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WASHINGTON -- Not until 30 minutes had elapsed in the third and last presidential debate Wednesday night did the national candidates turn their attention to abortion -- the country's most explosive social issue, which divides millions of Americans. What makes this remarkable is that Sen. Barack Obama was vulnerable because of a rare departure during his bitter primary campaign with Sen. Hillary Clinton from the Democratic Party line on abortion -- which takes the position that Democrats cherish human life, even though they are advocates of abortion rights. Implausible though that may seem, it is the formulation successfully used by Democratic campaigners to stave off anti-abortion advocates in their own party.
But Obama went beyond the party line March 29, 2008, when addressing a campaign "town meeting" in a high school in Johnstown, Pa. I was in the audience, packed in as the bitter Pennsylvania primary between Obama and Clinton neared its end.
This central Pennsylvania community is heavily Democratic, represented in the House by the powerful Rep. John Murtha, but tends to be socially conservative. Obama signaled that he was going to take a risk in trying to chart a course that would please both sides on abortion, something that no one has accomplished yet, and Obama certainly failed.
He was cruising along in the question-and-answer format, when a woman asked his view on abortion, but what he said surely did not please his pro-life supporters:
"Look, I've got two daughters -- 9 years old and 6 years old. I am going to teach them first of all about values and morals, but if they make a mistake, I don't want them punished with a baby."
Obama's formulation raised the hackles of evangelical leaders across the country, including Richard Land, who said, "Pro-lifers don't see a child as punishment." Obama's approach to a hypothetical problem contrasted sharply with the way his Republican vice presidential opponent, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, subsequently handled a "real-life " situation. Shortly after Obama's town hall comments in Pennsylvania, Palin announced that her 17-year-old daughter was pregnant, would give birth to the baby and would marry the father.
Outside the evangelical community, however, not many Republicans made much of that contrast, and Obama has not been challenged on whether he views an illegitimate baby as a treasure or a punishment.
In fact, abortion went unmentioned in the debates until scarcely 10 minutes remained in Wednesday night's debate, when moderator Bob Schieffer of CBS News finally brought up the subject by asking McCain whether he could appoint a pro-choice Supreme Court justice. McCain replied he would have "no litmus test on judicial appointments." That did not please pro-life Republicans, as little did during the brief exchange on abortion.
While describing himself as a "proud pro-life Republican," McCain did not ask Obama whether he really considered the birth of a baby a punishment.
Neither McCain nor Schieffer asked for Obama's views on extreme pro-abortion legislation pending in Congress that would prohibit states from any limitations on abortion and would begin widespread federal funding of abortions. That failure, along with McCain not pressing Obama on whether he really considered the birth of a baby a "punishment," surely did not raise McCain's standing with suspicious socially conservative Republicans.


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Home -> Stamps -> 2005 -> Europa 2005 'Gastronomy' -> Block of 4
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Europa 2005 'Gastronomy' (view technical specs)
The theme for the 2005 Europa stamps eleced by Posteurop is Gastronomy.
Gastronomy reflects the diverse origins of a country through recipes passed down through
generations, as is especially the case in Gibraltar. While there is both Spanish and British influence, the ethnic origins of most Gibraltarian recipes are mainly Genoese (Italy), Maltese and Portuguese.
The 'Torta de acelga' - spinach pie from Genoa, Italy, is prepared with spinach, eggs, garlic,
cheese, olive oil, marjoram, chopped parsley and 'puff' pastry for the lining and the 'cover' we see in the image.
The 'Robalo a la parilla' recipe - grilled Sea-Bass comes from Portugal. The fish is prepared with chopped spring onions, parsley, lemon juice and olive oil. It is then grilled.
The 'Rolitos de ternera' - veal 'birds' from Malta is made with thinly cut veal, hard-boiled eggs and lean ham. The veal is rolled into a ball containing the egg and ham. It is normally served with peas and potatoes.
Lastly, we have the popular sweet 'Sherry Trifle' from Britain, made with strawberry jelly, custard, whipping cream, sliced peaches and 'Boudoir' biscuits soaked in Sherry cream.
These are but four examples of our local gastronomy.
Europa stamps have been issued annually since 1956. First sets representing the founding 6 members of the ECSC, European Coal and Steel Community, then by the European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations (CEPT) in 1959, (first stamps issued in 1960) and by PostEurop since 1993. Initially in 1956 a total of 13 stamps were issued with a common design from 6 different countries. A common theme of Peace and Welfare through agriculture and industry was used for 1957. The common design reappeared in 1958 and continued until 1973. From 1974 the designs reflect a common theme.
The common design idea replaced the common theme in 1984, which was the CEPT 25th Anniversary (1959-84) and shows a symbolic bridge, said to represent Liaison, Exchange and Communication. With the split of posts and telecoms providers in most countries, CEPT is no longer responsible, but the postal authorities under the guidance of PostEurop continue the Europa tradition. From 1993 all the stamps have "Europa" inserted into the design in small print. (Source Wikipedia)
Technical Specs
Design: | Stephen Perera |
Illustration / Photography: | Stephen Perera |
Printer: | BDT International, Ireland |
Process: | Offset Lithography |
Colours: | 4 cols. |
Stamp size: | 29.79 x 40.64mm |
Issue date: | 2005-03-31 |
Stamp Values: | 47p x 4 |

subset: commoncrawl


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Business Insurance
Farmers Insurance Hawaii is no longer providing Workers' Compensation, Commercial Auto, or TDI Insurance in the State. We will now focus on our core product -- personal auto insurance. In support of our core product offering, our agency subsidiary, Hawaii Insurance Consultants, Ltd. (HIC), will continue to provide homeowners, renters, hurricane, umbrella and flood insurance. However, HIC is no longer providing business and life insurance.
For more information, please call Hawaii Insurance Consultants, at 543-9789 or toll free at 1-877-543-9789 from the Neighbor Islands.


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Dress : Topshop $102
Socks : Polo Ralph Lauren $15
Sunglasses : Karen Walker $298
Kanken backpack : Fjallraven $119
5 panel : Stussy $29
Decided that I'm starting a new blog segment called "OUTFIT DREAMZ" aka just a wishlist outfit thing with an official fancy name. YA DIG???
If you know me well, you know that I love a good collared dress with long sleeves. Shirt dresses especially make me excited. This one from Topshop is super simple but kinda grungy at the same time. That paired with some Ralphy socks, a Stussy 5 panel (to protect your precious face from the sun) and Docs is guaranteed to give the whole look a tomboy feel. Tomboy feelz are the best feelz. x


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May 6, 2006. Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, who loses none of all that the Father has given him, but raises them up on the last day. This is Mark Bube, reporting for Telenews from the Committee on Foreign Missions of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.
This is to update you with information regarding the memorial service, etc., for the Rev. Matthew D. Baugh, OP missionary to Haiti, who was killed in a motorcycle accident this past Thursday while he was on his way to meet another missionary.
A memorial service to thank our Lord for the life of his servant will be conducted on Thursday, May 11, 2:00 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church (PCA), 231 N. Washington St., Yazoo City, MS 39194-4226 (Tel: 662-746-1226).
Sympathy cards and notes for the family may be addressed to:
Mrs. Shannon Baugh
c/o Mrs. Barbara Freeman
P.O. Box 836
Tchula, MS 39169-0836
Gifts to assist Shannon and their five children, ages two to ten, in getting established back in the States and to help provide for their needs may be sent to:
The Orthodox Presbyterian Church
The Committee on Foreign Missions
ATTN: Baugh Family Diaconal Fund
P.O. Box P
Willow Grove, PA 19090-0920
Lord willing, Shannon and the children plan to return to the States on Monday, May 8, and stay with Matt's folks in the Tchula, Mississippi, area. Please continue to keep the Baugh family in your prayers in the days and weeks to come.
"For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another" (Job 19:25-27).
Mark T. Bube, General Secretary
The Orthodox Presbyterian Church
607 N. Easton Road, Building E
P. O. Box P
Willow Grove, PA 19090-0920 USA
Tel: 215-830-0900
Fax: 215-830-0350
E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
© 2024 The Orthodox Presbyterian Church


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Family Myrtaceae Tribe Eucalypteae Higher classification Eucalypteae | Subfamily Myrtoideae Scientific name Eucalyptus | |
Lower classifications Eucalyptus globulus, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, Eucalyptus grandis, Rainbow eucalyptus, Jarrah Similar Lavender, Peppermint, Rosemary, Mint, Common sage |
Smart farming eucalyptus
Eucalyptus /ˌjuːkəˈlɪptəs/ L'Heritier 1789 is a diverse genus of flowering trees and shrubs (including a distinct group with a multiple-stem mallee growth habit) in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Members of the genus dominate the tree flora of Australia, and include the tallest known flowering plant on Earth. There are more than 700 species of eucalyptus and most are native to Australia; a very small number are found in adjacent areas of New Guinea and Indonesia. One species, Eucalyptus deglupta, ranges as far north as the Philippines. Of the 15 species found outside Australia, just nine are exclusively non-Australian. Species of eucalyptus are cultivated widely in the tropical and temperate world, including the Americas, Europe, Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East, China, and the Indian subcontinent. However, the range over which many eucalypts can be planted in the temperate zone is constrained by their limited cold tolerance. Australia is covered by 92,000,000 hectares (227,336,951 acres) of eucalypt forest, comprising three quarters of the area covered by native forest.
