text:
- Chrysomya megacephala
Chrysomya megacephala Female C. megacephala Male C. megacephala Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Diptera Family: Calliphoridae Genus: Chrysomya Species: C. megacephala Binomial name Chrysomya megacephala
(Fabricius, 1794)
- Cosmina basalis (Smith, 1876)
- Pollenia basalis Smith, 1876
Chrysomya megacephala, more commonly known as the oriental latrine fly, is a warm-weather fly with a greenish-blue metallic box-like body which belongs to the family Calliphoridae (blowflies). This fly can be a nuisance to humans and even cause accidental myiasis.[1] C. megacephala contributes to the evolution of some insects, influences animal atmospheres, negatively alters human public health, and is a tool in forensic entomology.
Geographical distribution
Regions and areas found
C. megacephala stretches across vast regions of the world. It is particularly prevalent in the Oriental region and the Australasian region,[2] including the eastern coast of Queensland and New South Wales. It is found in Japan and Palearctic regions as well. Since the 1970s, C. megacephala has extended to different areas of the world, encroaching on the new territories of New Zealand and Africa[3] along with South, Central, and North America. C. megacephala began occupying the United States by means of harbors and airports.[4] The oriental latrine fly has been found in California[5] as well as Texas,[6] Louisiana,[7] and Hawaii.[8] C. megacephala consists of two forms, the normal and the derived. Tropical forests on the South Pacific islands, like Samoa, are home to the normal form; furthermore, normal is considered the plesiomorphic form of C. megacephala. The derived form is thought to have emerged from Papua New Guinea and is said to be synanthropic, ecologically associated with humans.
C. megacephala prefers to live in climates that are warm most of the year. It has a long lifespan for a Dipteran, the warmer the temperature the longer the fecundity seems to be the correlation. In large densities of larva, where there are a lot of them in one small area competing for the same food source, the fecundity of the population is less. Where there is more food, there are larger adults and a bigger fecundity. A correlation between wing size and temperature and tibia size and temperature has been found in this species. As temperature increases then wing and tibia size increases. There was a similar relationship between wing and tibia size with fecundity. All three of these values, fecundity, wing size and tibia size are found to stay within the same range throughout the year, so a seasonal correlation seems to be absent. These laboratory findings are true of this species in a tropical environment, namely Brazil. Researchers have found this surprising since this fly is in high numbers in warm weather and low numbers in cold weather. They thought that the flies would be smaller during the warmer months because of other life tables constructed with other Dipteran species. The majority of Dipteran species that have had a life table constructed have demonstrated a tendency for smaller bodies in the warmer months. It has also been found that C. megacephala has a long lifespan as an adult and this, in part, has helped this species become so successful at invading so many geographical areas. The long lifespan of the adult allows the young to reach adulthood. The parents are there for the entire rearing of the offspring, ensuring survival.[9]
Life cycle
This fly species is known to breed in human feces, meat, and fish. The developmental stages include egg, larvae, and pupa stages. When a female fly lays eggs there might be as much as 200 to 300 eggs total.[10] The larva stage includes a first, second, and third instar, or growth period within the larva stage.[11] C. megacephala eggs take approximately 100 days to develop while the larva will take 86 days and pupa 85 days.[12] Population numbers as well as body size are greatly influenced by temperature.[13] After completing all developmental stages, the C. megacephala life cycle consists of approximately 7 days.[14] Since C. megacephala has become forensically important, knowledge of development rates for these blowflies has become a necessity. C. megacephala development appears to be linked with the surrounding temperature and the length of time spent feeding in the larval stage. Development rate is mainly dependent on temperature, lower the temperature and larvae develop slower; raise the temperature and the larvae will develop faster.[15] Most studies conducted on developmental rate are done at 27°C. At this temperature eggs hatch-18 hrs, 1st molt-30hrs, 2nd molt-72hrs, pupation-144hrs, adult emerges-234hrs. It is also noted that these times can vary depending on geographical locations and other environmental factors can determine how long flies will stay in the larvae stage. Males tend to emerge only 2–3 hrs ahead of the females.[16]
Reproduction and survival rates
The factors involved in reproduction and survival rates of C. megacephala are closely related to the developmental factors. The amount of food is important in determining their survival and reproduction. Also, competition from other larvae species, such as C. rufifacies, is another factor in reproduction and survival.[17] When competing larvae are present, the amount of time spent feeding is shortened which leads to early pupation and smaller adults. This will then hasten the reproduction of C. megacephala. C. rufifacies is known to cannibalize maggot masses and thus a huge competitor.[18]
C. megacephala's appearance helps to determine the age of the species as well as to distinguish it from other species. Eggs are "oval with one flat face and another convex".[19] Adult flies reflect a metallic blue-green color on their thorax and abdomen and have very large red eyes on a large head. They have yellow gena, or cheeks.[20] Larvae vary in size according to which instar it exists in at any given time. Larvae shape is thicker towards the rear side and thins out near the head.[21] With all the problems that C. megacephala create, this group is one that needs to be recognized. C. megacephala are identified as having large red eyes with the males being close together and the females farther apart.[22] Also, the cercus of the male is longer than that of the female.[23]
Forensic science
Importance in forensic science
C. megacephala is considered one of the most important species of flies to forensic science. This is because it is one of the first species to show up on a corpse. A post mortem interval can be easily calculated when Chrysomya megacephala larva are found on a body because of their abundance. Most forensic entomology cases either have C. rufifacies or Chrysomya megacephala found on the decaying corpse in many areas of the world, and mitochondrial DNA is mainly used to determine subfamilies of Chrysomyinae.[24] Its wide geographical distribution and high fecundity allow it to be used in many forensic cases around the world. These cases are studied as a whole to find trends in insects collected off the bodies and from these studies it has been concretely concluded that C. megacephala is one of the most common blowflies found. The larval dispersion patterns of C. megacephala also make it a forensically important fly. To pupate, the larva move away from the food source to find a safe place to metamorphose. It is an important aspect for forensic entomologists to know so that they can accurately calculate a post mortem interval. Knowing to look under the body and in adjacent areas can be vital information for any case.[25]
Specific case studies
One study done in Thailand was used to compare and note what species of insects they found on 30 cases of cadavers. These 30 bodies were grouped into the specific environment they were found in urban-outdoor, urban-indoor, and forested area. C. megacephala was the most common fly found on these bodies, found on 20 bodies out of the 30 total. Calliphoridae was, by far, the most common family of flies found on all of these cadavers. Chrysomya megacephala was also found in more forested areas than C. rufifacies.[26]
Larval-state poisoning detection
In any part of the world that uses organophosphates, C. megacephala could prove to be beneficial. Organophosphate compounds are used in agriculture and are highly toxic.[27] Organophosphate poisoning often engenders death, and in many cases, by evaluating the body tissue and fluids, the toxin can be identified as the source of the poisoning. However, it is somewhat difficult to evaluate the body tissue in a body that is exceedingly decomposed. Nevertheless, a medical examiner in Hawaii worked a case in which malathion poisoning, an organophosphate insecticide,[28] was thought to be the cause death. The victim's stomach content and body fat were examined and found to have contained malathion. The fly larvae of Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya rufifacies were also present at the scene on the body and were tested for malathion. Both of these species did contain malathion, but there had been no previous record of organophosphate in larvae. Studying larvae from decomposed remains may provide an effective method in determining these toxins on a body that is extremely decayed.[29]
Use in research other than forensics
C. megacephala has a beneficial and practical purpose apart from being significant to forensic investigations; this blowfly is the source of pollination for mango in the Australian region. While most areas wish to rid themselves of C. megacephala, Taiwan farmers have found ways in which to enhance the population of this blowfly so that more mangos will be pollinated.[30]
Larval competition
When C. megacephala is found on a body, C. rufifacies is not far behind. C. megacephala larvae are known to compete with C. rufifacies larvae for food in a mixed-species environment. Research has shown that under specific population densities C. rufifacies will facultatively feed on other species of maggots and its own species. When C. rufifacies and C. megacephala larvae are put into cultures separately from one another in high densities, C. megacephala has a higher rate of survival than C. rufifacies. C. rufifacies is known to cannibalize when food resources get low, but despite this apparent advantage it had a lower survival rate than C. megacephala. Both species had a lighter adult weight than normal and pupated earlier. The third instar of C. rufifacies will eat Chrysomya megacephala when the larvae are in high density. Despite predating on Chrysomya megacephala, both species had a lower survival rate, lighter adult weight and pupated early. This is helpful to know in court cases because it could affect the time of death estimation. If there is only C. rufifacies found on a body, it is not accurate to only use this species to calculate a time of colonization. The colonization of C. megacephala prior to C. rufifacies must be taken into account.[31]
Predators and prey
Chrysomya albiceps is also known to predate on C. megacephala during the larval stage when they must compete for the same food source.[32] Beetles are also known to predate on C. megacephala. C. megacephala is not predaceous in the adult or larval form, preferring to feed on necrophagous material of any kind such as fish, cows and humans.
Causing problems
Agricultural importance
C. megacephala causes myiasis in humans and animals. This causes losses in cattle and fish industries all over the world. Also, studies are being done on C. megacephala to determine its role as a vector for diarrhea-causing bacteria such as E-coli. Actual transmission has not been completely isolated but there are three theories on the way disease/bacteria are transmitted: through the flies' saliva, feces, or externally.[17]
Public health importance and management control
Although this group can aid in pollination, C. megacephala can cause many problems as well. C. megacephala are known to be the source of accidental (secondary) myiasis in humans, meaning that these flies do not pierce the skin but invade an open wound.[33] In Thailand the first record of myiasis was that of a male, 53, where C. megacephala and C. rufifacies in their third instar accumulated within a tumor lesion in male's right lower leg; however, of the myiasis cases that are recorded, most do not involve C. megacephala and C. rufifacies.[34] C. megacephala like filth and even lays its eggs on human feces, and after landing on the feces they will land on human food.;[35] this is how C. megacephala spreads disease, and it is a carrier of pathogens, such as bacteria, protozoan cysts, and helminth eggs, to human food.[27] Not only is this group a huge nuisance, it causes a huge economic problem in Asia, Africa, and the Pacific. In these areas sun-drying fish is a preservation method for sending the fish form where they are caught to the location of markets and consumers. Ice can be used to preserve the fish as well but, these areas are underdeveloped and often cannot afford this method. However, blowfly larvae tend to infect these sun-dried fish when the weather is warm and humid. An experiment was done to observe which flies show up around these sun-dried fish the most, and 95% were C. megacephala.[36] One technique to control this group is using an odor that the flies are attracted to, and then the flies can be trapped.[33] Also, insecticides can be used to handle the problem of Chrysomya megacephala, but sometimes resistance is built up to this control mechanism[37]
See also
- ^ Brundage, Adrienne. "Entomology". Forensic Entomology Class Lecture. Texas A&M University, College Station. 2 Mar. 2009.
- ^ Wall Richard, and David Shearer. Veterinary Entomology: Arthropod Ectoparasites of Veterinary Importance . London: Springer, 1997.
- ^ Williams KA, Villet MH (2006). "A new and earlier record of Chrysomya megacephala in South Africa, with notes on another exotic species, Calliphora vicina (Diptera: Calliphoridae)" (PDF). African Invertebrates 47: 347–350. http://www.durban.gov.za/durban/discover/museums/nsm/pubs/recent-publications/Twilliams347-350.pdf.
- ^ Williams KA, Villet MH (December 2006). "A new and earlier record of Chrysomya megacephala in South Africa" (PDF). African Invertebrates 47: 349. http://www.durban.gov.za/durban/discover/museums/nsm/pubs/recent-publications/Twilliams347-350.pdf.
- ^ Gordoy WAC, et al. (September/October 1996). "Dynamics of Experimental Populations of Native and Introduced Blowflies (Diptera: Calliphoridae): Mathematical Modelling and the Transition from Asymptotic Equilibrium to Bounded Oscillations". Memorias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz 91 (5): 639–40. PMID 9137751. http://memorias.ioc.fiocruz.br/915/3096.html.
- ^ Wells JD (May 1991). "Chrysomya megacephala (Diptera: Calliphoridae) has reached the continental United States: review of its biology, pest status, and spread around the world". J. Med. Entomol. 28 (3): 471–3. PMID 1875378.
- ^ Pharr, Lauren R. 2009. A Taphonomic Model of Concealment: Decomposition and the Postmortem Interval (PMI) in a 55-Gallon Barrel. M.A. thesis, Louisiana State University. http://etd.lsu.edu/docs/available/etd-07102009-110514/
- ^ Goff, M. Lee A Fly for the Prosecution: How Insect Evidence Helps Solve Crimes. Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 2001.
- ^ Tomberlin JK, Reeves WK, Sheppard DC (2001). "First record of Chrysomya megacephala (Calliphoridae: Diptera) in Georgia, USA". Florida Entomologist 84 (2): 300–1. doi:10.2307/3496184. JSTOR 3496184.
- ^ Doe, Peter E. "Fish Drying and Smoking" Production and Quality. CRC Press: 177, 179, 186. http://books.google.com/books?id=_eATME6TvigC&pg=PA177&dq=chrysomya+megacephala&ei=ApvBSaamK4XEzQTr_IDwCQ#PPR8,M1
- ^ M. Lee Goff. "A Fly for the Prosecution" How Insect Evidence Helps Solve Crimes. Pg. 40 http://books.google.com/books?id=DAa0BzT7Mf0C&pg=PA95&lpg=PA95&dq=chrysomya+megacephala+egg,+instars,+pupae,+adult&source=bl&ots=JwrByojFnw&sig=NogsHGe-UrdIEPzw3OQmlAgO6kg&hl=en&ei=tGDGSYfHDIrhtgfHmuzICg&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=3&ct=result#PPA40,M1
- ^ Refaat M. Gabre, Fatma K. Adham, Hsin Chi. (2005). "Life Table of Chrysomya mecagecephala (Fabricius) (Diptera: Calliphoridae". International Journal of Ecology, Acta Oecologica 27 (3): 179–183 see p. 180. doi:10.1016/j.actao.2004.12.002. http://220.127.116.11/Ecology/Papers/Gabre-paper.pdf.
- ^ Regada C, Godoy WAC (2006). "Larval density, temperature and biological aspects of Chrysomya megacephala(Diptera: Calliphoridae)". Arq. Bras. Med. Vet. Zootec. 58 (4): 562–6. doi:10.1590/S0102-09352006000400018. http://www.scielo.br/pdf/abmvz/v58n4/a18v58n4.pdf.
- ^ Doe, Peter E. "Fish Drying and Smoking" Production and Quality. CRC Press: 177, 179, 186. http://books.google.com/booksid=_eATME6TvigC&pg=PA177&dq=chrysomya+megacephala&ei=ApvBSaamK4XEzQTr_IDwCQ#PPR8,M1
- ^ Piangjai S, Siriwattanarungsee S, Sukontason KL, Sukontason K (2008). "Morphology and developmental rate of blowflies Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya rufifacies in Thailand: application in forensic entomology". Parasitol Res. 102 (6): 1207–16. doi:10.1007/s00436-008-0895-6. PMID 18264799.
- ^ Kurahashi H, Wells JD (1994). "Chrysomya megacephala development: rate, variation and the implications for forensic entomology". Jpn. J. Sant. Zool 45 (4): 303–9.
- ^ a b Bunchoo M, Khantawa B, Piangjai S, Rongsiyam Y, Sukontason KL, Sukontason K (2007). "Comparison between Musca dometica and Chrysomya megacephala as carriers of bacteria in northern Thailand". Southeast Asia J. Trop. Med. Public Health.
- ^ Piangjai S, Siriwattanarungsee S, Sukontason KL, Sukontason K (2008). "Morphology and developmental rate of blowflies Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya rufifacies in Thailand: application in forensic entomology". Parasitol Res. 102 (6): 1207–16. doi:10.1007/s00436-008-0895-6. PMID 18264799.
- ^ José Augusto de Oliveira David, Thalita Rocha, and Flávio Henrique Caetano. "Ultramorphological characteristics of Chrysomya megacephala (Diptera, Calliphoridae) eggs and its eclosion" (2008): http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6T9N-4SSG4SC2&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=95615450a5f599ec430935bac55c1646
- ^ Jonathan A. Cammack. "A Survey of the Necrophilous Diptera on the Island of Dominica" Pg. 6 Department of Entomology at Texas A&M University, College Station, TX. http://dominica.tamu.edu/student%20projects/Dominica%20Projects%20pdf%20copy/Cammack_Jonathan.pdf
- ^ Jason H. Bryd, James L. Castner. "Forensic Entomology; The Utility of Arthropods in Legal Investigations" Pg. 33
- ^ Byrd, Jason H., and James L. Castner. Forensic Entomology. Florida: CRC Press, 2001.
- ^ Chaiwong, Tarinee; Sukontason, Kom; Olson, Jimmy K.; Kurahashi, Hiromu; Chaithong, Udom; Sukontason, Kabkaew L. (April 2008). "Fine structure of the reproductive system of Chrysomya megacephala". Parasitology Research 102 (5): 973–80. doi:10.1007/s00436-007-0863-6. PMID 18180955. http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/klu/436/2008/00000102/00000005/00000863.
- ^ Shiuh-Feng S, Yeh T (2008). "Larval competition of Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya rufifacies: behavior and ecological studies of two blow fly species of forensic significance". J. Med. Entomol. 45 (4): 785–799. doi:10.1603/0022-2585(2008)45[785:LCOCMA]2.0.CO;2. PMID 18714884.
- ^ Byrd, James H. and James L. Castner. Forensice Entomology The Utility of Arthropods in Legal Investigations. CRC Press, New York. 2001.
- ^ Sukontason, Kom, Paitoon Narongchai, Chaturong Kanchai, Karnda Vichairat, Pongruk Sribanditmongkol, Tanin Bhoopat, Hiromu Kurahashi, Manoch Chockjamsai, Somsak Piangjai, Nophawan Bunchu, Somsak Vongvivach, Wirachai Samai, Tarinee Chaiwong, Rungkanta Methanitikorn, Rachadawan Ngern-Klun, Duanghatai Sripakdee, Worachote Boonsriwong, Sirisuda Siriwattanarungsee, Chaowakit Srimuangwong, Boonsak Hanterdsith, Khankam Chaiwan, Chalard Srisuwan, Surasak Upakut, Kittikhun Moopayak, Roy C. Vogtsberger, Jimmy K. Olson, and Kabkaew L. Sukontason (2007). "Forensic entomology cases in Thailand: a review of cases from 2000-2006". Parasitol Res 101 (5): 1417–23. doi:10.1007/s00436-007-0659-8. PMID 17647017.
- ^ a b Wallman JF (1997). "First Record of the Oriental Latrine Fly, Chrysomya Megacephala, from South Australia" (PDF). Transaction of the Royal Society of S. Aust. 121 (4): 163–4. http://www.samuseum.sa.gov.au/Journals/TRSSA/TRSSA_v121/trssa_v121_p163p164.pdf.
- ^ "Organophosphate Toxicity." Department of Natural Resources. 2008. http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10370_12150_12220-27249--,00.html
- ^ Gunatilake, and Lee Goff (1989). "Detection of Organophosphate Poisoning in a Putrefying Body by Analyzing Arthropod Larvae". Journal of Forensic Sciences 34 (3): 714–6. PMID 2738573. http://www.astm.org/DIGITAL_LIBRARY/JOURNALS/FORENSIC/PAGES/JFS12698J.htm.
- ^ Gabre RM, et al. (2005). "Life table of Chrysomya megacephala" (PDF). Acta Oecologica 27 (3): 179. doi:10.1016/j.actao.2004.12.002. http://18.104.22.168/Ecology/Papers/Gabre-paper.pdf.
- ^ Shiao, Shiuh-Feng and Ta-Chuan Yeh (2008). "Larval Competition of Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya rufifacies (Diptera: Calliphoridae): Behavior and Ecological Studies of Two Blow Fly Species of Forensic Significance". J. Med. Entomol. 45.
- ^ Gomes, Leonardo, Marcos Rogério Sanches and Claudio José Von Zuben. 2007. Behavior of the Combined Radial Post-feeding Larval Dispersal of the Blowflies Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya albiceps (Diptera, Calliphoridae)
- ^ a b Bunchu, Nophawan, et al. (2007). "Behavioral responses of Chrysomya megacephala to natural products". Parasitology Research 102 (3): 419–29. doi:10.1007/s00436-007-0780-8. PMID 18026752. http://parasitology.informatik.uni-wuerzburg.de/login/n/h/j_436-102-3-2007-11-17-780.html.html.
- ^ Sukontason, Kabkaew L., et al. (2005). "First Report of Human Myiasis Caused by Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya rufifacies in Thailand, and Its Implication in Forensic Entomology" (PDF). J. Med. Entomol. 42 (4): 702–4. doi:10.1603/0022-2585(2005)042[0702:FROHMC]2.0.CO;2. PMID 16119563. http://www.med.cmu.ac.th/dept/parasite/KLS-PAPERPDF/LARVA/Firstmyiasis(JME).pdf.
- ^ Hui, Yiu H. Handbook of Food Science, Technology, and Engineering. Florida: CRC Press, 2006.
- ^ Wall R, Howard JJ,Bindu J (April 2001). "The Seasonal Abundance of Blowflies Infesting Drying Fish in South-West India". Journal of Applied Ecology 38 (2): 339–348. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2664.2001.00588.x. JSTOR 2655802.
- ^ Sripakdee, Duanghatai, et al. (2005). "Effect of Microwave Irradiation on the Blowfly Chrysomya Megacephala" (PDF). Chiang Mai University Research Note 36 (4): 893. http://www.tm.mahidol.ac.th/seameo/2005_36_4/12-3584.pdf.
- Calliphoridae
- Animals described in 1794
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Baylor Expert: 'Big Data' Marketing Success Requires Culture Change, Correct TechnologyAug. 28, 2014
Follow us on Twitter:@BaylorUMedia
Contact: Eric Eckert, (254) 710-1964
Professor's book reveals how businesses can use 'big data' to engage customers quickly and efficiently
WACO, Texas (Aug. 28, 2014) – The amount of data collected in today's marketplace – about people, their habits, the products they purchase, how, when and where they purchase – is staggering.
This vast amount of information is called "big data."
The marketers who are able to wade into this deep sea of statistics, read them, interpret them and create strategic opportunities to engage customers are the ones who will profit, said Jeff Tanner, Ph.D., professor of marketing in Baylor University's Hankamer School of Business.
In his new book, Analytics & Dynamic Customer Strategy: Big Profits from Big Data, Tanner used the experiences of major corporations such as Cabela's, IBM, Circuit City, Target, Cardinal Health and Walmart to demonstrate how some companies benefit by using big data correctly while others are less successful.
"Marketers hunger for solutions, but many simply aren't ready for big data," Tanner said. "Without understanding what it means and how different variables relate, you really don't have much insight."
Gaining that insight requires a change in culture, Tanner said. Not simply project management.
Corporations that succeed with big data do things like create a grassroots movement to using big data, invest in change management and not just technology, and engage in what Tanner calls "dynamic customer strategy."
Boiled down, dynamic customer strategy begins with creating a strong conceptual view to understanding the customer and the market, turning that view into strategy and testing and adapting accordingly.
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Often, companies find themselves victims of technology bloat. Multiple departments within a company will invest in varying systems and technologies that collect similar information, but the systems don't "speak" to each other, Tanner said. And the systems are rarely being used to their full potential.
"It is as if one group buys iPads while another group buys cellphones, only because they wanted calculators," Tanner illustrated. "I see it all the time. You have multiple iterations of technology that all overlap. You have high-powered technology doing low-powered applications."
Tanner, who founded the Baylor Business Collaboratory and serves as a marketing and management consultant to national and international companies, said his book provides a roadmap for corporations and marketing officers to make educated decisions and transform the culture of their companies.
"What's needed is a new set of strategic planning and execution skills to make the most of what big data and marketing technology have to offer," Tanner said. "You can take the stuff in the first few chapters and put it to work today and generate an immediate return on investment."
Baylor University is a private Christian university and a nationally ranked research institution, characterized as having "high research activity" by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The university provides a vibrant campus community for approximately 15,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating university in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 11 nationally recognized academic divisions.
Baylor University's Hankamer School of Business provides a rigorous academic experience, consisting of classroom and hands-on learning, guided by Christian commitment and a global perspective. Recognized nationally for several programs, including Entrepreneurship and Accounting, the school offers 24 undergraduate and 13 graduate areas of study. Visit www.baylor.edu/business and follow on Twitter at twitter.com/Baylor_Business.
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MOVIA Metro – Bucharest, Romania
In January 2005, Bombardier received another order from Metrorex in Romania to supply 20 additional six-car MOVIA metros for the Bucharest Metro, followed by an additional order of six trains in January 2007. This brings the total number of MOVIA metro cars delivered by Bombardier to Metrorex to 264. The trains operate on lines 1, 2 and 3 of the Bucharest Metro. The production of bogies took place at Bombardier´s Siegen plant in Germany and the flat pack carbodies were produced in Bombardier´s Görlitz plant in Germany. The IGBT propulsion was manufactured in Bombardier´s Västeras plant in Sweden. Final assembly of the trains was completed in Craiova, Romania by our local partner Electroputere.
The train consists of six cars with external sliding doors and flush-bonded glazing. Longitudinal seating and ample space for standees will give a total passenger carrying capacity of 1,200 persons per train at a normal load of four standees/m2.
Four out of six cars are powered, achieving excellent acceleration and braking performance. The new cars also provide an excellent working environment for drivers and maintenance personnel and fulfill high environmental requirements regarding energy consumption, choice of materials and recycling.
|Carbody Material
|Stainless Steel
|112,610 mm
|3,100 mm
|Max. Speed
|80 km/h
|Seated Passengers
|984 (4 pass/m2)


