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Charlottesville Chief of Police: It was a tragic, tragic weekend
Charlottesville Chief of Police Al Thomas spoke to the media Monday to explain what transpired over the weekend after a violent rally left one woman dead and dozens of others injured in Virginia.
Thomas said the police department originally planned to keep the rally peaceful but as the crowd grew, it became more difficult to monitor the situation.
He also said "alt-right" rally attendees had failed to follow an agreed-upon plan on entering Emancipation Park. The attendees were gathering to protest plans to remove a Confederate statue.
"We were hoping for a peaceful event," said Thomas.
The event also drew counter-protesters - and Thomas said the crowds became more aggressive and "mutually engaged combatants" became more violent.
Hear more from the mother of the woman who was killed during the rally in the video above
He also said authorities will work to ensure that any vigils planning to occur this week will be kept peaceful. A hot line has been established for those needing to report any other violence still occurring, whether it be assaults or other criminal behavior.
White nationalists are said to be planning more demonstrations to promote their agenda.The University of Florida said white provocateur Richard Spencer, whose appearances sometimes stoke unrest, is seeking permission to speak there next month.
And white nationalist Preston Wiginton said he is planning a "White Lives Matter" rally at Texas A&M University in September.
Also, a neo-Confederate group has asked the state of Virginia for permission to rally at a monument to Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond on Sept. 16, and other events are likely.
"We're going to be more active than ever before," Matthew Heimbach, a white nationalist leader, said Monday.
According to Thomas, the Charlottesville police department has heard of the rumors that other white nationalist events are in the works around the nation but he said they do not have any information besides just hearing the rumors.
When asked whether he had any regrets, he said: "Absolutely I have regrets. We lost three lives this weekend."
He was referring to 32-year-old Heather Heyer, who died after a car police say was driven by James Alex Fields Jr. rammed into a crowd of counter-protesters.
Two Virginia State Police officers also died when their helicopter, which was dispatched to the area, crashed just outside of Charlottesville.
"It was a tragic, tragic weekend," said Thomas.
In the hours after the incident on Saturday, Trump addressed the violence in broad strokes, saying that he condemns "in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides, on many sides."
That was met with swift bipartisan criticism.
Later President Trump issued another statement saying "Racism is evil," and singling out the hate groups as "repugnant to everything that we hold dear as Americans."
Trump noted that the Justice Department has opened a civil rights investigation into the car crash that killed Heather Heyer.
"To anyone who acted criminally in this weekend's racist violence, you will be held fully accountable. Justice will be delivered," he said.


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'A Woman in the Crossfire: Diaries of the Syrian Revolution' by novelist Samar Yazbek is part journalism, part personal memoir, and all literature. It's literature of the instantaneous sort, a staggered snapshot of the first four months of the revolution, a public history of "a country succumbing to the forces of death," and an interior history too. Yazbek tells us about her headaches, her insomnia and Xanax addiction, her crying fits, her fears for her daughter and herself, her constant panic. How sometimes in the speeded-up context the rush of information precedes all feeling: "The daily news of killing," she writes, "was more present inside of me than any emotion."
Samar Yazbek has always been problematic. Having consecrated herself "to the promise of a mysterious freedom in life," she left home (in Jableh, on the coast) at sixteen, later divorced her husband and lived in Damascus, a single mother, working in journalism and writing sexually controversial novels. When Syria rose up against the Asad regime she publically supported the victims and their cries for freedom. And she's an Alawi, a member of the president's largely loyalist sect, of a well-known family. As an unveiled and obviously independent woman, a secularist and daughter of a minority community, her support for the revolution proved the lie of regime propaganda, which characterised the uprising as Salafist from the start.
So leaflets slandering her were distributed in the mountains. She was called a traitor, made recipient of death threats, publically disowned by family and hometown. Naturally she was visited by the mukhabarat and made to experience, vicariously at least, the domestic wing of regime propaganda – for the theatre of blood is as important inside Syria as the projection of civilised moderation used to be abroad – by being walked through a display of meat-hooked and flayed torturees.
The Samar Yazbek of these diaries is an imposing presence but not one who crowds the reader. Indeed a reader who isn't in Damascus, who hasn't experienced the strangeness first hand (and what strangeness! – a known city, a home country, transforming into a death zone) requires a strong character through whom to experience and understand, just as he would if reading a novel. But beyond locating the reader, Yazbek more often plays her "favourite role, pretending not to know anything in order to learn everything," and she gives most space over to the accounts of others.
Through these reports we learn of the horrors of detention and torture, of the pleasures and pains of protesting, of the plights of conscripts and refugees. Yazbek interviews secret sympathisers of the revolution, a state TV employee for instance, or a soldier who shot his own foot to escape the order to kill his countrymen, as well as committed revolutionary activists, the kind of people who are still very influential on the ground in Syria despite the inevitable arming of the revolution and the consequent rise of resistance militias. While the armed men fight, the activists are organising liberated and besieged areas.
One of the book's most useful sections describes the early development of the Coordination Committees, the revolution's backbone. Yazbek describes a spontaneous meritocracy in which talents are distributed into political, medical, media, even arts and culture committees, an organisational process entirely opposite to Asad's corrupt, sectarian and nepotistic state. She also very usefully describes the non-ideological compromise secularist activists made with the religious culture of the masses, recognising religion's centrality to many people's experience of existence, as well as its obvious mobilisational power.
Her informants' accounts illustrate how from the revolution's earliest days the regime instrumentalised sectarian hatred, particularly in the coastal cities, Banyas, Jebleh and Lattakia, and the surrounding countryside, areas shared between Sunnis and Alawis. Rumours of roving Sunni mobs intent on murder were spread in the mountains and reinforced by false flag operations carried out by shabeeha. If this nonsense hadn't largely worked, its memory would be comical. In Jebleh the alarm was frequently raised that an 'infiltrator' was at large in a neighbourhood, so the people would come out to catch him. When the same infiltrator was captured twice, each time in different neighbourhoods, a bystander was prompted to advise security to use different bait next time, if they still wished to be believed.
For the historian and analyst Yazbek's diaries also provide important local information of a strategic nature, details often missed by newspaper articles, such as the fact that the Maydan and Qaboon areas of Damascus came out against the regime early because of the residents' kinship ties to Dera'a, the revolution's cradle.
But the main reason to read the book is for the immediacy and breadth of perspective (religious or not, Sunni, Alawi, Christian, of various class backgrounds) it offers, for the human element, and for its sense of shock:
"I stared into his eyes, which were like every other murderer's eyes that have appeared these days, eyes I had never seen before in Damascus. How could all those murderers be living among us?"
It's a narrative brimming with stark images. One, for example, of security forces attacking a funeral, shooting and critically injuring three pallbearers, causing the mourners to flee, leaving the coffin alone on the ground in an empty but blood-spattered street. It'd be a great image for a novelist to dream up, but reality got there first; reality in Syria outstrips imagination.
After four fraught months Yazbek and her daughter fled to Paris. She's written about visits to liberated parts of Syria since, and like every Syrian inside or outside, like everyone connected to Syria, she sits and she wonders what terrors or glories the future might hold. "Fire scalds," the book finishes. "Fire purifies. Fire either reduces you to ash or burnishes you. In the days to come I expect to live in ashes or else to see my shiny new mirror."
The translation is by Max Weiss, and is excellent.

subset: commoncrawl


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In State Of The State Address, N.M. Gov. Susana Martinez Urges Action On Jobs, Education
Republican Gov. Susana Martinez appealed on Tuesday to state lawmakers to reach across the political aisle to work on improving education and the economy.
In her State of the State address, the governor also reiterated her determination to repeal the law that allows undocumented immigrants to obtain a driver's license.
Martinez outlined her legislative priorities in her address after lawmakers convened for a 30-day session that's limited to the budget, taxes and proposals placed on the agenda by the governor.
The session opened against a tragic backdrop, a week after a shooting at a Roswell school. A seventh-grader opened fire in a crowded gym, wounding a 12-year-old boy and a 13-year-old girl.
During her speech, the governor introduced a Roswell social studies teacher, John Masterson, who talked the shooter into dropping his weapon, and Kevin Hayes, a security guard who was injured but helped care for the wounded boy. The school workers received a standing ovation.
"No human being is gifted with the knowledge of why such tragedy occurs. But, we are thankful that in the face of it, people like both of you display the courage required to help all of us get through," Martinez said.
Several lawmakers want the state legislature to consider gun restrictions, but Martinez hasn't signaled whether the potentially divisive issue will be added to the legislative agenda.
A measure failed last year that would have required criminal background checks of more people who buy firearms at gun shows. The governor backed the proposal but it died in the state senate as time ran out in the session.
The governor focused her speech on initiatives she's outlined recently for economic development and to improve public schools, including extra money to help students who are struggling to read in early grades.
She renewed her push for a measure to require schools to hold back third-graders who can't read proficiently. Educational groups and many Democrats oppose the measure.
"Let's not play games," said Martinez, urging approval of the measure to end a practice known as social promotion, in which students advance to the next grade regardless of whether they've mastered reading and essential skills.
Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez, a Democrat from the town of Belen, questioned the governor's own willingness to compromise. In her speech, Martinez appealed to Republicans and Democrats to work together.
"Working together. Interesting? I wonder where we are working together. Let's hold her to her word," said Sanchez.
Martinez also said New Mexico must attract more private industry and reduce its reliance on federal spending at national laboratories and military installations.
"Our charge this session is to build an economy as diverse as the state we are proud to call home," Martinez said.
She's proposed expanding a tax incentive for startup companies as well as research and development. She asked lawmakers to earmark more money for water projects in the drought-plagued state.
Sen. William Soules, a Las Cruces Democrat, called the governor's speech "gimmicky" and criticized Martinez for not addressing the state's poverty rate, which is among the highest in the country.
"We all know that one of the main problems we have in New Mexico is poverty. Poverty affects our schools. It affects our businesses. It affects our economy," said Soules.
The legislature and governor are likely to clash over educational policies.
Democrats are pushing a proposed constitutional amendment — opposed by the governor — to use a state permanent fund to provide a dedicated source of money for early childhood programs.
Constitutional amendments, if approved by the legislature, go to voters for a final decision. The governor can veto bills approved by lawmakers, but not a proposed change in the state constitution.
As for the driver's license for immigrants, Martinez said, "I've put forward a strong compromise to repeal this law and still allow driving privileges for [young immigrants brought to the country as children]. It's time to act. The legislature should do what the overwhelming majority of New Mexicans are demanding — repeal this dangerous law."
According to the Santa Fe New Mexican, Marcela Díaz, of the immigrant rights group Somos Un Pueblo Unido, responded in a written statement, "The governor is doing a terrible disservice to New Mexicans by forcing the driver's license issue for a fifth time while our state falls deeper into poverty and our children continue to suffer the tragic consequences of a broken education and child welfare system."
"It's unconscionable for the governor to put her own political cash cow ahead of New Mexico's families," Díaz wrote. "She is wasting legislators' time on this non-issue when they should be keenly focused on solving the state's real problems."
The Associated Press contributed to this story.


