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Canadian spy agency says Chinese hacked into NRC computers
The Centennial Flame burns on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday, May 3, 2012. (The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick)
Terry Pedwell, The Canadian Press
Published Tuesday, July 29, 2014 8:48AM EDT
Last Updated Tuesday, July 29, 2014 10:49PM EDT
OTTAWA -- The recent infiltration of National Research Council of Canada computers by Chinese hackers comes as the agency is working on an advanced computer encryption system that is supposed to prevent such attacks.
The cyber assault has been met with sharp criticism of the Chinese government by Ottawa -- even as Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird is in China laying a path for a visit there this fall by Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
The federal government revealed Tuesday that the NRC's networks were the target of a cyber attack, resulting in the shutdown of its IT network for an extended period. The Chinese embassy in Ottawa denied any such attack.
Curiously, the NRC has been working with private sector and university research teams on a physics-based, state-of-the-art computer encryption system.
"The emerging field of quantum communication promises unhackable, secure communication that can be applied to protect our digital infrastructure," says the NRC's website.
"NRC is developing photonics-based, quantum-enhanced cyber security solutions ... collaborating to develop technologies that address increased demands for high-performance security for communications, data storage and data processing."
The research agency had hoped that such technology would position Canada as a global leader in field of quantum cyber security.
The Treasury Board Secretariat has not said when the NRC's computer systems were infiltrated or what the hackers might have been able to access, but said there is no evidence that other government computer systems or data have been compromised.
For now the NRC's computers have been isolated from the rest of the government's systems as a precaution, a move that the agency said "will affect ongoing business operations."
The council said it could be some time before a new, more secure system is up and running.
"NRC is continuing to work closely with its IT experts and security partners to create a new secure IT infrastructure," the council said in a statement. "This could take approximately one year however; every step is being taken to minimize disruption."
In a separate statement, the government said one of Canada's spy agencies, the Communications Security Establishment, detected and confirmed the cyber attack.
The intrusion came from "a highly sophisticated Chinese state-sponsored actor," said the Treasury Board. "We have no evidence that data compromises have occurred on the broader Government of Canada network."
Still, the NRC said it has notified the Privacy Commissioner and its clients and stakeholders about the breach.
The agency said it would not release further information, citing security and confidentiality reasons. It planned to update Canadians on the situation by Thursday.
However, in a recording of an internal briefing obtained by CTV News, NRC president John McDougall warned that employee and client data could have been compromised.
He also told employees in a conference call not to connect their memory sticks, smartphones or tablets to their work computers.
A spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa denied his country's involvement in any hacking action.
"The Chinese government has always firmly opposed to and combated cyber attacks in accordance with the law. In fact, China is a major victim of cyber attacks," Yang Yundong said in a statement released Tuesday.
"We do not accept the groundless allegation of so-called China's involvement in any cyber intrusion or attacks."
Baird, who is on a three-country visit to Asia, raised concerns over the breach with Chinese government officials in Beijing on Tuesday, according to a spokesman for the minister.
"The minister took the opportunity to discuss the situation with his counterpart, and they had a full and frank exchange of views on the matter," said Adam Hodge.
"The government takes this issue very seriously and we are addressing it at the highest levels in both Beijing and Ottawa."
The cyber attack is awkward timing for Ottawa, since Harper has been planning for a possible state visit to China in November, coinciding with his attendance at an Asian economic summit in Beijing at the end of that month.
Canada and China have been wrestling with several thorny issues -- such as Canada's delay in signing an investment treaty with China and new Canadian rules imposed on state-owned foreign investors -- and the cyber attack does not make the diplomatic dance any more graceful.
The National Research Council houses some important intellectual property. It touts itself as "the Government of Canada's premier organization for research and development," which partners its scientists, engineers and business experts with private industry to bring new technologies to market.
Aside from computer network encryption research, it has also been working to co-develop a new treatment against aggressive brain cancers.
It is also been developing DNA sequencing through genomics research that could have implications for a wide range of industries involved in agriculture, the environment, fisheries, forestry, and health.
Attacks on computer systems owned by Canadian governments and businesses are becoming increasingly prevalent, says the International Cyber Security Protection Alliance.
The global not-for-profit group released a study in May 2013 showing that 69 per cent of Canadian businesses reported some kind of attack within a twelve-month period in 2012.
The attacks included unauthorized access or misuse of corporate websites and telecommunication fraud, with more than one quarter of businesses saying the attacks had a considerable impact on their business.
In the United States, the Pentagon began to expand its cyber-security forces last year in the wake of attempted cyber attacks by China-based hackers.


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Minnesota Atheists' regional conference will be held in St Paul on 10 August, with the always awesome Susan Jacoby as the headliner. Sign up and join us! We'll also have Amanda Knief, Hector Avalos, Greta Christina, and some boring local guy they always bring in because he's cheap and convenient. But it will be great fun!
Also, sign up for the baseball game the night before. Maybe you aren't into the sports stuff, but it's more of a social event with our local team, the St Paul Aints, having a great time clowning on the field, and lots of cheerful godless conversation over hot dogs and beer. I went last year, and greatly enjoyed myself.

subset: commoncrawl


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Nick Hundley, Jedd Gyrko homer as Padres rip Rockies
DENVER -- The Colorado Rockies came out swinging and put San Diego in an early deficit.
Unlike Monday, the Padres answered the challenge.
Nick Hundley homered and drove in two runs, Will Venable had three hits, and San Diego rallied to beat the Rockies 7-5 on Tuesday night.
Jedd Gyorko also went deep for the second straight night for the Padres, who rebounded from a 14-2 loss to the Rockies on Monday.
"You can't completely wash it out," Gyorko said. "We showed resiliency to fight back the way we did."
San Diego beat the Rockies for just the fourth time in 15 games this season.
Charlie Culberson had two hits and two RBIs, and Nolan Arenado and DJ LeMahieu also had two hits each for Colorado, which had its four-game winning streak snapped.
The Padres got the win despite an uncharacteristic start from left-hander Eric Stults, who was 3-0 with a 3.35 ERA in six career starts against the Rockies. He had been dominant against them this season, going 2-0 with a 1.13 ERA, but that changed in a hurry.
The first four batters reached for Colorado in the first inning, with Wilin Rosario delivering a two-run, bases-loaded single to center to make it 2-1.
One out later, Todd Helton and Culberson had RBI singles to stretch the lead to 4-1.
"When teams are aggressive and you leave the ball generally good things aren't going to happen for you," Stults said. "They put some good swings on them, I put myself in a hole early on."
The four earned runs in one inning were double what Stults had previously allowed in 16 innings against Colorado this season.
San Diego couldn't do much against Jhoulys Chacin on Monday, but the Padres jumped on Jeff Manship (0-2) in the second inning.
Hundley hit a two-run homer, Stults singled and scored on Venable's triple, and Venable came home on Alexi Amarista's single to give San Diego a 5-4 lead.
Gyorko made it 6-4 in the third with his 12th home run.
"All I can take out of this outing that was positive was just the fact that I was able to get to the fifth and kind of save the bullpen," Manship said. "But all in all, pretty bad performance."
The Rockies loaded the bases with no outs in the third, but came away empty when Charlie Blackmon flied out to shallow center and Manship grounded into a double play.
"Big double play in the third with the bases loaded," Stults said. "Just happy for our team, especially after last night where we didn't play that well. To come from behind to win this game was big for us."
The Padres played sloppy on a rain-soaked Monday night. They committed a season-high four errors, starter Edison Volquez was hit hard and the bullpen gave up six runs in the eighth.
It was a much different scene Tuesday.
San Diego played flawless defense and four relievers combined to give up one hit -- a broken-bat triple by pinch-hitter Corey Dickerson -- in 4 1/3 innings.
"How about that? Bat shattered and went to the wall," manager Bud Black said.
Colorado got within a run in the fifth when Arenado tripled and scored on a sacrifice fly, but the Padres made it 7-5 on Ronny Cedeno's RBI single in the sixth.
Stults left after Blackmon singled with two outs in the fifth and missed his chance for the victory. Tim Stauffer (2-1) pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings for the win.
"After the first inning started going to the fastball more, which was great," Black said of Stults. "It's a bummer he couldn't get Blackmon out to get through five."
Huston Street got the final four outs for his 23rd save.
"The strength of the Padres team for so many years has been the bullpen," Street said. "There's a reason I don't have to pitch many four-out saves."
Game notes
Venable extended his hitting streak to 10 games. It ties the longest streak of his career, which he did in September 2010. ... Colorado manager Walt Weiss said Rosario tweaked his right hamstring running the bases in the first but was able to stay in the game. ... Rockies OF Michael Cuddyer rejoined the team after missing two games due to an illness. He wasn't in the starting lineup but pinch-hit in the fifth inning. ... Rockies RHP Tyler Chatwood (elbow inflammation) is scheduled to throw a bullpen session when the team is in Baltimore this weekend. ... San Diego will send RHP Andrew Cashner (8-6) against LHP Jorge De La Rosa (11-6) in Wednesday's finale of the three-game series.
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Betts shines as Dodgers top Rays in Game 1
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Clayton Kershaw carved through the Rays' lineup, retiring 17 of the final 18 batters he faced and leading the Dodgers to an 8-3 victory in Game 1 of the 116th World Series on Tuesday night.
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Kevin Kiermaier nails a solo homer to deep right as the Rays trail the Dodgers 2-1.
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Clayton Kershaw collects eight strikeouts through six innings, passing John Smoltz for the second-most strikeouts in MLB postseason history.
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L.A.'s offense took the pressure off its ace in the World Series opener as Kershaw & Co. blew away the Rays.


