Historic Wine

The building which will house the future Bordeaux Centre of Wine Culture and Tourism is a giant whirlpool, a decanter shaped by the undulating movement of wine being poured into a glass. Designed in the cooperation between the French architectural firm X-TU Architects and the British Casson Mann, the Cultural Center aims to be a major institution dedicated to the culture and diversity of wine.

Located on the banks of the Garonne river, in the wake of the historic wine trade, the 47 meters high building occupies 10.000 square meters plot. Nearly 4.000 square feet of permanent and temporary exhibition spaces also contain tasting „poly-sensory“ rooms facing the river and overlooking the town and the vineyard. With its wooden structure, the building seeks to honor the sensory experience and flexibility of wine.

“Bordeaux… for millennia a port town benefiting from cultural exchange, trade and the perpetual outreach towards distant civilisations and cultures. Through the Centre Culturel et Touristique du Vin project we celebrate the past while looking towards the future. The city of Bordeaux cements its place as the natural gateway to the global civilisation of wine” said Prince Robert of Luxembourg, President and CEO of the family firm and great grandson of its founder, Mr Clarence Dillon.

garbage Crisis

World's city dwellers 'face garbage crisis'

WASHINGTON — The world's city dwellers are fast producing more and more trash in a "looming crisis" that will pose huge financial and environmental burdens, the World Bank is warning.

Urban specialists said the growing pile of trash from urban dwellers is as daunting as global warming and the costs will be especially high in poor countries, mainly in Africa.

In a report on "a relatively silent problem that is growing daily," released on Wednesday, the World Bank estimated city dwellers will generate a waste pile of 2.2 billion tonnes a year by 2025, up 70 percent from today's level of 1.3 billion tonnes.

In the meantime, the cost of solid waste management is projected to soar to $375 billion a year, from the current $205 billion.

Billing the report, "What a Waste: A Global Review of Solid Waste Management" as the first worldwide comprehensive look at trash, the World Bank warned the data points to crisis ahead, as living standards rise and urban populations soar.

"The challenges surrounding municipal solid waste are going to be enormous, on a scale of, if not greater than, the challenges we are currently experiencing with climate change," said Dan Hoornweg, a senior urban specialist at the development lender and co-author of the report.

"This report should be seen as a giant wake-up call to policy makers everywhere," he said.

China, which eclipsed the United States as the world's largest waste maker in 2004, generates 70 percent of the trash in the East Asia-Pacific region.

China, other parts of East Asia, and parts of Eastern Europe and the Middle East have the fastest-growing production of municipal solid waste.

The World Bank economists called for better waste management and recycling to combat greenhouse gas emissions, saying the old concept of "throwing away" trash no longer works.

"In solid waste management there is no 'away,'" the authors said.

"When 'throwing away' waste, system complexities and the integrated nature of materials and pollution are quickly apparent."

The report's authors recommended a waste management plan that includes input from all of a city's stakeholders, including citizen groups and the poor and disadvantaged.

The report also pointed to recycling and other measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that come from inefficient solid waste management practices.

"Improving solid waste management, especially in the rapidly growing cities of low-income countries, is becoming a more and more urgent issue," said Rachel Kyte, vice president, Sustainable Development at the World Bank.

"The findings of this report are sobering," she said.

"But they also offer hope that once the extent of this issue is recognized, local and national leaders, as well as the international community, will mobilize to put in place programs to reduce, reuse, recycle, or recover as much waste as possible before burning it -- and recovering the energy -- or otherwise disposing of it."
 

to Contribute to Science

Science only knows one commandment: contribute to science. This line, spoken by the title character in Bertolt Brecht's The Life of Galileo, inspired the title of this collection of science writing by 59 diverse authors. Most of the pieces collected by editor Edmund Blair Bolles are excerpted from texts by working scientists or natural philosophers, including George Smoot of NASA's Cosmic Background Explorer to Lucretius. Marie Curie's joy on seeing the lovely, glowing bottles of impure radium in her workroom at night is just one of the vivid images to be extracted from this volume, though with far less effort than the radium cost the Curies...

Marie Curie reminisces about her and her husband's efforts to isolate the element radium. Herodotus observes the Nile Valley and concludes that it was once under water. Carl Sagan argues against assertions that aliens regularly visit Earth. These are among the literary gems...

Edmund Blair Bolles includes in GALILEO'S COMMANDMENT. Bolles has scoured the literature of science to build a treasury that is accessible and riveting, appealing to readers unfamiliar with science yet erudite enough for the scientifically initiated reader to enjoy. The authors include scientists well-known for their writing - including Stephen Jay Gould, Richard Feynman and Charles Darwin - and scientists such as Kepler, James Clerk Maxwell, Alfred Wallace, and of course Galileo himself. The writings here span time and the scientific disciplines (the earliest pieces dates to c.444 BC) and the result is a fascinating collection , ideal for browsing or for reading cover to cover...