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Pomodoros and the To-Do list
Anna and I were recently discussing the way that we get things done outside of work and since December I've been fairly religiously working through various 'to-do' lists with a pomodoro timer.
So far I've done 308 30 minute pomodoros in about 8 weeks which is just under 20 hours a week which is not bad but still leaves time for a ridiculous amount of procrastination.
These are some of the things that I've noticed from only doing things when it's explicitly on a timer:
I waste a lot of time
I haven't been keeping track of how many pomodoros I've been doing each day but the Easy Pomodoro app which I've been using to track my time allows me to see how many pomodoros I've done on a task so I have a rough idea.
On some days I've managed to go from 8pm to 1am and only done 3 pomodoros which leaves an impressive 3 1/2 hours of Facebook, twitter, gmail time.
I did try the StayFocusd application for a few weeks but it becomes really annoying when you do legitimately want to chill out!
Things need to be deleted from the 'to-do' list
The first to-do list I created had around 10 things on it initially and I added every new thing I wanted to do to it until I had around 25 things on the list and yet had only completed 3 of the original 10 things.
My rough rule of thumb is that if I re-write the 'to-do' list twice and the same item is still there then it gets deleted because I clearly don't have the motivation to do it!
I thought I'd find it frustrating to delete things from the list but it's actually more relaxing to know there's a shorter list of things I'm actually interested in doing.
Once I get into something I spend ages doing it
I've been tracking how many pomodoros I spent on individual tasks and when sorted I've spent 12 pomodoros on average on the tasks in positions 2-7.
The item in position 1 is me playing around with football data which I've written about previously and has taken up 36 pomodoros or 18 hours of time in the last couple of weeks.
I generally try to spend my spare time learning new things but in this case most of it has been spent cleaning up/manipulating data into a format that I can do something useful with.
It's now clear when I'm giving up without really trying
One of the habits I've been trying to shake is that I often give up learning something if I'm not able to grasp the basics reasonably quickly.
Timing things on a pomodoro has made it visible how quickly I tend to reach that state and when I see that I've only been trying to understand the topic for 1 hour it does make me realise how ridiculous I'm being.
It does seem to motivate me to try for at least a few hours and varying the approach before deciding that a topic maybe isn't for me at least for now!
I last wrote about pomodoros about a year ago and it's interesting to see that I've covered almost completely different things than I did last time!
I'm not sure exactly what that means but I'd recommend them as a tool for fighting procrastination at the very least!
About the author
I'm currently working on real-time user-facing analytics with Apache Pinot at StarTree. I publish short 5 minute videos showing how to solve data problems on YouTube @LearnDataWithMark. I previously worked on graph analytics at Neo4j, where I also I co-authored the O'Reilly Graph Algorithms Book with Amy Hodler.


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JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (March 2, 2012) – The ETSU women's tennis team will open the home schedule this weekend as the Buccaneers are set to face Liberty on Saturday followed by a midweek matchup with Western Carolina on Tuesday. Saturday's match starts at 2 p.m., while Tuesday's contest with Western Carolina starts at 3 p.m.
ETSU (1-4), after having its Friday match with UNC Asheville postponed due to the threat of inclement weather, most recently ran into an undefeated South Carolina State (6-0) squad last Saturday and lost to the Lady Bulldogs 5-2. The match was the last of an entire month which ETSU spent on the road, where the Bucs also met with then-No. 47 Georgia State, then-No. 61 Virginia Tech and UNC Wilmington. ETSU was also scheduled to face Appalachian State (Feb. 19), but had the match rescheduled to April 13 due to the threat of inclement weather in the Boone area.
Freshman Jessica Brumit (Elizabethton, Tenn.) is coming off two-consecutive straight-set victories in ETSU's last two matches. Last Thursday against UNC Wilmington, Brumit defeated Casey Dashiell 6-3, 6-1 to earn the Elizabethton native her first collegiate dual match singles victory. Two days later against South Carolina State, Brumit made it two in a row when she fought to win a second-set tiebreak and take down Laura Bosneag in a much closer 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) contest. Also in that match, senior Marine Wieliczko (Rouen, France) defeated Akilah James 6-2, 6-3 at No. 2 singles, and teamed with Brumit to win 8-5 at No. 3 doubles.
Liberty (1-5) has lost its last two matches by scores of 6-1 to Coastal Carolina and 5-2 to then-No. 62 Virginia Tech. The Flames' only victory of the season came on Feb. 9 in a 4-3 decision over Longwood.
Nicola Wellman and Brittany Yang lead the singles win column for Liberty, each having won three matches to date this spring. Wellman, who splits time at No. 4, 5 and 6 singles, is on a three-match winning streak which included a win over Katie Blow of Virginia Tech's nationally ranked team 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.
The Bucs are the second of three road matches for Liberty to kickoff the month of March, as the Flames first travel to Marshall the day before their match with ETSU, and then head to Baltimore to take on UMBC on Wednesday.
Western Carolina (0-5) is still in search of its first win of the 2012 spring season. On the road this year, the Catamounts are 0-2 with a 7-0 loss to Coastal Carolina (Feb. 11) and a 5-1 defeat to Georgia Southern (March 1) in their conference opener.
The Bucs' last meeting with Catamounts came March 26, 2006 in Cullowhee, N.C., where ETSU walked away with a 7-0 sweep.
Fans unable to attend the matches can receive live updates all weekend long by following @ETSUAthletics on Twitter.
For more information on ETSU tennis, please visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the tennis links.


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|HOT DAMN!: Drinking, Debauchery, and Dastardly Deeds
|Guide to determining if you are constantly being mauled by bears
|HOT DAMN 2! When Ohio's a rockin' don't come a knockin'
|The Everything People Registry : United States : Ohio
|E2 Annex
|The best thing to happen to Atlanta since Sherman: The Whiz-Bang Chronicles
|Save the soft places. Sleep on rocks
|Mid-west E2 gathering - LAN games, sushi and whatever
|I've got access to Mother now, and I'll get my own answers, thank you
|Don't lock your keys in your car
|Eat poop you cat
|HOT DAMN 3! nodestock
|corn pone
|E2 Gatherings
|Così fan Tutte
|Cuervo 1800
|American Indians are mysterious
|We'll take Manhattan


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This article is more than 1 year old
FreeBSD 7.2 joins BSD fest
Super-powered superpages
The Beastie sent up FreeBSD 7.2 today, topping off the recent bout of major BSD releases last week.
FreeBSD 7.2 mostly includes functionality updates and a few bug fixes, although there's a handful of new features baked inside too, such as improved memory management with superpages.
The OS's virtual memory subsystem now supports fully transparent use of superpages for application memory (although the feature is disabled by default). An application's memory pages will now be automatically switched between normal and superpages without any modification to code.
According to FreeBSD's release notes:
This change offers the benefit of large page sizes such as improved virtual memory efficiency and reduced TLB (translation lookaside buffer) misses without downsides like application chnages and virtual memory inflexibility.
Other changes include improvements to the boot loader as well as the kernel's addressable virtual memory space getting bumped to 6GB so subsystems can use more memory. The OS also now supports the UltraSPARC II processor family.
As with previous 7.x releases, version 7.2 retains the ZFS v6 code, with ZFS v13 arriving later in FreeBSD 8.0.
On the desktop corner, FreeBSD has been updated to Gnome 2.26 and KDE 4.2.2. That's the first time FreeBSD has included version 4.x of KDE — although the latest desktop flavor of the OS, PC-BSD 7.1, has been rocking KDE 4.2.2 since April.
More info on the changes can be found in the detailed release notes. The release ISO is available through a variety of FTP mirrors located here or through yonder torrent tracker. ®</p


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WASHINGTON (AP) — A crowd converged on the World War II Memorial on the National Mall, pushing through barriers Sunday morning to protest the memorial's closing under the government shutdown.
Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah and Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas were among those who gathered Sunday morning, along with former Alaska governor Sarah Palin, according to WTOP radio. Cruz said President Obama is using veterans as pawns in the shutdown.
"Tear down these walls," the crowd chanted. Protesters also sang God Bless America and other patriotic songs as they entered the memorial plaza.
The memorial has become a political symbol in the bitter fight between Democrats and Republicans over who is at fault since the shutdown began. Earlier rallies have focused on allowing access for World War II veterans visiting from across the country with the Honor Flight Network.
Sunday's rally was more political. A protest by truckers converged with a rally by a group called the Million Vet March at the World War II Memorial. Participants cut the links between metal barriers at the National Park Service site and pushed them aside.
Jeff Thompkins of New York told WRC-TV he was there because people fight and died for the freedom to visit public spaces and to protest.
"Our constitutional rights are being taken away," Thompkins said. "People made the ultimate sacrifice, and they should be open to the public, open to everyone to come down here and see this. This is ridiculous. This is not just and not fair. It's just not fair."


