Sunday, February 18, 2007
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Faces of War
Faces of War
"While pioneering work in skin grafting had been done in Germany and the Soviet Union, it was Gillies who refined and then mass-produced critical techniques, many of which are still important to modern plastic surgery: on a single day in early July 1916, following the first engagement of the Battle of the Somme—a day for which the London Times casualty list covered not columns, but pages—Gillies and his colleagues were sent some 2,000 patients. The clinically honest before-and-after photographs published by Gillies shortly after the war in his landmark Plastic Surgery of the Face reveal how remarkably—at times almost unimaginably—successful he and his team could be; but the gallery of seamed and shattered faces, with their brave patchwork of missing parts, also demonstrates the surgeons' limitations. It was for those soldiers—too disfigured to qualify for before-and-after documentation—that the Masks for Facial Disfigurement Department had been established.
"My work begins where the work of the surgeon is completed," said Francis Derwent Wood, the program's founder. Born in England's Lake District in 1871, of an American father and British mother, Wood had been educated in Switzerland and Germany, as well as England. Following his family's return to England, he trained at various art institutes, cultivating a talent for sculpture he had exhibited as a youth. Too old for active duty when war broke out, he had enlisted, at age 44, as a private in the Royal Army Medical Corps. Upon being assigned as an orderly to the 3rd London General Hospital, he at first performed the usual "errand-boy-housewife" chores. Eventually, however, he took upon himself the task of devising sophisticated splints for patients, and the realization that his abilities as an artist could be medically useful inspired him to construct masks for the irreparably facially disfigured. His new metallic masks, lightweight and more permanent than the rubber prosthetics previously issued, were custom designed to bear the prewar portrait of each wearer. Within the surgical and convalescent wards, it was grimly accepted that facial disfigurement was the most traumatic of the multitude of horrific damages the war inflicted. "Always look a man straight in the face," one resolute nun told her nurses. "Remember he's watching your face to see how you're going to react.""
"While pioneering work in skin grafting had been done in Germany and the Soviet Union, it was Gillies who refined and then mass-produced critical techniques, many of which are still important to modern plastic surgery: on a single day in early July 1916, following the first engagement of the Battle of the Somme—a day for which the London Times casualty list covered not columns, but pages—Gillies and his colleagues were sent some 2,000 patients. The clinically honest before-and-after photographs published by Gillies shortly after the war in his landmark Plastic Surgery of the Face reveal how remarkably—at times almost unimaginably—successful he and his team could be; but the gallery of seamed and shattered faces, with their brave patchwork of missing parts, also demonstrates the surgeons' limitations. It was for those soldiers—too disfigured to qualify for before-and-after documentation—that the Masks for Facial Disfigurement Department had been established.
"My work begins where the work of the surgeon is completed," said Francis Derwent Wood, the program's founder. Born in England's Lake District in 1871, of an American father and British mother, Wood had been educated in Switzerland and Germany, as well as England. Following his family's return to England, he trained at various art institutes, cultivating a talent for sculpture he had exhibited as a youth. Too old for active duty when war broke out, he had enlisted, at age 44, as a private in the Royal Army Medical Corps. Upon being assigned as an orderly to the 3rd London General Hospital, he at first performed the usual "errand-boy-housewife" chores. Eventually, however, he took upon himself the task of devising sophisticated splints for patients, and the realization that his abilities as an artist could be medically useful inspired him to construct masks for the irreparably facially disfigured. His new metallic masks, lightweight and more permanent than the rubber prosthetics previously issued, were custom designed to bear the prewar portrait of each wearer. Within the surgical and convalescent wards, it was grimly accepted that facial disfigurement was the most traumatic of the multitude of horrific damages the war inflicted. "Always look a man straight in the face," one resolute nun told her nurses. "Remember he's watching your face to see how you're going to react.""
Satellite could see shadow of extra dimensions
Satellite could see shadow of extra dimensions
A satellite to be launched next year could see signs of extra dimensions in the afterglow of the big bang, a new study says.
