#whose activism is one-dimensional and extends only so far

[soldierandawar]

hey, so, did ya'll know that the dems appealing to the white centrists has actually worked before and actually does work in most cases? did ya'll know that a lot of people who voted actually thought Kamala was too liberal? that majority of folks think she's an extreme radical? did ya'll know that? i feel like ya'll don't know that.

democrats always get heat for not appealing to the far left (rightfully so, IMO), and they will never and have never had as perfect messaging as they did with President Obama in 2008. but the far left is not and never will be a reliable base. every time they lose an office, they move even further right because...well. that's what's winning. but even in that, the Kamala Harris and Tim Walz combo is the most progressive ticket we've had since i've been able to vote, and maybe in my lifetime (though i don't have enough knowledge to make that case.). but the majority of the country lives in the center. they're more likely to catch those white centrists than they are the average leftist, no matter their campaign.

what's interesting, and I feel like most people are skipping over this, is that donald trump is winning the electoral votes and the popular vote. let that sink in for a second. do you know the last time a republican won the popular vote? in fact, he picked up voters that he lost in 2020, and why do you think that is?

i'm not saying that the democrats are perfect. you won't see or hear me praising them, ever. i've got my own beef with the party and its representatives, and there are about a thousand things they could've done better. that said, this is a big-picture situation, not a small one. Kamala Harris didn't lose just because of her stance (or non-stance) on Palestine. she didn't just lose because she didn't appeal to far left voters. she didn't just lose because of strategy. there was a national far-right swing. things are not the same as they were in 2008. people have been emboldened again. bigotry is loud and proud again. anti-trans and lgbtq bills are everywhere. they're taking important history out of schools. even if she made all the right moves and said all the right things, the race still would've been up in the air because Kamala Harris stands for everything that even the most "progressive" people don't want.

[irispublishersengineeringscience]

Global Journal of Engineering Sciences (GJES)

Investigation of the Evolution of Clay Microstructure under Different Loading Paths and Impact on Constitutive Modelling

Authored by Simona Guglielmi

The paper presents part of a research work in the field of the interpretation of the mechanical response of clays to support their constitutive modelling, according to an approach which combines the investigation of the soil element macro-behaviour, through laboratory experimental testing, with the observation of the soil features and processes at the micro-scale, through scanning electron microscopy, SEM.The effect of compression on the mechanical behaviour of clays, once reconstituted in the laboratory, has been the subject of experimental studies for many years, and has been extended to the behaviour of natural clays, which develop, in their geological history, different structure from that forming in the reconstituted during normal consolidation in the laboratory [1-3]. To date, several studies in the literature have shown that processes other than simple compression can result in an increase in the strength of clays [1-6], one example being diagenesis, which is one of those geological processes that cause an increase in stiffness and strength of the natural clay above that provided solely by the reduction in volume with compression.Diagenetic processes, which are responsible for important changes in natural clays at the microscale, typically occur at depth, under high effective stresses. They give rise to the aggradation of swelling minerals, the increase in bonding (non-frictional interparticle forces [7,8]) and changes in fabric (the arrangement of the soil particles [7,8]). As a result, natural clays can develop a structure stronger than that of the corresponding (same void ratio) reconstituted clay. This paper examines the microstructure of a natural stiff, diagenetically modified clay, by comparison with the microstructure of the same clay when reconstituted in the laboratory. This comparison is then extended to explore the evolution of microstructure after 1D compression to states preand post- gross-yield, up to large preological history is known in some detail [9]. This study is one aspect of a wider research [2,3,10-12] aimed at identifying the main physical factors and internal features which control, at the micro-scale, the material response, causing given behavioural facets. The research final aim is at assessing the influence of the different aspects of behaviour on model parameter values, hence supporting constitutive modelling and finding a relation between classes of behaviour and corresponding models and classes of clays.

Materials and Methods

Pappadai clay is a Pleistocene marine clay which was deposited in a quiet sea in the Montemesola Basin, near Taranto. The engineering geology of the clay is discussed by Cotecchia & Chandler (1995), who present paleontological and microstructural data demonstrating both the stillness of the water and the reducing conditions of the depositional environment. The main properties of the clay and its mineralogical composition are shown in Table 1.

