title: Deval Patrick

text: From 2004 to 2006, he served on the board of directors of ACC Capital Holdings, the parent company of Ameriquest and Argent Mortgage. Ameriquest was the largest lender of so-called subprime mortgages and was under investigation by Attorneys General across the country. Patrick joined the board at the request of Ameriquest's founder, Roland Arnall, who asked for his help managing the investigations and changing the company's culture. During his tenure on the board, Ameriquest and Argent originated over $80 billion in subprime mortgages, but those conducting the investigation said that at the time Patrick left Ameriquest the company was on the road to change.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Following his career as governor, Patrick joined the private equity firm Bain Capital in 2015, where he is currently acting as a Managing Director.


title: Deval Patrick

text: In 2005, Patrick announced his candidacy for governor of Massachusetts. He was at first seen as a dark horse candidate, facing veteran politicians Thomas Reilly and Chris Gabrielli in the Democratic primary. Patrick secured the nomination in the September primary, winning 49% of the vote in the three-way race. In the general election, Patrick faced Republican Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey and Independent Massachusetts Turnpike Commission member Christy Mihos.


title: Deval Patrick

text: The general election was very heated, described by former governor Michael Dukakis as "the dirtiest gubernatorial campaign in my memory". Patrick faced criticism for having once written letters to the parole board describing correspondence from Benjamin LaGuer, a man convicted of a brutal eight-hour rape, as "thoughtful, insightful, eloquent, [and] humane".


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick contributed $5,000 towards the DNA testing which linked LaGuer to the crime. However, once the DNA test proved LaGuer's guilt, Patrick withdrew his support for the inmate's release.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick won the general election with 55% of the vote, becoming the first Democratic governor of Massachusetts since Michael Dukakis left office in 1991, and the state's first African American governor.


title: Deval Patrick

text: On April 2, 2009, Patrick announced alongside Lt. Governor Timothy Murray that they would both run for re-election.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick was opposed for the Democratic nomination by Grace Ross, the 2006 Green-Rainbow nominee for governor, but she withdrew when she could not garner the number of signatures needed to run.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick bucked the national trend in the mid-term election, defeating Republican challenger Charlie Baker with 48.4% of the vote. Baker received 42.0% and Tim Cahill, a former Democratic state treasurer running as an independent, took 8.0%. Nationally, Republicans gained a net of 63 seats to take control of the House, but remained a minority in the Senate despite gaining 6 seats.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Before taking office, Patrick assembled a transition team headed by lawyer Michael Angelini, bank executive Ronald Homer, and Weld administration economic affairs secretary Gloria Cordes Larson. In his first meetings with the legislative leadership, he proposed his first action would be to hire 1,000 new police officers and to expand full-day kindergarten statewide.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Breaking with the tradition of being inaugurated in the House Chamber of the Massachusetts State House, Patrick and Murray took their oaths of office, and Patrick delivered his inaugural address, outdoors on the West Portico of the State House facing Boston Common.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Doing this allowed a larger part of the public to witness the event, and was intended to signal a more open, transparent, and accessible government. In honor of his heritage, he took his oath of office on the Mendi Bible, which was given to then-Congressman John Quincy Adams by the freed American slaves from the ship "La Amistad".


title: Deval Patrick

text: A series of regional inaugural balls, seven in total, were held to bring the inauguration to the citizens of the Commonwealth. The celebrations took place in Cape Cod, Worcester, Dartmouth, Pittsfield, Springfield, and Boston.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick crafted and signed a bill that allows for the construction and operation of three resort-style casinos in the state. He argued that these casinos would generate over $2 billion for the state economy. He also touted that the casinos would create 30,000 construction jobs and 20,000 permanent jobs.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick proposed that the revenue generated would be spent to beef up local law enforcement, create a state gambling regulatory agency, repair roads and bridges, and aid in gambling addiction treatment, and that the remainder would go towards property tax relief.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick's casino plan had faced strong opposition from Salvatore DiMasi, the former Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. DiMasi questioned Patrick's projections of new jobs and revenues to be generated, and was opposed to what he referred to as a casino culture, saying: "Do we want to usher in a casino culture– with rampant bankruptcies, crime and social ills– or do we want to create a better Massachusetts for all sectors of the society?"


title: Deval Patrick

text: Casino gaming lobbying in Massachusetts has also received scrutiny for associations with the Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal and efforts by the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe to secure rights to a casino outside the legal framework of the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. In 2009, Patrick was among the top campaign contribution recipients from casino lobbying interests, and from financiers backing the Wampanoag casino interests.


title: Deval Patrick

text: On March 20, 2008, the Massachusetts House of Representatives rejected Patrick's casino bill by a vote of 108 to 46. Despite the overwhelming vote, questions were raised by critics of DiMasi as to the tactics he used to win. These included allegations that he promised a subsequent vote on a bill that would allow slot machines at the state's four racetracks and the pre-vote promotions of six lawmakers who had been thought to support the bill, but either abstained or voted against the bill. DiMasi denied that any promise had been made on the race track bill and denied that the promotions were connected to the casino bill vote.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick's conduct was also criticized and his commitment to the bill questioned when it was revealed that he was not in the state on the day the bill was voted on in the legislature. As the bill was being voted down, Patrick was in New York City on personal business, finalizing a $1.35-million deal with Broadway Books, an imprint of Random House, to publish his autobiography.


title: Deval Patrick

text: By mid-2010, the house and senate passed a bill with plans for three resort-style casinos and two slot parlors. However, Patrick vetoed it as he previously stated that he would only accept one slot parlor. When the 2011 casino legislation was still in debate, an investigative report in "The Boston Globe" revealed the governor violated his self-imposed policy of not accepting money from or meeting with lobbyists for the gambling industry, by accepting more than $6,000 in campaign contributions, and meeting with and attending fundraisers hosted by gaming lobbyists.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick signed the legislation into law in December 2011. Its implementation, however, has seen hurdles and delays. The governor's point man on crafting gaming legislation and negotiating a state compact with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, Assistant Secretary for Policy & Economic Development Carl Stanley McGee, was forced to resign from his appointment to direct the newly formed Massachusetts Gaming Commission following reports of 2007 charges that he molested a child in Florida. Stan McGee was forced to return to his economic development post where he still oversees casino policies for the governor. The scandal resulted in the Massachusetts legislature passing a bill and overriding a veto by Patrick requiring background checks on casino regulators.


title: Deval Patrick

text: In June 2014, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that a referendum to repeal legislation permitting casino gambling could appear on the November ballot, throwing the prospects of the casino legislation into question.


title: Deval Patrick

text: In 2010, Patrick pushed for legislation to limit the purchase of firearms, citing a series of gun violence incidents and violent crime in Boston. In 2011, Patrick proposed new legislation that would require more stringent regulations on firearms. During an event surrounding the announcement, Patrick said one of his main goals was to "stop children from killing children." Patrick also reported that he would ask for $10 million in private and public funding to help "fill the gaps." Reacting to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, in 2013 Patrick proposed stricter gun control laws, including a limit of one firearm purchase a month and closing the gun show loophole.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Throughout his term in office, Patrick made achieving "world-class public education" a main priority of his administration. Patrick also committed a historic amount of public funds to Massachusetts schools, introduced legislation to tackle a persistent education gap among minority students, and won the national Race to the Top competition. Patrick now supports a doubling of the number of charter schools in Massachusetts. In his first year in office, Patrick proposed making community college free to all Massachusetts high school graduates.


title: Deval Patrick

text: On August 7, 2008, Patrick signed a $2.2 billion higher education bond bill with $1 billion directed towards the University of Massachusetts system and $1.2 billion to the state universities and community colleges. $100 million was directed towards the construction of the integrated sciences complex at the University of Massachusetts Boston and a second $100 million directed towards constructing a general academic building. On October 23, 2014, Patrick spoke at the university in celebration of the science complex that would be completed the following January. On June 4, 2015, the university honored Patrick at the university's Golden Gala at the Boston Seaport World Trade Center and Patrick would return to the campus out of office on May 4, 2016 to meet with students from the university's new School for Global Inclusion and Social Development.


title: Deval Patrick

text: As of 2005, Patrick favored the legalization of same-sex marriage because of the fundamental principle that "citizens come before their government as equals". He worked with the state legislature to prevent a ballot measure eliminating same-sex marriage in Massachusetts, which protected the state's first-in-the-nation same-sex marriage allowance.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick proposed a bill that would streamline Massachusetts' permit appeals process for wind energy projects. The Wind Energy Siting Reform bill would reduce the permitting process to nine to 19 months.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick made expanding renewable energy a focus of his second term, but faced a setback when lawmakers failed to raise caps on solar generation in Massachusetts and to expand the amount of hydropower purchased by utility companies from Canada.


title: Deval Patrick

text: The legislatively chartered Transportation Finance Commission (TFC) reported in 2007 that over the next 20 years there would be $15–$19 billion gap between revenues and necessary expenditures, just to maintain the existing transportation system in Massachusetts. The Commission identified several reforms and revenue options to close the gap. The Patrick administration lobbied for and passed a major transportation reform bill, which incorporated many of the TFC-recommended reforms, and which created the Massachusetts Department of Transportation by merging smaller transportation agencies.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick proposed raising the state gas tax by 19¢ per gallon to forestall Massachusetts Turnpike toll and MBTA fare increases, fully fund Regional Transit Authority and Turnpike operations, and address part of the capital shortfall identified by the TFC, but this was defeated in the state legislature. Instead, a sales tax increase of 1.25% was passed, with part of that dedicated to transportation. This was enough to prevent the short-term toll and fare increases, but did not address the long-term funding gap. Patrick has been a supporter of the South Coast Rail Link project.