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Twitter Sued For Defamation By Someone Who Thinks It's Responsible For 'Publishing' Tweets
from the hello-secondary-liability dept
It strikes me that there are a number of (significant) legal problems with this lawsuit. First, perhaps this happened a while ago, back when Twitter did show tweets on its front page, but nowadays it does not. Second, I'd be shocked if anyone really used Twitter's front page without an account to find links. Instead, it sounds like people who actually followed Hardy saw her tweet in their views from the site -- which wouldn't have anything to do with Twitter making any kind of editorial choice at all. Even if it was back under the (very) old system when Twitter did display some tweets, I'm pretty sure those were just random tweets from the stream. Arguing that Twitter has any real selection choice in those is pretty ridiculous.
Furthermore, it appears from the description in the article that the tweet from Hardy didn't even name Meggitt. Perhaps it did elsewhere, but the tweet repeated in the Sydney Morning Herald just says:
Her tweet read: ''I name and shame my 'anonymous' internet bully. Liberating business! Join me,'' with a link to her blog, where she incorrectly named Mr. Meggitt as the author of ''ranting, hateful'' articles about her.In other words, it's unclear if even the tweet itself should be considered defamatory, rather than the blog post. Linking to a defamatory blog post should never be seen as defamatory itself. Either way, it seems we're getting even further and further away from any actually defamatory statement. If Twitter somehow is liable for defamatory comments written on a blog because someone then tweets a link to that blog, Twitter is going to become a hell of a lot less useful.
While Meggitt claims that he's not subject to Twitter's terms of service, since he doesn't use it, that's meaningless. The issue has nothing to do with Twitter's terms of service. It has to do with who's the actual liable party and that would be the person who made the defamatory statements. And, from everything that's been said, it sure likes like Meggitt has already settled the claim with that party...