Table 1:Index Properties and mineralogy of Pappadai clay.

The clay is of high plasticity and possesses a high carbonate content. Cotecchia & Chandler (1995) have shown that the carbonate content is largely concentrated in the sand and the silt fractions of the soil, since the carbonates increase with reducing clay fraction and plasticity index [13]. Large part of the sand and silt fractions are formed of shells of foraminifera and nannofossils. However, as will be seen, at least part of the carbonates present contribute to bonding in the clay.

Block samples were taken from a depth of 25 m during construction of a reservoir draw-off shaft and were subjected to mechanical testing [2]. The clay forming the block samples is massive and regularly laminated.

At the sampling location the clay is overconsolidated due to the erosion of some 120 m of overlying sediments. Prior to erosion the clay had undergone diagenesis resulting in a decrease in the portion of smectites, an increase in the portion of the nonswelling minerals (intergrades, Table 1), and a decrease in activity, all with respect to depth [9]. Thus, it is likely that there will have been changes in microstructure of the clay under the stress levels required to generate the mineralogical changes, that is towards the end of normal consolidation.

After unloading due to erosion, the clay in the top strata of the deposit underwent deep drying and subsequently swelled. Cotecchia e Chandler (1995) confirmed this reconstruction through the modelling of the state history of the deposit [9], the results of which are shown in Figure 1. The current profile of liquidity index against vertical effective stress at Pappadai and the modelled one are compared in Figure 1. The history of normal consolidation (stage (i)-O→P), erosion (stage (ii)-P→N), drying of the sole top strata due to lowering of the water table (stage (iii)-N→M) and water table rise (stage (iv)-M→B) was modelled and resulted in the state paths represented in the figure as continuous lines.

The last profile is “S” shaped and, as such, it is consistent with the profile of liquidity index on the undisturbed samples taken at different depth along a borehole and a shaft nearby; this latter one is the block sample B in the figure. Such undisturbed block sample is that which the experimental data presented in the following refer to. Its preconsolidation state corresponds to point P in Figure 1, as for an overconsolidation ratio (OCR) of 3.1. Such OCR resulted solely from the erosion cycle (ii) cited before, since the sample was not affected by the deep drying, which instead affected the clay layers above. For the full explanation of the reconstruction of the geological history of the clay and of the state history modelling, whose results are sketched in Figure 1, refer to [2,9].

The natural clay was reconstituted in the laboratory at a water content 1,6x liquid limit, and was one- dimensionally consolidated in a consolidometer to a vertical effective stress of 200 kPa, point A* in Figure 1, at which point it was removed from the consolidometer and placed in an oedometer where the one dimensional loading was continued. As seen in Figure 1, natural Pappadai clay followed a sedimentation compression curve (SCC; see [14] for the definition, or [1,2]) to the right of the normal consolidation line of the reconstituted clay (ICL; [1]). Thus, after a normal consolidation to point P, the natural clay already had a structure different from that of the reconstituted clay, and later underwent further changes through diagenesis.

The qualitative analysis of the clay fabric is carried out on both the natural and the reconstituted clay by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), using freeze-dried gold-coated clay specimens trimmed from the undisturbed block sample and from the specimens subjected to 1D compression after completion of the test and rapid undrained unloading. The microstructure of the natural clay is examined at different stages of 1D loading, i.e. at undisturbed state, soon after gross yield and to large pressures, and compared to the microstructure of the reconstituted clay after consolidation in the consolidometer and compressed to large pressures.

SEM micrographs taken on vertical fractures are shown, and sketches are reported in which fabric features are identified and local fabric arrangements are recognized. The orientation of the fabric is then quantified by means of digital image processing [15] on micrographs of size corresponding to the micro-scale representative element volume (micro-REV, [12]), recognised for the clay under study as the clay portion of size about 10-3 mm3, investigated at the medium magnification [12]. The microstructural data are related to the observed macro- response of the clay and to the constitutive hydro-mechanical parameters, highlighting what the constitutive laws deviced to represent the material macroresponse in the frame of porous media hydro-mechanics are reflecting at the micro-scale.