Χαρτογραφίες

http://www.maplibrary.gr/TheCentre_el.htm

Το Εθνικό Κέντρο Χαρτών και Χαρτογραφικής Κληρονομιάς (ΕΚΕΧΧΑΚ) - Εθνική Χαρτοθήκη 
είναι κοινωφελές, μη κερδοσκοπικό, μερικά αυτοχρηματοδοτούμενο, με κύριους σκοπούς του την ανάπτυξη και διάδοση της χαρτογραφίας και των χαρτών στον πολιτισμό, την εκπαίδευση, την καθημερινή ζωή και τη διοίκηση. Ασχολείται επίσης  με τη σύνταξη ψηφιακού αρχείου χαρτών και με την ανάπτυξη των νέων ψηφιακών τεχνολογιών πληροφόρησης και επικοινωνίας και την παροχή τεχνογνωσίας. Μέσα για την επίτευξη των σκοπών του είναι οι εκθέσεις, οι εκδόσεις σε έντυπη και ψηφιακή μορφή, τα σεμινάρια και οι συναφείς εθνικές και διεθνείς δραστηριότητες και συνεργασίες. Συμβάλει στην ανάπτυξη και διάδοση της πολιτιστικής, εκπαιδευτικής, κοινωνικής, καλλιτεχνικής, επιστημονικής και τεχνολογικής διάστασης της Χαρτογραφίας και των Χαρτών, σε μια κοινωνία βασισμένη στη γνώση, την πληροφορία και την επικοινωνία, με μέσα τις νέες τεχνολογίες και τις σύγχρονες ψηφιακές προσεγγίσεις στην εθνική και παγκόσμια Χαρτογραφική Κληρονομιά.

Με την τροποποίηση του ιδρυτικού νόμου το 2006 προστέθηκαν μια σειρά σκοπών ευρωπαϊκού περιεχομένου. Μεταξύ άλλων η παροχή και διάδοση της πληροφόρησης που παρέχεται από την Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση (Ε.Ε.) στην Ελλάδα,  η διοργάνωση εκδηλώσεων, όπως σεμιναρίων, διαλέξεων, ημερίδων, εκθέσεων, συνεδρίων, παιχνιδιών και καλλιτεχνικών εκδηλώσεων, για την ενημέρωση και την ευαισθητοποίηση των πολιτών και των τοπικών φορέων σχετικά με γενικά ευρωπαϊκά θέματα, η μεταφορά στις αρμόδιες ελληνικές αρχές και στα όργανα της Ε.Ε. των προβληματισμών των τοπικών κοινωνιών για θέματα ευρωπαϊκού ενδιαφέροντος, η ανάθεση και η εκπόνηση μελετών, καθώς και η παροχή υπηρεσιών, κ.ά.
Το Κέντρο συνεργάζεται με συλλέκτες χαρτών και με φορείς που διαθέτουν συλλογές. Στο πλαίσιο αυτό, η Εθνική Χαρτοθήκη ψηφιοποιεί και τεκμηριώνει στην ψηφιακή χαρτοθήκη της τους χάρτες μεγάλων συλλογών:Μέχρι σήμερα έχει συνεργαστεί με φορείς όπως η Αγιορειτική Χαρτοθήκη, το Ελληνικό Λογοτεχνικό και Ιστορικό Αρχείο (ΕΛΙΑ), ο Δήμος Θεσσαλονίκης (Αντιδημαρχία Αρχιτεκτονικού και Τοπογραφίας) και ιδιωτικές συλλογές.Επιπλέον, στο Κέντρο τεκμηριώνονται ηλεκτρονικά, σε ψηφιακά αρχεία και οι σημαντικότεροι χάρτες της Ιστορίας της Χαρτογραφίας, ώστε να είναι δυνατή η άμεση ανεύρεσή τους από ενδιαφερόμενους μελετητές και ερευνητές.

a Human Scale Library

The Heart of the Metropolis is a proposal for a new central library in the city of Helsinki. The building takes its inspiration from the city and nearby surroundings. It is a volume shooting out from the ground, like many other places in Helsinki rocks naturally appear as popping out in the city centre.

The building is interacting with people on a human scale, by making it possible for people to walk on top of the sloped roof. The sloped roof drags the surrounding park on top of the building, and connects the building with its surroundings. The building is pointed towards the surrounding parkland and the bay, which gives a great view from the inside and from the roof.

The building is equipped with double skin facades which are part of an advanced hybrid ventilation system, that will ensure a low energy performance and a good indoor climate. The double skin facade keeps the building as transparent as possible to have an open building with good light conditions and respecting its context. The sloped roof is facing south and has installed 500m2 of solar cells that will contribute to keep the energy performance as low as possible.

The concept for the floor plans is, instead of having a traditional atrium, to have an inverted atrium. This means that the floor plans will be offset from the facades. This creates the feeling of one big connected open space. The ground floor is offset from the facade as well and this adds a good spatial quality to the basement, because the light then will be dragged down into the basement as well as the other upper floor plans.

The project is a master thesis project by Sonny Holmberg and Luke Lorimer developed at the AD:MT at Aalborg University, Denmark.
 