Some theories – such as string theory – that attempt to unify all known forces into a single "theory of everything" posit the existence of extra spatial dimensions beyond the three familiar ones.
But string theory has proven stubbornly resistant to experimental tests (although some physicists say it could be tested in the Large Hadron Collider scheduled to open by the end of 2007).
Now, Gary Shiu and Bret Underwood, both physicists at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, US, say the shape of the extra dimensions could leave an imprint in the afterglow of the big bang. This glow, called the cosmic microwave background, reveals the structure of the universe about 370,000 years after the big bang.
A satellite to be launched next year could see signs of extra dimensions in the afterglow of the big bang, a new study says.
Some theories – such as string theory – that attempt to unify all known forces into a single "theory of everything" posit the existence of extra spatial dimensions beyond the three familiar ones.
But string theory has proven stubbornly resistant to experimental tests (although some physicists say it could be tested in the Large Hadron Collider scheduled to open by the end of 2007).
Now, Gary Shiu and Bret Underwood, both physicists at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, US, say the shape of the extra dimensions could leave an imprint in the afterglow of the big bang. This glow, called the cosmic microwave background, reveals the structure of the universe about 370,000 years after the big bang.
Make Your D*** S****** Face
This is just sad.
No one disputes that an on-duty Irvine police officer got an erection and ejaculated on a motorist during an early-morning traffic stop in Laguna Beach. The female driver reported it, DNA testing confirmed it and officer David Alex Park finally admitted it.
When the case went to trial, however, defense attorney Al Stokke argued that Park wasn’t responsible for making sticky all over the woman’s sweater. He insisted that she made the married patrolman make the mess—after all, she was on her way home from work as a dancer at Captain Cream Cabaret.
“She got what she wanted,” said Stokke. “She’s an overtly sexual person.”
_________________
Join the police and get away with anything!
Can I avoid the getting off twice joke? I guess I couldn't hold it back. Sorry to get that on ya.
No one disputes that an on-duty Irvine police officer got an erection and ejaculated on a motorist during an early-morning traffic stop in Laguna Beach. The female driver reported it, DNA testing confirmed it and officer David Alex Park finally admitted it.
When the case went to trial, however, defense attorney Al Stokke argued that Park wasn’t responsible for making sticky all over the woman’s sweater. He insisted that she made the married patrolman make the mess—after all, she was on her way home from work as a dancer at Captain Cream Cabaret.
“She got what she wanted,” said Stokke. “She’s an overtly sexual person.”
_________________
Join the police and get away with anything!
Can I avoid the getting off twice joke? I guess I couldn't hold it back. Sorry to get that on ya.
Little Turds at Crunchtime
Ok, so my second week of rewriting has finished. Thank christ.
I had almost 2 pages of original story from the first draft and expanded it to 7 pages of crap. The only plus is that now three characters who had no personalities (or names, really) in the first draft, all have names and are fairly interesting (to me, anyway). Of course, that occurs by having a big block of exposition settled down firmly in the middle of a scene of a guy standing under a tree for a few minutes. Oy.
Oh well. I never really thought that this thing would be complete after a second draft. That's crazy thinking any way I look at it. So at least I have "real" characters to torture and kill, now. Should make the bad things that are about to happen matter a little more. Maybe. A couple of drafts down the road.
Shit.
The worst part is that I blew off writing all week and instead crapped out these pages at the last minute (as if I were still in college). Granted, the last time I wrote consistently was when I was in college, but that's no excuse to keep up that kind of stupid "schedule." I had all day Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday (before going to work in the evening) and then all day Sunday, and for some reason, only wrote on Sunday. Late Sunday. Horrible.
So that's gotta change. Otherwise I might as well just not bother.
The whole point of this is to actually write something worth reading, isn't it? Why am I asking you? Anyway, I want to write something worth reading. Not something important, just something fun and entertaining and a little disturbing at times. But if I want to do that, then I have to do it. Not just blow it off and crap out little turds at crunchtime.