- Smart farming eucalyptus
- Eucalyptus plant suppliers
- Size and habit
- Leaves
- Flowers
- Bark
- Fossil record
- Species and hybridism
- Related genera
- Tall timber
- Frost intolerance
- Animal relationships
- Adaptation to fire
- Hazards
- Fire hazard
- Falling branches
- Cultivation and uses
- Pulpwood
- Eucalyptus oil
- Honey
- Musical instruments
- Dyes
- Prospecting
- Eucalyptus as plantation species
- North America
- South America
- Africa
- Europe
- Asia
- Pacific Islands
- Nonnative eucalyptus and biodiversity
- History
- References
Eucalyptus is one of three similar genera that are commonly referred to as "eucalypts", the others being Corymbia and Angophora. Many species, though by no means all, are known as gum trees because they exude copious kino from any break in the bark (e.g., scribbly gum). The generic name is derived from the Greek words ευ (eu) "well" and καλύπτω (kalýpto) "to cover", referring to the operculum on the calyx that initially conceals the flower.
Some eucalyptus species have attracted attention from horticulturists, global development researchers, and environmentalists because of desirable traits such as being fast-growing sources of wood, producing oil that can be used for cleaning and as a natural insecticide, or an ability to be used to drain swamps and thereby reduce the risk of malaria. Eucalyptus oil finds many uses like in aromatherapy, as a cure for joint pains. Eucalyptus trees show allelopathic effects; they release compounds which inhibit other plant species from growing nearby. Outside their natural ranges, eucalypts are both lauded for their beneficial economic impact on poor populations and criticised for being "water-guzzling" aliens, leading to controversy over their total impact.
On warm days, eucalyptus forests are sometimes shrouded in a smog-like mist of vaporised volatile organic compounds (terpenoids); the Australian Blue Mountains take their name from the haze.
Eucalyptus plant suppliers
Size and habit
A mature eucalyptus may take the form of a low shrub or a very large tree. The species can be divided into three main habits and four size categories.
As a generalisation "forest trees" are single-stemmed and have a crown forming a minor proportion of the whole tree height. "Woodland trees" are single-stemmed, although they may branch at a short distance above ground level.
"mallees" are multistemmed from ground level, usually less than 10 m (33 ft) in height, often with the crown predominantly at the ends of the branchlets and individual plants may combine to form either an open or closed formation. Many mallee trees may be so low-growing as to be considered a shrub.
Two other tree forms are notable in Western Australia and described using the native names "mallet" and "marlock". The "mallet" is a small to medium-sized tree that does not produce lignotubers and has a relatively long trunk, a steeply branching habit and often a conspicuously dense terminal crown. This is the normal habit of mature healthy specimens of Eucalyptus occidentalis, E. astringens, E. spathulata, E. gardneri, E. dielsii, E. forrestiana, E. salubris, E. clivicola, and E. ornata. The smooth bark of mallets often has a satiny sheen and may be white, cream, grey, green, or copper.
The term marlock has been variously used; in Forest Trees of Australia, it is defined as a small tree without lignotubers, but with a shorter, lower-branching trunk than a mallet. They usually grow in more or less pure stands. Clearly recognisable examples are stands of E. platypus, E. vesiculosa, and the unrelated E. stoatei.
The term "morrell" is somewhat obscure in origin and appears to apply to trees of the Western Australian wheatbelt and goldfields which have a long, straight trunk, completely rough-barked. It is now used mainly for E. longicornis (red morrell) and E. melanoxylon (black morrell).
Tree sizes follow the convention of:
Nearly all eucalyptus are evergreen, but some tropical species lose their leaves at the end of the dry season. As in other members of the myrtle family, eucalyptus leaves are covered with oil glands. The copious oils produced are an important feature of the genus. Although mature eucalyptus trees may be towering and fully leafed, their shade is characteristically patchy because the leaves usually hang downwards.
The leaves on a mature eucalyptus plant are commonly lanceolate, petiolate, apparently alternate and waxy or glossy green. In contrast, the leaves of seedlings are often opposite, sessile and glaucous, but many exceptions to this pattern exist. Many species such as E. melanophloia and E. setosa retain the juvenile leaf form even when the plant is reproductively mature. Some species, such as E. macrocarpa, E. rhodantha, and E. crucis, are sought-after ornamentals due to this lifelong juvenile leaf form. A few species, such as E. petraea, E. dundasii, and E. lansdowneana, have shiny green leaves throughout their life cycle. E. caesia exhibits the opposite pattern of leaf development to most eucalyptus, with shiny green leaves in the seedling stage and dull, glaucous leaves in mature crowns. The contrast between juvenile and adult leaf phases is valuable in field identification.
Four leaf phases are recognised in the development of a eucalyptus plant: the 'seedling', 'juvenile', 'intermediate', and 'adult' phases. However, no definite transitional point occurs between the phases. The intermediate phase, when the largest leaves are often formed, links the juvenile and adult phases.
In all except a few species, the leaves form in pairs on opposite sides of a square stem, consecutive pairs being at right angles to each other (decussate). In some narrow-leaved species, for example E. oleosa, the seedling leaves after the second leaf pair are often clustered in a detectable spiral arrangement about a five-sided stem. After the spiral phase, which may last from several to many nodes, the arrangement reverts to decussate by the absorption of some of the leaf-bearing faces of the stem. In those species with opposite adult foliage the leaf pairs, which have been formed opposite at the stem apex, become separated at their bases by unequal elongation of the stem to produce the apparently alternate adult leaves.
The most readily recognisable characteristics of eucalyptus species are the distinctive flowers and fruit (capsules or "gumnuts"). Flowers have numerous fluffy stamens which may be white, cream, yellow, pink, or red; in bud, the stamens are enclosed in a cap known as an operculum which is composed of the fused sepals or petals, or both. Thus, flowers have no petals, but instead decorate themselves with the many showy stamens. As the stamens expand, the operculum is forced off, splitting away from the cup-like base of the flower; this is one of the features that unites the genus. The name Eucalyptus, from the Greek words eu-, well, and kaluptos, cover, meaning "well-covered", describes the operculum. The woody fruits or capsules are roughly cone-shaped and have valves at the end which open to release the seeds, which are waxy, rod-shaped, about 1 mm in length, and yellow-brown in colour. Most species do not flower until adult foliage starts to appear; E. cinerea and E. perriniana are notable exceptions.
The appearance of eucalyptus bark varies with the age of the plant, the manner of bark shed, the length of the bark fibres, the degree of furrowing, the thickness, the hardness, and the colour. All mature eucalypts put on an annual layer of bark, which contributes to the increasing diameter of the stems. In some species, the outermost layer dies and is annually deciduous, either in long strips (as in E. sheathiana) or in variably sized flakes (E. diversicolor, E. cosmophylla, or E. cladocalyx). These are the gums or smooth-barked species. The gum bark may be dull, shiny, or satiny (as in E. ornata) or matte (E. cosmophylla). In many species, the dead bark is retained. Its outermost layer gradually fragments with weathering and sheds without altering the essentially rough-barked nature of the trunks or stems — for example E. marginata, E. jacksonii, E. obliqua, and E. porosa.
Many species are 'half-barks' or 'blackbutts' in which the dead bark is retained in the lower half of the trunks or stems — for example, E. brachycalyx, E. ochrophloia, and E. occidentalis — or only in a thick, black accumulation at the base, as in E. clelandii. In some species in this category, for example E. youngiana and E. viminalis, the rough basal bark is very ribbony at the top, where it gives way to the smooth upper stems. The smooth upper bark of the half-barks and that of the completely smooth-barked trees and mallees can produce remarkable colour and interest, for example E. deglupta.
Different commonly recognised types of bark include:
Fossil record
The oldest definitive Eucalyptus fossils are surprisingly from South America, where eucalypts are no longer endemic, though have been introduced from Australia. The fossils are from the early Eocene (51.9 Mya), and were found in the Laguna del Hunco deposit in Chubut province in Argentina. This shows that the genus had a Gondwanan distribution. Fossil leaves also occur in the Miocene of New Zealand, where the genus is not native today, but again have been introduced from Australia.
Despite the prominence of Eucalyptus in modern Australia, estimated to contribute some 75% of the modern vegetation, the fossil record is very scarce throughout much of the Cenozoic, and suggests that this rise to dominance is a geologically more recent phenomenon. The oldest reliably dated macrofossil of Eucalyptus is a 21-million-year-old tree-stump encased in basalt in the upper Lachlan Valley in New South Wales. Other fossils have been found, but many are either unreliably dated or else unreliably identified.
It is useful to consider where Eucalyptus fossils have not been found. Extensive research has gone into the fossil floras of the Paleocene to Oligocene of South-Eastern Australia, and has failed to uncover a single Eucalyptus specimen. Although the evidence is sparse, the best hypothesis is that in the mid-Tertiary, the contintental margins of Australia only supported more mesic noneucalypt vegetation, and that eucalypts probably contributed to the drier vegetation of the arid continental interior. With the progressive drying out of the continent since the Miocene, eucalypts were displaced to the continental margins, and much of the mesic and rainforest vegetation that was once there was eliminated entirely.
The current superdominance of Eucalyptus in Australia may be an artefact of human influence on its ecology. In more recent sediments, numerous findings of a dramatic increase in the abundance of Eucalyptus pollen are associated with increased charcoal levels. Though this occurs at different rates throughout Australia, it is compelling evidence for a relationship between the artificial increase of fire frequency with the arrival of Aboriginals and increased prevalence of this exceptionally fire-tolerant genus.
Species and hybridism
Over 700 species of Eucalyptus are known; refer to the List of Eucalyptus species for a comprehensive list of species. Some have diverged from the mainstream of the genus to the extent that they are quite isolated genetically and are able to be recognised by only a few relatively invariant characteristics. Most, however, may be regarded as belonging to large or small groups of related species, which are often in geographical contact with each other and between which gene exchange still occurs. In these situations, many species appear to grade into one another, and intermediate forms are common. In other words, some species are relatively fixed genetically, as expressed in their morphology, while others have not diverged completely from their nearest relatives.
Hybrid individuals have not always been recognised as such on first collection and some have been named as new species, such as E. chrysantha (E. preissiana × E. sepulcralis) and E. "rivalis" (E. marginata × E. megacarpa). Hybrid combinations are not particularly common in the field, but some other published species frequently seen in Australia have been suggested to be hybrid combinations. For example, E. erythrandra is believed to be E. angulosa × E. teraptera and due to its wide distribution is often referred to in texts.