Violin and Palette

Violin and Palette (Violon et palette), September 1, 1909. Oil on canvas, 36 1/8 x 16 7/8 inches (91.7 x 42.8 cm). Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York  54.1412. © 2012 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris
Other Cubist Works

When Georges Braque abandoned a bright Fauve palette and traditional perspective in 1908, it was the inspiration of Paul Cézanne's geometrized compositions that led him to simplified faceted forms, flattened spatial planes, and muted colors. By the end of that year, Braque and Pablo Picasso, who first met in 1907, began to compare the results of their techniques and it became obvious to both artists that they had simultaneously and independently invented a revolutionary style of painting, later dubbed "Cubism" by Guillaume Apollinaire. During the next few years the new style blossomed with stunning rapidity from its initial formative stage to high Analytic Cubism. The hallmarks of this advanced phase, so-called for the "breaking down" or "analysis" of form and space, are seen in an extraordinary pair of pendant works, Violin and Palette (Violon et palette, 1909–10) and Piano and Mandola (Piano et mandore, 1909–10).

Objects are still recognizable in the paintings, but are fractured into multiple facets, as is the surrounding space with which they merge. The compositions are set into motion as the eye moves from one faceted plane to the next, seeking to differentiate forms and to accommodate shifting sources of light and orientation. In Violin and Palette, the segmented parts of the violin, the sheets of music, and the artist's palette are vertically arranged, heightening their correspondence to the two-dimensional surface. Ironically, Braque depicted the nail at the top of the canvas in an illusionistic manner, down to the very shadow it cast, thus emphasizing the contrast between traditional and Cubist modes of representation. The same applies to the naturalistic candle in Piano and Mandola, which serves as a beacon of stability in an otherwise energized composition of exploding crystalline forms: the black-and-white piano keys all but disembodied; the sheets of music virtually disintegrated; the mandola essentially decomposed.

"When fragmented objects appeared in my painting around 1909," Braque later explained, "it was a way for me to get as close as possible to the object as painting allowed."1 If the appeal of still life was its implied tactile qualities, as Braque noted, then musical instruments held even more significance in that they are animated by one's touch. Like the rhythms and harmonies that are the life of musical instruments, dynamic spatial movement is the essence of Braque's lyrical Cubist paintings.

solid Earth...

As the premier international newspaper of the Earth and space sciences, Eos seeks to forge strong interdisciplinary ties among geophysicists and place the important contributions of geophysics in the context of the social and policy-making arenas.

More than 61,000 Earth and space scientists worldwide rely on Eos for timely articles that offer solid overviews of topics central to broad research questions; updates on major projects and programs; news items; meeting summaries; opinion pieces; book reviews; and announcements of job opportunities, grants, and fellowships. In addition, Eos provides information about AGU's policies, programs, services, and products.

Eos covers the broad spectrum of geophysics topics: solid Earth sciences, oceans, atmospheres, biospheres, freshwater, space science, history of the geosciences, and education, among others. Published every Tuesday except for the last Tuesday of the year, Eos is distributed by mail in the US and is available online to all AGU members.

...his Opera, Taras Bulba

Mykola Lysenko (1842-1912--sometimes transliterated as Nikolai or Nicolai Lysenko or Lissenko) is considered the father of Ukrainian chamber music much the way that Glinka is for the Russians. He was the first Ukrainian composer to write chamber music. In 1904, he founded the first music conservatory in the Ukraine in Kiev, which today bears his name. Lysenko was born in the Poltava district of the Ukraine. He first studied piano with his mother, then formally with teachers in Kiev. After taking a degree in the natural sciences at the University of Kiev, he attended the world famous Leipzig Conservatory where he studied composition with Carl Reinecke.

An admirer of the Ukrainian poet Shevchenko, Lysenko became a nationalist for the Ukrainian cause as a student. He remained one for his entire life and was imprisoned for the cause as late as 1907 after composing a song in support of the Revolution of 1905. The bulk of Lysenko's music is for piano or for voice in one form or another such as opera, hymns, or chorales. His piano music often shows the influence of Chopin whereas his vocal music is almost always based on Ukrainian folk music such as his opera Taras Bulba. Lysenko spent considerable time trying to demonstrate the differences between Ukrainian and Russian folk melody. The only chamber music he is known to have composed is this string quartet and a string trio.

The quartet dates from 1868 when Lysenko was finishing his studies with Reinecke in Leipzig. The big, opening movement, Allegro non tanto, begins in a rather dramatic, somewhat operatic fashion. The themes bear some resemblance to those of Glinka's opera Ruslan and Ludmilla. Despite the movement's length, the drama and forward motion are almost never relaxed. The simple but charming melody of the following Adagio is in the form of a chorale. The manuscript only has three movements and it is not known whether there was a fourth movement or whether the third movement was meant as the finale. It is an engaging Minuetto, allegretto scherzando.