I had almost 2 pages of original story from the first draft and expanded it to 7 pages of crap. The only plus is that now three characters who had no personalities (or names, really) in the first draft, all have names and are fairly interesting (to me, anyway). Of course, that occurs by having a big block of exposition settled down firmly in the middle of a scene of a guy standing under a tree for a few minutes. Oy.
Oh well. I never really thought that this thing would be complete after a second draft. That's crazy thinking any way I look at it. So at least I have "real" characters to torture and kill, now. Should make the bad things that are about to happen matter a little more. Maybe. A couple of drafts down the road.
Shit.
The worst part is that I blew off writing all week and instead crapped out these pages at the last minute (as if I were still in college). Granted, the last time I wrote consistently was when I was in college, but that's no excuse to keep up that kind of stupid "schedule." I had all day Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday (before going to work in the evening) and then all day Sunday, and for some reason, only wrote on Sunday. Late Sunday. Horrible.
So that's gotta change. Otherwise I might as well just not bother.
The whole point of this is to actually write something worth reading, isn't it? Why am I asking you? Anyway, I want to write something worth reading. Not something important, just something fun and entertaining and a little disturbing at times. But if I want to do that, then I have to do it. Not just blow it off and crap out little turds at crunchtime.
Monday, February 12, 2007
The Future? Brilliant!
Oscartorrents.com
"To those worried about downloading in case they get sued: by our calculations, your chances of getting nailed are way less than your chances of winning the lottery. Don't think twice about it.
To all intellectual property landlords: we are aware that OscarTorrents might annoy you -- but contain your righteous indignation for a while, and think: we're only linking to torrents that already exist. Face it: your membrane has burst, and it wasn't us who burst it. Your precious bodily fluids are escaping.
You haven't beaten us, so why not join us? Think of a new business model that doesn't involve overpriced pieces of plastic and skanky cinemas hawking cheap carbohydrates while relying on $6/hr projectionists who can't keep a film in focus -- not to mention insulting your audiences by (to pick a few examples) surveilling us with nightvision glasses, searching bags, 30 minutes of commercials and bombarding us with ridiculous anti-piracy propaganda. Take a look at yourselves. Is it really any wonder we're winning?"
Remember kids, piracy is wrong. Like teenage suicide, don't do it.
"To those worried about downloading in case they get sued: by our calculations, your chances of getting nailed are way less than your chances of winning the lottery. Don't think twice about it.
To all intellectual property landlords: we are aware that OscarTorrents might annoy you -- but contain your righteous indignation for a while, and think: we're only linking to torrents that already exist. Face it: your membrane has burst, and it wasn't us who burst it. Your precious bodily fluids are escaping.
You haven't beaten us, so why not join us? Think of a new business model that doesn't involve overpriced pieces of plastic and skanky cinemas hawking cheap carbohydrates while relying on $6/hr projectionists who can't keep a film in focus -- not to mention insulting your audiences by (to pick a few examples) surveilling us with nightvision glasses, searching bags, 30 minutes of commercials and bombarding us with ridiculous anti-piracy propaganda. Take a look at yourselves. Is it really any wonder we're winning?"
Remember kids, piracy is wrong. Like teenage suicide, don't do it.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Physicists Unite Light And Matter
Physicists Unite Light And Matter
Physicists have for the first time stopped and extinguished a light pulse in one part of space and then revived it in a completely separate location. They accomplished this feat by completely converting the light pulse into matter that travels between the two locations and is subsequently changed back to light.
Physicists have for the first time stopped and extinguished a light pulse in one part of space and then revived it in a completely separate location. They accomplished this feat by completely converting the light pulse into matter that travels between the two locations and is subsequently changed back to light.
Princeton ESP Lab to Close
Princeton ESP Lab to Close
"If people don't believe us after all the results we've produced, then they never will," Jahn, 76, former dean of Princeton's engineering school and an emeritus professor, told The New York Times for Saturday editions.