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What does Prop P vote mean?
A lot has been written about the significance or lack thereof of Prop P Did the overwhelming 72 percent pro Prop P mean most Santa Cruz voters are against desal?
I think so. True, the wording just calls for a mandatory election to endorse building a desal plant. But all the pro-desal boosters — Santa Cruz Sentinel, City Council, etc. — were actively calling on desal supporters to vote no.
They made it clear that they were against Prop P and all people who agree with them should vote no. The fact that less than 30 percent of the votes were no carries a clear message. The people did not side with the pro-desal campaigners.
Now it"s being spun that the vote for Prop P only signifies that people voted for "democracy." Does that mean that the people calling for a no vote simply were anti-democracy?
Steve Newman, Santa Cruz
Complaints about the holiday train
Lately I have been reading complaints about the Train to Christmas Town. To those who complain about the train. I have a question for you: Why did you choose to live near railroad tracks in the first place?
Mark Silvia, Santa Cruz
Anthony Ruffo"s negative impact
Publishing Neil Pearlberg"s piece about a questionably reformed methamphetamine dealer, in effect glorifying a man whose main priority is to go "soul surfing," showed a complete lapse in moral judgement. Anthony Ruffo was fully aware of his preditorial behavior toward his fellow community members, specifically local teens. For many years his "career" created addicts, damaged lives and ruined families. Does Mr. Ruffo acknowledge his reprehensible behavior? Why wasn"t he asked how he plans to extend reparations to his victims for the harm he inflicted? Bettering himself is admirable but he should be focusing on bettering his community before attempting his ridiculous goal of qualifying for a surf contest. That should be last on his to-do list.
The glaring omission of Mr. Ruffo"s negative impact upon others" lives in the process of trying to clean up his own was laughable. Mr. Ruffo has much to answer for and the entire community should be concerned because his future choices may affect all our children.
Deb and Robert Dixon, Soquel
Stop representing conservatives
Couldn"t believe my eyes on Christmas morning when I saw the political cartoon drawn by Lisa Benson of Rupert Murdoch"s Washington Post, which depicted President Obama as President Santa Claus. Perhaps this was a reference to Mitt Romney"s whine about Obama winning a second term by handing out "gifts" to key Democratic constituencies (like Republicans never do this!). At any rate, by continuing to print her cartoons, the Sentinel continues to encourage that mean-spirited, Grinch-like approach to politics that characterizes the modern extremist Republican Party. Where does all that anger and hatred come from?
Like a pebble in a pond, the echoes of that attitude have repercussions throughout our society. The Sentinel could help begin the healing by finding someone other than Lisa Benson to represent the conservative view via political cartooning. Might be tough to find someone moderate though.
Tony Connole, Felton
The real victims of drug abuse
Tom Sousa has been off drugs for over a year? And what kind of work has he done in the last year? I would love to hear the real truth behind this deadbeat dad. How about the mother"s side of the story? And the children would be better off with someone of good character. Tom made his decisions of his own free will. He is not someone to be "celebrated." Rebele Center needs to look outside their own doors to see the drugs deals that are going on by the very same people they are trying to save. The Tom Sousas of the world will always be draining the taxpayers" pockets of hard earned money, because they know and play the "system." And the real victims are their children.
Cherlyn Shands, Soquel
Arena an eyesore for downtown
The Sentinel"s recent great article about the 100th anniversary of the beautiful post office in downtown Santa Cruz make me very proud of the architectural tradition of the city. Unfortunately, this once beautiful downtown has slowly been eroded by the never-ending quest of our planners for more tourist bucks.
The most recent building outrage is the Big Box Basketball Bonanza. When I look at this intrusive metal monster, I am reminded of some backwater industrial park as seen lining San Jose and "greater" Los Angeles. What an unpleasant eyesore for our great downtown.
Lawrence Detloff, Santa Cruz


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© 2021 CarLessOhio.org. All rights reserved.
Promoting the bicycling lifestyle in The Buckeye State
I recently obtained my new hydration pack, which made me ready to start testing my plan for packing up the Salsa Fargo for light-n-fast "rack-less" touring.
Here's a shot of the naked bike with all of the gear before packing:
The weight of the bike as shown is about 27.5 pounds. Included on the bike are:
The weight of the empty bags is about 6 pounds.
Here's a shot of everything packed and ready to ride:
Here are the details of the bags and contents:
Left unpacked are what I'd be wearing while riding:
Revelate Designs Viscacha seat bag:
Revelate Designs Gas Tank top tube bag:
Outdoor Research 10-liter dry sack on left fork leg:
Outdoor Research 10-liter dry sack on right fork leg:
Salsa/Revelate Designs frame bag:
Osprey Manta 25 hydration pack:
A couple things that I've since thought of that are not included above, but I'll have to find room for eventually:
In looking at this list, as well as the photo of the unpacked gear above, it's hard to believe that it all fit on the bike. I weighed the packed bike, and subtracting the original weight of the bike and the empty bags, it's about 25 pounds worth of gear, not counting the clothing and other gear that I'd be wearing on my body while on the bike. That's not too bad, considering that for normal touring with racks and roomy panniers, I'd typically have about 40 pounds of gear.
The problem, however, is the bulk of the gear. With everything packed in as I described above, it leaves hardly any room for a food supply. The Gas Tank bag has room for a few energy bars and gels; a few small items might still be stuffed into the frame bag, and the OR dry sacks might fit a few more things.
Either way, though, I'll have to put my gear list on a diet and make some adjustments to where stuff is packed.
I also need to think about how to plan for extended periods without a water source. Possibilities include an MSR Dromedary bag lashed to the seat bag, water bottles in the side pockets of the hydration pack, and a bottle cage mounted on the bottom of the bike's down tube.
This past Sunday, I put this packing scheme to the test by riding it to work, and then taking it on a Sub-24-Hour Overnight trip with my friend Brent to our usual destination of West Branch State Park.
The full gear list above takes into account the full range of weather that might be encountered on the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route, including cold and wet. Being that it's now July in Northeast Ohio, and there was only a small chance of rain this particular evening, I was able to ditch quite a bit of gear to free up space. I removed the down jacket, wool liner shirt and pants, wool liner gloves, wool hat, neoprene socks, shell gloves, and booney hat. I also would not be needing the water filter, since fresh water at the West Branch campground is readily available. I left out the trowel and toilet paper, since there are also restrooms. I kept the Ibex boxers, used the outer layer of the Endura shorts as my in-camp casual shorts, and packed a t-shirt to wear around the camp. I wore the same pair of socks through the whole trip. I meant to leave the rain jacket and pants behind, but only realized later at the camp site that I still had them in the seat bag.
I packed a few food items in the hydration pack. For dinner, I took a box of macaroni & cheese, packet of tuna, and a pack of instant mashed potatoes. For breakfast, I took two packets of instant oatmeal. I also took a few cookies to snack on.
On the way to work, the dry sacks on the fork came loose a bit. I stopped to tighten up the Velcro straps I was using to hold them in place, and that seemed to do the trick for the time being. Once I got to work, I found a couple of extra bungee cords and used them for extra support around the Salsa Anything Cages, just to be safe. I've concluded, however, that the Anything Cage works best with soft goods, like my tent on the left side. It doesn't work so well with hard goods like my cooking gear on the right side, because this kind of stuff tends to shift around too easily, and thus the straps holding it in place come loose more easily. So this is one area where I can adjust the location of where I pack stuff.
I started thinking that I should just ditch the whole concept of bike-packing, and go back to traditional racks and panniers. Back at home a few days earlier, I weighed my panniers, front rack, and rear rack. If I used these instead of all of the frame bags, the gain in weight is about 4 pounds.
However, after getting everything situated, making the ride to West Branch, setting up camp, and then breaking down camp the next morning, I got used to the bike-packing scheme. The way I had all of the items organized lent itself quite well to easily unpacking and re-packing, and finding stuff when I needed it. I guess like any new idea, it has to grow on you a bit. I've already got a few ideas for changes to pare down the bulk of the gear, so stay tuned for version 2.0 of the bike-packing gear list.
Brent and I did a little route exploring on the way to West Branch. We usually hop on the Portage Bike and Hike Trail near Towners Woods park. The last time we made this trip, the trail ended near downtown Ravenna. It's been extended since then, so it now ends on Peck Road east of town. We made a right onto Peck, then a right onto Newton Falls Road, very near where it meets the intersection of State Routes 14 and 59. Normally, one would take Rt 59 east to where it meets State Route 5, then turn right onto Rock Spring Road into West Branch State Park. The campground entrance is just past the railroad overpass bridge.
This bridge is being rebuilt, so the detour involves taking Rt 14 south for a few miles to Booth Road, which meets Rock Spring Road from the other end. Cable Line Road would provide a similar, but shorter, detour, but it, too, is closed. We decided to head up Cable Line Road anyway to see if the closed section were passable by bike or on foot.
Not quite a mile from Rt 14, we got to the closed section:
There was no gap in the guard rail to cut around, so we had to hop over and lift our bikes over. We finally saw the reason for the road closing:
As you can see, a wide section of road has washed out, leaving a chasm about 20 feet wide and 10 feet deep.
Carrying our bikes and shuffling a little at a time to avoid losing our footing, we made our way down, through, and up out of the chasm. So, Cable Line Road is passable via an extreme hike-a-bike. But, for the extra time and effort it takes, taking the Booth Road detour is a better option, which we did for the ride home on Monday morning.


