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This thread is a tutorial and guide for Anacreon Betas I & II for the period called "Era 2", which ran from April 2014 to March 2017. An FAQ is a few posts down. Attributions are at the bottom.
This guide does not reflect the Era 3 rebalancing of units and addition of jump beacons! Tables relating to units and strategy suggestions are out of date!
If you are a new player, read the official Quick Start Guide and then read my Beta II starting guide.
This guide is intended to be a comprehensive reference. You can read straight through it to use it as a tool to learn how to play the game, but it's a little wordy. I recommend using it by doing keyword searches on this page when you have questions about how game systems work.
Some of the charts in this thread give masses in "tons". These should actually say "kilotons", the default mass unit.
The terms "labor", "industry", "work units" and "WUs" are interchangeable. They refer to the unnamed resource produced by planet populations and used by structures to make resources and units. "Work units" is the name used in-game but the older names may be seen on some of the charts.
This guide reflects my personal biases and is not definitive. I urge everyone to explore and find new strategies and approaches to playing the game. Hussell's thread "Gameplay Tips" inspired me to make this. Many strategies were initially suggested by other players. Some information is derived from the Anacreon Core Library. The license for redistribution of information derived from the Anacreon Core Library may be read here. Special thanks to MaxCPP for corrections; to CaleyM, Wayward Device, and many others for testing and reporting findings; and to Stargazer and lazygun for finding workarounds for the graviton launcher bug. Some of the comments in the thread refer to earlier versions of the guide, since this post is regularly updated.
Most recent update: Mar 5, 2017.
- If you only see the Alpha game link when you log in to Multiverse, reload anacreon.kronosaur.com in your browser window and the Beta I and Beta II game link will be visible. Beta II is the most active.
- Don't build tech programs on your capital until you have a chronimium processor planet that it can import from, or you won't be able to build jumpships.
- Don't switch to a different doctrine until you have at least one standalone jumpship yard and one jumpship autofac, or you'll run out of jumptransports.
- If you have 100+ planets and >2 sector capitals (4 or more capitals total), you must switch to the Law & Order doctrine or sector capitals will randomly secede.
- The "graviton launcher" and "double capital"/"ghost empire" bugs have recently been fixed. You may see reference to these in other posts and threads, but you don't have to worry about them anymore.
- Avoid civil wars: don't raise planets up to high TLs right away; be sure that your planets are supplied with trillum; be sure your consumer goods autofacs aren't being asked to export more than they can produce.
- If a planet goes into civil war, use transports to drop infantry on it. You want ~4x as many ground forces as there are rebel forces, shown under the planet's "News" tab.
- Civil wars won't end if people keep dying from starvation or survival resource shortages.[/color]
The FAQ is here.
Unit Tables
Planetary Defenses:
Errata: autocannons do not fire at ships below them. "Needs/unit" should be read as T = trillum, H = hexacarbide, C = chronimium
Errata:- The Reliant is TL 6-8, and the Vanguard is TL 6-7. TL 5 yards only build Stingers.
- The Hammerhead costs 525 WUs.
- The Typhon ramjet starcruiser has a D:600 R:10 missile, 3800 armor, power 8143. Unlike its starship equivalent the Megathere, it doesn't have missile defense. All starcruisers are terrible, don't build them.
The first and third columns give the cost of building the ship itself. The second column and fourth columns give the cost of building the ship PLUS the cost of the ship's components. "Supply-chain-inclusive" means that the resource cost of producing other resources is also considered. For example, it takes 1 unit of trillum to produce 1 unit of hexacarbide. This extra unit of trillum is not considered in the base cost of the ship, but it IS included in the supply-chain-inclusive cost.
Errata: Hammerhead uses 8 hexacarbide, 10 aetherium.
Component Resource Costs:
Total Supply-chain-inclusive Labor Costs (includes mineral extraction labor costs):
Cargo masses:
(Mass units are in kilotons.)
Ships and defense masses
Structure build times
Gameplay Guide
You start with one planet - this planet is the capital of your empire.
When you click on your capital you'll see 5 tabs at the bottom of the screen. These give info about the planet. The action buttons on the right will change depending on the tab that you're currently in.
Overview gives general information about the planet.
Sovereign: This is your empire. If you click on another player empire's planet (on the map, these are either red dots or planet images with the name given in red text, depending on how far zoomed in you are) you'll see that empire's name. Worlds belonging to no player are "independent" and can be conquered and added to your empire without any repercussions.
Designation: What the planet is assigned to do. When you add a planet to your empire, you assign it a single production task, like building jumpships or mining trillum for use on other planets. What you can order a planet to do varies depending on its location, resources and tech level; see the planetary tech tables at the end of this guide.
Tech level or 'TL' determines what tasks a planet can perform and what resources it can make use of, and what kinds of consumer goods the population will consume. Higher TL = more WUs / person, lower max population, and more consumer goods demand. (Labor and consumer goods will be explained a little bit later in this section).
Space forces and ground forces are estimates of the strength of all units currently stationed on the planet. Ships and planetary defenses are "space forces" while infantry are "ground forces". Some force comparisons are deceptive: a seemingly weaker basic jumpship fleet will almost always win against "stronger" jumpcruiser fleets since jumpcruisers use missiles and basic jumpships have an ability that protects them from missiles.
Social order is the population's satisfaction with your rule. It doesn't affect anything unless it gets really low and people start "rebelling". See the "Social Order" section below for more information.
Population is the number of people living on the planet. More people = more WUs, but also more need for consumer goods. If there are two numbers here, the number in brackets with the arrow next to it is the planet's maximum population and indicates that the population is increasing or decreasing towards this. All planets have a finite max population they can support. The max population depends on TL, world type, and structures; these are discussed in "Planets". Population slowly increases to a planet's current max as long as the planet can get enough consumer goods. As in other space 4X games, population can increase much faster than in real life (e.g. doubling in one day.)
Efficiency affects work unit production. It's not a a flat multiplier; a world at 90% efficiency does not not produce 9x as much labor as the same world at 10% efficiency. Efficiency decreases every time a planet is conquered, suffers resource shortages, or gets redesignated (changing doctrine counts as redesignation for capitals). Otherwise it slowly increases to 100%.
To the right is a listing of all units on the planet, the world type, and the mineral resource deposits on the planet. These are discussed a little later.
Button actions available in the Overview tab are:
Deploy lets you move space units up from the planet to form a new fleet.
Import from lets you establish a trade route from another planet you own.
On any planet other than your capital, you'd see another button, Designate, which changes the planet's designation. You can't directly redesignate your imperial capital.
If another player has a fleet is orbiting your capital (a little red shape to the left of the planet), you'll also see:
Attack, which orders all your units on a planet and in fleets orbiting it to attack another player's fleet or fleets at that planet. Space combat takes place in orbit around planets. Combat involves both ships and planetary defenses (giant laser cannons, nuclear missiles, etc). Attacks by fleets against other fleets when orbiting worlds that are independent or owned by a third party only involve ships; defenses won't get involved. Fleets that are losing automatically try to escape combat; you may need to order multiple attacks to completely annihilate an enemy. Defenses can't escape combat, so they fight to the death.
Very rarely, you may have another option available from this tab, Missiles. This button lets you fire jumpmissiles against fleets of ships moving through space (this is the one exception to the all-combat-in-orbit rule) or orbiting other planets. Only citadel planets can build jumpmissiles, but planets that got redesignated can fire any missiles that they have left over. Each jumpmissile generates 16 warheads that do 100 damage each, and require four times as much interception power (two starfrigates or four jumpships) to intercept. Fleets moving through space can't intercept missiles and will take full damage.
Next tab!
The Structures tab lists all the ways work units are used on the planet.
Most structures are are built and demolished automatically on planets based on demand for resources, so you don't have to worry about them too much. Some structures are manually built by the player.
In each box there will be a % and a smaller number to the right of the %. The big number is the % of the planet's total Work Unit pool being allocated to the structure (allocation is automatic for most structures), and the small number is the number of WUs being used by the structure. Work Units are generated by population and increase with population, efficiency, and tech level.
Most structures convert WUs into resources or units, sometimes consuming other resources to do so.
A planet's labor pool isn't a fixed value; fewer WUs are available overall when the labor pool has to be divided between many structures. Planets generate the most labor when all WUs are going to one structure. This is not the same as "efficiency", which is a specific planet-wide modifier on labor production that is affected by how recently a planet was conquered (and a few other things). To get the most WUs out of your planets, use trade routes to import needed resources from other planets instead of producing everything on the same planet.
The planet's designated task is performed by the structure in the upper left of this tab. Your capital's primary structure is Fleet HQ. Clicking on it moves you to another tab which shows how the WUs assigned to HQ get used to make units, and allows you you can change how this labor gets allocated. A planet designated as a trillum extractor would have the trillum extractor structure in this position. Your capital probably currently has a trillum extractor structure located somewhere else on the Structure tab, automatically producing enough trillum to supply your consumer goods autofac, hexacarbide foundry and Fleet HQ. All these structures produce resources or units that require trillum.
Most structures other than the primary structure work automatically and you can't directly change when they appear or how many WUs are assigned to them. You can directly control how many WUs (as a % of total labor pool) get assigned to defense structures from the Structures tab.
The only Button actions available in the Structures tab is Build
A few structures are manually built. Building structures only takes time, not resources or WUs. Planetary defense structures, habitats and technology programs are manually built. They are discussed in-depth in the "Structures" section further down.
Next tab!
The Production tab lists resources and units being produced and/or consumed on the planet.