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Professor Maria Leptin, EMBO Director
Maria Leptin received her PhD in 1983 for work on B cell activation carried out at the Basel Institute for Immunology under the supervision of Fritz Melchers. She switched to the study of development in Drosophila when she joined the laboratory of Michael Wilcox at the Medical Research Council's Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) in Cambridge, UK, for her postdoctoral work on Drosophila integrins. After a research visit at the lab of Pat O'Farrell at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), where she began studying gastrulation, she spent the years from 1989 to 1994 as a group leader at the Max Planck Institute in Tübingen. In 1994, she became Professor at the Institute of Genetics University of Cologne.
In January 2010 Maria Leptin became the Director of EMBO and established a research group in Heidelberg at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL). The group studies the development of complex cell shapes in the respiratory system of Drosophila and the role of RNA localisation in generating cell shape. Professor Leptin is an elected member of EMBO, the Academia Europaea and the German National Academy of Sciences (Leopoldina). She also serves on the editorial boards of Developmental Cell, Developmental Biology and on advisory boards of several academic institutions.
Eilish Craddock
Personal Assistant to the Director


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Husker women fall at No. 18 North Carolina
No. 15 Nebraska jumped to a 16-7 lead, but the hosts from No. 18 North Carolina used a 23-4 surge late in the first half to claim a 75-62 win in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge at Carmichael Arena on Wednesday night.
The Huskers fell to 6-2 with their second straight loss, while the Tar Heels improved to 7-2 on the season.
Jordan Hooper, who led the Huskers with 18 points, shot Nebraska to the early lead by burying three three-pointers in the game's first five minutes. Brandi Jeffery added an early three and so did Tear'a Laudermill, as Nebraska maintained a 21-13 edge with 11:29 left in the first half.
Xylina McDaniel, who pumped in 17 first-half points on 7-of-7 shooting, then fueled North Carolina's comeback. She helped UNC cut Nebraska's lead 23-20, before Stephanie Mavunga scored and forced the second foul on Hooper with 8:28 left in the half.
With Hooper out, the Tar Heels scored eight consecutive points before Hailie Sample stopped the run to cut the edge to 30-25 with 4:40 left in the half. UNC kept surging, running off six more points to push the Tar Heel lead to dougle digits for the first time at 36-25 after back-to-back baskets by Jessica Washington.
Hooper re-entered with 2:07 left and promptly hit her fourth three of the half with 1:47 left to get the margin back to eight points. McDaniel scored UNC's final four points of the half, before Sample scored NU's last two points with 47 seconds left to make it 40-30 UNC.
Hooper scored four of NU's first six points early in the second half to help the Huskers trim UNC's margin to six points, but Nebraska could get no closer.
McDaniel led all scorers with 25 points, finishing 11-for-15 from the field, while adding eight rebounds. Allisha Gray added 14 points and Diamond DeShields pitched in 11 points off the bench. Stephanie Mavunga also helped UNC inside with eight points and 11 rebounds.
North Carolina won the battle of the boards, 40-33, including 13 offensive rebounds. UNC outscored the Huskers, 12-4 in second-chance points.
Hooper led four Huskers in double figures with 18 points and nine rebounds, while Rachel Theriot added 12 points and five assists. Tear'a Laudermill added 11 points, while Hailie Sample pitched in 10 points and four boards.
Nebraska hit just 39.3 percent of its shots from the field, including 6-of-21 three-pointers. NU hit 4-of-5 threes to open the game, but went 2-of-16 the rest of the contest. NU was a perfect 12-for-12 at the free throw line, but committed 21 turnovers.
North Carolina hit 48.5 percent (32-66) from the field, including 6-of-20 from long range. UNC hit just 5-of-11 free throws, but committed just 15 turnovers.
Nebraska returns home to open a five-game home stand at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Sunday, when the Huskers take on Utah State. Tip-off between the Huskers and 5-1 Aggies is set for 2 p.m. with tickets available now at Huskers.com.
Information from Nebraska Athletics


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Homemade pizza beats delivery!
Plus save a bucket of money!
It's made your way--thin crust or thick and exactly with the toppings you want. The ingredients are fresh. Nobody will care for your pizza the way you will.
- Each large mix makes a 15-inch, medium-thick pizza crust or two thin crusts.
- Authentic "old world" pizza dough with a mixture of the finest flours.
- Makes a soft, pliable dough with almost no "spring back"
- Comes with SAF yeast.
- Quick with easy-to-follow instructions.
Ask the Baker
"Debbie makes great thin crust pizzas with this mix. She uses only half the mix for each 15-inch pizza. She usually uses white sauce and less cheese and fresh veggies. The crusts come out thin and crisp and the pizzas are delightful. Many of her recipes are available on our site."
— Dennis Weaver
How to Make a Pizza in 15 minutes
This mix is designed especially for thin crust pizzas. Thin crust pizzas require a soft, pliable dough without lumps that can be rolled out so that it's very thin and can quickly be baked to a crisp.
This mix has a secret ingredient that makes the dough so soft that it has virtually no springback for smooth, uniform crusts without shrinkage. But it also makes a great deep dish pizza and calzones too.
See our blog post: "How to Make Pizzas Quicker than Delivery"
This mix is very authentic, reminiscent of the great pizzerias of Italy. It makes a wonderful, light dough with just a touch of whole grain flour, a nice texture and taste.
Breakfast Pizza with Eggs, Bacon, and Cheese
Ingredients: Enriched wheat flour (wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, and folic acid), white rye flour, milk (nonfat dry milk), sugar, salt, yeast (yeast, monostearate), and dough conditioner added for better baking (wheat flour, dextrose, soy flour, calcium salts, dicetyl tartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides, ethoxylated mono- and diglycerides, soy lecithin, ascorbic acid, L-cysteine monohydrochloride, fungal enzymes, azodicarbonamide, and calcium iodate). This product contains wheat, soy, and dairy products and may contain traces of eggs, peanuts, or tree nuts.
- Stock: In Stock
- Model: B46C-1
- Weight: 0.78lb


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Helpful information once you are approved for SNAP
When you will receive your benefits
You should receive your SNAP/food stamps on the same date each month. This date is based on the last digit of your Social Security Number, as follows.
Using your EBT card
To use your card, swipe it through the machine at checkout, enter your PIN number, and then press Enter. If the store's machine is not working, ask the clerk to fill out a manual voucher.
Checking your balance
You can check the balance of your SNAP benefits on the cash register receipt after a purchase, or by calling the EBT Customer Service line at 1-800-997-2555.
What you can purchase and when
You can purchase most food with your EBT card except alcohol, pet food, or hot prepared foods. You can also purchase seeds and plants to grow food. For a comprehensive list of permissible foods to purchase with your EBT card, please visit the USDA website.
You do not have to use all of your benefits in a single month. But, if you leave more than two month's worth of benefits on your card, your DTA caseworker will call you to ask if you still need the benefits. You should try to use your benefits in the month you receive them.
If you leave more than three months of benefits in your account, your DTA caseworker will cancel your card and you will need to give your caseworker proof of your income and expenses within 180 days.
Changes to your situation
Sometimes you may have a change in your financial situation or the number of people in your household. It is best to check with your DTA caseworker to see when you must provide information on changes. If you do not notify your caseworker about certain changes, you may be required to pay back your SNAP benefits.
After a certain period of time, you will have to recertify your SNAP benefits. That is, you will need to provide your DTA caseworker with any relevant updated information. Learn more about the recertification process.
Important notes
Lost EBT card
If your EBT card is lost or stolen, your benefits will not be replaced. It is very important to report a lost or stolen card as soon as possible.
If you lose your card or need to change your PIN number, call 1-800-997-2555.
Replacement benefits
If you experience a flood, fire, or other household problem that resulted in the loss of the food you purchased with your SNAP benefits, you may be able to receive replacement benefits for that month. You should contact your DTA caseworker immediately and be ready to provide documentation of the situation.
Sometimes a store may accidently deduct benefits off your card for purchases you did not make. If this happens, the store must file a "merchant mis-dispense claim" with the DTA. It may take a few weeks to receive replacement benefits.
For more information, or if you have lost your card or had benefits deducted that you did not spend, call Project Bread's FoodSource Hotline at 1-800-645-8333 to find locations of free food resources in your area.
GettingSNAP.org is a resource created by Project Bread - The Walk for Hunger, Inc., and has been funded in part with federal funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance. The contents of this website do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of USDA, nor does mention of tradenames, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
Project Bread - The Walk for Hunger® | 145 Border Street | East Boston, MA 02128