A collected edition of Lysenko's works, including this quartet, was published in 70 volumes between 1950 and 1959, however, a performance edition of the parts and score were never separately published. Our World Premiere Edition has been carefully edited and corrected by Loren Silvertrust from a copy of the original manuscript located in Kiev, Ukraine. Like all of our works, it is printed on top grade paper with an ornate cover and biographical information about the composer.
 

manmade Wings

Serving as a monument and memorial to the UAE’s founding President Sheik Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the Zayed National Museum will be a focal point of the emerging Saadiyat Island Cultural District. All aspects of the Museum, from architectural design to museum exhibit themes were conceived to reflect the life and values of the late Sheikh Zayed.

The Museum’s striking wing shaped towers were designed to evoke thoughts of a flying falcon to pay homage to Sheikh Zayed’s love of falconry. They act as thermal towers, an integral part of the natural cooling system that draw hot air up and out creating a low pressure flow of cool air from outside in through the museum. This system will cut down on climate control costs and reduce environmental impact, in line with Sheikh Zayed’s advocacy of environmental friendliness. The wing towers will also hold the museum galleries in their bases.

The wings will shoot out of a manmade 30 meter high earth mound, which will house the underground lobby area complete with retail, open performance areas, dining and an auditorium. The underground lobby will take advantage of the thermal effect of the earth, further reducing climate control costs. The entire museum will be surrounded by a body of water to create a distinct cultural landmark amongst many planned for the Cultural District on Saadiyat Island.

The Foster + Partners design is the first of four major art and history centers to be realized in the Cultural District. Frank Ghery’s Guggenheim Museum, Zaha Hadid’s Performing Arts Center, and Jean Nouvel’s Louvre Abu Dhab are all planned to join the Zayed National Museum over the next five years. The Museum has been under construction since Fall of 2010, and is planned to be completed by 2014.

to Breath...

Για να Ζήσει ο Κόσμος
Αλέξανδρος Σμέμαν

.....Μετάφρασα το βιβλίο αυτό επειδή καταγίνεται με τον κόσμο. Κόσμο λέγοντας εννοώ ολόκληρο το φυσικό σύμπαν. Και σήμερα περισσότερο από κάθε άλλη φορά ο κόσμος ή η οικουμένη, όπως λέγανε άλλοτε το γνωστό κόσμο, ή ο πλανήτης (και οι άλλοι πλανήτες) συγκεντρώνει ολόκληρη την προσοχή του ανθρώπου, αφήνοντας περιθώρια μετρημένα για αναζητήσεις με διαφορετική κατεύθυνση - δηλαδή αναζητήσεις με κατεύθυνση, όχι προς τον κόσμο ή προς τα έξω, αλλά προς τον άνθρωπο ή προς τα μέσα. Στις περιοχές όπου ζούμε τέτοια κατεύθυνση προς τα μέσα έδωσε στον άνθρωπο ο Χριστιανισμός και, πριν από το Χριστιανισμό, η Αρχαία Ελλάδα με το στόμα του Θουκυδίδη που βεβαίωνε πως δε θα σταματήσουν ποτέ τα ανθρώπινα δεινά, πολλά και χαλεπά γινόμενα μεν και αιεί εσόμενα, όσο θα δοκιμάζομε να αλλάξουμε τον κόσμο -Μαρξ- αφήνοντας απείραχτο τον άνθρωπο (έως αν η αυτή φύσις ανθρώπων η). Σε άλλες περιοχές την ίδια κατεύθυνση ή αναζήτηση προς τα μέσα έδωσαν οι άλλες σεβάσμιες πνευματικές παραδόσεις όσες αφήσανε αχνάρια ή εξακολουθούν να υπάρχουν στις μέρες μας -να αριθμούν δηλαδή πιστούς- και στις πέντε ηπείρους. Τα πραχτικά αποτελέσματα από τις διδασκαλίες αυτές, μέσα σε τόσους αιώνες, τελικά στάθηκαν πενιχρά και, μπροστά στα τόσα μαθήματα, θα μπορούσε κανένας δίκαια να αναρωτηθεί με τον ποιητή: "Οι άνθρωποι δεν ακούνε;". Θα μπορούσε ακόμα κανένας να αναρωτηθεί και ποια θα ήταν ενδεχόμενα η κατάσταση του κόσμου δίχως τις διδασκαλίες αυτές. [...]

(από τον πρόλογο του Ζήσιμου Λορεντζάτου

Пско́во-Печ́ерский Успе́нский монасты́рь

Pskov-Caves Monastery or The Pskovo-Pechersky Dormition Monastery or Pskovo-Pechersky Monastery (Russian: Пско́во-Печ́ерский Успе́нский монасты́рь, Estonian: Petseri klooster) is a Russian Orthodox male monastery, located in Pechory, Pskov Oblast in Russia, just a few kilometers from the Estonian border.

The monastery was founded in the mid-15th century, when the first hermits settled in local caves. The first cave Church of the Dormition of the Theotokos (церковь Успения Богородицы) was built in 1473 (its modern facade was constructed in the 18th century).