Planets use WUs to produce the mineral resources and consumer goods needed to run their primary and defense structures. Ship components, which are also resources, usually can't be produced on the same planet that uses them. Your planets will be more productive if they use trade routes to import resources from other planets. Trade routes can only export the products of the primary structure on the exporting planet. Trade hubs will export any resource that they can import.
The quantities given in the boxes are resources' production, import, export, and use on the planet during the previous watch. Any quantity followed by a numbers in [brackets] indicates a shortage- the planet wanted to consume the bracketed amount but only had the first amount available. Consumer and survival goods shortages create an alert message at the planet where they occur, since they cause social unrest and lead to deaths and civil war. Alerts are buggy in the beta- they aren't marked with the time at which the shortage occurred, and they stack for every watch that a shortage recurs. If there's a shortage when you're not playing, you'll likely have to click though multiple alerts stacked over the same planet.
Resources which could be produced or imported by the planet (through a preexisting trade route) but are not currently needed appear as empty boxes. Resources and units present on the planet but not actively suppliable- that is, resources which can't be produced or imported by the planet- are not listed and can only be seen from the "deploy" option on the overview tab. For example, if you used transports to drop jumpdrives onto a planet that doesn't have a jumpship autofac or jumpship yard, you wouldn't see them on this tab. A planet can't use a resource not listed on the production screen, so (for example) a world without hexacarbide deposits can't build ships unless imports hexacarbide through a trade route from a foundry planet, even if there is a stockpile of hexacarbide on the planet. However, once a trade route is established, any stockpile will always be pulled from before more of the resource starts to get imported or produced.
The Production tab has no options
Next tab!
This is the tab for your planet's primary structure, so its name varies between planets.
For your capital right now, the primary structure is the Fleet HQ.
This tab can also be reached by clicking on the structure in the "Structures" tab. The Fleet HQ produces units- spaceships to attack planets and infantry to capture them. Specifically, it can produce four different kinds of jumpships plus basic infantry. Later on, you can have your capital build different units; this is discussed in the "Doctrines" section.
This tab has no button options
Last tab!
The Empire tab gives info about your empire.
This tab is only on imperial capitals. You can see it for other players by clicking on their capitals (once your explorer fleets have found them). It gives the age of the empire, doctrine, number of planets, total population, and average tech level. It also gives:
Imperial might, a (bad) estimate of an empire's strength given as a % of your own. You always have an IM of 100, so you can only compare your might to other players' by looking at their empire tab. IM is based on population, so an empire with lower IM than you may be much stronger, or a bigger empire much weaker.
If a player tries to invade a planet of another player whose IM is less than about 50% of his/her own, the invader's own planets suffer social unrest and even go into civil war. Attacking other players' fleets can also trigger social unrest (it'll warn you of this when you go to order the attack). You can attack the planets and fleets of empires that are close to your own IM with no penalty, and vice versa. You can attack fleets orbiting worlds you control for no penalty, regardless of IM. You can also fire jumpmissiles at any fleet with no repercussions
Risk of secession is the danger that one of your sector capitals might secede and become the capital of a new AI empire. This won't be an issue until you have sector capitals and a lot of planets.
To the right of these is a list of all the unit types in your empire and how many you have. You can only see this for other players if their capital is within the vision range of one of your planets or fleets for more than one watch.
Button actions available in the Overview tab:
Doctrine changes the units your capital and sector capitals build. Doctrines get their own section later on.
Abdicate dissolves your empire. All your planets go independent and you are ejected from the game.
If you are looking at another players capital, a different button will be visible from this tab:
Message lets you send a message to another player. Messages sent to you appear as alerts on your capital. Once you close a message, you can't retrieve it. You can't send messages to other players until you find their capital, but you can try to talk to them by renaming planets and fleets near them and hoping that they notice.
That's it for the planet tabs. The next sections describe game concepts.
Game Clock
The game clock is at the top of the screen under your empire name. A minute in real-time is a "watch", an hour is a "period", and a day is a "cycle"; that's about an earth year in the game universe. The first number is the number of cycles that the game has been running. New games start at cycle 4021; the original Anacreon game (from 1987) was "Anacreon: Reconstruction 4021".
The next two numbers are a 24-hour clock. The game refreshes every minute, with a few seconds during refresh when interface elements like buttons are unresponsive. During refresh, commands won't go through immediately for things like trade route designation and fleet movement. The length of the refresh period may depend on your empire's size, your computer's processing power, how many other players are active, and the stability and speed of your internet connection.
The size of a world's icon on the map indicates current population, not physical size. Worlds grow and shrink! The maximum population a world can support is highest at Tech Level 5; TL1 and 10 worlds support low populations. Most types of worlds can build habitat improvements at higher TLs to increase the maximum supportable population. Habitable worlds support 11 billion people at TL 8 with all hab structures; hazardous worlds max out at around 8.5 billion people at TL 7. Desert and Empyreal worlds max out around 9 billion at TL 5.
"Habitat" is where in space this planet type will occur. Black square is open space; "N"s are bright and dark nebulas.
Mineral abundances given here are averages for planet type; individual planets vary but will always include the same mineral types as others in their class.
Trillum is usually abundant on desert and fiery worlds; barren, desert, chthonic and underground worlds are the most likely to have abundant hexacarbide. Planets with abundant chronimium are rare. Aetherium is abundant mostly in light nebulas and chtholon mostly in dark nebulas, but both resources appear in both nebula types.
Fully habitable worlds- ocean, underground and earthlike - support the highest max populations. Ocean, earthlike and desert worlds get a 100% bonus to food production (they produce more food for the same amount of WUs). Desert and empyreal worlds are partially habitable- they don't need survival goods but can't build any habitat structures.
All other world types are hazardous: they support lower max populations and must dedicate 5-10% of their labor to building "survival goods" at habitat structures. These worlds support low populations until better habitat structures can be built (the largest, arcologies, are available at TL 7). Survival goods are things like radiation meds and air filters; they can't be exchanged through trade routes. All things being equal, at TLs 5 & 6 a hazardous world will produce less usable labor than a desert or empyreal world, but at TLs 7-10 with all hab structures built it will produce more.
If a worlds goes independent and drops below the TL that was needed to build a hab structure present on it, the hab structure can become "ruins" after a while. Ruins can be rebuilt without having to build the preceding structures.
For extractor planets, try to pick worlds with "abundant" or at least "major" deposits of the resource to be extracted. If you want to reduce reliance on dedicated extractors and trade routes, the same rules apply for building self-supplied autofacs and yards; e.g. for a high-TL jumpship autofac you'd want to pick a world that has at least minor deposits of trillum, hexacarbide and chronimium so that it can get all the resources it needs without spending so much production to do so that there isn't much left over to actually build components.
Worlds pretty much support the same max pop. and produce the same amount of industry as any other worlds of the same type at the same TL. Within each world type, there aren't really "better" and "worse" worlds (aside from resource deposit distribution). Worlds with a high fated TL- the TL they naturally go to when not part of an empire- don't need to be supplied with tech from a foundation or build technology programs.
Labor and Structures
A planet's labor pool is affected by population, TL, and efficiency. If your planet is putting Work Units into multiple structures, the sum total of the WUs assigned to all structures will be less than the maximum amount WUs that the planet could produce if all WUs went to one structure. Two planets building 50% trillum and 50% consumer goods produce less of either resource than if 1 planet was building trillum and the other building CG with the two supplying one another through trade routes. This promotes specialization, rather than leaving every planet self-reliant.
All planets have a primary structure appropriate to their designation. This is the first structure on the left side under the "Structures" tab. All labor left over on a planet after labor has been assigned to defenses and supplying the planet's needs goes to this primary structure.
Structure types:
Extractors, foundries, and processors are all be called extractors in this guide since they do the same thing- convert WUs into mineral resources. The amount of WUs required to generate one unit of a mineral varies depending on the planet's deposit size. Deposits are permanent and never run out.
Labor needed to produce 1 unit of each mineral:
Each unit of hexacarbide also uses 1 unit of trillum. Chronimium uses 2 units of trillum. Chtholon uses 2 units of aetherium.
Extractors appear and disappear automatically depending on need, except on extractor worlds where they're always present as the primary structure. If a planet has 100,000 unitof trillum sitting on it, it won't build a trillum extractor and allocate WUs to it until the supply starts to run low. If you use transports to dump 100,000 units of trillum on your capital, the extractor stops and the WUs are reassigned to the Fleet HQ and other structures, allowing you to spend more WUs per watch building ships. The extractor also stops if you imported 100% of the planet's needed trillum using a trade route to a dedicated trillum extractor planet.
Extractors are only built on planets that have deposits of the appropriate mineral type. You can't do tasks that require hexacarbide, like building ships, on a planet that doesn't have hexacarbide deposits unless you actively import it using a trade route.
Autofacs consume WUs and minerals and produce other resources. All autofacs can perform multiple kinds of production tasks simultaneously by dividing WUs between different tasks. Most autofac types are restricted to planets which are dedicated autofacs; e.g. the infantry autofac structure, which makes components for armored infantry and exotroops, only exists on dedicated infantry autofac planets.
There are two notable exception: the consumer goods autofac can appear on any planet, and Jumpship or starship autofacs may also appear on your capital and sector capitals if you are in an appropriate doctrine (doctrines are discussed later). These autofacs are not built manually but appear or disappear depending on need.
Try clicking on the consumer goods autofac structure on your capital. The consumer goods autofac will always produce 10 units of durable goods for every WU dedicated to this task, and consumes 0.25 units of trillum to do so. It can simultaneously produce organic food and will produce 25 units for every WU dedicated to that, but doesn't consume any resources doing so (food is the only autofac product that doesn't need resources to build, and the only autofac task modified by planet type- earthlike planets like your capital get a 100% bonus to food production and produce 50 units for every WU, as do ocean and desert worlds). You don't directly control the proportion of labor that the autofac assigns to tasks; it allocates WUs based on demand. If there is no demand for anything a dedicated autofac planet can produce, WUs will be divided evenly between everything the autofac can produce.