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Trey Anastasio to play the Jeff
Fresh off a year full of Phish tours, guitarist Trey Anastasio is starting the new decade off with a bam–- and a month long tour in February. After transforming the John Paul Jones Arena into a full-fledged Phish fanzone Saturday, December 5 (complete with glowsticks and a naked stage crasher), Anastasio returns to Charlottesville. This time, he and his Classic TAB band will take over the newly revamped Jefferson Theater, reported Rolling Stone Tuesday, January 5.
After wrapping up 2009 with four nights performing with Phish in Miami (culminating on New Year's Eve), Anastasio will begin his aggressive month-long tour Monday, February 8, in Charlottesville before heading up to Washington D.C.'s 9:30 Club the next night, then cruising to Philadelphia and Boston later the same week. Tickets go on sale through Starr Hill Presents on Friday, January 15 at 10am, but according to RS, an online request for tickets begins on Trey Tickets (a fan site) tomorrow, January 6, at 10am.
–updated 1:40pm Thursday, January 7: after confirming the date with Danny Shea of Starr Hill Presents, changed Saturday, Jan. 16 to Friday, Jan. 15 as the correct date tickets go on sale.
41 comments
Ticket scalpers are terrible people.
People who would shut adult discussions down with name calling are terrible people in my view. Does that make us even now?
Rock is dead. Country just plain sucks these days. Hip-Hop, well enough said. Bring back DISCO.
::loads iPod with Slayer:: Bring on the Hippies!
Pre-sale sold out quickly. I am glad I will be at this show. He is bringing a tight band with a full horn section. His solo music is not like Phish at all, more in the big band afro-groove vein of King Sunny Ade.
Easy. We hate because we love. Good music.
Anyone think this will sell out? People seem to travel a long way to see this dude for some reason, and I was thinking about buying some tickies to "help out" some of the fans who show up to town sans ticket but with too much of daddy's cash in hand. Good investment or no?
Just a note on whether or not a better guitarist would come to Charlottesville: DEREK TRUCKS, he was here and in my humble opinion is better.
Icenine: I love the video game goths they are my favorite....
Cool, Rick. You can stay home with some pepto.
You haters can name me one guitarist as talented as Trey that would play your crap area?
Yep, I think I'm going to listen to Revolver six times, eat a gallon of chocolate chip cookie dough, and save the inevitable explosion for the front door of the Jefferson during the encore. Rick, you in?
Maybe Rick and Jim can stay in together that night, listen to some "good music" and hate and throw up together.
Gag me with a dredlock! Another lame show...what about booking some female artists at this venue? Sharon Jones is not enough, spread the love to the lady rockers. The entire current line-up, aside from St. Vincent, are white guy bands with more dredlocks than minorities. And Davino, C-ville has greater guitarists than Trey. Jay Pun and Jamal Milner can riff circles around Trey any day of the week.
Glad no one depends on an article like this for something like . . . oh . . . accuracy. General Sale of tickets begins Friday, January 15th.
Talk to Red Light, Patsy. The many, many of the acts at the
Jeff(erson, rush ;) ) are managed by Redlight management, founded by Coran Capshaw, who also paid for the Jeff(erson). Cheap Trick, Trey, North Missippi Allstars, Drive By Truckers...all Red Light acts.
You know those hippies are having S- E -X too!
i agree with Patsy. more diversity in the shows, please. male, female, i don't care. just different music.
I hate hippies. get a haircut take a shower and enlist.
Dear Peter, Saw a deadhead sticker on a Cadillac, which read,
Jerry's dead, Phish sucks, cut my hair, might as well get a f**king job. While the above may be true. About you it should be said, Ain't no time to hate barely time to wait, all i want to know is where does the time go. As for showere, they may be over rated, and enlisting well.. it's not for everybody. G**dam* well I declare have you seen the light?
Ohh geez more hippies.
and drugs and long boring guitar solos
Luckily it's on a Tuesday night and I won't want to be out and have to avoid hippies.
This guy is so untalented....when he played Scott Stadium before the Stones, I thought we'd puke.
Damn Rick I forgot all about that. Just goes to show how memorable he was but then again I was on another level for that joint. I do recall the Stones playing Sweet Virginia!
kinda hard to avoid hippies if you're at the venue during the show Jim, but i guess you have it all worked out. I'll make sure not to slip on my way out.
It'll be worth it. :) Wear your boots.
are you guys joking?
He's one of the best guitarist of the last 25 years and the fans are more than just HIPPIES
this is a historic night for the Jeff
the jeff? is it really that hard to say the jefferson? why must we find short catchy names for every venue? i guess jefferson wouldn't fit in your teaser for this stellar piece of journalism. and jack, what is wrong with JPJ if you can't say the whole name? no wonder our kids butcher the english language.
The real name for JPJ should not be "The Jack".
It should be "The John".
I guess everyone has their cranky pants on today. I'd love to join in. I'm not fully convinced that Rush has an entirely firm grasp on the langauge either, judging by his sentance structure and lack of capitalization.
Find it, Rush. I know you want to.
I'm not so offended by the use of "The Jeff" but by the Hook staff writer Ms. Garcia's inability to spell the City of Brotherly Love ("Philidelphia"?!). For a short two-paragraph story, how long would it take to spell check the thing or just hand it to your editor for a good old fashioned proofread?
arpal, you seem to have found the irony in my post. i will also play your game: sentEnce, langUAge
Good for you! You found it!
No way. Scalpers keep fans from being able to see the show at face value. Total DB thing to do.
Look at that! Philadelphia is now spelled correctly above. Thanks, Ms. Garcia.
Stephanie, I see your explanation of why you posted the incorrect date for the general public sale of tickets, but are you going to actually correct the error in the article, or just continue to misinform??
This entire "blogpost" reeks of noobdom and hate. While both Phish and TAB are not for everyone, the distaste directed at having one of the most gifted and high profile musicians of the last 20 years opening up a tour here is just sad.
Also, regarding hippies, have you actually looked around town? Whole place is a cornucopia of wook. They're everywhere...not to mention those crazy dressed videogame character looking goths and the bedhead tightpants wearing hipsters. To hell in a handbasket with these young whippersnappers I tell you!
Long live the interwebs!!!
I would really like to see some real kick ass rock in this town again, but apparently Charlottesville is too freakin cool for true rock n roll.


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About us
We're a small think-and-do tank investigating the evolution of intellectual discourse as it shifts from printed pages to networked screens. There are independent branches of Institute in New York, London and Brisbane. The New York branch is affiliated with the Libraries of New York University.
Our partner organisations are
Read our mission statement »
A list of our projects (roughly chronological)
if:book is our blog, the daily record of our inquiry into a wide range of topics, all in some way fitting into the techno-cultural puzzle that is the future of reading and writing.


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Regions followed
Name: Lois Richter (=same person as user Lois-Richter)
Mailing address: P.O. Box 7, Davis CA 95617-0007
Phone Number: (530) 902-0209 (cell & text)
KDRT (95.7-FM) show: "That's Life" on Thursdays, 1:00-2:00 pm, repeats once & is also podcasts. Lois interviews local folks about their jobs, passions, travels, interest groups, or upcoming events. Weeks without an interview feature Hawaiian music, ballads, "Golden Oldies" rock, or some poetry or essay reading.
KDRT (95.7-FM): "Davis Garden Show" on Thursdays, noon-1:00 pm, repeats Sat. 9 am and podcast. Lois plays side-kick to plant expert Don Shor on this call-in gardening show. If you ever have a gardening problem or question, this is the place to call! If Don can't help you, he can most likely point you in the direction of somebody who can. Davis Garden Show is also archived online (mp3 files) and podcast. See DavisGardenShow.com for details.
DCTV (cable channel 15) series: "Thoughtfulness" (formerly Sundays at 5:00pm). Started in the 1990s, this show was to TV what Lois' current show is to radio — an eclectic mix of topics — with the addition of lots of visual plays and activities. Sometimes new live shows were created weekly, often they were on a bi-weekly or monthly shooting schedule. Recently it's been very erratic, and is no longer scheduled as a weekly event.
A sub-series on DCTV was "Gardening West of the Causeway" featuring Don Shor — similar to the Davis Garden Show radio program, but with pictures and real plants instead of phone calls. Each month there was at least one season-related gardening show offered.
Usually outgoing, occasionally reclusive. Very friendly. Often offers to help in groups and participates fully in meetings. Speaks to strangers and is easily distracted by birds, flowers, kittens, etcetera. Likes to know what the rules are before the game begins. Lois has a passion for learning new things and for sharing what she knows. Always an editor, Lois likes to learn about something and then create a clear presentation to pass that knowledge along.
Strengths: Bright, intense, easily enthused, able to analyse problems and devise solutions, very good with words. A good editor, able to focus and clarify. (Better at doing things NOW than at remembering to contact others later.)
Weaknesses: Makes puns and word plays. Under-exercised. Frequently gets caught up in the moment and loses track of time; needs to use her calendar a lot! Occasionally forgets to go somewhere or is late. Inertia causes her to not go out much unless she's keeping a formal commitment — or is picked up by someone. Perhaps says "Yes" too much.
Personal History:
Originally surprised at being asked to teach, Lois eventually took on that role in many arenas — leading classes for the Mother.com ISP, the MacNexus users group, and Davis Community Network; teaching thru DJUSD's Davis Adult School, City of Davis' Senior Center, and UCD's Craft Center; and doing private work as a one-to-one tutor and a small-group corporate instructor. As a co-leader of the ''Internet Users Group (IUG)'', Lois occasionally gives topical presentations.
Lois leads tours as a Docent for the Arboretum at UCDavis and a volunteer for the Yolo Audubon Society. She and her husband (Jim Drummond) planned to run a birding-connection business after he retired — hence their domain name GoTouring.com!
New Current Passion (as of 2016): Mosaic art
Lois was under lots of stress while helping her mother during her final five years (after Mom lost much of her vision and moved back from Oregon to Yolo County). With the help of a mosaic artist friend, Lois discovered the joy of making patterns from little bits of things. Now she does that, makes ceramics, forms wirework and embossed aluminum; and has returned to making ATCs in 2016.
Previous Current Passion (as of 2010): ATCs
ATCs = Artist Trading Cards (aka "Art Cards") = 2-1/2" x 3-1/2" works of art which are created by one person and exchange with another ATC-maker. These little treasures are never sold, only traded (or gifted). Lois worked for six months on the first-ever public ATC Exchange in our region (22 Sept. 2006). It was preceded by three ATC classes in August, a workshop in early September, a Davis Enterprise article, and lots of flyers and announcements. More than 20 people came to the Exchange — most with at least a few cards to trade — and there was enough interest in an ongoing ATC group that two more 2006 swaps were planned and a new club was formed early in 2009. Call Lois for more info about the ATC Exchange Club of Northern California.
Presentations, Teaching, Etc.: Upcoming Events Being a docent for the Arboretum for about 20 years, I annually lead 2-6 tours. Different years, different topics. In January 2009, I did a presentation (slideshow, talk, and birdwalk) that drew the LARGEST group of participants I've ever had! The room was packed. (And so many folks said they regretted missing it, that I did a similar presentation at the Senior Center in March.)
Asked to repeat this topic for 2010, I present "Birds that Winter in the Arboretum" TWICE ... on October 17 and November 21.
For 2012, I scheduled "Birds in Davis" (a free slideshow & talk) BOTH at the Senior Center (Tuesday, 31 Jan) /and at Arb HQ Library (Sat., 4 Feb) with a birdwalk following the Saturday presentation. (All events free and public.) Then in 2013, I did another Arb presentation & birdwalk. Talks have continues annually, even in the hard times.
If you want info about my upcoming birding talks (or art workshops), please contact me by phone.
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2010-08-30 21:37:50 Hey Lois, thanks for all your work on the various bird pages! ... there's a feature you might find useful. You can view changes to a page one by one in chronological order. All you have to do is click on the "Info" button at the top of a page, select two of the edits (potentially the first two, versions 1 and 2), and hit the "Compare" button. That'll bring up a page showing you the first edit made to the page after it was created, along with the date of the change and the editor who made it. At the top of that page, you'll find a "next edit" link which'll take you to Version 3 and show the second change, and so on. It's a reasonably good way to track a conversation.
That said, it's far from perfect. The next version of wiki software, which is in development now, will significantly improve the ability to track and/or join discussions. —TomGarberson
2010-08-30 22:45:02 ... As for what's 'better' to do, well it really depends what you're doing. If you're going to make a quick change like capitalize a letter, then Quick Edit is perfect. If you're going to do some in depth work like rearranging and restructuring paragraphs, then you'll probably want to do a proper edit.
For the other, it is definitely better to edit one page, save your changes and then edit another page, though with less used pages (like the birds pages) it probably won't make a difference.
Having a page open for editing does not prevent other people from editing it, just whoever saves 2nd (or 3rd, etc) has to check the edits of the other person and remove automatically added tags before they can save to prevent people either changing the exact same thing or overwriting someone else's changes by mistake.
You can also put comments in the bar under the edit window that will tell other people what changes you are making so they don't have to open the page and compare your edit to the old version to find out what has changed. —MasonMurray
Just to give you another perspective on this issue — since there are many ways of doing things, and no "rules" other than the ones that editors agree to — in my opinion, it is fine to edit a page a bit at a time, adding new content at each point, as you have been doing. I think the "please remember to preview" issue comes in when people mis-code and don't see it because they forgot to preview, so that rather than each edit adding new content, each edit is trying to do the same thing. I think your edits have been great and I thank you for your contributions!! —CovertProfessor
2011-11-29 23:33:51 Thanks for your additions to the town history. Much appreciated! —ScottMeehleib