Ivan the Terrible's repentance: he asks the hegumen (father superior) Cornelius of the Pskovo-Pechorsky Monastery to let him take the tonsure at his monastery. Painting by Klavdy Lebedev.
After the monastery had been destroyed by the Livonian feudals, it was rebuilt by a Pskovian dyak Mikhail Munekhin-Misyur in 1519. A posad (settlement) was built next to the monastery, which would later grow into a town. In 1550s-1560s, Pskovo-Pechorsky Monastery and its posad were surrounded by a wall with towers (eventually, these fortifications were rebuilt in 1701).

The monastery became an important outpost for defending the western border of Russia. In 1581–1582, it withstood the siege laid by Stefan Batory’s army. In 1611–1616, the monastery repelled the attack of the Polish army led by Jan Karol Chodkiewicz and Aleksander Józef Lisowski and Swedish army led by Gustav II Adolf.

Pskovo-Pechersky Monastery lost its importance after the Great Northern War of 1700–1721. In 1920–1944, Pskovo-Pechorsky Monastery belonged to Estonia. The monastery was one of the few acting male monasteries in the USSR, having been saved from destruction by Pechory being Estonian territory before World War II. In Soviet times, famous Russian mystic Sampson Sievers briefly lived and served in the monastery.

Since the fall of the Soviet Union the monastery has flourished. Currently the monastic community numbers over 90 who through their pastoral labors live the tradition of asceticism and eldership as witnessed recently by the Archimandrite John (Krestiankin). In 2003 the monastery marked the 530th anniversary of its existence.

Pskov-Caves Monastery is one of the rare Russian monasteries that hasn't been closed in any moment of its history even during World War II and Soviet regime.

ΠΡΟΤΑΣΗ ΒΙΒΛΙΟΥ

Σχεδόν Άγιοι
αρχιμ. Τύχωνας Σεβκούνωφ
η Ρωσία του Χθες και του Σήμερα

Jagielloński...Matejko...

The Jagiellonian University (Polish: Uniwersytet Jagielloński, often shortened to UJ; historical names: Latin: Studium Generale, University of Kraków, Kraków Academy, The Main Crown School, Main School of Kraków) was established in 1364 by Casimir III the Great in Kazimierz (district of Kraków). It is the oldest university in Poland, the second oldest university in Central Europe and one of the oldest universities in the world. Positioned byTimes Higher Education Supplement,QS World University Rankings and ARWU as the best Polish university among the world's top 500.

The university fell upon hard times when the occupation of Kraków by Austria-Hungary during the Partitions of Poland threatened its existence. In 1817, soon after the creation of the Duchy of Warsaw the university was renamed as Jagiellonian University to commemorate Poland's Jagiellonian dynasty, which first revived the Kraków University in the past.In 2006, The Times Higher Education Supplement ranked Jagiellonian University as Poland's top university.In the mid-14th century, King Casimir III of Poland realized that the nation needed a class of educated people, especially lawyers, who could codify the country's laws and administer the courts and offices. His efforts to found an institution of higher learning in Poland were rewarded when Pope Urban V granted him permission to set up an academy in Kraków. A royal charter of foundation was issued on 12 May 1364, and a simultaneous document was issued by the City Council granting privileges to the Studium Generale. The King provided funding for one chair in liberal arts, two in Medicine, three in Canon Law and five in Roman Law, funded by a quarterly payment taken from the proceeds of the royal monopoly on the salt mines at Wieliczka.

The Cracow Academy's development stalled upon the death of King Casimir, but the institution was re-founded in 1400 by King Władysław Jagiełło and his wife Saint Jadwiga, the daughter of the King Louis of Hungary and Poland. The queen donated all of her personal jewelry to the academy, allowing it to enrol 203 students. The faculties of astronomy, law and theology attracted eminent scholars: for example, John Cantius, Stanisław of Skarbimierz, Paweł Włodkowic, Jan of Głogów, and Albert Brudzewski, who from 1491 to 1495 was one of Nicolaus Copernicus's teachers. The university was the first university in Europe to establish independent chairs in Mathematics and Astronomy.

an Atmospheric Capture to H2O

Designed as a proposal for the Taichung Gateway City Project, the Skywater Tower deals with issues of water production. While many countries already face the water crisis, Taiwan is ironically the second nation in terms of annual rainfall. However, the country’s steep topography leaves its tropical and subtropical zones surprisingly dry and with the soil unable to retain water. The shortage has become more severe in the last years, impacting individuals, agriculture and industries.

Drawing from a long tradition of researching water harvesting techniques, Atelier CMJN has designed an architectural object which also acts as an atmospheric water generator. The principle is the following: water vapor is condensed by cooling the air below its dew point or pressurizing it. Sun and/or wind are used to provide power for refrigeration. Refrigerated panels capture moisture. The verticality of the building enhances the ability to harvest more powerful winds in order to provide more water.

The new tower design is based on water production principles, but is also in line with Taiwanese cultural values. With its hydrodynamic shape, the structure is a landmark that contributes to its environment. The proposal envisions clusters of such water harvesting objects, optimally positioned within cities. They act as both urban attractors and plants, contributing to raising awareness about the water shortage issues.

if Bird...or Devil...!!