Renantherin, a phenolic compound present in the leaves of some eucalyptus species, allows chemotaxonomic discrimanation in the sections renantheroideae and renantherae and the ratio of the amount of leucoanthocyanins varies considerably in certain species.
Related genera
A small genus of similar trees, Angophora, has also been known since the 18th century. In 1995 new evidence, largely genetic, indicated that some prominent eucalyptus species were actually more closely related to Angophora than to the other eucalypts; they were split off into the new genus Corymbia. Although separate, the three groups are allied and it remains acceptable to refer to the members of all three genera, Angophora, Corymbia and Eucalyptus, as "eucalypts".
Tall timber
Several eucalypt species are among the tallest trees in the world. Eucalyptus regnans, the Australian 'mountain ash', is the tallest of all flowering plants (Angiosperms); today, the tallest measured specimen named Centurion is 99.6 m (327 ft) tall. Coast Douglas-fir is about the same height; only coast redwood is taller, and they are conifers (gymnosperms). Six other eucalypt species exceed 80 metres in height: Eucalyptus obliqua, Eucalyptus delegatensis, Eucalyptus diversicolor, Eucalyptus nitens, Eucalyptus globulus and Eucalyptus viminalis.
Frost intolerance
Most eucalypts are not tolerant of severe cold. Whilst in a wide range of climates mild frost is experienced by eucalypts, they in general only tolerate light frosts down to −5 °C (23 °F); the hardiest are the snow gums, such as Eucalyptus pauciflora, which is capable of withstanding cold and frost down to about −20 °C (−4 °F). Two subspecies, E. pauciflora subsp. niphophila and E. pauciflora subsp. debeuzevillei in particular are even hardier and can tolerate even quite severe winters. Several other species, especially from the high plateau and mountains of central Tasmania such as Eucalyptus coccifera, Eucalyptus subcrenulata and Eucalyptus gunnii, have also produced extreme cold-hardy forms and it is seed procured from these genetically hardy strains that are planted for ornament in colder parts of the world.
Animal relationships
An essential oil extracted from eucalyptus leaves contains compounds that are powerful natural disinfectants and can be toxic in large quantities. Several marsupial herbivores, notably koalas and some possums, are relatively tolerant of it. The close correlation of these oils with other more potent toxins called formylated phloroglucinol compounds (euglobals, macrocarpals and sideroxylonals) allows koalas and other marsupial species to make food choices based on the smell of the leaves. For koalas, these compounds are the most important factor in leaf choice.
Eucalyptus flowers produce a great abundance of nectar, providing food for many pollinators including insects, birds, bats and possums. Although eucalyptus trees are seemingly well-defended from herbivores by the oils and phenolic compounds, they have insect pests. These include the eucalyptus longhorn borer Phoracantha semipunctata and the aphid-like psyllids known as "bell lerps", both of which have become established as pests throughout the world wherever eucalypts are cultivated.
The eusocial beetle Austroplatypus incompertus makes and defends its galleries exclusively inside Eucalyptus plants.
Adaptation to fire
Eucalypts originated between 35 and 50 million years ago, not long after Australia-New Guinea separated from Gondwana, their rise coinciding with an increase in fossil charcoal deposits (suggesting that fire was a factor even then), but they remained a minor component of the Tertiary rainforest until about 20 million years ago, when the gradual drying of the continent and depletion of soil nutrients led to the development of a more open forest type, predominantly Casuarina and Acacia species.
The aridification of Australia during the mid-tertiary period (25-40 million years ago), combined with the annual penetration of tropical convection storms, and associated lightning, deep into the continental interior stimulated the gradual evolution, diversification and geographic expansion of the flammable biota. The absence of great rivers or mountain chains meant that there were no geographic barriers to check the spread of fires. From the monsoonal 'cradle', fire-promoting species expanded into higher rainfall environments, where lightning was less frequent, gradually displacing the Gondwanan rainforest from all but the most fire-sheltered habitats.
The two valuable timber trees, alpine ash E. delegatensis and Australian mountain ash E. regnans, are killed by fire and only regenerate from seed. The same 2003 bushfire that had little impact on forests around Canberra resulted in thousands of hectares of dead ash forests. However, a small amount of ash survived and put out new ash trees as well. There has been some debate as to whether to leave the stands or attempt to harvest the mostly undamaged timber, which is increasingly recognised as a damaging practice.
The two most common hazards of eucalyptus species to people are fire and falling branches.
Fire hazard
Eucalyptus oil is highly flammable (ignited trees have been known to explode); Bushfires can travel easily through the oil-rich air of the tree crowns. Eucalypts obtain long-term fire survivability from their ability to regenerate from epicormic buds situated deep within their thick bark, or from lignotubers, or by producing serotinous fruits.
In seasonally dry climates oaks are often fire-resistant, particularly in open grasslands, as a grass fire is insufficient to ignite the scattered trees. In contrast a eucalyptus forest tends to promote fire because of the volatile and highly combustible oils produced by the leaves, as well as the production of large amounts of litter which is high in phenolics, preventing its breakdown by fungi and thus accumulates as large amounts of dry, combustible fuel. Consequently, dense eucalypt plantings may be subject to catastrophic firestorms. In fact, almost thirty years before the Oakland firestorm of 1991, a study of eucalyptus in the area warned that the litter beneath the trees builds up very rapidly and should be regularly monitored and removed. It has been estimated that 70% of the energy released through the combustion of vegetation in the Oakland fire was due to eucalyptus. In a National Park Service study, it was found that the fuel load (in tons per acre) of non-native eucalyptus woods is almost three times as great as native oak woodland.
Falling branches
Some species of gum trees drop branches unexpectedly. In Australia, Parks Victoria warns campers not to camp under river red gums. Some councils in Australia such as Gosnells, Western Australia, have removed eucalypts after reports of damage from dropped branches, even in the face of lengthy, well publicised protests to protect particular trees. A former Australian National Botanic Gardens director and consulting arborist, Robert Boden, has been quoted referring to "summer branch drop". Dropping of branches is recognised in Australia literature through the fictional death of Judy in Seven Little Australians. Although all large trees can drop branches, the weight of eucalyptus wood is high because of its density and high resin content.
Cultivation and uses
Eucalyptus was introduced from Australia to the rest of the world following the Cook expedition in 1770. Collected by Sir Joseph Banks, botanist on the expedition, it was subsequently introduced to many parts of the world, notably California, Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, Ethiopia, Morocco, Portugal, South Africa, Uganda, Israel, Galicia and Chile. On the order of 250 species are under cultivation in California. In Portugal and also Spain, eucalypts have been planted in pulpwood plantations. Eucalyptus are the basis for several industries, such as sawmilling, pulp, charcoal and others. Several species have become invasive and are causing major problems for local ecosystems, mainly due to the absence of wildlife corridors and rotations management. Eucalypts have many uses which have made them economically important trees, and have become a cash crop in poor areas such as Timbuktu, Africa and the Peruvian Andes, despite concerns that the trees are invasive in some countries like South Africa. Best-known are perhaps the varieties karri and yellow box. Due to their fast growth, the foremost benefit of these trees is their wood. They can be chopped off at the root and grow back again. They provide many desirable characteristics for use as ornament, timber, firewood and pulpwood. It is also used in a number of industries, from fence posts and charcoal to cellulose extraction for biofuels. Fast growth also makes eucalypts suitable as windbreaks and to reduce erosion.
Eucalypts draw a tremendous amount of water from the soil through the process of transpiration. They have been planted (or re-planted) in some places to lower the water table and reduce soil salination. Eucalypts have also been used as a way of reducing malaria by draining the soil in Algeria, Lebanon, Sicily, elsewhere in Europe, in Caucasus (Western Georgia), and California. Drainage removes swamps which provide a habitat for mosquito larvae, but can also destroy ecologically productive areas. This drainage is not limited to the soil surface, because the eucalyptus roots are up to 2.5 m (8.2 ft) in length and can, depending on the location, even reach the phreatic zone.
Eucalyptus is the most common short fibre source for pulpwood to make pulp. Eucalyptus globulus (in temperate climates) and the hybrid of Eucalyptus urophylla x Eucalyptus grandis (in tropical climates) are the most used varieties in papermaking. The fibre length of Eucalyptus is relatively short and uniform with low coarseness compared with other hardwoods commonly used as pulpwood. The fibres are slender, yet relatively thick walled. This gives uniform paper formation and high opacity that are important for all types of fine papers. The low coarseness is important for high quality coated papers. Eucalyptus is suitable for many tissue papers as the short and slender fibres gives a high number of fibres per gram and low coarseness contributes to softness.
Eucalyptus oil
Eucalyptus oil is readily steam distilled from the leaves and can be used for cleaning and as an industrial solvent, as an antiseptic, for deodorising, and in very small quantities in food supplements, especially sweets, cough drops, toothpaste and decongestants. It has insect repellent properties (Jahn 1991 a, b; 1992), and is an active ingredient in some commercial mosquito repellents (Fradin & Day 2002). Eucalyptus globulus is the principal source of eucalyptus oil worldwide.
The nectar of some eucalypts produces high-quality monofloral honey.
Musical instruments
Eucalypt wood is also commonly used to make didgeridoos, a traditional Australian Aboriginal wind instrument. The trunk of the tree is hollowed out by termites, and then cut down if the bore is of the correct size and shape.
All parts of Eucalyptus may be used to make dyes that are substantive on protein fibres (such as silk and wool), simply by processing the plant part with water. Colours to be achieved range from yellow and orange through green, tan, chocolate and deep rust red. The material remaining after processing can be safely used as mulch or fertiliser.