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Description & Behavior
Atlantic bluefin tuna, Thunnus thynnus (Linnaeus, 1758), aka blue fin tuna, blue-fin tunny, bluefin tuna, horse mackerels, northern bluefin tuna, and squid hounds…, are regarded as one of the most highly evolved fish species and one of the most prized fish in danger of overfishing. Tuna, originating from the Greek word meaning "to rush," usually swim at speeds of 1.5-4 knots, can maintain 8 knots for some time, and can break 20 knots for short periods. These are one of the most magnificent fishes in the sea. One fish can sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars. A 342 kg tuna sold at Tokyo's Tsukiji fish market for 32.49 million yen ($396,700 US dollars), the highest price for a single fish since record-keeping began in 1999, that's 95,000 yen ($1,157) per kg!
Atlantic bluefin tuna are the largest member of the Scombridae Family (albacores, bonitos, mackerels, tunas). They are one of the largest bony fishes and can reach lengths of up to 3 m, although they are more commonly found from 0.5-2 m in length. Adult weights range from 136-680 kg, although the upper weight range is rare, especially now. They can dive as deep as 914 m, and are known to swim long distances as they are a highly migratory species.
Atlantic bluefins are dark blue to black on their dorsal (upper) surface and silvery ventrally (underneath). Bluefins are known for their finlets that run down their dorsal (upper) and ventral (lower) sides toward their anal fin. There are 12-14 spines in their first dorsal fin and 13-15 rays in their second dorsal fin. Their anal fin has 11-15 rays. The average natural lifespan of bluefin tunas is 15-30 years.
Atlantic bluefins are homeothermic ("warm-blooded") and are therefore able to thermoregulate keeping their body temperatures higher than the surrounding water, which is why they are so well adapted to colder waters.
World Range & Habitat
Atlantic bluefins live in subtropical and temperate waters of the North Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean, and Black Seas. Bluefins are highly migratory and limited numbers of individuals may cross the Atlantic in as little as 60 days and are widely distributed throughout the Atlantic and can be found from Newfoundland all the way to the coast of Brazil. They range in the eastern Atlantic as far north as Norway and down to northern West Africa. Bluefins tagged in the Bahamas have been captured in Norway as well as off the coast of Brazil. Bluefins in the South Atlantic belong to a distinct southern population, with known spawning areas south of Java, Indonesia. The bluefin is a pelagic, schooling fish. They tend to group together according to size.
Feeding Behavior (Ecology)
Atlantic bluefin tuna consume smaller fishes such as mackerel, herring, whiting, flying fishes, and mullet as well as squid, eels, and crustaceans.
Life History
Although Atlantic bluefin are widely distributed and migrate thousands of kilometers, there are two confirmed spawning locations — the Gulf of Mexico in the western Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea in the eastern Atlantic. Although many ecological and environmental variables undoubtedly affect both the location and productivity of spawning in these two areas, relatively little is known concerning why bluefin spawn where they do.
Spawning in the Gulf of Mexico occurs between mid-April and mid-June when females, which mature around age 8, release approximately 30 million eggs each. The highest density of bluefin larvae, the primary indicator of spawning, occurs in the northern Gulf of Mexico with lesser larval concentrations appearing off the Texas coast and in the Straits of Florida.
In the eastern Atlantic, spawning occurs exclusively in the Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas from June through August, with the highest larvae concentrations appearing around southern Italy. Although some fishery biologists believe that eastern Atlantic bluefin reach sexual maturity several years earlier than western Atlantic bluefin (possibly as young as ages 4-5), this understanding has been criticized.
Juvenile Bluefin Tuna Found To Dive To Depths Of More Than 1,000 Meters
Conservation Status & Comments
IUCN Red List Status: Endangered A2bd:
"A taxon is Endangered when the best available evidence indicates that it meets any of the criteria (A to E), and it is therefore considered to be facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild."
International sport fishing for "giant" bluefin originated about 100 years ago, becoming popular domestically in the early 1900s. The Sharp Cup in Nova Scotia was a distinguished international bluefin tournament held from the early 1930s through the 1960s, with a peak landing of 1,760 fish in 1949. Many other tournaments existed throughout the Northeast United States until the mid-1960s, when giant bluefin abundance near tournament sites appeared to decline. Although studies have been inconclusive regarding these changes, suspected causes include changes in water temperature, oceanic currents, availability of food, and overfishing.
Prior to 1970, sport fishing was exclusively recreational, as giant bluefin tuna had a commercial value of only $.05 per pound. Giant trophy tuna that were not kept for personal display or consumption were sold to cat and dog food producers. With the development of the Japanese specialty market in the early 1970s, giant bluefin tuna suddenly represented big money to traditional sport fishermen. Perspectives on the fishery shifted, and the recreational character of the fishery was altered by economic opportunity. A giant 225 kg trophy fish was, by the late 1970s, a highly valued Japanese delicacy. Participation exploded and the giant bluefin fishery capitalized quickly.
Now many "recreational anglers" also obtain commercial permits, so that virtually all giant bluefin tuna currently caught are marketed commercially, except for a small scale catch-and-release sport fishery in the Bahamas. A substantial charter- or party-boat fishery for small bluefin tuna also exists from North Carolina to Massachusetts. Estimated at more than 15,000 recreational anglers annually, this is the only U.S. fishery allowed to catch bluefin smaller than the minimum commercial size (1.78 m from the tip of a fish's snout to the fork of its tail).
Resilience to fishing pressure: Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 – 14 years
Extinction vulnerability to fishing: Very high vulnerability (86 of 100)
References & Further Research
Atlantic Bluefin Tuna: International Management of a Shared Resource, Eugene H. Buck, CRS Report: 95-367
TUNA RESEARCH AND CONSERVATION CENTER – Hopkins Marine Station – Monterrey Bay Aquarium
Song for the Blue Ocean, Dr. Carl Safina
Migration study finds that sweeping management changes are needed to protect Atlantic bluefin tuna
Bluefin tuna protection system 'full of holes'
Top-of-the-line tuna sells for $400,000 in Japan
Lutcavage, M.E, Brill, R.W., Goldstein, J.L., Skomal, G.B., Chase, B.C., and J. Tutein. 2000. Movements and behavior of adult North Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) in the northwest Atlantic determined using ultrasonic telemetry. Marine Biology 137:347-358.
Brill, R., Lutcavage, M., Metzger, G., Stallings, J., Bushnell, P, Arendt, M., Lucy, J., Watson, C., and D. Foley. 2002. Horizontal and vertical movements of juvenile North Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus thynnus) in the western North Atlantic determined using ultrasonic telemetry, with reference to population assessment by aerial surveys. Fishery Bulletin 100:155-167.
Research Thunnus thynnus @
Barcode of Life ~ BioOne ~ Biodiversity Heritage Library ~ CITES ~ Cornell Macaulay Library ~ Encyclopedia of Life (EOL) ~ ESA Online Journals ~ FishBase ~ Florida Museum of Natural History Ichthyology Department ~ GBIF ~ Google Scholar ~ ITIS ~ IUCN RedList (Threatened Status) ~ Marine Species Identification Portal ~ NCBI (PubMed, GenBank, etc.) ~ Ocean Biogeographic Information System ~ PLOS ~ SIRIS ~ Tree of Life Web Project ~ UNEP-WCMC Species Database ~ WoRMS
Search for Atlantic Bluefin Tuna @
Flickr ~ Google ~ Picsearch ~ Wikipedia ~ YouTube