The bonding of Pappadai clay is such that a small undisturbed sample softens only a little after being submerged in water for several months. Drying at 120°C caused the clay to open up along the contact of the clay with silt bedding planes, and the softening of the clay on submergence was then more significant. Hence, the diagenetic bonding of Pappadai clay is significantly reduced by drying.

The fabric on a vertical fracture of reconstituted Pappadai clay, A* in Figure 1, is shown at medium-high magnification in Figure 4. As with the natural clay, a non-uniform orientation of the clay particles took place during one-dimensional normal consolidation. Both stacks and randomly oriented flocculated fabric areas can be recognized (Figure 4b). The image processing of several medium magnification micrographs allows to identify values of L in the range 0.23-0.27, indicative of a well oriented fabric.

So, although the reconstituted fabric (see for example Figure 4c) is found to be more open than that of the natural clay, as expected given the difference in void ratio between points A* and B in Figure 1, the natural fabric is not more oriented. Rather, the natural fabric appears to have less regular alternations of oriented and flocculated fabrics than the reconstituted, despite the much higher preconsolidation pressure, hence appearing far more complex, probably the consequence of diagenesis.

The average gross yield stress (i.e. the stress beyond which a transient major stiffness decay occurs, as reported by [3]) for the reconstituted clay is 200 kPa (Figure 5), i.e. the maximum stress attained in the initial consolidation in the consolidometer. Beyond gross yield, the CRS oedometer test on the reconstituted clay defines the intrinsic compression line (ICL; [1]) of Pappadai clay, for the stress range 0.2-22 MPa.

The current state of the natural clay in situ is indicated as C in the figure with a vertical stress at the sampling depth, σ’v0, of 415 kPa. Representative compression and swelling curves are shown, some compression stages prior to swelling being omitted for clarity.

The gross yield state for the natural clay lies far to the right of both the current clay state C and the ICL, confirming that the natural clay is both overconsolidated and also has a different structure from the reconstituted clay. If overconsolidated only by simple geological unloading, the clay gross yield should lie at about the preconsolidation state (Figure 5), which also lies to the right of the ICL since the structure of the natural clay was already stronger than the reconstituted clay after normal consolidation (Figure 1). However, the natural clay does not gross yield until well beyond the preconsolidation stress, since the gross yield stress is σ’y≈2600 kPa (Yield, Figure 5). This observation suggests that a strengthening of the clay structure occurred as a result of additional bonding acquired during diagenesis, increasing the gross yield stress of the clay. Consequently, the current yield stress ratio YSR= σ’y/ σ’v of the natural clay, that is the ratio of the yield stress σ’y to the current vertical stress is σ’v (YSR=σ’y/ σ’v), is twice the value of the clay’s geological OCR.

It follows that Pappadai clay is an example of a stiff clay which owes its high strength not only to its considerable compression during normal consolidation, but also to a strengthening of the clay structure due to diagenetic bonding. The effects of such diagenetic bonding are evident in the mechanical response of the clay to loading.

In test OED 7 (Figure 5), a natural clay sample was unloaded from its in situ state, then reloaded (reloading is not shown in Figure 5). In the laboratory the undisturbed state corresponds to a suction of about 700 kPa, measured by the filter paper method [20]. In the initial swelling stage of test OED 7 the response of the undisturbed clay to unloading is quite stiff, much stiffer than after compression to gross yield.

In Figure 6 the whole test OED 7 is shown, together with another similar test, OED 5, in which the sample was loaded from the undisturbed state. It can be seen that sample OED 7 gross yields at a lower stress (1800 kPa) than the that exhibited by the clay in test OED5, as a consequence of the unloading before reloading. Not only does the swelling process reduce the gross yield stress (hence reducing the YSR), but it also results in the post-yield compression line differing from that of the undisturbed clay. This illustrates the level of weakening induced on the structure of Pappadai clay by a large unloading path and subsequent reloading. This weakening, although limited, appears to be due to the slow cyclic (rather than monotonic) unloading-reloading path, which is causing the degradation of the amorphous calcite film binding the particles.

