, life-changing difference an efficient social democracy can make to the live of the vast majority of citizens.
The Land of Painted Caves - Jean M Auel
I read 84, Charing Cross Road last night. I'm dying to see the film.
Underground: My Life with the SDS and the Weathermen by Mark Rudd.
I'm really looking forward to getting my hands on the full summer issue of Monthly Review. This year, it focuses on Education Under Fire: The U.S. Corporate Assault on Students, Teachers and Schools.
Something positive to lift my spirits would be good, too.
Just finished Sarah Vowell's Unfamiliar Fishes; and Seth Tobocman's graphic anthology, Disaster and Resistance.
Currently reading Chris Hedges' Death of the Liberal Class.
"A History of Iran" by Micheal Axworthy. Excellent book.
"State of War" by James Risen, a NY Times reporter. The subtitle reads "The secret history of the CIA and the Bush Administration".
It tells of the crimes of Bush and the CIA, of course. This seems like a departure from the usual mainstream media in that it is unflattering towards several major politicians.
Published in 2006, I found it, apparently unread, at our local public library book sale, for only $1.
That surprised me that it is so unpopular, I thought people would be interested in the details of "Baby Bush telling lies to go to war on". Oh ya, we live in THIS world, riiiight... where most people forget the very recent past as soon as the next day comes along.
Example of the book's themes -
About Iraq, the CIA was screaming the facts about "NO WMD", and "NO NIGERIAN YELLOW CAKE", but the White House refused to pass the messages on to Pres. Bush 2 - I am sure he said to do that, so he would have an excuse - "blame it on the intelligence we got" [even though the intelligence was being shut out].
Other gems about bin Laden not getting caught, and troop numbers restricted by Rumsfeld... and how Afganistan was abandoned for the invasion of Iraq [despite Iraq not being the threat Bush and Cheney made it out to be].
Joan Didion's Slouching Towards Bethlehem (1968).
Had to go interlibrary for this one. Another sad case of a library system NOT retaining the classics so that following generations can better appreciate the lives of their forbears - in this case the 1960s, brilliantly set out for viewing by a magazine writer who has since become known for her novels.
Her style is brief, descriptive of her feelings, with acute perception of her surroundings - some might say influenced by Hemingway, but far more intelligent and understanding of her readers' concerns. Political. Her husband had just written a book, Delano, on the California grapeworkers' strike.
I can't explain why it took this long to get at it. It has shown up often, over the years, as a must read for anyone wanting to better understand life in 1960s, urban California when the sky was the limit. In a foreword, her inspiration for the book's title, the poem by W.B.Yeats, is presented along with a one-liner from the singer, "Miss Peggy Lee: I learned courage from Buddha, Jesus, Lincoln, Einstein and Cary Grant."
I wonder if her marvelous journalism in the days of magazines is there in her fiction, or if, as Peggy Lee asked in her senior years, "Is that all there is, My Friend?" Must find out.
Orhan Pamuk's ISTANBUL
reading David Foster Wallace's Consider the Lobster.
amazing read! enjoying it thoroughly and absolutely completely.
Just about to dive into the Babble Book Club selection of Haruki Murakami's The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle! Excited!
Go The FUCK To Sleep and All My Friends Are Dead
I'm trying to think of something witty or literary I've read in the past while, and I have a list of great authors and books, but I have to (shoulders down, scuffing a foot) admit to a guilty pleasure - crime/mystery/suspense novels. They are to me what TV is to others. Currently reading an American guy named Michael Koryta.
Challenges and Perils: Social Democracy in NeoLiberal Times
A little outdated but very revealing about Rae, Romanow, and BC NDP governments.
That should be required reading for babble, kn. The "outdated" part is the history of the growth of the problem for social democracy, eh? In a way, it explains why social democrats in Quebec came over to the NDP - with lots of convincing by Jack and Tom Mulcair - in the age of Globalization. Damned hard to sell social democracy at the national level, let alone provincial, these days. The book could use more political economy, I believe. The Chicago School influence on corporate decision-making? How the worker was co-opted, etc.
That should be required reading for babble, kn. The "outdated" part is the history of the growth of the problem for social democracy, eh? In a way, it explains why social democrats in Quebec came over to the NDP - with lots of convincing by Jack and Tom Mulcair - in the age of Globalization. Damned hard to sell social democracy at the national level, let alone provincial, these days. The book could use more political economy, I believe. The Chicago School influence on corporate decision-making? How the worker was co-opted, etc.
The only way to sell social democracy and socialism is to broaden the debate. People need to start talking about nationalizing industry on the air. We need to be more anti-war on the air. Not necessarily the party that has to say it but people in general. The debate in this country is so limited to free market and neo-liberal economic theories that the electorate will always see us as a threat.
Why do we never hear stories about Chavez bringing home the gold on the National?
Because that would broaden debate about the possible choices Canadian governments have. It is radical or nothing. If the NDP tries to pussyfoot its way to equailty it will be destroyed just like all the other parties that had good intentions.
for a light read, I tried David Sedaris, Me Talk Pretty Some Day, and the short pieces in there are mixed but some are funny;
notable is the huge huge split among reviewers and critics, some saying Sedaris a hilarious wry observer of small American vignettes, others saying whaaa??, not funny at all ....
The Wayfinders, Wade Davis The link here is of a YouTube video with Davis. I particularly like his blunt statement: "Race is a fiction." ... although it might be more precise to say that race is a biological fiction and social invention ... whose main purpose seems to be the substantiation and justification of ethnic cleansing, genocide, and all the other blessings of Western "civilization".
for a light read, I tried David Sedaris, Me Talk Pretty Some Day, and the short pieces in there are mixed but some are funny;
notable is the huge huge split among reviewers and critics, some saying Sedaris a hilarious wry observer of small American vignettes, others saying whaaa??, not funny at all ....
I am on the 'Sedaris loving' side and particularly love this book.
I like the divide he creates in his stories in (1) learning to become a writer and (2) the process of being a writer
George Orwell, "Burmese Days," (1934). He was a police officer in Burma in the 1920s. I love his writing. I doubt there are many, or any, babblers with nostalgic feelings towards British Imperialism, but if there are, reading this book will cure them.... next, "Down and Out in Paris and London."
I love reading Orwell. I wrote a report on one of his books in around 1968 and won a book prize from Richard J. Needham of the Mope and Wail; and Needham treated me to High Tea at the old King Eddy.
Me, less so. But then I've had High Tea at the Empress without having to write a line. heh.
I think it was Orwell who wrote Politics and the English Language ... well before Chomsky wrote similar things in the US. That had a big effect on me at one time. Chris Dafoe was also writing for the Vancouver Sun in those days and had a few interesting columns.
See The Orwell We Never Knew for his blacklisting efforts at the end of his life. Not so admirable.
I love reading Orwell. I wrote a report on one of his books in around 1968 and won a book prize from Richard J. Needham of the Mope and Wail; and Needham treated me to High Tea at the old King Eddy.
Did you and Needham get into the subject of the futility - uselessness, harmful effect - of schooling. Boomer? :) I envy you the contact.
And Greg Clark had retired to the King Eddy a couple of years before that. Met him there in the winter of 1969. Sometime after he had led his platoon up the ridge at Vimy.
I like books about science, and I'm reading "The Quirks and Quarks Guide To Space" (2008). It has a CBC copyright from the television series.
Currently reading The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami for the Babble Book Club. Also enjoying a re-read of Orwell's Animal Farm and about to dive into The Night Circus by erin Morgenstern for my local book club.
Being and Time by Martin Heidegger. I've avoided reading Heidegger thus far but felt I had to give this book at least an attempt due to the numerous references made of it in other tracts. Borrowed it two weeks ago from a friend, and I'm already nearing the end of page two.
Harperland - Lawrence Martin
People's History of the United States - Howard Zinn
Ah, knownothing, we must be on a similar wavelength. I read Harperland recently and followed it up last week with Rogue in Power:
..a disturbing read, definitely not one either for bedtime or depressive moments.
It presents a very closely argued treatment of the truth of Harper's own claim that he would make Canada unrecognizable by the end of his reign.... and it seems to be happening on schedule. The book is less clear about how to abort this train wreck, although the author does take an optimistic view. I didn't feel optimistic after reading it, though.
[finishing up Beauty Plus Pity because again I leave everything to the last minute]
moving on to Better Living Through Plastic Explosives by Zsuzsi Gartner, which a friend lent me in a drunken stupor wherein she usually gives her books away.
Here's a bit more info, but it sounds right up my alley as she was an accomplished short fiction writer -- a balance between Lorrie Moore and McSweeny's articles -- and has now produced this collection of short stories.
Canadian fiction short story collections are my jam.
I just picked up the essay collection "My Misspent Youth" by Meghan Daum, a satirical essayist, after reading this top 10 list on Flavorwire.
Excited about the Joan Didion comparisons, references to American culture, and This American Life ties. I have read the foreword, and so far so good.