What an autofac structure can build depends on the planet's tech level. For example, a jumpship autofac can't build the advanced jumpdrive resource unless it is TL 9 or higher. Resources that can't be produced by an autofac because a planet's TL is too low are shown greyed out. High-TL autofacs can make anything a lower-TL autofac makes. This is a major difference between autofacs and yards; yards stop being able to build low-TL units when high-TL units become available.
Yards and academies convert Work Units, minerals, and other resources into units. The "citadel complex" structure on designated citadels also does this. Only one unit type, basic infantry, does not use resources to build (just WUs); all other units require at least one resource.
Yards and academies are always the primary structure on worlds so designated. The primary structures on sector capitals under the "Fire and Movement" and "Strength and Honor" doctrines can build infantry and space units.
As usual, there's an exception. "Autonomous" worlds (which have not been given a designation) have no primary structure but can build basic infantry at a "militia base" structure. This works like a defense structure and labor is manually assigned to it.
Defense structures build stationary units that fire at attacking ships. Most defense units are actually located on the planet's surface rather than in space; some are orbital satellites. Defense units only participate in space battles, not in infantry battles. The kind of defenses that a planet can build depend on the planet's TL and available resources (native and imported); they are listed in a table at the end of this guide. Like other units, defense units undergo attrition and defense structures constantly build new ones. Defense structures are manually built by the player and the % of labor assigned to them can be directly controlled.
Habitat structures increase a planet's max population. On hazardous planets, a basic hab structure will always be present and will use 3-10% of a planet's WU pool (depending on the planet's efficiency and population) to manufacture appropriate survival goods. Hab structures on habitable planets only increase maximum population and don't consume any labor. Hab structures are explained in the "Planets" section.
Tech programs consume WUs to raise planetary TL. They are explained in the "Tech Level" section.
A Starport doubles a planet's maximum trade route range. It does not use WUs or resources. Starports are available at TL 5 and you should build one on every planet.
Planet designations are manually assigned by players and can be changed at any time. Changing designation lowers a planet's efficiency, reducing the labor produced by the planet. Efficiency slowly increases over time, up to 100%. You can only change designations for planets within 250 ly of a capital or sector capital (inside the big white ring).[/color]
There are a lot of planet designations but they fall into four categories (not official, just my interpretation). Designation defines the primary structure on a planet, so designation names overlap with structure names.
- Extractors consume WUs and produce mineral resources, usually consuming other minerals while doing so.
- Autofacs consume WUs and minerals to produce specific kinds of components that are needed to build certain units.
- Consumer goods autofacs are a special case, since consumer goods are needed by planets' populations and one type of consumer goods (food) does not require minerals to build, just WUs.
- Yards and Academiesconsume minerals and WUs and build units. Yards build space units and infantry academies build ground units. Depending on the units being built, components from autofacs may also be required.
- Enhancer planets help your empire to function. Specifically,
- Foundations increase the Tech Level of other worlds, making their citizens more productive (but also making them require more consumer goods) and/or allowing them to build higher-level units. The more WUs a foundation structure is consuming, the more TLs it can uplift. Foundations export TLs using trade routes.
- Sector capitals allow you to expand into other areas of space. They may also build units depending on your empire's doctrine, consuming WUs, minerals and components to do so. Under some doctrines they can make their own ship components.
- Any world of TL 5 or higher can be designated a Sector Capital. Sector capitals retain their fated TL unless this is improved with a foundation or program.
- Sector capitals produce the same unit types as your main capital. If your empire's doctrine is Trade and Enterprise, they act as trade hubs instead.
- You can capture planets outside the 250 light year control radius of your capital, but you can't give them orders, assign trade routes or redesignate them until they are inside the control radius of an active sector capital. About 36 hours after a sector capital is designated, planets within a 250 light year radius of the new sector capital become controllable. You can see the progress towards activation from the newly designated sector capital's overview tab.
- If one of your sector capitals is captured by another player, some of the worlds near it will defect to the other player, along with all the units stationed on them!
- If your capital is captured by another player, one of your sector capitals becomes the new capital.
- If you don't have any sector capitals when your capital is captured, your empire will be totally destroyed. All of your remaining worlds will become independent and you will be kicked out of the game. You can only rejoin as a new empire.
- Trade hubs make it easier to exchange resources between planets, making them more productive. The trade hub structure doesn't consume WUs, so it's possible to assign very high labor %s to defense structures on hubs.
- Citadels use WUs, minerals and light jumpdrive components to build jumpmissiles that can attack fleets moving through your territory; they also use WUs to build basic infantry.
Some designations require a certain TL and their primary structure stops working if their TL drops below this level. There is a full list of designations in the Tables section.
Trade Routes
Check the FAQ.
Tech Level
Higher tech level, or TL, means each citizen generates more WUs and consumes more consumer goods. Some designations are only available at higher TLs and autofacs/yards/academies produce different resources or ships depending on their TL.
Planets have a "fated" TL that they will increase or decrease to on their own if they're independent. You capital's fated TL is 7, biotech. If you invade an independent planet with a TL below 5 it will increase to TL 5 in under an hour once you've given it a designation. Planets with fated TLs above 5 will remain at their tech level unless they suffer consumer or survival goods shortages; TL drops caused by shortages reverse automatically when the shortages end.
If (for example) you want to designate a planet as a hexacarbide extractor (requires TL 4) but it's only TL 2, you can designate it as a consumer goods autofac (available at any TL) else and wait for TL to rise high enough to redesignate it. Most designations are available at TL5, but you will want higher TL planets as your empire gets bigger for increased production.
You can manually raise planets' TL above TL 5. The simplest way is to build a technology program that raises a planet above its fated TL. Programs consume a flat 5% of a planet's WUs per TL raised, but can result in a net increase in WU production (there are a lot of factors but it's too boring to go into.) Your capital can be raised up to 3 levels with program, up to TL 10, post-industrial. All other planets can only use programs to go up to TL 7. Worlds with fated TLs of 7 or above can't build programs. If you capture planets from another empire, the planets will retain any programs built on them. The tech level of a planet raised above fated TL with programs or just through being in an empire (which brings planets up to TL 5) is the "native TL".
You can also raise tech level by importing TLs from a world with the "Foundation" designation. Foundations automatically go up in TL to match your capital's current TL (if their fated TL is higher, they will remain at this TL, but they will not raise planets above the capital's TL.) A planet's TL is raised by establishing a trade route that imports TLs from the foundation. Foundation TLs raise planets above their native TL. You can change the TL that the world is being uplifted to by clicking on the trade route. TLs added by uplifts don't consume WUs on the planet being uplifted, so can be a better option than programs for maximizing production. One foundation can supply up to ~200 TLs! If your foundation gets captured, the planets it supplied will begin to regress to their native TLs. If the supply of consumer goods to a foundation gets cut off, it won't be able to produce as many TLs since it will have to dedicate WUs to provide for its own people.
Social Order
You only need to really start worrying about social order when a planet's social order is "rebelling". Rebelling planets have an (undetermined) chance to go into civil war. Civil war trashes efficiency, resulting in reduced WU production. A portion of your infantry on the planet become rebel forces and the world will likely declare independence after about 24 hours if you don't drop a bunch of infantry on it to restore order. If the civilian population continues to die during the war (from resource shortages, etc) the world may declare independence even sooner. Planets that go independent retain all infantry, ships and defenses; don't let your shipyards and academies lose civil wars!
A planet's social order gradually increases by default.
A planet's social order periodically decreases by a small amount:- when the planet's TL is much higher or much lower than the capital.
- when the space forces level of the planet is below a certain (unknown) number.
- right after you conquer it from another player. Being conquered also damages planets' efficiency.
- any time there's a shortage of consumer goods. This happens most often when TL goes up from TL3 to TL4 or from TL6 to TL7, as citizens start to demand durable goods at TL 4 and luxury goods at TL7. The planet will start making these (or begin to import them) once the TL changes but there will not be enough to meet demand for a few periods unless you put them there with transports beforehand. Disorder from TL changes usually isn't enough to lead to civil war unless the planet was also recently conquered.
- when the planet doesn't have enough organic food or survival goods (see the "I conquered a planet, why did it go into civil war so quickly?" section of the FAQ for more.) Mass deaths also hurt efficiency. Don't feel bad, though: even in the best-run empires billions occasionally die from starvation, asphyxiation or radiation poisoning. Hey, space is a tough place where wimps eat flaming plasma death.
- when you capture a planet from a player with higher imperial might than you and who has attacked you before.
- when you attack a planet belonging to a much weaker player. The other player's imperial might (displayed in the "Empire" tab when you click on their capital and in the box that appears when you order an attack) must be around 50 or lower to trigger this. Imperial might of other players is always given as a percentage of your own. There can also be a penalty for attacking fleets that aren't orbiting your planets. The penalty is assessed per attack, so taking one planet from a weaker player causes less disorder than taking all their planets. Social disorder from attacking weaker players may scale depending on the might difference between the two empires; I'm not sure. Disorder won't be caused by attacking the worlds of a player that previously attacked you, even if they're much weaker.