title: Deval Patrick

text: In response to the influx of children from Central America crossing the US border in the summer of 2014, Patrick proposed taking 1,000 migrants to be housed at various sites in Massachusetts, until they can be processed at immigration centers.


title: Deval Patrick

text: On September 24, 2009, Patrick appointed Paul G. Kirk as the interim U.S. senator in the wake of Ted Kennedy's death.


title: Deval Patrick

text: On January 30, 2013, Patrick chose his former chief-of-staff Mo Cowan to serve as interim U.S. senator until a special election to fill the seat left vacant by Secretary of State designate John Kerry.


title: Deval Patrick

text: In the early months of Patrick's administration, a series of decisions the governor later conceded as "missteps" brought substantial unfavorable press. These included spending almost $11,000 on drapery for the governor's state house suite, changing the state's customary car lease from a Ford Crown Victoria to a Cadillac. Patrick responded in a February 20, 2007 press conference that "I realize I cannot in good conscience ask the agencies to make those choices without being willing to make them myself." Patrick subsequently reimbursed the Commonwealth for the cost of the drapery and furniture purchased for the statehouse, and the additional monthly difference in his car lease.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Later in the same month Patrick again came under fire, this time for contacting Citigroup Executive Committee chair and former Clinton Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin on behalf of the financially beleaguered mortgage company Ameriquest, a subsidiary of ACC Capital Holdings, that had been accused of predatory lending practices and of which Patrick is a former board member. Both Citigroup and ACC Capital Holdings have substantial holdings in Massachusetts. Patrick attempted to deflect criticism, claiming he was calling not as governor but as a private citizen. Later Patrick backed down, stating "I appreciate that I should not have made the call. I regret the mistake."


title: Deval Patrick

text: On September 17, 2014, Patrick fired the Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board chair Saundra Edwards and placed director Jeanne Holmes on paid administrative leave because they had pressured the board to force Bernard Sigh – Patrick's brother-in-law – to register as a sex offender. Sigh had pleaded guilty to raping his wife (Patrick's sister) in California in 1993 and neglected to register as a sex offender when he later moved to Massachusetts. Sigh assaulted his wife again in 2017; in June 2019 he was convicted of rape, stalking, kidnapping, and witness intimidation. In November 2019, Patrick spoke to the "NH Journal" about having intervened to help keep his brother-in-law off the sex offender registry, saying, "No, I don't have any regrets. [...] I stuck up for him then because that was respectful of my sister and I think it was the right thing to do."


title: Deval Patrick

text: In June 2015, the "Boston Herald" reported that Patrick's administration secretly diverted nearly $27 million in government funds to off-budget accounts that paid for trade junkets tab, advertising contracts, and a deal with a federally subsidized tourism venture backed by U.S. Sen. Harry Reid. According to the "Herald", state legislators never approved the funding, which began in 2009 when Patrick's office directed quasi-public state agencies, including the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority and Massport to begin funding off-budget trusts. A week later, the "Boston Globe" quoted Representative David Linsky, chair of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Post Audit and Oversight Committee, as saying that, upon review, the expenditures were either approved by the state legislature or permissible under the state's budget rules and that they violated no applicable law.


title: Deval Patrick

text: In 2014, Patrick signed a law requiring health insurers to extend coverage to people struggling with drug addiction by covering up to two weeks of inpatient treatment. The bill was seen in the broader context of state government battling the soaring opioid drug abuse rates, following a $20 million package introduced in June consisting of proposals targeting the problem. In the same year, Patrick signed a bill that would allow police to order anti-abortion protesters away from clinic entrances, if hindering public access.


title: Deval Patrick

text: On August 4, 2010, Patrick signed into law a bill adjoining Massachusetts to the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick was involved in the Boston 2024 organization, which was in charge of Boston's bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Following Patrick's speech at the 2012 Democratic National Convention, a reporter asked if Patrick was interested in a 2016 presidential bid. He responded that he intended to return to the private sector after completing his second term as governor. In July 2013, Patrick unequivocally ruled out a 2016 presidential bid.


title: Deval Patrick

text: On February 28, 2018, in response to reports that David Axelrod and Valerie Jarrett wanted him to run for president, Patrick stated on public radio that it was "on my radar screen". On December 6, 2018, Patrick formally stated via Facebook that he would not be running for president in 2020, writing, "I’ve been overwhelmed by advice and encouragement from people from all over the country, known and unknown. Humbled, in fact. But knowing that the cruelty of our elections process would ultimately splash back on people whom Diane and I love, but who hadn’t signed up for the journey, was more than I could ask."


title: Deval Patrick

text: On November 11, 2019, however, "The New York Times" reported that Patrick was considering making a late entry into the presidential race. Two days later, it was reported that Patrick would file to run, beginning with New Hampshire. The next day, on November 14, Patrick officially announced that he would enter the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries. His campaign manager was Abe Rakov.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick's second scheduled public event since announcing his candidacy, a speech at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia on November 20, 2019, was cancelled when only two people showed up. The event, however, was scheduled with only twenty-four hours notice, and preceded the Democratic presidential primary debate that same night and only a few miles away.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Deval Patrick's first campaign ads started January 8 in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina. He spent $100,000 in ads in New Hampshire and $60,000 in South Carolina. Despite a 29% approval rating in New Hampshire, he enjoyed support from only 1% of voters, according to a WBUR-FM poll; a November Quinnipiac poll in South Carolina produced similar results. Morning Consult reported that 46% of Democratic primary voters have never heard of him.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Following a poor showing in the New Hampshire primary on February 12, 2020, Patrick suspended his campaign.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick launched the Future of Tech Commission with Common Sense Media founder Jim Steyer and former Education Secretary Margaret Spellings in April 2021. As co-chairs, this commission will compile solutions for a comprehensive tech policy agenda under President Biden and Congress on topics as privacy, antitrust, digital dequity, and content moderation/platform accountability.


title: Deval Patrick

text: During the 2008 Democratic primaries, Patrick came to the defense of presidential candidate Barack Obama following plagiarism allegations that key phrases from an Obama stump speech were very similar to words used during Patrick's own 2006 gubernatorial run. The claims were largely dismissed after Patrick explained that he had encouraged their use.


title: Deval Patrick

text: After Obama's 2008 election as president, speculation arose that Patrick would be chosen by Obama to serve as United States Attorney General, but the post ultimately went to Eric Holder.


title: Deval Patrick

text: During the 2012 presidential election, Patrick served as a surrogate for the Obama campaign. Patrick generated controversy when he took a position that directly opposed that of the campaign, defending the business practices of the Boston-based private equity firm Bain Capital, which was founded by Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential nominee.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Following the 2012 presidential election, Patrick was considered to be a potential successor to Holder, although Patrick had said he would not consider any other position as long as he remained governor. Speculation grew once again in September 2014, when Holder announced his intention to step down. The position was subsequently given to Loretta Lynch.


title: Deval Patrick

text: In March 2016, Patrick was named by "USA Today" as a possible Obama nominee to fill the U.S. Supreme Court associate justice seat, vacated by the February 2016 death of Antonin Scalia.


title: Deval Patrick

text: Patrick and his wife, Diane Patrick, a lawyer specializing in labor and employment law, married in 1984. They have lived in Milton, Massachusetts since 1989 and have two daughters, Sarah and Katherine. In July 2008, Katherine publicly announced that she is lesbian, and mentioned that her father did not know this while he was fighting against a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would have banned same-sex marriage. In a joint interview Patrick expressed support for his daughter and said he was proud of her. In September 2011, his daughter Sarah married Marco Morgese, a former Italian soldier. On May 20, 2013, Patrick became a grandfather when Sarah gave birth to a son, Gianluca Noah Patrick Morgese.


title: Deval Patrick

text: In addition to his Milton home, Patrick and his family own a home in Richmond, Massachusetts. In 2013, Illinois governor Pat Quinn renamed a part of Wabash Avenue in Chicago, where Patrick grew up, "Deval Patrick Way" in Patrick's honor. On May 28, 2015, Patrick was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws by Harvard University.


title: Visual cortex

text: The visual cortex of the brain is the area of the cerebral cortex that processes visual information. It is located in the occipital lobe. Sensory input originating from the eyes travels through the lateral geniculate nucleus in the thalamus and then reaches the visual cortex. The area of the visual cortex that receives the sensory input from the lateral geniculate nucleus is the primary visual cortex, also known as visual area 1 (V1), Brodmann area 17, or the striate cortex. The extrastriate areas consist of visual areas 2, 3, 4, and 5 (also known as V2, V3, V4, and V5, or Brodmann area 18 and all Brodmann area 19).


title: Visual cortex

text: Both hemispheres of the brain include a visual cortex; the visual cortex in the left hemisphere receives signals from the right visual field, and the visual cortex in the right hemisphere receives signals from the left visual field.


title: Visual cortex

text: The primary visual cortex (V1) is located in and around the calcarine fissure in the occipital lobe. Each hemisphere's V1 receives information directly from its ipsilateral lateral geniculate nucleus that receives signals from the contralateral visual hemifield.


title: Visual cortex

text: Neurons in the visual cortex fire action potentials when visual stimuli appear within their receptive field. By definition, the receptive field is the region within the entire visual field that elicits an action potential. But, for any given neuron, it may respond best to a subset of stimuli within its receptive field. This property is called "neuronal tuning". In the earlier visual areas, neurons have simpler tuning. For example, a neuron in V1 may fire to any vertical stimulus in its receptive field. In the higher visual areas, neurons have complex tuning. For example, in the inferior temporal cortex (IT), a neuron may fire only when a certain face appears in its receptive field.