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(CNN) -- Recent deadly clashes in Basra and Baghdad's Sadr City represent Shiite-vs.-Shiite political maneuvering ahead of Iraqi provincial elections, analysts say.
Iraqi troops take up positions during April fighting against Mehdi Army militiamen in Basra.
And the fighting, according to the analysts who study Iraq, represents the struggle between U.S.-backed Shiites and those allied with the anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
The analysts also say the Basra and Sadr City fighting has enabled Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki -- much criticized for failing to forge political progress in Iraq -- to align himself with the U.S.-backed Shiite group and recast himself as an effective leader of a strong central government.
The U.S.-backed Shiite group is the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, the leading party in the government's United Iraqi Alliance bloc.
Al-Sadr's anti-American group is the "Sadrist Current," and its fighters belong to the Mehdi Army militia.
Analysts say the upshot of the recent street fighting is a stronger hand for al-Maliki and the U.S.-backed Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, or ISCI.
"At least in the short term, it looks like ISCI and al-Maliki have come out on top, both in terms of weakening Sadr and weakening the Mehdi Army," says Jason Gluck, rule of law adviser for the U.S. Institute of Peace, a research group based in Washington.
The Islamic Supreme Council is an older party whose leaders lived in Iranian exile during the Saddam Hussein era and has long had support among Iraq's Shiite merchant classes.
The Sadrist Current is a grass-roots political movement that coalesced after Hussein was toppled and swiftly became the movement of choice among many poor Shiites.
The groups have had turf battles during the post-Hussein era in southern Iraq and have squared off frequently, with the ISCI-dominated government security forces fighting the Mehdi Army.
In January 2005 elections, the Islamic Supreme Council gained power in provincial government offices. Observers say the Sadrists at the time were not well-organized to participate in the balloting and did not have a Sadrist bloc.
But the Sadrists intend to take part in upcoming provincial elections, slated to be held by October 1, and analysts believe the Islamic Supreme Council is concerned at the prospect of losing power in the provinces to al-Sadr's followers.
One reason for the concern: The U.S.-backed Islamic Supreme Council needs the clout to create a nine-province Shiite region in the south not unlike the autonomous region the Kurds have in the north. This move is staunchly opposed by the Sadrists.
When al-Maliki and his security forces embarked on the offensives, they claimed they were taking on "outlaws" and "criminal elements" -- not one particular group, such as the Mehdi Army. But observers say other developments have belied this stance.
Violence dissipated in Basra when al-Sadr issued a call to stop it, and the government needed to work out an agreement with the Sadrists themselves to end fighting in Sadr City.
Al-Maliki, who is the leader of the smaller Dawa Party, even warned the Sadrists during the Basra offensive that it would need to disband its militia in order to take part in elections. The elections legislation now under discussion in parliament includes this language.
The view that the fighting reflects a political battle has been cited in recent reports.
The International Crisis Group issued a report in April called "Iraq after the Surge II: The Need for a New Political Strategy." It said al-Maliki's warning "lent credence both to the view that the campaign's target had been the Sadr movement" and "to the notion that its objective had been to forestall the Sadrists' participation in provincial elections.
"This is indeed about an intra-Shiite struggle," says Peter Harling, a senior analyst with the crisis group's Middle East program, and he adds it is one in which the United States has decided to take sides with Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq.
The Center for Strategic and International Studies' Anthony Cordesman expressed similar ideas in an April report called "The Shi'ite Gamble: Rolling the Dice for Iraq's Future."
"Maliki's effort to suppress the Sadr movement is clear," he wrote.
The ISCI and al-Maliki, Gluck says, are "winning the narrative." They have portrayed al-Sadr as a lackey of Iran and have blamed deaths and destabilization in Baghdad and Basra on al-Sadr.
That's "no small feat," Gluck says, since al-Sadr had largely stuck by his cease-fire for about eight months before the Iraqi government launched the Basra and Baghdad offensives.
Al-Sadr declared a suspension of Mehdi Army military or armed activities in August and renewed the suspension in February; the Mehdi Army has largely observed the cease-fire. As a result, the fierce sectarian violence and the Green Zone mortar attacks largely ceased in late 2007 into early this year, Gluck said.
Gluck says al-Maliki is attempting to cast himself as a unifier and a political leader intent on confronting "outlaws" of any stripe.
His offensives in Basra and Baghdad have won support from the Sunni Iraqi Accord Front, which is contemplating rejoining the government it had left. And al-Maliki is embarking on offensives in northern Iraq against militants in Nineveh province, moves that please Shiites.
"At the same time, the Sadrists continue to enjoy greater grass-roots support than any other Iraqi political party. So, it remains to be seen whether the Iraqi government's military victory will lead to lasting political gain," Gluck says.
Al-Maliki "is trying to reinvent himself as a strong leader, as someone who can unite the country, crack down on militias, and bring Sunnis back into the fold," he adds.
Reidar Visser, editor of the Iraq-oriented Web side historiae.org and an expert on Shiite Iraq, also shares the suspicion that al-Maliki is attempting to subdue just one, rather than all, militias in order to isolate the Sadrists from the political process. But he believes the prime minister has overreached and miscalculated in his campaigns in Basra and Baghdad.
Visser says al-Maliki is attempting to emerge as a "strongman" inside the Shiite community and needs to be aligned with the Islamic Supreme Council for his survival. But Visser says the focus on the Mehdi Army is hypocritical and notes that other militias aren't being targeted.
If al-Maliki meant to be even-handed, Visser says, he would purge the police and army of ISCI militia influence.
Visser says he doesn't believe a law serving to ban the Sadrists would be successful, noting that there are many ways around such a restriction.
One idea, he says, is nominally transforming the Mehdi Army into a non-military organization, just as the Islamic Supreme Council did with its Badr Brigades. But he emphasizes that the Sadrists' grass-roots constituency is too powerful for the government to risk isolating them.
"The Sadrists are such an important force in Iraq, it seems foolhardy, unrealistic," Visser says. "I don't think they will succeed in a policy of exclusion."
All About Nuri al-Maliki • Muqtada al-Sadr


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This fossil is from near my hometown of Barstow, California. It was collected many years ago loose in talus from the Barstow Formation (Barstovian, Miocene). I note this carefully because today collecting such specimens from the Fossil Beds of the Rainbow Basin Natural Area is illegal, as it should be. This is one of the most fossiliferous Miocene deposits in the world, and it has been heavily vandalized over the years.
The Barstow Formation (in a wonderful syncline) at Rainbow Basin, Mojave Desert, California.
This two-toed footprint is Lamaichnum alfi Sarjeant and Reynolds, 1999. It is preserved as a convex hyporelief, which is essentially a filling of the actual footprint. It was made by a camel-like animal (there are many choices) that walked through stiff volcanic mud along a stream during the Miocene. The impression of this foot was quickly filled with later sediment, probably from an overbank flood.
When I was a kid we found dozens of these footprints in long trackways throughout the Barstow Formation at the Fossil Beds. Those fossils are all gone now, most lost to collectors with rock saws and sledge hammers. Fortunately many have been lovingly preserved in the Raymond M. Alf Museum in Claremont, California. You will note that the ichnospecies of our fossil was named for the charismatic Raymond Alf, a legend in the study of vertebrate trace fossils and a spectacular teacher.
Sarjeant, W.A.S. and Reynolds, R.E. 1999. Camelid and horse footprints
from the Miocene of California and Nevada. San Bernardino Museum
Association Quarterly 46: 3-20.