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Ditchburn Place Planning Ref 15/2171/FUL
In spite of MRHS protestations, Cambridge City Council granted full planning permission for the demolition of Burmaside House as part of its scheme to modernise accommodation at Ditchburn Place. We are also disappointed that we failed to get the whole site listed by Historic England.
However Lucy Walker, chair of Mill Road History Society, has instructed Richard Buxton (environmental and public law) to send a Pre-Action Protocol Letter for Judicial Review, challenging a legal point. We are also objecting to the lack of evidenced evaluation of Burmaside House as a heritage asset in relation to Ditchburn Place (a building of local interest, BLI) and the Mill Road Conservation Area.
Watch this space!

subset: commoncrawl


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SeaVet: Teaching students about 70 percent of the surface of the planet
For veterinary students and veterinarians, a unique course at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine is a way to give aquatic animal enthusiasts a fin up on their competition.
No other veterinary medical college in the world offers a comprehensive program for specializing in aquatic or marine mammal medicine, according to the International Association for Aquatic Animal Medicine, or IAAAM. The UF veterinary college is alone in providing students and veterinarians from around the world supplemental education in this niche profession through the SeaVet Clinical Training course.
This nine-day program, which has been offered at UF for about a decade, includes didactic lectures on topics ranging from sea turtle medicine to clinical ophthalmology as well as on-site visits to aquariums, zoos and Sea World Orlando.
"You have world-famous marine mammal anesthesiologists and ophthalmologists, the best of the best in the field that are teaching this small set of students," said Claire Erlacher-Reid, D.V.M., a senior veterinarian at Sea World Orlando, who participated in SeaVet in the late 2000s while a veterinary student at the University of Georgia. She said the program allows students to see how professionals work with these underwater creatures.
The college takes advantage of web-based communication and invites expert speakers from across the country to lead lectures and discussions online. This enables students who are not able to come to Florida to participate.
Elena Graebener came from Germany to experience the course. "In Europe, there are not many possibilities to learn about marine mammals," she said. While the theoretical background provided is intense, she said it was able to fill gaps from her own exploration in books. The anatomy of manatees, a topic not covered in other programs she has attended, was her favorite part of the course.
Mike Walsh, D.V.M., a clinical associate professor of aquatic animal health at the UF veterinary college and SeaVet's program organizer, said there are practical aspects of the course.
"Our goal is to not only give them the best education possible, but also to give them a leg up on getting out there into the job market," said Walsh.
Many students are interested in zoological and aquatic medicine, but there are few positions available, he said. Educational opportunities like SeaVet and continued education will give students a well-rounded exposure to the challenges of the field and create advocates for facility and wildlife species.
When asked which aquatic animal the veterinary students are most like, Walsh laughed and said, "Each one is probably a good representative of someone that's out there…that's what we are learning about animals in general. They're so much like us."
Visit http://conference.ifas.ufl.edu/seavet/index.html to learn more about SeaVet.
The University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine is supported through funding from UF Health and the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.


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Aug 9, 2015
Garrett and Dan couldn't be more excited to invite a cavalcade of guests to discuss one of their favorite 2014 Movie Movie's, The Guest. The boys are joined by past and future guest Scott Pagnotti and two of Philly's latest and greatest up and coming comedians, Mekki Leeper and Aaron Abramowitz. As the group digs into the central mystery of The Guest, it becomes increasingly clear that this is one of those perfect mysteries that gives you plenty of details but little explanation allowing for many, justified readings of the film. And we'll give you at least three!
Join us for MOVIE MOVIE LIVE! on Thursday, August 13th at PhilaMOCA (12th and Spring Garden, Philadelphia) beginning at 7:30pm. We're doing an all JASON STATHAM game show as part of GAME SHOW NIGHT @PHILAMOCA, to be followed by Electile Dysfunction at 9:00pm.
Like us on facebook
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Subscribe and rate us on iTunes


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Computer Courses in Cheshire
I am available to tender for the design and delivery of computer courses in Cheshire and the North West. Many businesses and educational institutions now want more control over course content and delivery than online courses provide. I am originally a self-taught programmer, but now appropriately qualified for many years after working for a number of blue chip companies. My background gives me unique insights into the difficulties individuals face when grappling with IT concepts and practise. I am able to devise course content to meet your requirements or can deliver deliver content provided by you.
The areas I am able to cover include:
- Deep learning of specific programs whether on an Apple or PC platform
- Introductory level courses
- Courses for seniors and students
- Small business IT – hardware and software and networking
- Data protection and recovery
- Courses geared to IT support staff
- Courses for advanced level programmers
- Sector specific courses
As an experienced IT tutor and trainer any quote for Cheshire computer courses takes account of:
- Client needs assessment
- Background and level of course participants
- Number of course participants
- Length of course
- Materials – whether supplied or developed by me
- Deliverables – agreed in advance
- Retention of learning
- Follow-up – if required
I am happy to supply samples of training materials used previously to help prospective clients gauge quality. And of course, I expect course content and delivery to be rated and assessed by course attendees. This holds no fear for me. As a full time IT tutor and trainer I help people of all levels of ability extend their computer skills whether they are novices or conversant with a wide range of applications. My personal view is courses need a certain level of interaction for participants to get the most out of them. An engaging delivery goes a long way to enhancing learning and retention. This is an important consideration when assessing the cost-effectiveness of computer courses since software and hardware change rapidly.


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In this installment, the Bad Company crew again find themselves in the heart of the action, where they must use every weapon and vehicle at their disposal to survive. In Battlefield: Bad Company 2, the 'B' company fight their way through snowy mountaintops, dense jungles and dusty villages. With a heavy arsenal of deadly weapons and a slew of vehicles to aid them, the crew set off on their mission and they are ready to blow up, shoot down, blast through, wipe out and utterly destroy anything that gets in their way. Total destruction is the name of the game, delivered as only the DICE next generation Frostbite engine can.
Here's a selection of reviews.
"Though it occasionally stumbles, there's one thing that Bad Company 2 clearly demonstrates: DICE has graduated from the "can only do a multiplayer FPS" class and is perfectly capable of making a great all-around game."
Eurogamer (9/10):
"Bad Company 2′s single-player campaign would be a genre standout in any year, but it's online that the game comes into its own. It's no wonder that the box bears the tagline "Defining Online Warfare", since the multiplayer component here is a confident, muscular distillation of everything DICE has been building up to over the past decade. This is the online shooter at its most streamlined, most thoughtful, most exhilarating."
"It's taken a fair amount of time to get there, but Bad Company 2 marks the point DICE finally delivered the full Battlefield package. With a varied and engrossing single player campaign allied to a top-notch multiplayer, this is war gaming at its explosive best."
Gamespot UK (9/10):
"With all the different classes, vehicles, and stationary weapons (like heavy machine guns and mounted rocket launchers) at play, there is a dazzling array of ways to wage war. These tools, coupled with the threat and promise of destructibility, make Bad Company 2′s battlefields uniquely chaotic and electrifyingly fun. The action is top-notch in both campaign and multiplayer alike. Whether or not you're looking for a new shooter in your life, you owe it to yourself to play Battlefield: Bad Company 2."
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is now available on PC, 360 & PS3 in the U.K.