 To read more about this article https://irispublishers.com/gjes/fulltext/investigation-of-the-evolution-of-clay.ID.000603.php

Indexing List of Iris Publishers: https://medium.com/@irispublishers/what-is-the-indexing-list-of-iris-publishers-4ace353e4eee

Iris publishers google scholar citations: https://scholar.google.co.in/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=irispublishers&btnG=

[lumilasi]

You can find this template from here

Updated his timeskip look. Made his face more narrower and longer as that seems to have an effect of making the character look older. Also long hair and beard. 

Rest of the Bio below

Age: 24

Sexuality: Aro/Ace

KAIN’S QUIRK EXPLAINED:

Quirk name: Access

BASICS: 

Allows him to access and manipulate people’s minds and bodies, electric devices, the surrounding terrain to an extent, as well as spacetime itself, I.E create portals both in world and other dimensions.

QUIRK WEAKNESSES: 

It requires a lot of energy to be diverted into his brain and quirk, so his physical stamina and health is weaker than average; he needs to constantly be conscious of the energy his body has left to give to both sustain his life AND this complicated quirk. He’s therefore not a close combatant and suffers from myriad of health issues such as headaches, vertigo, dizzy spells and so on. 

Kain also sometimes struggles controlling his power, meaning he passively reads people’s thoughts even when he doesn’t want to, or can even channel their nightmares and anxiety fits, something he ended up suffering from a lot as a child. If he gets too emotionally unstable, his quirk can lash out and harm even his friends involuntarily, such as damaging their internal organs or causing violent hallucinations. This burst is also draining to Kain himself and could lead in severe complications and even death.

Kain’s quirk can be split into four categories:  Portals I Mental Control I Physical Control I Hacking

1. PORTALS (and terms associated with this aspect)

Average Portal: In world portal sizes vary, but typically they are anywhere between palm- to (tall, around 2 meters in diameter) human sized. He can make them bigger, but it requires more energy and often isn’t necessary.

The portals typically have a yellowish glowing edge and can be accessed from both sides. Portals can also be used as an offensive tool by opening one around a person’s limb and cutting it off for example

Rifts: Dimensional rifts look roughly the same but typically last shorter amount of time; he can make them much bigger by default (though it requires a lot of his energy and if he makes a big one, it’s the only thing he can focus on) and even transfer large buildings into other worlds potentially. Typically for this he does need something to enchant his quirk so it doesn’t drain his energy so much

Awareness: In order to access a place, Kain either needs to have a visual for it, or have enough “knowledge” of the place. Either by being there before, or using someone’s memory and awareness of the location. It works the best with places he’s been in before and knows well, or somebody whose memories he’s using does/has been. 

Scouting: Accessing other worlds, he typically can “scout out” the place beforehand by using his mental access ability on locals to see through their eyes and memories what kind of world he’s entering into. Easiest way to do this is access the mind of a doppleganger of somebody he knows

RIFT USING RULES

Kain can only access worlds (physically) that are similar to his. Worlds that are too different and have none of the same people that existed in his world for example are beyond his reach. The more alike the world is, the easier it is to Scout and access. He can still view these bizarre worlds, but he can’t enter them. He also can’t enter worlds where a version of him with similar power exists.

He always has to return home, and so does anyone who accompanies him. Kain can remain in other worlds for even years in theory (he hasn’t tested it yet), but typically people with him need something to “anchor” themselves into this new plane of existence.

Kain can inject his stronger resistance to the “dimensional pull” as he calls it, by either donating his blood, or having his DNA otherwise injected into his companions. He can only donate his blood to those who match his AB bloodtype though. (such as Ryuu) 

From his observations, the dimensional pull from his rifts affects emitter quirk types the most, which he theorizes is because emitters often don’t have a “physical” constant existence, so they already live in an unstable pocket dimension of sorts.

Typically, you return close to the same time to when you left, the longest he’s been away from his home world - from the local’s perspective - has been a month. It is only if he pushes the stay after a certain point, that his own world’s time may start to catch up. (This is again more of a theoretical thing; he hasn’t dared to test it out yet)

2. MENTAL CONTROL

Access Link: He can access a person’s mind and body by either touching or looking at them. This allows him to spy on things through the person’s senses. He can even extend this ”vision” skill by making it jump from his original target to a new person they’re looking at, though the effect tends to weaken with a secondary target, and he can only do this jump twice. 