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If you could wish for anything, what would it be?Your imagination is running wild, we'll bet.That's the beauty of the Make-A-Wish® mission. When a child is given the chance to make a wish, they can envision the impossible as possible. They can dream big, just as you would.
A wish brings new life to the passions, talents and hobbies of children who are battling critical illnesses. Every wish is tailored to its wish kid's true personality and interests — and we are so often taken aback by the level of creativity, humility, joy, and community involvement that these wishes inspire. Here are just a few of those amazing wish moments from 2017:
Ava was born premature at 27 weeks, and spent 213 days in the neonatal intensive care unit. She lived in an incubator and her parents were limited to two-hour visits per day. Ava underwent 12 surgeries in the first 15 months of her life — and had 60 percent of her intestines removed. Today, Ava's parents sincerely credit her recovery to Willie Nelson's music. During visits to the NICU, they would play country music for her — and quickly noticed that Ava would respond particularly well to Willie Nelson's songs. Today, he is Ava's favorite musician. She carries a Willie Nelson doll with her everywhere she goes, and every birthday, she requests that her cake be decorated with his photo. She even has a small guitar that she strums to Nelson's songs — her favorite is "On the Road Again." When Ava and Nelson met through Make-A-Wish North Texas, they exchanged bandanas and played guitar together. Nelson also autographed a copy of his new album and Ava's guitar for her. READ MORE
Photo credit: Xsight Photography & Video
Dominic, 14, was diagnosed with bone cancer. Dominic has endured surgery, implants, and chemotherapy. When he was given the chance to make a wish, he considered traveling to Washington, D.C., or meeting his favorite actor. But ultimately, Dominic wished for something beyond himself. He wished to host an awards ceremony in which he would hand out thank-you trophies to all of his supporters through his medical journey. Dominic's wish was sponsored by Five Star Bank and enhanced by Shutterfly, and granted by Make-A-Wish Northeastern California and Northern Nevada. A wish has the power to transform many lives, and Dominic's wish is a genuine example of this. WATCH
Izzy received a heart transplant at 10 weeks old. Since then, the 11-year-old has endured blood draws, biopsies and six bouts of pneumonia in one year. Yet Izzy remains strong, creative and determined. On Aug. 24, nothing could stop her as she strode confidently down the runway of her own fashion show, hosted at Twitter's headquarters in San Francisco. She held an audience of more than 240 rapt as she modeled her own styles. A large group worked behind the scenes to make Izzy's one true wish come to dazzling life, thanks to Make-A-Wish Greater Bay Area. And of course, Izzy's fashion show attracted hundreds of live followers on social media with the hashtag #izzysrunway. On the runway, Izzy was no longer the girl with a large scar on her chest. She was a young woman with confidence, energy, determination and imagination. READ MORE
Thank you to all of our sponsors, donors, wish granters and volunteers who help make every life-changing wish come true.
A child is diagnosed with a critical illness every 20 minutes. Make-A-Wish is currently able to grant wishes for only one out of every two of these children. I want to help grant the wish of every eligible child!
If you know a child who might benefit from a wish, submit a referral today.
Wish Nation gives you a behind-the-scenes look at Make-A-Wish®. See how wishes come together and how they change lives forever. Hear directly from those who work or volunteer here, or those who have been transformed by a wish. And learn why we are so committed to someday granting the wish of every eligible child, every year.We want to hear from you.We moderate our communities by only one rule: Be nice. We welcome different views - just keep it courteous and considerate. Thanks for connecting.
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Cabrera leads Giants past Diamondbacks 3-1
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Melky Cabrera got his 50th hit of the month to spark the go-ahead rally and Buster Posey drove in a pair of runs to lead the San Francisco Giants to a 3-1 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday night.
Posey drove in Cabrera with an RBI double in the sixth inning to tie the game and followed Cabrera's single in the eighth with a sacrifice fly that scored Ryan Theriot to make it 2-1 and help the Giants win for the 12th time in 18 games.
Cabrera finished with three hits to pass Willie Mays for the second most productive month in San Francisco history – one shy of the record set by Randy Winn in September 2005. The Giants have one game left this month.
Theriot started the winning rally by drawing a leadoff walk from Bryan Shaw (1-3), who had not allowed an earned run in his first 10 road outings of the season.
Cabrera followed with a single to right that sent Theriot to third and Posey hit a sacrifice fly to deep right to give the Giants the lead. San Francisco added an insurance run on Joaquin Arias' forceout.
Ryan Vogelsong allowed one run in seven innings but got a no-decision for San Francisco. Clay Hensley (2-3) pitched a perfect eighth for the win and Santiago Casilla got three outs for his 14th save in 15 chances.
Cabrera, acquired in an offseason deal from Kansas City for lefty Jonathan Sanchez, leads the majors with 77 hits and 25 multihit contests just 50 games into the season.
He scored the Giants first run after reaching on a swinging bunt with one out in the sixth against Joe Saunders. He scored on Posey's double but the Giants couldn't get any more despite loading the bases with one out. Brad Ziegler relieved and got Arias hit into a 1-2-3 double play to keep the score tied at 1.
The Diamondbacks struck first when Chris Young walked with one out in the second, moved up on a wild pitch and scored on Josh Bell's single to center field.
They missed a chance to expand the lead after loading the bases with one out in the fourth. Vogelsong recovered to get Bell on a foul popup and John McDonald on an inning-ending groundout.
The Giants failed to capitalize on their bases-loaded chance in the bottom half as Saunders struck out Arias to strand three runners.
Vogelsong escaped a second-and-third, no-out jam in the sixth by getting Paul Goldschmidt and Bell to ground out and then striking out Saunders after an intentional walk loaded the bases. Vogelsong allowed one run and six hits in seven innings, striking out eight.
NOTES: The Giants have no homers in their last eight home games and a major league-low six in 24 home games this season. … Arizona SS Willie Bloomquist was scratched from the original lineup as a precaution because of soreness in his hamstrings. McDonald took his place in the field and Aaron Hill moved up to leadoff. … Giants 3B Pablo Sandoval (broken left hamate bone) felt good after 30 swings of BP left-handed and fielding grounders. He does not know when he'll be able to start hitting right-handed again. … San Francisco's Tim Lincecum (2-5) pitches against Ian Kennedy (3-5) for the fourth time the past two seasons in the series finale Wednesday, with the Diamondbacks winning the last two meetings.


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Barron's Bounce: Forestar's Hidden Potential
Barron's editor Jack Otter and writer Sam Mamudi discuss some of the picks in this week's issue, including Forestar Group, Danone and gold mining stocks.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
I ... hijack our editor Baron Starcom here with Emma Moody the writer of our stocks to Watch block ... every Monday we talk about stocks that are moving in early action ... after mention magazine ... and once again David Englander who covers small cap stocks rose as the data the park ... he's focused on Eastern company called Forestar ... which has its fingers in a lot of different businesses is really a real estate company ... is in the Highbury of oil and gas and it ... has a toehold in my favorite commodity which is super ... G D ... and makes the point that the combination ... these wanting us to play with me ... it trades at about twenty percent discount to ask ... the ... BBC to go up as much to ... say in the next year or so ... of Parliament to changes in sentiment in residential real estate ... in ... the mall in an oil exploration ... at its ports and oil company late last year as the ... media that are reminded to be ... cheap enough and the market seems to be impressed with his ideas to was the worst and ride up about this ... in any case I'm not that on a down day so far ... I also aam this morning I had ... been in the ovaries are my breakfast I don't think that's the reason the stock is up half a percent but many don't don't want to write ... he's not a company in his TCC ... what ... I mean in a deal case around Nelson Peltz to his word for it all the time I think ... that he is about one percent but he's been quite early age he seems to think of me to talk about four ... percent while to get her to ... return about one ... foot ... in the next ... eighteen months or so ... it seems to be ... focusing more on cost-cutting and making a profit rather than expanding market share ... updates ... as a necessary that a directive from helping set the scene the scene in place strategies that he's been advocating and its seems to sum up how we build the position often the stock price does go ... into it I'm really goal here we've sat here aam and been fairly bearish on gold in recent months ... I interesting column by then lettuce and ... over the weekend in which he says ... the gold mining stocks have been hammered and that's not necessarily a buy now ... indeed on no news ... to all this month's meeting now it's time to get the NT think gold is a ... lot of cash ... advances ... a lot of things to be worried about still up its game on his industry's the ... apps business focused on profit should be ... more just ongoing it might still be an ... answer Wendy's has to be ... able to play on the stocks ... you should consider companies that ... do or options offering a free cash flow ... and also maybe just ... companies that moaning in countries that have a better safety record that they don't have to fret about them and ... also possibly in emerging markets can remain for some these companies will benefit ... and of course another way we're told is just to buy GLD ETF or some other wary of getting the asset itself instead of the minor ... Brendan Conway has pointed out that even though there's been this huge disconnect between the price of the metal ... and the value of the scarf she is that the stock price of these mining companies ... the actual value of the companies has risen for shareholders have been so diluted ... that they haven't joined in on ... you you shouldn't need the money is not necessarily in the long run across the mantle ... as the state GOP is out there ... she is thank so much now ... thank you for watching ...


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Whiskey Jar: Streamlined Southern fare unveiled Feb 6
When we wrote about the impending opening of The Whiskey Jar restaurant back in January, we left out the part about the early February target because it seemed too ambitious for a place with raw walls and floors during our visit. However, bold ambitions reached fruition on Monday, February 6 when lead owner Will Richey and his merry band of restaurateurs began serving their stripped-down Southern fare. We returned with a camera on February 21 to see how it looks.Read more on: whiskey jar restaurant
6 comments
Stripped down, but priced up. Just not enough goodness for the price, although everyone has early growing pains.
yeah, food is hit or miss. been there a couple of times. one day it's great, the next, not so much. the wait staff have a tendency to disappear for long periods of time as well.
Fun new place and for once its inexpensive. I love the fact I can take a friend, eat and drink for less than my paycheck unlike almost everywhere else downtown
I think it should have been called The Whiskey Jug...sounds more southern IMO.
Is there a menu anywhere online for The Whiskey Jar? I found their FB page as well as Yelp and Urbanspoon....but no menu anywhere. Thanks!
We went once and I'm sorry to say we won't be back until they get their act together. The food is WAY too salty (we sent our entrees back and we're not the type of people to do so), the apps we're overcooked and too salty as well, and the service was so-so. The management did their best to remedy the situation, that was nice.