Units are ships, infantry or planetary defenses. All units continually undergo attrition (so do most resources). This means that any fleet, collection of infantry or set of defense structures will gradually shrink over time. Starfrigates and starcruiser have lower attrition than other units. The only solution to attrition is to make sure that your yards and infantry academies are constantly building more units. Fortunately, they do so automatically as long as they're supplied with resources. Planetary defenses work the same way- they are subject to attrition, but more always get built as long as you have labor assigned to the relevant structure and resources flowing in.
It's easy to tell which worlds belonging to other players are generating combat units by zooming out on the maps screen: yards, academies, capitals, citadels and trade hubs are light red or grey, while extractors and autofacs are dark red or grey. When zoomed out to the level where only some planet names are visible, unit-producing worlds (and hubs) are shown with names while other world types do not have names.
The #1 rule in combat is that fleets with much stronger space forces ratings than the opposing force usually win with far fewer casualties than they would take if the odds were close. The same is true for fleets with a really gigantic numerical advantage of units, if space forces are close. (The #2 rule is that ships and defense with longer range tend to be disproportionately better than ships with shorter range.)
There are three propulsion types: Jumpship, Starship and Ramjet. Ships are built on yards planets. Jumpships and Starships can also be built at capitals and sector capitals under certain doctrines. Players start with the Fire and Movement doctrine; in F&M, capitals build jumpships. There are multiple ship roles. Each ship role (e.g. jumpcruiser) has a low-tech and a high-tech class version (e.g. for jumpcruisers, the low-tech Adamant-class and the high-tech Undine-class). High-tech classes require more resources to build and are only built on high-tech worlds. For specific details about individual ship classes, refer to the tables at the start of this guide.
Jumpships are fast and individually very weak. The basic combat jumpship role name is also "jumpship". To reduce confusion, I call those "basic jumpships"to distinguish them from the other jumpship roles. High-tech jumpships are 50% faster than low-tech jumpships, and explorers are faster than all other jumpships.- Explorers are cheap ships for reconnaissance and exploration; they are individually weak. They have better sensors than other ship classes, allowing you to map territory, reveal planetary defenses and see enemy fleets moving around. Use them in fleets of more than 100 to maximize scanning radius. Explorers have the highest delta-v in the game: they move between orbits faster than other ships. Advanced combat strategies use a mixture of explorers and stronger ships to defeat starfrigates.
- (Basic) jumpships are individually weak, fast general combat ships that are protected against missiles (both ships with missiles and missile defenses). They have weak armor and have armed with short- to medium-range cannons. They are most vulnerable to other ships with cannons and to cannon-type planetary defenses. The TL 9 Eldritch jumpship is the most popular ship in the game because it has decent range, speed, cost and attack strength. Missile protection is very effective and fleets of basic jumpships are nearly immune to missiles as long they outnumber their enemy by at least 2:1 or so (more for hypersonic missiles). Basic jumpships are great early on for conquering planets that only have missile-type defenses.
- Jumptransports are fast ships that carry troops and resources. Jumptransports are the only transports in the game; there are no starship or ramjet equivalents. Jumptransports are vulnerable to other ships and planetary defenses, so you will want to bring combat ships with your transports when you invade unless the other planet is undefended. Transports don't participate in planetary defense (although they count as space forces) and get captured when a planet is taken. Transports stay in high orbit when invading until planetary defenses are destroyed, but they can still be attacked by defending ships, hypersonic missiles, and satellites. Send loaded transports to planets only after an attack fleet has destroyed all defenses, unless the planet is only protected by cannons and/or GDMs.
- Jumpcruisers are fast attack ships with medium-range missiles. They are useful against cannon-type defenses and starships, but most of the time you're better off building Eldritches. They aren't much better armored than jumpships, but their strong attack makes them better against gunships and cannon-type planetary defenses. Jumpcruisers' missiles do a lot more damage than jumpship cannons (when they hit), and can defeat missile-protected starfrigates if they outnumber them by at least 10:1 or so (they have to be able to launch enough missiles to saturate the starfrigates' missile protection.) Jumpcruisers are very vulnerable to big fleets of basic jumpships, which are cheaper and nearly immune to their missiles.
- Gunships are medium-speed combat ships that don't need any components. They have short- to medium-range cannons and better armor than jumpships or jumpcruisers. They're a little cheaper to build on a 1:1 basis than jumpcruisers. They're much faster than capital ships, but way slower than jumpships. Gunships are vulnerable to planetary defenses since their weapons are short-ranged and they don't have missile protection, but they have higher delta-v than jumpships or jumpcruisers and get into firing range sooner.
- Starfrigates are powerful and very slow. Building 1 Starfrigate uses about the same WUs and resources as 12 gunships of the same tech tier (but gunships have higher attrition). They're very strong against planetary defenses; Starfrigate cannons outrange all cannon-based defenses and they intercept missiles. They're also great against jumpships; field reports indicate that TL9 Gorgos fleets win with 5-10% losses against Eldritches when outnumbered 33:1, and that it takes at least 45:1 ratio for Eldritches to beat Gorgos with acceptable losses. Starfrigate fleets take hours to move between planets, so if you use them offensively other players are likely see them coming and have time to reinforce or fire jumpmissiles.
- Starcruisers seem to be designed to counter gunships, but suck. They have the most powerful attack and armor in the game, but they are very costly to build, use interceptable missiles, and share starfrigates' glacial speed. The TL 10 Megathere has missile protection but it can't easily be assembled into fleets big enough to achieve full protection.
For a roughly equal investment of resources and WUs:- Basic jumpships will beat jumpcruisers, gunships beat basic jumpships and jumpcruisers, starfrigates beat everything. Explorers can decrease the casualties that other ship classes in a fleet take by acting as cannon fodder without costing very much. Starcruisers suck.
- Jumpcruisers are pretty strong against cannon-type planetary defenses. Basic jumpships are very strong against missile-type planetary defenses. Gunships are vulnerable to planetary defenses, and starfrigates are very strong against all defenses. Starcruisers suck.
- Jumpships need more supporting autofac planets per yard to build than starships. Explorers and gunships don't need supporting autofacs to build.
- Ramjet fleets perform worse than equivalent starships in most kinds of combat, but don't need chronimium or much trillum to build. The TL9 Cyclops starfrigate is the best ramjet since it has Range:20. Ramjets can be purchased at Mesophon worlds, which lets players materialize fleets out of thin air (thin vacuum?).
- High-tech ships' total cost to produce in WUs (including minerals and components) is more affected by mineral abundance than low-tech ships because minerals form a greater proportion of their total WU costs.
- Planetary defenses are better than ships for defending a small empire but aren't a great investment for really large empires because they can't protect planets effectively against attacks by other really large empires. They can serve as a force multiplier for defending ships, especially hypersonic missiles (which have a long attack range).
- In wars between empires of similar strength, the empire that attacks first can usually win by destroying the enemy's ability to retaliate. Jumpships are way too good at blitzkrieging.
Ground combat is simple. Infantry capture planets, defend against invasions, and fight civil wars. Ships can't attack infantry and vice versa. Imperial guards, built under the "Law and Order" doctrine, never defect to rebels during civil wars and might deter sector capitals from seceding. Basic infantry and imperial guards only need WUs to build; armored infantry and exotroops need special resources built at infantry autofac planets. Infantry combat is simpler than space combat and generally speaking in an invasion the stronger infantry force usually wins but the defender gets a slight advantage. The original Anacreon had defense bonuses for different planet types but I don't think that's still true.
Basic infantry seem unable to harm exotroops directly in combat, although they may be able to force exotroops to surrender faster if they are combined with other infantry types. More testing is needed. Imperial Guards and Armored infantry fight exotroops OK.
Warphant transports are tougher and have higher delta-v (movement speed between orbitals) than Reliants. Never use a mix of Reliants and Warphants in an attack; your troops won't all land at the same time and your attack is less likely to succeed. Keep all your invading transports in one fleet.
Battles only last a few watches after transports land. Once the defenders start losing and are sufficiently outnumbered, the planet is captured. The surviving defender infantry surrender and can be used by the invader. If the attackers are way stronger, surrender comes faster- an attacker can end a battle with more soldiers than they started with! If the attacker's transports landed while enemy planetary defenses and/or ships were still alive, remaining defenses and ships will get captured. This includes fleets that entered the system while the transports were landing or during ground combat- even really strong ones.
If invaders lose the battle, all their soldiers on the ground die. The invader's transports don't get captured.
Your empire's doctrine determines what units are produced at your capital and sector capitals, plus a few other things. Change doctrines by clicking your capital and selecting the "Empire" tab.
Fire and Movement is the default doctrine. The capital and sector capitals build jumpships and jumpship components, serving as a combined jumpyard and jumpship autofac. Capitals can build more jumpships if they import jumpship components from a separate autofac world. They also build basic infantry. Early expansion by conquering independent worlds is easiest with jumpfleets since they move fast, so Fire and Movement is worth remaining in for a long time until your empire is well established.
Strength and Honor is unpopular. The capital and sector capitals produce starships, starship components, and basic infantry. Starships are stronger than jumpships for the resource cost (with some caveats) but move much slower. Capital starships (starfrigates and starcruisers) have lower attrition than jumpships. Don't build starcruisers. The advantage of S&H might that even if you only play Anacreon occasionally, your capital and sector capitals will maintain strong fleets defending them. Starfrigates are the strongest planetary defense. S&H players don't have to worry about losing starship yards and their powerful fleets to defection when sector capitals are captured because their starship yards are their sector capitals. You can't select S&H if your capital is in a nebula- nebular planets can't build starships. If you switch to S&H before you have a dedicated jumpship yard and jumpship autofac planet, attrition will cause you will run out of transports after a while and you won't be able to conquer new planets unless you buy transports from Mesophon.