title: Visual cortex

text: The visual cortex receives its blood supply primarily from the calcarine branch of the posterior cerebral artery.


title: Visual cortex

text: The what vs. where account of the ventral/dorsal pathways was first described by Ungerleider and Mishkin.


title: Visual cortex

text: More recently, Goodale and Milner extended these ideas and suggested that the ventral stream is critical for visual perception whereas the dorsal stream mediates the visual control of skilled actions. It has been shown that visual illusions such as the Ebbinghaus illusion distort judgements of a perceptual nature, but when the subject responds with an action, such as grasping, no distortion occurs.


title: Visual cortex

text: Work such as the one from Franz et al. suggests that both the action and perception systems are equally fooled by such illusions. Other studies, however, provide strong support for the idea that skilled actions such as grasping are not affected by pictorial illusions and suggest that the action/perception dissociation is a useful way to characterize the functional division of labor between the dorsal and ventral visual pathways in the cerebral cortex.


title: Visual cortex

text: The primary visual cortex is the most studied visual area in the brain. In mammals, it is located in the posterior pole of the occipital lobe and is the simplest, earliest cortical visual area. It is highly specialized for processing information about static and moving objects and is excellent in pattern recognition.


title: Visual cortex

text: The primary visual cortex, which is defined by its function or stage in the visual system, is approximately equivalent to the striate cortex, also known as Brodmann area 17, which is defined by its anatomical location. The name "striate cortex" is derived from the line of Gennari, a distinctive stripe visible to the naked eye that represents myelinated axons from the lateral geniculate body terminating in layer 4 of the gray matter.


title: Visual cortex

text: The primary visual cortex is divided into six functionally distinct layers, labeled 1 to 6. Layer 4, which receives most visual input from the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN), is further divided into 4 layers, labelled 4A, 4B, 4Cα, and 4Cβ. Sublamina 4Cα receives mostly magnocellular input from the LGN, while layer 4Cβ receives input from parvocellular pathways.


title: Visual cortex

text: The average number of neurons in the adult human primary visual cortex in each hemisphere has been estimated at 140 million.


title: Visual cortex

text: V1 has a very well-defined map ("the retinotopic map") of the spatial information in vision. For example, in humans, the upper bank of the calcarine sulcus (in the occipital lobe) responds strongly to the lower half of visual field (below the center), and the lower bank of the calcarine to the upper half of visual field. In concept, this retinotopic mapping is a projection of the visual image from retina to V1. The correspondence between a given location in V1 and in the subjective visual field is very precise: even the blind spots of the retina are mapped into V1. In terms of evolution, this correspondence is very basic and found in most animals that possess a V1. In humans and animals with a fovea (cones in the retina), a large portion of V1 is mapped to the small, central portion of visual field, a phenomenon known as cortical magnification. Perhaps for the purpose of accurate spatial encoding, neurons in V1 have the smallest receptive field size (that is, the highest resolution) of any visual cortex microscopic regions.


title: Visual cortex

text: The tuning properties of V1 neurons (what the neurons respond to) differ greatly over time. Early in time (40 ms and further) individual V1 neurons have strong tuning to a small set of stimuli. That is, the neuronal responses can discriminate small changes in visual orientations, spatial frequencies and colors (as in the optical system of a camera obscura, but projected onto retinal cells of the eye, which are clustered in density and fineness). Each V1 neuron propagates a signal from a retinal cell, in continuation. Furthermore, individual V1 neurons in humans and animals with binocular vision have ocular dominance, namely tuning to one of the two eyes. In V1, and primary sensory cortex in general, neurons with similar tuning properties tend to cluster together as cortical columns. David Hubel and Torsten Wiesel proposed the classic ice-cube organization model of cortical columns for two tuning properties: ocular dominance and orientation. However, this model cannot accommodate the color, spatial frequency and many other features to which neurons are tuned . The exact organization of all these cortical columns within V1 remains a hot topic of current research. The mathematical modeling of this function has been compared to Gabor transforms.


title: Visual cortex

text: Later in time (after 100 ms), neurons in V1 are also sensitive to the more global organisation of the scene (Lamme & Roelfsema, 2000). These response properties probably stem from recurrent feedback processing (the influence of higher-tier cortical areas on lower-tier cortical areas) and lateral connections from pyramidal neurons (Hupe et al. 1998). While feedforward connections are mainly driving, feedback connections are mostly modulatory in their effects (Angelucci et al., 2003; Hupe et al., 2001). Evidence shows that feedback originating in higher-level areas such as V4, IT, or MT, with bigger and more complex receptive fields, can modify and shape V1 responses, accounting for contextual or extra-classical receptive field effects (Guo et al., 2007; Huang et al., 2007; Sillito et al., 2006).


title: Visual cortex

text: The visual information relayed to V1 is not coded in terms of spatial (or optical) imagery but rather are better described as edge detection. As an example, for an image comprising half side black and half side white, the dividing line between black and white has strongest local contrast (that is, edge detection) and is encoded, while few neurons code the brightness information (black or white per se). As information is further relayed to subsequent visual areas, it is coded as increasingly non-local frequency/phase signals. Note that, at these early stages of cortical visual processing, spatial location of visual information is well preserved amid the local contrast encoding (edge detection).


title: Visual cortex

text: A theoretical explanation of the computational function of the simple cells in the primary visual cortex has been presented in. It is described how receptive field shapes similar to those found by the biological receptive field measurements performed by DeAngelis et al. can be derived as a consequence of structural properties of the environment in combination with internal consistency requirements to guarantee consistent image representations over multiple spatial and temporal scales. It is also described how the characteristic receptive field shapes, tuned to different scales, orientations and directions in image space, allow the visual system to compute invariant responses under natural image transformations at higher levels in the visual hierarchy.


title: Visual cortex

text: In primates, one role of V1 might be to create a saliency map (highlights what is important) from visual inputs to guide the shifts of attention known as gaze shifts.


title: Visual cortex

text: According to the V1 Saliency Hypothesis, V1 does this by transforming visual inputs to neural firing rates from millions of neurons, such that the visual location signaled by the highest firing neuron is the most salient location to attract gaze shift. V1's outputs are received by the superior colliculus (in the mid-brain), among other locations, which reads out the V1 activities to guide gaze shifts.


title: Visual cortex

text: Visual area V2, or secondary visual cortex, also called prestriate cortex, is the second major area in the visual cortex, and the first region within the visual association area. It receives strong feedforward connections from V1 (direct and via the pulvinar) and sends strong connections to V3, V4, and V5. It also sends strong feedback connections to V1.


title: Visual cortex

text: In terms of anatomy, V2 is split into four quadrants, a dorsal and ventral representation in the left and the right hemispheres. Together, these four regions provide a complete map of the visual world. V2 has many properties in common with V1: Cells are tuned to simple properties such as orientation, spatial frequency, and color. The responses of many V2 neurons are also modulated by more complex properties, such as the orientation of illusory contours, binocular disparity, and whether the stimulus is part of the figure or the ground. Recent research has shown that V2 cells show a small amount of attentional modulation (more than V1, less than V4), are tuned for moderately complex patterns, and may be driven by multiple orientations at different subregions within a single receptive field.


title: Visual cortex

text: It is argued that the entire ventral visual-to-hippocampal stream is important for visual memory. This theory, unlike the dominant one, predicts that object-recognition memory (ORM) alterations could result from the manipulation in V2, an area that is highly interconnected within the ventral stream of visual cortices. In the monkey brain, this area receives strong feedforward connections from the primary visual cortex (V1) and sends strong projections to other secondary visual cortices (V3, V4, and V5). Most of the neurons of this area in primates are tuned to simple visual characteristics such as orientation, spatial frequency, size, color, and shape. Anatomical studies implicate layer 3 of area V2 in visual-information processing. In contrast to layer 3, layer 6 of the visual cortex is composed of many types of neurons, and their response to visual stimuli is more complex.


title: Visual cortex

text: In one study, the Layer 6 cells of the V2 cortex were found to play a very important role in the storage of Object Recognition Memory as well as the conversion of short-term object memories into long-term memories.


title: Visual cortex

text: The term third visual complex refers to the region of cortex located immediately in front of V2, which includes the region named visual area V3 in humans. The "complex" nomenclature is justified by the fact that some controversy still exists regarding the exact extent of area V3, with some researchers proposing that the cortex located in front of V2 may include two or three functional subdivisions. For example, David Van Essen and others (1986) have proposed the existence of a "dorsal V3" in the upper part of the cerebral hemisphere, which is distinct from the "ventral V3" (or ventral posterior area, VP) located in the lower part of the brain. Dorsal and ventral V3 have distinct connections with other parts of the brain, appear different in sections stained with a variety of methods, and contain neurons that respond to different combinations of visual stimulus (for example, colour-selective neurons are more common in the ventral V3). Additional subdivisions, including V3A and V3B have also been reported in humans. These subdivisions are located near dorsal V3, but do not adjoin V2.


title: Visual cortex

text: Dorsal V3 is normally considered to be part of the dorsal stream, receiving inputs from V2 and from the primary visual area and projecting to the posterior parietal cortex. It may be anatomically located in Brodmann area 19. Braddick using fMRI has suggested that area V3/V3A may play a role in the processing of global motion Other studies prefer to consider dorsal V3 as part of a larger area, named the dorsomedial area (DM), which contains a representation of the entire visual field. Neurons in area DM respond to coherent motion of large patterns covering extensive portions of the visual field (Lui and collaborators, 2006).