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8 Space-Saving Organization Ideas for When You Don't Have a Walk-in Closet
You don't need a walk-in to have a closet that works for you.
I don't have a bucket list but if I did, "get a walk-in-closet" would definitely be on there. As someone who has lived in 800 square feet or less for the last 20 years, I've still never had a closet to call mine. I see walk-in closets with accessory islands and seating areas, and that's not what I'm dealing with in my small house. At all.
A Woman's Dressing Space
Getting ready in this space is nothing less than enjoyable. Shoes are neatly displayed in a vertical row alongside custom shelves, which feature a place for perfume and small items. When the doors are open you can easily locate all of your belongings. Photo courtesy of ClosetMaid.
For those of you who, like me, need to get organized with a reach-in closet (or don't have a closet at all), here are some tips and tricks that will help you along the way.
Take Off Your Closet Door
Cocoa Reach-In Closet
Design a solution to fit your lifestyle with a custom reach-in closet. Choose your own combination of hanging rods, open shelves, drawers, and baskets with full-extension glides, accommodating all of your clothes and accessories so you can put together the perfect outfit each day. An appealing Cocoa color and Oil-Rubbed Bronze hardware keep the entire look polished, making the closet one of your favorite features in the room.
One way to immediately get a bit of extra space is to remove the doors on your reach-in closet. Once the doors are off, you can choose to leave the closet open or add something simple like curtains. Removing the doors will allow you to store bulkier items or add some additional storage furniture that might not fit with closet doors.
If You Do Have Doors, Use Them
If you're going to keep your closet doors, consider how you might be able to use them to create even more storage space in your closet. Add hooks to keep your jewelry in place, or use an over-the-door organizer to store shoes, scarves or other small items. Even if you have an unusual item to store, think about how you might be able to use the extra space on your doors to grab more real estate.
Add a Dresser
Organized Child's Closet
A toddler's closet painted in tones of purple and white provides organized storage for clothes, stuffed animals and other items. The hanging fabric shelf keeps child's favorite playthings within easy reach.
Another easy closet upgrade is to add a dresser. The nice thing about this is that you can add a dresser without making any other physical changes to the closet. It's also a great option if you happen to have a dresser that you don't love the look of. Dresser drawers are the perfect place to keep folded t-shirts, underwear or other accessories that you don't want on display.
Don't Be Afraid to Think Outside the Box
Dolls Stored on Shoe Rack
Plastic bins and tubs are one solution for storing a collection of fashion dolls, but there are other options. In this closet, a women's slide-out shoe rack has cleverly been used for display storage of a group of fashion dolls. The "arms" secure each figure to the rack, which keeps all the dolls in plain sight and within easy reach.
We all have different needs with our closets, and this clever doll storage idea is a great reminder that you shouldn't be shy about trying to make your space work exactly how you need it to. If you have special storage needs based on your hobbies or collections, try to think through how you might set up your closet to handle them. For example, I really love infinity scarves but I don't like hanging them on hangers. I cleared out one of the drawers in my dresser and have dedicated it to keeping all my folded scarves.
Try Pre-Fab Custom Solutions
Reach-In Girl's Closet
This little girl's closet organizer is functional with shelving, drawers, baskets and triple hanging for children up to the age of two that can be easily adjusted. The White closet design features Raised Panel drawers, Matte Nickel hardware and Modern Rope Trim Knobs with Polished Chrome slide-out baskets.
There are a number of pre-fab options available that will help you customize your closet in the same way you might if you went for a full-on custom solution.
Hang All of Your Storage Containers
If you have a limited budget or live in a rental that doesn't allow you to make any structural changes, consider closet storage solutions that you can hang from the existing clothing rod in your closet. There are solutions for shoe storage, jewelry, scarves, sporting equipment and other accessories.
Decorate Your Room With Items That Can Double as Storage
Once opened, the closets reveal two hanging rods as well as an interior painted the same shade of sea foam blue as the walls and ceiling. Many designers suggest painting the interiors of closets the same color as a roomâs walls to make the closet feel like an extension of the space. Another idea involves painting the interiors of closets a bold contrasting color, or giving them a separate identity with wallpaper.
Brian Patrick Flynn
Now that you've started customizing the inside of your closet to work with all of your storage needs, think through the rest of your space to ensure you're using all of the available real estate you have. If you have any items or collections that you don't mind keeping on display, consider decor or art that will allow you to move things out of your closet and onto your bedroom walls.
If You Don't Have a Closet, Create One With Wardrobes
If you have a room that doesn't have any closets at all but does have a bit of extra room, consider creating a faux built-in closet with existing wardrobes and shelves. My favorite tool for achieving this is the Ikea Pax line. By carefully measuring your space and creating the right configuration, you can create a closet that looks completely custom but is actually the opposite. If you want to take it one step further, you can even make the Pax wardrobes look completely built-in with this drywall hack technique.


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Google AdSense for Business and Beginners
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Author: Jordan Arsenault, Jerry Banfield
Sale Page: _https://www.udemy.com/how-i-made-over-100k-in-adsense-in-one-year/
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This spring there are a lot of unconventional ways to dress up a look for after-hours. Our second post in a new three-part series, dubbed New Ways to Glamorize Your Spring Wardrobe, explores the skirts-over-pants trend seen on the fall 2011 runways.
A fresh fix for perhaps the most classic fashion conundrum—how to glamorize a day look for evening—is the skirt-over-pant trend, a runway revelation that started with the seemingly relaxed yet stunningly embellished pieces that drew tears (yes, tears) from the audience at Chanel Haute Couture and continued with the more casual versions Haider Ackermann and Balenciaga's Nicolas Ghesquière designed for fall. It's a younger, easier approach to black tie, and an invitation for the Art Production Fund's spring benefit promised the perfect party to debut this layered look.
Who better to opine on a novel ensemble than New York's coolest art aficionados? In an effort to dress and dash, I threw a stone-studded lace H-line skirt from Dolce & Gabbana over the pair of simple Céline trousers I'd worn to work that day.
"I've done that before!" Amanda Brooks said approvingly. After a quick discussion of proportions and aesthetics, she decided a skinnier pant was better suited for my outfit—the Céline bottoms looked too wide. I closed the zippers at my ankles (thank you, Phoebe!), which seemed to do the trick.
"When I started off in the nineties, we used to wear this look with sneakers," Teen Vogue Editor-in-Chief Amy Astley said. But unlike the layers that flowed through nineties grunge, this after-hours look is structured: a disciplined chic that redefines comfortable eveningwear. It was ideal for a cooler April night, and even with a simple gray sweater on top and basic Miu Miu pumps, I felt polished head-to-toe, ready to continue to an intimate after-dinner tea at the Bowery Hotel with friends. Later, the sartorial-minded Waris Ahluwalia asked whether my layers felt fussy. "I believe it was the French writer Stendhal who said, 'Only great minds can afford a simple style,' " he offered.
My reply? Stendhal was right, and going straight from the office to a lovely affair on a Monday night, nothing felt simpler than dressing up my day outfit with a dazzling extra touch.


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< Back
Proper table manners and conversation techniques are sometimes overlooked in today's busy family lives. However, students at Roosevelt Elementary School in Neenah have had the opportunity to learn dining etiquette as part of a unique program called the "Buddy Bistro."
All students in grades kindergarten through fifth grade participate in the first-year program and each student gets four opportunities to dine at the Bistro. In their first three opportunities, the students order hot lunch or bring their own lunch and transfer the food to real plates and glasses while using real silverware. In the fourth visit, local restaurants cater a meal and the students dine with ThedaClark hospital employee mentors.
The first visit to the Bistro involves learning table manners such as placing of silverware and napkins, passing food around the table and sitting with appropriate posture. Students also learn how to create conversation at the table by asking others about their interests or how their day is going. The second visit focuses on healthy eating habits and the third is a review of everything they learned. Students do their own dishes after the meal and put everything away.
"We've heard great feedback from parents that the students are carrying these manners to their own dinner tables," said principal Phil Johnson. "Just simple techniques like passing food around the table are things we sometimes forget at home."
The event is held in the gym instead of the typically loud cafeteria and students are spread apart into tables of four. In fact, teacher Susan Michlig, who oversees the Buddy Bistro program, noted that occasionally the doors of the gym are left open so that students notice the clamor from the lunchroom across the hall during their meal.
"One of the things students have mentioned they like best about the Bistro is the calming nature of it," said Michlig, who usually plays soft dinner music while the students are dining. "Students are only allowed to talk to others at their own table in a low voice and not yell to others across the room."
Roosevelt has an existing program with ThedaClark Hospital where its employees serve as reading buddies for the students. The buddies are invited to dine with the students, but are treated as guests and aren't allowed to help with dishes or clean up.
The majority of the program is funded by an anonymous donor. Local businesses which provided meals included Four Seasons Restaurant, Twin City Diner, King Wok, Pagoni's Pizza, Papa's Cafe, Hong Kong Buffet and Luigi's Pizza and Pasta.