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PITTSBURGH — The Flyers aren't done talking with the Columbus Blue Jackets, a source confirmed on Friday.
They are still having conversations with Columbus general manager Scott Howson about a potential deal for Rick Nash, a star left winger with a $7.8 million cap hit (ouch) through 2017-18.
Earlier Friday, the Flyers sent backup goalie Sergei Bobrovsky to the Blue Jackets for three draft picks, including a second-rounder (45th overall) on Saturday.
The Flyers are also in talks with Anaheim about bringing South Jersey product Bobby Ryan ($5.1 million cap hit through 2014-15) back home. The right winger, a Cherry Hill native, has scored more than 30 goals in each of the last four seasons.
In other developments, a source said it was "highly unlikely" the Flyers would sign an offer sheet when Nashville defenseman Shea Weber becomes a restricted free agent on July 1. Nashville would have the right to match the offer and keep Weber.
As for potential unrestricted free agents, the Flyers have most of their interest in left winger Zach Parise, defenseman Ryan Suter, and defenseman Justin Schultz, who was drafted by Anaheim in 2008 but did not sign. A star at Wisconsin, Schultz is regarded as a "can't-miss" prospect and believed to be NHL-ready; he would give the Flyers a much-needed right-handed shot on defense.
The first round of the draft starts at 7 p.m. Friday in Pittsburgh.
* * *
The NHL announced that the 2014 draft will be in Phialdelphia at the Wells Fargo Center.
Follow Sam Carchidi on Twitter @BroadStBull.


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USD Gets $20 Million for Engineering School
This event occurred in the past
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
U-T San Diego -- Philanthropist Darlene Shiley is donating $20 million to the University of San Diego to enable the campus to create a school of engineering in a region where two large universities are already competing for the best students in one of the hottest fields in academia.
The new gift will let USD transform its small but growing engineering department into a school through the hiring of a dean, support workers, long term improvements to classroom and research space, as well as student scholarships.
"I'm doing this because my late husband, Donald, was, at his core, an engineer whose work helped save the lives of 400,000 people," said Shiley. "I'd like to see USD turn out one or two engineers like him." (Full Story)


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Rich Froning Jr. Is a CrossFit Games Standout – Hunk of the Day [PICTURES, VIDEO]
Any fans of CrossFit out there? For those of you unfamiliar with this fitness competition, you won't be able to get enough of them after you take a glance at Rich Froning Jr. This man won the title of Fittest Man on Earth last year after competing in the Reebok CrossFit Games.
What does it mean to be the Fittest Man on Earth? Pretty much it's just looking the best shirtless out of everyone. No, we kid (not really). Froning won the title after completing a series of workout games focused on fitness training — lifting heavy weights in succession, pushing heavy things, jumping a lot of rope… yeah, that stuff.
CrossFit competitors gathered on Saturday in Charlottesville, VA for the first fitness games of the year to sponsor the Boys and Girls Club. While we love charities and giving back to the communities, we're crazier about last year's event, which had even more shirtless hunks. Check out the video below.
Wanna see more of Rick Froning Jr.? Come back next week and vote for him to become the Hunk of the Week. We'll throw together a gallery of photos and shirtless shots of the winner for you to enjoy. Plus, if Froning gets the most votes, he'll move on to compete for Hunk of the Month.