title: Visual cortex

text: Ventral V3 (VP), has much weaker connections from the primary visual area, and stronger connections with the inferior temporal cortex. While earlier studies proposed that VP contained a representation of only the upper part of the visual field (above the point of fixation), more recent work indicates that this area is more extensive than previously appreciated, and like other visual areas it may contain a complete visual representation. The revised, more extensive VP is referred to as the ventrolateral posterior area (VLP) by Rosa and Tweedale.


title: Visual cortex

text: Visual area V4 is one of the visual areas in the extrastriate visual cortex. In macaques, it is located anterior to V2 and posterior to posterior inferotemporal area (PIT). It comprises at least four regions (left and right V4d, left and right V4v), and some groups report that it contains rostral and caudal subdivisions as well. It is unknown whether the human V4 is as expansive as that of the macaque homologue which is a subject of debate.


title: Visual cortex

text: V4 is the third cortical area in the ventral stream, receiving strong feedforward input from V2 and sending strong connections to the PIT. It also receives direct input from V1, especially for central space. In addition, it has weaker connections to V5 and dorsal prelunate gyrus (DP).


title: Visual cortex

text: V4 is the first area in the ventral stream to show strong attentional modulation. Most studies indicate that selective attention can change firing rates in V4 by about 20%. A seminal paper by Moran and Desimone characterizing these effects was the first paper to find attention effects anywhere in the visual cortex.


title: Visual cortex

text: Like V2, V4 is tuned for orientation, spatial frequency, and color. Unlike V2, V4 is tuned for object features of intermediate complexity, like simple geometric shapes, although no one has developed a full parametric description of the tuning space for V4. Visual area V4 is not tuned for complex objects such as faces, as areas in the inferotemporal cortex are.


title: Visual cortex

text: The firing properties of V4 were first described by Semir Zeki in the late 1970s, who also named the area. Before that, V4 was known by its anatomical description, the prelunate gyrus. Originally, Zeki argued that the purpose of V4 was to process color information. Work in the early 1980s proved that V4 was as directly involved in form recognition as earlier cortical areas. This research supported the two-streams hypothesis, first presented by Ungerleider and Mishkin in 1982.


title: Visual cortex

text: Recent work has shown that V4 exhibits long-term plasticity, encodes stimulus salience, is gated by signals coming from the frontal eye fields, and shows changes in the spatial profile of its receptive fields with attention.


title: Visual cortex

text: The middle temporal visual area (MT or V5) is a region of extrastriate visual cortex. In several species of both New World monkeys and Old World monkeys the MT area contains a high concentration of direction-selective neurons. The MT in primates is thought to play a major role in the perception of motion, the integration of local motion signals into global percepts, and the guidance of some eye movements.


title: Visual cortex

text: MT is connected to a wide array of cortical and subcortical brain areas. Its input comes from visual cortical areas V1, V2 and dorsal V3 (dorsomedial area), the koniocellular regions of the LGN, and the inferior pulvinar. The pattern of projections to MT changes somewhat between the representations of the foveal and peripheral visual fields, with the latter receiving inputs from areas located in the midline cortex and retrosplenial region.


title: Visual cortex

text: A standard view is that V1 provides the "most important" input to MT. Nonetheless, several studies have demonstrated that neurons in MT are capable of responding to visual information, often in a direction-selective manner, even after V1 has been destroyed or inactivated. Moreover, research by Semir Zeki and collaborators has suggested that certain types of visual information may reach MT before it even reaches V1.


title: Visual cortex

text: MT sends its major output to areas located in the cortex immediately surrounding it, including areas FST, MST, and V4t (middle temporal crescent). Other projections of MT target the eye movement-related areas of the frontal and parietal lobes (frontal eye field and lateral intraparietal area).


title: Visual cortex

text: The first studies of the electrophysiological properties of neurons in MT showed that a large portion of the cells are tuned to the speed and direction of moving visual stimuli.


title: Visual cortex

text: Lesion studies have also supported the role of MT in motion perception and eye movements. Neuropsychological studies of a patient unable to see motion, seeing the world in a series of static 'frames' instead, suggested that V5 in the primate is homologous to MT in the human.


title: Visual cortex

text: However, since neurons in V1 are also tuned to the direction and speed of motion, these early results left open the question of precisely what MT could do that V1 could not. Much work has been carried out on this region, as it appears to integrate local visual motion signals into the global motion of complex objects.


title: Visual cortex

text: For example, "lesion" to the V5 leads to deficits in perceiving motion and processing of complex stimuli. It contains many neurons selective for the motion of complex visual features (line ends, corners). "Microstimulation" of a neuron located in the V5 affects the perception of motion. For example, if one finds a neuron with preference for upward motion in a monkey's V5 and stimulates it with an electrode, then the monkey becomes more likely to report 'upward' motion when presented with stimuli containing 'left' and 'right' as well as 'upward' components.


title: Visual cortex

text: There is still much controversy over the exact form of the computations carried out in area MT and some research suggests that feature motion is in fact already available at lower levels of the visual system such as V1.


title: Visual cortex

text: MT was shown to be organized in direction columns. DeAngelis argued that MT neurons were also organized based on their tuning for binocular disparity.


title: Visual cortex

text: The dorsomedial area (DM) also known as V6, appears to respond to visual stimuli associated with self-motion and wide-field stimulation. V6 is a subdivision of the visual cortex of primates first described by John Allman and Jon Kaas in 1975. V6 is located in the dorsal part of the extrastriate cortex, near the deep groove through the centre of the brain (medial longitudinal fissure), and typically also includes portions of the medial cortex, such as the parieto-occipital sulcus (POS). DM contains a topographically organized representation of the entire field of vision.


title: Visual cortex

text: There are similarities between the visual area V5 and V6 of the common marmoset. Both areas receive direct connections from the primary visual cortex. And both have a high myelin content, a characteristic that is usually present in brain structures involved in fast transmission of information.


title: Visual cortex

text: For many years, it was considered that DM only existed in New World monkeys. However, more recent research has suggested that DM also exists in Old World monkeys and humans. V6 is also sometimes referred to as the parieto-occipital area (PO), although the correspondence is not exact.


title: Visual cortex

text: Neurons in area DM/V6 of night monkeys and common marmosets have unique response properties, including an extremely sharp selectivity for the orientation of visual contours, and preference for long, uninterrupted lines covering large parts of the visual field.


title: Visual cortex

text: However, in comparison with area MT, a much smaller proportion of DM cells shows selectivity for the direction of motion of visual patterns. Another notable difference with area MT is that cells in DM are attuned to low spatial frequency components of an image, and respond poorly to the motion of textured patterns such as a field of random dots. These response properties suggest that DM and MT may work in parallel, with the former analyzing self-motion relative to the environment, and the latter analyzing the motion of individual objects relative to the background.


title: Visual cortex

text: Recently, an area responsive to wide-angle flow fields has been identified in the human and is thought to be a homologue of macaque area V6.


title: Visual cortex

text: The connections and response properties of cells in DM/ V6 suggest that this area is a key node in a subset of the "dorsal stream", referred to by some as the "dorsomedial pathway". This pathway is likely to be important for the control of skeletomotor activity, including postural reactions and reaching movements towards objects The main 'feedforward' connection of DM is to the cortex immediately rostral to it, in the interface between the occipital and parietal lobes (V6A). This region has, in turn, relatively direct connections with the regions of the frontal lobe that control arm movements, including the premotor cortex.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses's practices are based on the biblical interpretations of Charles Taze Russell (1852–1916), founder ( 1881) of the Bible Student movement, and of successive presidents of the Watch Tower Society, Joseph Franklin Rutherford (from 1917 to 1942) and Nathan Homer Knorr (from 1942 to 1977). Since 1976, practices have also been based on decisions made at closed meetings of the group's Governing Body. The group disseminates instructions regarding activities and acceptable behavior through "The Watchtower" magazine and through other official publications, and at conventions and congregation meetings.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses endeavor to remain "separate from the world", which they regard as a place of moral contamination and under the control of Satan. Witnesses refuse to participate in any political and military activity and are told to limit social contact with non-Witnesses. The denomination requires adherence to a strict moral code, which forbids premarital sex, homosexuality, gender transitioning, adultery, smoking, drunkenness and drug abuse, and blood transfusions. A system of judicial committees maintains discipline within congregations, exercising the power to expel members who breach the denomination's rules and to demand their shunning by other Witnesses. The threat of shunning also serves to deter members from dissident behavior.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Members are expected to participate regularly in evangelizing work and to attend congregation meetings and conventions that present material based on Watch Tower Society publications.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Meetings for worship and study are held at Kingdom Halls, and are open to the public. Witnesses are assigned to a congregation in which "territory" they reside and are expected to attend weekly meetings as scheduled by the Watch Tower Society and congregation elders. The meetings are largely devoted to study of the Bible and Witness doctrines. During meetings and in other formal circumstances, Witnesses refer to one another as "Brother" and "Sister". Sociologist Andrew Holden claims meetings create an atmosphere of uniformity for Witnesses, intensify their sense of belonging to a religious community, and reinforce the plausibility of the organization's belief system. He says they are also important in helping new converts adopt a different way of life. According to "The Watchtower", one role of the frequency and length of meetings is to protect Witnesses from becoming "involved in the affairs of the world". Witnesses are told they "should never miss a meeting unless there is a serious reason".