Reconnecting: after making this first “linking” he can reignite it and slip back into the person’s mind the second time, even without seeing them or knowing their location. After that it depends on the person in question how easy it’ll be; the connection lasts longer the better he knows the person, and with those he’s closest to (like Ryuu) he can re-link himself anytime he wants without needing any physical or visual contact. Those he doesn’t know as well, he typically needs to redo the connection after the second or third time using it, which means he has to see the person or touch them. 

Passive use: Often when dealing with a newer person that he needs to keep the connection open with for whatever reason, he tends to passively keep looking into their minds to not turn off the linking. This does mean it is draining for his health so it is better done when he doesn’t have to do much anything else with his quirk the same time.

Mental manipulation: He can read people’s thoughts and subtly manipulate their thinking; it is not direct brainwashing but rather subtly poking at one’s subconscious. He can also directly speak into person’s head. He can also make the target hallucinate or if asleep, either see nightmares or make sure they rest well.

Mind reading: He can read into people’s thoughts and memories, and even in rare cases such as quirks like AFO and OFA with their own pocket dimensions, access those.

PHYSICAL CONTROL(and terms associated with it)

Paralysis: Allows him to paralyze his target briefly, activates by sight or touch like his mental linking. People with high level of mental resilience can resist it better than most.

Minor Quirk control: Allows him to temporarily block someone’s quirk from being used, though this doesn’t work on mutant types as their mutation is a more clear part of their bodies. (even if the mutation is not directly linked to their quirk) Also typically difficult ability to maintain for longer than a minute as it drains him a lot.

Medic Abilities: He can perform ”surgery” on people without tools and basically fix their injuries (or cause internal damage.) He can even cure poisoning by making the body create natural antibodies against it, as long as he knows exactly how the said poison works. Kain can’t use this ability on his own body, only on others.

HACKING

He can access computers and other electric devices by touch or visual connection, and hack them. Since hacking is something he rarely needs to do though, given the people he hangs out with tend to have somebody who knows how to hack, this ability is rarely used.

PERSONALITY SUMMARY

Kain is a very calm and level-headed individual, who is also highly intelligent and good at observing and manipulating people. He’s not very emotional, border-lining sociopath due to his severe childhood trauma, where his brain basically locked his emotions away for the most part so he could process the side-effects of his quirk.

Because of how many things his quirk can do, Kain is naturally curious about everything, and likes to poke around and see what he can do to change the situation somehow, or just in general see what will happen if he does something.

He tends to at times struggle with general empathy, typically extending it only to those he’s grown fond of. Even then, he may sometimes come off cold and like he doesn’t fully grasp the other person’s emotions, given his mostly logic driven mind. This results in him sometimes saying things in a manner that can sound needlessly harsh, or kind of devious/manipulative given his calm and polite manner of speech, even if he doesn’t mean to come off that way. 

Kain has a very strong sense of honor in a sense, that he always keeps his word, and tends to look people who break their with extreme disdain, sometimes beyond what is appropriate for the situation. He can also in extreme cases go so far as to cause himself severe harm to keep a promise he finds important. Kain also hates not having control over his own situation due to his childhood, and is acutely aware of how dangerous his quirk could be if he loses control of it, to the point it could harm those he doesn’t want to. If somebody, somehow causes him to end up in such a situation, he will take it very personally and may get quite brutal towards the culprit.

He’s ultimately selfish and very logic-driven individual, meaning every action he takes has a self-serving/self-preserving nature. However, that can lend him into sometimes aiding others and even saving their lives if it serves his interest. 

MORE FACTS

- His name translates to “Calamity of the red castle,” though people who haven’t seen how it’s written often assume his surname simply means “redwhite” given The words for Castle and white sound the same.

- Since his mother was Canadian, Kain can speak both French and English fluently on top of Japanese. He’s taught Ryuu a bit of both, but mostly the only things Ryuu remembers from French is insults.