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Expectations are running high that some time next year astronomers using NASA's Kepler spacecraft will announce the discovery that planet hunters have been waiting for: the first Earth-size exoplanet found in a region around a sunlike star where life could flourish. That exoplanet will almost certainly lie too far from Earth to be scrutinized, but it will nonetheless throw into high gear a search for the fingerprints of life—the chemical compounds that could indicate whether an exoplanet in the habitable zone, the life-friendly region where liquid water can survive, actually harbors life.
But even as researchers are gaining a deeper understanding of the bio-signatures that may be present in exoplanetary atmospheres, scientists face a roadblock. A proposed NASA mission called the Terrestrial Planet Finder (TPF), designed to search for these compounds among planets orbiting nearby stars—those that lie about one hundredth the distance of the orbs Kepler can find—lost its funding in 2007 amid rising costs for the James Webb Space Telescope, Hubble's successor.
The TPF would block the blinding glare from nearby, sunlike stars in order to take portraits of the planets that orbit them. In one scheme, a single large telescope outfitted with a mask, or coronagraph, would blot out starlight and image planets as they appear in reflected visible light. In another strategy, several telescopes flying in information would act in concert to zero out infrared light from a parent star and record the heat radiated by the star's planets at infrared wavelengths.
Light collected by the TPF and separated into its component wavelengths, or spectra, could reveal the presence of bio-signatures. Water vapor, oxygen and methane in the atmosphere of an exoplanet would offer evidence of a life-friendly environment as well as biological processes akin to photosynthesis and respiration on Earth, notes Geoff Marcy of the University of California, Berkeley.
"The galaxy may be lousy with microbial life, but currently we have no clue," he adds. "It is a tragedy of modern science that the Terrestrial Planet Finder cannot be supported, either in the U.S. or Europe, due to budget pressures."
Astronomers still hope to revive some version of TPF, but it would take a decade for the mission to get back on track, Marcy estimates. In the meantime studies by exoplanet researchers including Sara Seager of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Victoria Meadows of the University of Washington in Seattle are honing—and expanding—the list of compounds that may serve as biomarkers for exoplanets orbiting stars of different sizes and ages.
With the chances of looking for chemical markers of life beyond the solar system initially few and far between, "we want to make sure we have the best possible understanding of bio-signatures," Meadows says. "We don't want to be fooled."
Much of the new work focuses on planets orbiting M dwarf stars, which are about one-half to one-tenth the sun's mass and account for about 75 percent of all the stars in the galaxy. Because M dwarfs are much cooler than the sun, their habitable zones are only about one tenth as far from them as Earth lies from the sun.
That proximity makes it impossible for the TPF to image those planets. However, the James Webb Space Telescope, now scheduled for launch in 2018, has a chance of examining the atmospheres of a handful of these bodies. So might a new generation of extremely large ground-based telescopes, with mirrors of 30 meters or more, that have recently been proposed.
Some of the exoplanets these telescopes will attempt to study have a rare alignment. Like the more distant exoplanets identified by Kepler, they regularly pass in front of, or transit, their parent stars as seen by the detectors. During a transit, starlight filters through an exoplanet's atmosphere, with each chemical constituent leaving its own imprint on the light. The signal is extremely faint but planets in the habitable zone of M stars make frequent transits, enabling astronomers to accumulate individual observations to make a stronger detection. "The habitable zone of M stars are the first places that we can look for bio-signatures," Seager says.
Simulations of Earthlike planets by Meadows and her colleagues over the past several years have revealed that M dwarfs may better preserve some of the fragile biomarkers that are easily destroyed by the radiation of more massive stars. Consider the simultaneous presence of high abundances of methane and ozone, which researchers first proposed in 1965 as a strong indicator of life. Only biological activity is capable of continually maintaining high levels of the two compounds, which readily react with each other and deplete the original supply.
M dwarfs produce much less near-ultraviolet radiation—which breaks ozone molecules into atomic oxygen and OH and hastens the destruction of methane—than sunlike stars do. As a result, methane would last about 20 times longer (about 200 years) and would have a predicted concentration 200 times greater on an Earthlike planet in the habitable zone around an M dwarf than the same planet in the habitable zone around the sun, Meadows and her collaborators calculate.
Similarly, two other earthly bio-signatures—methyl chloride and nitrous oxide—may be more prevalent and easier to detect on terrestrial planets circling M dwarfs, Meadows says.
M stars, K dwarfs and beyond
No survey has yet identified an Earth-size planet in the habitable zone around an M star, and a space mission is needed to conduct a thorough search, says Lisa Kaltenegger of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass., and the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg, Germany. One proposed mission, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, would scan the entire sky for Earth-size and larger exoplanets around M stars as well as slightly more massive stars called K dwarfs. Last year the project, led by George Ricker of M.I.T., received a $1-million grant from NASA for further study.
Thinking beyond M stars—Seager and Meadows have also expanded the list of possible bio-signatures. In the January Astrobiology, Seager, Matthew Schrenk of East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C., and William Bains of Cambridge, England–based consultant firm Rufus Scientific note that most studies that examine possible bio-signature gases limit their scope to ozone or oxygen, methane and nitrous oxide. These compounds are not only the main signs of life on Earth but are the direct product of chemical reactions that generate the energy and structural components of life on the planet. Microorganisms on Earth, however, produce a much broader range of gases that Seager and her colleagues label secondary by-products and which are generated for unknown reasons and may be specific to particular species. One terrestrial example is dimethyl sulfide, produced by marine phytoplankton.
Although these secondary by-products only occur in small concentrations on Earth, they could be a dominant bio-signature on other types of habitable exoplanets. The ideas are still preliminary, but Seager and her collaborators suggest that high concentrations of unusual or complex molecules in the atmosphere of an exoplanet could be a new type of bio-signature.
In the June 2011 Astrobiology, Meadows and her collaborators also broaden the scope of possible bio-signatures. Motivated by evidence that single-cell bacteria thrived on the early Earth well before oxygen dominated the planet's atmosphere, the team simulated the search for signs of life on oxygen-poor exoplanets. Their work revealed that sulfur gases were produced by organisms in such environments, but that these gases did not build up in the atmospheres of exoplanets. Instead, the sulfur compounds were destroyed in a series of reactions that ultimately produced ethane. High ethane concentrations therefore should be added to the roster of compounds that indicate biological activity, Meadows says. In fact, it could be the dominant signature of life on exoplanets that lack oxygen.
Overall, Seager says, "I'm excited, because I feel like we're really on the verge of understanding the biosignatures on exoplanets.
"We're gathering all the tools we need to make predictions and guide design of the instruments that will actually do the job of finding signs of life."


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Verónica Mar scales her sculptural creations and turns them into unrepeatable jewels that focus on the harmony, elegance, and energy of the woman's body.
The material chosen by Verónica Mar for this collection is the 1100 Snow White KRION. Its pure white color and the properties of K-Life, with an unprecedented technology that uses a concept of photocatalysis that makes it an antibacterial piece, and that actively improves the Air quality, make this collection of high jewelry, an innovation in this sector.


text: For centuries the Melungeon people of Appalachia believed they were of Portuguese descent. Turns out, their direct lineage is more African than anything else. Guest host Maria Hinojosa speaks with Roberta Estes, lead researcher on a recent study about the ancestral make up of the Melungeons. Also joining the conversation is Wayne Winkler, a Melungoen man and author of the book "Walking Toward the Sunset: The Melungeons of Appalachia."


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Local Buzz: Ex-Gophers QB Nelson arrested in assault case
MANKATO, Minn. – Former Minnesota Gophers quarterback Philip Robert Nelson was jailed following an altercation in Mankato early Sunday that sent a former Minnesota State linebacker to the hospital in critical condition.
A police statement said officers came across Isaac Dallas Kolstad, 24, of Mankato, while patrolling the city's downtown entertainment district around 2 a.m. The 20-year-old Nelson was arrested at the scene and taken to the Blue Earth County jail, the statement said.
Police are requesting felony charges of third-degree assault, KTOE-AM reported.
Nelson left the Gophers in January to transfer to Rutgers, which is moving into the Big Ten next season. He played in 11 games last season, but said Rutgers offered a more pass-friendly offense. He completed 50.5 percent of his passes for 1,306 yards with nine touchdowns and six interceptions last season. He also rushed for 364 yards and six touchdowns while sharing quarterback duties with Mitch Leidner.
Nelson was going to sit out the 2014 season and then would have had two seasons of eligibility left. Nelson was a star at Mankato West High School, where he was both Minnesota's Mr. Football and the Associated Press Player of the Year in 2011.
Kolstad was taken to Mayo Clinic Health System in Mankato. He graduated from Mankato East and spent two seasons at North Dakota State in 2008 and 2009, did not play in 2010, then transferred to Minnesota State for his junior and senior years. He started all 12 games last season and finished third on the team in tackles with 59.
Police were looking for a second suspect.
"It's an ongoing investigation and as more information becomes available we'll be releasing it," city spokeswoman Shelly Schulz said.


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The models are broken
The market is trying to get back to the pre-Covid and pre-war times, but that model is broken. A new dawn is here and the financial world needs to adapt.
Steen Jakobsen,
Chief Investment Officer
Head of Fintech, Saxo Bank
Once upon a time not so long ago, companies tried to generate new business by sending marketing messages to prospective clients by post. Direct or 'junk' mail – sending a leaflet or letter to anyone for whom the firm had a job title, street address or postcode – was pretty unsophisticated, and was often derided as a 'machine gun' approach.
Although some still use this method, others sought to exploit the greater reach, creativity and traceability of digital marketing when trying to get a message across or identify demand. Some methods still rely on relatively little data, such as an email address, while others combine many, from past purchases to browsing history. Nevertheless, too many of the finance sector's current client marketing and communication efforts continue to employ the machine gun approach.
Greater precision in finding the target comes only with better knowledge, or, more specifically, data. In our increasingly digitised knowledge economy, we are generating, capturing and analysing data at volumes and speeds that are accelerating exponentially. Through access to high-quality data, artificial intelligence (AI) programmes can ensure messages to and communications with customers hit the correct target time after time.
The more an AI programme knows about a client's preferences and priorities, the better it can meet and even anticipate future needs. Already, AI-driven apps are proposing courses of action and making recommendations for users' consent via a click of a mouse or swipe of a screen. Before long, these interfaces will fall away, leaving just an AI-enabled conversation between the customer and the financial service provider.
Sounds far-fetched? In the home electronics market, there is increasingly fierce competition between tech giants – Amazon, Google, Apple, and Microsoft all have horses in the race – to provide the dominant virtual assistant. According to Forrester, Amazon sold six million of its Echo smart speaker devices in 2016, each of which is driven by its Alexa intelligent personal assistant. From car manufacturers to makers of domestic appliances, compatibility with Alexa or its Google equivalents (Assistant and Home) is increasingly a 'must-have'.
By selecting a virtual assistant, then commanding it to execute various tasks, chores and purchases by verbal instruction, you are embarking on an increasingly collaborative journey. The assistant will begin to anticipate your requirements more efficiently (taking actions or placing orders automatically, without having to be told), making adjustments following every data exchange or, as you might call it, learning from every conversation. To optimise your investment, you might select products because of their compatibility with – or recommendation by – your chosen virtual assistant. Alexa may influence you as much as you influence it.
How does this augur for banks? Banks currently interact with customers across a variety of channels, from branch to phone to web to app. Inevitably, a lot of potentially useful data slips through the gaps that could otherwise help draw an increasingly detailed and accurate client profile.
Already chatbots are making great strides in making the process of interaction more natural for the customer and more useful for the provider in terms of understanding and gauging future needs. As with the virtual assistants that are almost invisibly managing our homes, banks' AI interfaces could also changing the user experience landscape as they reach maximum utility.
AI has existed in banks' back offices for some time, but it is fast emerging into new roles, and could well become a core competence in the near future, becoming critical in efforts to optimise customer interactions, ensuring they deepen and broaden over time to sustain valued, trusted relationships. One might say that banks are moving into the 'curation' phase, with AI programmes making recommendations based on past experience, in the same way Spotify might recommend a song or Netflix a TV show. It may not be too long before a virtual wealth advisor tells a client that the stock he declined to buy a few weeks ago has dipped in price, potentially making it a even stronger opportunity than before. Today, this interaction might be effected via an email, a text alert or a chatbot, but longer term it might be part of a personalised, one-on-one dialogue, albeit driven by AI.
It's a long journey from direct mail to 'anywhere, anytime' conversations between bank and customers. But AI has the potential to define the user-experience in financial services such as wealth management just as much as in other customer-facing businesses. The app, just as much as the teller, will cease to be the interface or the voice of the bank. As the knowledge economy matures, financial service providers should perhaps consider where they are on that journey and where they want to get to. For many, it may be a relatively small step to the 'curator' level, starting with a focus on the desired client interaction, rather than the technology. Indeed, small steps often give the best chance of new initiatives gaining momentum over time.
It may be a bigger challenge for banks to join tech giants at the 'conductor' level, where virtual assistants orchestrate an array of services and capabilities, bringing them to the user at the precise point of need. But even if they are not yet fully deployed in financial services, the tools, skills and capabilities that will help banks begin their own AI journey are already fast emerging and available. According to a report published in March by consulting group Opimas, the financial services sector will spend $1.5 billion on AI this year, rising to $2.8 billion by 2021.
Much has been made of the expected rise of robotics in the 21st century, but Amazon, Google et al have pointed the way to a future in which AI applications consume and interpret data to better meet human needs. In the financial services sector, the challenge is to follow that lead, delivering tailored outcomes that enrich the lives of customers.
The market is trying to get back to the pre-Covid and pre-war times, but that model is broken. A new dawn is here and the financial world needs to adapt.
Steen Jakobsen,
Chief Investment Officer
A political switch in China towards less tough control of its people and companies may kick things back into gear.
Redmond Wong,
Market Strategist
While the economic situation in Europe may not be as bad as feared, there's still a plethora of things to fix.
Chris Dembik,
Head of Macroeconomic Research
As the world turns increasingly bipolar, equity markets face harsh times as they transition into the new reality.
Peter Garnry,
Head of Equity Strategy
New alliances and collaborations outside of China may lead to prosperous times in Asia.
Charu Chanana,
Market Strategist
For years, it was thought that the balanced portfolio was a thing of the past. But recent developments may have changed that.
Peter Siks,
Investment Coach
Following a dramatic and volatile 2022 with good returns, a lot of this year's commodity performance may be driven by Chinese politics.
Ole S. Hansen,
Head of Commodity Strategy
2023 could be a tough year for currencies but EUR and JPY may have some upside.
John J. Hardy,
Head of FX Strategy
The commodity-heavy Australian market may have a good start to 2023, as the Chinese focus on growth signals demand for Aussie resources.
Jessica Amir,
Market Strategist
From a near-perfect environment for speculative assets before 2022 to the opposite, crypto faces fundamental challenges.
Mads Eberhardt,
Cryptocurrency Analyst