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: The form and content of the meetings is established by the denomination's New York headquarters, generally involving a consideration of the same subject matter worldwide each week. Two meetings each week are divided into five distinct sections, lasting a total of about four hours. Meetings are opened and closed with hymns (which they refer to as Kingdom songs) and brief prayers delivered from the platform. Witnesses are urged to prepare for all meetings by studying Watch Tower Society literature from which the content is drawn and looking up the scriptures cited in the articles. Kingdom Halls are typically functional in character, and do not contain religious symbols. Each year, Witnesses from several congregations, which form a "circuit", gather for two one-day assemblies; several circuits meet once a year for a three-day "regional convention", and every few years the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses hold "international conventions" in selected cities around the world. These larger gatherings are usually held at rented stadiums or auditoriums. Their most important and solemn event is the celebration of the "Lord's Evening Meal", or "Memorial of Christ's Death".


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: During the COVID-19 pandemic, Jehovah's Witnesses' conventions and meetings in many areas have been held virtually using videoconferencing software and video presentations.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: The weekend meeting, usually held on Sunday, comprises a 30-minute public talk by a congregation elder or ministerial servant and a one-hour question-and-answer study of a Bible-based article from "The Watchtower" magazine, with questions prepared by the Watch Tower Society and the answers provided in the magazine. Members may use their own words to express the ideas in the printed material, though personal ideas derived from independent study are discouraged.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: The midweek meeting, typically held in the evening, includes a question-and-answer session based on Watch Tower Society publications, Bible reading, sample presentations about how to use Watch Tower Society literature for Bible studies and public preaching, and a "Congregation Bible Study" in the format of a question-and-answer session based on a Watch Tower Society publication.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: In addition to the two weekly scheduled meetings, the Watch Tower Society recommends that Witnesses maintain a weekly "Family Worship evening"—using the time previously allocated for a third weekly meeting—for family and personal study. No specific format for the Family Worship evening is provided, but the Society recommends that members consider Watch Tower Society publications during this time.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses commemorate Christ's death as a ransom or "propitiatory sacrifice" by observing the Lord's Evening Meal, or Memorial. They celebrate it once per year, noting that it was instituted on the Passover, an annual festival. They observe it on Nisan 14 according to the ancient Jewish lunisolar calendar. Jehovah's Witnesses are taught that this is the only celebration the Bible commands Christians to observe. In the days leading up to the Memorial, Bible reading is assigned from chapters about the days leading up to Jesus' death.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Of those who attend the Memorial, a small minority worldwide partake of the unleavened bread and wine. This is because Jehovah's Witnesses believe that the majority of the faithful have an earthly hope. Only those who believe they have a heavenly hope, the "remnant" (those still living) of the 144,000 "anointed", partake of the bread and wine. In 2018, more than 20 million people attended, and more than 19,500 members partook.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: The Memorial, held after sunset, includes a talk on the meaning of the celebration and the circulation among the audience of unadulterated red wine and unleavened bread. Jehovah's Witnesses believe the bread symbolizes Jesus Christ's body which he gave on behalf of mankind, and that the wine symbolizes his blood which redeems from sin. They do not believe in transubstantiation or consubstantiation. Because many congregations have no members who claim to be anointed, it is common for no one to partake of the bread and wine.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Each year, Jehovah's Witnesses hold two one day "Circuit Assemblies", held in each circuit worldwide. Each circuit comprises several congregations in a geographical area. These are held either in Assembly Halls owned by Jehovah's Witnesses, or in rented facilities, such as public auditoriums. Once a year, Jehovah's Witnesses gather at larger assemblies called "Regional Conventions" which are usually three days long (Friday to Sunday). These conventions consist primarily of Bible-based talks, dramatizations, and videos, including demonstrations and experiences of their preaching work. Conventions also feature a baptism talk followed by the baptism of new members. Every few years, "International Conventions" are held in selected cities, with visiting delegates from other countries. Attendance at some of these international conventions has exceeded one hundred thousand; the 1958 international convention in New York at Yankee Stadium and the Polo Grounds had a peak attendance exceeding 253,000.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses believe they are under obligation to God to "give witness" by participating in organized and spontaneous evangelizing and proselytizing work. Prospective members are told they have a moral obligation to serve as "publishers" by "regular and zealous" participation in the Witnesses' organised preaching work, disseminating Watch Tower doctrines as evangelists of "the Truth". Qualifying as an "unbaptized publisher" is a requirement for baptism, and baptism is regarded as an automatic ordination as a minister. Watch Tower publications describe house-to-house visitations as the primary work of Jehovah's Witnesses in obedience to a "divine command" to preach "the Kingdom good news in all the earth and (make) disciples of people of all the nations". Children usually accompany their parents and participate in the public ministry. In addition to taking part in organized door-to-door preaching, Witnesses are taught that they should seek opportunities to "witness informally" by starting conversations with people they meet during routine activities such as shopping or on public transport, and directing the conversation towards their beliefs.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Witnesses are told that they should put the interests of "God's Kingdom" first in their lives and that other secular and recreational pursuits should remain secondary to spiritual matters. Witnesses are frequently instructed through Watch Tower Society publications, and at meetings and conventions, to increase the quality and quantity of their preaching efforts. Watch Tower Society publications suggest that endurance in public preaching is a requirement for Witnesses to attain salvation, and that evangelizing frees them from blood-guilt regarding individuals who might die at Armageddon without having heard about God's kingdom.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Members who commit themselves to evangelize for 840 hours per year (an average of 70 hours per month) are called "regular pioneers". Those who commit themselves to evangelize for 50 hours for one month are called "auxiliary pioneers", which they may do for consecutive months. Some Witnesses volunteer for missionary service, and may be invited to receive specialized training at the Watchtower Bible School of Gilead. These individuals dedicate, on average, more than 120 hours per month to their work. Members who are not able to 'pioneer' are told they may maintain the "pioneer spirit", by spending as much time as they can in preaching and by supporting the efforts of pioneers.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Specialized "territory" maps of residential and commercial areas are prepared within the boundaries of each congregation's territory and distributed to publishers who are responsible for preaching within that area. Witnesses are instructed to fill out monthly report slips on their preaching activity, listing the hours spent, publications placed with householders, and the number of "return visits" made to households where interest had been shown formerly. The reports are used to help measure the "spirituality" of individuals and to establish the eligibility of men as congregation elders and ministerial servants. A Witness who fails to report for a month is termed an "irregular publisher"; one who has not turned in a field service report for six months consecutively is termed an "inactive publisher".


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Witnesses have, in the past, used a wide variety of methods to spread their faith, including information marches, where members wore sandwich boards and handed out leaflets, to sound cars (car-mounted phonographs), and syndicated newspaper columns and radio segments devoted to sermons. Between 1924 and 1957, the organization operated a radio station, WBBR, from New York. Since 2011, the Witnesses have engaged in "public witnessing" in metropolitan districts and fairs using tables, carts, and literature displays. The Watch Tower Society operates a website, JW.org, which provides access to Watch Tower Society literature and video streaming.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: During the COVID-19 pandemic, Jehovah's Witnesses have focused on alternative methods of evangelism such as online web applications, telephone, email, SMS texting, and postal mail.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses make extensive use of Watch Tower Society literature, including books, magazines, booklets and handbills, to spread their beliefs and to use as textbooks at their religious meetings. The publications are produced in many languages, with a small selection available in 500 languages. Their magazines, "The Watchtower" and "Awake!", are published in hundreds of languages and in various electronic formats. Issues of both magazines are compiled annually into bound volumes. New books, brochures, and other items are released at their annual conventions. Various audio cassettes, videocassettes, and DVDs have been produced explaining the group's beliefs, practices, organization and history. Since 1942 all Watch Tower literature has been published anonymously. Many Watch Tower Society publications from 1950 onward are available on the "Watchtower Library" DVD and online.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Publications were sold to the public until the early 1990s, from which time they were offered free of charge, with a request for donations. The change in policy was first announced in the United States in February 1990, following the loss of a case before the US Supreme Court by Jimmy Swaggart Ministries on the issue of sales tax exemption for religious groups. The Watch Tower Society had joined the case as an Amicus curiae, or "friend of the court". The court ruling would have resulted in the Watch Tower Society having to pay millions of dollars in sales tax if sales of their literature had continued.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Witnesses are urged to prepare for congregation meetings by studying the assigned Watch Tower literature, and are expected to read all magazines and books published by the Society. One analysis noted that each year Witnesses are expected to read more than 3,000 pages of the Society's publications, according to its suggested program for personal study. Much of the literature is illustrated extensively, with sociologist Andrew Holden observing utopian, post-Armageddon images of happy Witnesses in bright sunshine and pristine environments, often playing with formerly wild animals such as lions and tigers, in contrast to dark-colored images of unfavorable activities such as murders, burglaries and promiscuity that highlight the moral dangers outside the organization.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Individuals seeking to be baptised as Jehovah's Witnesses are required to follow a systematic, catechistical Bible study course, usually in their home, for several months. They will be expected to attend meetings at the Kingdom Hall and must also demonstrate a willingness to carry out the doorstep ministry. Before baptism they will have discussions with the elders based on questions provided by the Watch Tower Society to determine that they understand and accept the beliefs of the Witnesses, and also that they accept Jesus' ransom sacrifice and repent of sins and have made a personal dedication to God. Baptisms are normally performed in pools at assemblies and conventions. At these baptisms, candidates make "public declaration" of their prior dedication to God. The speaker asks the candidates the following two questions.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: After candidates agree to both questions, they line up to undergo water immersion, usually in quick succession, often with hundreds baptised at large conventions.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Sociologist James A. Beckford reported two significant distinguishing features of the conversion process when related by Jehovah's Witnesses. He said they typically spoke of their conversion experience as a steady progression of mental states in which Witnesses "'work for' their conversion by a methodical confrontation with intellectual obstacles and by a deliberate programme of self-reform. Conversion is not represented as something which "happened" to them; it is framed as something that they "achieved"." Beckford noted that those he interviewed regarded sudden, emotional upheavals in religious consciousness as suspect: "Experiences which smack of sudden or idiosyncratic illumination/revelation cannot be reconcilable with either the tenor of God's historical practice or the nature of his special covenant with the Watchtower Society."