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What Opportunities Exist for the Postal Service to Integrate Its Traditional Role in the Digital World?
This is the third topic in our "Five Elements of a Postal Solution" blog series. Link to last week's topic.
Link to Friday's recap.
Link to Thursday's blog by John Payne.
Link to Wednesday's blog by Dan Combs.
Link to Tuesday's blog by Steve Ressler.
Recapping the week - March 19, 2012


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In this post, Justin gives a quote about Raoul Bott that has this line in it:
He talked about 'folk' theorems... theorems everyone knew, but were never written down.
What are some good/interesting examples of these types of theorems?
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In this post, Justin gives a quote about Raoul Bott that has this line in it:
He talked about 'folk' theorems... theorems everyone knew, but were never written down.
What are some good/interesting examples of these types of theorems?
The example I first learned was the following: a 2-D TQFT is equivalent to a Frobenius algebra.
This is discussed and stated as a folk theorem by Voronov; later, a careful proof was written up and published by Lowell Abrams. See also the book by Joachim Kock.
In category theory there is a 'folk' model structure on the category Cat, where the weak equivalences are the equivalences of categories. There is a similar model structure on 2Cat, with weak equivalences being equivalences of 2-categories (weak ones, I presume) The former was not written down for a long time, but the latter was published by Steve Lack. Andre Joyal is not in favour of the name 'folk model structure', and there was discussion on this at the nForum (starting at that comment and continuing). That the existence of this model structure is a 'folk' theorem is a bit of folklore itself, as pointed out by Joyal at this comment.
In the context of game theory, the term «folk theorem» has a rather specific meaning...
On Folk Theorems is an old classic from computer science. Although the title suggests it's about folk theorems in general, it's mostly about the theorem which states, roughly, that programs written in imperative programming languages only need one loop.
I was at a queueing theory lecture recently where the lecturer talked about Little's Theorem and Wolff's PASTA theorem as having been around as folk theorems for a long time before they were published with proof.
Stark, The Gauss class-number problems, available at http://www.uni-math.gwdg.de/tschinkel/gauss-dirichlet/stark.pdf writes, on page 251, "We define the Epstein zeta functions, $$\zeta(s,Q)=(1/2)\sum_{m,n\ne0,0}Q(m,n)^{-s}$$ ... Theorem 4.1 (Folk Theorem.) Let $c\gt1/4$ be a real number and set $$Q(x,y)=x^2+xy+cy^2,$$ with discriminant $d=1-4c\lt0$. Then for $c\gt41$, $\zeta(s,Q)$ has a zero $s$ with $\sigma\gt1$."
He follows this with a "Folk proof."
In Fudenberg's book Game Theory, the following was listed as a folk theorem:
The folk theorem for repeat games assert that if players are sufficiently patient then any feasible, individual rational payoffs can be enforced by an equilibrium. Thus, in the limit of extreme patience, repeated play allows any payoff to be an equilibrium outcome.
There are quite a few examples in additive combinatorics of theorems or tricks that were talked about and 'known' a few years before anyone published a proof of them.
For example, let $\phi(n)$ be the largest number such that every set A of n reals contains a subset B of cardinality $\phi(n)$ such that no element of A can be represented as the sum of two distinct elements of B ('B is sum-free with respect to A').
It was remarked by both Klarner and Erdos that $\phi(n)\geq\log n-O(1)$ for large n, but it was ten years before Choi published a proof of this (a simple application of Turan's theorem on independent sets in graphs).
Presumably phenomena like this occurs because those who think of it see it as too simple or straightforward to be worth the bother of publishing.
A different type of example is the idea that if $f:G\to\mathbb{C}$ is a function on a finite abelian group $G$ with a small $L^2$ norm, then it can be decomposed as the sum of structured parts (with a small error term).
For example, $f=f_1+f_2+f_3$, where $f_1$ is the linear combination of a small number of characters, $f_2$ is Gowers uniform and $f_3$ has $L^2$ norm less than $\epsilon$.
This kind of folk theorem arises because it is a commonly applied heuristic that can be made precise in a variety of different ways, often jury-rigged for a specific application.
My advisor once told me that the following statement (which I read in Ravenel's Complex Cobordism and Stable Homotopy Groups of Spheres) was a Folk Theorem:
For $p>2$ and in a certain range, the Adams Spectral Sequence coincides with the homology Bockstein spectral sequence
It turns out the range is $t<(2p-1)s-2$, and a reference is Haynes Miller's paper
There are some "folkish" elements in something I just published:
The "80/20" account of Pareto's law circulates among management people who don't care about mathematics, and the probability density proportional to $x \mapsto x^{-\alpha - 1}$ on $(x_0,\infty)$ for some $x_0>0$ (and 0 elsewhere) is found in many probability and statistics books, and actually gets used in various fields to which mathematics gets applied. But the idea that they are in some sense the same thing seems to have circulated only in a "folk" manner for many years until now.
Another nice type of 'folk theorems' I have seen is of a sort where some relatively straight forward generalization of a well established theorem is assumed and then used for its heuristic or explanatory value. I find this is often used in fields where mathematicians interact with non-mathematicians and although it is completely non-rigorous (and sometimes even misleading!) most often it helps in exposition and for building intuition.
An example would be the "folk theorem of evolutionary game theory" (as used by Hofbauer and Sigmund, BAMS 2003) on certain kinds of correspondences of Nash equilibrium and dynamic approaches.


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Investors grin as companies ax jobsJanuary 9, 2014: 1:59 PM ET
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Paul R. La Monica. Other than Time Warner, the parent of CNNMoney, Abbott Laboratories and AbbVie, La Monica does not own positions in any individual stocks.
Warning. I think I've reached my Peter Finch from "Network" moment. I'm "mad as hell" about how Wall Street keeps celebrating job cuts as if they are a good thing for the markets and economy. I'm not sure I can take it anymore. (If you want a special video treat, be sure to read all the way to the bottom of this column.)
Shares of Macy's (M) rose more than 8% and hit a record high Thursday, even though the company announced it was closing some stores and laying off 2,500 workers.
But the mystifying thing about this news is that Macy's also reported strong sales for the holidays and a rosy outlook for 2014.
So if things are going so well, why is there a need to let that many employees go?
Macy's isn't the only company that's been rewarded for handing out pink slips. Regional bank First Niagara (FNFG) said Wednesday that it was cutting 170 jobs. Shares rose 2%, while the broader market and most bank stocks were flat.
Related: Investors bet big on big bank stocks
To be fair, First Niagara said that the affected employees would be able to apply for other positions at the bank and that there would actually be 250 new openings.
But a layoff is still a layoff. And you can't help but grimace when you see a headline like this for the press release that explained the restructuring
First Niagara Tailoring Retail Banking Experience to Match Evolving Customer Preferences
In other words, the bank didn't want to cut jobs. Consumers made them do it.
Now I realize that businesses always have to make tough decisions about staffing levels. Sometimes demand isn't strong enough to justify a company's headcount.
Related: The economy may not feel as good as it looks
But isn't the economy supposedly improving? Aren't stocks at record highs? What's it going to take for Corporate America to finally realize that the only road to a lasting (and more robust) recovery is to have as many people working (and therefore having the money to spend) as possible?
I may not have won a Nobel prize for economics but I'm pretty confident that this mathematical equation is valid.
Lower unemployment rate = higher gross domestic product growth
Fortunately, the pace of mass layoffs is decreasing. According to the latest report from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, the number of planned job cuts announced in December was the lowest since June 2000. And for the full year, 2013 had the least number of layoffs since 1997.
But as Macy's and First Niagara show, some companies continue to trim jobs.
That's a problem given that there are still millions of unemployed workers in America who have not yet given up the search for a job. And many of them are now faced with the possibility of losing jobless benefits.
If companies begin to hire more again instead of cutting jobs, doesn't it stand to reason that the newly employed will be able to boost GDP by spending and investing?
It's a win-win for Corporate America and Main Street when sales and profits are both going up. That's how you create a self-sustaining recovery. Enough with trying to juice earnings and market returns through cost cutting.
I've written about this topic several times in the Buzz, most recently in October. (See "You're fired. Stock rises. Wall Street loves layoffs")
At that time, shares of tech firms AOL (AOL), Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and Cisco (CSCO) were rallying on job cut news. So were shares of big bank Wells Fargo (WFC), drug giant Merck (MRK) and German industrial conglomerate Siemens (SI).
I plan to keep writing about this until we see even stronger growth in hiring and fewer big layoff announcements ... or until Wall Street stops perversely cheering the short-term jump in profit margins that tend to take place when companies put people out of work. Take the long view, traders!
Reader Comment of the Week! Now that the bile is out of my system, let's celebrate the rapidly approaching end of the week with a classic movie quote.
I joked over on that Twitter thang Wednesday about how shares of J.C. Penney (JCP) were tanking even though the retailer said it was "pleased" with its holiday sales. That made me think of a line from "The Princess Bride."
I was pleased to see that my buddy John Comas took my quote to the next obvious level. And that's why he wins the Reader Comment of the Week.
Ha! Never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line! And unlike Wallace Shawn, I am actually of Sicilian descent.
And for those of you who made it this far, here is the famous scene from Network I referenced in the lead.
And a snippet of that "inconceivable" scene involving Rex from "Toy Story" fame.