- His original name, according to his late mother, would’ve been “Kibou” which means hope, wish, aspiration. She wanted to name him that because she’d wanted a child for a long time, but struggled to get pregnant initially.

- He often wears a face-mask due to his poor health, even in his disguise outfit, sometimes even indoors. And hide if he starts coughing blood from his enemies.

- While classified as villain, Kain arguably sometimes acts more like an anti-hero, as the actions he takes during his travels sometimes result in him helping someone who really needs it. 

- Kain tends to despise people who go back in their own principles and hold absolutely no standards when trying to reach a goal. This stems from the fact his father pretty much did not have any when it came to conducting his experiments; Kain found it especially despicable given he was a Doctor, and Doctors are made to swear the oath of “do no harm.”

BG STORY

He was born with a powerful Quirk, but his body was weak as a side-effect from the ability.

His mum ended up dying during childbirth due to complications, which caused his father Daiki to be distant from his son up until the age four when his Quirk manifested, and Daiki decided to use his boy for his military projects due to the versatility of his ability. He did also claim he was looking for a way to “cure” the weak body of his, but instead of strengthening his body, he mainly ended up enchanting Kain’s Quirk. Daiki then decided to use these enchantments in his own research.

As a child, Kain struggled with his ability to see into people’s memories where it would happen involuntarily, making him unable to tell what were his and what were other people’s memories. This chaos inside his brain was detrimental to his mental health, and it culminated one day where he accidentally killed a bunch of people working in the facility/patients, because he “just wanted the voices to stop” and his power lashed out without his control.

After this incident, his brain sort of began turning off his feelings to not have severe reactions like this each time he accidentally saw something horrid.

Eventually, this defense mechanism made him near completely unable to empathize with people easily, or feel any sort of emotions strongly. He could tell when some sort of emotion would be required, but he just couldn’t feel it. During his childhood, Kain Met Ryuu during one of his runaway trips (opened a portal away from the lab he was kept in and wandered off on his own) and they became friends.

Kain helped Ryuu to learn to control his ability better, as Kain was pretty much a genius kid from a very young age and was always curious to see how far one could develop their skills, a trait he inherited from his scientist father. At some point, some of Daiki’s co-workers gave him out to the authorities for his questionable practices, so Daiki ran away with his son to continue his research in secret.

At one point, Dr. Akashiro makes a deal with AFO to kidnap a certain boy for him, and he in turn would help him with the research.

(This boy being young Tenko Shimura, who in THIS verse was raised by All Might and not by AFO.)

All Might eventually came to rescue his adoptive child, and Daiki was forced to find a new place to hide and continue his project. He comes up with an idea to use Kain’s powers to transfer his lab into another dimension, which he eventually pulls off, finding a world where, peculiarly, he meets a version of the boy he once kidnapped, who’d been completely corrupted by villainy.

Later on, Daiki uses his boy’s power to teleport them into another dimension to escape from those pursuing them. His son’s body is weakened greatly however, and the man starts searching for a solution to this issue, not wanting to lose his precious research material.

After years, he finally comes to a conclusion. He needs to get Kain a whole new body, and there happens to be a person who matches. A child he’d already once taken from his new home.

Shimura Tenko

the rest is basically a spoiler to Reanimate, so I won’t explain what happens here in detail, all you need to know is that Kain finally kills his dad and escapes his clutches, joining back with his childhood friend Ryuu. He also indirectly saves Tenko, by preventing his dad from using his body to replace Kain’s old one, figuring out another way to fix the damage his dad’s forced dimension hopping had done to him.

Bio template (C) Yourultraarchive

Oc (C) me

[sciencespies]

Distant 'Baby' Black Holes are behaving strangely, and scientists are perplexed

https://sciencespies.com/space/distant-baby-black-holes-are-behaving-strangely-and-scientists-are-perplexed/

Distant 'Baby' Black Holes are behaving strangely, and scientists are perplexed

Radio images of the sky have revealed hundreds of ‘baby’ and supermassive black holes in distant galaxies, with the galaxies’ light bouncing around in unexpected ways.