Έντγκαρ Άλαν Πόε (Edgar Allan Poe): "Το κοράκι"

Μια πολύ ατμοσφαιρική απαγγελία

Το πρωτότυπο :

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
`'Tis some visitor,' I muttered, `tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more.'

Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow; - vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow - sorrow for the lost Lenore -
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels named Lenore -
Nameless here for evermore.

And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me - filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;
So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating
`'Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door -
Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door; -
This it is, and nothing more,'

Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
`Sir,' said I, `or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you' - here I opened wide the door; -
Darkness there, and nothing more.

Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before
But the silence was unbroken, and the darkness gave no token,
And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, `Lenore!'
This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, `Lenore!'
Merely this and nothing more.

Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning,
Soon again I heard a tapping somewhat louder than before.
`Surely,' said I, `surely that is something at my window lattice;
Let me see then, what thereat is, and this mystery explore -
Let my heart be still a moment and this mystery explore; -
'Tis the wind and nothing more!'

Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter,
In there stepped a stately raven of the saintly days of yore.
Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he;
But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door -
Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door -
Perched, and sat, and nothing more.

Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling,
By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore,
`Though thy crest be shorn and shaven, thou,' I said, `art sure no craven.
Ghastly grim and ancient raven wandering from the nightly shore -
Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night's Plutonian shore!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

Much I marvelled this ungainly fowl to hear discourse so plainly,
Though its answer little meaning - little relevancy bore;
For we cannot help agreeing that no living human being
Ever yet was blessed with seeing bird above his chamber door -
Bird or beast above the sculptured bust above his chamber door,
With such name as `Nevermore.'

But the raven, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only,
That one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour.
Nothing further then he uttered - not a feather then he fluttered -
Till I scarcely more than muttered `Other friends have flown before -
On the morrow he will leave me, as my hopes have flown before.'
Then the bird said, `Nevermore.'

Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken,
`Doubtless,' said I, `what it utters is its only stock and store,
Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful disaster
Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore -
Till the dirges of his hope that melancholy burden bore
Of "Never-nevermore."'

But the raven still beguiling all my sad soul into smiling,
Straight I wheeled a cushioned seat in front of bird and bust and door;
Then, upon the velvet sinking, I betook myself to linking
Fancy unto fancy, thinking what this ominous bird of yore -
What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore
Meant in croaking `Nevermore.'

This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable expressing
To the fowl whose fiery eyes now burned into my bosom's core;
This and more I sat divining, with my head at ease reclining
On the cushion's velvet lining that the lamp-light gloated o'er,
But whose velvet violet lining with the lamp-light gloating o'er,
She shall press, ah, nevermore!

Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censer
Swung by Seraphim whose foot-falls tinkled on the tufted floor.
`Wretch,' I cried, `thy God hath lent thee - by these angels he has sent thee
Respite - respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore!
Quaff, oh quaff this kind nepenthe, and forget this lost Lenore!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

`Prophet!' said I, `thing of evil! - prophet still, if bird or devil! -
Whether tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore,
Desolate yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted -
On this home by horror haunted - tell me truly, I implore -
Is there - is there balm in Gilead? - tell me - tell me, I implore!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

`Prophet!' said I, `thing of evil! - prophet still, if bird or devil!
By that Heaven that bends above us - by that God we both adore -
Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn,
It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels named Lenore -
Clasp a rare and radiant maiden, whom the angels named Lenore?'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

`Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend!' I shrieked upstarting -
`Get thee back into the tempest and the Night's Plutonian shore!
Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken!
Leave my loneliness unbroken! - quit the bust above my door!
Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted - nevermore

Διαβάζοντας Braille...