Eucalyptus trees in the Australian outback draw up gold from tens of meters underground through their root system and deposit it as particles in their leaves and branches. A Maia detector for x-ray elemental imaging at the Australian Synchrotron clearly showed deposits of gold and other metals in the structure of Eucalyptus leaves from the Kalgoorlie region of Western Australia that would have been untraceable using other methods. The microscopic leaf-bound "nuggets" are not worth collecting themselves, but may provide an environmentally benign way of locating subsurface mineral deposits.
Eucalyptus as plantation species
In the 20th century, scientists around the world experimented with eucalyptus species. They hoped to grow them in the tropics, but most experimental results failed until breakthroughs in the 1960s-1980s in species selection, silviculture, and breeding programs "unlocked" the potential of eucalypts in the tropics. Prior to then, as Brett Bennett noted in a 2010 article, eucalypts were something of the "El Dorado" of forestry. Today, eucalyptus is the most widely planted type of tree in plantations around the world, in South America (mainly in Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay), South Africa, Australia, India, Galicia, and many more.
North America
California. In the 1850s, Eucalyptus trees were introduced to California by Australians during the California Gold Rush. Much of California has a similar climate to parts of Australia. By the early 1900s, thousands of acres of eucalypts were planted with the encouragement of the state government. It was hoped that they would provide a renewable source of timber for construction, furniture making and railroad ties. It was soon found that for the latter purpose eucalyptus was particularly unsuitable, as the ties made from eucalyptus had a tendency to twist while drying, and the dried ties were so tough that it was nearly impossible to hammer rail spikes into them.
They went on to note that the promise of eucalyptus in California was based on the old virgin forests of Australia. This was a mistake as the young trees being harvested in California could not compare in quality to the centuries-old eucalyptus timber of Australia. It reacted differently to harvest. The older trees didn't split or warp as the infant California crop did. There was a vast difference between the two, and this would doom the California eucalyptus industry.
One way in which the eucalyptus, mainly the blue gum E. globulus, proved valuable in California was in providing windbreaks for highways, orange groves, and other farms in the mostly treeless central part of the state. They are also admired as shade and ornamental trees in many cities and gardens.
Eucalyptus plantations in California have been criticised because they compete with native plants and do not support native animals. Fire is also a problem. The 1991 Oakland Hills firestorm which destroyed almost 3,000 homes and killed 25 people was partly fuelled by large numbers of eucalypts close to the houses.
In some parts of California, eucalypt plantations are being removed and native trees and plants restored. Individuals have also illegally destroyed some trees and are suspected of introducing insect pests from Australia which attack the trees.
Certain eucalyptus species may also be grown for ornament in warmer parts of the Pacific Northwest: western Washington, western Oregon and southwestern British Columbia.
South America
Uruguay. Antonio Lussich introduced Eucalyptus into Uruguay in approximately 1896, throughout what is now Maldonado Department, and it has spread all over the south-eastern and eastern coast. There had been no trees in the area because it consisted of dry sand dunes and stones. (Lussich also introduced many other trees, particularly Acacia and pines, but they have not expanded so massively.)
Uruguayan forestry crops using eucalyptus species have been promoted since 1989, when the new National Forestry Law established that 20% of the national territory would be dedicated to forestry. As the main landscape of Uruguay is grassland (140,000 km2, 87% of the national territory), most of the forestry plantations would be established in prairie regions. The planting of Eucalyptus sp. has been criticised because of concerns that soil would be degraded by nutrient depletion and other biological changes. During the last ten years, in the northwestern regions of Uruguay the Eucalyptus sp. plantations have reached annual forestation rates of 300%. That zone has a potential forested area of 1,000,000 hectares, approximately 29% of the national territory dedicated to forestry, of which approximately 800,000 hectares are currently forested by monoculture of Eucalyptus spp. It is expected that the radical and durable substitution of vegetation cover leads to changes in the quantity and quality of soil organic matter. Such changes may also influence soil fertility and soil physical and chemical properties. The soil quality effects associated with Eucalyptus sp. plantations could have negative effects on soil chemistry; for example: soil acidification, iron leaching, allelopathic activities and a high C:N ratio of litter. Additionally, as most scientific understanding of land cover change effects is related to ecosystems where forests were replaced by grasslands or crops, or grassland was replaced by crops, the environmental effects of the current Uruguayan land cover changes are not well understood. The first scientific publication on soil studies in western zone tree plantations (focused on pulp production) appeared in 2004 and described soil acidification and soil carbon changes, similar to a podzolisation process, and destruction of clay (illite-like minerals), which is the main reservoir of potassium in the soil. Although these studies were carried out in an important zone for forest cultivation, they cannot define the current situation in the rest of the land area under eucalyptus cultivation. Moreover, recently Jackson and Jobbagy have proposed another adverse environmental impact that may result from Eucalyptus culture on prairie soils: stream acidification.
The eucalyptus species most planted are E. grandis, E. globulus and E. dunnii; they are used mainly for pulp mills. Approximately 80,000 ha of E. grandis situated in the departments of Rivera, Tacuarembó and Paysandú is primarily earmarked for the solid wood market, although a portion of it is used for sawlogs and plywood. The current area under commercial forest plantation is 6% of the total. The main uses of the wood produced are elemental chlorine free pulp mill production (for cellulose and paper), sawlogs, plywood and bioenergy (thermoelectric generation). Most of the products obtained from sawmills and pulp mills, as well as plywood and logs, are exported. This has raised the income of this sector with respect to traditional products from other sectors. Uruguayan forestry plantations have rates of growth of 30 cubic metres per hectare per year and commercial harvesting occurs after 9 years.
Brazil. Eucalyptus was introduced to Brazil in 1910, for timber substitution and the charcoal industry. It has thrived in the local environment, and today there are around 7 million hectares planted. The wood is highly valued by the charcoal and pulp and paper industries. The short rotation allows a larger wood production and supplies wood for several other activities, helping to preserve the native forests from logging. When well managed, the plantation soils can sustain endless replanting. Eucalyptus plantings are also used as wind breaks. Brazil's plantations have world-record rates of growth, typically over 40 cubic metres per hectare per year, and commercial harvesting occurs after years 5. Due to continual development and governmental funding, year-on-year growth is consistently being improved. Eucalyptus can produce up to 100 cubic metres per hectare per year. Brazil has become the top exporter and producer of Eucalyptus round wood and pulp, and has played an important role in developing the Australian market through the country's committed research in this area. The local iron producers in Brazil rely heavily on sustainably grown Eucalyptus for charcoal; this has greatly pushed up the price of charcoal in recent years. The plantations are generally owned and operated for national and international industry by timber asset companies such as Thomson Forestry, Greenwood Management or cellulose producers such as Aracruz Cellulose and Stora Enso.
Overall, South America is expected to produce 55% of the world's Eucalyptus round-wood by 2010. Many environmental NGOs have criticised the use of exotic tree species for forestry in Latin America.
Ethiopia. Eucalyptus was introduced to Ethiopia in either 1894 or 1895, either by Emperor Menelik II's French advisor Mondon-Vidailhet or by the Englishman Captain O'Brian. Menelik II endorsed its planting around his new capital city of Addis Ababa because of the massive deforestation around the city for firewood. According to Richard R.K. Pankhurst, "The great advantage of the eucalypts was that they were fast growing, required little attention and when cut down grew up again from the roots; it could be harvested every ten years. The tree proved successful from the onset". Plantations of eucalypts spread from the capital to other growing urban centres such as Debre Marqos. Pankhurst reports that the most common species found in Addis Ababa in the mid-1960s was E. globulus, although he also found E. melliodora and E. rostrata in significant numbers. David Buxton, writing of central Ethiopia in the mid-1940s, observed that eucalyptus trees "have become an integral -- and a pleasing -- element in the Shoan landscape and has largely displaced the slow-growing native 'cedar' Juniperus procera)."
It was commonly believed that the thirst of the Eucalyptus "tended to dry up rivers and wells", creating such opposition to the species that in 1913 a proclamation was issued ordering a partial destruction of all standing trees, and their replacement with mulberry trees. Pankhurst reports, "The proclamation however remained a dead letter; there is no evidence of eucalypts being uprooted, still less of mulberry trees being planted." Eucalypts remain a defining feature of Addis Ababa.
Madagascar. Much of Madagascar's original native forest has been replaced with Eucalyptus, threatening biodiversity by isolating remaining natural areas such as Andasibe-Mantadia National Park.
South Africa. Numerous Eucalyptus species have been introduced into South Africa, mainly for timber and firewood but also for ornamental purposes. They are popular with beekeepers for the honey they provide. However, in South Africa they are considered invasive, with their water-sucking capabilities threatening water supplies. They also release a chemical into the surrounding soil which kills native competitors.
Eucalyptus seedlings are usually unable to compete with the indigenous grasses, but after a fire when the grass cover has been removed, a seed-bed may be created. The following Eucalyptus species have been able to become naturalised in South Africa: E. camaldulensis, E. cladocalyx, E. diversicolor, E. grandis and E. lehmannii.
Zimbabwe. As in South Africa, many Eucalyptus species have been introduced into Zimbabwe, mainly for timber and firewood, and E. robusta and E. tereticornis have been recorded as having become naturalised there.
In continental Portugal, the Azores, the North of Spain (especially in the provinces of Cantabria, Vizcaya, Asturias, and Galicia) and the province of Huelva in Andalusia farmland has been replaced with eucalypt plantations.
In Italy, the eucalyptus only arrived at the turn of the 19th century and large scale plantations were started at the beginning of the 20th century with the aim of drying up swampy ground to defeat malaria. This, their rapid growth in the Italian climate and excellent function as windbreaks, has made them a common sight in the south of the country, including the islands of Sardinia and Sicily. They are also valued for the characteristic smelling and tasting honey that is produced from them. The variety of eucalyptus most commonly found in Italy is E. camaldulensis.
In Greece, eucalyptus is widely found, especially in southern Greece and Crete. It is cultivated and used for various purposes, including as an ingredient in pharmaceutical products (e.g., creams, elixirs and sprays) and for leather production. It was imported in 1862 by botanist Theodoros Georgios Orphanides. The principal species is Eucalyptus globulus.