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: He also found a striking contrast with other churches in the common attribution of responsibility for conversion to "a spiritual guide ... the person who acted as the intermediary with the Watchtower movement and who supervised the initial process of learning and reforming". Beckford cited an interview "representative of many" in which a convert recalled initially resisting the Watch Tower Society's teachings until he was "talked into making a serious study of the scriptures … I had plenty of objections and was sure the Witnesses were wrong, but (the Witness leading the personal Bible study sessions) showed me how the facts of the Bible could not be faulted".


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses consider as "ministers" all adherents who have been approved to engage in formal evangelizing. Witnesses consider their baptisms to be ordinations; "unbaptized publishers" are considered "regular ministers" whereas "baptized publishers" are considered "ordained ministers". Witnesses recognize that many government and administrative precedents for ministers are not intended to include all active adherents. For example, only elders assert ecclesiastical privilege and confessional privilege.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Only males may be appointed as elders and ministerial servants (their term for deacons), and only baptized males may officiate at weddings, funerals, and baptisms. A female Witness minister may only lead congregational prayer and teaching in unusual circumstances, and must wear a head covering while doing so. Outside the congregation, a female minister also wears a head covering when she leads spiritual teaching in the presence of her husband, according to the Christian complementarian view. Female headcovering is not required for other forms of teaching, or when participating in congregation meetings being led by another. According to the Watch Tower Society, some courts in the United States have recognized that full-time Jehovah's Witness appointees, such as "pioneers" and those in the faith's religious order, qualify for ministerial exemptions regardless of gender.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Formal discipline is administered by congregation elders. In the event that an accusation of serious sin is made concerning a baptized member, the elders will talk to the accused individual. If it is determined that a serious sin has been committed, a tribunal or "judicial committee" (usually composed of three elders) is formed to determine guilt, administer help and possibly apply sanctions.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: "Disfellowshipping" is the most severe form of discipline administered. Before taking this step, the judicial committee must determine that the individual has committed a "serious sin" and that there is no evidence of true repentance. To judge that repentance is genuine, members of the judicial committee ask questions and review the actions of the accused member. Baptized members who spread teachings contrary to the doctrines of Jehovah's Witnesses can be disfellowshipped for apostasy, and a 1981 letter to overseers—reproduced in a book by former Governing Body member Raymond Franz—directed that a member who "persists in believing other doctrine", even without promoting such beliefs, may also be subject to disfellowshipping. Once the decision to disfellowship has been made, a person has seven days to appeal, after which, if the person has not appealed, the disfellowshipping will be announced to the congregation; disfellowshipping does not take effect until the announcement is made to the congregation. After a person is disfellowshipped, the person is shunned by all baptized members. Exceptions include cases where a member is forced to have commercial dealings with a member who is disfellowshipped, or if the disfellowshipped member is living with family members who are baptized. In these cases, the Witness is not permitted to speak about religious matters, except in the case of parents conducting a Bible study with a disfellowshipped minor. The extent to which disfellowshipped or disassociated relatives living in the same household are included in family life is left to the discretion of the family. Family members living outside the home who are disfellowshipped have minimal contact.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: "Reproof" involves sins that could lead to disfellowshipping. Ones considered "truly repentant" are reproved rather than disfellowshipped. Reproof is given "before all onlookers", based on their interpretation of 1 Timothy 5:20. If the sin is private in nature, the reproof would involve just the individual(s) involved. If the sin is known generally by the entire congregation or the community, an announcement is made informing the congregation that the person has been reproved. Later, without disclosing names or private details, one of the elders gives a separate talk ensuring that the congregation understands the sin, its dangers, and how to avoid it. Reproved individuals have some congregation privileges restricted, until the elders decide that the member has regained "spiritual strength." Restrictions may include not sharing in meeting parts, not commenting at meeting parts, and not praying for a group. The duration of restrictions depends on the elders. One cannot "pioneer" or "auxiliary pioneer" for at least one year after reproof is given.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: "Marking" is practiced if a person's course of action is regarded as a violation of Bible principles, reflecting badly on the congregation, but is not a disfellowshipping offense. The person is strongly counseled. If, after repeated counsel sessions, the person still pursues the disturbing course, he might be 'marked', which involves an announcement stating that the actions in question are wrong, without naming the individual involved. Congregation members limit social contact with that person. The purpose of this is to shame the person into correcting their actions. "Marked" individuals are not shunned completely, but social contact is minimized.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: The family structure is patriarchal. The husband is considered the final authority of family decisions, as the head of his family. Marriages must be monogamous. Wives should be submissive to their husbands and husbands are to have deep respect and love for their wives, and are instructed to listen to them on all matters. Husbands are instructed to treat their wives as Jesus treated his followers. He should not hurt or mistreat his family in any way. The father should be hard-working in providing necessities to his family. He must also provide for them in a spiritual capacity. This includes religious instruction for the family, and taking the lead in preaching activities. Parental discipline for children should not be in a harsh, cruel way. Children are instructed to obey their parents.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Married couples are encouraged to speak with local elders if they are having problems. Married couples can separate in the case of physical abuse and neglect, or if one partner attempts to hinder the other from being a Jehovah's Witness. Remarriage after divorce is permissible only on the grounds of adultery, based on their understanding of Jesus' words at Matthew 5:32 and Matthew 19:9.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses demand high standards of morality within their ranks. Their view of sexual behavior reflects conservative Christian views. Abortion is considered murder. Homosexuality, premarital sex, and extramarital sex are considered "serious sins". Gender transitioning is considered "contrary to nature" and sex reassignment surgery is considered a form of "mutilation"; if a transgender person "who has already undergone a mutilating operation of this sort" wishes to become a member of the denomination, the person is expected to live according to their biological sex, and to leave their spouse if biologically the same sex. Smoking (including electronic cigarettes), abuse of drugs, and drunkenness are prohibited, though alcohol is permitted in moderation. Modesty in dress and grooming is frequently stressed. Entertainment promoting immoral, "demonic", or violent themes is considered inappropriate. Members are warned that personal grooming such as beards, long hair or earrings for men, or other styles of dress or grooming might "stumble" the consciences of others.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Gambling by making money through the losses of others is viewed as a "form of greed", and is prohibited. The trading of stocks, shares and bonds is viewed as acceptable.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses are taught that the Bible prohibits the consumption, storage and transfusion of blood, based on their understanding of scriptures such as Leviticus 17:10, 11: "I will certainly set my face against the one who is eating the blood" and Acts 15:29: "abstain from … blood." This standpoint is applied even in emergencies. "The Watchtower" introduced this view in 1945, and it has developed since then. Accordingly, the organization has established Hospital Information Services (HIS), which provides education and facilitation of bloodless surgery. This service also maintains Hospital Liaison Committees, which support adherents facing surgery and provide information to the medical community on bloodless surgery techniques and alternatives to blood.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Though accepted by most members, some within the Jehovah's Witness community do not endorse the doctrine.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Dutch anthropologist Richard Singelenberg has suggested the Watch Tower Society's prohibition on blood transfusions—as well as its edict against fellowship with outsiders—are rooted in the religious desire to maintain a communal state of purity worthy of divine favor. He noted: "Rules of pollution and purity are instrumental in creating structural boundaries around group members. And the more distinctive when formulated into divine precepts, the clearer the dividing lines between the faithful and those excluded."


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Watch Tower Society publications teach that Witnesses are engaged in a "spiritual, theocratic warfare" against false teachings and wicked spirit forces they say try to impede them in their preaching work. Based on their interpretation of Ephesians 6:10–20, they believe their "spiritual war" is fought with truth, righteousness, the "good news of peace", faith, the hope of salvation, God's word and prayer. They have advocated the use of "theocratic war strategy" to protect the interests of God's cause, which would include hiding the truth from God's "enemies" by being evasive or withholding truthful or incriminating information from those not entitled by law to know. "The Watchtower" told Witnesses: "It is proper to cover over our arrangements for the work that God commands us to do. If the wolfish foes draw wrong conclusions from our maneuvers to outwit them, no harm has been done to them by the harmless sheep, innocent in their motives as doves."