Ο φτωχός Νεφέρ Φαραωνικό παραμύθι

Μια φορά κι ένα καιρό ζούσε ένας φτωχός καλός άνθρωπος, ο Νεφέρ. Συνήθιζε να πηγαίνει στο κυνήγι, που του άρεσε πολύ. Σκαρφαλωμένος στις χουρμαδιές περίμενε να πλησιάσει κάποιο ζώο στη λίμνη να πιει νερό για να το σκοτώσει με τα βέλη του. Ζέβρες και γαζέλες έρχονταν πρωί-πρωί να ξεδιψάσουν. Και πραγματικά χτυπά με τα βέλη του μια γαζέλα και την σκοτώνει. Πριν προφτάσει όμως να κατέβει από το δέντρο, κάποιος κρυμμένος σε ένα θάμνο, αρπάζει τη σκοτωμένη γαζέλα και εξαφανίζεται .
«Θα είναι πιο πεινασμένος από μένα», σκέφτηκε ο καλός άνθρωπος και γύρισε στην καλύβα του με άδεια χέρια. Τα παιδιά του έκλαιγαν και η γυναίκα του τον κοίταζε γεμάτη απορία.
Τη δεύτερη φορά που ξαναπήγε στο κυνήγι στο ίδιο μέρος χτύπησε μια αντιλόπη.
«Αυτή κάνει πολύ ωραίο φαγητό» σκέφτηκε, αλλά ώσπου να κατέβει και πάλι ο άγνωστος τού άρπαξε το θήραμα.
«Αυτό δεν θα ξαναγίνει» συλλογίστηκε ο άνθρωπος. Μόλις ανέβηκε στο δέντρο έριξε κάτω ένα μακρύ σχοινί που έφτανε ως το έδαφος και μέσα στην πυκνή βλάστηση δεν φαινόταν. Ήρθαν και πάλι τα ζώα να πιουν νερό και ο κυνηγός μας χτύπησε ένα ζώο που το λένε γκνους. Και πριν προλάβει ο κλέφτης να το αρπάξει, ο κυνηγός μας έπιασε το σχοινί, κατρακύλησε στο έδαφος και άρπαξε τον κλέφτη από το λαιμό. Ήταν ένα νέο παιδί και στο κατάμαυρο πρόσωπό του τα μάτια του γυάλιζαν λευκά και τρομαγμένα.
- Μη με σκοτώσεις! Μη με σκοτώσεις!
- Κάθε μέρα μού κλέβεις κι ένα ζώο. Δεν το κάνεις γιατί πεινάς. Γιατί το κάνεις; Ρωτούσε ο κυνηγός κρατώντας τον κλέφτη από το λαιμό. Έχω παιδιά και γυναίκα και μένουν νηστικοί.
- Μη με σκοτώσεις! Επαναλάμβανε ο κλέφτης κι έτρεμε.
- Δεν σε σκοτώνω. Τώρα που έχω ζώο, έλα να φας κι εσύ στην καλύβα μου μαζί με τα δικά μου παιδιά .
Ο κλέφτης δεν πίστευε στ’ αυτιά του.
- Εκεί θα με σκοτώσεις; Ξαναρωτά, καθώς ο Νεφέρ τον κρατούσε σφιχτά.
- Ούτε εδώ, ούτε εκεί. Θα φάμε το ζώο όλοι μαζί.
Έτσι κι έγινε. Πήγαν στην καλύβα, έψησαν το γκνους και κάθισαν γύρω – γύρω να φάνε. Ο νεαρός κλέφτης από την κατάπληξή του γι’ αυτή τη συμπεριφορά, δεν μπορούσε να βάλει μπουκιά στο στόμα του.
- Καλύτερα να με χτυπούσες, έλεγε και ξανάλεγε στον καλό κυνηγό. Η καλοσύνη σου με σκοτώνει.
- Έτσι είμαι εγώ, δεν αλλάζω, απάντησε ο Νεφέρ. Όποτε πεινάς να έρχεσαι στη καλύβα μας. Αν έχουμε φαγητό, θα τρως κι εσύ. Είμαστε οι άνθρωποι σαν τα δέντρα. Το ένα βγάζει αγκάθια και το άλλο καρπούς. Μάθε να βγάζεις καρπούς για να σε αγαπούν και τα καλά πνεύματα του δάσους.
Από τότε ο νεαρός έπαψε πια να κλέβει. Ο Νεφέρ τού έμαθε να κυνηγά και να σημαδεύει τα ζώα. Και μια μέρα ήρθε φορτωμένος ένα ελάφι. Γελούσε και τα λευκά του δόντια έλαμπαν.
-Σήμερα θα φάμε με δικό μου κυνήγι, είπε και γέλασαν όλοι.
Έτσι δέθηκε μια φιλία που κράτησε παντοτινά....


 

to Tango Lions

'' Tango with Lions are the project of singer/song-writer Kat, and were originally conceived in 2006 after the musical dressing of diaries, photos and book-reading influences. A band was officially formed during a summer-time jam in 2007, in a beach house with former members Johniethin and Dana. Johnniethin's blues-folk guitar playing and harmonica style, met cellist Stavros' confident melodies and Dana's delicate clarinet sound to complete what the debut album "Verba Time" represents. Since the recording sessions during 2009-2010 with producer Ottomo at Fab Liquid Studios, the line up has changed, with Yannos now playing guitars and the appearance of drums. Tango with Lions is seen as a collective of day-dreamers, hard-workers and music-lovers. The album "Verba Time" got released by InnerEar Records on June 21st, 2010 and was warmly welcomed by critics and audience. Tango with Lions are currently giving concerts along with preparing new songs.''