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BP3's View on Market Trends for BPM – on the #IBMImpact Blog
- April 4, 2014
- Scott
- 0 Comments
IBM asked me to share our view on market trends for BPM. Of course I was happy to oblige!
Some highlights:
The trend is toward cloud, mobile, and responsive UI. On the subject of cloud deployments with IBM BPM and SoftLayer:
"…late last year, BP3's BP Labs group led the effort to deploy the very first production deployment of IBM BPM on SoftLayer at a mutual customer. I believe it will be the first of many."
On the subject of Mobile BPM:
"Mobile BPM will continue to grow as a percentage of overall BPM deployments. Increasingly, customers want to have access to process workflows while on the go, on their phones, tablets, and laptops."
The responsive UI trend:
"Third, the trend within the trend, if you will, is for an ever increasing share of mobile development to be focused on Responsive HTML rather than native apps, for enterprise deployment."
"BP3 has invested in a responsive UI toolkit, Brazos, to get the most out of both products- producing world-class mobile user interfaces in IBM BPM, that operate seamlessly within Worklight. We'll have a demonstration of the same at our booth at Impact. "
But we also had a few business trends to highlight… read the article for more!


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Members inform federal elected representatives about issues important to the bottled water industry
On June 19, 2013, members of the International Bottled Water Assn. (IBWA), representing bottlers, distributors and suppliers from across the country, participated in IBWA's June Capitol Hill Day. This event allows IBWA members to directly interact with their federal elected representatives and staffs, and inform them about the many issues important to America's bottled water industry. This was the fourth Hill Day that IBWA members have participated in to date during 2013. More than 40 individuals representing 25 IBWA member companies did more than 70 visits during the afternoon, including 30 direct visits with members of Congress.
Before their afternoon meetings, Rep. John Barrow spoke with IBWA members about the importance of constituents meeting with their members of Congress. Educating elected officials about the impact their actions have on the bottled water industry helps to broaden the discussion about effective and appropriate regulation and legislation. Several issues important to the bottled water industry may be considered by Congress this year and were on IBWA's agenda for this Hill Day, including bottled water quality reporting and labeling, Energy Star certification requirements for water coolers, unwarranted restrictions on the use of bisphenol A in food packaging, and the need for increased U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) funding.
While IBWA represents companies of all sizes, the vast majority of the members are small, locally owned companies, with 60% reporting less than $2 million in annual gross sales and 90% reporting less than $10 million in annual gross sales. Based on new analysis conducted for IBWA by John Dunham & Associates, companies that manufacture, distribute and sell bottled water products in the U.S. currently employ more than 136,840 individuals and generate an additional 334,860 jobs in supplier and ancillary industries. Not only does the manufacture and sale of bottled water create good jobs in the U.S., it also contributes to the nation's economy as a whole. In fact, the U.S. bottled water industry is currently responsible for as much as $102.33 billion in total economic activity in the U.S. Additionally, companies that produce, distribute and sell bottled water; their employees; and other firms and employees that depend on bottled water for their livelihoods, provide the federal government with more than $5.83 billion in total tax revenues. State and local governments benefit from more than $3.93 billion in business and personal taxes paid by these firms and their employees.
Bottled water is comprehensively regulated by the FDA as a packaged food product. By federal law, the FDA regulations governing the safety and quality of bottled water must be at least as stringent as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards that govern tap water. And in some important cases like lead, coliform bacteria and E. coli, bottled water regulations are substantially more stringent.


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2010 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500
- Blue
- Black
- Coupe
- Excellent
- Gasoline
- Manual / Standard
- 2-door
- 8-cylinder
- Rear Wheel Drive
- Yes
WOW JUST IN AND RARE FIND!!! Amazing evolution of the SHELBY GT500 as 2010 marked the redesign year and power bump up to 540 Horsepower!!! Loads of refinements were made on this 2010 Shelby GT500. The Legendary Throw Back GRABBER BLUE Color makes its return with White Shelby Stripes, truly a STUNNING combination and tribute to the days of retro-muscle car nostaglia!! Re-designed front and rear fascias, redesigned interior, major power improvements bumping the power to a ground ripping 540 horsepower!!! One shift of the White Ball Shifter and you will be HOOKED!!! The NEW 5.4-liter dual overhead cam V-8 Outputs 40 More Horses - 540 hp and 510 lbs.-ft. of torque. New gearbox enhancements, plus a standard 3.55:1 rear axle ratio for improved acceleration and fuel economy; The twin-disc clutch on the six-speed manual transmission has been significantly upgraded; Exterior features new hood extractor to remove heat from the engine and "Gurney Flap" spoiler to tune rear downforce; Modified exhaust note for less intrusive output; Interior leather seats now feature racing stripes; Ford Synch is standard equipment offering vehicle health report, 911 assistance, and more; New 19-inch Goodyear F1 Supercar tires and forged aluminum wheels, AND SO MUCH MORE AWAITS in this 2010 Shelby GT500!! BEST OFFER plus $5 OMVIC FEE & HST ONLY!!! Certified and E-Tested already at no extra charge!! ALSO INCLUDED ARE PERFORMANCE EXHAUST SYSTEM & LOWERING SPRING SUSPENSION. Why get charged extra fees and settle for less when MODENA MOTORS INC delivers only the best!! ZAINO PAINT SHOW CAR POLISHED & SEALED WITH SHOWCAR SHINE AT NO EXTRA CHARGE!! 4 SHELBY GT500s to choose from!! www.modenamotors.ca Call Marco at 416-931-7817 for an appointment to view. Your source for quality vehicles and honest service.
This vehicle is Safety Certified and E-Tested.
- Anti-Lock Brakes
- Driver Air Bag
- Fog Lights
- Passenger Air Bag
- Side Air Bag
- Traction Control
- Heated Mirrors
- Rear Window Defrost
- Anti-Theft System
- Power Mirrors
- Power Windows
- Power Steering
- Power Door Locks
- Power Trunk
- Power Seats
- Tinted Glass
- Alloy Wheels
- Spoiler
- Air Conditioning
- Tilt Steering Wheel
- Cruise Control
- Keyless Entry
- Folding Rear Seat
- Leather Seats
- Lumbar Support
- Premium Sound System
- Balance of Factory Warranty
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Sneak Peek Preview of The Ballet Bible Package Version 3
If you didn't already know, The Complete Ballet Bible Package has been taken offline awaiting the launch of the new and improved version. If you are not on my mailing list make sure you go here now. The Complete Ballet Bible Package
Thankyou to everyone who has emailed me saying how much you have enjoyed the previous version and how much it has changed your life and your dancing. I hope you find this release even better and I look forward to hearing from you again. Here is a letter I received just today. It's people like this that make it all worthwhile.
Hi Anita,
I am 19 years old, from Melbourne Victoria. My mum purchased the Ballet Bible for me and WOW… It has changed my whole outlook on dance.
The 3 Simple Rules of a Prima Ballerina is outstanding and my favorite.
Now when I am teaching the little ones, I have a better understanding of the technique and terminologies so I am teaching them correctly.
So it is not only helping me to become stronger, but the next generation of dancers as well.
Thankyou so much for writing such a wonderful tool. And I look forward to reading and learning more from your next issue.
Kind regards
Tamara Baird.
Jen*Sue Dancers