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Families First Health and Support Center and the Lane Memorial Library have partnered to both help area residents better understand the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and provide support and assistance to people who want to enroll for coverage but may be a little uncertain how to do so.
Under the ACA (also known as "Obamacare") individuals without health insurance or with private insurance will be able to enroll for coverage through the new healthcare exchange marketplace that first went live on October 1, 2014. Subsidies are available through the exchange marketplace for those at 100 percent to 400 percent of the federal poverty level. This means that individuals making between $11,490 and $45,960 and a family of four making between $23,550 and $94,000 will be eligible to receive a subsidy from the federal government that will reduce the cost of the premiums they will have to pay for coverage.
To help explain the impact of these changes and answer questions that people may have, Families First and the Lane Library are sponsoring an informational meeting on Thursday October 17 at 6:00 PM at the Lane Library. Admission is free and there is no need to pre-register.
Did you miss the presentation? View the slideshows now.
Entitled "The Affordable Care Act: What Does it Mean to Me?", the session will feature representatives of the New Hampshire Department of Insurance and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, as well as representatives from Families First and the Lane Library.
Notes Susan Turner director of the Rockingham County Community Resource Network at Families First, "We are happy that the Lane Memorial Library in Hampton is interested in working with us to ensure that the people of southern Seacoast understand the impact of the bill."
"The library has been an important resource for members of the community to obtain information and assistance in preparing their taxes for many years now" added Amanda Reynolds Cooper, Director of the Hampton Lane Memorial Library. "We hope to be able to provide that same service to the members of our community when it comes to the ACA. Not only will we have forms and brochures available, but people without access to a computer at home will be able to access on-line information through one of the 12 computers we have available for use by the public."
"We are also planning to have one of our enrollment coordinators on-site in the library at scheduled times to answer's people's questions and offer hands-on assistance," said Turner.
State Representative Robert "Renny" Cushing and Chris Muns of Hampton and Elaine Ahearn of Hampton, Hampton Falls and Seabrook are helping to organize the event on October 17. "The ACA is changing the way that health insurance is purchased in our state" said Rep Muns. "Representatives Ahearn, Cushing and I are very happy that Families First and the Lane Library are taking the lead to make sure that the community has access to resources and expertise that will help individuals and families successfully navigate these new procedures. We encourage anyone with questions to attend this session on the 17th."


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Click on your state to take action today!
NEW: Pennsylvania Adopts UCCJEA! Last week, the Governor of Pennsylvania, Edward G. Rendell, signed UCCJEA into state law, making Pennsylvania the 38th state to adopt this important legislation to prevent family abductions. Polly Klaas Foundation applauds Governor Rendell's commitment to keeping children safe nationwide and will continue our work to pass UCCJEA in all 50 states.Click on your state in the map above to tell your Representatives to protect families by passing laws to prevent family abduction. Even if your state has adopted the UCCJEA law, you can still help pass the Family Abduction Prevention Act of 2004, a national law that furthers statewide efforts to prevent family abductions through funding grants.While 38 states have already passed the UCCJEA, all 50 states must adopt the law to make sure there are no 'safe havens' left for abducting family members. Act now by sending a free message to your governor – it's the best way to let our legislators know just how important this issue really is.


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'Do you want a camera pointed at you all day?'
"We don't want cameras on us. Do you want a camera on you? Do you want a camera at your desk all day? Do you want a camera pointed at you all day? Do you want a camera that watches you all day? Do you?" asked Jeffrey Bennett, of Des Moines.
Bennett is one of only a couple city workers that spoke out against a plan to put cameras inside city vehicles.
"Plenty of city workers do not want the cameras on them," said Tom Hayes, the CIPEC Secretary Treasurer.
If the proposal is passed, Drive Cam cameras would be installed in 125 city vehicles for a 120 day trial period.
Supporters said the cameras would reduce the number of crashes, improve fuel efficiency and increase seat belt use, but the plan does come at a cost.
If the free trial period proves successful, the cameras would cost $750 each plus a monthly fee ranging between $24 and $40 per month per vehicle.
"That's a huge cost, huge cost. I mean I know that those employees are worried about the camera being on them. Nobody wants a camera on them all day long. I mean we'll be honest with that. I wouldn't want it and when they asked that question not one council member wants that on them all day long," said Hayes.
The cameras would have an interior and forward view, show speed and location.
"I do understand that concern that some of our employees have. They don't want the camera on them. That was said very eloquently this morning at our council workshop and that certainly is a consideration that's going to have to be taken into account," said City Manager Rick Clark.
The city council will hold one more meeting that will be open to the public to give input before they have a final vote moving forward with the trial period.
The next meeting is expected on April 8.
How would you react to a plan to put a camera inside your work vehicle? Add your comment in the box below or on the KCCI Facebook page.


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Serious Reads: Creamy and Crunchy, by Jon Krampner
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.
When I was in elementary school, I had a loving mother who packed me homemade lunches every day. (She's still very loving, but unfortunately I must now make my own lunch.) Alongside a hand-written note, fruit, and snack—Dunkables come to mind—was a tightly wrapped sandwich. For five years and approximately five hundred lunches, I dined on peanut butter and jelly, the gloriously simple sandwich made of carbohydrates and joy. I don't remember having a specific peanut butter brand preference, but chances are we stuck to the classics, Skippy or Jif.
After heading to college, I learned of many other types of peanut butter. There's the goopy, oil-separated kind that I still can't quite figure out how to spread; there's the mixed-with-jelly kind that a prior housemate enjoyed, much to the revulsion of the rest of us; there's the alternative nut butters that, with their rough textures and lack of sweetening, seem to miss the point of peanut butter. All of these peanut butters find their place in the pantries of families across the country. But I'd never given much thought to the history and development of all of these peanut butter cousins. Thankfully, Jon Krampner investigated.
In Creamy and Crunchy: An Informal History of Peanut Butter, the All-American Food, Krampner takes us through decades of peanut butter evolution and appreciation. A PB-lover himself, Krampner came to this project as a biographer. He soon learned that the history of peanut butter was far more research-intensive than a biography, and necessitated learning about agriculture, botany, politics, nutrition, advertising, and more. The consequence of his study is a comprehensive and easy-to-read guide to the most American of sandwich spreads.
Peanut butter first came to the U.S. in the 1890's, but ground peanuts were being used in South American and West African cuisines decades earlier. The very first peanut butter was marketed in 1898 in Australia. John Harvey Kellogg (famed nutritionist and inventor of corn flake cereal) obtained the first American patent for producing peanut butter in 1897, and by the early 1900's, dozens of peanut butter brands were popping up around the country. These early butters were largely unsweetened and rather bland; many of their recipes would soon adapt to the increasingly sweet-tooth American palate.
Over the decades, the American peanut butter field has narrowed to just a few major players. These brands control relatively stable segments of the market; minor differences in spreadability and sweetness draw customer loyalty. Americans consume about 1.5 billion pounds of peanut butter each year, but actually aren't the world's largest consumers of the stuff. That award goes to the Dutch, who also have a thriving peanut butter industry. Many countries sustain their own cultures of peanut butter, such as Haiti and Germany. But many others have snubbed peanut butter, resulting in the food's image as a purely American product, for better or for worse.
Creamy and Crunchy is a smooth read. (Sorry.) Krampner provides a sort of whirlwind tour through the history and production of peanut butter, and brings us to the modern day, as the product faces obstacles of food safety and health concerns. He also gives his personal recommendations on the best kinds of peanut butter in all of the major categories: best crunchy, best creamy, best using Spanish peanuts, and so on. If nothing else, this book will certainly make you crave a spoonful of the good stuff, and fill you with tons of party-friendly peanut butter facts.
More on Peanut Butter
- Taste Test: Peanut Butter, Creamy
- Taste Test: Crunchy Peanut Butter, No-Stir
- Taste Test: Crunchy Peanut Butter, Stir
About the Author: A student in Providence, Rhode Island, Leah Douglas loves learning about, talking about, reading about, and consuming food. Her work has also been featured in Rhode Island Monthly Magazine.
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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Kings upend Flames 3-1
- Trevor Lewis scored the go-ahead goal for the Kings%2C his first goal in 31 games going back to last season
- Goalie Jonathan Bernier made 26 saves with starter Jonathan Quick getting the night off
- Calgary was unable to capitalize on four power play opportunities
CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Trevor Lewis scored the go-ahead goal and the Los Angeles Kings swept back-to-back games in Alberta with a 3-1 victory over the Calgary Flames on Wednesday.
Lewis had gone 13 games without a point before picking up two assists Tuesday night in the Kings' 3-1 win over Edmonton.
His game-winning goal on Wednesday came at 15:20 of the first period on a play in which the 26-year-old showed great poise.
Lewis collected a rebound at the side of the night, paused briefly, then zipped a shot into the top corner over Flames goaltender Joey MacDonald's shoulder for his first goal in 31 games going back to last season.
That would be all the offense Jonathan Bernier needed. With Jonathan Quick getting the night off after beating the Oilers, the Kings backup goalie made 26 saves.
Dustin Brown and Jeff Carter also scored for Los Angeles. The defending Stanley Cup champions wrap up a grueling stretch in which they played eight of nine games on the road.
T.J. Brodie scored for Calgary.
The Flames have two days off before returning to action Saturday against Minnesota.
Flames captain Jarome Iginla made a nice setup on Brodie's tying goal at 14:51 of the first, finding him sneaking in from the blue line where the defenseman moved his way through the slot and put a quick shot inside the post.
The game was tied for just 29 seconds before Lewis put the Kings ahead for good.
Los Angeles added a goal halfway through the third period when Mike Richards wheeled out of the corner and found Carter in the slot, where he zipped a shot through the pads of MacDonald to make it 3-1.
It was Carter's team-leading eighth goal, all coming in the past 13 games.
With Miikka Kiprusoff (knee) missing his eighth game, MacDonald made his second start and first at home since being claimed off waivers from the Detroit Red Wings.
MacDonald was in good form in the second period as the Kings outshot Calgary 12-7, but couldn't build on their 2-1 lead. During a power play, he kicked out a pad to deny Jarrett Stoll. Later in the period, he made a toe save off Anze Kopitar.
MacDonald finished the game with 30 saves.
Los Angeles was playing its second game in as many nights, but it did not look tired as they went on the attack from the opening faceoff. Brown fired a shot into the top corner at 6:15, giving the Kings a 1-0 lead.
Calgary entered the night with the NHL's third-ranked power play, but it was unable to capitalize on four opportunities.
Notes: Iginla has one goal in 15 games this year and two in his past 25 dating back to last season. ... Iginla's assist was career point No. 1,083, moving him within five points of Theoren Fleury for 59th on the NHL's all-time list. ... Kings defenseman Rob Scuderi had two assists, matching his career high for points in a game. The veteran of 552 career games had two points four previous times. ... The Kings play 13 of their next 16 games at home.