"If people don't believe us after all the results we've produced, then they never will," Jahn, 76, former dean of Princeton's engineering school and an emeritus professor, told The New York Times for Saturday editions.
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Genetic Architecture
Genetic Architecture
The evolution of life and intelligence on Earth has finally reached the point where it is now deemed possible to engender something almost out of nothing. In principle, a universe of possible worlds based on generative principles inherent within nature and the physical universe is considered to be within the realm of the computable once quantum computing systems become a reality. For the first time, mankind is finally in possession of the power to change and transform the genetic constitution of biological species, which, without a doubt, has profound implications for the future of life on Earth.
The evolution of life and intelligence on Earth has finally reached the point where it is now deemed possible to engender something almost out of nothing. In principle, a universe of possible worlds based on generative principles inherent within nature and the physical universe is considered to be within the realm of the computable once quantum computing systems become a reality. For the first time, mankind is finally in possession of the power to change and transform the genetic constitution of biological species, which, without a doubt, has profound implications for the future of life on Earth.
Alone in the Wilderness
I guess I should actually try to use this blog for something other than data storage. A workblog is a good idea, I think.
So here goes.
There was a time when I wrote all the time. I have a file of stories that I really enjoyed creating. I wrote a number of stories that won prizes in my college fiction competitions, and I turned them into a collection that served as my Master's Thesis and also took First Place in the West Virginia Writers Conference competition a few years back. But then I stopped writing for a number of reasons I really don't feel like going into.
Anyway, over the last couple of years, I've been trying to get the ball rolling again and have taken part in the the 3 Day Novel competition and tried to take part in this year's NaNoWriMo. That last one didn't work out so well, but I did complete short novels (novellas, really) for the 3 Day Novels. They weren't good, but they had beginnings, middles, and endings, and that's something.
Recently, a friend of mine (Mr. Martini) suggested organizing a writing group in order to help motivate us to actually sit down and put words on the page. It seems that without a deadline, I can't get worked up to write. Since that seems to be the problem with some other people I know, as well, we have kick-started a writing group of sorts. It's fairly minimalist, with a minimum of 5 pages due each Monday, emailed to everyone in the group. There's no reward beyond a sense of accomplishment and personal pride, but there's also no punishment beyond shame and self-loathing. Hopefully that will be enough.
So I've dug out the latest work and begun the painful process of rewrites. And it is painful.
The work I did for NaNoWriMo is horrendous. There are good ideas, I think, but the execution is disturbingly bad. Nerve shaking bad, actually. I used to be pretty confident in my writing skills, and now, reading over this stuff, I considered giving up. Instead, I just put it aside and reread my 3Day Novels.
My first "novel" isn't bad, but is pretty short (70-odd pages) and needs major work. I don't think I'm up to that just yet. But I wasn't horrified by it, so that's good, eh?
My second "novel" also wasn't bad (to me, anyway), and clocked in a healthy 120ish pages, with a solid structure and a lot of entertainment value (to me, anyway). Granted, at the moment it is in first draft shape, meaning it pretty much sucks and needs a lot of attention. But I'm going to give it some love and try to expand it to around twice its current length. Since it was written over the course of 3 days and in a cloud of caffeine and beer there are things that need work. A lot of work, really. So that's actually a good thing.
It's Science Fiction / Horror with a fair balance of humorous and disturbing characters and events. So far, after one week with the writing group, I've reworked 2 short chapters into an 8 page prologue of sorts that I like. For the past few days, I've been thinking about the next section of the story and should start doing rewrites in the morning and all day Sunday. That deadline is looming.
The only real question (and it's not even a question that needs answered just yet) is which storyline do I jump into first. The prologue sets up one storyline and introduces 2 of the main characters, but there are 2 other narratives that I follow through the story. Which to choose?
I guess I'll decide that tomorrow when I start writing again.