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Degradation and remobilization of endogenous retroviruses by recombination during the earliest stages of a germ-line invasion
Edited by Stephen P. Goff, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, and approved July 2, 2018 (received for review May 4, 2018)
Endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) are proviral sequences that result from host germ-line invasion by exogenous retroviruses. The majority of ERVs are degraded. Using the koala retrovirus (KoRV) as a model system, we demonstrate that recombination with an ancient koala retroelement disables KoRV, and that recombination occurs frequently and early in the invasion process. Recombinant KoRVs (recKoRVs) are then able to proliferate in the koala germ line. This may in part explain the generally degraded nature of ERVs in vertebrate genomes and suggests that degradation via recombination is one of the earliest processes shaping retroviral genomic invasions.
Endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) are proviral sequences that result from colonization of the host germ line by exogenous retroviruses. The majority of ERVs represent defective retroviral copies. However, for most ERVs, endogenization occurred millions of years ago, obscuring the stages by which ERVs become defective and the changes in both virus and host important to the process. The koala retrovirus, KoRV, only recently began invading the germ line of the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus), permitting analysis of retroviral endogenization on a prospective basis. Here, we report that recombination with host genomic elements disrupts retroviruses during the earliest stages of germ-line invasion. One type of recombinant, designated recKoRV1, was formed by recombination of KoRV with an older degraded retroelement. Many genomic copies of recKoRV1 were detected across koalas. The prevalence of recKoRV1 was higher in northern than in southern Australian koalas, as is the case for KoRV, with differences in recKoRV1 prevalence, but not KoRV prevalence, between inland and coastal New South Wales. At least 15 additional different recombination events between KoRV and the older endogenous retroelement generated distinct recKoRVs with different geographic distributions. All of the identified recombinant viruses appear to have arisen independently and have highly disrupted ORFs, which suggests that recombination with existing degraded endogenous retroelements may be a means by which replication-competent ERVs that enter the germ line are degraded.
In humans, about 8% of the genome consists of endogenous retrovirus (ERV)-like elements, comprising a larger proportion of the genome in humans and other species than protein coding regions within genes (1⇓–3). The architecture of the human genome reflects a long evolutionary history of invasions of the germ line by infectious retroviruses (1, 2, 4⇓⇓–7). Phylogenetic analyses suggest that retroviruses have, from a deep evolutionary perspective, frequently jumped from one species to another and invaded the germ lines of new hosts (8⇓⇓⇓–12). Almost all known ERVs completed invasion of their host germ lines millions of years ago, obscuring the early events critical to the invasion process. An exception is the koala retrovirus (KoRV).
KoRV is a full-length replication-competent endogenous retrovirus, the titer of which is correlated with chlamydiosis and hematopoietic neoplasia (13, 14). KoRV is thought to spread in koalas both horizontally by infection and vertically as an endogenous genomic element (15, 16). KoRV has a clinal geographic distribution among koalas; while 100% of northern Australian koala populations carry KoRV, the prevalence and copy number of KoRV is greatly reduced in southern Australia (14, 17, 18). Unlike other ERVs, KoRV is not present in the germ line of all members of the host species (19). Ancient DNA studies have shown that KoRV was ubiquitous in Queensland koalas in the late 19th century (16). Molecular dating places the initial entry of KoRV into the koala germ line within the past 50,000 y (16, 20). These studies strongly indicate that KoRV, unlike most known vertebrate ERVs, is in the early stages of the endogenization process in its koala host (17, 19).
Many ERVs in vertebrates are found at fixed positions in the genome across all members of the host species. By contrast, there is substantial variation in the host genomic integration sites for endogenous KoRV across koalas, with a very high degree of insertional polymorphism. Among modern and museum samples of koalas in Queensland, the population with the highest abundance of KoRV, only a small proportion of KoRV integrations are shared among unrelated koalas (20⇓–22). The lack of fixed KoRV proviral insertions among koalas, and the low proportion of shared integration sites among koalas that carry endogenous KoRV, provide further evidence for a recent invasion of the koala germ line by KoRV.
Most endogenous retroviruses in other species have highly disrupted proviral genomes, and those present in higher copy numbers across the germ line often show deletion of the proviral env, which codes for the viral envelope. ERVs that lack env have been found to be "superspreaders," i.e., elements that have reached a high copy number within the host germ line (23). Through recombination, exogenous retroviruses can exchange genetic information with ERVs in infected individuals. For example, murine leukemia virus (MLV) can recombine with endogenous MLVs to generate novel viruses, in effect remobilizing part of the ERV sequences (24). Recombination may also render ERVs defective, e.g., through disruption of ORFs or the generation of solo long terminal repeats (LTRs) (25). However, the role of recombination during the early stages of retroviral genomic invasion has not been directly examined. Here, we provide evidence that older endogenous retroelements recombine with and degrade invading retroviral genomes, even when the homology between them is limited. This occurs early during retroviral invasion and disrupts the invading retrovirus while simultaneously remobilizing an existing retroelement recombination partner within the host genome. By disrupting retroviruses invading the germ line, the process likely accelerates the retroviral transition from horizontal to vertical transmission, which is expected to benefit the host species.
The Advantages of Long Read Sequence Technology for Retroviral Analysis.
KoRV has generally been studied using 454 FLX or Illumina-based short read sequencing approaches (16, 22). These approaches have a number of limitations. First, identified polymorphisms in KoRV cannot generally be put in phase with other polymorphisms. Second, only small structural differences among KoRV sequences, such as short indels, can be detected. Large deletions and recombination events are missed given that reads are of short length. Third, the specific host integration site cannot be identified for polymorphisms or KoRV sequences because reads are not long enough to cover the DNA region from the integration site to the KoRV genes. Thus, KoRV variation has been studied in the aggregate by mapping reads to full-length proviruses. Using this method, little variation has been detected (16, 22). By contrast, the current study used PacBio technology, which produces long sequence reads. The koala genome was sequenced using this technology, and we here sequenced individual KoRV proviruses. This permitted us to identify structural variation across individual KoRV proviruses, link KoRV variants to genomic loci in the koala host, and determine the position and copy number for each type of variation detected among KoRV proviruses. A complex evolutionary history was revealed for KoRV.
recKoRV1, a Recombinant Koala Retrovirus.
PacBio sequencing of one koala (Bilbo; Table 1 and ref. 26), the individual used to sequence and assemble the koala genome, has identified a proviral integrant called recombinant koala retrovirus 1 (recKoRV1), which includes the 5′ KoRV LTR followed by the gag leader region to position 1,177 (27). It also includes the KoRV region from position 7,619 of the env gene including the complete 3′ LTR. However, the sequence between these two fragments of KoRV is derived from another retroelement, designated the Phascolarctos endogenous retroelement (PhER) (Fig. 1) (27). PhER has partial homology to Repbase (28) but has no intact protein coding regions except potentially in the env region (27, 29). PhER has been found to be a transcriptionally expressed high copy number ERV (∼30–40 full-length elements and hundreds of solo LTRs or fragmented copies).
Other Recombinants Between KoRV and PhER.
In the current study, we examined an unrelated koala (Bilyarra; Table 1) to characterize recKoRV. We also identified KoRV-PhER recombination breakpoints and used them as queries to screen existing Illumina sequence datasets that had been previously generated but never examined for KoRV recombinants. Proviral integration sharing among koalas was examined on a per locus basis, while the presence or absence of specific recombination breakpoints was examined in the aggregate (Table 1 gives details regarding the koalas and datasets). Along with the two recombination sites of recKoRV1, an additional 15 KoRV-PhER recombinant sequences were identified (Fig. 1 and SI Appendix, Table S1). Although KoRV and PhER had dissimilar sequences, at five of the recombination breakpoints we identified microhomologies, short matching sequences that were shared at a breakpoint by both KoRV and PhER. These microhomologies may have enabled the recombination between the two elements at various breakpoints (SI Appendix, Table S1) (30⇓–32). Of 17 recombination breakpoints identified, all but three were within 1,500 bp of the ends of the KoRV genome (Fig. 1). Most breakpoint sequences were determined using only short Illumina reads, and so it was not possible to determine the structure of recombinants or characterize the integration sites.
The number of Illumina sequences among koala datasets mapping to proviral recKoRV1 breakpoints far exceeded those mapping to any of the other recombination breakpoints identified (SI Appendix, Fig. S1 and Table S1) (26, 27). We therefore focused on the evolutionary history of the recKoRV1 subtype of recombinants.
Absence of Reciprocal Recombinant recKoRVs.
We screened for reciprocal recombination products relative to the structure of recKoRV1, i.e., containing PhER sequences flanking KoRV coding sequences, and found no evidence for them across the genome of Bilbo. This was not unexpected because viral integrases are generally LTR sequence specific and sequence alignment using blastn with tolerant/permissive parameter settings revealed no substantial sequence similarity in the LTR regions of KoRV and PhER. Because PhER does not code for an intact integrase, both KoRV and recKoRV1 would rely on KoRV integrase to insert into the genome. PhER-flanked reciprocal recombinants would likely lack the requisite LTR sequences to be recognized and integrated efficiently (33).
Comparison of LTRs and Integration Sites Among Koala Genomes.
KoRV integration sites are highly insertionally polymorphic across unrelated koalas (19, 20). We examined KoRV and recKoRV1 integration sites in Bilyarra using a long read inverse PCR strategy and PacBio sequencing. This method allowed for identifying KoRV and recKoRV1 sequences and their integration sites in long single PacBio reads. Bilyarra exhibited a greater number of KoRV integration sites than found in the Bilbo reference genome (66 compared with 58). Among the KoRV integration sites (unique to each proviral locus) in Bilbo and Bilyarra, only two were shared (KoRV22 and KoRV35; SI Appendix, Fig. S1B and Table S2). In each of the two KoRV proviral loci shared by Bilbo and Bilyarra, deletions detected in the env gene would likely have precluded production of infectious virions. The other 120 integration sites were only detected in one of the two koalas. This suggests that individual KoRV integrants are found at low frequencies in their respective chromosomes and not generally shared by unrelated koalas. By contrast, many LTR sequences from Bilbo, Bilyarra, and other koalas were identical; they largely overlapped across a minimum spanning network, with few sequences unique to a specific koala (SI Appendix, Fig. S2). This indicates that KoRV proviruses at different loci have the same LTR sequence (20), as many LTR sequences, unlike integration sites, were shared among unrelated koalas.
Twenty-four recKoRV integrations were identified in Bilyarra, of which 14 were characterized as recKoRV1. In Bilbo 12 recKoRV1 sites were identified (identified through PacBio sequence reads that included both the integration sites and one or both of the recKoRV1 breakpoints). None of the recKoRV1 integration sites was shared between Bilbo and Bilyarra (SI Appendix, Fig. S1B). This may indicate that recKoRV1 integrations have not had sufficient time to become broadly distributed among koalas. The absence of shared loci carrying recKoRV1 between Bilbo and Bilyarra would suggest that recKoRV1 has been able to retrotranspose to different loci in the koala genome and/or that the same recombination event has occurred between KoRV and PhER on more than one occasion. The recKoRV LTRs varied across recKoRV1 loci, were often identical to KoRV LTRs, and included four of the five most common KoRV LTRs (SI Appendix, Fig. S2). This suggests that the same breakpoints between KoRV and PhER have been used in independent recombination events to generate recKoRV1s multiple times, because random mutations from a single ancestral recKoRV1 LTR would not exactly match those that happen to distinguish the most common KoRV LTR sequences. Target site duplications of 4–10 bp were detected at the integration sites of KoRV and recKoRV1 in the large majority of cases (SI Appendix, Table S2), suggesting that the integrations involved a retrovirus-typical reverse transcription as opposed to meiotic recombination.
The 17 Identified Recombination Breakpoints, Including recKoRV1 Breakpoints, Have Dissimilar Distributions Among Koala Populations.
Unlike most ERVs, KoRV greatly varies in prevalence across its host populations. While all Queensland koalas are positive for KoRV with high copy numbers in their genomes, southern Australian koalas have a much lower prevalence and copy number, with KoRV completely absent from some individuals (34). Sequences for all 17 recombination breakpoints identified between KoRV and PhER were used to query the koala reference genome and Illumina sequence datasets. Of the 17, 11 were identified in the genome of Pacific Chocolate, a koala from New South Wales, but were absent from the genome of Birkie (Table 1) from Queensland. The other six recombination breakpoints, including the breakpoints of recKoRV1, were identified in Birkie but absent from Pacific Chocolate. The lack of overlap may suggest that independent recombination events between KoRV and PhER have occurred in koalas from the two Australian regions. Screening of sequence datasets that had been generated after hybridization capture of KoRV identified the two recKoRV1 recombination breakpoints in all other koalas examined, including both museum and modern samples (SI Appendix, Fig. S1 and Table S1). Five of the 11 breakpoints in Pacific Chocolate from New South Wales were specific to that individual. The remaining six breakpoints were detected only sporadically among existing Illumina datasets, with the exception of breakpoint 10, which was found in most museum and a zoo koala but not in Birkie.
An Extended Analysis of the Geographic Distribution of recKoRV1.
To more precisely characterize the geographic distribution of recKoRV1 among koalas, the presence or absence of the 3′ recKoRV1 recombination breakpoint was examined using PCR. To span the recombination breakpoint, the 5′ PCR primer matched the upstream PhER sequence and the 3′ primer matched the downstream KoRV LTR sequence. We screened for the 3′ recKoRV1 recombination breakpoint in 166 koalas from 11 populations across Australia that had previously been screened for KoRV prevalence (17). KoRV and the recKoRV1 3′ breakpoint were both present across all koalas in Queensland and inland New South Wales (Fig. 2) with the notable exception of St. Bees Island (Fig. 2, population B) in which the recKoRV1 3′ breakpoint was only detected in 4 of 15 koalas, although KoRV was ubiquitous among St. Bees koalas. The coastal population of Port Stephens in New South Wales (Fig. 2 population G) was 100% KoRV positive but devoid of recKoRV1. This is consistent with the absence of recKoRV1 recombination breakpoints in the genome of Pacific Chocolate (from nearby Port Macquarie, New South Wales). Further south in Victoria, both Mornington Peninsula and Gippsland were negative for the recKoRV1 breakpoint and either positive for KoRV (Gippsland; Fig. 2, population K) or negative for both KoRV and recKoRV1 (Mornington Peninsula; Fig. 2, population J).
In South Australia, 8 of 16 koalas were positive for KoRV in Adelaide Hills (Fig. 2, population H), and 15 of 32 were KoRV positive in Kangaroo Island (Fig. 2, population I). No koalas were recKoRV1 positive in the Kangaroo Island population (founded by koala translocation in the 19th century). In the Adelaide Hills, four of eight KoRV-positive koalas were also positive for recKoRV1. Two of the eight KoRV-negative koalas were recKoRV1 positive in Adelaide Hills, the only koalas in the dataset to show this pattern.