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Eric Sogard Named First Team Preseason All-American By Rivals.com
Jan. 16, 2007
TEMPE, Ariz. - Arizona State University junior second baseman Eric Sogard was named a First Team Preseason All-American today by Rivals.com. This marks the third preseason honor for Sogard, who was also named a First Team Preseason All-American by the NCBWA and a Third Team Preseason All-American by Collegiate Baseball.
The Thunderbird High School product had a breakout sophomore season, batting .353, tying for the team lead with nine home runs, slugging .625 and knocking in 50 runs, helping the Devils to their seventh straight postseason appearance. Sogard earned a Second Team All-American selection by the NCBWA, he was named a Third Team All-American by Collegiate Baseball and an Honorable Mention All-American by Rivals.com. He also earned First Team All-Pac-10 honors following his first full season of action in 2006.
Sogard and the Devils, who are ranked #8 in Rivals.com's preseason poll, open the 2007 season on February 2 when they host Southern Utah at Winkles Field-Packard Stadium at Brock Ballpark.
Football: Inside Pac-12 FootballTOMORROW | 6:00pm PTLive
Wed 9/26 | 7:00pm PTLive
Thu 9/27 | 12:00pm PTLive


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Plano, TX – July 8, 2009: Keil has released the MCB1760™ evaluation board and starter kit to support the NXP LPC1700 Cortex™-M3 processor-based family.
The MCB1760 evaluation board features a LPC1768 microcontroller running at up to 100MHz, together with a color QVGA LCD, Ethernet, USB, CAN, SD/MMC card interface, and UARTs.
The Microcontroller Development Kit (MDK-ARM) features numerous ready-to-run example projects for the MCB1760 evaluation board, making practical use of the board's peripherals. Some of these examples are built around the Keil™ RTX Real-Time Kernel, also included as part of MDK-ARM.
The Real-Time Library, includes CAN, Flash file system and USB device examples ported to the MCB1760 board.
The MCB1760 evaluation board is now available from Keil and our distribution channels. Further information is available at www.keil.com/pr/article/1165.htm
Keil, an ARM company, makes C compilers, macro assemblers, real-time kernels, debuggers, simulators, integrated environments, and evaluation boards for ARM7™/ARM9™/Cortex-M3, XC16x/C16x/ST10, 251, and 8051 processor-based microcontroller families. Products available from Keil include embedded development tools, evaluation software, product updates, application notes, example code and technical support. More information on Keil is available at http://www.keil.com/.
ARM designs the technology that lies at the heart of advanced digital products, from wireless, networking and consumer entertainment solutions to imaging, automotive, security and storage devices. ARM's comprehensive product offering includes 32-bit RISC microprocessors, graphics processors, video engines, enabling software, cell libraries, embedded memories, high-speed connectivity products, peripherals and development tools. Combined with comprehensive design services, training, support and maintenance, and the company's broad Partner community, they provide a total system solution that offers a fast, reliable path to market for leading electronics companies. More information on ARM is available at http://www.arm.com.
ARM is a registered trademark of ARM Limited. ARM7, ARM9, Keil, Cortex and MCB1760 are trademarks of ARM Limited. All other brands or product names are the property of their respective holders. "ARM" is used to represent ARM Holdings plc; its operating company ARM Limited; and the regional subsidiaries ARM Inc.; ARM KK; ARM Korea Limited.; ARM Taiwan Limited; ARM France SAS; ARM Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd.; ARM Belgium N.V.; ARM Germany GmbH; ARM Embedded Technologies Pvt. Ltd.; ARM Norway, AS and ARM Sweden AB.
For additional information, please contact
Michelle Spencer
+44 1628 427 780


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Born in 1904 during Teddy Roosevelt's first Administration, and dead on March 24, 2005, under a very different kind of Republican rule, George Kennan took his last stance as a public intellectual when he was about to turn 100. The issue was the impending invasion of Iraq. Kennan considered it ill advised. The official justifications for war struck him as flimsy, the servile reaction by the leadership of the Democratic Party "shabby and shameful." When Colin Powell traveled up to Princeton later to pay homage on Kennan's hundredth birthday, the Secretary, though doubtless aware of these views, nevertheless saw fit to liken the Iraqi operation to containment.
Till his dying days, Kennan could not get away from supposedly having been the "architect" of containment, the master signifier and reference point of all US foreign policy since the beginning of the cold war. He was 42 in 1946 when he wrote (or rather dictated) the so-called Long Telegram in Moscow, the text that, along with the famous "X-Article" in Foreign Affairs the following year, came to establish rigidly the official view of the Soviet danger and, putatively, the containment doctrine designed to deal with it. I doubt he imagined that he would live nearly another sixty years; and I am quite sure he didn't think he would have to spend a good number of them regurgitating what he really meant and didn't mean by "containment." Kennan considered Powell an honest person, and the latter may actually have believed what he said; but his remarks must have perturbed the old man then, as they might perturb Powell now (then again, probably not). Containment was Kennan's claim to fame and his everlasting curse.
Whatever the meaning of containment, a "doctrine" it was decidedly not: Kennan would recoil at the congenital US affinity for "doctrines" to be applied across the geopolitical board. Containment, by contrast, was a simple answer to an altogether too simple analysis of what the Soviet Union was all about. Kennan argued that Moscow, for specific historical and ideological reasons, was inherently expansionist and utterly inimical to the West, indeed to all forms of power not under its own control. To placate or "deal" with this regime, as Franklin Roosevelt had tried to do, was hopeless and counterproductive. The Soviet Union and its allies could only be contained, stopped in their tracks, thwarted in their natural logic of expansion. The regime should be treated as a pariah, not just as a hostile but recognizable political competitor. Real diplomacy and negotiation were counterproductive until, in effect, the Soviet Union ceased being the Soviet Union.
The decisive aspect of these two texts (whose internal contradictions and errors I leave aside) was precisely Kennan's prescriptive refusal to deploy the traditional means of diplomacy in relations with Moscow, his insistence that nothing serious could be achieved by way of negotiation on fundamental issues of mutual concern until the entire nature of the regime had changed. I take this to be the decisive aspect of the cold war as well, the aspect of warlike hostility under formal conditions of peace that made the conflict a cold war as opposed to a nasty but essentially traditional conflict of international relations. In my view, this posture fundamentally shaped US foreign policy until the early 1960s, when the Cuban missile crisis, the Sino-Soviet split and other factors rendered it largely obsolete. Kennan's responsibility for the cold war, it would seem, was thus far from negligible. Perhaps Powell had a point?


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Two for One
How House Democrats can pass health care reform without voting for the health care bill.
President Obama has repeatedly called for an up-or-down vote on health care reform. But the only way House Democrats may be able to pass health care reform is by not holding an up-or-down vote. Follow me, Alice, and I'll try to explain.
There are several interlocking dramas going on in the House. Speaker Nancy Pelosi is trying to round up votes, settle on the final strategy (which elements will be in a bill voted on now and which might be voted on later), and figure out how to order the process so that Democrats limit their political exposure.
It is this third matter that leads to the prospect of giving the president what he wants but not exactly the way he wants it. The problem is that House Democrats have to vote on two bills and they really don't like one of them. Let's call them Bill A and Bill B. Bill A, the Senate health care bill, has already passed with 60 votes. House Democrats don't like it. It has the "cornhusker kickback," insufficient subsidies for middle-class families, and other flaws. So they plan to fix Bill A with Bill B, a reconciliation bill. Bill B is the one House Democrats like.
The rub is that House Democrats don't want to vote on Bill A without assurances that Bill B will make it through the Senate and become law. If it doesn't, they get stuck having voted for the politically unpleasant Bill A without being able to say they tried to fix Bill A with Bill B.
House and Senate Democratic leaders have been talking for weeks about how to solve this problem. The parliamentarians of both chambers—who aren't part of the negotiations but who are central to them because these parliamentarians decide which procedural matters are proper—have also been consulted. (These guys could sink the entire enterprise if they wanted to.) So Democratic leaders ask them questions about hypothetical approaches and, based on their answers, try to come up with a way forward. It gets further complicated when members of the House leadership try to make plans based on what the Senate parliamentarians will do.
One method for accommodating the situation (first reported in CongressDaily) would allow the House to vote on the Bill B and, after doing so, simply consider the Senate health care bill (Bill A) as passed. There would be no actual up-or-down vote on the underlying bill. This would be the legislative equivalent of the economist's old trick of assuming a can opener.
This approach would serve two purposes. First, Democrats who think the Senate bill doesn't sufficiently limit abortion rights would never have to be on record as having voted for it. (Because the Senate abortion language can't be fixed in Bill B for procedural reasons, some Democratic aides say there is talk about a later bill that would handle these issues.) Second, if the Senate didn't fulfill its end of the bargain by voting on Bill B—remember, it's already passed Bill A—then House Democrats would be able to say: I never voted for that crummy Bill A. In fact, I only voted for that nifty Bill B to fix it.
The House has used a similar "self-executing" approach with budget votes. Under the "Gephardt rule," a vote on the budget can also count as a vote to raise the debt limit.
Republicans will try to say that the vote on Bill B is the equivalent of a vote on Bill A while arguing that this sleight of hand represents just another contortion in the Democrats' headlong effort to pass health care. (They'll also make a similar argument about a vote on the "rule" that allows all of this to take place, but if I spend too much time explaining that, you'll never come back here again.) Democrats will hope this maneuver will allow them to pass health care and move on to championing all the new benefits people can enjoy.
As for the president: All this parliamentary maneuvering complicates his message. For the last few weeks, Obama and his allies have specifically called for an "up-or-down" vote on health care. It's an effort to blunt the Republican charge that what the White House is asking for—specifically, to use the reconciliation process in the Senate—is somehow undemocratic. By using the phrase "up-or-down vote," Democrats steer the conversation back toward the more simple idea of a majority vote.
As of late Wednesday, the president's team was still on-message. "As the President has made clear, Americans deserve a final up-or-down vote on health reform," David Plouffe, president Obama's political strategist, e-mailed supporters. "And the House is now expected to hold its final vote as soon as one week from today."
Well, maybe not quite an up-or-down vote as you or I would understand it.
Become a fan of John Dickerson on Facebook.