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses are told they should remain "separate from the world" in harmony with Jesus' description of his followers at John 17:14–16. Watch Tower publications define the "world" as "the mass of mankind apart from Jehovah’s approved servants" and teach that it is ruled by Satan and a place of danger and moral contamination. Witnesses manifest their world-renouncing beliefs in many ways. They avoid involvement in social controversies, remain politically neutral, and do not seek public office. The Watch Tower Society has stated that voting in political elections is a personal conscience decision, though a Witness who takes any action considered to be a "violation of Christian neutrality" may face religious sanctions. They refuse participation in ecumenical and interfaith activities, abstain from celebrating religious holidays, and reject many customs they claim have pagan origins. They do not work in industries associated with the military, nor serve in the armed services, and refuse national military service, which in some countries may result in their arrest and imprisonment. They do not salute or pledge allegiance to national flags or sing national anthems or other patriotic songs.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Witnesses are urged to minimize their social contact with non-members, even if they possess "decent qualities", because of perceived dangers of worldly association. Sociologist Andrew Holden indicated they are highly selective in choosing with whom they spend leisure time, generally choosing the company of other Witnesses. Many Witnesses interviewed by Holden reported tensions and ostracism at work because of their religious beliefs. He reported that many Jehovah's Witness converts required some social adjustment as they gradually reduced contact with non-Witness friends. Association with those outside the organization, commonly termed by Witnesses as "worldly" and "not in the Truth", is acceptable only when it is viewed as an opportunity to preach and Witnesses are under considerable pressure from the Society to show outsiders they are people of high moral fiber. Holden claims that as a result, Witnesses working with "worldly" colleagues tend to closely adhere to Watch Tower teachings.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Sociologist Ronald Lawson has suggested that it is the group's intellectual and organizational isolation—coupled with the intense indoctrination of adherents, rigid internal discipline and considerable persecution—that has contributed to the consistency of its sense of urgency in its apocalyptic message.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Weddings, anniversaries, and funerals are observed, though they avoid incorporating certain traditions they see to have pagan origins. "The Watchtower" has stated that the use of wedding rings by Witnesses is acceptable, even though wedding rings may have first been used by pagans, based on its conclusion that there is no definite evidence wedding rings were used "as part of false "religious" practices" (emphasis from original). Witnesses typically observe wedding anniversaries, with the Watch Tower Society noting that wedding anniversaries apparently do not stem from pagan origins.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Other common celebrations and religious or national holidays such as birthdays, Halloween, Easter and Christmas are not celebrated because they believe that these continue to involve "false religious beliefs or activities." Watch Tower Society publications rule out the celebration of Mother's Day because of a claimed link with pagan gods and concerns that giving "special honor and worship" to mothers is a form of "creature worship" that could turn people away from God. The Society also directs Witnesses to shun May Day, New Year's Day and Valentine's Day celebrations because of their pagan origins.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Their opposition to birthdays is said to be based on how the Bible presents them. Watch Tower Society publications note that the only birthday celebrations explicitly mentioned in the Bible are those of an unnamed Pharaoh and Herod Antipas, and that both were associated with executions, and neither celebrant was a servant of God. Though some churches interpret Job 1:4 to indicate birthday feasts of Job's sons, Jehovah's Witnesses interpret them as a circuit of feasts from one house to the next. The Bible does not show Jesus or his apostles celebrating birthdays and "The Watchtower" claims the absence of any record of the date of the birth of Jesus or his apostles indicates that "God does not want us to celebrate any of these birthdays".


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: International and regional building teams frequently undertake constructions of Kingdom Halls over the course of one or two weekends, termed "quick-builds". Larger construction projects, including building regional Assembly Halls and Bethel offices, factories, residences, warehouses, and farm facilities, are also performed almost entirely by volunteer members.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses provide relief assistance in disaster-stricken areas for their members and others in the vicinity. Medicine and clothing were provided to both Hutu and Tutsi Witnesses during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Following Hurricane Katrina, they helped rebuild houses of Witnesses and others. The Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses uses "Regional Building Committees" to oversee relief efforts worldwide.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: Jehovah's Witnesses fund their activities, such as publishing, constructing and operating facilities, evangelism, and disaster relief via donations. There is no tithing or collection, but on exceptional occasions, members are reminded to donate to the organization; Witnesses typically provide an opportunity for members of the public to make donations as they encounter them in their preaching work. Donation boxes labeled for several purposes are located in Kingdom Halls and other meeting facilities. Generally there are contribution boxes for local operating expenses, a Kingdom Hall fund for helping Witnesses around the world to build Kingdom Halls, and a general fund for the "Worldwide Work", which includes the printing of literature, organization of conventions, supporting missionaries and disaster relief, and other operating expenses of the organization.


title: Jehovah's Witnesses practices

text: The accounts (including donations) and the financial operation of the local congregation are reviewed monthly and posted on a congregation notice board. Donations are also accepted via mail, and the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society can be named as a beneficiary to an estate, and also accepts donations in the form of life insurance policies, pension plans, bank accounts, certificates of deposit, retirement accounts, stocks and bonds, real estate, annuities and trusts.


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: Rimfire ammunition is a type of firearm metallic cartridge whose primer is located within a hollow circumferential rim protruding from the base of its casing. When fired, the gun's firing pin will strike and crush the rim against the edge of the barrel breech, sparking the primer compound within the rim, and in turn ignite the propellant within the case. Invented in 1845, by Louis-Nicolas Flobert, the first rimfire metallic cartridge was the .22 BB Cap (a.k.a. 6mm Flobert) cartridge, which consisted of a percussion cap with a bullet attached to the top. While many other different cartridge priming methods have been tried since the 19th century, only rimfire and the later centerfire cartridges survive to the present day with regular usages. The .22 Long Rifle rimfire cartridge, introduced in 1887, is by far the most common ammunition in the world today in terms of units sold.


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: Rimfire ammunition is so named because the firing pin strikes and crushes the base's rim to ignite the primer. The rim of such a cartridge is essentially an expanded and flattened end section of the case, and the priming compound is filled from inside into the trough cavity inside the rim. The case is then filled with propellant powder and sealed off by the projectile (bullet).


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: Rimfire cartridges are limited to low pressures because the case must be thin enough so that the firing pin can crush the rim and ignite the primer. Rimfire cartridges of .44 caliber up to .56 caliber were once common when black powder was used as a propellant. Modern rimfire cartridges use smokeless powder which generates much higher pressures and tend to be of .22 caliber (5.5 mm) or smaller. This also means that rimfire firearms can be very light and inexpensive, as the production cost of the case material and powder load are both low, and the manufacturing process is significantly more streamlined than centerfire cartridges (which require more steps in the assembly process). As a result, rimfire cartridges are typically very affordable, primarily because of the inherent cost-efficiency of manufacturing in large lots, which has helped lead to the continuing market popularity of these small-caliber cartridges.


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: Frenchman Louis-Nicolas Flobert invented the first rimfire metallic cartridge in 1845. The 6mm Flobert cartridge consisted of a percussion cap with a bullet attached to the top. These cartridges do not contain any powder, the only propellant substance contained in the cartridge is the percussion cap. In Europe, the .22 BB Cap (introduced in 1845) and the slightly more powerful .22 CB Cap (introduced in 1888) are both called 6mm Flobert and are considered the same cartridge. These cartridges have a relatively low muzzle velocity of around to .


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: Flobert also made what he called "parlor guns" for this cartridge, as these rifles and pistols were designed for target shooting in homes with a dedicated shooting parlor or shooting gallery. 6mm Flobert Parlor pistols came into fashion in the mid-19th century; they typically featured heavy barrels. This cartridge was improved upon by Benjamin Houllier in 1846.


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: The next rimfire cartridge was the .22 Short, developed for Smith & Wesson's first revolver, in 1857; it used a longer rimfire case and 4 grains (260 mg) of black powder to fire a conical bullet. According to Berkeley R. Lewis, a firearms historian, this later Smith & Wesson cartridge was 'essentially the same as Houllier's 1846 patent'. This led to the .22 Long in 1871, with the same bullet weight as the short but with a longer case and 5 grains (320 mg) of black powder. This was followed by the .22 Extra Long in 1880, with a case longer than the .22 Long and a heavier bullet.


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: American firearms manufacturer J. Stevens Arms & Tool Company introduced the .22 Long Rifle cartridge in 1887. It combined the casing of the .22 Long with the bullet of the .22 Extra Long, giving it a longer overall length, a higher muzzle velocity, and superior performance as a hunting and target round, rendering both the .22 Long and .22 Extra Long cartridges obsolete. The .22 LR uses a heeled bullet, which means that the bullet is the same diameter as the case, and has a narrower "heel" portion that fits in the case. It is one of the few cartridges that are accepted by a large variety of rifles and handguns.


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: Larger rimfire calibers were used during the American Civil War in the Henry repeating rifle, the Spencer repeating rifle, the Ballard Rifle, and the Frank Wesson carbine. While larger rimfire calibers were made, such as the .30 rimfire, .32 rimfire, .38 rimfire .41 Short (for the Remington Model 95 derringer), the .44 Henry (for the Henry rifle and later used by the famous Winchester Model 1866), the .56-56 Spencer (for the Spencer rifle was the world's first military metallic cartridge repeating rifle), up to the .58 Miller, the larger calibers were quickly replaced by centerfire versions, and today the .22 caliber rimfires are all that survive of these early rimfire cartridges.


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: The early 21st century has seen a revival in .17 caliber (4.5 mm) rimfire cartridges. New and increasingly popular, the 17 HMR is based on a .22 WMR casing with a smaller formed neck which accepts a .17 bullet. The advantages of the 17 HMR over .22 WMR and other rimfire cartridges are its much flatter trajectory and its highly frangible hollow point bullets (often manufactured with plastic "ballistic tips" that improve the bullet's external ballistics). The .17 HM2 (Hornady Mach 2) is based on the .22 Long Rifle and offers similar performance advantages over its parent cartridge, at a significantly higher cost. While .17 HM2 sells for about four times the cost of .22 Long Rifle ammunition, it is still significantly cheaper than most centerfire ammunition and somewhat cheaper than the .17 HMR. First shown at the 2013 SHOT Show, the .17 WSM uses the blank case from a .27 nail-gun necked down to accommodate a .17 caliber bullet, resulting in substantially higher muzzle velocity and energy than the .17 HMR.