Eucalyptus has been grown in Ireland since trials in the 1930s and now grows wild in South Western Ireland in the mild climate.
Eucalyptus seeds of the species E. globulus were imported into Palestine in the 1860s, but did not acclimatise well. Later, E. camaldulensis was introduced more successfully and it is still a very common tree in Israel. The use of eucalyptus trees to drain swampy land was a common practice in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The German Templer colony of Sarona had begun planting eucalyptus for this purpose by 1874, though it is not known where the seeds came from. Many Zionist colonies also adopted the practice in the following years under the guidance of the Mikveh Israel Agricultural School.
In India, the Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding, Coimbatore started a eucalyptus breeding program in the 1990s. The organisation released four varieties of conventionally bred, high yielding and genetically improved clones for commercial and research interests in 2010.
Eucalyptus trees were introduced to Sri Lanka in the late 19th century by tea and coffee planters, for wind protection, shade and fuel. Forestry replanting of eucalyptus began in the 1930s in deforested mountain areas, and currently there are about 10 species present in the island. They account for 20% of major reforestation plantings. They provide railway sleepers, utility poles, sawn timber and fuelwood, but are controversial because of their adverse effect on biodiversity, hydrology and soil fertility. They are associated with another invasive species, the eucalyptus gall wasp, Leptocybe invasa.
Pacific Islands
Hawaii Some 90 species of eucalyptus have been introduced to the islands, where they have displaced some native species due to their higher maximum height, fast growth and lower water needs. Particularly noticeable is the rainbow eucalyptus (Eucalyptus deglupta), native to Indonesia and the Philippines, whose bark falls off to reveal a trunk that can be green, red, orange, yellow, pink and purple.
Nonnative eucalyptus and biodiversity
Due to similar favourable climatic conditions, Eucalyptus plantations have often replaced oak woodlands, for example in California, Spain and Portugal. The resulting monocultures have raised concerns about loss of biological diversity, through loss of acorns that mammals and birds feed on, absence of hollows that in oak trees provide shelter and nesting sites for birds and small mammals and for bee colonies, as well as lack of downed trees in managed plantations. A study of the relationship between birds and eucalyptus in the San Francisco Bay Area found that bird diversity was similar in native forest vs. eucalyptus forest but the species were different. One way in which the avifauna changes is that cavity nesting birds including woodpeckers, owls, chickadees, wood ducks, etc. are depauperate in eucalyptus groves because the decay-resistant wood of these trees prevents cavity formation by decay or excavation. Also those bird species that glean insects from foliage, such as warblers and vireos, have population declines when eucalyptus replace oak forest. Birds that do well in eucalyptus groves in California like tall vertical habitat like herons and egrets (possibly because redwood trees are less available), or have longer bills, which may play a role in preventing their nostrils from being clogged by eucalyptus resin/pitch. The Point Reyes Bird Observatory observes that sometimes short-billed birds like the ruby-crowned kinglet are found dead beneath eucalyptus trees with their nostrils clogged with pitch.
Monarch butterflies use eucalyptus in California for over-wintering, but in some locations have a preference for Monterey pines.
Although eucalypts must have been seen by the very early European explorers and collectors, no botanical collections of them are known to have been made until 1770 when Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander arrived at Botany Bay with Captain James Cook. There they collected specimens of E. gummifera and later, near the Endeavour River in northern Queensland, E. platyphylla; neither of these species was named as such at the time.
In 1777, on Cook's third expedition, David Nelson collected a eucalypt on Bruny Island in southern Tasmania. This specimen was taken to the British Museum in London, and was named Eucalyptus obliqua by the French botanist L'Héritier, who was working in London at the time. He coined the generic name from the Greek roots eu and calyptos, meaning "well" and "covered" in reference to the operculum of the flower bud which protects the developing flower parts as the flower develops and is shed by the pressure of the emerging stamens at flowering. It was most likely an accident that L'Heritier chose a feature common to all eucalypts.
The name obliqua was derived from the Latin obliquus, meaning "oblique", which is the botanical term describing a leaf base where the two sides of the leaf blade are of unequal length and do not meet the petiole at the same place.
E. obliqua was published in 1788-89, which coincided with the first official European settlement of Australia. Between then and the turn of the 19th century, several more species of Eucalyptus were named and published. Most of these were by the English botanist James Edward Smith and most were, as might be expected, trees of the Sydney region. These include the economically valuable E. pilularis, E. saligna and E. tereticornis.
The first endemic Western Australian Eucalyptus to be collected and subsequently named was the Yate (E. cornuta) by the French botanist Jacques Labillardière, who collected in what is now the Esperance area in 1792.
Several Australian botanists were active during the 19th century, particularly Ferdinand von Mueller, whose work on eucalypts contributed greatly to the first comprehensive account of the genus in George Bentham's Flora Australiensis in 1867. The account is the most important early systematic treatment of the genus. Bentham divided it into five series whose distinctions were based on characteristics of the stamens, particularly the anthers (Mueller, 1879–84), work elaborated by Joseph Henry Maiden (1903–33) and still further by William Faris Blakely (1934). The anther system became too complex to be workable and more recent systematic work has concentrated on the characteristics of buds, fruits, leaves and bark.


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Can the dead speak to us from beyond the grave? No, of course not. But that doesn't stop literally millions of superstitious people from believing they do. And some think they can use technology to facilitate the conversation. Of course, when you put technology into the mix, it simply cements the belief in place, no matter how ludicrous. And the internet has provided a platform for this silliness to reach worldwide.
A recent post on the BBC website made me do some investigation. The BBC story is really about EVP – Electronic Voice Phenomenon. EVP, as Wikipedia tells us, is:
…electronically generated noises that resemble speech, but are supposedly not the result of intentional voice recordings or renderings. Common sources of EVP include static, stray radio transmissions, and background noise. Recordings of EVP are often created from background sound by increasing the gain (i.e. sensitivity) of the recording equipment.
Interest in EVP surrounds claims that it is of paranormal origin, although many occurrences have had natural explanations including apophenia (finding significance in insignificant phenomena), auditory pareidolia (interpreting random sounds as voices in one's own language), equipment artifacts, and hoaxes.
Hoaxes. Put that near the top of your list. The Skeptics' Dictionary is more caustic, as expected:
Despite widespread belief in EVP, scientists have shown about as much interest in the phenomenon as they have in John Oates's reverse speech theory, and probably for the same reason. We already understand priming and the power of suggestion. As Alcock says, the simplest explanation for EVP is that it is the product of our own wonderfully complex brain, aided by the strong emotional desire to make contact with the dead.
In other words, we hear what we want to hear and what we expect to hear, because our brains are designed to hunt for patterns in everything, even randomness. It's not a picture of Jesus on your toast or your grilled cheese sandwich: That random pattern on cooked bread is just pareidolia.
I know, you're thinking this is just another of those chemtrails or anti-vaccination idiocies that are rampant online. But these people are much further into the deep end than that. They bring in the hardware and, since few of us are electronic engineers, it sure seems to be doing something amazing. Well, it is, just not what you think it's doing. Read on.
Browse over this report of an allegedly technical study. A causal reading would make it seem almost serious. Until, of course, you read about hooking up a "psychophone."
Despite the belief by some, the device commonly referred to by this name wasn't a device invented by Thomas Edison to speak to the dead; the first patented device of that name was a photograph designed to play subliminal messages while you sleep, and condition you for the next day (see here). The device referred to in the article is an electronic box; the "invention of Austrian scientist Franz Seidl for the reception of the alleged transcendental voices during his experiments with Raudive (Breakthrough pp. 362-365)." You can see more about this device here.
And what do the samples recorded on this device sound like? Take a listen here. None of those I listened to sounded anything more than electronic noise. In fact, most sounded like the old crystal radio sets of my youth; picking up bits of stations, fragments of transmissions, wrapped in that echo-y, chorus-y sound they used to make. Not a single one sounded to me like "Paul is dead," either.
And likely that's all they are: stray radio waves picked up by an unshielded receiver. The listeners just delude themselves into hearing something more in them. Could easily be snippets of cordless phone conversations, utility service walkie talkies, AM radio broadcasts, even cell phone calls.
As the BBC story notes,
The simplest explanation is that EVP voices are just stray radio transmissions. Usually they are so faint and masked by static interference that it's hard to make out what they are saying, and the EVP investigator has to "interpret" them for you.
That might seem like a weakness but that's also their power. As Joe Banks, a sound artist, points out, a dead person speaking in studio quality wouldn't be nearly so convincing as a voice you must strain to hear.
The other giveaway in the article that they're deep in the codswallop are the 12 references to the phase of the moon during the experiments. Wingnuts believe that the moon affects paranormal activity (not surprising since millions of them still follow astrology as if it was something more than entertainment):
Over the centuries people have associated the full moon with the paranormal and supernatural. And it would seem that the full moon phase can be a very favorable time to ghost hunt.
The new moon phase is another time people associate with ghost hunting. During a new moon, the moon rises at the same time as the sun. Because of the suns bright rays you can't see the moon, making it really dark for ghost hunting.
But the best time to experiencing paranormal phenomena is two to three days before or after the full moon and new moon. Which would be a waxing crescent phase, the waxing gibbous phase, the waning gibbous phase, and the waning crescent phase.
I know, the words gullible and superstitious claptrap go through my head, too, when I read that stuff.
And if you can't build yourself your own handy-dandy psychophone? No worry: just listen to your wireless router, says this guy:
As you may know, one of the theories out there is that "entities" use different frequencies that are flowing through the air around us on a constant basis in order to communicate through EVP. With that said, what else has increased in the past 10 years aside from occurrences of EVP evidence? The answer is Wi-Fi. Could they be using the unique frequency used by your every day wireless router to more easily communicate?