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|January 14, 2013, 11:58 PM
Join Date: January 19, 2010
Location: Alabama, USA
Posts: 91
Win model 1300 pump problem
A friend brought me his Win model 1300 12 ga 3 inch chamber the other day for me to look at. Its one of those NWTF guns, the kind with the pretty green multi colored wood on it. The gun has not been taken care of very well , there are some major pitting areas on the barrel and on the magazine tube, and it had not been cleaned in a long ,long ,long , time. I think the gun was put in a soft case as it was damp, and the results are obvious.
Anywhoo, the ejector was hanging up when I would pump the action and I couldnt pump the action to the rear all the way , so I dissasembled the rcvr and trigger assembly and removed the barrel for cleaning. The firing pin and spring was just laying in there and the inside of the rcvr was really dirty. I cleaned everything up with some brake cleaner to remove all the crud, blew it out with air, then oiled all the neccesary parts. I cycled the pump several times ( without any rounds chambered of course) and it seemed to do ok, although I noticed there is some side to side play in the slide that the pump handle is attached to.
Friend took the gun this past weekend to try it out and loaded a couple low brass 2 and 3/4 #6 shots to test fire. Fired the first shot and he went to pump the action to eject first round/chamber the 2nd round and the fired round would not eject all the way. He gave it to me again today to look at again and left the spent round in the gun just to show me what it did. The ejector had come loose from the pump slide where its attached to on the flat plate that is on the bottom of the ejector assembly.The spent shell came rearward about 3/4 of the way before the ejector stopped its travel . Its like the ejector plate has 2 tab cutout/notches on its bottom side where the pump slide sits in but this is where it is working itself loose, therfore disconnecting the ejector from the slide.
Whats the best way to try and fix this bugger so it stays together ?
Best place to get parts?
|January 15, 2013, 04:49 PM
Join Date: March 24, 2011
Location: Kalifornstan
Posts: 73
Some places you can check:
New parts here:
used parts:
|January 15, 2013, 04:54 PM
Join Date: January 19, 2010
Location: Alabama, USA
Posts: 91
Thanks for the links dw. Anyone who knows the workings of this pump want to take a stab at what may be wrong? I know, its sorta hard to figure out what it may be without seeing it, but I wasnt sure if the gun may have some common problems such as what its doing now or something?
|January 15, 2013, 05:59 PM
Join Date: March 24, 2011
Location: Kalifornstan
Posts: 73
John, from your description it would seem that it's due for a mild rebuild. I've had my 1300 since 1984 and never encountered what you are describing. Some minor changes were made later in the way the ejector was mounted in the reciever and they did away with the small screw that held the slide arm bridge to the breech bolt slide and redesigned the rear of the firing pin. The ejector should have a slight curve(not flat) to it but without seeing what your used parts look like it's hard to comment.
I would make sure the slide arms on the extension are not bent and that the breech bolt fits in the slide arms well. I would replace
the ejector and extractor with new parts. If it's a later model the ejector retainer is attached to the ejector in the reciever with a screw. You might try cycling something besides low brass and see what happens but I've not encountered any cycling problems with any manufacturers loads.
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Baby Driver R
play trailer
Play Trailer
DetailsAction/Adventure , Comedy
Play Trailer
A talented, young getaway driver relies on the beat of his personal soundtrack to be the best in the game. When he meets the girl of his dreams, Baby sees a chance to ditch his criminal life and make a clean getaway. But after being coerced into working for a crime boss (Kevin Spacey), he must face the music when a doomed heist threatens his life, love and freedom.
DetailsAction/Adventure , Comedy
1 hr. 53 min.
Opened June 28th, 2017
Rated R for violence and language throughout.CastAnsel Elgort, Kevin Spacey, Lily James, Jon Bernthal, Eiza GonzalezDirectorEdgar WrightWriterEdgar Wright


text:
Manager Mike Scioscia finally made the starting rotation official today, not that it was a big secret. After a meeting with all of the starters, Scioscia revealed that John Lackey will start on Opening Day. It won't be his first Opening Day start (he had the assignment in 2003) but it will be his first on his own merits and not as an injury relpacement.
Kelvim Escobar will follow Lackey with Ervin Santana in the No. 3 spot and Joe Saunders as the No. 4 starter. The No. 5 spot is between Hector Carrasco and Dustin Moseley, until Jered Weaver returns April 15 or 16. Moseley appears to be the leading candidate for to get two starts in the No. 5 spot.


text:
PARIS (AP) — France has a history of intervention in Africa, where it was a colonial power for decades and still maintains several military sites and has hundreds of troops across the continent, including Senegal, Ivory Coast, Chad and Gabon.
— January 2013: French helicopter gunships and fighter jets struck at Islamist fighters in Mali at the request of Mali's president, after the rebels began seizing territory well to the south of the strongholds they had held for the previous nine months. It was the first military intervention under French President Francois Hollande.
—January 2011: Two French hostages were killed on the Niger-Mali border by their captors as French rescue forces closed in.
—January 2013: A French commando was killed and another missing after a failed raid to rescue an intelligence agent held hostage in Somalia for more than three years.
—April 2009: French commandos stormed a sailboat off the Somali coast to rescue hostages held by pirates. One hostage was killed and four were freed in the operation, which was part of an EU-led anti-piracy operation.
—April 2011: French tanks and helicopters backed Ivory Coast troops trying to oust Laurent Gbagbo, who refused to leave power after disputed elections. A French armored advance in Abidjan allowed troops for Alassane Ouattara to secure the city and take Gbagbo into custody.
—November 2004: French troops fought soldiers from Ivory Coast and French jets all but destroyed the West African country's air force after its warplanes from killed at least nine French peacekeepers and an American civilian.
—March 2011: France was a leading force in the NATO operation against Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's forces in 2011. Then-President Nicolas Sarkozy sent French jets to target Gadhafi's forces after pressing for a no-fly zone.
—April 2006: France provided intelligence to government forces of President Idriss Deby, who himself received military training in France. The intelligence allowed Deby to keep power against a rebel force that threatened to seize control of the nation rich in oil reserves.


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Reading For Change Book Club
Nov 01, 2012
from 06:00 PM to 07:30 PM
|Study Room
|Contact Name
|Shirley Vonderhaar
|Contact Phone
|Add event to calendar
This book club will normally meet on the first Thursday of each month to discuss a book centered on the topic of sexual violence. Jessica Pape, a Violence Prevention Educator with Riverview Center, will facilitate the discussion and copies of the books will be available to check out from the library. The book for this month is Please Stop Laughing at Me by Jodee Blanco, and is a continuation of October's discussion This group will meet in one of the study rooms at the library. This club is appropriate for all ages Middle School and older. Registration is requested to ensure that enough copies of the books are available.


