text:
First Listen: 'Follies (New Broadway Cast Recording)'
Disc 1
- "Prologue"
- "Overture"
- "Welcome to our first - and last - reunion..."
- "Beautiful Girls"
- "You came; you're really here..."
- "Don't Look at Me"
- "I never get to talk..."
- "Waiting for the Girls Upstairs"
- "Rain on the Roof"
- "Ah, Paris!"
- "Broadway Baby"
- "The Road You Didn't Take"
- "Bargains, Buddy..."
- "In Buddy's Eyes"
- "Let's dish. Tell me everything..."
- "Who's That Woman?"
Audio for this feature is no longer available.
Disc 2
- "I had a Follies number once..."
- "I'm Still Here"
- "Too Many Mornings"
- "The Right Girl"
- "Men are so sweet..."
- "One More Kiss"
- "According to statistics..."
- "Could I Leave You?"
- "You'll make a good wife, Phyl..."
- "Loveland"
- "You're Gonna Love Tomorrow / Love Will See Us Through"
- "The God-Why-Don't-You-Love-Me Blues"
- "Losing My Mind"
- "The Story of Lucy and Jessie"
- "Live, Laugh, Love"
- "Chaos"
- "End of Show"
It's tough to untangle the sonic appeal of Follies — the landmark 1971 musical that stirs Stephen Sondheim fans to a frenzy each time it gets revived — from the show's visual splendors.
Showgirls in Ziegfeld-style headdresses and skirts the width of city buses; a razzle-dazzle tap number that pairs 10 graying hoofers, gathered for a reunion decades after their heyday, with the sequined ghosts of their younger selves; two bitterly squabbling couples, trying their best to figure out how their early promise went so sour. Add in a madly ambitious score, so bifurcated as to be nearly bipolar, that buttresses modern character songs with pastiche numbers in styles spanning 40 years — the experience of Follies has always been the sum of its parts and more.
So it's nice that the cast album for the current Broadway revival is packaged as lavishly as it is. There's 52 pages of booklet, with a critical essay and all of Sondheim's saw-toothed lyrics and even some of James Goldman's dialogue laid out among nearly two dozen vivid, deeply color-saturated production photographs by the eternal Joan Marcus. It'll conjure grateful memories among those who've seen Eric Schaeffer's handsome staging — either at Washington, D.C.'s Kennedy Center, where it was launched, or in the New York run that continues through Jan. 22, 2012.
And it'll please fans of the score, who were bitterly disappointed when the original 1971 cast album cut whole songs to squeeze the show onto a single disc. (Later recordings have been more comprehensive, but none, as musical-theater historian Steven Suskin argued earlier this fall, have ever satisfied fanatics.) Here, at full length and in a wonderfully lyrical reading led by the 82-year-old opera veteran Rosalind Elias, is the sentimental Viennese waltz "One More Kiss," omitted entirely from that first album. Here, too, is the oft-discarded trio that brings together the better-known set pieces "Broadway Baby," "Ah, Paris!" and "Rain on the Roof."
At two discs and almost 110 minutes, this album nicely captures the chewy opulence of the new production, for which the Kennedy Center provided conductor James Moore with an orchestra of 28 — an indulgence nearly unheard-of on Broadway today. The brass is clean and thrilling, the woodwinds warm and rueful, the strings lush and plucky by turns. All that happy noise means good things for big ensemble numbers, not least Act 2's "Loveland" and "You're Gonna Love Tomorrow" — to say nothing of Act 1's famous "Who's That Woman," which is probably as exciting as any song-and-dance showstopper can be without the electricity that comes from being in the room with a gaggle of aging divas flinging themselves gamely at flap-ball-changes.
The splendor of the visuals and the lusciousness of the sound are a frame for an idiosyncratic performance from top-billed star Bernadette Peters. Her voice has always been a singular thing, spun gold at the core but frayed around the edges, and the vulnerability at the heart of her best characterizations grows in part from the way she sings around her limitations. Onstage, the alchemy can be powerful: Her take on Follies' lost, lovesick Sally is built around a delusional quality that, like Peters' vocal sound, is alternately seductive and jarring. It's a good bet she's emphasizing the worn-and-torn sound for the sake of her characterization, but it's a choice that makes for some difficult listening. (She does seem to have husbanded her resources for Sally's most stirring number, "Losing My Mind," which comes across affectingly, if not quite devastatingly.)
Happily, the album does well by the show's embarrassment of supporting riches. Elaine Paige, the London theater legend who created iconic roles in Evita and Cats, hip-checking her way knowingly through "I'm Still Here?" Yes, please, and ditto Jane Houdyshell's sexy, big-hearted "Broadway Baby."
Ron Raines sounds fantastic as Sally's romantic fixation, Ben, his big baritone soaring over Jonathan Tunick's swoony orchestrations in "Too Many Mornings." Better yet is the clarity with which the recording captures the rage and sorrow of Danny Burstein's "The Right Girl" — and the antic vaudevillian anxiety of his "Buddy's Blues." (Buddy is Sally's reluctant philanderer of a husband, eternally second-best to Ben in her eyes, and Burstein's bleak, disappointed characterization is one of the production's great revelations.)
Likewise Jan Maxwell, whose "Could I Leave You" should come with a toxic-ingredients warning. As her ice-cold, sophisticated Phyllis finally lays all her cards on the table for Ben, the husband who's first molded her in his image and then grown bored with her polish, the studio performance builds fast from fake-sweet to taut and fierce to strip-the-paint wrathful, without losing the undertone of profound hurt that makes Maxwell so indelible onstage.
A definitive Follies? Partisans will bicker about whether Peters' Sally is a triumph or a missed opportunity; the greedy may complain that an already richly upholstered set didn't go further and include alternate songs added to or dropped from the show over the years.
The analytical might suggest that Follies can only really work on the stage, where personality and atmosphere and the thrill of showmanship and the inescapable ache of the passing moment all speak so eloquently to the show's themes. I think I'm in that last camp — but that said, I'm profoundly glad to have this document of a revival that's a milestone by anybody's measure.

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Battambang, CambodiaKirsty Turner
Battambang takes its name from the legend of an ancient Khmer king, who is said to have calmed the city's rebellions with his battambang staff. As you wander through the city streets you will see a statue representing this event as well as a number of interesting statues depicting mythical animals and religious characters.
There is plenty to see and do in Battambang. Start by climbing the hill of Phnom Sampeu to enjoy spectacular views of the city and explore the hill's caves, stupas and monastery. Near the hill is Wat Banan, which is dubbed a mini Angkor Wat and contains a large Buddhist shrine. Just to the west of the city, Wat Ek Phnom has also been constructed in Angkorian style, while Wat Baydamran is home to hundreds of fruit bats.
Situated 70 kilometers north of the city of Battambang in northeastern Cambodia, Bantaey Chhmar is a pretty temple complex built by Jayavarman VII as a tribute to the death of his son Indravarman and four generals in battle. Dating back to the 9th century, this is a great place to explore on a day trip. A mighty battle took place on this site in 1177 when it was invaded by the Cham people. Those interested in the areas unusual history can find the story engraved on the stone ways that surround Bantaey Chhmar. The complex has been overgrown by forest, giving it a mystical quality and it features large Avalokiteshvara faces which are reminiscent of the Bayon temple near Siem Reap.
Head out of Battambang to discover the ancient wooden houses of Watkor, which is a very pretty village. Other nearby villages worth exploring include Kompong Seyma, and Ksach Puoy. These villages offer a real insight into traditional Khmer life and you will still find people engrossed in skills such as weaving and basket making.
An interesting way to explore this area is by riding the bamboo train known as the norry. The Wat Poveal Museums is a good place to learn more about the Khmer arts, while just 44 kilometres from the city is Pich Chenda, a very pretty nature and wildlife preserve.
Walk along the bank of the Sangker River in the evening and you will discover a large number of small food stalls selling traditional Khmer food and also delicious French bread. This is a great place to get a cheap meal and perhaps wash it down with a beer or two.
A great way to travel to Battambang is by boat from Siem Reap. This scenic journey takes you slowly through the countryside, past floating villages and fishermen along narrow canals and waterways.


text:
Future Frankensteins? Experts help budding scientists
The spring science fair is an annual ritual in which all students at my son's school must participate. For one Wednesday afternoon in February, the auditorium is transformed as students stand beside a maze of poster board walls, eagerly describing and demonstrating the results of their experiments with everything from rocket propulsion to plant propagation— projects that have occupied their time and energy (and often their families' time and energy!) for the last several months.
While February may seem like a long way away, any scientist knows that a good project takes time to research, design, and carry out. That's why Central Library is hosting Science Project Help Day Saturday afternoon, November 2.
For the fifth year now, students with questions about how to set up a research design, where to find background information, how to state the null hypothesis, or any other science-project unknown can bring their queries to the science wizards assembled in the McIntire Room.
"We are fortunate to have a connection with UVA's science and technology mentoring program," says young adult services coordinator Tim Carrier.
Several members of this student-led science service organization will be on hand to talk with kids (and parents and teachers, too) about the students' work and how they can get started with their proposed projects. Graduate students and professors, chemists and physicists, and those who study earth science, life science, and environmental science will also lend their expertise to helping experimenters find their way through the sometimes-challenging maze of the research process.
Several sample projects and display boards will be set up around the room to give kids a visual idea about what a finished project might look like. Many of the scientists will offers handouts, and a variety of science books from the library will be available for checkout during the event.
Students eager to build and test a hovercraft or examine the cleansing qualities of various brands of shampoo should bring with them their ideas and any work they may have started so the scientists can help these young Einsteins form their thoughts into what may turn out to be a winning entry in the regional science fair at PVCC in March.
Science Project Help Day takes place in the McIntire Room of Central Library on November 2 from 1:30-4pm. 201 E. Market St. 979-7151, ext. 3.