And I though all those little annoying voices were the sounds of pop-up ads or incoming email. So why don't the spirits just talk to people through the air so others can hear them? One comment in this paper says they dead use radio frequency because they can "manipulate energy":
The "departed" can somehow suppress those signals in such a fashion as to generate intelligible speech. As the machine was being tuned for the best operation, the technician was being "guided" by voice from the other side. A most interesting arrangement…
Since there is no physical matter on their level, all they have to work with is energy. By causing the energy to flow in a vortex, it naturally achieves a focal point which allows action to occur from their level to our physical level.
The technician stated that they were still learning how to "tap the spiral" which shows that the ever tightening spiral segments increase in power as they condense toward the center or focal point.
Amazing how much pseudoscience gibberish you can pack into a couple of paragraphs. The author also mentions "13 waves, the magic number" – numerology is another form of quackery the wingnuts pursue.
Listening to the original tapes made by one of the EVP pioneers, Konstantin Raudive, author of Breakthrough, the BBC reporter was not impressed:
According to a book published at the time by Smythe's partner, a Russian voice at that session said "Stefan is here. But you are Stefan. You do not believe me. It is not very difficult. We will teach Petrus." But on the tape there was nothing, just hiss.
Makes you wonder why the spirits can't speak in coherent sentences. Raudive went from loony to huckster in a very short time, sounding more like a Monty Python skit than a serious investigator:
But once you start experimenting with EVP, it's hard to stop. After Breakthrough was published, Raudive progressed from voices captured on tape to voices coming from animals, in particular a budgerigar named Putzi, who spoke in the voice of a dead 14-year-old girl.
Who says madness isn't contagious? Decades later, the BBC reporter adds, other EVP "researchers" are hearing dead people's voices in animal sounds, even in creaking doors:
Similar work today is being done today by EVP researcher Brian Jones in Seattle.
He records the noises made by seagulls, dogs, cats, and even squeaky doors and crunching pebbles. They all contain voices. One dog says, "Where's Sheila?" referring to its owner. Another complains of its owners, "they always sail away".
Jones thinks he can capture thoughts that somehow are in the air. "I have documented a lot of things that are pretty stunning that way," he says.
If you read down towards the bottom of this report, there are several technical comments about the construction of these "psychophones" that identify them as noise generators with oscillator circuits:
I have carefully studied the schematic of this device and built a test unit, I have noted a few things. First, not every oscillator is a radio transmitter. Second, the oscillators in this device are highly unstable circuits, and have adjustable potentiometers that will literally allow you to make it talk. By rotating the knobs you can alter pitch and cadence. As for "transcendental voices to modulate" I
have yet to see that proof. What this device will do is allow any frequency present in the audio range to modulate the carrier. Twisting the knobs will also modulate the carrier. This thing is a win/win situation. If you don't detect an EVP, you can generate one.
So you generate what you're looking to hear. And another comment from a different author in that paper:
These boxes are essentially synthesizers, very similar to the one invented by MOOG in the early 1960's. In fact I have an old synthesizer here in the lab and I can make say whatever I want. It certainly is no proof of voices from the dead, although I could make it seem as such.
I had an old Moog synth back in the 1970s, and now that you mention it, it DID sound like those sound samples linked above. Maybe they should just add small piano keys to it. At the end of this piece, the above author notes:
But the truly astounding thing is I have talked to witnesses that are firmly convinced that they spoke to a dead loved one… The same results could most likely be achieved using a white noise generator, a magic 8-Ball, or a deck of Tarot cards.
In this report from the same website, it says there is a "a correlation between EVPs and EMF" which suggests to me simple feedback from the electromagnetic fields of the recording devices.
So EVP is, like the rest of the psychic, paranormal world: just more bunkum to suck in the gullible. People "hear" voices in the electronic noise because they want to believe, desperately want to believe that death isn't the end. They want to believe we can carry our ego on to another "realm" and maintain our individual selves. That when we shuffle off this mortal coil, we wake up in another world. We willingly suspend belief in logic to avoid the alternative: that death is the end. Period.
Sorry to debunk that for you.
I suppose it's better to have these folks glued to their "psychophones" for hours on end than engaged in some social activity. Who knows, what they might be up to if let loose.


text:
ALGLIB is a cross-platform numerical analysis and data processing
library. ALGLIB features include:
- Linear algebra (direct algorithms, EVD/SVD)
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- Interpolation
- Optimization
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- Linear and nonlinear least-squares fitting
- Ordinary differential equations
- Special functions
- Statistics (descriptive statistics, hypothesis testing)
- Data analysis (classification/regression, including neural networks)
- Multiple precision versions of linear algebra, interpolation
optimization and others algorithms (using MPFR for floating point
Maintained by: Petar Petrov
Keywords: alglib,numerical analysis,data processing
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Download SlackBuild:
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Slackware® is a registered trademark of
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Linux® is a registered trademark of
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Brian Kelly will be the Notre Dame coach, ESPN declared about an hour ago. Gee thanks, ESPN, but we had that story first a long time ago – take a look.
Even the San Francisco Chronicle mentioned our reporting when, on Dec. 2, it had a piece about us saying:
"Briefly: IrishCentral.com, an independent site that reports on Notre Dame sports, cited sources saying Cincinnati coach Brian Kelly will replace fired coach Charlie Weis, although Notre Dame said it is just beginning the interview process."
Back on Dec. 2, before anyone else, I wrote the following:
Brian Kelly will be the next head football coach at the University of Notre Dame, informed sources tell IrishCentral.
The source, who is a well-informed person of influence at Notre Dame, says the Cincinnati coach is the preferred choice for the job, and that he is expected to eventually sign a deal.
Kelly is expected to see out the season with his Bowl Championship Series-bound team, and then report for duty at South Bend.
Kelly, a Massachusetts native and proud Irish American, is an obvious choice to take over from the outbound Charlie Weis, given his background and outstanding success with the Cincinnati program.
His name first surfaced at Notre Dame when the Fighting Irish lost to USC in a last-second cliffhanger. From that moment on, Weis' job was under scrutiny, says the source.
Well before that, on Oct. 18 to be exact, I predicted that Kelly would take over from Weis when I posted the following piece:
Brian Kelly should replace Charlie Weis as Notre Dame Coach.
That is the only conclusion I can reach after Weis once again failed to defeat USC, his fifth such loss to them.
Weis was unlucky, but luck has its own way of working out.
Weis has had enough chances - let's get Brian Kelly.
The Massachusetts native (48) has turned the Cincinnati program around in astonishing style, leading them to a first ever Big East title last year.
This year Cincinnati are contenders and give every appearance that they will win the title again.
Notre Dame should try and snap up Kelly before they let another great coach go.
Weis has to go and Kelly should replace him.
Not to lbeabor the point, but earlier this week I wrote:
Brian Kelly will be Notre Dame coach by Friday of this week, sources tell IrishCentral.
It appears that the Cincinnati coach will not coach his Bearcats in the Sugar Bowl against Florida.
Though Kelly did not meet with Notre Dame AD Jack Swarbrick today in New York, he did not need to.
The deal was done last week before the Bearcats mauled Pittsburgh with a last-second victory to win the Big East.
Kelly has made it clear to Notre Dame that he wanted to wait until after Thursday night's annual banquet for the Bearcat players before publicly announcing the Notre Dame job.
Back on Dec. 8 I wrote:
Brian Kelly was one of three top names on the original list drawn up by the University of Notre Dame. The others were Bob Stoops, coach of Oklahoma, and Urban Meyer of Florida.
Meyer took himself right out of consideration and Stoops, after brief consideration, also withdrew. That left Kelly as the clear front-runner.
So if you need the news first, find it with us.


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Tuesday, November 16, 2004
The power of CSS
It has been interesting to watch the rise of a new generation of browsers lately. While Microsoft sits on their hands with a security bug ridden IE 6, Firefox seems to have done reasonably well with its recent launch. Even Opera seems to be getting more press mentions and I have friends that use it daily. Myself, I switched from IE 6 to Mozilla 1.x about 18 months ago and then recently to Firefox.
One interesting part of the switch to better browsers is the improved support for CSS. When you really understand CSS, it's staggeringly powerful. I had seen some simple demos of it previously and they were just what you would expect--simple. Obviously, CSS can be used to change fonts, colors, etc. But recently, I found CSS Zen Garden and that really drove home how awesomely powerful CSS is. You'll probably want to view this site with a good modern browser (I suggest Firefox). Check out all the various themes that were created for the same content. Amazing.
Interestingly, more than half of Finding Lisp's readers use a Mozilla-based browser of some sort, and that figure is rising.
CSS is great - the power i all in the selectors though. Combined with a few well places id and class attributes, the ability to address things is superb. It's like URLs for your document.
Also, if you do *any* work with CSS or Javascript, you *need* to spend some quality time with the mozilla DOM inspector. It really lets you under the hood so you can see what your'e doing.
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Grimy meets shiny in Sleepy Kitty's music. The duo's chugging drums and crunchy guitars are sweetened by catchy melodies and vocal harmonies that summon memories of 1960s-era girl groups.
Take "Seventeen," which transmogrifies the Beatles' "I Saw Her Standing There" into a clanging drone that directly channels the Velvet Underground.
"Everything that I love about music, especially rock band music, is something about the texture of the noise and those textures relative to each other — something really smooth against something really grating or rough," says drummer Evan Sult, 40, who forged the group with guitarist and vocalist Paige Brubeck in late 2008.
The aesthetic extends even to the band's posters, which the pair create themselves along with all their album art. "All the crap and noise and staple holes and torn edges and all of those things, those are at least as important as whatever the pictorial image is in a rock poster, as far as getting across that this is what you're going to see," Sult says. "When somebody walks by on the street and sees it . . . I want them to have an impression that they know something about what we sound like, because they saw a poster we made that looks like a sound."