Members:
Kat- voice, piano, guitars, harp, bass
Yannos- guitars, vocals
Stavros- cello, mandolin
Nikos V.- drums, percussion, vocals
Jimmy Star - trompone

Former members and guest appearances:
Dana- clarinet, vocals
Christopher- drums, percussion
Stefanos Hit - drums, percussion
Kostas Vavousis - bass
Serafeim Giannakopoulos - drums, percussion
Johniethin- guitars, vocals, harmonica
Elsa- cello
Dennis- guitars
Manos- harmonica

Taken from their debut album '' Verba Time'' (2010). For any further information please visit:
• http://www.myspace.com/kaschialoveslions
• http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tango-with-Lions-band/121332907936988
• http://www.gogoyoko.com/#/artist/tangowithlions


 

Anatomie du Saxophone

Le corps du saxophone est composé de trois parties trouées ou collées réalisées en laiton : le corps conique, le pavillon et la culasse reliant les deux. Les clés (au nombre de 19 à 22 selon les membres de la famille) commandent l'ouverture et la fermeture des trous latéraux percés sur le corps (ou cheminées). L'extrémité haute du corps est prolongée horizontalement par le bocal (démontable) qui porte le bec (en ébonite, en métal ou en bois), équipé d'une anche simple attachée avec une ligature.

Le son du saxophone est produit à l'aide d'un bec et d'une anche (en général en roseau, mais peut être aussi en matière synthétique). C'est la vibration de l'anche sur la facette du bec qui permet l'émission du son par mise en vibration de la colonne d'air contenue dans le corps de l'instrument.

Bien que métallique, le saxophone appartient à la famille des bois de par son mode de production des notes, par la vibration d'une anche en bois contre le bec. Il est cependant parfois considéré (à tort) comme faisant partie de la section cuivres dans les musiques populaires (telles que le rock, la pop, le rhythm’n’blues, le funk ou la soul) où il est associé aux trompettes et aux trombones (instruments à embouchure).

De plus, comme il tend à se rapprocher de la sonorité des cordes (ceci est stipulé dans le brevet d'invention du saxophone), on peut de façon anecdotique en faire un "chaînon manquant" unissant cordes, bois, cuivres et percussions (grâce aux sons slappés). Le saxophone s'accorde avec les autres instruments en faisant légèrement varier l'enfoncement du bec (modulable grâce au liège entourant l'extrémité du bocal) quand le son est trop bas, on enfonce le bec, quand il est trop haut, on tire le bec. Il présente quelques ressemblances avec la clarinette (notamment le soprano), dont il diffère cependant par sa perce conique au lieu d'être cylindrique. C'est d'ailleurs cette dernière particularité qui lui permet d'être un instrument octaviant (alors que la clarinette quintoie) : le but même d’Adolphe Sax lorsqu'il imagina son nouvel instrument.

My Mini Space

The project was designed as a temporary event space, located on a roof in NYC. Part of the MINI’s “Creative Use of Space” campaign, the project was designed and its construction oversaw by architects at HWKN. It is heightened by the design elements characteristic of BMW’s Mini Cooper cars.

The roof combines natural and artificial elements. An organic hill is suspended in an abstract architectural grid. The design is a collection of elements that punctuate the ubiquitous grid: a grassy lounging hill with seating dimples and performance stage, a speakers’ platform embedded in a large scale existing billboard, a lighting tower to cast light on the space and to act as a visual icon on the skyline, and a panorama bar overlooking the Hudson River. The floor is animated with a LED carpet that turns the surface into a programmable horizontal billboard. At an architectural scale, objects like the bar, hill, platform, and light tower float within the grid pattern of the light carpet.

Location: New York, NY
Client: BMW Mini Brand + KKLD*

Size: 1,000 sq ft
Scope: Schematic Design through to Construction Administration
Team: Matthias Hollwich, Marc Kushner, Marc Perrotta, Patricia Sahm,Paul Sanders, Jefferson Frost, Robert May, Will Kemper, Evan V Watts
 

Keep on Ironing

White Tanks
Temperas
Studies
Oil
Large Images
Humanity
to Worker

industrial Archaeology

In addition to understanding artifacts, we learn about Nova Scotia’s industrial past through industrial archaeology (IA). IA is the study of the tangible evidence of social, economic and technological development of the period since industrialization. It includes buried foundations, features, and remnants normally associated with archaeological study, such as the foundry, locomotive shed and miner’s house found on our site. But equally important, it includes the landscapes, buildings, sites and structures still evident in some form around us. It is the rows of identical houses close to a vacant lot that once held a pithead; it is the uniformly-shaped manmade stream that once was a mill-race supporting water-powered factories; it is the canal that employed the technology to move vessels from one body of water to another, thereby bringing goods to market more economically. In Nova Scotia you can find it in old canneries and remnant pilings of piers, in street names and neighbourhoods, in architecture, and in slag heaps.

One thing is for certain – it is rapidly disappearing. As we move beyond the Industrial Age, once dominated by resource exploitation like mining, lumbering, and manufacturing this physical evidence is becoming harder to find. There is little trace of the substantial operations of the Sydney steel works, countless factories have disappeared, and the spatial arrangements of industrial towns are changing as the old makes way for the new. Former beehives of activity are now returning to nature. So look around you in the towns and in the woods, to see what your surroundings might tell you about the Nova Scotia of the past and the ways our parents and grandparents lived. If you see something interesting, let us know. It is part of our job to document this heritage before it is gone forever.   Contact us at industry@gov.ns.ca or 902-755-5425.