text:
Signal monitoring apparatus analyzing voice communication content
A signal monitoring apparatus and method involving devices for monitoring signals representing communications traffic, devices for identifying at least one predetermined parameter by analyzing the context of the at least one monitoring signal, a device for recording the occurrence of the identified parameter, a device for identifying the traffic stream associated with the identified parameter, a device for analyzing the recorded data relating to the occurrence, and a device, responsive to the analysis of the recorded data, for controlling the handling of communications traffic within the apparatus.
Latest Eyretel Limited Patents:
The present invention relates to signal monitoring apparatus and in particular, but riot exclusively to telecommunications monitoring apparatus which may be arranged for monitoring a plurality of telephone conversations.DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART
Telecommunications networks are increasingly being used for the access of information and for carrying out commercial and/or financial transactions. In order to safeguard such use of the networks, it has become appropriate to record the two-way telecommunications traffic, whether voice traffic or data traffic, that arises as such transactions are carried out. The recording of such traffic is intended particularly to safeguard against abusive and fraudulent use of the telecommunications network for such purposes.
More recently, so-called "call-centers" have been established at which operative personnel are established to deal with enquiries and transactions required of the commercial entity having established the call-center. An example of the increasing use of such call-centers is the increasing use of "telephone banking" services and the telephone ordering of retail goods.
Although the telecommunications traffic handled by such call-centers is monitored in an attempt to preserve the integrity of the call-centre, the manner in which such communications networks, and their related call-centers, are monitored are disadvantageously limited having regard to the data/information that can be provided concerning the traffic arising in association with the call-center.
For example, in large call-centers, it is difficult for supervisors to establish with any confidence that they have accurately, and effectively, monitored the quality of all their staff's work so as to establish, for example, how well their staff are handling customers' enquiries and/or transaction requirements, or how well their staff are seeking to market/publicise a particular product etc.SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention seeks to provide for telecommunications monitoring apparatus having advantages over known such apparatus.
According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided signal monitoring apparatus comprising:
means for monitoring signals representing communications traffic;
means for identifying at least one predetermined parameter by analysing the content of at least one monitored signal;
means for recording the occurrence of the identified parameter;
means for identifying the traffic stream associated with the identified parameter;
means for analysing the recorded data relating to the said occurrence; and
means, responsive to the analysis of the said recorded data, for controlling the handling of communications traffic within the apparatus.
Preferably, the means for controlling the handling of the communications traffic serves to identify at least one section of traffic relative to another.
Also, the means for controlling may serve to influence further monitoring actions within the apparatus.
Advantageously, the analysed contents of the at least one signal comprise the interaction between at least two signals of traffic representing an at least two-way conversation. In particular, the at least two interacting signals relate to portions of interruption or stiltedness within the traffic.
Preferably, the means for monitoring signals can include means for recording signals.
Preferably, the means for recording the occurrence of the parameter comprises means for providing, in real time, a possibly instantaneous indication of said occurrence, and/or comprises means for storing, permanently or otherwise, information relating to said occurrence.
Dependent upon the particular parameter, or parameters, relevant to a call-center provider, the present invention advantageously allows for the improved monitoring of traffic so as to identify which one(s) of a possible plurality of data or voice interactions might warrant further investigation whilst also allowing for statistical trends to be recorded and analysed.
The apparatus is advantageously arranged for monitoring speech signals and indeed any form of telecommunication traffic.
For example, by analysing a range of parameters of the signals representing traffic such as speech, data or video, patterns, trends and anomalies within a plurality of interactions can be readily identified and these can then be used for example, to influence future automated analysis, and rank or grade the conversations and/or highlight conversations likely to be worthy of detailed investigation or playback by the call-center provider. The means for monitoring the telecommunications signals may be advantageously arranged to monitor a plurality of separate two-way voice, data or video conversations, and this makes the apparatus particularly advantageous for use within a call-centre.
The means for monitoring the telecommunications signals advantageously arranged to monitor the signals digitally by any one variety of appropriate means which typically involve the use of high impedance taps into the network and which have little, or no, effect on the actual network.
It should of course be appreciated that the invention can be arranged for monitoring telecommunications signals transmitted over any appropriate medium, for example a hardwired network comprising twisted pair or co-axial lines or indeed a telecommunications medium employing radio waves.
In cases where the monitored signal is not already in digital form, the apparatus can advantageously include analogue/digital conversion means for operating on the signal produced by the aforesaid means for monitoring the telecommunications signals.
It should also be appreciated that the present invention can comprise means for achieving passive monitoring of a telecommunications network or call-centre etc.
The means for identifying the at least one predetermined parameter advantageously includes a Digital Signal Processor which can be arranged to operate in accordance with any appropriate algorithm. Preferably, the signal processing required by the means for identifying the at least one parameter can advantageously be arranged to be provided by spare capacity arising in the Digital Signal Processors found within the apparatus and primarily arranged for controlling the monitoring, compression and/or recording of signals.
As mentioned above, the particular parameters arranged to be identified by the apparatus can be selected from those that are considered appropriate to the requirements of, for example, the call-centre provider.
However, for further illustration, the following is a non-exhaustive list of parameters that could be identified in accordance with the present invention and assuming that the telecommunications traffic concerned comprises a plurality of two-way telephone interactions such as conversations:
non-voice elements within predominantly voice-related interactions for example dialling, Interactive Voice Response Systems, and recorded speech such as interactive voice response prompts, computer synthesized speech or background noise such as line noise;
the relationship between transmissions in each direction, for example the delay occurring, or the overlap between, transmissions in opposite directions;
the amplitude envelope of the signals, so as to determine caller anger or episodes of shouting;
the frequency spectrum of the signal in various frequency bands;
advanced parameters characterizing the actual speaker which may advantageously be used in speech authentication;
measures of the speed of interaction, for example for determining the ratio of word to inter-word pauses;
the language used by the speaker(s);
the sex of the speaker(s);
the presence or absence of particular words, for example word spotting using advanced speech recognition techniques;
the frequency and content of prosody including pauses, repetitions, stutters and nonsensical utterances in the conversation;
vibration or tremor within a voice; and
the confidence/accuracy with which words are recognized by the receiving party to the conversation so as to advantageously identify changes in speech patterns arising from a caller.
Parameters such as the following, and having no direct relationship to each call's content, can also be monitored:
date, time, duration and direction of call:
externally generated "tagging" information for transferred calls or calls to particular customers;
As will be appreciated, the importance of each of the above parameters and the way in which they can be combined to highlight particular good, or bad, caller interactions can be readily defined by the call-center provider.
Advantageously, the apparatus can be arranged so as to afford each of the parameters concerned a particular weighting, or relative value.
The apparatus may of course also be arranged to identify the nature of the data monitored, for example whether speech, facsimile, modem or video etc. and the rate at which the signals are monitored can also be recorded and adjusted within the apparatus.
According to a further feature of the invention, the means for identifying the at least one parameter can be arranged to operate in real time or, alternatively, the telecommunications signals can be recorded so as to be monitored by the means for identifying at least one parameter at some later stage.
Advantageously, the means for recording the actual occurrence of the identified parameter(s) can be arranged to identify an absolute value for such occurrences within the communications network and/or call-centre as a whole or, alternatively, the aforementioned recording can be carried out on a per-conversation or a per-caller/operative basis.
The means for recording the occurrence of the identified parameter(s) can advantageously be associated means for analysing the results of the information recorded so as to identify patterns, trends and anomalies within the telecommunications network and/or call-center.
Advantageously, the means for recording the occurrence of the identified parameter(s) can, in association with the means for identifying the predetermined parameter and the means for monitoring the telecommunications signals, be arranged to record the aforementioned occurrence in each of the two directions of traffic separately.
Preferably, the means for identifying the source of the two-way traffic includes means for receiving an identifier tagged on to the traffic so as to identify its source, i.e. the particular operative within the call-centre or the actual caller. Alternatively, means can be provided within the telecommunications monitoring apparatus for determining the terminal number, i.e. the telephone number, of the operative and/or the caller.
The aforementioned identification can also be achieved by way of data and/or speech recognition.
It should also be appreciated that the present invention can include means for providing an output indicative of the required identification of the at least one predetermined parameter. Such output can be arranged to drive audio and/or visual output means so that the call-centre provider can readily identify that a particular parameter has been identified and in which particular conversation the parameter has occurred. Alternatively, or in addition, the occurrence of the parameter can be recorded, on any appropriate medium for later analysis.
Of course, the mere single occurrence of a parameter need not establish an output from such output means and the apparatus can be arranged such that an output is only provided once a decision rule associated with such parameter(s) has been satisfied. Such a decision rule can be arranged such that it depends on present and/or past values of the parameter under consideration and/or other parameters.
Further, once a particular conversation has been identified as exhibiting a particular predetermined parameter, or satisfying a decision rule associated with such parameters, the apparatus can be arranged to allow ready access to the telecommunications "line" upon which the conversation is occurring so that the conversation can be interrupted or suspended as required.
As mentioned previously, the apparatus can be arranged to function in real time or, alternatively, the apparatus can include recording means arranged particularly to record the telecommunications traffic for later monitoring and analysis.
Preferably, the apparatus includes means for reconstructing the signals of the telecommunications traffic to their original form so as, for example, to replay the actual speech as it was delivered to the telecommunications network and/or call-center.
The apparatus can therefore advantageously recall the level of amplification, or attenuation, applied to the signal so as to allow for the subsequent analysis of the originating signal with its original amplitude envelope.
Further, the apparatus may include feedback means arranged to control the means for monitoring the telecommunications signals responsive to an output from means being provided to identify the source of the conversation in which the parameter has been identified, or the decision rule associated with the parameter has been exceeded.
A further embodiment of the present invention comprises an implementation in which means for recording and analysing the monitored signals are built into the actual system providing the transmission of the original signals so that the invention can advantageously take the form of an add-in card to an Automatic Call Distribution System or any other telecommunications system.
Also, it will be appreciated that the present invention can be advantageously arranged so as to be incorporated into a call-centre and indeed the present invention can provide for such a call-centre including apparatus as defined above.
In accordance with another aspect of. the present invention, there is provided a method of monitoring signals representing communications traffic, and comprising the steps of:
identifying at least one predetermined parameter associated with a monitored signal:
recording the occurrence of the identified parameter: and
identifying the traffic stream in which the parameter was identified.
The invention is therefore particularly advantageous in allowing the monitoring of respective parts of an at least two-way conversation and which may include the of analysis of the interaction of those parts.
Of course, the method of the present invention can advantageously be arranged to operate in accordance with the further apparatus features defined above.
The invention is described further hereinafter, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a typical recording and analysis system embodying the present invention; and
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a typical data packetisation format employed within the present invention.DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENT
As mentioned above, the apparatus can advantageously form part of a call-centre in which a plurality of telephone conversations can be monitored so as to provide the call-centre operator with information relating to the "quality" of the service provided by the call-centre operatives. Of course, the definition of "quality" will vary according to the requirements of the particular call-centre and, more importantly, the requirements of the customers to that call-centre but typical examples are how well the call-centre operatives handle customers telephone calls, or how well an Interactive Voice Response System serves customers calling for, for example, product details.
The system generally comprises apparatus for the passive monitoring of voice or data signals, algorithms for the analysis of the monitored signals and, apparatus for the storage and reporting of the results of the analysis.