Law and Order is for big empires. In L&O, the capital and all sector capitals produce nothing but imperial guard infantry units. The presence of imperial guards deters sector capitals from seceding. Empires in other doctrines >100 worlds and >2 sector capitals will sometimes have a sector capital secede, taking some nearby planets with it. Seceded sector capitals turn into an AI "empires" that look like human players but won't deploy fleets, conquer worlds or establish new trade routes. AI empires have names like "Old Order of <Your Empire's Name>" or "<Sector Capital Name> Society". Guards never defect to rebels if a civil war starts, so they win civil wars automatically so long as no other infantry were on the planet when the civil war starts. Guards are stronger than basic infantry and weaker than armored infantry. Once your "secession risk" (shown under the Empire tab) is "Elevated" or higher, you basically have to switch to L&O or your empire will fall apart.
Trade and Enterprise is pretty bad. Your capital and sector capitals act as trade hubs and don't build any units (they can still build defenses, though.) This means you don't have to maintain as many (or even any) separate trade hubs, which reduces the number of critical planets that you need to keep heavily defended. T&E empires can trade resources- but not to other players. There is an AI empire called "Mesophon Traders" with planets all over the galaxy. T&E empires can make a trade route between a capital or sector capital and a Mesophon world and sell resources to Mesophon in exchange for a currency called "aes". A trade route to a Mesophon world is like a normal trade route but you can specify exactly how much of each resource you want to send to Mesophon each watch. You can't import from Mesophon worlds.
Players in doctrines other than T&E can still sell resources to Mesophon by manually moving cargo in transport fleets to Mesophon worlds. Mesophon also buys ships. Aes can be used to buy ships at any Mesophon world orbited by one of your fleets, allowing you to summon fleets out of thin air when they are needed.
Trade with Mesophon is not great:
- Mesophon only sells transports and capital ramjets (probably a bug).
- Ships can only be bought in fleets of 1000. It's frustrating to assemble a useful-sized fleet of ships by buying them.
- Mesophon planets are poorly defended. If your empire relies on trading with Mesophon, another player can swoop in and conquer the Mesophon world and you're S.O.L. There's no way to order your own fleets to protect an AI world aside from selling them to Mesophon, and Mesophon won't pay very well (or at all) for them.
- Mesophon only pays aes for minerals, consumer goods, jumpdrives, infantry components, ramjet components, and the same types of ships they sell.


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How to Escape Lucifer's Afterlife Trap
by Wes Penre
Contributing Writer, In5D.com
Excerpt from Level Four Paper Fifteen
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I can understand if it may sound scary to choose not to go to the Light because many of us are afraid of the unknown. Whereas, the Light feels "safe" because we've gone there so many times, and "everybody else" who went there seems to have done just fine. However, remember that you are being multidimensional every single night you go to sleep and dream. This is a taste of what is awaiting after we die—except, after we die, we are in charge of our "dreams" and can create consciously what we create unconsciously during REM sleep.
However, this only gives a partial picture, so let's get a little bit more into detail about what I have learned recently on the details about escaping the AIF Afterlife Trap once and for all.
Those who have come to the point in their awareness level that they are reading this don't have to worry about getting "stuck" in the ether and become a "lost soul." The reader of this material is far beyond that because you know too much. Instead, when you die, you will most probably be approached by your guide of guides as usual, and he or she wants to help you "cross over," and if you allow this, it will lead you through the Tunnel. In some cases, there are no guides in the beginning, and the Tunnel will open up in front of you, but at a distance. Normally, souls feel the attraction and gravitation from the Tunnel and start moving toward it, consciously or unconsciously—like a leaf being sucked in by a vacuum cleaner.
Here, I believe, it's a good idea to put up a list, in order to easier absorb the information I'm about to give you.
- Instead of letting yourself be "hypnotized" by its attraction, turn and look in the opposite direction (you will have 360° vision, and you can still concentrate on looking in a certain direction) and move away from the Tunnel (you do this by "thinking" yourself as moving—it's all about thoughts and intention in this dimension). Remember, you, as a soul of Fire, are far stronger than the centrifugal force that pulls you toward the Tunnel. Don't try to fight it—that's not the way to do it. Instead, think yourself away from it! The Tunnel with the Light on the other side of it is a sophisticated hologram, and all you need to do is to think yourself in another direction, and the Tunnel will fade away.
- Soon you will see the Grid as a fuzzy "barrier" in front of you, or above you (there are no ups and downs or left and right in space). You will also see that it has holes in it—like a Swiss cheese. Move through one of these holes.
- You will now see the Universe the way it is, i.e. you will now be truly interdimensional. This means you will see a much larger universe than you are used to. This is possible because you are outside the Grid, and you're not in a programmed body—you are meeting the Universe as a pure spirit of Fires with an Avatar, which is your mind. When astronauts are allowed outside the Grid, they are still restricted by their bodies and will remain in 3-D, but on a slightly higher vibration because the Earth is tilted and the Grid is no longer doing its work on these astronauts.What you experience outside the Grid, as a discarnate spirit, can be quite overwhelming and impressive. Probably for the first time, you see the Universe as it really is, with the KHAA and everything. When you read this, you are still limited with your five senses, but a good idea is to prepare yourself mentally for what is out there. It's not at all going to be a negative experience, just very different! You will also see the Space War that is going on in the solar system, and you will notice the soldiers fighting in other dimensions, which you now are going to have access to. In order to prepare, a recommended reading is my free e-book, "Beyond 2012—a Handbook for the New Era." There are of course other materials that you can use as well—these papers will also do the job.
- As a Fire riding an Avatar, you are now free to go more or less anywhere in the Universe. I talked earlier about "Universities"—that certain star systems work as universities do here on Earth. You may go there and explore what they have to offer, to see if it interests you, but the more appropriate or easier way would be to first know what you want to do or what you want to learn. Let's say you want to learn about how to build interdimensional space crafts. Then you think yourself to a university that teaches that, and you will nanotravel there as fast as you think it. As I see it, you need to concentrate on that thought, so it becomes dominant over your other thoughts at that moment—that's all you need to do.I have talked to a few humans who are able to nanotravel—one of them gained the ability after a serious car accident. He said that we have nothing to worry about—once we're free from our bodies, we know automatically how to do this. In the beginning, not only will we be stunned but also impressed. We will think it's fun and probably want to play around with it. The fear and anxiety we may have while in our bodies are gone once we enter the spirit world.Once you're at a university, you will meet with star beings who will ask you what you wish to do. If your aura and your chakras are open like a book, they will already know because you communicate telepathically, but if it's closed—either because of fear, or intentionally, to protect your thoughts—they will not know. Once they are told, they will advise you whether you qualify or not. If you don't, you can ask them where you should go first to eventually qualify for their dimension of learning.If you want to go to Orion, you think yourself there and you will stand before the "Gates of the Orion Empire," and a similar procedure will take place. You may want to tell them that you are a human soul, and you may most likely qualify to get into the higher dimensions of the KHAA, but once "inside," you will find out which University level you qualify for, depending on your current knowledge as a spirit, what you want to do, and your personality.
- You may instead just want to travel around in the Universe as a Soul/Avatar and explore before you decide to find a new "home." You will notice that you can think yourself anywhere and you will get there, but also you can create your own environment as you wish—similar to what Q did in Star Trek. You may want to have fun with that for a while, too, before you do anything else. Remember that you can't really get lost because if you don't know where you are, you can think yourself to be anywhere—even back in the solar system, if you wish.
- You will most certainly also meet with other beings as you think yourself away. You can tell them you're not interested (in a polite manner), or you can join them. First, however, feel out their energies and trust your intuition! If you are still uncertain, ask where they come from and why they want your company. Always shield yourself with a golden aura by thinking it up around yourself, and make sure not to have any holes in it. You will find out for yourself that it works!Remember that just because your creators happen to be Orions, it doesn't mean you have to go there if you don't want to. No one will hold that against you, and you can always go there later, whenever you want to. You may even choose to join a group of beings you like and co-create an interdimensional reality—either in space, on a planet, in a star, or in a nebula. The options are endless, only limited by your own creativity. You will notice that the Universe bends to your will, thoughts, and intentions.
Any of this sounds much better than to be recycled into slavery again, doesn't it? We have the Fire of the Mother Goddess, so we are privileged that way –more so than other star races out there. Those out there who have access to the KHAA (just like you will) can also create without technology, but as a human soul, you automatically have access to the KHAA and to the Orion Empire, unless you've done things that are excessively harmful to the Empire, your fellow man, or other star races. Other star races will have to "earn" their way into Orion, while you can come in without any prerequisites, except for the ones I just mentioned.
What you do miss out on (perhaps only temporary, but still) is the loss of your human body, in case you decide not to reincarnate on Earth again. In an upcoming paper, I will discuss more about the incredible vessel we call the human body, what it is capable of, and what it can do for you as a Fire/Avatar. Once that is explained and you want to continue going back to Earth in the next incarnation to inhabit one of these vessels again—this time with a higher level of knowledge—you can. You don't have to go into the Tunnel in order to do that. You can reincarnate on Gaia without "help" from the AIF, but you would still have amnesia. However, you would operate on a higher level here on Earth than you've done so far, and with time, you will expand your awareness and your consciousness even more. If you choose this path, you will help rebuilding the Library, and the reward will be a body I will be talking about later. The choice is yours, and there is no right or wrong choices here—it's entirely up to you. The only thing I advise everybody to do is to avoid the Tunnel and the Light!