Degradation of ERV genomes, and loss of env in particular, may benefit the host by preventing the production of virulent retroviruses that can spread horizontally (23). Our findings suggest that the recombination mediated degradation of retroviruses, which has been postulated for many human and other vertebrate ERVs, and the genomic proliferation of recombinants both occur at the earliest stages of retroviral germ-line invasion (35⇓⇓–38). This is supported by the presence of recKoRV1s in koalas across almost all of Australia in both modern and historical samples, and their high copy number in the koala genomes examined (Figs. 1 and 2). KoRV is thought to have invaded the koala germ line relatively recently, within the last 50,000 y (20). Thus, within this time frame the recKoRVs were generated and recKoRV1s arrived at the widespread distribution revealed here.
Seventeen recombination breakpoints were detected between KoRV and PhER. Recombination occurred in some cases at microhomologies, short sequences common to the two retroelements that likely enabled recombination at many of the breakpoints, including those of recKoRV1. Transcripts of PhER have been detected in the koala transcriptome, suggesting that PhER could be copackaged with KoRV in the same virion (29), enabling recombination. KoRV integrants may also have recombined with retrotranscribed PhER during meiosis. In both KoRV and recKoRV1, target site duplications were generally detected in the host genome flanking the 5′ and 3′ ends of the provirus, indicating that recombination between retroelements at different loci had not affected these integrants. Such recombinants, which can delete large regions of the genome, may have been removed by selection. Once a recKoRV is established in the germ line, it can spread vertically (and geographically) across koala populations.
A high degree of population structuring was detected among the different recombination breakpoints between KoRV and PhER. In particular, the recKoRV1 3′ breakpoint was completely absent from some populations in New South Wales (Fig. 2), while the genomes of two koalas, one from Queensland and one from coastal New South Wales, differed dramatically in their complement of recombination breakpoints (SI Appendix, Fig. S1). Genetic differentiation between Queensland and New South Wales koalas has been reported in previous studies (39, 40), suggesting restricted gene flow between koalas in the two states, perhaps in part due to the Great Dividing Range (Fig. 2). The barrier to gene flow cannot be complete because KoRV is present at high frequency in all of New South Wales and was thus likely transferred from koalas in Queensland at some point. Additionally, koala populations do not show high degrees of genetic structure compared with other marsupials, although recent barriers to gene flow may exist particularly in New South Wales (41, 42). We cannot rule out the possibility that regional differences in PhER expression may affect the genesis or distribution of recKoRVs by altering the amount or type of PhER template available for recombination. However, it is also possible that PhER and KoRV may be expressed and recombine in any population where both are present. This is supported by the analysis of KoRV-PhER recombination breakpoints in the genomes of a koala from Queensland and a koala from New South Wales. The two carried completely distinct sets of recombination breakpoints (SI Appendix, Fig. S1), suggesting that recombinants between KoRV and PhER formed independently in the two populations.
Several populations showed atypical patterns in the distribution of recKoRV1. In St. Bees Island off Queensland, only 4 of 15 koalas were recKoRV1 positive, but all were KoRV positive (Fig. 2). This contrasts with mainland Queensland for which all koalas tested (n = 48) were positive for both recKoRV1 and KoRV. The St. Bees Island population was founded by translocation of 12–17 koalas from mainland Queensland in the 1930s (43). The founding population of St. Bees was small, likely with insertional polymorphisms in each recKoRV1 locus. After the population expanded, the koalas would reflect random combinations of the small numbers of founder chromosomes. It may be that loci carrying recKoRV1 were randomly lost through genetic drift, although it is also possible that selection may have played a role.
In the Adelaide Hills of South Australia, several KoRV-negative individuals proved to be recKoRV1 positive (Fig. 2). KoRV copy number has been shown to decrease dramatically in southern Australia based on qPCR targeting the pol gene, and KoRVs rarely exist in both chromosomes in a given koala individual even where copy numbers are high (17, 20). The recKoRV1-positive individuals lacking KoRV likely reflect Mendelian segregation of integrants in a population where both KoRV and recKoRV1s are present at low copy numbers and at low frequencies at their respective loci, so that only a limited proportion of individuals carry either or both.
KoRV would suffer loss of virulence after recombination with PhER because none of the recombinants are predicted to code for an intact virus. Existing genomic elements like PhER would proliferate by having parts of their sequences incorporated into recKoRVs. While recKoRVs could still potentially exert deleterious effects on the host, e.g., by retrotransposition into new genomic locations, other potentially deleterious effects of the provirus would be reduced relative to intact KoRV, notably the ability of these elements to produce infectious retrovirus. The switch to a proviral form that is disrupted by recombination may be one aspect of the transition from horizontal to vertical transmission among ERVs. Over time, this would be expected to result in an increase in recKoRV abundance at the expense of virulent KoRV proviruses, potentially reducing the impact of the latter. The pressure to make this transition may be higher in long-lived species that are more likely to be affected by ERVs with oncogenic potential (44). During the transition period when infectious KoRV and recombinants coexist, KoRV particles may de novo generate and horizontally transmit recKoRVs (SI Appendix, Fig. S2) and in this manner coinfect host cells, although superinfection resistance would likely limit novel infection-mediated proliferation of both KoRV and recKoRVs (45).
In detecting large numbers of recombinants between KoRV and PhER, we establish that recombination with existing retroelements may be one way in which the ability of retroviruses invading the germ line to faithfully replicate is disrupted, by removing their ability to encode active viruses associated with disease. This would not be the only mechanism by which a host species controls an invading ERV, since other factors are likely to play a role, such as methylation or antiretroviral proteins or disruptive within-KoRV recombination (as was evident for KoRV22 and KoRV35, the only shared KoRV integrants identifed) (46). Nor would recKoRV lack potentially deleterious aspects of a provirus, as activation or disruption of genes at or near insertion sites may still occur. However, the deleterious effects of recKoRVs are not likely to be as great as those of KoRVs, and recKoRVs may thus be less subject to purifying selection than replication competent KoRVs, allowing recKoRVs to persist in the host germ line. Several lines of evidence suggest that production of recKoRVs may reflect a general means of accommodation between ERV and host. The recKoRV proviruses would have a reduced ability to proliferate relative to intact KoRV. The process of recKoRV formation has occurred frequently and independently, given the many recKoRVs identified and geographic differences in the occurrence of breakpoints. The degraded nature of recKoRV1 is also consistent with inferences drawn from more ancient ERVs in vertebrate genomes, notably the concept of genomic superspreaders, which suggests that retroviruses that lose the env gene will be more successful at propagating in host genomes than intact ERVs (23). It is also consistent with the exchange of sequences between divergent retroviruses, which has been inferred for ERVs in various host species (35⇓⇓–38, 47). For example, some human ERVs are believed to have recombined before their proliferation (38). This suggests that recombination-based degradation has occurred during invasions of vertebrate germ lines by different groups of retroviruses. Our study demonstrates empirically that the generation of such recombinants occurs during the early stages of genomic invasion by ERVs of a host germ line.
Materials and Methods
Koala Samples, PCR, and Sequencing.
Four sources of genomic data were employed in the current study (additional details on the samples and datasets are provided in Table 1 and SI Appendix). We used Illumina-based genome sequences (unassembled) from two koalas, Pacific Chocolate and Birkie (Table 1) (26). This dataset was screened for KoRV and PhER breakpoints. Additionally, existing Illumina datasets were reexamined for KoRV and PhER breakpoints (Table 1 and SI Appendix, SI Materials and Methods) (22). Two PacBio-based datasets were used to investigate KoRV and PhER breakpoints, and to identify and characterize proviral integration sites. The first of these was the assembled genome of Bilbo (26), and the second consisted of the integration site-enriched PacBio sequences from Pci-SN241 (Bilyarra, described below) (Table 1). DNA extraction and analyses of the data are described in detail in the SI Appendix. Finally, 166 wild koala DNA samples were collected by J. Meers, and P.Y. and their associates (17). The DNA from the 166 samples was extracted using the Blood & Tissue DNA Extraction Kit (Qiagen) or was provided by collaborators. The DNA was amplified for the recoKoRV 3′ breakpoint (with the koala actin gene used as a positive control for DNA quality). The amplified recKoRV PCR products were Sanger sequenced to establish their identity as the recKoRV1 3′ breakpoint. The SI Appendix provides details on the PCR and sequencing.
Inverse PCR and PacBio Sequencing of recKoRV.
DNA from Bilyarra was fragmented and circularized in four steps (detailed in SI Appendix). These were as follows: (i) DNA fragmentation, (ii) fragment end repair and circularization, (iii) KoRV LTR-based LTR long inverse PCR, and (iv) PacBio sequencing of the products. PCR products were submitted for PacBio library construction and sequencing to the Max Delbrück Center, Berlin, and standard PacBio RSII sequencing was performed (details provided in SI Appendix). Bioinformatics analyses were conducted both to identify Bilyarra's integration sites and to identify whether the integrants were KoRV or recKoRV (SI Appendix). Bilyarra PacBio sequences were aligned to a custom KoRV database. Blastn (NCBI Nucleotide-Nucleotide BLAST 2.2.29+) was used with default options to generate the alignments (48). Reads that did not include regions homologous to KoRV were considered KoRV-negative reads. KoRV-positive reads were aligned to the full-length PhER sequence using blastn with default parameters. PhER-negative reads were considered KoRV sequences and not recKoRV sequences. PhER-positive reads were initially considered to be sequences potentially containing recKoRV1. The 5′ breakpoint was generally more poorly covered by PacBio sequences because the breakpoint is several kilobases from the start of the proviral genome, compared with the 3′ breakpoint that is 200 bp from the end of the 3′ LTR (SI Appendix, Fig. S3). Description of the procedures for individual locus confirmation by PCR and Sanger sequencing is in SI Appendix.
To isolate the host genomic sequences flanking integration sites for KoRV and recKoRV, the KoRV containing reads were aligned using blastn to the KoRV-A or KoRV-B reference sequences (AB721500.1; KC779547). Regions homologous to the reference sequences were removed. The isolated host genomic sequences flanking integrations sites were clustered using Tribe-MCL (I = 1.4) (49), a Markov cluster-based approach, processing distance-based information of a blastn matrix for all KoRV containing reads (49). The recKoRV1-containing reads were aligned using blastn to the KoRV-A and KoRV-B reference sequences, as well as to PhER, all known recKoRV breakpoints and the consensus sequence of recKoRV1. Regions homologous to any of the reference sequences were removed. The isolated flanking regions were clustered using Tribe-MCL (I = 4). A consensus sequence for every cluster was created by constructing a multiple sequence alignment using MAFFT (v7.305b) (50) and computing a consensus sequence using the Perl module BioPerl:SimpleAlign (30% identity, gap removal) (51). Further curation is detailed in SI Appendix.
Network Analysis of LTRs.
LTRs from all insertion sites of Bilbo and Bilyarra were aligned with the LTR sequences of the KoRV proviruses examined in ref. 20, along with KoRV-A (AB721500.1) and KoRV-B (KC779547.1). The iPCR primer gaps were removed from all sequences. Multiple sequence alignment was performed using MAFFT L-INS-i (50). The alignment was cropped to the most conserved regions (>89% identity) on both ends, realigned, and manually curated. A haplotype network was constructed using the R (52) package Pegas (53) with the distance model "indelblock," performing an iterative refinement for the smallest sum of distances.
We thank Baptiste Mulot (Zoo Beauval) and Hanna Vielgrader (Tiergarten Schönbrunn) for assistance with zoo koala information throughout the project and thank the sample providers listed in SI Appendix. R.N.J. thanks the Australian Museum Foundation, BioPlatforms Australia, and New South Wales Environmental Trust for support. Y.I., A.L.R., and A.D.G. were supported by Grant R01GM092706 from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS). D.E.A.P. and A.D.G. were supported by the Morris Animal Foundation, Grant D14ZO-94. D.E.A.P. was supported by a postdoctoral fellowship of the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst, Grant 2014 57129705. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIGMS or the National Institutes of Health.
↵1U.L. and M.H. contributed equally to this work.
- ↵2To whom correspondence may be addressed. Email: roca{at}illinois.edu or greenwood{at}izw-berlin.de.
Author contributions: U.L., A.L.R., and A.D.G. designed research; A.D., K.T., K.J., D.E.A.-P., Y.I., and C.Q. performed research; J. Meers, W.C., R.N.J., and P.T. contributed new reagents/analytic tools; U.L., M.H., K.T., J. Mayer, P.R.Y., and A.D.G. analyzed data; and U.L., M.H., D.E.A.-P., A.L.R., and A.D.G. wrote the paper.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
This article is a PNAS Direct Submission.
Data deposition: The data reported in this paper have been deposited in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) Sequence Read Archive (SRA) (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sra/; accession no. SRS2321692).
This article contains supporting information online at www.pnas.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10.1073/pnas.1807598115/-/DCSupplemental.
- Copyright © 2018 the Author(s). Published by PNAS.
This open access article is distributed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License 4.0 (CC BY-NC-ND).
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07 Dec 2018
Back in September, Apple had unveiled the Apple Watch Series 4 and highlighted its key function - the ability to perform an electrocardiogram.
However, the tech giant didn't make the feature available during launch and said it will be added via a future software update.
And now, with watchOS 5.1.2, Apple has finally enabled ECG feature on its latest wearable.
Here's all about it.
What's new in the update?
Key features
The update enables the ECG functionality that can capture a live electrocardiogram using the smartwatch's built-in heart rate sensor and Digital Crown.
It also brings the new Infograph complications for apps like Mail, Maps, and Messages.
Further, the update lets you control Walkie-Talkie status from Control Center, updates the Wallet app for contactless readers, and adds new UI for Activity competition.
An overview of the ECG app
The ECG app (available in the US) lets you take an electrocardiogram and save its waveform in a PDF format to share it with your doctor.
Further, the official change log says "the app can indicate when your heart rhythm shows signs of atrial fibrillation - a serious form of irregular heart rhythm".
Notably, the new features have been given clearance by the FDA.
Apple Watch Series 4: At a glance
To recall, the new Apple Watch features a 30% larger screen area than its predecessor and runs on a new S4 chipset which is twice as fast as the previous iteration.
Further, it has 50% louder speakers, an all-new Digital Crown with haptic feedback, and a repositioned microphone for reduced echo, and all-day battery life.
It is also compatible with previous generation Watch bands.
Apple Watch Series 4 takes your health seriously
The Apple Watch Series 4 comes with next-generation accelerometer and gyroscope that allow the device to detect hard falls and calls Emergency services after 60 seconds of inactivity.
Also, like mentioned above, an all-new electrical heart rate sensor and optical heart rate sensors can record an ECG via the ECG app.
There's also a Walkie-Talkie feature along with several health monitoring features.
Apple Watch Series 4: Pricing for GPS and Cellular models
The GPS model with Aluminum case starts at Rs. 40,900 for the 40mm variant, while the 44mm costs Rs. 43,900.
The GPS+Cellular variant with Aluminum case starts at Rs. 49,900 and Rs. 52,900 for the 40mm and 44mm options, respectively.
The GPS+Cellular model with Stainless Steel case starts at Rs. 67,900 for the 40mm variant, while the 44mm variant is priced at Rs. 71,900.