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My Activity Tracking
My target 6 kms
Support me as I walk with One Foot Raised
I'm taking part in One Foot Raised to help women, men and children living on the margins live full and free lives.
I'm walking because Ignatius walked ... because Jesuit Missionaries walk alongside the marginalised ... and because many children in Jesuit Mission supported schools walk long distances each day to gain a quality education
Please support my efforts - your tax-deductible donation will support the work of Jesuit Mission in over 10 countries in Asia and Africa.
It only costs $40 to support a farmer with a weeding machine, $60 for 3 hygiene kits for families fleeing Ukraine, $100 to help provide a week's emergency food for a refugee family, or $250 to provide a child from a village with an education for one year.
Thank you, every donation helps!
Thank you to my Sponsors
David Tevanian
Avo Tevanian
Well done Maxi
Mrs Jacqueline Tevanian
Good luck Maxi! I'm sure you will try your best. Love Momo
Max Tevanian
Simon Cowell
Go Max
Go for it Max!


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AXIS 2401 Video Server
Discontinued product. Online support only.Please see the support documentation for further information.
- Dial-up connection via modem as well as direct connection to Ethernet networks
- PHP3 script support for developing your own application scripts
- Support for additional Pan/Tilt/Zoom devices
- Linux operating system
- Works with the AXIS 2191 Audio Module
- Wireless connectivity with the 802.11b Wireless Device Point
- Access to a power outlet not needed with use of Power over LAN Midspan and Active Splitter from Axis
The AXIS 2401 is a high-performance video server designed for professional surveillance applications. It transforms traditional analog video into high quality digital images that can be transmitted over intranet networks or the Internet. The AXIS 2401 has a single video input, a video loop-through port for an analog monitor, and a connection either via a modem to the Internet or directly to a local area network.
Easy to install and use, the AXIS 2401 enables you to have a professional surveillance application up and running in minutes. Your system can be as open or closed as needed.
The application possibilities for the AXIS 2401 are limitless: remote monitoring, security systems, alarms verification, traffic surveillance, railway monitoring, airports, banks, manufacturing plants, process monitoring, remote image archiving, remote administration, shops, gas stations, car parks, and much more. Users can enhance their existing CCTV systems with an AXIS 2401 and instantly have a state-of-the-art remote monitoring system – no expensive software, dedicated monitors or expensive coax cabling is required. All that is needed is a standard PC with network access.
AXIS 2401: System overview
The AXIS 2401 Video Server is a cost-effective solution for adding digital functionality to traditional CCTV systems. The AXIS 2401 allows for video output to an analog CCTV monitor as well as to the computer network.


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[T]he buyer of the exchange traded note takes on its investment risk along with a big barrel full of counterparty risk, too. And perhaps some market or liquidity risk as well, as we've seen in recent days.
In short, an exchange traded note can be seen as a total return swap, sold to retail investors, that lacks all of the regulatory innovations that have developed over the past few years.


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[twitter-follow screen_name='politicalticker']
(CNN) – Essential American interests are at stake as Syria's two-year-old civil war continues to rage, President Barack Obama asserted in an exclusive interview with CNN that aired Friday.
Speaking with "New Day" anchor Chris Cuomo, Obama defended his administration's decision to not intervene militarily in the conflict so far, but predicted that American focus on the country's strife would be necessary for the fighting to come to an end.
"I think it is fair to say that, as difficult as the problem is, this is something that is going to require America's attention and hopefully the entire international community's attention," Obama said.
His remarks came the same week rebels in Syria alleged Syrian President Bashar al-Assad used chemical weapons in an attack on rebels. The assault killed more than a thousand people, the rebels claimed.
Obama said the United States, along with United Nations inspectors, were gathering information on the attack, but that preliminary signs point to a "big event of grave concern."
"It is very troublesome," he said. "That starts getting to some core national interests that the United States has, both in terms of us making sure that weapons of mass destruction are not proliferating, as well as needing to protect our allies, our bases in the region."
A year ago, Obama laid out his barometer for greater action in Syria during a White House press conference. He said in August 2012 that "a red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized."
"That would change my calculus," Obama said at the time. "That would change my equation."
Earlier this summer, the Obama administration announced it would provide military support to rebel fighters because al-Assad's forces had used chemical weapons. Some members of Congress have called for greater U.S. involvement.
In the CNN interview, Obama countered those calls by pointing both to international law and to the cost of intervening further in the Syrian conflict. He also noted the billions of U.S. dollars still being spent in Afghanistan as the war in that country winds down.
"Sometimes what we've seen is that folks will call for immediate action, jumping into stuff, that does not turn out well, gets us mired in very difficult situations, can result in us being drawn into very expensive, difficult, costly interventions that actually breed more resentment in the region," he said.


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'This Is Like Middle School': Kids Analyze the Election
The hit YouTube series 'Kids React' collects adorable sound bites about the cadidates, their campaign ads, and more.
The Fine Brothers have racked up almost half a billion video views on YouTube with hit series like Kids React. The premise is simple: sit a handful of precocious, adorable kids down and collect their thoughts on everything from the Olympics to Nyan Cat (remixed). They also produce Elders React and Teens React. Their latest, Kids React to Election 2012, is going viral thanks to some funny -- and sometimes surprisingly sharp -- observations.
"It's like they're five year olds fighting over a toy, except the toy is America!" says one junior pundit, exasperated. Big Bird was a polarizing topic; most kids supported Sesame Street but a young Romney fan acknowledged, "If Mitt Romney's going to create a lot of jobs and help us get our economy back, I think PBS is a small sacrifice that we should take." Interestingly, most of the girls said they would like to be president one day, but the boys did not. "You might be assassinated!" "It's too hard! Even rappers make more money than the president, that's what I can't understand!" And who would they vote for? One little girl says "both!"
For more videos from the Fine brothers, visit their YouTube page.
Via Viral Viral Videos.


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Boston is one of the healthiest markets for live roots music in the country — a place where acts as diverse as Americana darlings the Avett Brothers (House of Blues, October 18), Icelandic popsters Múm (Somerville Theatre, October 21), and local blues heroes the Radio Kings (Johnny D's, October 16) can all draw crowds. But here are the 10 roots shows we don't want to miss this fall.
JAMES MCMURTRY | September 26 | McMurtry established himself as a acoustic-guitar-wielding folkie with a penman's wit appropriate for the son of novelist Larry McMurtry. But he's evolved considerably since his 1989 debut, Too Long in the Wasteland (Columbia). These days, he travels with an electric guitar, an edgy amplifier, and a string of guitar stomp boxes to help conjure the ruckus in his far-flung stories. His latest CD is the heavy-hitting Just Us Kids (Lightning Rod), where guests like British piano legend Ian McLagan and guitarist John Dee Graham throw down with McMurtry's dark social commentary. His "Cheney's Toys" is the best Iraq-war-protest number recorded to date. | Johnny D's, 17 Holland St, Somerville | $12 | 617.776.2004 or www.johnnyds.com
PACO PEÑA FLAMENCO CO. | October 4 | World-class guitarist Peña is at the core of this colorful group, whose line-up includes a percussionist, two guitar accompanists, and three superb dancers. Rhythmically complex and brimming with melodic and visual grace, they're among the leading practitioners of this 19th-century fusion of Arabic, Andalusian, Sephardic, and Gypsy cultures. | Berklee Performance Center, 136 Mass Ave, Boston | $30-$42 | 617.876.4275 or www.worldmusic.org
AL GREEN | October 15 | The reigning King of Memphis soul remains on the comeback trail following last year's Questlove-produced Lay It Down (Blue Note). He's still got the moves and grooves. | House of Blues, 36 Lansdowne St, Boston | $49-$59 | 617.931.2000 or www.houseofblues.com
"ROOMFUL OF BLUES 40TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW" | October 16 | Neither rain nor sleet nor snow nor enough personnel changes to fill a phone book have stopped this Rhode Island–based jump-blues little big band. This show celebrates their durability and their latest album, 2008's Raising a Ruckus (Alligator). | Regattabar, Charles Hotel, 1 Bennett St, Cambridge | $20 | 617.395.7757 or www.regattabarjazz.com
"RAMBLIN' ROADSHOW AND MEMPHIS REVUE" | October 18 | This triple bill with Lucero, Cedric Burnside & Lightnin' Malcolm's Juke Joint Duo, and Amy Levere nearly covers the spectrum of classic Memphis music (aside from the crucial link of the aforementioned Al Green). Barbecue-belt rockers Lucero arrive on the tail of their first album in three years, the major-label debut 1372 Overton Park (Universal), which is due October 6. Burnside — grandson of and drummer to Mississippi hill-country-blues legend R.L. Burnside — and guitarist Malcolm continue Burnside's family tradition with their stomping outfit. In May, they won a well-deserved Blues Music Award for Best New Artist Debut for their Two-Man Wrecking Crew (Delta Groove). And bass-thumping rockabilly diva Levere's 2007 Anchors & Anvils (Thirty Tigers) was one of the late Memphis legend Jim Dickinson's final productions. You may also recognize her from her role in the pulp-blues movie Black Snake Moan. | Middle East downstairs, 480 Mass Ave, Cambridge | $20 | 617.931.2000 or www.ticketmaster.com
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Torah tôr´ə [key] [Heb.,=teachings or learning], Hebrew name for the five books of Moses—the Law of Moses or the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible. The Torah is believed by Orthodox Jews to have been handed down to Moses on Mt. Sinai and transmitted by him to the Jews. It laid down the fundamental laws of moral and physical conduct. The Torah begins with a description of the origin of the universe and ends on the word Israel, after the story of the death of Moses, just before the conquest of Canaan by the Israelites. In a wider sense the Torah includes all teachings of Judaism, the entire Hebrew Bible and the Talmud.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2023, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Judaism