Read more from Wes Penre at www.wespenre.com
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subset: commoncrawl


text: The Department of English is dedicated to promoting an understanding and appreciation of the ways in which men and women have represented their worlds, real or imagined, in literature. As a lively community of teaching scholars, we are committed to engaging our students in the richness and variety of English poetry, drama and prose fiction, from the canon of traditional English literature to marginalized, avant-garde and experimental literary works. The diversity of our program encourages students to explore the aesthetic, rhetorical, historical, philosophical, cultural and ideological dimensions of English literature, to discover the power of literary art.


text:
WIRE)–By harnessing quantum dots-tiny light-emitting semiconductor
particles a few billionths of a meter across-researchers at the University of Washington
(UW) have developed a new and vastly more targeted way to stimulate neurons in
the brain. Being able to switch neurons on and off and monitor how they
communicate with one another is crucial for understanding-and, ultimately,
treating-a host of brain disorders, including Parkinsons disease, Alzheimers,
and even psychiatric disorders such as severe depression. The research was
published today in the Optical Societys (OSA) open-access journal Biomedical Optics Express.
Doctors and researchers today commonly use electrodes-on the
scalp or implanted within the brain-to deliver zaps of electricity to stimulate
cells. Unfortunately, these electrodes activate huge swaths of neural
territory, made up of thousands or even millions of cells, of many different
types. That makes it impossible to tease out the behavior of any given cell, or
even of particular cell types, to understand cellular communication and how it
contributes to the disease process.
Ideally, nerve cells would be activated in a non-invasive
way that is also highly targeted. A promising method for doing this is
photostimulation-essentially, controlling cells with light. Recently, for
example, a team of Stanford University researchers altered mammalian nerve
cells to carry light-sensitive proteins from single-celled algae, allowing the
scientists to rapidly flip the cells on and off, just with flashes of light.
The problem with this process, however, is that the light-controlled cells must
be genetically altered to perform their parlor trick.
An alternative, says the UW team, led by electrical engineer
Lih Y. Lin and biophysicist Fred Rieke, is to use quantum dots-tiny
semiconductor particles, just a few billionths of a meter across, that confine
electrons within three spatial dimensions. When these otherwise trapped
electrons are excited by electricity, they emit light, but at very precise
wavelengths, determined both by the size of the quantum dot and the material
from which it is made. Because of this specificity, quantum dots are being
explored for a variety of applications, including in lasers, optical displays,
solar cells, light-emitting diodes, and even medical imaging devices.
In the paper published today, Lin, Rieke and colleagues have
extended the use of quantum dots to the targeted activation of cells. In
laboratory experiments, the researchers cultured cells on quantum dot films, so
that the cell membranes were in close proximity to the quantum-dot coated
surfaces. The electrical behavior of individual cells was then measured as the
cells were exposed to flashes of light of various wavelengths; the light
excited electrons within the quantum dots, generating electrical fields that
triggered spiking in the cells.
"We tried prostate cancer cells first because a colleague
happened to have the cell line and experience with them, and they are
resilient, which is an advantage for culturing on the quantum dot films," Lin
says. "But eventually we want to use this technology to study the behavior of
neurons, so we switched to cortical neurons after the initial success with the
cancer cells."
The experiments, says Lin, show that "it is possible to
excite neurons and other cells and control their activities remotely using
light. This non-invasive method can provide flexibility in probing and
controlling cells at different locations while minimizing undesirable effects."
"Many brain disorders are caused by imbalanced neural
activity," Rieke adds, and so "techniques that allow manipulation of the
activity of specific types of neurons could permit restoration of
normal-balanced-activity levels"-including the restoration of function in
retinas that have been compromised by various diseases. "The technique we
describe provides an alternative tool for exciting neurons in a spatially and
temporally controllable manner. This could aid both in understanding the normal
activity patterns in neural circuits, by introducing perturbations and
monitoring their effect, and how such manipulations could restore normal
circuit activity."
So far, the technique has only been applied to cells
cultured outside the body; to gain insight into disease processes and be
clinically useful, it would need to be performed within living tissue. To do
so, Lin says, "we need to modify the surface of the quantum dots so that they
can target specific cells when injected into live animals." The dots also need
to be non-toxic, unlike those used in the Biomedical Optics Express report,
which often had detrimental effects on the cells to which they were attached.
"One solution would be developing non-toxic quantum dots using silicon," Lin
In addition to Lin and Rieke, the other coauthors on the
paper are UW graduate student Katherine Lugo and former graduate student Xiaoyu
Paper: "Remote switching of cellular activity and cell signaling using
light in conjunction with quantum dots," Biomedical Optics Express, Vol. 3,
Issue 3, pp. 447-454 (2012).
About Biomedical Optics Express
Biomedical Optics Express is OSAs principal outlet for serving the biomedical
optics community with rapid, open-access, peer-reviewed papers related to
optics, photonics and imaging in the life sciences. The journal scope
encompasses theoretical modeling and simulations, technology development, and
biomedical studies and clinical applications. It is published by the Optical
Society and edited by Joseph A. Izatt of Duke University.
Biomedical Optics Express is an open-access journal and is available at no cost
to readers online at http://www.OpticsInfoBase.org/BOE.
About OSA
Uniting more than 130,000 professionals from 175 countries, the Optical Society
(OSA) brings together the global optics community through its programs and
initiatives. Since 1916 OSA has worked to advance the common interests of the
field, providing educational resources to the scientists, engineers and
business leaders who work in the field by promoting the science of light and
the advanced technologies made possible by optics and photonics. OSA
publications, events, technical groups and programs foster optics knowledge and
scientific collaboration among all those with an interest in optics and
photonics. For more information, visit www.osa.org.


text:
"About 120 protesters outside Mullingar station Ming Flanagan, Maura Harrington, etc. Supporting McCabe. M" - Ex-Garda Commissioner Callinan
"You can judge a man by his friends" Brian Purcell - SG of Dept of Justice
"Some shower Brian" Callinan
Madam, - Soon the Irish electorate will have a choice between two (or perhaps more) alternatives. As a lifelong Labour supporter I personally baulk at the prospect of voting Enda Kenny et al into Government Buildings, but I have finally been swayed by the joint economic programme for Government published by the two main Opposition parties which at last provides a real alternative to the current tired administration. Fianna Fáil has no intrinsic ideology of its own any more, save the imperative of power at all costs. Its policies have been mostly skewed in favour of the builders, developers and propertied classes who have dug up most of Ireland and "dug out" public representatives in financial difficulties. Fianna Fáil takes its identity and ideology from whoever its coalition partners happen to be. With the PDs it's a Thatcherite agenda, with Labour a vaguely centre-left pose. With Sinn Féin it would be a tad more Republican. With the Greens no doubt it would re-cycle itself accordingly. For the past 10 years this country has been governed by a PD-led government, with monetarism the "meat in the sandwich". That party can take some credit for its clout in government but none for its baleful, toxic influence on our society as implemented by its Ministers for injustice, inequality and ill health. The people of Ireland would never have willingly voted for Thatcherism. This Government has widened the gap between rich and poor, failed the marginalised and vulnerable, emasculated the trade union movement through so-called "partnership" and fostered a culture where those on higher, SSIA-bloated incomes are only the biggest pigs who get the most swill from the trough. In this two-finger culture the devil takes the hindmost. This government has sold off the roofs of State offices to the mobile phone industry, oblivious of the health and safety of public sector workers. It has flogged our oil and gas to Shell, Statoil and Exxon Mobil while Irish consumers pay exorbitant rates in their utility bills. It has sold the Hill of Tara, our equivalent of the Valley of the Kings, to vested interests. It is only short of hawking hats and scarves to its wealthy friends on corporate street corners and erecting a hot dog stand to boot. Do the people of Ireland really want to re-elect such a crowd of chancers as "Del Boy" Ahern and the rest of his Trotters? Only two things have grown consistently in Ireland in the last decade - property prices and suicides. - Yours, etc, DAVID FAY, Leix Road, Dublin 7.


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Teaching in the Field Across the Geoscience Curriculum
Achieving Program-Level Learning Outcomes
For students to master a sophisticated skill, set of skills, or habit of mind, it needs to be incorporated into multiple courses in the core curriculum. The matrix approach to curriculum design, developed by the Geology departments at the College of William and Mary and at Carleton College, is a simple strategy departments can use to see which program-level outcomes are taught, reviewed, and emphasized in each course in a curriculum.
If your department chooses a set of field skills you expect your graduates to master by the time they complete their major, every field experience offers an opportunity to practice those skills. For example, the St. Norbert College Geology program focuses on teaching students to make observations, to separate observations from interpretations, and to take excellent, detailed notes with annotated sketches.
Examples of Infusing Field Experiences into Core Courses
Field experiences can take a wide variety of forms, from brief excursions out of the classroom to explore campus building stones to teaching entire courses in the field. A number of workshop participants and leaders have explored aspects of teaching in the field in various parts of the core geoscience curriculum. The pages below link to presentations, activities, essays and other resources related to field instruction in particular courses.
- Environmental Geology in the Field
- Geomorphology in the Field
- Geophysics in the Field
- Hydrogeology in the Field
- Paleontology in the Field
- Petrology in the Field
- Sedimentology in the Field
- Structural Geology in the Field
Field Experiences Beyond the Curriculum
Beyond incorporating field experiences into specific courses, there are also opportunities for learning in the field outside of the curriculum. A few departments take annual field trips that are not associated with any particular course, in addition to course-related trips. These trips may be open to all majors and minors, or to all students enrolled in geoscience courses. In some cases, they are run by a student organization (Geology Club), with the assistance of a faculty advisor.