Optional features can include apparatus for recording the actual monitored signals particularly if real time operation is not required, and means for reconstructing the monitored signals into their original form so as to allow for, for example, replay of the speech signal.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a recording and analysis system for use in association with a call-centre 10 which includes an exchange switch 14 from which four telephone terminals 12 extend: each of which is used by one of four call-centre operatives handling customer enquiries/transactions via the exchange switch 14.
The monitoring apparatus 16 embodying the present invention, comprises a digital voice recorder 18 which is arranged to monitor the two-way conversation traffic associated with the exchange switch 14 by way of high impedance taps 20, 22 which are connected respectively to signal lines 24, 26 associated with the exchange switch 14. As will be appreciated by the arrows employed for the signal lines 24, 26, the high impedance tap 20 is arranged to monitor outgoing voice signals from the call-centre 10 whereas the high impedance tap 22 is arranged to monitor incoming signals to the call-centre 10. The voice traffic on the lines 24, 26 therefore form a two-way conversation between a call-centre operative using one of the terminals 12 and a customer (not illustrated).
The monitoring apparatus 16 embodying the present invention further includes a computer telephone link 28 whereby data traffic appearing at the exchange switch 14 can be monitored as required.
The digital voice recorder 18 is connected to a network connection 30 which can be in the form of a wide area network (WAN), a local area network (LAN) or an internal bus of a central processing unit of a computer.
Also connected to the network connection 30 is a replay station 32, a configuration management application station 34, a station 36 providing speech and/or data analysis engine(s) and also storage means comprising a first storage means 38 for the relevant analysis rules and the results obtained and a second storage means 40 for storage of the data and/or speech monitor.
FIG. 2 illustrates the typical format of a data packet 42 used in accordance with the present invention and which comprises a packet header 44 of typically 48 bytes and a packet header 46 of typically of 2000 bytes.
The packet header is formatted so as to include the packet identification 48, the data format 50, a date and time stamp 52, the relevant channel number within which the data arises 54, the gain applied to the signal 56 and the data length 58.
The speech, or other data captured in accordance with the apparatus of the present invention, is found within the packet body 46 and within the format specified within the packet header 44.
The high impedance taps 20, 22 offer little or no effect on the transmission lines 24, 26 and, if not in digital form, the monitored signal is converted into digital form. For example, when the monitored signal comprises a speech signal, the signal is typically converted to a pulse code modulated (PCM) signal or is compressed as an Adaptive Differential PCM (ADPCM) signal.
Further, where signals are transmitted at a constant rate, the time of the start of the recordings is identified, for example by voltage or activity detection, i.e. so-called "vox" level detection, and the time is recorded. With asynchronous data signals, the start time of a data burst, and optionally the intervals between characters, may be recorded in addition to the data characters themselves.
The purpose of this is to allow a computer system to model the original signal to appropriate values of time, frequency and amplitude so as to allow the subsequent identification of one or more of the various parameters arising in association with the signal. The digital information describing the original signals is then analysed at station 36, in real time or later, to determine the required set of metrics, i.e. parameters, appropriate to the particular application.
A particular feature of the system is in recording the two directions of data transmission separately so allowing further analysis of information sent in each direction independently. In analogue telephone systems, this may be achieved by use of a four-wire (as opposed to two-wire) circuit whilst in digital systems, it is the norm to have the two directions of transmission separated onto separate wire pairs. In the data world, the source of each data packet is typically stored alongside the contents of the data packet.
A further feature of the system is in recording the level of amplification or attenuation applied to the original signal. This may vary during the monitoring of even a single interaction (e.g. through the use of Automatic Gain Control Circuitry). This allows the subsequent reconstruction and analysis of the original signal amplitude.
Another feature of the system is that monitored data may be "tagged" with additional information such as customer account numbers by an external system (e.g. the delivery of additional call information via a call logging port or computer telephony integration (CTI) port).
The importance of each of the parameters and the way in which they can be combined to highlight particularly good or bad interactions is defined by the user of the system. One or more such analysis profiles can be held in the system. These profiles determine the weighting given to each of the above parameters.
The profiles are normally used to rank a large number of monitored conversations and to identify trends, extremes, anomalies and norms. "Drill-down" techniques are used to permit the user to examine the individual call parameters that result in an aggregate or average score and, further, allow the user to select individual conversations to be replayed to confirm or reject the hypothesis presented by the automated analysis.
A particular variant that can be employed in any embodiment of the present invention uses feedback from the user's own scoring of the replayed calls to modify its own analysis algorithms. This may be achieved using neural network techniques or similar giving a system that learns from the user's own view of the quality of recordings.
A variant of the system uses its own and/or the scoring/ranking information to determine its further patterns of operation i.e.
determining which recorded calls to retain for future analysis,
determining which agents/lines to monitor and how often, and
determining which of the monitored signals to analyse and to what depth.
In many systems it is impractical to analyse all attributes of all calls hence a sampling algorithm may be defined to determine which calls will be analysed. Further, one or more of the parties can be identified (e.g. by calling-line identifier for the external party or by agent log-on identifiers for the internal party). This allows analysis of the call parameters over a number of calls handled by the same agent or coming from the same customer.
The system can use spare capacity on the digital signal processors (DSPs) that control the monitoring, compression or recording of the monitored signals to provide some or all of the analysis required. This allows analysis to proceed more rapidly during those periods when fewer calls are being monitored.
Spare CPU capacity on a PC at an agent's desk could be used to analyse the speech. This would comprise a secondary tap into the speech path being recorded as well as using "free" CPU cycles. Such an arrangement advantageously allows for the separation of the two parties, e.g. by tapping the headset/handset connection at the desk. This allows parameters relating to each party to be stored even if the main recording point can only see a mixed signal.
A further variant of the system is an implementation in which the systems recording and analysing the monitored signals are built into the system providing the transmission of the original signals (e.g. as an add-in card to an Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) system).
The apparatus illustrated is particularly useful for identifying the following parameters:
degree of interruption (i.e. overlap between agent talking and customer talking);
comments made during music or on-hold periods;
delays experienced by customers (i.e. the period from the end of their speech to an agent's response);
caller/agent talk ratios, i.e. which agents might be talking too much.
However, it should be appreciated that the invention could be adapted to identify parameters such as:
"relaxed/stressed" profile of a caller or agent (i.e. by determining changes in volume, speed and tone of speech)
frequency of keywords heard (separately from agents and from callers) e.g. are agents remembering to ask follow-up questions about a certain product/service etc; or how often do customers swear at each agent? Or how often do agents swear at customers?
frequency of repeat calls. A combination of line, ID and caller ID can be provided to eliminate different people calling from single switchboard/business number
languages used by callers?
abnormal speech patterns of agents. For example if the speech recognition applied to an agent is consistently and unusually inaccurate for, say, half an hour, the agent should be checked for: drug abuse, excessive tiredness, drunkenness, stress, rush to get away etc.
It will be appreciated that the illustrated and indeed any embodiments of the present invention can be set up as follows.
The Digital Trunk Lines (e.g. T1/E1) can be monitored trunk side and the recorded speech tagged with the direction of speech. A MediaStar Voice Recorder chassis can be provided typically with one or two E1/T1 cards plus a number of DSP cards for the more intense speech processing requirements.
Much of its work can be done overnight and in time, some could be done by the DSPs in the mediastar's own cards: It is also necessary to remove or at least recognise, periods of music, on-hold periods, IVR rather than real agents speaking etc. thus, bundling with Computer Integrated Telephony Services such as Telephony Services API (TSAPI) in many cases is appropriate.
Analysis and parameter identification as described above can then be conducted. However, as noted, if it is not possible to analyse all speech initially, analysis of a recorded signal can be conducted.
In any case the monitoring apparatus may be arranged to only search initially for a few keywords although re-play can be conducted so as to look for other keywords.
It should be appreciated that the invention is not restricted to the details of the foregoing embodiment. For example, any appropriate form of telecommunications network, or signal transmission media, can be monitored by apparatus according to this invention and the particular parameters identified can be selected, and varied, as required.
1. A signal monitoring system for monitoring and analyzing communications passing through a monitoring point, the system comprising:
- a digital voice recorder ( 18 ) for monitoring two-way conversation traffic streams passing through the monitoring point, said digital voice recorder having connections ( 20 ) for being operatively attached to the monitoring point;
- a digital processor ( 30 ) connected to said digital voice recorder for identifying at least one predetermined parameter by analyzing the voice communication content of at least one monitored signal taken from the traffic streams;
- a recorder ( 38 ) attached to said digital processor for recording occurrences of the predetermined parameter;
- a traffic stream identifier ( 36 ) for identifying the traffic stream associated with the predetermined parameter;
- a data analyzer ( 36 ) connected to said digital processor for analyzing the recorded data relating to the occurrences; and
- a communication traffic controller ( 34 ) operatively connected to said data analyzer and, operating responsive to the analysis of the recorded data, for controlling the handling of communications traffic within said monitoring system.
2. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said at least one predetermined parameter includes a frequency of keywords identified in the voice communication content of the at least one monitored signal.
3. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said digital processor further identifies episodes of anger or shouting by analyzing amplitude envelope.
4. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said at least one predetermined parameter is a prosody of the voice communication content of the at least one monitored signal.
5. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said connections for being operatively attached to the telephony exchange switch are attached via high impedance taps ( 20 ) to telephone signal lines ( 24, 26 ) attached to said telephony exchange switch.
6. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said communication traffic controller serves to identify at least one section of traffic relative to another so as to identify a source of the predetermined parameter.
7. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said communication traffic controller serves to influence further monitoring actions within the apparatus.
8. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the analyzed contents of the at least one monitored signal comprise the interaction between at least two signals representing an at least two-way conversation.
9. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the recorder operates in real time to provide a real-time indication of the occurrence.
10. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said digital voice recorder comprises an analog/digital convertor ( 18 ) for converting analog voice into a digital signal.
11. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said digital processor is a Digital Signal Processor ( 30 ) arranged to operate in accordance with an analyzing algorithm.
12. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the digital processor is arranged to operate in real time.
13. The monitoring system of claim 1, further comprising a replay station ( 32 ) connected to said digital processor and arranged such that the voice communication content of the at least one monitored signal can be recorded and monitored by said digital processor for identifying the at least one parameter at some later time.
14. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the at least one predetermined parameter comprises plural predetermined parameters and wherein said recorder records the occurrence of the plural predetermined parameters in each of the two directions of traffic separately.
15. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said traffic stream identifier comprises a means for receiving an identifier tagged onto the traffic so as to identify its source.
16. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said digital voice recorder for monitoring the traffic streams is operative responsive to an output from said traffic stream identifier identifying the source of the conversation in which the predetermined parameter has been identified, or a threshold occurrence of the predetermined parameter has been exceeded.
17. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein said digital voice recorder, said digital processor, said recorder, said traffic stream identifier, and said data analyzer reside on an add-in card to a telecommunications system.
|January 28, 1986
|May 8, 1990
|November 6, 1990
|Chamberlin et al.
|December 4, 1990
|D'Agosto, III et al.
|November 9, 1993
|Comroe et al.
|December 28, 1993
|O'Neill et al.
|February 14, 1995
|Casselman et al.
|July 9, 1996
|Brown et al.
|December 9, 1997
|Maloney et al.
|October 6, 1998
|Maloney et al.
|August 31, 1999
|Pattison et al.
|November 9, 1999
|Miyazawa et al.
|March 7, 2000
|Fenton et al.
|May 2, 2000
|Pattison et al.
|0 510 412
|October 1992
|2 257 872
|January 1993
- So-Lin Yen et al., "Intelligent MTS Monitoring System", 10/94, pp. 185-187, Scientific and Research Center for Criminal Investigation, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Type: Grant
Filed: Feb 14, 2002
Date of Patent: Jun 29, 2004
Patent Publication Number: 20030129986
Assignee: Eyretel Limited (Horsham)
Inventors: Christopher Douglas Blair (Sussex), Roger Louis Keenan (West Sussex)
Primary Examiner: William Cumming
Attorney, Agent or Law Firm: Young & Thompson
Application Number: 10/073,966
International Classification: H04M/164;