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LENEXA, Kan. (AP) Law enforcement officials say a 3-year-old boy who apparently let himself out of his apartment in a Kansas City suburb has been found safe.
Lenexa police say the boy was found shortly before 8 a.m. Thursday in an apartment next door to the apartment where his family lives.
The boy's parents called police about 4:45 Thursday morning after finding the boy and his dog gone.
Police, fire officials and neighbors helped with a frantic search because the boy was only in his pajamas in frigid weather.
Lenexa police spokesman Dan Friesen says the boy had let himself out of the apartment in the past, using a step stool to reach the door handle.


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Jones, Mary Harris
Jones, Mary Harris, 1830–1930, American labor agitator, called Mother Jones, b. Ireland. Interested in the labor movement for many years, she became active in it after the death of her husband and four children (1867) from yellow fever. She won fame as an effective speaker and by 1880 was a prominent figure in the movement. One of the founders of the Social Democratic party (1898) and the Industrial Workers of the World (1905), she was active in organizing miners, garment workers, and streetcar workers. In 1913, her organizing activities were blamed for violence in West Virginia coal fields and she was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder. The sentence was commuted, and in 1914 her graphic description of the massacre of 20 people by machine-gun fire during a Ludlow, Colo., miner's strike convinced President Wilson to try to mediate the dispute. A long-time champion of laws to end child labor, she continued as a union organizer and agitator into her nineties. She wrote an autobiography in 1925, which contains some factual inaccuracies.
See biographies by D. Fetherling (1974) and E. J. Gorn (2001).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2023, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Labor: Biographies


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Title: Graceling (Graceling Realm, #1)
Author: Kristin Cashore
Genre: Sword and Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisherr: Gollancz Fiction (1st July 2010)
In a world where people born with an exceptional skill, known as a Grace, are both feared and exploited, Katsa carries the burden of a skill even she despises: the Grace of killing.
Feared by the court and shunned by those her own age, the darkness of her Grace casts a heavy shadow over Katsa's life. Yet she remains defiant: when the King of Lienid's father is kidnapped she investigates and stumbles across a mystery. Who would want to kidnap the old man, and why? And who was the extraordinary Graced man whose fighting abilities rivalled her own?
The only thing Katsa is sure of is that she no longer want to kill. The intrigue around the kidnapping offers her a way out – but little does she realise, when she takes it, that something insidious and dark lurks behind the mystery. Something spreading from the shadowy figure of a one eyed king . . .
With elegant, evocative prose and a cast of unforgettable characters, Kristin Cashore creates a mesmerizing world, a death-defying adventure, and a heart-racing story that will captivate you, and leave you wanting more.
Rating: ***** (5 stars)
Gracelingis the first book in the Graceling Realm series by Kristin Cashore. This book was first published in 2008, so I'm a little late to the party. Graceling tells the story of Katsa, a girl who is isolated by her Grace.
Reading this book reminded me why I love Epic Fantasy/Sword and Sorcery. It contains everything I love in the genre: a feisty heroine, wicked fight scenes, mystery, romance, epic journeys, dangerous rescues, and, of course, some form of magic – in this case Graces. As you may know if you follow the blog, or have caught one of my Top Ten Tuesday posts, I am a HUGE fan of feisty heroines, and Katsa is very definitely a feisty heroine.
I really enjoyed Katsa as a character, in spite of – or maybe because – she remains so closed off emotionally through the novel. Katsa's Grace is scary, not because of what it does but because of how it isolates her. Yet despite this isolation, Katsa is not alone. Despite some of her actions in the novel, which she is manipulated into doing, she is on the whole a very just character – it is important to her to do the right thing.
The secondary characters are fleshed out brilliantly. I particularly enjoyed Katsa's interactions with her cousin Raffin, who is very different from her. I also loved the characters of Po and Bitterblue. Cashore writes the friendships and interactions between the characters in a really believable manner. She manages this too with the romantic subplot which I really enjoyed. The bad guy of the book was scary. Seriously scary.
I really enjoyed the plot of the book. A major part of the plot was an epic quest element, which Cashore pulled off brilliantly. There was enough world building to keep me interested, but not so much that it took away from the momentum of the narrative. Some of the twists in the plot were fairly predictable, but there were some I just did not see coming at all. And you know what, the predictability of some elements didn't take away from my enjoyment of the narrative.
If you enjoy epic fantasies, or a good sword and sorcery book then this is definitely a book you should pick up. I highly recommend this book if you are a fan of Tamora Pierce, as Graceling contains all the elements of one of Pierce's books. I can't wait to pick up Fire, the second book in the Graceling Realm series.


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Title: Little Boy: The Arts of Japan's Exploding Subcultures
Editor: Takashi Murakami
Publisher: Japan Society Gallery
Publication Year: 2005
Pages: 300
Little Boy is most definitely the contemporary Japanese art exhibition catalog to end all art exhibition catalogs. It quickly sold out when it was first released, and secondhand copies now sell for ridiculous amounts of money. The Japan Society of New York has finally released a softcover edition, which it sells in its headquarters in New York City. The new edition is just as gorgeous and well put together as the original hardcover version; so, if it's at all possible for you to acquire one, go for it! Quickly! Do it now! Before you even start reading this review! Yes, it's that good.
The first one hundred or so pages of this catalog feature full color plates of various artworks, photographs, and screen stills. Through these plates, pop artist extraordinaire Murakami Takashi attempts to demonstrate in images the thesis of his introductory essay "Earth in my Window." Murakami's main argument can be summarized in two points. First, the Pacific War, especially the two atomic bombs that ended it, left an indelible scar on the Japanese psyche. Second, the experience of having been defeated in war and thereafter occupied by America has turned multiple generations of Japanese people into perpetual children. The first point is illustrated by plates demonstrating recurring nuclear imagery in films and television serials such as Akira and Neon Genesis Evangelion and various tokusatsu ("special effects") films released by Tōhō Studios, as well as in the artistic output of artists like Yanobe Kenji and Murakami himself. The second point is easily demonstrable by the overtly cartoonish and childlike work of artists such as Nara Yoshitomo, Ban Chinatsu, and Mr., as well as by the designs of popular and festishized kyara ("characters") like Hello Kitty. Following these images and explanatory essay is a short manifesto penned by Murakami to support his superflat art movement, which is apparently based on the idea that contemporary Japan needs art that reflects its current cultural status of being awash in meaningless junk.
Next up is a transcription of a conversation between Okada Toshio and Morikawa Kaichirō (two self-proclaimed experts of "otakuology") moderated by Murakami. Morikawa in particular states that otaku are characterized by an obsession with things that are dame (absolutely useless), whether it's collecting antique model kits or falling in love with moe (young and innocent) characters. Okada seems to have a somewhat more optimistic view of otaku, who he thinks are simply resorting to childish things in order to escape a meaningless and unforgiving life. This conversation is superbly illustrated by images of the cultural paraphernalia the two men mention, and it also includes several dozen footnotes explaining their various obscure otaku references.
Following this conversation are two academic essays by Japanese scholars, Sawaragi Noi and Matsui Midori. Sawaragi discusses how the Pacific War has filtered through Japanese pop culture in movies like the Godzilla and Space Battleship Yamato series, and Matsui discusses the subculture of kawaii ("cute") in postwar Japan, especially in terms of how it is connected to art depicting women and art by women artists like Takano Aya and Mizuno Junko. Following these two essays by Japanese authors are two essays by American authors, Alexandra Munroe and Tom Eccles. Munroe offers a history of otaku subculture from the perspective of a Western observer, and Eccles attempts to situate the superflat movement with the history of Western pop art. All of these essays (as well as everything else in the catalog) are presented in both English and Japanese, with a column of English text on the left and a column of Japanese text on the right. Finally, the "Further Readings" section at the end of the book is an invaluable six-page bibliography of related works in both English and Japanese.
In short, Little Boy is gorgeous, fun, and intelligent. The dual language presentation is unobtrusive for readers of one language but wonderful for readers of both. Murakami's presentation of Japanese culture itself is both extremely interesting and highly controversial. This catalog is a work of art and an object of culture in and of itself. No matter what your field of interest is, I highly recommend picking up a copy before they're all gone.