- Carleton College's Geology in New Zealand Program
- St. Norbert College Geology Field Trips - In-class trips, one-week spring break trips, and four-week winter break trips


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Kawasaki and Honda have announced new 2013 model motocross machines, and the flagship of each brand, the Kawasaki KX 450F and the Honda CRF450R, each receive a new Kayaba, pneumatic front fork. The photo below is from Honda, and it illustrates the design of the new fork versus the prior Honda version. Notably missing is the heavy fork spring, and both Kawasaki and Honda claim the new fork is approximately 1.7 pounds lighter than the previous model. The new fork on each model is supposed to be easier to tune, and offer less friction for a smoother travel. This contributes to overall weight losses for both bikes for 2013.
Both the Honda and the Kawasaki 450s received engine changes, with the Honda getting an all new frame, as well. Revisions were made to the Kawasaki KX250F and the Honda CRF250R, as well, although they do not receive the air fork. Take a look at the Honda and Kawasaki websites for additional details and specifications.


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WEDNESDAY, July 29, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- More than a decade of research has shown that the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine protects against a host of cancers, yet a new study finds that only half of American teens complete the multiple-shot regimen.
Why? Researchers discovered that many parents still harbor safety concerns about the vaccine, even though it guards against 90% of all cervical and anal cancers.
Using data from the 2017-2018 National Immunization Survey, researchers analyzed responses from parents or caregivers of more than 82,000 U.S. teens.
"We wanted to understand the dynamics of HPV vaccination, and why HPV vaccine rates are suboptimal despite the vaccine being in the market for over 10 years now," explained study author Kalyani Sonawane, an assistant professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.
Sonawane and her team concluded that 7.7 million U.S. teens were not vaccinated against HPV in 2018.
The survey responses also revealed that more than half of the parents with unvaccinated teens had no intention of vaccinating them in the future.
"Among those who do not want to vaccinate against HPV, safety emerged as a main concern," Sonawane said. "A lot of parents of these teenagers who had received zero doses said that the main reason they do not wish to vaccinate their child is because they have safety concerns about the vaccine."
It is likely that the anti-vaccination movement is contributing to parent hesitancy about the HPV vaccine, according to the researchers.
They also compared the responses between different states, finding that states with the lowest rates of HPV vaccinations, such as Mississippi and Wyoming, also had high parental hesitancy rates.
Sonawane noted that these states could face a high burden of HPV-linked cancers in the future.
The HPV vaccine is a two-dose or three-dose series, depending on when a patient receives the first dose.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends two doses of the vaccine if the first dose is given before age 15, or three doses if the series is started between ages 16 and 26.
The second dose is recommended six months to a year after the first, and only the full series ensures protection.
The researchers estimated that 2.2 million teens in the United States have only received a partial HPV vaccination.
Of those teens who only received the first dose of the vaccine, 1 in 4 parents said they did not intend to complete the series.
Many of these parents said their teens didn't get the second dose because their health care providers didn't reach out to them, the researchers found.
"The main reason that emerged among these parents was that they never received a recommendation for their teen," explained Sonawane. "A lot of times the patients or the provider fail to follow up with the teens and say, 'Hey, you need the second dose or third dose to complete the HPV vaccine series and to have enough immunity to prevent HPV infection in the future.'"
Previous research has shown that a provider recommendation is the most reliable way to ensure vaccination, but this study revealed that it might not be enough.
A full 6 of 10 parents with an unvaccinated teen who had received a recommendation from their provider said they still would not vaccinate. The most common reason was worries about the vaccine's safety.
The findings were published recently in The Lancet Public Health journal.
Debbie Saslow, director of HPV and gynecologic cancer at the American Cancer Society, pointed out that the study only looked at those who aren't vaccinated.
Despite the concerns this study raises, she emphasized that many American teens are now vaccinated against HPV.
"It's also important to look at the counterpoint, which is that most parents do vaccinate their kids against HPV," Saslow said.
Despite the findings that some parents wouldn't vaccinate their teens even with a provider recommendation, Saslow said the primary approach in HPV vaccine advocacy is working with providers and health systems.
"If a parent says, 'I read on Facebook that the vaccine has this side effect,' then the provider has the opportunity to say, 'Actually, that's misinformation, and let me explain to you how safe this vaccine is,'" Saslow said. "The provider is most parents' most trusted source of information, so that's why we've really focused on that."
Sonawane and her team also stressed the importance of training providers to remind their patients to get vaccinated, and to be prepared with clear answers to debunk any vaccine safety myths.
More information
There's more about the HPV vaccine at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
SOURCES: Kalyani Sonawane, Ph.D., assistant professor, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston; Debbie Saslow, Ph.D., director, HPV and GYN cancers, American Cancer Society, Atlanta; The Lancet Public Health, July 21, 2020, online


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Rapha Reflective Brevet Socks - Regular
Comfort becomes paramount the longer a ride goes on for. These Brevet Socks have been developed with long-distance riding in mind. Tested during the 2015 Transcontinental, a 4,000km journey across Europe, they are made of an innovative blend of merino wool and PrimaLoft®. Medium-weight in thickness for warmth and comfort, the merino wool offers moisture-wicking, breathability and anti-bacterial qualities, while PrimaLoft® guarantees a soft, smooth feel and dries quickly. A handy benefit for tourers is that the fabric is quick-drying, so you can wash and dry the socks overnight, while Rapha has also added a highly reflective yarn stripe to keep you visible. For added comfort and to stop blisters, there is a soft terry-cloth section under the ball of the foot. These versatile, durable socks won't let your feet down.
Gray | |
Name: | Reflective Brevet Socks - Regular |
Brand: | Rapha |


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New Car/Review
1999 INFINITI G20t
By Tom Hagin
INFINITI G20t Full Line factory footage (4:38) 28.8, 56k, or 200kSPECIFICATIONS Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price $ 22,495 Price As Tested $ 23,940 Engine Type DOHC 16-valve 2.0 Liter I4 w/SMFI* Engine Size 122 cid/1998 cc Horsepower 140 @ 6400 RPM Torque (lb-ft) 132 @ 4800 RPM Wheelbase/Width/Length 102.4"/66.7"/177.5" Transmission Five-speed manual Curb Weight 2953 pounds Fuel Capacity 15.9 gallons Tires (F/R) P195/60R15 H-rated all season Brakes (F/R) Disc (ABS)/disc (ABS) Drive Train Front-engine/front-wheel-drive Vehicle Type Five-passenger/four-door Domestic Content N/A Coefficient of Drag (Cd. PERFORMANCE EPA Economy, miles per gallon city/highway/average 23/31/27 0-60 MPH 9.0 Seconds 1/4 mile (E.T.) 17.5 seconds 81.0 mph Top speed 120 mph * Sequential multi-point fuel injection
For 1999, Infiniti has brought back its entry-level luxury G20 sedan. After being discontinued in 1996, it reappears as a new model based on the Nissan Primera, a very popular Europe-only sport sedan.
Infiniti says the entry-level luxury market segment has grown. And with the company's Total Ownership Experience, or TOE, buyers will experience service beyond what's expected at many dealerships.
OUTSIDE - There's no mistaking the fact that G20's roots begin with a compact sedan that's been enhanced with aero style add-ons. Compared to the old model, however, the new G20 has a more pronounced wedge shape, with sharper edges and a higher tail, along with rocker sill and lower valance extensions and a new grille. A sporty rear spoiler is standard with G20t models, as are low profile tires and web-patterned alloy wheels. This new version is bigger, too, with a two-inch stretch in wheelbase and almost three inches more overall length. It's no wider, though, and its aerodynamics cheat the wind with a low 0.30 coefficient of drag. A set of "jewel-like" headlamps offer better lighting than the old version's lamps. Lighted side markers offer a European flair.
INSIDE - The G20's interior benefited heavily from the redesign. Its new instrument panel is full of big buttons and soft-touch switches that fall easily to the hand. The shapes and textures of the dashboard aren't overly fancy, and the center console blends well with the stereo and climate controls. We didn't like the passenger side airbag cover, which sticks up about a half an inch - it just looked out of place. Inside access is easier now since the rear doors are wider with the front pillars moved forward. It has comfortable seats that are bolstered well, and they should fit all but the largest of occupants. Plenty of standard features put the G20 into the luxury class. Items such as automatic climate control, a 100-watt, six-speaker stereo system, power windows, door locks and mirrors, cruise control and variable speed intermittent wipers are standard. We found the three-point safety belt for the middle passenger of the rear seat to be a good feature.
ON THE ROAD - Under the hood is a 2.0 liter inline four cylinder engine. This all-aluminum powerplant is a slightly revised version of the engine that powered the previous G20. It uses dual overhead camshafts, sixteen valves and sequential multi-point fuel injection to make 140 horsepower and 132 pound-feet of torque. New, however, is a revised engine mounting system that increases torsional rigidity by 10 percent, which makes a difference when the engine is winding up hard. A revised optional four-speed automatic transmission uses technology designed to make it "hunt" less when searching for the appropriate gear, but our favorite is the close-ratio five-speed manual. It features short, precise throws and smooth, fluid action. Touring models also come standard with a limited slip front differential, which helps control wheelspin on slippery surfaces.
BEHIND THE WHEEL - What's underneath G20 overshadows what's under the hood. The company was so serious about fine tuning G20's already nimble handling it set up temporary technical quarters at the famous Nurburgring race track in Germany for on-site research. The result is a car that steers and handles really well. Up front is a multi-link system that bucks the current trend of using MacPherson struts. In back, however, is what Infiniti calls its Multi-Link Beam suspension. It uses remarkably few pieces, which saves lots of space underneath the car, allowing for more space inside the car. It also does an excellent job of keeping the tires in maximum contact with the road under heavy cornering. Precise variable-assist rack-and-pinion steering delivers a light and accurate feel, while big four-wheel disc brakes with an anti-lock braking system (ABS) are standard.