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Tilda Swinton
STARmeterTop 5000
Down 51 this week
The iconoclastic gifts of the visually striking and fiercely talented actress Tilda Swinton have been appreciated by a more international audience of late. She was born Katherine Mathilda Swinton on November 5, 1960, in London, England. Her mother, Judith Balfour, Lady Swinton (née Killen), was Australian, and her father, Major-General Sir John ... See full bio »
Born:in London, England, UK
More at IMDbPro » Contact Info: View agent, publicist, legal on IMDbPro


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Liverpool and Merseyside's role in shipping, its maritime heritage, warehousing and other industries that still have a presence and those that have long gone.
For daily updates, to support us further or to join in the conversation: Follow us on Twitter @YOLiverpool / Like our Facebook Page: @yoliverpoolpics / Join the Facebook Group: YO! Liverpool Pictures


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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) -- Billionaire Warren Buffett is optimistic about America's economic future because the nation has begun to unleash the potential of women.
Buffett's views on the role of women appeared online Thursday in an editorial he wrote for Fortune magazine (http://cnnmon.ie/ZBFiri ).
He says that most of America's prosperity was created using only about 50 percent of its talent — the men. So he's confident the country will prosper as more women excel in the workforce.
"For most of our history, women — whatever their abilities — have been relegated to the sidelines," Buffett writes. "Only in recent years have we begun to correct that problem."
Buffett is discussing the topic at the University of Nebraska at Omaha's business college at 11 a.m. Central Daylight Time Thursday. The talk is being broadcast online at Fortune.com. Buffett, 82, will respond to questions sent in on Twitter.
Buffett says his two sisters were encouraged to set their sights on "marrying well" as a career goal even though they are just as bright as the billionaire investor.
Buffett says he saw his friend, Katharine Graham, continue to doubt herself as she led the Washington Post Co. She'd been told throughout her life that men were better at business.
Buffett is getting ready to face more than 30,000 Berkshire Hathaway shareholders this weekend. He is Berkshire's chairman and CEO.
Berkshire owns roughly 80 subsidiaries that include railroad, clothing, furniture and jewelry firms. Its insurance and utility businesses typically account for more than half of the company's net income. The Omaha, Neb., company also has major investments in companies such as Coca-Cola Co., Wells Fargo & Co., and International Business Machines Corp., better known as IBM.


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Carl Nielsen joins the legacy of Niels Wilhelm Gade, Edvard Grieg and Johan Svendsen as one of the leading Scandinavian composers. Whereby his music is not very well-known outside of Denmark and thus Carl Nielsen is among those composers whose full importance is yet to be discovered.
Carl Nielsen's Violin Concerto Op. 33 paints an ambivalent picture. On the one hand, it continues the line of the great virtuoso concertos of the 19th century and it is not as advanced harmonically speaking as the third symphony by far. On the other hand, the composer strove to create unique formal solutions and gave his work an inventive touch through its modal colouration.
This recording was made live at a concert to mark the 150th birthday of the composer. The most highly respected violinist Kolja Blacher, together with the Duisburg Philharmonic under Giordano Bellincampi, let Nielsen's great work shine in a fascinating intensity, not heard so far.


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Close any overlay on any website with a single click or shortcut keys (ctrl+shift+x or cmd+shift+x) !
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NORTH COVENTRY - A chain reaction accident closed the left lane of Route 100 north just past Cedarville Road Sunday evening.
Around 6:30 p.m., the North Coventry Police responded to a three-car crash on Route 100 roughly 20 yards past the intersection with Cedarville Road.
Three vehicles came to rest sandwhiched together in the left lane. One vehicle allegedly slowed and possibly stopped to possibly change lanes when it was struck by another vehicle at its rear. That vehcile was then also struck in its rear.
There were no injuries in the accident, but police said there was significant damage to the vehicles involved.
Route 100's left, northbound lane was closed shortly after the accident and traffic moved slowly through. Police aimed to clean everything up quickly and had the road completely reopened by 7:15 p.m.