text:
New Products - Agrial claims French milk first; Hormel launches Skippy PB & Jelly Minis; Nestle takes Maggi into UK noodle pots
This week, the more eye-catching new products announced to market include Unilever rolling out a vegan version of its Hellmann's mayonnaise in the UK and Nestle taking its Asian-inspired Maggi snacks into noodle pots.
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Russ Meyer, the breast-obsessed director of the previously reviewed mmmmmasterpiece Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! has been credited as one of the forefathers of the American Erotic Film Industry--his early film The Immoral Mr. Teas is singled out by film scholar Joe Bob Briggs in his "seminal" tome Profoundly Erotic: Sexy Movies that Changed History as the flick that paved the way for nudity and sex in the cinematic mainstream. The eccentric and flamboyant Meyer worked pretty much constantly through the 60s and 70s, well into the heyday of American porn, the era of Deep Throat and The Devil in Miss Jones and dozens of other "classics" that finally shed their inhibitions and brought real live sex to the screen. Therefore it's seen by some as a kind of irony that Meyer himself, the man who brought gigantic bare bosoms and unabashed sex-for-pleasure to small-town cinemas across the country, never made a hardcore film of his own.
There are many possible reasons for this gap in the Meyer filmography--some argue Meyer was more about the tease than the act, and found actual filmed sex distasteful (though arguing for Meyer's refined sense of taste in the face of flicks like the gleefully irreverent mmmmmasterpieces Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! and titanically tasteless Beyond the Valley of the Dolls seems frankly ridiculous); others that his sexual interest began and ended at the bust line, and nothing else held the slightest fascination for him. Other theories abound. However, after getting a look at Meyer's 1968 offering Vixen!, I am prepared to posit that such arguments are merely academic. A bacchanalian orgy of indiscretion, nudity, and unrestrained, unrestrainable sexuality, Vixen! is porn without the penetration. But it's also much more than that--a film packed with Sadean notions of vice and virtue, sexual power struggles, and a wild finish that makes less sense narratively than it does tonally, Vixen! is, like all of Meyer's best work, a powerful sort of primitive art--art that must be experienced to be fully appreciated.
We open with a patented Meyer voice-over, as a documentary-style narrator tells us that in Canada there are stretches of "bush" so wild and untamed they can only be reached by small-engine plane, and that "bush pilots" are rugged men with a sense of adventure who make travel to these places possible. I'm not sure if Meyer's being suggestive at this point, but just to be safe I'm going to go ahead and say "Hoo-ah!" We get some nicely shot footage of such planes taking off and landing, flying by Inuit totem poles, setting down on hardscrabble landing fields, and finally we're introduced to our main bush pilot, Tom Palmer (Garth Pillsbury, who also played the kindly crimelord/hit-man mentor in the amazing Malibu High), stopping in for refueling. A bearded mechanic pumps his plane full of fuel (Ooo-er!) and inquires about Tom's lovely young wife Vixen, all alone out at their house/hunting lodge in the bush. The grease monkey intimates that he wouldn't leave such a hot young thing alone for long, but the amazingly good-natured Tom laughs it off. "Vixen likes to tease," he says, "but she knows enough not to cross the line."
biggest-breasted racist nymphomaniac psychobabe in all the land?"
On her way back to her house, Vixen is accosted by two rough-looking biker types. We quickly learn that one is her baby brother Judd (Jon Evans), who sports an amazing multi-squirrel-tailed riding cap and a denim vest bedecked with Maltese crosses and other medals. Judd's best friend is Niles (the excellent Harrison Page), an African-American ex-pat who has fled to Canada to avoid being drafted into the Viet Nam war. It's here that the ugly aspects of Vixen's character really start to manifest themselves, as she hurls careless, voluminous racial slurs at Niles pretty much non-stop, calling him "Rufus" and wondering aloud where he's going to "find a watermelon" out here in the bush! The hate-hate relationship between Niles and Vixen almost reaches a boiling point before Judd convinces them both to lay off. When they arrive back at the house, Vixen makes some very unsubtle incestuous come-ons at Judd (!) before firing a parting shot at "Rufus" as they drive away.
At this point Tom returns with a couple of paying guests, Dave King (Robert Aiken) and his voluptuous spouse Janet, played by red-headed stunner Vincene Wallace. (Meyer claims that Wallace was his first and only instance of "casting couch" casting, a bit of trivia to which the only appropriate response is "Zang.") Things go from suggestive to utterly wild when, at a campfire dinner that evening, Vixen performs an astoundingly suggestive dance for Dave using a soon-to-be-cooked trout as a prop, pantomiming "fish-head" for his benefit before slipping the fish down her blouse in a way that's...arousing, I guess? It's truly one of those "only in a Meyer film" moments. Janet fumes on the sidelines while Tom smiles in his brain-dead, good-natured way at Vixen's exploits.
"porn-without-peen" scene that once again showcases both Gavin's body and her vocal range. However, given the layering of details leading up to this--the Mountie, the racism, the incestuous come-ons, the fish dance, and Vixen's perpetual wide-eyed, borderline-psychotic glare (even--perhaps especially--during moments of passion)--the viewer must start to wonder if there's something very, very wrong with Vixen behind her nymphomania and spiteful, ugly personal interactions. That doesn't put a damper on Gavin's sexiness, though, it has to be said.
The next day Tom and Vixen take Dave and Janet on a fishing trip, and Vixen takes the opportunity to show Dave a "special spot" where he's sure to catch everything he wants. While Vixen and Dave make wild whoopee in the bush, a spurned and frustrated Janet tries to get her own back by seducing Tom. However, the good-natured nature guide is faithful to a fault and will not rise to the bait. (Again, one's suspension-of-disbelief muscles get a workout.) Inexplicably un-laid at every turn, Janet decides to get drunk at the cabin while the rest of the crew goes bird hunting. However, Vixen also stays behind to "keep our guest company." No points for guessing what happens when Vixen and Janet start drinking together, though once again Gavin's wide-eyed psychotic stare during the lesbonic encounter lends an aura of wrongness to the whole thing--Vixen literally can't help herself, and it's not all joyful sensuality. Still, her double-seduction seems to do the trick, as that night Dave and Janet re-consummate their marriage and leave the next day happily fawning over each other. The healing power of infidelity--it's really the feel-good story of the year.
While Tom returns the happily-laid couple to civilization, Judd and Niles show up again for more race-baiting from Vixen, who calls Niles' manhood into question for his refusal to fight for his country. Niles passionately explains his reasons but Vixen is having none of it, throwing out creative and frankly shocking racial epithets until Niles has to flee the house before doing something he's sure he'd regret. Judd seems to think the whole thing is hilarious, teasing his sister that she should just go ahead and have sex with Niles already, an idea Vixen shoots down with extreme--and I mean EXTREME--prejudice. I was really amazed and confused by the Vixen character's pervasive, ugly racism, and wondered what exactly Meyer was trying to get at here, having his protagonist show such an ugly side. I'm still not entirely sure, but it's certainly unforgettable, powerful, and for a modern viewer especially, profoundly disturbing.
The disturbance doesn't stop there, however, not even close. As Niles tinkers with his hog outside, Judd decides to take a shower. Once again in the grip of her wild-eyed passions, Vixen decides to join him, leading to a very uncomfortable and strangely sexy scene in which all the incestuous come-ons finally come to fruition. The sex scene between Judd and Vixen is as wild and dirty as anything in a porn film, and we even get some amazing shots of the action from underneath the bed, through the wire bedsprings! When in the afterglow Vixen asks her seduced little brother what he thinks of her now, his response is all Meyer: "I've had better." Wow. Just wow.
We're almost an hour into a 70+ minute film, but there are still a couple more buttons left to push. Seemingly angry at his sister (and maybe himself?) for what just happened, Judd goes out and taunts Niles with things his sister may or may not have said about him, driving his friend into a rage and initiating what amounts to an aborted race-rape! It's the ugliest of many ugly scenes in the film, but before the hate can be consummated Tom's jeep appears on the trail and Judd comes in to break it up. Outside both Judd and Niles make small talk with the perpetually smiling Tom, a very weird and uncomfortable scene. Neither they nor Vixen (who appears on the porch fully dressed moments later) say anything about their afternoon dalliances.
Tom has another guest in tow, a stereotypical Irishman who wants Tom to fly him to San Francisco. Since Vixen's always wanted to go to San Fran, she and Tom go inside to pack while the Irishman and Niles sit and talk politics (Judd has motored off to the village to score some schoolgirls--yeah.) We quickly discover that the Irishman is a Communist and he plans to hijack Tom's plane and force the kindly pilot to fly him to Cuba! Pointing out the injustices and racism of Canada as well as the U.S., the Celtic Commie convinces Niles to join him, and before you know it the four of them are in the air on their way south.
a brief scene of totally unearned reconciliation between Niles and Vixen, Niles heads back north, and presumably the Palmers wait around to hand the commie over to the cops. As they wait, another attractive young couple approach the plane, presumably to inquire about lodgings. Vixen gives the camera one of her knowing psycho looks, eyebrows arched and eyes wide, a comment on the ongoing circle of life and lust. The end.
At the beginning of this review I said Vixen! is pretty much porn without penetration, and plot-wise it certainly is--most of the movie has our title character having sex with just about everyone who comes across her path (ha!) and the amount of flesh and fornication on display stacks up favorably to any triple-X offering. But it looks a lot better than a porn film--Meyer's bright colors and clean crisp framing look fantastic here, and the girls are a lot more attractive.
But what really lifts Vixen! above its hardcore brethren is the weird psychology, deliciously shoehorned social commentary, and inexplicable spitefulness of all the characters but Tom. (I should note that it's never entirely clear whether Tom is blissfully ignorant of Vixen's indiscretions as he claims, or if he knows everything and loves her despite her faults, or even because of them--the fish dance scene would seem to support the latter. Anyway, it's another wonderfully ambiguous thread of the flick's tapestry, ripe for interpretation.)
Vixen! definitely takes place in the same universe as Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! and Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, where the chicks are all larger than life, Olympian goddesses with foibles and faults magnified to the proportions of their amazing racks. Vixen is yet another figure in Meyer's strange, almost classical mythology--not on a level with Tura Satana's Varla, perhaps, but who is?
Vixen! 3+ thumbs, and call it a flick any Mad Movie enthusiast or Meyer-interested viewer should see. Just leave the fish in the fridge--you never know what might happen.
(Note: according to internet sources--the BEST sources!--star Erica Gavin says that seeing herself naked and having sex onscreen in this movie precipitated her development of anorexia, which over time robbed her of the voluptuous figure she shows off to such great effect here. A true loss to cinema and beauty generally--however, by all accounts she's overcome her eating disorder and is doing well. Hang in there, Erica! You're fabulous!)
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Vixen! (1968): or, The Dance of the Titillated Trout
Posted by The Vicar of VHS at 10:35 AM
Labels: '60s, 3+ Thumbs, Incest, Russ Meyer, Sexploitation
6 comments:
- Karswell said...
Vixen is indeed a wonder to behold. You haven't really seen a Russ Meyer film though until you've seen it on the big screen it all of it's gigantic bouncy fleshiness. I actually sat right in front of Meyer and Tura Satana at an Egytpian Theatre LA screening of Faster Pussycat one time, it was unreal. Haji, Lori Williams and Susan Bernard were all there too... one of the most amazing nights of my life to meet them all and see this film properly.
- April 22, 2008 at 12:55 PM
- The Vicar of VHS said...
Karswell, if you're trying to make me jealous...well, IT WORKED. :)
- April 22, 2008 at 1:07 PM
- Shweta Mehrotra Gahlawat said...
WHERE do you find these movies??? I laughed out loud as I read through- this is completely barking mad :)
- April 22, 2008 at 5:16 PM
- Karswell said...
I have a photo of me with Tura around here somewhere too... but yeah, I made alot of my St Louis pals jealous with that one.
- April 22, 2008 at 8:31 PM
links please?
- November 11, 2009 at 1:11 AM
- The Vicar of VHS said...
@Anonymous--Thanks for stopping by. I'm afraid we're only a review site, not a links/torrent/download provider. That said, I'm sure the internet is full of places an interested person might look for these flicks. Happy hunting!
- November 11, 2009 at 6:11 AM