SAFETY - Dual dashboard airbags, side airbags, side-impact door beams and ABS are all standard.
OPTIONS - Touring and Leather Package: (leather upholstery, power glass sunroof, universal transmitter, power driver's seat, micron ventilation filter) $1,200. Destination charge: $495.


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Family angry at E. Spencer police chief
Published 12:00 am Friday, July 26, 2013
EAST SPENCER — The stepfather-in-law of a man killed in East Spencer in 2011 says police told him the Rowan County Sheriff's Office and State Bureau of Investigation couldn't help investigate because they were "booked up."
Allen Hines, whose stepdaughter's husband, Travis Hinds, was shot at a Cedar Street house party, criticized the East Spencer Department upon learning from a Salisbury Post article that then-Acting Chief Darren Westmoreland called off assistance from the two departments.
"They told us a lie then," Hines said. "They told us Rowan County Sheriff's Office and the SBI was so booked up they didn't have the man hours or the manpower to participate."
For weeks, Hines said, he stopped by the department with leads his stepdaughter had passed on to him. He met with officers, but Westmoreland never spoke to him at any point in the investigation, he said.
"It was like they weren't really interested. I was very disappointed. Up until this point they haven't contacted us about anything," Hines said. "I was very displeased with how they handled the investigation."
Hinds' mother, Burl Haynes, said she didn't realize the East Spencer Police Department was conducting the investigation alone until nearly three weeks after the funeral.
"That's when I really started going down there and trying to find out if they made an arrest or anything," Haynes said.
But, like Hines, Haynes said she was given "the runaround."
"We asked, 'Why don't you get help? Why don't you get help from outsiders? From private investigators?' " Haynes recalled during a phone interview Thursday.
"They kept saying, 'We got this. We're working on it.'
"I personally feel if they had gotten help from the outside, then the person who shot my son would have been behind bars a long time ago."
Relatives of Hinds weren't the only ones to show displeasure at the allegations involving the homicide investigation.
Alderman John Noble, a former Rowan County deputy, said he was "upset" to learn the chief dismissed help. Noble said the Post's report about the way the investigation was handled came as a surprise to several town board members.
An incident report penned by Rowan County Detective Tracy Misenheimer detailed the exchange with Westmoreland.
"During the course of this process, Acting East Spencer Chief Westmoreland stated he did not want our assistance with anything other than the crime scene investigation and storage of the evidence collected," Misenheimer wrote. "SBI Agent (Steven) Holmes and I spoke to Westmoreland several times and confirmed this was his decision. I assisted with the crime scene investigation and released all the Sheriff's personnel at 0850 (hours) and left the scene in the care of Chief Westmoreland."
The case has not been solved, though Hinds was shot several times at a house party attended by dozens of people.
"There's no way you shoot someone four times in the chest and the face, and after they fall down you shoot them in the back, that someone didn't see something," his mother said. "That's cold-blooded murder."
Officers who spoke to the Post on the condition of anonymity said nobody in the East Spencer Police Department had homicide investigation training in 2011.
Noble said that in his experience in the Sheriff's Office, murder investigations should involve skilled officers, and lots of them.
"I was a supervisor. I was in the detectives division," Noble said. "When you had a crime scene — one of this magnitude, such as a murder — you want everybody you can get to help you at that crime scene and you want people, certified people, to help you.
"It was my understanding that (Westmoreland) didn't have any experience dealing with crime scenes," Noble added.
Alderwoman Rosa Burris said she agreed with Noble that some of the information reported this week was new to board members, but declined to comment further.
"I think it surprised a lot of us," Burris said.
Noble also said he wanted to clarify a comment he made in Wednesday's Post story — that the problem was specific to the department.
He meant to say the problem "was with the chief and the department," Noble said.
Along with the homicide investigation, officers accused Westmoreland of falsifying time sheets and failing to properly investigate the shooting of a toddler in December 2012.
In an email response Thursday, Westmoreland said he could not comment on the allegations, citing the town's personnel policy.
Noble stopped short of criticizing the hiring of Westmoreland, but said bluntly, "he has no managerial experience."
"Having a chief, the top head of your department, he needs to be well trained in investigations, in community work," Noble said.
Prior to coming to East Spencer, Westmoreland worked at the Randolph County Sheriff's Office from 1999 to 2001. Sheriff Maynard B. Reid, Jr. said Westmoreland started as a deputy and later moved to the county jail.
He resigned a day after getting a job at the Davidson County Sheriff's Office, where he worked from 2001 to 2009. He was fired June 12, 2009, according to the Davidson County Sheriff's Office.
The Post filed a public records request with East Spencer on Tuesday, asking for the chief's salary, hiring date, and any promotion, demotion, disciplinary or suspension history.
Town Clerk Anneissa Hyde declined to provide the information, citing the need for review by Town Administrator Macon Sammons Jr., who she said was on vacation. Sammons has not returned repeated phone calls requesting comment.
When the Post cited the state's public records law and requested the information again, Hyde responded with a statement.
"At this time the only comment we have from the Town is that unattributed sources of alleged information to news media are often not the most reliable sources of alleged 'news.' Other than that, the Town has no official comment on the veracity of the unnamed sources, or the accuracy of their alleged information."
The Post's attorney, Amanda Martin of Raleigh, said the requested documents should not require review before being made available to the public.
"The public has a right to get this information and if it is not released it's a violation of the public records law," Martin said.
Town council members are expected to meet at the town hall Monday at 7 p.m.
"The purpose of the special meeting [is] for unexpected circumstances that require immediate consideration by the public body; to wit, yesterday's news reports in the Salisbury Post which allege personnel questions that require the board's immediate consideration," Hyde wrote in an email Thursday. "Since personnel matters may not be heard in open session, it is anticipated that all discussion will be conducted in closed session."
Contact reporter Nathan Hardin at 704-797-4246.


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Columns Retired Columns & Blogs |
Allen Perkins: From Bicycles to Belt Drives
Theodore Roosevelt might have described Allen Perkins as someone who speaks softly and carries a big stickor two. Before founding Immedia Distribution in 1990, and long before cofounding turntable manufacturer Spiral Groove in 2005, this soft-spoken designer of two award-winning turntables had begun a career as a jazz drummer.
I've known Allen Perkins for more than a decade, ever since the Bay Area Audiophile Society, of which I'm a member, contacted him about demonstrating one of his products. In all those years of talking to Perkins at audio shows, asking him questions, and listening to components together, I have yet to hear him gratuitously toot his own horn. In fact, as I prepared this feature, I discovered that he hadn't bothered to mention that each of his two Spiral Groove turntable models has won a major award. Nor did he offer to supply copies of the positive reviews they'd received. I almost had to pry the information out of him. While it may seem paradoxical that a drummer would prove the epitome of calm and equanimity, Allen Perkins prefers to let the music that flows from his accomplishments speak for itself.
Perkins spent much of his childhood in small towns in Michigan and Wisconsin. There, he got the music bug while listening to his father's Reader's Digest Records collections of big-band music by Glenn Miller and Tommy Dorsey. Equally fascinated by mechanical apparatus, he went from high school to Schwinn Bicycle School, where he learned to build bicycles from raw parts/
At 21, Perkins entered the University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire as a music major. There, he spent four or five nights a week performing jazz on drum kit and percussion. The sobering realization that he would either have to teach, become a band director, or risk economic hardship as a professional percussionist led him to major in psychology and minor in Asian Studies. Now 54, he continues to perform weekly with a Bay Area band.
The Fatal Visit
While still an undergraduate, Perkins accompanied a fellow bandmember on an 80-mile drive from Eau Claire to Minneapolis to get some equipment repaired. There he happened into a stereo shop owned by Paul Wakeen (who now owns Stillpoints, makers of footers, stands, and racks for audio equipment). Wakeen recognized Perkins from his drumming activities, and not so innocently asked what his stereo system was like.
Perkins responded that he didn't have money for new gear, and was happy with his current setup of Technics turntable, NAD preamp, Crown amp, and Canton speakers. But a few days later, Wakeen called him. "You know," he said, "I liked talking to you. I got a sense that, with your knowledge of music, your opinions would be valuable to me. Could I send you a preamp so you could tell me what you think of it?"
Perkins repeated that he liked his NAD and couldn't afford a new one. Nonetheless, he took the fatal step and offered to give Wakeen's model a listen. What happened next changed his life.
"I installed the used PS Audio Model 4 that Paul sent me," Perkins told me in the first of several extended interviews and listening sessions. "I thought I wasn't going to hear a difference, when I put on a Pat Metheny record. Probably three notes played, and all I could think was, 'Oh shit, how am I going to pay for this?'"
A week later, Wakeen offered Perkins the PS Audio in exchange for working in his store on weekends. "I think you'll have a good rapport with customers because of your music background," he said.
Perkins accepted, and soon moved to the Twin Cities to work at Wakeen's aptly titled House of High Fidelity. Nearly three decades later, Perkins now has his own house of hi-fi, as it were; it serves as Immedia's distribution center, as well as the manufacturing facility for Spiral Groove products and the Sonics by Joachim Gerhard loudspeakers created by the eponymous former designer for Audio Physic. The 3000-square-foot facility also includes a recording studio in which Perkins's drums get a daily workout.
Putting Things Together
Around 1985, Paul Wakeen began selling SOTA turntables. Perkins, with the same inquisitiveness that had propelled him to fix bikes, dismantled his SOTA vacuum turntable and set about addressing what he thought were its three serious design flaws.