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Rock Art
Concerning Rock Art , for the purpose of the Thematic Programme, it is understood in the form of paintings and engravings as clear and long-lasting evidence for the transmission of human conceptual thoughts and beliefs through art and graphic representations. Experiences shared by site managers and international experts have highlighted a wide range of issues such as the spiritual significance of Rock Art, the need for multidisciplinary research, and the value of involving the descendants of the original artists both in management and decision-making, as well as assistance to develop guidelines for dealing with stakeholders, to understand natural processes of weathering and to initiate and maintain documentation and monitoring systems for World Heritage sites.
World Rock Art Archives
Due to their long sequence chronology, susceptibility to climate changes and vandalism, rock art sites are also among the most vulnerable on the World Heritage List.
Rock art, in the form of paintings and engravings, is a clear and lasting evidence of the transmission of human thoughts and beliefs through art and graphic representations. It functions as a repository of memory, enabling each culture to speak about themselves and their origins in all geographical settings.
In July 2010, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre conducted a series of interviews with international experts working in the field of rock art on establishing an international digital archive in support of conserving rock art sites.
Emmanuel Anati
Director, Centro Camuno di Studi Preistorici (CCSP), Capo di Ponte (Bs), Italy
Ulf Bertilsson
President ICOMOS-CAR; Project Manager, Tanum World Heritage, Sweden; Swedish Rock Art Archives, University of Gothenburg
Janette Deacon
Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa; Research Associate, Rock Art Research Institute, Johannesburg, South Africa
Benjamin Smith
Director, Rock Art Research Institute, Research Article Editor, South African Archaeological Bulletin, Associate Professor, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Felipe Criado Boado
Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas de España (CSIC), España
Julián Martínez García
Instituto Andaluz del Patrimonio Histórico (IAPH), España
María Cruz Berrocal
Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas de España (CSIC), España
Related Scientific Institutions
- Rock Art Research Institute, University of Witwatersrand (South Africa)
- ANU Rock Art Research Centre (Australia)
- International Union of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Science (UISPP), Instituto Politécnico de Tomar (Portugal)
- Centro Camuno di Studi Preistorici (Italy)
- Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas de España (Spain)
News (2)
Events (7)
- Valcamonica Symposium 2009, Prehistoric and Tribal Art: Making history of Prehistory, the role of Rock Art 28-Oct-2009-02-Nov-2009
- Towards an Action Plan on Prehistory, Advisory Bodies' meeting 27-Oct-2009
- Towards an Action Plan on Prehistory, Drafting Committee Meeting 22-Oct-2009
- Action Plan on Prehistory 12-Sep-2009-14-Sep-2009
- Expert Meeting: Nomination of Rock Art sites in Central Asia to World Heritage List 29-May-2009


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Tunisia: 'Women Fearful of Islamists' Rise'
TUNIS, Nov 14, 2011 (IPS) - Tunisian women poured into the streets armed with the vote, their latest weapon, when the country voted in its first democratic election since a popular uprising unseated former president Zine Abidine Ben Ali, ending his 27-year- long stronghold on the country.
However, the moderate Islamist Ennahda Party's landslide victory in the vote Oct. 23 has been a cause of grave concern for a broad spectrum of Tunisian women, who feel that ground gained during their bitter struggle for liberation will be stolen from under their feet by the rise of a religious leadership in the post- revolutionary period.
Fears stoked by the recent attacks by ultraconservative groups known as Salafists on movie theatres and TV stations playing films by women filmmakers have been exacerbated by aggression against teachers and students in universities across the country.
Ennahda has gone out of its way to distance itself from the actions of extremists, issuing repeated assurances to the public that their party walks a much more moderate line.
"We will respect the Tunisian people's way of life and act to preserve women's rights," Souad Abdelrahim, an elected member of Ennahda's constituent assembly told IPS.
Abdelrahim, the only one of Ennahda's 42 elected female representatives to not wear a veil, has become the virtual poster child for Ennahda's 'moderate' image and its supposed acceptance and tolerance of all women, regardless of religion or dress.
However, Ennahda's more conservative elements, as well as radical Salafists who refused to vote in the election, are angered by the watered down approach and are calling loudly on Ennahda to take a much more hard-line religious stand.
Last week many dozens of women, including teachers, students and activists, congregated outside the Cité des Sciences, a university in Ariana, Tunis, to call attention to the physical and verbal attacks being launched against women by new conservative actors in various social spaces.
Along the walls of the Cité des Sciences, just in front of a mosque, a group of bearded Salafists screamed at women passing by: "Dégage, dégage". Literally translated the expression means, "Go away" and was used as a slogan during the revolution against Ben Ali to signify citizens' outrage with the regime.
Most of the time, these verbal slurs are hurled at women whose clothing defies the conservative dress code expected of women in many Islamic countries.
Not a single party or organisation has issued a formal statement condemning the aggression, forcing women to revert to social media, a widely employed strategy during the revolution, as a means of drumming up support and calling for protests.
Interestingly, the call for a major demonstration in front of the Government palace in Al Kasbah was put forward not by prominent bloggers or activists but by ordinary women who claim they are not affiliated with any one party or ideology.
The call was answered by scores of women, both religious and secular, some supporters of Ennahda and others unaffiliated to politics, all of whom are determined to cement their new-found rights in the country's fresh constitution.
"I am a professor of Islamic history at the University and if, during my lesson, I say something that doesn't correspond to conservative Islamist thinking, I know I will be in real danger," Latifa Bekky, a member of the militant Tunisian Association of Democratic Women, which goes by its French acronym ATFD, told IPS. The organisation is one of just a handful that is actively seeking to safeguard women's human rights in the new Tunisia.
Several other women's associations are suspicious about the group, which is said to have ties to Ben Ali's Constitutional Democratic Rally (RCD) party.
Secular feminists caught in the middle are doing their best to maintain calm during this transitional moment, which is a critical point for Tunisia's future.
"As a secular feminist and progressive, Ennahda is automatically my political antagonist," Sana Ben Achour, former president of the ATFD told IPS. "Ennahda's leadership claims it will respect Tunisian women's rights but these promises can only be verified by their actions," she added.
"Many of the women engaged in political activity have faced serious threats via the Internet," Souad Rejeb, a psychologist and ATFD activist, told IPS. "(Sana) Ben Achour's image in a facebook post was cancelled with a cross, a symbol that represents a death threat."
Though women may have harboured fears before the election, none wanted to sacrifice their newly acquired right to vote by boycotting the polls.
"We wanted to safeguard our right to vote freely for the time in our lives – we did observe some irregularities, but not enough to deter us from voting altogether," said Samira Hizaoui, an electoral candidate for a new workers' party created recently by the General Union of Tunisian Workers (UGTT), which is also calling insistently for women's equality.
Most of these women are very courageous and are prepared for the long, hard struggle ahead. Salma Beccar, a famous filmmaker, who is also a representative of the Modernist Democratic Pole (MDP), is one of them.
"I am not afraid of Ennahda – most of their success is due to an effective propaganda campaign supported by satellite TV stations like Al Jazeera. Without this support, the Islamists would not have enjoyed a landslide victory," she told IPS.
"They have promised to preserve Tunisia's family code (the most progressive 'family law' in the Arab world) but they have already started to talk about adoption laws going against Islamic law," Beccar told IPS.
"Rumours are also circulating on Facebook about the party's intention to segregate schools, buses and other public areas based on gender. We need to be aware of these changes and be ready to resist," she added.
"Although in the beginning Ennahda is showing its 'moderate' face, I have my doubt that Islamists are capable of being moderate in the long run," Chakras Balhaj Yahya, a UGTT trade unionist told IPS.
"My six sisters chose to wear the veil, which I don't understand. I still walk around in my miniskirt but now people look at me differently," she added.
Wissal Kassraoui, a young journalist at Shams Radio, who also wears Western clothes, confessed that she is afraid about what could happen in the next few years, or even months.
"They (the moderates) will wait, perhaps one year, perhaps less, to show their true face; but the fact is, their base has already started threatening women," she stressed.
By Giuliana Sgrena
Related News
- Mauritania broadens death penalty for blasphemy
- 'We will break every bone': Islamist leaders threaten Bangladeshi lawyer, WLUML Networker
- Tunisia's single mothers still struggle to overcome stigma
- UN Special Rapporteur in Field of Cultural Rights on the Paris Attacks: "Crime against humanity, crime against culture"
- What ISIS has done to the lives of women
Related Actions
- Protect Human Rights Activist Sultana Kamal
- Statement in Condemnation of Terrorist Attack Targeting Media Organizations in Afghanistan
- We Strongly Condemn the Terrorist Attacks Taking Place in the Name of "Islam"
- Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML) condemns the harassment of Sri Lankan activist Sharmila Seyyid
- Call for Iraqi Women Victimized by ISIS
Relevant Resources
- Promotion and protection of human rights: human rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms
- Special Issue: Gender and Fundamentalism
- Position Statement on Apostasy and Blasphemy
- Report of the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, Heiner Bielefeldt, Human Rights Council 28th Session
- Dossier 30-31: The Struggle for Secularism in Europe and North America