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: Some .22 caliber rimfire cartridges are loaded with a small amount of No. 11 or No. 12 shot (about 1/15th ounce). This "snake shot" is only marginally effective in close ranges, and is usually used for shooting snakes, rats or other small animals. It is also useful for shooting birds inside storage buildings as it will not penetrate walls or ceilings. At a distance of about 10 feet (3.1 m), which is about the maximum effective range, the pattern is about 8 inches (20 cm) in diameter from a standard rifle. Special smoothbore shotguns, such as the "Marlin Model 25MG "Garden Gun"" can produce effective patterns out to 15 or 20 yards using .22 WMR shotshells, which hold 1/8 oz. of No. 11 or No. 12 shot contained in a plastic capsule.


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: Shotshells will not feed reliably in some magazine-fed firearms, because of the unusual shape of some cartridges that are crimped closed at the case mouth, and the relatively fragile plastic tips of other designs. Shotshells will not produce sufficient power to cycle semiautomatic actions, because, unlike projectile ammunition, nothing forms to the lands and grooves of the barrel to create the pressure necessary to cycle the firearm's action.


title: Rimfire ammunition

text: The 9mm Flobert is a notable rimfire cartridge that is still in production in Europe and is chambered by the Winchester Model 36 in the 1920s. This cartridge is primarily loaded with a small amount of shot, but can also fire a small ball, and is used in "garden gun", which are miniature shotguns. Its power and range are very limited, making it suitable only for pest control. An example of a rare but modern 9mm Flobert Rimfire among hunters in Europe is the 1.75-inch brass shotshell manufactured by Fiocchi in Lecco, Italy, using a .25 oz shot of No. 8 shot with a velocity of 600 fps.


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: Operation: Mindcrime is the third studio album by American heavy metal band Queensrÿche. Originally released on May 3, 1988, the album was reissued on May 6, 2003, with two bonus tracks, and again in 2006 as a deluxe box set.


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: "Operation: Mindcrime" is a concept album and a rock opera. Its story follows Nikki, a drug addict who becomes disillusioned with the corrupt society of his time and reluctantly becomes involved with a revolutionary group as an assassin of political leaders. In January 1989, it ranked at No. 34 on "Kerrang!" magazine's "100 Greatest Heavy Metal Albums of All Time".


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: "Operation: Mindcrime" was Queensrÿche's breakthrough album, reaching number 50 on the "Billboard" 200 while its singles "Eyes of a Stranger" and "I Don't Believe in Love" served as the band's first charting hits in the United States. The album was certified by the RIAA as gold in early 1989, and was certified as platinum two years later. A sequel, "", was released on April 4, 2006.


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: "Operation: Mindcrime" was recorded digitally on a Sony 24-track digital tape machine. The album was also mixed and mastered in the digital format.


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: The band shot a one-off promotional video in 1988 for the song "Speak" using performance footage. It did not include a dramatization of any of the story's concepts.


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: During the tour promoting the 1990 album "Empire", "Operation: Mindcrime" was performed in its entirety. The stage show featured video, animation and guest singer Pamela Moore as Sister Mary. A recording was released as "". The story was initially explored in a series of video clips for MTV in the 1989 VHS video, "Video: Mindcrime".


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: In 2006, "Operation: Mindcrime" was re-released as a deluxe box set, containing the 2003 remaster, a live CD with the album played in its entirety at the Hammersmith Odeon on November 15, 1990, and a bonus DVD containing the 1989 "Video: Mindcrime" and bonus clips.


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: The idea for the album came to Geoff Tate after moving to Canada and listening to the loose talk of members of the militant Quebec separatist movement who had grown friendly with him, some of whom were in organizations which engaged in bombing and terrorism. He also incorporated some of his memories of friends who had become derelicts due to heavy drug use. While working on the basic storyline behind the album, Tate had to convince the rest of his bandmates on a one-on-one basis. Chris DeGarmo soon shared his enthusiasm for the project and the rest of the band eventually became interested.


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: The album begins with the protagonist, Nikki, in a hospital. He lies in a near catatonic state, unable to remember anything but snippets from his past. Suddenly, Nikki's memories come flooding back in a torrent ("I Remember Now"). He remembers how, as a heroin addict and would-be political radical frustrated with contemporary society due to the economic inequality, corruption and hypocrisy around him, he was manipulated into joining a supposed secret organization dedicated to revolution ("Anarchy—X", "Revolution Calling"). At the head of this organization is a mysterious political and religious demagogue known only as Dr. X, who manipulates Nikki through a combination of his heroin addiction and brainwashing techniques to become an assassin. Whenever Dr. X uses the word "mindcrime", Nikki becomes his docile puppet, a state which Dr. X uses to command Nikki to undertake any murder that the Doctor wishes ("Operation: Mindcrime").


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: As his position within Dr. X's organization grows, so does Nikki's ego and adherence to his master's vision of the future ("Speak"). Through one of Dr. X's associates, a corrupt priest named Father William, Nikki is offered the services of a teenage prostitute-turned-nun named Sister Mary ("Spreading the Disease"). Through his friendship and growing affection toward Sister Mary, Nikki begins to question the nature of what he is doing, seeing that Dr. X has his own nefarious agenda ("The Mission"). Dr. X takes notice and, seeing a potential threat in Mary to his cult of personality, orders Nikki to kill both her and the priest. Nikki goes to Mary's church and kills the priest, but, after confronting Mary, he fails to comply with the command to murder her ("Suite Sister Mary"). He loves Mary and decides to leave the organization with her, so Nikki goes to Dr. X to tell him that they are out. Dr. X, however, reminds Nikki that the alternative is to go back to his bleak life as a self-loathing but helpless addict ("The Needle Lies"). Nikki leaves, conflicted and uncertain, and he returns to Mary only to find her dead ("Electric Requiem").


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: Nikki cannot cope with the loss, as well as the possibility that he himself may have killed her without knowing it (it was later revealed on the "Mindcrime at the Moore" DVD that Mary killed herself after Dr. X threatened to kill Nikki) and he begins to succumb to insanity. He runs through the streets calling her name ("Breaking the Silence"). The police arrive and attempt to subdue him. A gun is found on Nikki, and they take him into custody under suspicion of Mary's murder and the murders he committed for Dr. X ("I Don't Believe in Love"). Suffering from an almost complete loss of memory, Nikki is put into a mental hospital, where he retraces in his mind his last moments with Mary ("Waiting for 22", "My Empty Room"). Back in the present in the hospital room at the beginning of the story Nikki has regained his memory, but now stares at his image in a mirror, unable to recognize who he is and what he has become ("Eyes of a Stranger").


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: The album received widespread critical acclaim upon its release. Contemporary critics praised the band's musicianship, Geoff Tate's voice, the complex and well-developed storyline and Peter Collins' production. "Rock Hard" reviewer remarked how Queensrÿche's music featured "clever breaks, unusual song structures and ingenious arrangements", which was "an unmistakable sign that the band (did) not aim to the taste of the masses, but primarily (wanted) to publish intelligent, artistically demanding albums." Derek Oliver of "Kerrang!" found some flaws only in the apparently incomplete storyline and wondered if the "highly socio-political" topic could "be enough to clinch the continued support of their existing fan base and turn on a whole lot more". Bernard Doe of "Metal Forces" stated that "Operation: Mindcrime" "deserves to stand alongside the likes of The Who's "Quadrophenia" and Pink Floyd's "The Dark Side of the Moon" for its conceptual brilliance" and lauded Queensrÿche for "injecting new blood into old ideas and stamping their own authority over them."


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: In 2011, LA Weekly ranked the album at No. 14 on their Top 20 Hair Metal Albums Of All Time calling it "Queensyche's magnum opus" and "a masterpiece".


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: Modern reviews are equally positive. AllMusic's Steve Huey was sometimes taken aback by the lyrics and political observations "too serious and intellectual for their own good", but wrote that it is "a testament to Queensrÿche's creativity and talent that they can pull off a project of this magnitude." Canadian journalist Martin Popoff appreciated how "the involved, heavy-handed storytelling" was paired "with the band's most urgent, up-front metal display since the "Queensrÿche" EP", which he considered "quite an accomplishment for a concept record wrapped up in drugs and religion."


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: The song "I Don't Believe in Love" was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1990 in the category "Best Metal Performance".


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: In the United States, the album was certified Gold on April 14, 1989, and certified Platinum two years later.


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: In 2016, "Classic Rock" named it among the "10 essential progressive metal albums". In January 2017, "Loudwire" ranked "Operation: Mindcrime" as the best heavy metal album of 1988. In June 2017, "Rolling Stone" placed it 67th on their list of 'The 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time.'


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: "Operation: Mindcrime" has been cited as an influence by Avenged Sevenfold and Ben Weinman of the Dillinger Escape Plan.


title: Operation: Mindcrime

text: A sequel, "", was released on April 4, 2006, with Ronnie James Dio taking over the role of Dr. X. The subsequent tour consisted of the band performing both "Operation: Mindcrime" and its sequel in their entirety, back-to-back, with actors, props, an elaborate stage set, and a video screen. The live act from that tour also portrayed Mary's death clearly for the first time. It was later released on the 2007 DVD "Mindcrime at the Moore", which included a recording of Dio's only live performance of "The Chase".


title: Khal Nayak

text: Khal Nayak () is a 1993 Indian Hindi-language action crime film produced and directed by Subhash Ghai. The film's plot centers on the escape and attempted capture of criminal Ballu (Sanjay Dutt as antihero) by Inspector Ram (Jackie Shroff) and his cop girlfriend Ganga (Madhuri Dixit).