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- Accepts Etsy gift cards
Beach wedding cake topper / Custom Mr and Mrs cake topper / Destination wedding decor / Tropical wedding cake topper
This listing is for a custom wood mr and mrs tropical cake topper. Perfect touch to your engagement party! Skewer ranges about 4-5.5" tall.
THIS ITEM SHIPS IN 3-5 BUSINESS DAYS! - Please note if this item is purchased with another item that has a longer production time, it will be shipped with that items scheduled ship date.
Available in several colors.
Please click the link below for current production and shipping times for U.S. & International residents.
Convo Southern Ever After to arrange for a rush shipment for $15 extra and we will respond ASAP!
Please read our shop policy on returns before purchasing.
All toppers are made to fit a 6" cake in width. If you need another size please request it and we can create a custom listing for you.
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Unfortunately, we do note accept returns for our items as they are custom made and wedding related. Please make sure when ordering to include the precise details along with correct spelling. This includes making sure you have the correct shipping address. Once shipped, we can not be responsible for the incorrect address that was provided to us.
Our production time is 3-5 business days to craft for wood items, 2-3 weeks for bridal garments, and then it takes about 2-5 days to ship to you. We ask that if you need an item sooner, to purchase at least 3 weeks in advance for wood items and at least 5 weeks for bridal garments. Otherwise, we suggest purchasing the rush listing to make sure it is delivered in a timely manner since postal services can be delayed.
If we have shipped your item, you can track it using the USPS tracking number we provide to you. If an item is delayed through the shipping carrier or lost, please open a case with USPS. If you would like to know when your item is shipping, you can check your invoice for your schdeuled ship date. If USPS marks your item as Delivered but you can not find your item, we can not be held responsible. Please check with the carrier or with neighbors to see if was delivered to them by accident. Please have patience with shipping carriers as they do have a stressful job.
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If you purchase an item and note that you would like other customizations that are not included in the original listing, you will be subject to other fees. This includes adding engravings, a specialty design, adding custom pets, people, on toppers that are not originally in the listing you purchased, etc. Custom items take more time than premade items which we have to design. Please understand that our time is valuable just as yours.


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It's a murky autumn day here in N.E. Switzerland – the leaves are falling and we can see Lake Constance from the flat again. Ours is the second largest lake in the country, vaguely fish-shaped, with Germany along the northern bank, Switzerland to the south, and Austria in the east. The Rhine flows into the lake where the fish's mouth would be, and out again in the west, from the tail fin. And just a few kilometres further is the largest waterfall in Europe – the Rhine Falls.
It's less than an hour's drive from here and I've been there several times. It's spectacular. The falls are 150 metres wide and 23 metres high, and in late spring/early summer, when the snow is melting and coming down from the mountains, an average 600,000 litres of water go over the edge every second. That's a lot of water.
You can view the falls from platforms and from the banks of the river.
Or, if you're feeling brave, you can go on a boat trip – they go right up close. I've only done that once – it was a dampening experience but fortunately it was a very hot day…
You can visit the rock in the middle of the falls and go up to the viewing platform there – again, not for the faint-hearted. I'm not sure I'd do that a second time, but it was definitely worth the climb!
And all around is the sound of water – a huge amount of water – crashing over the rocks. No photo can do justice to that.
I didn't visit the falls this year, but they say we're in for a hard winter. If there's a lot of snow, I'll go next summer. The largest recorded amount of water was in 1965, when – wait for it – 1,250,000 litres per second went over the falls. That's almost unimaginable.
To finish off, two pieces of book news: The Attic Room has been awarded a second Kindle Select All-Star Bonus, and The Paradise Trees will be available in large print in November. My copies should arrive any day now and I can't wait to hold them!


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Story highlights
Archaeologists found a lead coffin within a stone coffin near Richard III's grave
The identity of its occupant is unknown, but there are three prestigious contenders
The confirmation this year of the discovery of Richard's remains drew global interest
The excavation site is at a parking lot in the central English city of Leicester
First came the dramatic discovery of the long-lost remains of King Richard III.
Now, there's the mystery of the coffin within the coffin.
Archaeologists working at the site in central England where Richard III's body was found underneath a parking lot are currently puzzling over a sealed lead coffin containing the remains of a yet-to-be-identified person.
The lead coffin was found encased in a larger stone coffin.
The smaller coffin is intact "except for a hole at one end of the casket through which we could tantalizingly see someone's feet," said Mathew Morris, the fieldwork director at the site.
New discovery just as exciting
Last year, archaeologists unearthed a body buried beneath a nondescript parking lot in the city of Leicester. In February, they confirmed the body was that of Richard III, the last king of England to die on the battlefield.
The news drew global attention and set off a debate over Richard's bloodthirsty reputation.
Archaeologists from the University of Leicester, who have been toiling away at the site this summer, say the discovery of the double coffin is just as exciting.
They only uncovered the lead coffin last week after eight people hauled the heavy lid off the stone coffin. But figuring out who's inside looks set to be a much tougher task.
"This inner coffin is likely to contain a high-status burial, although we still don't know who it contains," Morris wrote in a blog post. "No writing was visible on the coffin lid but it does bear a crude cross soldered into the metal."
There are three main contenders for the identity of the coffin's inhabitant: a medieval knight named Sir William de Moton of Peckleton, and two leaders of the English Grey Friars order, Peter Swynsfeld and William of Nottingham.
Beneath the parking lot
The Leicester site is where a church, known as Grey Friars Friary, once stood.
Over the centuries, the whereabouts of the friary's remnants were forgotten, but it remained in the records as the burial place of Richard III.
Last year, experts began digging away at the area, which had taken on the less illustrious role of a parking lot. They went on to establish that it was part of the friary and that a skeleton, hastily buried in an uneven grave, was that of Richard.
The archaeologists who undertook a new dig this summer think the double coffin, located near Richard's grave, was buried during the 14th century, more than 100 years before Richard was killed at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485.
Of the coffin's three likely occupants, Swynsfeld died in 1272, William of Nottingham died in 1330 and Sir William de Moton died between 1356 and 1362.
'A first for all of us'
Besides the puzzle of who lies within, the archaeologists were excited about the coffins themselves.
"This was a first for all of us on site," Morris said. "None of the team had ever excavated an intact stone coffin before, let alone a lead coffin as well."
They have now wrapped up their four weeks of digging at the site. The lead coffin has been taken away so that experts can carry out tests to figure out the best way of opening it without damaging its contents.
But, Morris said, other parts of the friary that the archaeologists tried to investigate this summer appear to have been completely destroyed – meaning that some of the site's mysteries may never be solved.


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Security firm Sophos says the number of new viruses in the first half of 2005 is up 59% from the first six months of last year, and more alarmingly reports that an unprotected, unpatched Windows PC stands a 50 percent chance of being infected by an Internet worm within 12 minutes of coming online.
Sophos reported that the venerable Zafi-D worm accounts for more than a quarter of all viruses reported to it so far this year. The worm claims to be a Christmas greeting to trick users into opening an infected attachment.
The Sober family, which takes third place on the six-month chart, first emerged in May. The worm provided messages in both English and German promising World Cup tickets. After a period of dormancy, the worm updated itself and changed its messages to German nationalist propaganda.
"The Sober family of worms show just how much damage can now be done through a zombie machine," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos. "The combined effort of spammers, virus writers and their zombie armies are certainly a force to be reckoned with. Increasingly, legitimate organizations are being thrown into the firing line – finding themselves being identified as sources of spam."
The company also reported a threefold increase in the number of keylogging Trojans so far this year, which can be used to obtain confidential information or harvest user passwords to financial sites.
"What we are witnessing is a stampede of new Trojan horses every day," said Cluley. "Although some familiar worms have a tight grip on the charts, the growth in Trojan horses is perhaps the most significant development in malware-writing. Trojans don't normally make the charts because they don't spread under their own steam, and are increasingly being used for targeted attacks designed to make money or steal information."
Finally, the company reported that the prevalence of organized computer crime is higher than ever, citing an attempted breach at the Sumitomo Mitsui bank in London and the MasterCard hack as examples of a trend toward financially motivated computer crime.


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MURDER AMONG THE OWLS, the fourteenth offering in BILL CRIDER's Sheriff Dan Rhodes Mystery series, has no literary conceits; it is nothing more—nor less—than a pleasant police procedural set in the sleepy burg of Clearview. This time out, Rhodes is faced with the apparent slip-and-fall death of seventyish neighbor Helen Harris. Not fooled by the upended stool and burned-out lightbulb, he "somehow [doesn't] believe" it was an accident at all. The laconic lawman brings his dry wit and down-home sensibilities to bear on his investigation, pondering how Mrs. Harris's cat, Sam, escaped the deceased woman's house, interrogating the starchy members of her reading group (Older Women's Literary Society, the "OWLS" of the title), and thwarting her unruly nephew Leo's chain saw attack on her grieving beau, Alton Brant. One could fault Crider for the happy sheen he applies to the mystery genre, but that would be to miss the point entirely.
From the January 2007 Issue Subscribe


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This is a quaint example of Bucharest Art Nouveau style round doorway embellishing a house now heavily altered through a series of renovations undertaken during the last century since the edifice was built. The doorway itself keeps only a fraction from the original ornaments and motifs, such as the Romanian ethnographic woodcarvings of the door poles and the awning inspired from that of the doorways peculiar to the Neo-Romanian architectural style, a national-romantic order initially developed, like other European national styles, as an offshoot of the Art Nouveau current. The glass panes and the gridirons protecting them are 1930s 0r '40s replacements of the original artefacts. Despite all of these serious interventions, the doorway is still conveying the Art Nouveau ethos of innovative and surprising shapes and design.
I endeavor through this series of daily articles to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural history and heritage.
If you plan acquiring a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in sourcing the property, specialist research, planning permissions, restoration project management, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contact page of this weblog.