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No catches, no fine print just unadulterated book loving, with your favourite books saved to your own digital bookshelf.
New members get entered into our monthly draw to win £100 to spend in your local bookshop Plus lots lots more…Find out more
Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum's life is set to blow sky high when international murder hits dangerously close to home, in this dynamite novel by Janet Evanovich. Before Stephanie can even step foot off Flight 127 Hawaii to Newark, she's knee deep in trouble. Her dream vacation turned into a nightmare, and she's flying back to New Jersey solo. Worse still, her seatmate never returned to the plane after the L.A. layover. Now he's dead, in a garbage can, waiting for curbside pickup. His killer could be anyone. And a ragtag collection of thugs and psychos, not to mention the FBI, are all looking for a photograph the dead man was supposed to be carrying. Only one other person has seen the missing photoStephanie Plum. Now she's the target, and she doesn't intend to end up in a garbage can. With the help of an FBI sketch artist Stephanie re-creates the person in the photo. Unfortunately the first sketch turns out to look like Tom Cruise, and the second sketch like Ashton Kutcher. Until Stephanie can improve her descriptive skills, she'll need to watch her back. Over at the bail bonds agency things are going from bad to worse. The bonds bus serving as Vinnie's temporary HQ goes up in smoke. Stephanie's wheelman, Lula, falls in love with their largest skip yet. Lifetime arch nemesis Joyce Barnhardt moves into Stephanie's apartment. And everyone wants to know what happened in Hawaii? Morelli, Trenton's hottest cop, isn't talking about Hawaii. Ranger, the man of mystery, isn't talking about Hawaii. And all Stephanie is willing to say about her Hawaiian vacation is . . . It's complicated.The hardcover edition of Explosive Eighteen contains a tear-out calendar inside!From the Hardcover edition.
|Publication date:
|22nd November 2011
|Janet Evanovich
|Books on Tape Books on Tape
|Crime & mystery,


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Colorado's green(ish) gas baron
When the sun gets in Ed Warner's eyes, he turns his chair – and his whole desk, too. Set into the floor in the middle of his home office, a giant turntable from an old mine quarry rotates the entire workspace, including a 7-foot-high wooden cabinet wall. The ingenious setup has appeared in Architectural Digest, and it's one of many things about Warner's "urban villa" home in the Cherry Creek neighborhood of Denver that suggest his unusual mind and staggering wealth.
Warner first identified the abundant natural gas reserves of the Jonah and Pinedale fields in Wyoming in the late 1990s, and he and his partners opened the tight-sands formations for development by pioneering new approaches to hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. The breakthroughs boosted natural gas production in the West and the entire world, and made Warner a multimillionaire.
The former geology grunt has since dedicated himself to philanthropy, notably giving $30 million to his alma mater, Colorado State University, in 2005; its natural resources college now carries his name. He also cofounded Regenesis Management Group, a Denver-based consulting company that facilitates water transfers between farmers and cities to benefit agriculture and the environment.
Warner, in his mid-60s, is short, with cool blue eyes, and he often punctuates his stream of words with a ripple of booming chuckles. Originally from New York and the son of parents with Jewish and Italian roots, he jokes that Woody Allen movies so closely resembled his childhood, they made him break out in hives. Trips to the Adirondack Mountains sparked his love for wilderness, and inspired him to head west in 1964 to study geology at CSU. Outspoken and iconoclastic, a self-proclaimed libertarian and environmentalist, Warner didn't hold back when he spoke with High Country News contributor Joshua Zaffos. "If people perceive you as an eccentric," he says, "you can get away with stuff that normal people can't." The following interview has been condensed and edited.
High Country News: Your work in Wyoming's Jonah Field ultimately spurred a nationwide natural gas boom. How did that happen?
Ed Warner: In December '91 or January '92, the McMurrys (a Casper-based family company) approached me and said we want you to evaluate a big gas deal. (Warner was then an independent geologist after years of working for large energy companies.) I saw huge potential, not proven by any stretch, because three wells drilled over 10 years had been failures. We bought Jonah (federal leasing rights) for a quarter of a million dollars. I showed my ideas to 27 (financial) companies and we got turned down 27 times. There are guys out there today who will tell you it was the worst business decision of their career.
Once we figured out Jonah, we realized Pinedale (an adjacent field) would be subject to the same engineering and geology analysis, so we started buying acreage over there. Combined (with Jonah), it's estimated to be 50 trillion cubic feet of gas.
HCN: You and your partners are credited with helping to stimulate the widespread use of hydraulic fracturing.
Warner: Prior to Jonah, natural gas fields virtually worldwide were drilled one to four wells maximum per square mile. We revolutionized how gas is extracted from the ground -- what we call the completion technology -- over a period of three or four years (giving drillers greater access to gas formations). Now, there are 64 wells per square mile in Jonah and Pinedale. Instead of drilling vertical wells through thousands and thousands of feet of a gas play, they now drill horizontal wells through thin sheets (using fracking). We changed the world.
HCN: When did you come into your wealth?
Warner: In 1996, we brought in an industrial partner to buy us out of debt and then they put up $30 million to drill. We drilled 30 wells when gas prices were rising, and income went up twentyfold.
By the beginning of 1998, I foresaw my entire financial future. It was April, and I came home and sat (my wife) Jackie down and said, "Honey, our lives are about to change. In the coming months and next few years, our income is going to explode. We're rich." I never expected this to happen.
In 2000, I sold my working interests, and came into a big chunk of money, and by then I realized I wanted to work in conservation and environmental issues.
HCN: Why did you dive into philanthropy, including your endowment to Colorado State?
Warner: I owed society this gift that had been delivered to me, so I went back to the geology department at CSU (by then part of the natural resources college), which had changed my life, and said, "How can I help?" I did not walk in there and say, "I'm going to give you $30 million, I want my name on a college."
In 2000, I decided to endow two chairs in geology. There had been three (endowed) chairs (at CSU) before my two. Today, there are 35 or 40.
By 2005, I was already thinking about how we had failed to solve problems through the environmental movement. I thought that top-down (regulatory) environmentalism did not seem to succeed. Secondly, litigation was a catastrophe -- suing people to do the right thing hurt the environment; it stopped people from doing things. A cooperative process was harder work, but in the long term brought people together to work on problems instead of making them enemies. Thus I came up with the idea to fund the Center for Collaborative Conservation (which supports local and international community-based research and conservation projects involving both scientists and land-users).
I sat down with (then CSU president) Larry Penley and said, "I'm thinking about doing this and it looks like $8 million." And he said, "What we really would like to do is up the total gift you've made to $30 million, including the center." There were several other key things: a fund for the dean to create mini-grants, and an endowment to geosciences -- with the caveat that everyone in the department had to get something.


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The whole point of getting a loan is to avoid the high interest rates and added fees of a credit card. So make sure you're avoiding all of that with personal loans, too.
Don't let your mortgage lender hold out on you! They're in on these secrets — and they could save you big.
Choosing between a fixed rate or adjustable rate mortgage loan is yet another complex decision new homebuyers must navigate. Make it easier by understanding the options.
I've taken a look at home affordability calculators that are available from many reputable sites offering personal finance advice. "Affordability" is based on bank lending guidelin
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson gave a speech yesterday, talking about the administration's plan to "address the challenges" of the housing market downturn and relat
Now that many of you have crunched the numbers for accelerating your mortgage payoff, I think you are ready for a quick lesson on speeding through your mortgage. Now, I am not sayi
Do-it-yourselfers who are weary of yet another trip to the home improvement store may like this DIY project. It has the possibilities of increasing home equity just as quickly as a bath remodel or new deck.
Looking for a dull, but financially eye-opening home project? Great! Today, we're going to build an amortization schedule. [more]
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"AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL" - (9:00-10:00 p.m. ET)
"The Girl Who Joined the Circus" (TV-14, L)
GOOD GOSSIP ?? The models learn to strike an extreme pose from a contortionist and are put to the test in a high fashion challenge with an extravagant prize. At the photo shoot, the girls turn into circus freaks, but its household gossip that leaves one girl in tears. Special guests include Top Model judge Twiggy, designer Bao Tranchi, Stacey McKenzie, judge from "Canada's Next Top Model," photographer Mike Rosenthal and Atoosa Rubenstein, Editor-in-Chief of Seventeen magazine as guest judge. (705)