Sleepy Kitty grew out of experimental jams the two held while Brubeck was still a student at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. (An earlier band of Sult's, Harvey Danger, emerged from the Seattle alt-rock scene in the late-1990s.) Their sound solidified into a style that bears the three-dimensional heft of some of their favorite '90s-era bands, but is lightened by Brubeck's vocal harmonies and conversational lyrics.
Their two LP records feature plenty of overdubs, creating an effect that Brubeck replicates in concert, to an extent, by busily working guitar and vocal loops. (Sleepy Kitty plays the Red Room at Café 939 on Saturday.) She'll lay a rhythm track underneath a lead guitar line, or harmonize off her own vocals. But they aim to speak in their own musical vocabulary, not compensate for a missing bassist.
"I guess it started with the convenience of both being there and playing music together. But after a while we really got into the challenge of it and what it feels like to play as a two-piece," says Brubeck, 28, who, like Sult, speaks on the phone from Chicago between tour dates. "I'm very aware that if I stop playing guitar all of the melody instruments in the entire band stop playing. There's a pressure to that, but it's kind of exciting too. It gives you a lot of space and freedom but also a lot of restrictions."
Sult sees this as the reflection of an essential interplay that's always going on between band and listener. "There's something fascinating about a two-piece, because there really just aren't enough people to do all the parts," he says. "One of the things that happens in indie rock is that what you're listening to is partly what you hear on the album and it's also partly the potential that you hear. You hear more than the sum of what's there, and that's part of what's so exciting about it."
In keeping with their multimedia interests (Brubeck and Sult, who are also a couple, run a screen-printing studio), the newly released sophomore album, "Projection Room," is dense with influences from film and other art forms.
For the peeling guitar solo at the center of the ambitious new tune "Godard Protagonist Inflection," Brubeck attempted to mimic the odd cadence with which a certain character in a Jean-Luc Godard film speaks. "The Agony and Ecstasy of Mike Daisey" references the actor/monologist. "Speaking Politely," from Sleepy Kitty's 2011 debut, "Infinity City," makes musical reference to George Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue." Another song recounts the long wait for an amusement park ride based on the Batman character.
Many of the references in Sleepy Kitty's songs, musical and otherwise, spring from its members' shared interests and experiences. But Brubeck says she's not looking to keep listeners at arm's length. "It's meant to be welcoming. Even if you don't know what these references are, you can find out. I don't want it to be an exclusive thing, even though it's a very specific thing," she says.
"Projection Room" initially took shape as an opportunity to "get the most from our vinyl," Sult says. The record label run by Euclid Records, in the band's adopted home of St. Louis, was committed to putting their work out on vinyl. Though Sleepy Kitty only had an EP in mind, it seemed a shame not to go all the way and take advantage of the length of an LP.
"We're not used to format really affecting length anymore, because the mp3 is such a common thing," he says, "but it was the physical format of the vinyl that led us onwards towards making an album. Which is exactly what I want. I want the physical object to affect the band that we are."
Jeremy D. Goodwin can be reached at jeremy@jeremyd goodwin.com.


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Life Insurance At An Early Age
November 21, 2011
Here's why it can be a good idea.
You may have read that you don't need to buy life insurance early in life. That's not necessarily true. In fact, getting a policy before midlife may prove wise. Relatively few people opt for life insurance coverage between the ages of 18 and 45, yet there are compelling reasons to get life insurance within this window of time.
The key question. Are you supporting individuals whose livelihood depends on your income? If the answer is yes, it's time to look at life insurance.
Now, you may be saying: shouldn't I wait to get a policy? Why should I pay premiums when I have so many other checks to write? Well, the reluctance is understandable: the perception is that life insurance is for old people, and when you're 30 or 35, chances are you've got a long, great life ahead of you. But in financial terms, here is why this can be advantageous.
You've got your health. Typically, Americans shop for a life insurance policy in the middle of their life spans – when they are in their forties or fifties. At that time, they may have already fallen into the grip of bad habits (smoking, obesity, heavy drinking) and diabetes, heart disease, cancer or HIV may have entered their health picture. All these conditions can jack up premiums or make it harder to get a policy.
The cost is relatively cheap. Okay, maybe you won't have to contend with any of the above health risks at 45 or 50 – but who knows? Buying a term or permanent life policy early in life, before you have to encounter any of these problems, should allow you to pay less expensive premiums. (Presuming you don't face recurring risks to your health and safety today.)
Did you know that premiums for standard-risk term life insurance fell 50% between 1994 and 2007?1 Premiums have been getting cheaper and cheaper for new term life policyholders, partly because the mortality rate has dropped over the decades. In fact, the non-profit Insurance Information Institute says term insurance premiums have fallen by more than 4% per year since 2000, and the premiums on cash value policies are averaging roughly 5% lower today compared to a decade ago.2
Why would young singles need life insurance? Good question. Some financial consultants will tell you there is no pressing reason for it. Yet if you are single, buying a term life policy (or even a permanent life policy) early on could bring you a better deal and potentially guarantee your insurability.
Maybe it's time. Time passes, things change, and so does your need for insurance. Even if you are insured, it's important to keep up with change – as an example, the Insurance Information Institute estimates that about a third of families don't update their life insurance coverage after a new baby comes home.1
If you're young and you haven't yet talked to a qualified insurance advisor, think about doing so today – you may be pleasantly surprised how affordable life insurance can be.
Guarantees provided by life insurance and annuities are subject to the financial strength of the issuing insurance company; not guaranteed by any bank or the FDIC. This material has been prepared for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide, and should not be relied upon for, accounting, legal, tax or investment advice. Please consult with a professional specializing in these areas regarding the applicability of this information to your situation. 11739 - 2011/6/1
These are the views of the author and should not be construed as investment advice. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however, we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If other expert assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional. Please consult your Financial Advisor for further information.
1 msnbc.msn.com/id/18926723/ [5/29/07]
2 registeredrep.com/wealthmanagement/insurance/people_living_longer_0819/ [8/19/08]
This material was prepared by Peter Montoya Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting Representative or the Representative's Broker/Dealer. This information should not be construed as investment advice. Neither the named Representative nor Broker/Dealer gives tax or legal advice. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however, we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If other expert assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional. Please consult your Financial Advisor for further information. www.petermontoya.com, www.montoyaregistry.com, www.marketinglibrary.net


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NC: Describe your morning routine.
EG: Okay, well my morning routine on a day when I'm writing is very different from my routine on a day I'm not writing. So when I'm writing, my routine begins the night before. I had a meditation teacher who used to say that your meditation starts the night before. What time you go to bed is really important. When I'm writing, I tend to go to bed around 9 o'clock. That way I can get up by 4:30 or 5. My favorite time to write is between 5 to 10 a.m., because that way you have the total silence before the world starts chasing you down. By 10 the phone is ringing, emails are coming in, all sorts of things need your care and attention. So I like those secret morning hours. If I'm really gunning, toward the end of project, I might write past noon, but that would be rare.
What is a distinctive habit or affectation of yours? Any magic hats?
What kind of talismanic devices, hmm. I used to have a pair of glasses, without prescription lenses—they just made me feel more intelligent. Somewhere along the way I lost them! I don't know what that means, if you lose your fake intelligence glasses … I wore those for years. I wrote my first two books in those. I needed a boost, when I'd look in the mirror I'd think, Writer. These days? I use index cards for book projects. I use a method I learned when I was 14, in Western Civilization class, cataloguing ideas on index cards, in shoe boxes. My newest book has five shoeboxes full of organized index cards lined up. Without them I don't think I'd have any idea how to write a book. Ooh, and when I finish writing each day, to give myself a boost, I stop in the middle of a sentence. I heard Hemingway did that. When you sit down the next day, you begin immediately able to produce something, without that terrible vacuum. It gives you a sense of momentum.
Anything you like to snack on while writing?
I chew gum ferociously. It's obnoxious, and another reason why I have to be alone. I chew Trident Tropical Twist Sugarless. Everyone is repulsed by it, but I love it! When I'm writing I'm on, like, a pack a day. The non-smoker's equivalent of smoking. It activates my brain. I read a study not long ago that chewing actually does activate your brain. It produces some sort of cosmic, seismic activity.
Describe your routine when conceiving of a book and its plot, before the writing begins. Do you like to map out your books ahead of time, or just let it flow? I know you've got the shoeboxes…
You probably get the point already that I've got a very orderly process for work. That's probably the result of my upbringing, raised by a Swedish farmer mother. Systems and discipline are in place. I have no German Romantic idea about work. There's no fugue state, you know? I could no more write at 3 a.m. than I could with a quill pen. I keep farmer's hours and I have that sort of plotting and plodding way. For The Signature of All Things, for instance, I wrote a 70 page synopsis of the book before I wrote the book. I've never gone quite that far before, but I knew that what I was taking on was such a complex story, that I wanted to be sure I knew exactly where I was going. For the most part, the final product looks like the 70-page outline.
Is there anything distinctive or unusual about your workspace? Besides the obvious, what do you keep on your desk? What is the view from your favorite workspace?
I live in an old Victorian house in New Jersey. I spent three years working with this great local woodcrafter to turn the empty attic into what we call the Skybrary, the library in the sky. He built this remarkable, almost Dr. Seussian library up there. The instruction I gave him was for the shelves to look not like they had been built, but that they had grown. They're full of entwined vines that crawl all over the wall, full of secret compartments, hidden cabinets, tiny little doorways. It's pretty whimsical. It also feels like a tree house, or a ship. An otherworldly feeling. And the best thing about it is that it's not a space anyone uses or walks through. It was years before I was able to have that, a room only for me and for that purpose. The view is of the Delaware River and Pennsylvania.
You've written a number of excellent books, but people know you for Eat, Pray, Love, which is very different from your other work. Does it ever bother you that you are so associated with this one work, and is there one of your other books that you'd recommend to your readers that is more indicative of you as a writer?