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Review by Judith Caldwell
Hammer Baroque got off to their usual early start to the 2017/18 season with a concert on the Saturday of Labour Day weekend. This time it was the Eybler Quartet presenting an afternoon of classical chamber music by Vanhal, Asplmayr, Hayden and Mozart, even though the concert was billed as Beethoven and Vanhal. Bud Roach took the blame for the confusion, and while there may have been some disappointed Beethoven fans, they were not evident as the near-capacity and knowledgeable audience thoroughly enjoyed the quartets which were offered. String Quartet Op. 6 No. 2 (1771) by Johann Vanhal opened the concert.
It was a difficult, delightful piece in three movements, very much in the classical style which showed off the skills of the four musicians – violinists Julia Wedman and Aisslinn Nosky; Margaret Gay, cello and violist Patrick G. Jordan who have played together since 2004.
Vanhal started life as a Czech serf from a peasant family and his musicianship must have been extraordinary to cause his rise such that he even played in a string quartet with Dittersdorf, Hayden and Mozart. In the decade from 1770-'80 he was the most widely published composer and was one of the first composers to be successful enough to support himself without a patron for the last 30 years of his life. String Quartet Op.2 No.3 by the Austrian Franz Asplmayr was played next. It is a lovely piece in five movements that began as a dance, moved to a sombre, longing menuetto and ended as a lively round with the instruments speaking to each other. He apparently wrote many symphonies, some of which were panned by critics, but none survive for us the judge.
After two very classical pieces we moved on to a very playful Hayden. String Quartet Op.33 No.1 is the first of six quartets dedicated to Tsar Paul II. The dramatic Allegro moderato has much more contrast between instruments and features very strong cello lines; the scherzo is humorous; the allegro di molto is beautiful; the andante is pensive and the finale presto is diabolically difficult and intense and very satisfying. The audience loved it. After intermission came String Quartet in E flat major by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, one of his Hayden quartets, written possibly for the group in which they both played. It begins with a lively Allegro and moves on to an absolutely gorgeous slow and mysterious andante con moto. The Minuetto and Trio is both lively and stately at the same time and the final allegro vivace is a rich and unpredictable and showcases a Mozart simply overflowing with ideas. Wonderful music masterfully played – a great start to the season. The next concert is on September 24th at Melrose United Church.