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Bra-ket notation
Bra-ket notation, also known as Dirac notation, is essentially the language of quantum mechanics. It was invented by the English physicist Paul Dirac and is named after him.[1] Although observable quantities are associated with linear operators, and states are represented by vectors, the required computations can be greatly simplified through the use of the Dirac Bracket Notation.
In non-relativistic quantum mechanics, states are said to reside in a Hilbert Space which, by definition, has an inner product, typically denoted by . In bra-ket notation, the symbol is used to represent an element of the Hilbert Space in question. This vector is called a "ket". However, by Riesz Representation Theorem, each element of the Hilbert space also uniquely defines a linear functional which resides in the dual space in terms of the inner product, as follows:
In the Dirac notation, the functional defined by is instead represented by:
And in this case, is called a "bra". When the bra is written next to a ket , we understand the pair to form a "bracket" giving us an inner product:
The notation is deceptively simple. The elegant nature of the Dirac Bra-ket notation allows physicists to treat linear functionals represented as bras in a very intuitive fashion (they preserve nearly all of the familiar algebraic properties of numbers except commutativity). Computations of inner products are naturally suggested, and the problem is not bogged down in excessive notation—it is essentially distilled down to its algebraic content alone.
Orthogonality of Bras and Kets
Because the bracket represents an inner product, certain concepts from linear algebra will continue to play a role. One is that of orthogonality. By using the Gram-Schmidt Process, and set of linearly independent kets can be orthogonalized, and we may oftentimes assume that such a procedure has been carried out. In addition, because of the probabilistic interpretation of wave mechanics, we may actually take the kets to be normalized. In the Dirac Notation, the normalization condition reads:
While, by orthogonality, if :
So for any two kets from a countable orthonormal set indexed by integers, we may write:
Where is the Kronecker Delta function. As far as discrete sets of states are concerned, the Dirac Notation has an important role to play in the representation of linear operators by matrices. Suppose we have a complete orthonormal set of kets:
And a linear operator . Then the entries of the matrix representation of in the basis defined by the kets is simply:
Likewise, if the kets are known, but a set of eigenvalues of the form:
is also known, then a linear operator possessing those eigenvalues can be constructed. The matrix representation for a linear operator with eigenvalues from :
The kets may also represent a continuous set of states. In such circumstances (which would include, for example, a free particle), Dirac also found it necessary to develop what is known as the Dirac delta function as an analogue to the Kronecker delta function. For a continuous set of complete kets indexed by the continuous variables and :
This relation should be thought of as a strictly canonical for use in integration, since writing the Dirac Delta Function in the absence of an integral is somewhat dubious. However, this does allow us to consider wavefunctions in terms of the Dirac Notation. Referring to the article on the Dirac Delta Function, we see that:
And thus that the wavefunction in position space for a state can be written as:


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Videos | August 1, 2011
What's Up for August 2011?
Windy Saturn and Jupiter, Juno mission launch.
Jane Houston Jones: What's Up for August.
The solar system's windy worlds.
Hello and welcome. I'm Jane Houston Jones at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
Many of our planetary neighbors have significant atmospheres.
On Venus the atmosphere's much thicker than our own and blankets the planet with dense clouds, which can reach tornado-like speeds.
On Mars it's much thinner, though there are periodic global dust storms and even dust devils.
The outer planets' atmospheres are worse than that.
Jupiter and Saturn's atmospheres are swirling with toxic gases like ammonia, and the temperatures and wind speeds are extreme.
The Cassini spacecraft recently studied a huge storm on Saturn, which has been raging since last December.
While it started as an isolated storm, the winds in Saturn's atmosphere have affected the tops of Saturn's clouds. The storm now completely encircles the planet, and can even be spotted in amateur telescopes.
In this false-color image the blue clouds are the highest and are thin.
Yellow and white clouds are thick, high-altitude clouds.
Green are intermediate. Red and brown are lower-altitude clouds but are not obscured by the other clouds.
The deepest blue shows a thin haze with no clouds below.
The storm clouds are most likely made of water ice covered by crystallized ammonia,
carbon and other contaminants.
But which planet is the windiest? Neptune.
The winds on Neptune blow at more than 1200 miles per hour. That's 2000 kilometers per hour.
Mission Control voice: Ignition. Lift off.
Jones: With the launch of the Juno spacecraft this month, we celebrate our return to Jupiter.
Juno will improve our understanding of our solar system's beginnings by revealing the origin and evolution of Jupiter.
The spinning spacecraft will use microwave antennas to observe how this windy world is moving far below its visible cloud tops. It will also probe Jupiter's interior to determine how deep, wind-driven cloud features, like the colorful bands and the Great Red Spot, reach into the planet.
Throughout August, Saturn is visible at sunset, and you can see Jupiter after midnight.
Both Neptune and asteroid Vesta are at opposition this month, but you'll need a telescope to see them.
You can read all about the solar system winds at solarsystem dot nasa dot gov slash y-s-s, for Year of the Solar System.
You can learn all about the Juno mission at nasa dot gov slash juno.
And you can learn all about NASA's missions at w w w dot nasa dot gov.
That's all for this month. I'm Jane Houston Jones.
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology


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Steven Stamkos joins other Pro Athletes for a Nike 'Snow Day'
During tonight's Thursday Night Football game with the New England Patriots and the Miami Dolphins, Nike will debut their creative and fun 'Snow Day' campaign which features Tampa Bay Lightning Forward Steven Stamkos among a cast of other professional athletes. … Continue reading
Posted in News Tagged A.J. Green, Antonio Brown, Ben Roethlisberger, Carli Lloyd, Draymond Green, Elena Delle Donne, Eric Weddle, Eugenie Bouchard, Lauren Fisher, Le'Veon Bell, LeSean McCoy, Luke Kuechly, Marcus Mariota, Marlen Esparza, Odell Beckham Jr., Paul George, Paula Findlay, Steven Stamkos., Sydney Leroux, Tampa Bay Lightning Leave a comment


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Find Our Latest Video Reviews on YouTube!
If you want to stay on top of all of our video reviews of the latest tech, be sure to check out and subscribe to the Gear Live YouTube channel, hosted by Andru Edwards! It's free!
Tuesday February 12, 2008 1:02 pm
Netflix to Go Blu-ray
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Corporate News, HDTV, Home Entertainment
Netflix has announced that it will only buy Blu-ray discs and phase out HD by the end of the year. We suspect that is because four of the six major studios have gone the same way. While this looks to be the end of the war, we are just not ready to go out and purchase a new player right away. We hope that Sony finally feels karma for their failed Betamax. We also discovered that Netflix will be only sending out standard DVDs by the end of this month.
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text:
Oscar Pistorius Psych Ruling 'Not Good' for Blade Runner, Expert Says
Pistorius lawyers try to cast doubt on witnesses who heard screaming.
Pretoria, South Africa -- Oscar Pistorius was not suffering from a mental condition on Valentine's Day 2013 when he shot and killed girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, a finding by a panel of mental health experts that could pose a problem for Pistorius' legal defense.
"The finding is not good for the defense," criminal defense attorney Anton Smith who has monitored the trial told ABC News.
Smith said the conclusion was not good for Pistorius "neither in terms of their strategy, as they tried to illustrate a possible diminished culpability, nor in terms of a possible factor once they start arguing in mitigation of sentence."
Pistorius' lawyer resumed their defense after a month-long break for his psychiatric evaluation by having the legless sprinter take off his prosthetics in court again today and by trying to cast doubt on the testimony of neighbors who said they heard a woman screaming before the shots were fired.
The athlete's murder trial resumed today with the introduction of the much anticipated report on whether Pistorius suffers from a generalized anxiety disorder that could have influenced his actions the night he shot Steenkamp.
Oscar Pistorius Defense Is Moving Target, Prosecutor Complains
Oscar Pistorius' Shrink Says Leg Amputations Gave Him Mental Disorder
Why Anxiety Disorder Could Make Pistorius Fight Instead of Flee
Judge Thokozile Masipa received the analysis from a panel of one psychologist and three psychiatrists who assessed whether the double-amputee athlete – known as Blade Runner for his prosthetics – was capable of understanding the wrongfulness of shooting Steenkamp. Had Pistorius been deemed mentally ill during the shooting, the trial would have ended in a not guilty verdict by reason of insanity.
Prosecutor Gerrie Nel referred to key parts of the conclusions, noting that the experts believed Pistorius was "capable of appreciating the wrongfulness of his act" when he killed Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model.
"Mr. Pistorius did not suffer from a mental illness or defect that would have rendered him criminally not responsible for the offence charged," Nel said.
The world will have to wait to read the assessments: The full report has not been made public because the prosecution might call witnesses to testify about it.
Sitting in court today, Pistorius stared straight ahead as Nel read excerpts from the doctors' assessments.
Later, defense advocate Barry Roux called the doctor who amputated Pistorius' legs below the knees when he was 11 months old. Dr. Gerry Versfeld testified that the athlete had limited mobility on his stumps and would have difficulty maintaining his balance in the dark.
Pistorius was again asked to remove his prosthetic legs and Versfeld took his stumps into his hands as he demonstrated to the judge the difficulty Pistorius had in moving, owing to soft tissue under the athlete's stumps that slipped easily.
Versfeld said it was unlikely that Pistorius struck the toilet door with a cricket bat while on his stumps. He said the athlete would not have enough balance.
Nel questioned the orthopedic surgeon about this evidence, saying he could not reconcile Pistorius' version of what happened on the night of the shooting with his testimony.
"You said he often falls. Do you know that on that particular night he never fell? Did you not ask him what happened that night?" Nel asked Versfeld.
"The most amazing thing is he walked from his bedroom, with a gun in his hand to the bathroom. He fired four shots and he was on his stumps and it was all in the dark."
Pistorius' lawyers had acoustics expert Ivan Lin testify whether neighbors could have heard what they described as a woman screaming before Pistorius shot her. Pistorius has insisted that Steenkamp did not scream, and the screams they heard were likely from Pistorius after he realized he had shot his lover, not an intruder.
Lin told the court that after using acoustical measuring devices he determined that the family that lived furthest from Pistorius - and said they heard a woman screaming - would not have been able to clearly distinguish between a male and female voice at that distance.
The second couple, who lived closer to Pistorius, would have been able to hear clearly.
Pistorius, 27, faces 25 years to life in prison if found guilty of premeditated murder, and could also face years in prison if convicted of murder without premeditation or negligent killing. He has argued that he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder. Prosecutors allege that he purposefully shot her.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.