So here goes.
There was a time when I wrote all the time. I have a file of stories that I really enjoyed creating. I wrote a number of stories that won prizes in my college fiction competitions, and I turned them into a collection that served as my Master's Thesis and also took First Place in the West Virginia Writers Conference competition a few years back. But then I stopped writing for a number of reasons I really don't feel like going into.
Anyway, over the last couple of years, I've been trying to get the ball rolling again and have taken part in the the 3 Day Novel competition and tried to take part in this year's NaNoWriMo. That last one didn't work out so well, but I did complete short novels (novellas, really) for the 3 Day Novels. They weren't good, but they had beginnings, middles, and endings, and that's something.
Recently, a friend of mine (Mr. Martini) suggested organizing a writing group in order to help motivate us to actually sit down and put words on the page. It seems that without a deadline, I can't get worked up to write. Since that seems to be the problem with some other people I know, as well, we have kick-started a writing group of sorts. It's fairly minimalist, with a minimum of 5 pages due each Monday, emailed to everyone in the group. There's no reward beyond a sense of accomplishment and personal pride, but there's also no punishment beyond shame and self-loathing. Hopefully that will be enough.
So I've dug out the latest work and begun the painful process of rewrites. And it is painful.
The work I did for NaNoWriMo is horrendous. There are good ideas, I think, but the execution is disturbingly bad. Nerve shaking bad, actually. I used to be pretty confident in my writing skills, and now, reading over this stuff, I considered giving up. Instead, I just put it aside and reread my 3Day Novels.
My first "novel" isn't bad, but is pretty short (70-odd pages) and needs major work. I don't think I'm up to that just yet. But I wasn't horrified by it, so that's good, eh?
My second "novel" also wasn't bad (to me, anyway), and clocked in a healthy 120ish pages, with a solid structure and a lot of entertainment value (to me, anyway). Granted, at the moment it is in first draft shape, meaning it pretty much sucks and needs a lot of attention. But I'm going to give it some love and try to expand it to around twice its current length. Since it was written over the course of 3 days and in a cloud of caffeine and beer there are things that need work. A lot of work, really. So that's actually a good thing.
It's Science Fiction / Horror with a fair balance of humorous and disturbing characters and events. So far, after one week with the writing group, I've reworked 2 short chapters into an 8 page prologue of sorts that I like. For the past few days, I've been thinking about the next section of the story and should start doing rewrites in the morning and all day Sunday. That deadline is looming.
The only real question (and it's not even a question that needs answered just yet) is which storyline do I jump into first. The prologue sets up one storyline and introduces 2 of the main characters, but there are 2 other narratives that I follow through the story. Which to choose?
I guess I'll decide that tomorrow when I start writing again.
Monday, October 23, 2006
Don't Look Up
US adopts tough new space policy
"The United States will preserve its rights, capabilities, and freedom of action in space... and deny, if necessary, adversaries the use of space capabilities hostile to US national interests."
"The United States will preserve its rights, capabilities, and freedom of action in space... and deny, if necessary, adversaries the use of space capabilities hostile to US national interests."
Corpse Scam
US undertakers admit corpse scam
Other evidence includes X-rays and photographs of exhumed corpses showing that where leg bones should have been, someone had inserted white plastic pipes.
The pipes were crudely reconnected to hip and ankle bones with screws before the legs were sewn back up.
New York City Police Commissioner, Ray Kelly, said: "The unspeakable desecration of the bodies - PVC pipe was used to replace bones. Indeed, the very equipment that they used, the mask and gloves and surgical items were tossed into the bodies."
Other evidence includes X-rays and photographs of exhumed corpses showing that where leg bones should have been, someone had inserted white plastic pipes.
The pipes were crudely reconnected to hip and ankle bones with screws before the legs were sewn back up.
New York City Police Commissioner, Ray Kelly, said: "The unspeakable desecration of the bodies - PVC pipe was used to replace bones. Indeed, the very equipment that they used, the mask and gloves and surgical items were tossed into the bodies."