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When Your Life is changed in an Instant
Being involved in a serious auto accident can have long-lasting consequences for you and your loved ones, sometimes including medical bills, funeral expenses, loss of income, and more. When considering a lawsuit, the first course of action should be contacting a personal injury attorney. It could be the difference between a fair settlement and inadequate compensation for your loss. Determining who is at fault can take time. If you are struggling financially, don't consider settling your case for less than you deserve. Pre-settlement funding can make the difference between a smaller, earlier settlement and a full and fair settlement that holds the defendant responsible for the harm it caused.
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It goes without saying that losing a loved one in an auto accident leaves an emotional scar on any family. In the midst of the grief, it is hard to deal with the financial consequences, especially in a case like this where the sole breadwinner was seriously injured. A complex and time-consuming lawsuit can add more strain on financial resources. Lawsuit Financial helps ensure that plaintiffs have the financial resources to endure a lengthy litigation process. Pre-settlement funding can assist with mortgage/rent payments, funeral costs, medical expenses, and other household living expenses. There is no credit check or employment verification in applying for funding. If approved, there are no payments until the case settles. If the case is lost, there is no repayment.
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Then suddenly, Pearl Harbor changes everything. Kate's friends are rushing to get married before the boys go off to war. The newspapers talk of women making airplanes and bombs. Everyone in town begins rolling bandages, planting victory gardens, collecting scrap metal. Kate finds herself drawn to Jay in surprising ways, and when he enlists she can hardly breathe worrying about him getting killed. Could she truly be in love with him? And if she is, will she ever see him again?
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Previously, on tastingmenu.wordpress.com –
* https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2011/01/12/morimoto-nyc-3 (26 Dec 2014)
My wife and I recently had an omakase bar dinner at Morimoto NYC. One of the courses (course #4) was the torched spanish mackerel 'sashimi salad' with shungiku, house cured shaved katsuo, house cured shaved karasumi, freeze dried tofu, shichimi mentaiko and mortadella oil:
I commented to Omae-san how delicious the 'salad' was (he'd advised that each bite should have a bit of each element from the plate) and how I thought the karasumi tied it altogether. The house cured karasumi (that Omae-san made himself) made me think of shaved parmesan on the initial bite (and then the briny fish notes took over) and the shaved cured bonito made me think of bacon on its intial bite (and then the bonito fish notes took over). I guess my expression must've communicated to him how much I liked the dish – so much so that as my wife were getting ready to leave after the omakase meal, he brought this out to me to take home:
That was a great Christmas present! I already've got ideas about how I want to use it! Thank you so much Omae-san!