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ANNUAL MANUAL- Schools & Kids: Schools
Albemarle v. Charlottesville
Which is better to educate your junior or juniors? Charlottesville's urban system that spends a lot of money and has incredible music programs whose students win international competitions? Or the highly rated Albemarle County School system with its mix of rural and/or affluent kids? Or is it tony/alt private schools that seem to multiply each year? We can't answer these questions, but we can provide a few leads.
# of students: 4,139
Superintendent: Rosa Atkins
Board meets: 1st & 3rd Thursday (only public meeting) at 7:30pm in the CHS library
Phone: 245-2400
Closing/cancellation line: 245-2401
Charlottesville school board
For years, Charlottesville City Council chose the seven-person board, but as of 2006 they're elected to four-year terms.
Clerk: Linda Bowen
Phone: 245-2400
Alvin Edwards, Chair (up for re-election in 2007)
Peggy VanYahres, Vice Chair (retiring in December)
Julie L. Gronlund (retiring in December)
Charles Kollmansperger (interim)
Ned Michie
Leah Puryear
Juandiego Wade
Charlottesville elementaries (K-4)
406 14th Street NW
Principal: Lacy Peale
1645 Cherry Avenue
Principal: Vernon Bock
508 Harris Road
Principal: Elizabeth McCay
2228 Greenbrier Drive
Principal: Open as of publication date
George Rogers Clark
1000 Belmont Avenue
Principal: James Pierce
1300 Long Street
Principal: Daphne Keiser
Charlottesville middle schools
Walker Upper Elementary School (5-6)
1564 Dairy Road
Principal: Terri Perkins
Buford Middle School (7-8)
617 Ninth St. SW
Principal: Eric Johnson
Charlottesville high schools
Charlottesville High School (9-12)
"The Black Knights"
1400 Melbourne Road
Principal:Kenneth Leatherwood
CATEC (Charlottesville Albemarle Technical Education Center)- A joint project of City and County, this Rio Road complex teaches auto repair, culinary arts, video production, early childhood education, carpentry, electricity, masonry, and courses needed for health careers.
Director: Darah Bonham
Phone: 973-4461
# of students: 12,446
Superintendent: Pam Moran
Board meets: 2nd & 4th Thursdays at 6:30pm in Room 241 of County Office Building
Phone: 296-5826
Albemarle school board
School Board members, one from each of the six magisterial district plus one at-large, are elected to serve four-year terms.
Clerk: Jennifer Johnston
Phone: 972-4055
Sue B. Friedman, Chair (retiring)
(Rivanna) 971-8338
Pamela R. Moynihan, Vice Chair
(Rio) 973-4555
Barbara Massie Mouly
(White Hall) 823-2143
Stephen H. Koleszar
(Scottsville) 293-7262
Diantha McKeel
(Jack Jouett) 296-4931
Jon Stokes
(Samuel Miller) 295-3095
Brian Wheeler
(at-large) 978-1825
Albemarle elementaries (K-5)
3201 Berkmar Drive
Principal: Michele Del Gallo
2740 Proffit Road
Principal: David Cushman
Broadus Wood
185 Buck Mountain Road in Earlysville
Principal: Barbara Edwards
5870 Rockfish Gap Turnpike in Crozet
Principal: Jo Vining
Paul H. Cale
1757 Avon Street Extended
Principal: Lisa Jones
1407 Crozet Avenue
Principal: Karen Marcus
Mary C. Greer
190 Lambs Lane (by AHS)
Principal: Matthew Landahl
2775 Powell Creek Drive
Principal: Claire Keiser
Meriwether Lewis
1610 Owensville Road in Ivy
Principal: Sylvia Henderson
Virginia L. Murray
3251 Morgantown Road in Ivy
Principal: Andy Grider
Red Hill
3901 Red Hill School Road in North Garden
Principal: Art Stow
7868 Scottsville Road
Principal: Nancy Teel
958 North Milton Road
Principal: Ashby Kindler
Stony Point
3893 Stony Point Road in Keswick
Principal: Carrie Neeley
100 Woodbrook Drive
Principal: William Sterrett
B.F. Yancey
7625 Porters Road in Esmont
Principal: Alison Dwier-Selden
Albemarle middle schools (6-8)
Jackson P. Burley
901 Rose Hill Drive
Principal: Marcha Howard
J.T. Henley
5880 Rockfish Gap Turnpike in Crozet
Principal: Patrick McLaughlin
Jack Jouett
210 Lambs Lane (by AHS)
Principal: Kathryn Baylor
Mortimer Y. Sutherland
2801 Powell Creek Drive
Principal: David Rogers
Leslie H. Walton
4217 Red Hill Road
Principal: Elizabeth Agee
Albemarle High Schools (9-12)
Monticello High School
"The Mustangs"
1400 Independence Way (off Avon St.)
Principal: Billy Haun
Albemarle High School
"The Patriots"
2775 Hydraulic Road
Principal: Matthew Haas
Western Albemarle High School
"The Warriors"
5941 Rockfish Gap Turnpike (in Crozet)
Principal: Chris Dyer
Murray High School
"A School of Choice"
1200 Forest Street (downtown)
Principal: Vicki Crews-Miller
Ivy Creek School
227 Lambs Lane
Principal: Michael Friedman
Greene: 985-5254
Fluvanna: 589-8208
Louisa: 540-894-5115
Orange: 540-661-4550
Nelson: 263-7100
Afton Christian School
Emphasizes character training in a Christian setting and uses the ABEKA phonics curriculum for reading. Near the Albemarle/Nelson line.
Grades K-12. 540-456-6853
Blue Ridge School
Nearly 100-year-old small, all-boys boarding school near the Shenandoah National Park south of Stanardsville in St. George.
Grades 9-12. 985-2811
Charlottesville Catholic School
Eye-catching school on Rio Road "providing a rich and challenging curriculum in a community rooted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and traditions of the Catholic Church." Charlottesville's only school to receive the U.S. Department of Education's Blue Ribbon School designation. Pre-K-8. 964-0400
Charlottesville Community Jewish Day School
Integrated curriculum of general studies and Jewish/Hebrew studies in a "nurturing environment of mutual respect." K-2 with plans to add one grade each year up to 5th grade. 244-0955
Charlottesville Day School
This school opened last year and seeks to "educate the whole child." PreK-4 with 5th grade planned. 200 Four Seasons Drive in ACAC Adventure Central. 817-2371
The Covenant School
"Academic Excellence Under the Sovereignty of God" in two campuses, one facing the 250 Bypass and the other on Hickory Street. PreK-12. 220-7309 for the Lower School, 220-7329 for the Upper School.
Charlottesville Waldorf School
One of over 100 schools nationwide that "encourage students to live with self-assurance," but the only one aiming to be the "greenest school in America," thanks to ambitious building plan incorporating eco-friendly design. PreK-8. This year the school moves its operations away from Crozet and to its new location at 722 East Rio Road. 973-4946
Einstein School
Private tutorial program for kids with learning disabilities. 1-12. 974-1991
Fork Union Military Academy
A leading college-preparatory, military boarding school for boys in grades 6-12 plus a post-grad program. Unique one-subject plan for high school students. 4744 James Madison Highway, Fork Union, 842-3212
Field School of Charlottesville
Boys' day middle school dedicated to developing "well-rounded boys of character and accomplishment" with an emphasis on rigorous academics and ample physical activity. Grades 5-6 open in fall 2007, grades 7-8 in fall 2009. 923-3435
Free Union Country School
"A curriculum centered on excellence; an environment centered on the child." PK- 5. 4220 Free Union Rd. 978-1700
Little Keswick School
Small school for boys ages 10-17 with learning, behavioral, or emotional difficulties. 295-0457
Living Education Center for Ecology and the Arts
A small school for creative kids downtown to empower them to be "catalysts for creating a positive future that enhances the quality of our community and of the natural world." 7-12. 971-1647
Miller School
One of America's first coed boarding schools, its "Mind Hands and Heart" curriculum is available to both boarding and day students. Picturesque 1,600-acre scenic campus with lake and plenty of Victorian architecture. 8-12. 823-4805
Montessori Community School (AMS)
Montessori environment for toddlers, preschool, elementary, and middle school. Accredited by the American Montessori Society. 305 Rolkin Road off Rt. 250 on Pantops Mountain. Serving ages 18 months to 14 years. 979-8886
North Branch School
Folks at this Afton-area school stress a love of learning rather than focusing on grades and competition. Preschool-8. 540-456-8450
Oakland School
Coed boarding and day for children with dyslexia, learning disabilities, or organizational and study-skills difficulties. In Boyd Tavern near Keswick. Age 7-17. 293-9059
Peabody School
For intellectually advanced children, on Avon Street near Mill Creek. "Education is not filling the pail... it's lighting the fire." K-8. 296-6901
Renaissance School
Located on the Downtown Mall, this school has a rigorous college preparatory curriculum dedicated to developing Renaissance thinkers, with an honor code and an emphasis on the arts. No sports. 9-12. 984-1952
St. Anne's Belfield School
This perennial private school lacrosse power has two campuses, both in the Ivy Road area. Honor code and respect for Christian traditions including chapel are hallmarks. Grades K-12. 296-5106
Tandem Friends School
"Freedom with responsibility" in this college prep program in a spiritual community based on Quaker values and "no-cut" athletic policy. 5-12 296-1303
Village School for Girls
Girls school downtown with lots of visiting experts as teachers. 5-8. 984-4404
Woodberry Forest School
Boys boarding school near Orange that draws students from across the country for its high-powered academics and athletics. Honor code. 9-12 540-672-3900
University of Virginia- One of the world's top universities. Founded in 1825 by Thomas Jefferson. 924-0311
–>>See our special section on UVA
Adult Eduction
UVA's School of Continuing Education and Professional Studies offers sundry courses for self-improvement and career advancement. scps.virginia.edu/ or 982-5313
Piedmont Virginia Community College isn't quite as famous as UVA, but it's supposed to be one of the best-kept educational secrets around. 977-3900
Mary Baldwin College- This Staunton-based institution offers an adult degree program with over 30 majors right here at PVCC. 961-5422
Old Dominion University- The Tidewater-based institution's "Teletechnet" program offers part-time classes at PVCC toward an ODU degree. 800-968-2638
Averett University- This Danville-based institution offers graduate business and Master of Education degrees. 800-Averett
National College of Business & Technology- computer classes and such. 295-0136
Virginia School of Massage- Charlottesvillians love their massages– and you could be giving them! 293-4031
Jefferson Institute of Lifelong Learning- A UVA branch with non-credit classes offering "subjects that interest active, involved seniors." 923-3600