Monday, August 14, 2006
Pure Novelty Spurs The Brain:
Now, researchers Nico Bunzeck and Emrah Duzel report studies with humans showing that the SN/VTA does respond to novelty as such and this novelty motivates the brain to explore, seeking a reward. The researchers of University College London and Otto von Guericke University reported their findings in the August 3, 2006, issue of Neuron, published by Cell Press.
Now, researchers Nico Bunzeck and Emrah Duzel report studies with humans showing that the SN/VTA does respond to novelty as such and this novelty motivates the brain to explore, seeking a reward. The researchers of University College London and Otto von Guericke University reported their findings in the August 3, 2006, issue of Neuron, published by Cell Press.
Thursday, August 03, 2006
A Nation of Neurotics? Blame the Puppet Masters?
According to this blog entry, personality traits like self-doubt and insecurity, can sometimes be attributed to a brain parasite infestation.
"So Lafferty wondered, is there a relationship between a country's prevalence of Toxoplasma and its culture?
The answer, he argues, is yes. He selected a few key features of human personality that Toxoplasma appears to influence, and which have been measured on a national scale--such as neuroticism, uncertainty avoidance, and "masculine" sex roles. Lafferty predicted that in countries with higher Toxoplasma rates, these features would all be stronger. He gathered data from studies on 39 countries in from all five continents. He corrected for various factors, for example including per capita gross domestic product as a variable. He found a signficiant correlation between high levels of the parasite and high levels of neuroticism. There was a positive but weak correlation between Toxoplasma and levels of uncertainty avoidances and masculine sex roles. However, if he excluded the non-Western countries of China, South Korea, Japan, Turkey, and Indonesia, the correlations of both personality measurements with Toxoplasma got much stronger."
"So Lafferty wondered, is there a relationship between a country's prevalence of Toxoplasma and its culture?
The answer, he argues, is yes. He selected a few key features of human personality that Toxoplasma appears to influence, and which have been measured on a national scale--such as neuroticism, uncertainty avoidance, and "masculine" sex roles. Lafferty predicted that in countries with higher Toxoplasma rates, these features would all be stronger. He gathered data from studies on 39 countries in from all five continents. He corrected for various factors, for example including per capita gross domestic product as a variable. He found a signficiant correlation between high levels of the parasite and high levels of neuroticism. There was a positive but weak correlation between Toxoplasma and levels of uncertainty avoidances and masculine sex roles. However, if he excluded the non-Western countries of China, South Korea, Japan, Turkey, and Indonesia, the correlations of both personality measurements with Toxoplasma got much stronger."
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Friday, June 23, 2006
Reality Grip
Our grip on reality is slim, says UCL scientist:
The neurological basis for poor witness statements and hallucinations has been found by scientists at UCL (University College London). In over a fifth of cases, people wrongly remembered whether they actually witnessed an event or just imagined it, according to a paper published in NeuroImage this week.
"Our work has implications for the validity of witness statements and agrees with other studies that show that our mind sometimes fills in memory gaps for us, and we confuse what we imagined occurred in a situation - which is related to what we expect to happen or what usually happens - with what actually happened.
"Most of us, though, have a critical reality monitoring function so that we are able to distinguish well enough between what is real and what is imagined and our imagination does not have too great an impact on our lives - unless the reality check system breaks down such as after stroke or in cases of schizophrenia."
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Self Publishing
BookSurge Publishing:
BookSurge Publishing is a key partner for authors who, like you, choose to initiate the publishing of their work. We provide professional services throughout your publishing experience and beyond, from polishing your manuscript and creating an effective cover to providing valuable expertise and marketing services for maximum results.
Our staff are experts in publishing and marketing books, and our company is a pioneer in the self-publishing industry. BookSurge services are offered with one goal in mind: to provide you with a quality, marketable book and to arm you with a strategy to reach your full potential as an author.
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