Oh that's a nice question, thank you. No, it almost makes me laugh to say this: It doesn't bother me to have had a giant best-seller. It's a tremendous blessing. The boon of that success has enabled me to fund my own work from now on, which is a privilege I never imagined happening. It's a privilege not many writers, not many female writers, have ever had. It's a gift that keeps on giving. And I don't mind being associated with it. I'm proud of that book. I'm delighted with the emotional impact it had on many people's lives. I wouldn't ask any readers of Eat, Pray, Love to go back and look up any of my obscure, literary short stories. Read my magazine articles from back in the day. No, it's fine.
Did Eat, Pray, Love begin as a nonfiction book proposal, and then you embarked on the journey? Or did you set off on the journey, and then conceive of the book?
No it was a proposal. That was my fourth book. At that point in a writer's life, all books begin as proposals. I certainly would not have been able to afford to travel for a year, after an expensive divorce, without that. I wrote a proposal. I didn't put forth what I expected to find or would happen on this journey, but I did lay out that I wanted to go to these three countries for four months each. I wanted to look at each country from a particularly aspect of life that I felt had died in me. In Italy that was pleasure, in India devotion, and in Indonesia a search for a balance between the two. That was about all the proposal was, and what the book turned out to be.
What is guaranteed to make you laugh?
The Onion is always guaranteed to make me laugh. Have you read Jack Handey's new book, The Stench of Honolulu? I not only read it, I bought like 10 copies and gave it to everybody. I was on a flight with my husband, and the stewardess thought he was having a stroke, because he was laughing so hard, but trying to contain his laughter, so it looked like he was ill. Fantastically funny.
What is guaranteed to make you cry?
Hmm. Stories of reunion and forgiveness, of unexpected grace. A lot of the stupid pet videos that people send me…
Do you have any superstitions?
I have magical thinking. Does that count? I think it does. My essential piece of magical thinking around writing is that it is a relationship, a collaboration, between me and the mystery. The work wants to be made as much as I want to make it. As long as I hold on to that belief, it will come into being. If I have trouble producing it, it's trying very hard to communicate itself to me. That's the magical thinking that keeps me from going to war against myself, going to war against my work. I don't think of it as an enemy. I think of it as a benevolent relationship.
Was there a specific moment when you felt you had "made it" as an author?
Yeah, when I was 24 I had a short story published in Esquire. I'd been sending my short fiction out to magazines for five years at that point, I'd started when I was in college. I had a really simple life goal: I wanted something of mine to be published before I was dead. Once that occurred, I felt that my life's goal has been met. The rest is pleasure and gratitude. But that was the moment I had made it. Whatever else happened, I had that 1994 Esquire magazine.
Tell us a funny story related to a book tour or book event.
Once I was doing a signing. I always have a fear that someone will come up to me in a signing line who I know, but whose name I can't remember. I was reading once at Barnes & Noble. There's a lovely manager there who'd been with me all afternoon, who'd helped me with stock signings, who'd been just terrific. We'd enjoyed each other. We got to the end of the day and he handed me a book and said, Now can you sign one to me? Of course I had no idea what his name was. So I said, Sure, could you just remind me how to spell your name? There was a bit of a pause. Then he said, "E.D." It was the worst name you could ever asked someone to spell.
Tell us something about yourself that is largely unknown and perhaps surprising.
I think people are surprised to know that I don't meditate. I'm often asked for advice on matters of meditation and contemplation. While I'm constantly making vows to mediate, I actually don't. Even yesterday I made a vow that, for the next week, I'd meditate each day. I won't. This is my equivalent of when other people tell themselves they'll stop smoking. I've been completely unable to discipline myself to the practice.
If you could bring back to life one deceased person, who would it be and why?
Benjamin Franklin.
That was quick.
Oh no, should I say a family member? Let's go with a literary celebrity, setting aside all the relatives that I'd love to bring back. I'd bring Ben back not only to enjoy him, because he was by all reports a complete delight, but also to show him around. There's no one I can imagine who would be more fascinated with what's become of the world, or would have a greater capacity to adapt quickly to understand it. I'd love to take him to an airplane factory, to a housing project—he'd be excited to see how well poor people lived, how good sanitation is and water. By our standards not everyone lives well, but by his standards—he'd be excited to hear about the universality of air conditioning. Just to show him the world. He'd love it.
What would you like carved onto your tombstone?
It's funny, what came to mind immediately—I don't want to steal it from him—E.B. White was asked how he'd like to be remembered. He said, As a fine writer who reached a wide audience. I think that's a quite nice idea, a nice thing to put on the tombstone.
This interview has been edited and condensed.


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One of the recent things in my life is that I've been developing a relationship with someone who shares an interest in being magical partners together. One aspect of this came up as a suggestion from my partner that we might have a sigil of some kind to represent the combination of our emergent effort.
I've done some work in the past with bind-runes and sigils for imaginal landscapes, among other things; so I started to think about a kind of bind-rune with the initials of our magical names. I was also reminded of the ring my father's father had made in France during WWII that has the family initials on it.
First, I created a series of images with the initials of our magical names arranged in different relationships with each other, arranging them in a variety of ways that seemed interesting to look at and different than the others.
This was basically just a test file to see what I see in the shapes and their relationships. I think there's some great possibilities there. I sent this to my partner also so she could gander as well as so we could talk about our Rorschach-like test results for these shapes; immediately I see stars in some, but lots of almost organic shapes, including the last which makes me think of a flower or rose and for which I added some colours to make the glyphs distinct in spite of much overlap. I also see ways that the Mem-Kappa can echo both the M(agdalene) and K(alokagathon) as well as the initials of our civil names K and G. But, from this there's definitely some interesting shapes here to play with and work on!
But going through the glyph relationships:
1. I see a star in the middle. also the Mem at the bottom is like a partial top of a G glyph. K & G being our civil initials as well as Mem & Kappa being the initials of our magical names, in reverse order of our magical names.
2. I see the hint of a heart in the middle
4. I see a hint of a tree
6. Another heart is hinted to me in the place where the glyphs join
7 & 8 I actually see a shape of a map of the US in these two, which echoes the two coasts. I also see the Mem and the serif of the K in each forming an arabic M which hints at some possible initialisms like in 1
9 I see a stem and flower here, perhaps of a rose
Of course, the sigil needn't be so literal about these letter shapes, and could go more for a graphical lamen or waxen seal design, with symbolic elements; but this was an initial experiment.
I sent the glyph study to my partner, and she send back what she saw in these relationships.
My Roschach test is below… I'm trying not to look at your answers until I do mine so I'm not influenced!
1. ummm nothing!
2. flower or sea creature shapes
3. old pacman designs
4. swing dancers
5. bullfighter with a swirling cape behind him
6. old rod iron fence outside a garden
7. someone in a hershey kiss costume dancing with someone in a kit kat costume (like hershey park when I was a kid)
8. similar to 7
9. not sure, the color was throwing me off
Oh my… I'm a bit off from what you saw!!! lol. I think its a great start.
So, looking at some of the features we came up with from the glyph arrangements, I did some more work playing with the sigil idea as an inked-in pencil illustration as a draft of one possible sigil, but I think it turned out pretty good.
I know the key and bee are derivative of The Magicians: A Novel, but it was in my mind associated with the two of us because that's what we selected for our first bookclub selection. The rest of the illustration is of a Greek kappa and an Hebrew mem joined so that they form a five pointed star in the middle. Of course, "every man and every woman is a star" but also in Crowley's star-sponge vision the relationships we form are also stars in their own right. Thus, I think the star in the middle is a reminder of both our individual sovereignty as well as what we are building together.
For myself I like the idea of the bee actually facing down into the Kappa, like a descending dove, but also because the Kappa could be more of a flower. The Mem could be more keyhole shaped, or even could hint of a beehive. The key is intentionally but only slightly phallic, but I suppose there could be some detail for it to be more serpent like, as in a rising serpent.
The kappa could be wider and less tall, and the star might be smaller. Also, I wonder if there's a way to bring a square and a hexagram into this also, or if that's too much.
Another thought is that I'd like the sigil to be something that can be both very detailed and also something that can be quickly drawn, say as if next to initials or in place of initials on a guestbook or epistle.
Further it'd be spiffy if there were an email version, some kind of emoticon. "BK*MF" might be too much of a stretch … maybe just "K*M" … or "M*K" … I kinda prefer the ordering Mem Kappa, but in the illustration the Kappa on top forms the star; of course, there's no reason why it can't be written "M*K" whatever the arrangement of the sigil.
Also, I keep wondering what could be on the right side of the star … maybe that's something for later?
Well, it's definitely a start, but with tweaks and more thought this could be pretty nice.
One thought we had originally was to create some jewelry with our sigil on it. Certainly necklaces or something, but when I think about how I've actually used my grandfather's ring as a wax seal, though the initials come out mirrored; I think about how having the eventual sigil as a wax seal would be pretty fantastic for using as part of magical operations, as well as the grand nostalgia from using the wax seal of our sigil on letters we might send each other. When this sigil, or another if we replace it, is far enough along; that'll be a time to start exploring options for getting something custom-made for us using the design.


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Over the last three years we've seen screen sizes on smartphones vary from a smallish 3 inches to a massive 5.3-inch on the Galaxy Note. It's a similar story with tablets, only those started out at around 10.1-inches and have gotten smaller from there.
Meanwhile, despite longstanding rumors of Apple releasing a larger iPhone or smaller iPad, the company has stuck to its guns with the original 3.5- and 9.7-inch form factors of those devices.
I'm all for diversity and choice, but there's a point where a phone is just too big to carry around hassle free and a tablet is too small for the tasks it's intended to handle. We've asked the same question about laptops before, but now we want to know: What's your preferred smartphone and tablet size?
Personally, the 3.5-inch form factor of the iPhone suits me well, but I could easily get used to a ~4-inch device if it doesn't add much bulk. Anything over that seems unnecessary and would actually hurt portability. As for tablets, I think both 10- and 7-inch sizes are here to stay. So far I prefer the former.