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No, I don't mean "Rhone-style" here as an oblique reference to France. Bear with me a moment. Scott's post two months back ("Hey") on how Republicans need to study, match or exceed the superb technical skill the Obama campaign showed this year is well-taken. Last week I was privy to a presentation by the Obama's campaign's director of digital operations in California, Vance Hickin. Now, you may well be wondering, what special effort did the Obama campaign need to make in deep blue California, which was a layup for Democrats in this election from top to bottom. Well none, of course, but this freed up California Obamanauts to turn their attention to other states, not only by making phone calls but also by going in person to Nevada and Colorado. California became known as the "death star" at Obama HQ in Chicago, because its resources could be pointed at any state where help was needed.
More impressive still was how many layers deep—and deeper than the Romney campaign apparently—was the Obama campaign's technological prowess. You can download a slide deck called "Inside the Cave" that walks through the highlights of the effort. One factoid in particular jumped out at me from Hickin's review: Obama got 34 million "Likes" on Facebook. But that wasn't the end of it; depending on your FB privacy settings, the Obama campaign could use your "Like" to reach into your FB friends roster, and depending on an algorithm assign everyone of your friends a score of how likely you were to be an Obama voter, and then figure out the best way to reach you and then follow up to get you to vote. The thoroughness of the effort was astonishing: think of it as No Voter Left Behind.
I expect that the GOP establishment is working hard right now studying this and making plans to match it or exceed it in 2016. But I'd like to inject one note of caution that it is usually a mistake to suppose that technical performance alone will make up for weaknesses exposed by an election campaign. Perhaps it's because I spend so much time out here on the central coast these days observing winemaking trends close up, but pondering the Obama extraordinary technology effort put me in a frame of mind to think about . . . Rhone-style varietals, and what might be learned from the current enthusiasm for them among California winemakers. (Hey—there's precedent for this, such as Plato's Symposium and the Laws. As Klineas says to the Athenian Stranger in the Laws, "You seem to be saying, friend, that spending time drinking together is a great contribution to education, if it is done correctly!" To which the Athenian Stranger replies, "Why not?") The point is, political practice, like wines, go through fads, and the current fad to think social media technology and "data mining" are the new key to politics may be an overestimation.
Here on the central coast the main wine varietal for years was Zinfandel, and a few vineyards go back over a hundred years. As the industry grew folks branched out into some of the other mainline varietals such as Merlot, Syrah, Chardonnay, and the California mainstay, Cabernet Sauvignon. About 20 years ago or so visitors from France starting taking note of this region of California because its chalky soil, and the climate (the Paso area has one of the largest diurnal temperature swings in the world). It reminded them of the soil and climate of parts of the Rhone valley and Provence. The idea of growing and producing Rhone-style blends caught on here, and now dominates the local wine scene.
The Rhone rush coincided with wine drinkers growing bored with the heavily oaked, buttery Chardonnays in favor of the leaner, tighter style of French burgundy, and also bored with the big, tannin-rich Cabernets. But now it is getting hard to find good, old-fashioned standard varietals any more. Just about every winery has a splashy MSG-blend (that's Mourvedre-Syrah-Grenache), but Zinfandel and Chardonnay seem almost like an afterthought at many places. (There are exceptions. The Stolo Family winery, just five minutes from my house, has some extraordinary coastal Chardonnays—one of them just an amazing $13 a bottle, but you can forget about it—I bought the last five cases. Daou Vineyards is making a major push to bring back big-style Cabs to the region, and my pals at Adelaida Cellars are planting substantial acreage of new Zinfandel vines that I'm looking forward to.)
The parallel? Ultimately in politics what counts is not just execution, but the content of the ideas. Fancy bottles and splashy label designs can give a new wine a pop, but aren't sustainable if the quality of what's in the bottle isn't any good. All the technical "data mining" tools in the world won't help the GOP win if they don't sort out their problems with their appeals to voters they've been steadily losing. I keep hearing people say conservatives need to "make the case." Talking about "making the case" and actually making the case are two different things. What is "the case"? I keep hearing lots of fancy ideas that remind me of fancy SMV wine blends. How about some basic conservative ideas, skillfully made and presented to people who are soon going to start hungering for old-fashioned remedies to our increasingly untenable liberalism. People say they are bored with some of the old conservative slogans; maybe so, but soon they'll tire of the fancy blend Obama is offering.
Besides, there's a new Paso Wine Guy video out this week. Who's up for a Power Line Wine Tasting Weekend in Paso? We've got a long four years to get through:


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Downtown Networking Partners Leads Group
Date: 11/25/2020
Time: 8:00 am - 9:00 am
Location: Show map
Greater Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce
512 NE 3rd Avenue
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
512 NE 3rd Avenue
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Contact: Serge Mallat
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
This group is for small business owners generally located in the downtown Fort Lauderdale area. These members are an excellent source of referrals and are dedicated to the group's success.
Meetings are held every Wednesday except the second Wednesday of the month; however, members may choose an after hours event on that day.


text:
the other bruce
Calling this a recommendation for new summer reading is late on a number of counts. First, the book in question actually came out last year. Plus the season, as we know it, is pretty well finished.
Nonetheless, the days around and after Labor Day were spent with Composing Myself, Harry Shapiro's very insightful authorized biography of Jack Bruce. To many, Bruce is known almost exclusively and the bassist, songwriter and primary vocalist for the late '60s rock trio Cream. And it is the pop music premise that Bruce should have met or exceeded the stardom level attained by Cream guitarist Eric Clapton that fuels much of the book.
"Should have" is the operative term. Classically trained and infatuated with jazz, Bruce's music was simply too advanced, complicated or outside parameters of what most rock stars operated by. And by the time he assembled sustainable bands that could address such commercial concerns, the pop world had moved on.
Bruce, who has often come across as notoriously self-involved in interviews over the years, speaks with candid humility throughout Composing Myself, especially in the book's early chapters that trace him as a teen touring across Europe with the likes of Graham Bond and John Mayall, knowing little of the world outside England and his proud birthplace, Scotland.
The Cream chapters take up remarkably little of the book, which is probably natural as the band existed for barely two years, even though it pioneered the template for rock trios by covering, in almost scholarly fashion, the jazz, blues and psychedelic inspirations of the day.
But the Cream narratives are still comprehensive as the book views the sense of artistic excitement that surrounded the band's two finest albums (Disraeli Gears and Wheels of Fire) as well its very tumultuous relationship – especially within the ties between Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker.
Such troubled relations fracture almost every time the two players meet, especially during a later chapter (A Question of Time, named after a 1989 Bruce solo album of the same name) where the bassist and drummer attempt to reconcile before and during a joint tour.
Shapiro makes the rounds on the interview front. A litany of career-spanning collaborators offer comments, including Clapton, longtime lyricist Pete Brown, jazz artists Carla Bley, Larry Coryell and Billy Cobham, guitar greats Robin Trower, Gary Moore and Chris Spedding along with several members of Bruce's immediate family.
While the author succumbs to hero worship at times in his assessments of some of Bruce's music, one still leaves with renewed appreciation for his post-Cream work – especially the troubled, drug rattled Los Angeles sessions that led to Bruce's most underrated recording (1974's Out of the Storm) and the formation and quick implosion of his short-lived mid '70s supergroup with Bley and ex-Rolling Stone Mick Taylor.
Most of all, you gain appreciation for Bruce's artistic temperament – a skilled, schooled and complicated vision that was perhaps denied the level of stardom he deserved but shines brilliantly within these pages.
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