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- About us
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About us
The History of the University
The history of the present University of West Hungary goes back several centuries. It is now the 6th biggest university of Hungary with ten faculties after a long development process of its legal predecessors with a great past.
The years of establishment (1735-1808-1846)
Forestry higher education, the long established field of study, the core of education of the university started in the institute founded for mining and metallurgy education. They had a common development for several years. Leading technical, legal and administrative experts were needed for mining and metallurgy in the Habsburg Empire, mining officers had to be trained. The School for Training Mining Officers was founded by the decree of Charles III, signed on 22nd June, 1735 in Selmecbánya.
The education was regulated by several decrees of the Treasury. One or the other discipline was highlighted according to the needs of the era, with emphasis on practical training. The school had to undergo fundamental changes to meet the economic requirements, and it became a higher educational institution. Maria Theresa laid down the basis for academic education by her decree signed on 22nd October, 1762. In 1763 the first department was established for teaching mineralogy, metallurgy and chemistry; in 1765 the second department was formed for teaching mathematics, physics and mechanics; in 1770 the third department was created to serve the practical training in mining and metallurgy.
On 14th April, 1770, the Royal Court notified the government of Selmecbánya County, that the Imperial and Royal Mining Academy, which had three departments, had been founded by the monarch. The deed of foundation described the compulsory course of education in detail.
In the course of education, teaching forestry became ever more important, since the safety of mines, metallurgy, mineral production, smelting of metal required both wood and the knowledge of forests. This deed of foundation ordered students of mining and metallurgy to study forestry. The sovereign emphasised that "teaching forestry culture should receive special attention, because this culture is essential for mining". This sentence brought a change at the academy, because in the third academic year forestry was included in the curriculum. The famous professor of exploitation of mines, Christoph Traugott Delius, gave lectures on forestry.
A joint meeting of the Treasury and the Chamber of Royal Mint and Mining in June 1807, discussed the establishment of a Forestry School, beside the Mining Academy. On 30th August, 1807, they ordered the foundation of the Forestry School. On 5th January, 1808, the Hungarian chancellery was also notified, and it was announced that Heinrich David Wilckens, professor of the Bechstein-type forestry school, one of the most famous polyhistors of Europe of his age, was appointed professor and Imperial and Royal Mining Councillor. He held his first lecture after swearing his oath of office, on 12th February, 1809. He taught students forestry "in its entirety". Upon the death of Wilckens, Rudolf Feistmantel became professor of forestry until the summer of 1847, followed by Frigyes Ignác Schwarz.
In 1846 the Forestry School was integrated into the Academy of Mining, which was renamed the Imperial and Royal Academy of Mining and Forestry.
The 1848 Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence made a great impression on the teachers and students of the academy, and there was an attempt to change the language of education and administration from German to Hungarian. Unfortunately this attempt failed.
Hungarian Royal Mining and Forestry Academy, Hungarian Royal Mining and Forestry College in Selmecbánya (1867-1918)
After the 1867 Compromise, the Academy became a Hungarian state institution, thus decreasing its international importance.
From 1872 the academy operated within a new organisational structure, the first independent forestry department was founded at that time. A new reform in 1904 formed a unified forestry section. The name of the institution became The Hungarian Royal Mining and Forestry College.
With the outbreak of World War I, there was a big rupture in the life of the college. The last lectures started on 6th October, 1918, but the academic year could not be finished. As a result of the peace treaty after the war, Selmecbánya was not a Hungarian town anymore; it belonged to the new Czechoslovakia. Moving from the ancestral residence started in autumn 1918 following a resolution of the council of the college, and a decree of the Ministry of Finance.
The college in Sopron. Organisational changes (1919-1950)
Thanks to the resoluteness of under-secretary of state Hugó Laehne and Mayor Mihály Thurner, the town of Sopron provided a new home for the college. The first group of students arrived in March 1919, led by the Rector, Géza Réz. Lectures first started at the Charles Barracks on 28th April. On 3rd February, 1922, it moved to its present location, when the buildings and park of the Hungarian Military School were provided for the college.
The college was renamed the Hungarian Royal College for Mining and Forestry in 1922, showing its expanded education programme. In 1923 the reorganisation of the college started. A new curriculum and schedule came into effect and 10 new departments were formed.
In 1934 the Hungarian Royal József Nádor University of Technology and Economics was established, and the college was integrated into this university, based in Budapest, as the Faculty of Mining, Metallurgy and Forestry. A new curriculum was introduced, and the number of departments was decreased.
World War II caused a lot of damage, but the relocation to Germany was avoided. Lecturing started again in April, 1945.
In 1949 the independent Land-Surveying Engineering education started. It was later integrated into the Technical University of Budapest. As a new technical university was founded in Miskolc, the Faculty of Mining and Metallurgy moved there. The moving of the latter two faculties lasted more than 10 years.
Forestry College, University of Forestry and Wood Sciences, University of Sopron (1952-2000)
From 1952 the Faculty of Forestry operated as an independent Forestry College with a university rank. In 1956 the storm of history dealt a severe blow to the college. After the defeat of the revolution, a large proportion of teachers and students left the country. Most of them went to Canada, where they formed the Sopron Division of the Faculty of Forestry at the University of British Columbia, and finished their studies there. Others went to Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
In 1957 the training of wood industry engineers started. On 1st September, 1962, the University of Forestry and Wood Sciences was established with two faculties. In 1971 production engineering training started for students of wood industry. In 1972 the university opened a new faculty, the Székesfehérvár Land-Surveying and Land Management College Faculty. A postgraduate course for paper industry engineering began in 1985.
In 1992 the basis for independent economic training was founded by the establishment of the Institute of Economics and Business Management Development.
After long preparatory work in 1994 the Institute of Applied Arts was founded, and training of artists began at the Faculty of Wood Sciences.
On 1st September, 1996, the university changed its name to The University of Sopron.
University of West Hungary (2000-2007) (2008- )
Due to the rationalisation policy of the Hungarian higher education the university was expanded by incorporating the Apáczai Csere János Faculty of Győr, the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences of Mosonmagyaróvár and the Benedek Elek Faculty of Pedagogy of Sopron in 2000. On 1st January 2008, it incorporated the Berzsenyi Dániel College of Szombathely. Since the union the University of West Hungary has its headquarters in Sopron, and operates 10 faculties in 5 cities.
The Magyaróvár Private School of Agriculture, the legal predecessor of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences was established by Prince Albert Casimir of Saxony, Duke of Teschen on the proposal of Antal Wittmann on 25th October, 1818. The period of training was two years. Language of education was Latin in the beginning, later it became German.
The Vienna College of Agriculture (today's Universität für Bodenkultur Wien) was separated from the Alma Mater in 1872. In 1874 it was the highest level higher educational institution under the name of Hungarian Royal Academy of Agriculture.
It is a great merit of the professors of the close of the 19th century that they successfully combined education and research. As a result the Experimental Station for Agricultural Appliances and Machines, the Meteorological Observatory, the Sowing Seed Testing Station, the Experimental Station for Plant Cultivation, the Veterinary Station, the Plant Physiology and Pathology Station, the Royal Dairy Experimental Station, the National Plant Breeding Institute, the Chemical Experimental Station and the Cattle Breeders' Association were established. Most of them operate now in Budapest or elsewhere.
In 1942 the Academy of Agriculture was changed into a college with a four year training period. After World War II the college was annexed to the University of Agriculture of Budapest. Training was eliminated in 1949. Education resumed in the Academy of Agriculture in 1954, which later became the Mosonmagyaróvár College of Agriculture and then the Faculty of Agriculture of the Pannonian University of Agriculture. Besides the traditional agricultural engineering course, a food quality assurance agricultural course started in 1994, and an agricultural economics course started in 1995. Since 1st January, 2000 the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences has belonged to the University of West Hungary.
Teacher training in Győr started at the time of the reign of Maria Theresa. In 1778 on the basis of the decree of "Ratio Educationis" the second master course started in Hungary in the National School of the city of Győr. From 1959 it operated as a tertiary level institution. In 1975 it was qualified as a college. On the 200th anniversary of teacher training in Győr, the institute took the name of Apáczai Csere János, the great school organiser and scholarly teacher. The institute became a faculty of the University of West Hungary on 1st January, 2000.
"The Sisters Named after the Redeemer" trained teachers and kindergarten teachers at the secondary level in Sopron in 1899. The secondary level was replaced by a tertiary level in 1959, and by a college level in 1989. The institute bearing the name of Elek Benedek, the children's story writer, has operated as a faculty of the University of West Hungary since 1st January, 2000.
The history of the Savaria Campus started with the establishment of teacher training in Szombathely in 1958, and has covered more than half a century. (The institute regards the teacher training institutes of Pápa and Kőszeg as its legal predecessors.) In 1959 tertiary level training started in Szombathely; in 1974 the Teacher Training College of Szombathely was founded, which took the name of Dániel Berzsenyi in 1984. In 2002 the institute was divided into three faculties. Because of the changes in the training structure, and after the merger of the Berzsenyi Dániel College with the University of West Hungary, the Savaria Campus was established within the university on 1st January, 2008. It comprises the Faculty of Arts, the Faculty of Natural and Technical Sciences and the Faculty of Artistic, Pedagogy and Sports Sciences.
The history of the Faculty of Geoinformatics started in Székesfehérvár in 1962 with land-surveying education following the secondary school final examination in the Land Surveying Technical High School. In 1972 with joining the University of Forestry and Wood Sciences located in Sopron, the training came back home, as the cradle of the certified education of land-surveying engineers was in Sopron. Based on the decision of the Council of Ministers, the Faculty of Land-Surveying and Land Management was founded in Székesfehérvár. Since 2006 the institute has operated as Faculty of Geoinformatics. The Ministry of Agriculture and Regional Development presented the faculty with the title of Land- and Geoinformation Knowledge Centre.
Training of economists started in Sopron in 1995. The Faculty of Economics was founded in 2000, and since its foundation it has assisted in cherishing the traditions characteristic of the University of West Hungary and its predecessor, the Academy of Selmecbánya. Located in the former treasury palace, one of the most beautiful buildings of the inner city, the faculty contributes to the intellectual life of the city with its high standard of training.


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The first official trailer for Marvel's upcoming space adventure, "Guardians of the Galaxy," debuted Tuesday night on "Jimmy Kimmel Live," and the clip delivers some spirited alien action, with exploding spaceships and muscled bad guys, not to mention a few purely comedic moments.
The film, due in theaters Aug. 1, is directed by James Gunn ("Super") and based on the Marvel comic of the same name. Chris Pratt stars as the roguish anti-hero Peter Quill, a.k.a. Star-Lord, who steals a mysterious orb and consequently finds himself on the run from powerful villain Ronan (Lee Pace), whose evil plans threaten the universe. Quill is forced to team up with a ragtag squad of alien misfits to battle the cosmic threat.
It's a quirky concept (one of the characters is a furry creature named Rocket Raccoon, voiced by Bradley Cooper), and early footage shown at Comic-Con International in San Diego last summer suggests that the film adaptation will embrace the comic's oddball elements with snark and humor.
The new clip spotlights a number of the offbeat characters including Zoe Saldana decked out in green as the assassin Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer, "Doctor Who" star Karen Gillan as Nebula (with a bald, blue head) and the tree-like humanoid Groot, voiced by Vin Diesel.
Check it out in the video below.
The film also stars Michael Rooker as Yondu, Djimon Hounsou as Korath, Benicio del Toro as the Collector, Glenn Close as Nova Prime Rael and John C. Reilly as Rhomann Dey.
What do you make of the new "Guardians of the Galaxy" trailer? Are you excited for more cosmic comic adventures? Let us know in the comments.
– Noelene Clark and Gina McIntyre | @LATHeroComplex
'Guardians': Vin Diesel official as Groot
'Guardians of the Galaxy': Marvel debuts photo
Bradley Cooper set for Rocket Raccoon
'Guardians': Marvel reveals Glenn Close's role
Comic-Con: Marvel's 'Guardians of the Galaxy'
'Age of Ultron' set to film in South Korea
Ben Kingsley talks 'All Hail the King'
'Captain America 2' directors promise 'edgy' sequel


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Sari (Baluchar Butidar)
Woven by Dubraj Das, Indian, died 1903
Made in Bahadurpur, Murshidabad District, West Bengal, India, Asia
Silk plain weave with silk supplementary weftsDimensions:
15 feet × 47 1/2 inches (457.2 × 120.7 cm)Curatorial Department:
Costume and TextilesObject Location:
Currently not on viewAccession Number:
1960-116-2Credit Line:
Gift of Stella Kramrisch, 1960
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The tradition of weaving Baluchar Butidar saris originated in the town of Baluchar in Murshidabad District, West Bengal, during the eighteenth century. It soon spread to nearby towns, spurred by the patronage of the upper classes. Production of these fine silk garments continued into the nineteenth century, declining only around 1900 with the death of Dubraj Das, the area's best known master weaver. Woven on a traditional drawloom, the central field was usually covered with rows of buti, a paisley motif, from which their descriptive name, butidar, derives. Their anchals (end pieces), as seen in the two examples displayed here, are decorated with scenes of urban elite at leisure.
This sari woven by Dubraj Das is adorned with dandies seated at a richly set table.


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Jack S. Futterman
JACK S. FUTTERMANJack Futterman was Assistant Commissioner for Administration until he retired in 1972 after a 36-year career with the Social Security Administration. Previously he served as Executive Assistant to the Commissioner, Deputy Chief of the agency's program analysis and planning component, and, for several years, as the agency's Budget Officer.
Mine are not memories embracing all of the then Social Security's multi-faceted developmental activities but rather those I was able to make through my own small knothole observation point in the Candler Building in Baltimore starting in 1936.
Social Security was born in the depths of a great depression. It was a terrible time. A time of wide spread hunger, enormous deprivation and large scale, extensive, unemployment. It was a very bad time indeed, and yet, if one were free to select a time to staff and build a great social program like Social Security, it would have been difficult to conceive a better time than the early years of Social Security when the Nation was foundering in the depths of a historic depression.
It was a time when any job was eagerly sought and the millions of unemployed competed fiercely-- Ph.D.'s and holders of Master's Degrees fought to get the same jobs that those with a much more meager education sought--receiving and shipping clerk positions, waitress, or whatever position was being filled.
In this climate Social Security hired people, and I was fortunate to be one of them, to fill clerical positions from Civil Service Registers densely packed with the names of persons with qualifications far beyond the needs of the jobs for which they were eligible; people who in better times would have been in high demand to fill top generalist, specialist, and technical positions.
The Candler Building was by no means the location of the "all" of Social Security activity. It was just one of several different kinds of centers working to get the administration of the program launched. Yet I have no doubt that in respect to the character of their staffs and their influence there was little essential difference.
It was the assigned function of the Baltimore organization to establish the basic records that would be needed for Social Security to carry out its ultimate designed purpose to pay benefits when workers met the requirements. There was no master plan that laid out the detailed steps to get from A to Z. There had been no time to do that. What there was, was a very broad-gauged idea of what they wanted the social insurance program to accomplish and a brash confidence that those entrusted with running the program would somehow work out an acceptable means of getting there.
Despite the grave misgivings of some record-keeping experts that a system of basing the payment of benefits on an individual's record of lifetime earnings would prove to be an impossible task, this confidence that a way would be found to do the job, proved to be sound. Much of this was attributable to the staff from the lowest graded to the highest.
In hindsight the absence of a "map" of how to get there was beneficial; had one existed it would undoubtedly have stifled the sustained burst of creative and imaginative effort that resulted as responsibility for each part of the job was parcelled out, first at the top and then through the lowest levels. Lacking pre-developed detailed instructions each worker had considerable latitude to work out the most efficient way to get his task done. Out of this atmosphere, and stemming in good part from the high caliber of the staff there came the perpetual search for a better way that became a Social Security tradition and, for many years, a hallmark of the way SSA did its job.
One very simple example of this attitude helps recall the flavor of those days. Fifty years ago, record-keeping was a far cry from today. Much was done manually--some with the expenditure of much physical effort. For example, in the days before electronic da-a processing, the standard method of keeping a record was on paper. And it was so with the system that we began to set up in the late 1930's. Each of the many millions of covered workers would have an individual ledger sheet set up showing his name and account number and when his employers reported (semi-annually at first, later quarterly, and now for the most part, annually) the worker's ledger would be removed, the reported earnings posted, and the ledger returned to its place in file. Just like any small businessman might do, except perhaps hundreds of thousands of times larger!
Jobs that the small businessman took in stride looked very much more challenging when increased in size 50 million percent! One example out of a great many was this matter of the ledger sheet. The ledgers were purchased as pin-feed stock to facilitate the printing, on the ledgers, of the worker's name and account number. When this was done, the pin-feed had served its purpose. In fact, the perforated edge had to be stripped away and the sheets separated from each other before they could be used in operation.
Initially, human fingers seemed sufficiently well adapted for this purpose--at least for the first 100,000 or so! But soon the cuts, bruises, and sore fingers and hands made evident that a better way was needed. Pliers, not subject to the ills of flesh soon found their way into widespread use. But all pliers are not equal and this gave rise to the search for the perfect plier--bigger, stronger grip, . . . When the plier technology seemed to have reached its peak still falling short of the ideal, the emerging "technology" of the cutting machine had its day only to be followed, in turn, by a series of other creative and imaginative approaches.
The culmination of this early search for a better way was a high-speed machine invented by one of our fellow workers. It used a set of fixed knives and rollers on a motor driven device to produce a shearing action. The knives stripped the edges off a continuous stack of ledger sheets as they were fed through at high speed and the action of the rollers (which were at a small angle to each other) "burst" each ledger from the following one. The machine eliminated for all time the manual job of "stripping and bursting."
Looking back 50 years from the vantage point of today's exploding and ever increasing powerful high technology one is tempted to laugh at such crude goings-on in the name of record-keeping, yet the spirit that undergirded this search for a better way typified the spirit which accompanied getting the Social Security job done over the years and that made the Social Security record system in its formative years, a showpiece to business. Those familiar with the history of the development of modern data processing, telecommunications, and photographic equipment and techniques know well the debt due to the skill, competence, and insatiable appetite for new and better ways, of the people staffing Social Security. Without its pioneering efforts, working often in close relationship with the related industries, exemplified by such developments as the collating machine, which gave the impetus for the rapid rise of the business machine industry in the 1930's and 1940's, through microphotography, telecommunications, automatic scanning devices, and many other benchmark developments, the state of the art today might very well be less advanced.
The memory of the "early days" remains clear after nearly 50 years: a hard working inventive staff, highly motivated to make things work, ever searching for better, cheaper, faster ways to serve the public. Their legacy lives on today in the people they touched, who carry on after them.


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Brook Lopez will miss his fourth straight game tonight against the Warriors, but the Nets are getting closer to seeing their starting center return to the floor.
Lopez, who suffered a mild sprain in his right foot in the third quarter of the Nets' 95-83 win over the Celtics in Boston on Nov. 28, went through a light workout yesterday, and coach Avery Johnson is closer to returning him to the starting lineup.
"Brook is feeling better," Johnson said on a conference call. "He's doing better, but he's got to be able to get through a full contact practice before he'll be released to play, and we're not sure when that's going to happen.
"We're making some progress, but he's not ready to play in a game right now."
After the Nets returned from last week's road trip, Lopez sat down with the team's doctors and had an MRI exam to definitively rule out any serious issues with his right foot, the same one he suffered two injuries to last year that cost him all but five games of the team's final season in New Jersey.
With the possibility of a serious injury fully behind him, the Nets began focusing on getting Lopez back on the court. That process began with yesterday's workout, which Johnson said included light, straight ahead running and shooting, but no lateral movement or contact. How Lopez feels after yesterday's workout will determine how much he participates in today's morning shootaround.
"We were all taking a real conservative approach because we hadn't gotten him back there to see our team doctors," Johnson said. "Once we got him back and they ruled out any serious injury when he got the MRI, [exam] then it was about getting him back on his feet, getting out of the boot and walking around, so that he could build some confidence.
"Right now there's no pain. Now it's a point of building confidence to try to get him not only running on the court, but moving laterally. We're just not there yet."
But it's possible Lopez isn't too far off. Under the best-case scenario, Lopez would participate fully in today's shootaround, then practice fully tomorrow and, if he came through both without any setbacks, potentially could return to the court for Sunday night's game at Barclays Center against the Bucks.
How well Lopez responds to each increase in activity will determine how quickly he progresses toward playing, with Johnson having said repeatedly Lopez will need to complete a full practice without setbacks before he will be permitted to play in a game.
"Once we see how he recovers, that will dictate what he does [today]," Johnson said. "If he recovers well and can go through some parts or all parts of shootaround, great. If not, we'll check him out again and see where he is [tomorrow]."
One thing Johnson stressed was the Nets weren't going to hold Lopez out longer than necessary because of the injuries he suffered to his right foot last season.
Once the 7-footer — who is off to a terrific start, averaging a team-high 18.5 points and 2.5 blocks per game — is healthy and ready to play, the Nets will put him back out there.
"He just needs time to heal," Johnson said. "Obviously we'll be conservative because of the history, but we're not gong to be super conservative where we make him sit out two, three, four, five more games than he should.
"The kid wants to play, so I think when the right time for him to play, between the doctors and [athletic trainer] Tim Walsh and [general manager Billy King] and myself and Brook, we'll all make the right decision."