Galaxies are vast cosmic bodies, tens of thousands of light years in size, made up of gas, dust, and stars (like our Sun).

Given their size, you’d expect the amount of light emitted from galaxies would change slowly and steadily, over timescales far beyond a person’s lifetime.

But our research, published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, found a surprising population of galaxies whose light changes much more quickly, in just a matter of years.

What is a radio galaxy?

Astronomers think there’s a supermassive black hole at the centre of most galaxies. Some of these are ‘active’, which means they emit a lot of radiation.

Their powerful gravitational fields pull in matter from their surroundings and rip it apart into an orbiting donut of hot plasma called an ‘accretion disk’.

This disk orbits the black hole at nearly the speed of light. Magnetic fields accelerate high-energy particles from the disk in long, thin streams or ‘jets’ along the rotational axes of the black hole. As they get further from the black hole, these jets blossom into large mushroom-shaped clouds or ‘lobes’.

This entire structure is what makes up a radio galaxy, so called because it gives off a lot of radio-frequency radiation. It can be hundreds, thousands or even millions of light years across and therefore can take aeons to show any dramatic changes.

Astronomers have long questioned why some radio galaxies host enormous lobes, while others remain small and confined. Two theories exist. One is that the jets are held back by dense material around the black hole, often referred to as frustrated lobes.

However, the details around this phenomenon remain unknown. It’s still unclear whether the lobes are only temporarily confined by a small, extremely dense surrounding environment – or if they’re slowly pushing through a larger but less dense environment.

The second theory to explain smaller lobes is the jets are young and have not yet extended to great distances.

Hercules A’s supermassive black hole emitting high energy particle jets into radio lobes.  (NASA/ESA/NRAO)

Old ones are red, babies are blue

Both young and old radio galaxies can be identified by a clever use of modern radio astronomy: looking at their ‘radio colour’.

We looked at data from the GaLactic and Extragalactic All Sky MWA (GLEAM) survey, which sees the sky at 20 different radio frequencies, giving astronomers an unparalleled ‘radio colour’ view of the sky.

From the data, baby radio galaxies appear blue, which means they’re brighter at higher radio frequencies. Meanwhile the old and dying radio galaxies appear red and are brighter in the lower radio frequencies.

We identified 554 baby radio galaxies. When we looked at identical data taken a year later, we were surprised to see 123 of these were bouncing around in their brightness, appearing to flicker. This left us with a puzzle.

Something more than one light year in size can’t vary so much in brightness over less than one year without breaking the laws of physics. So, either our galaxies were far smaller than expected, or something else was happening.

Luckily, we had the data we needed to find out.

Past research on the variability of radio galaxies has used either a small number of galaxies, archival data collected from many different telescopes, or was conducted using only a single frequency.

For our research, we surveyed more than 21,000 galaxies over one year across multiple radio frequencies. This makes it the first ‘spectral variability’ survey, enabling us to see how galaxies change brightness at different frequencies.

Some of our bouncing baby radio galaxies changed so much over the year we doubt they are babies at all. There’s a chance these compact radio galaxies are actually angsty teens rapidly growing into adults much faster than we expected.

While most of our variable galaxies increased or decreased in brightness by roughly the same amount across all radio colours, some didn’t. Also, 51 galaxies changed in both brightness and colour, which may be a clue as to what causes the variability.

Artist’s impression of SKA-mid (left) and SKA-low (right) telescopes. (SKAO/ICRAR/SARAO)

Three possibilities for what is happening

1) Twinkling galaxies

As light from stars travels through Earth’s atmosphere, it is distorted. This creates the twinkling effect of stars we see in the night sky, called ‘scintillation’. The light from the radio galaxies in this survey passed through our Milky Way galaxy to reach our telescopes on Earth.

Thus, the gas and dust within our galaxy could have distorted it the same way, resulting in a twinkling effect.

2) Looking down the barrel

In our three-dimensional Universe, sometimes black holes shoot high energy particles directly towards us on Earth. These radio galaxies are called ‘blazars’.

Instead of seeing long thin jets and large mushroom-shaped lobes, we see blazars as a very tiny bright dot. They can show extreme variability in short timescales, since any little ejection of matter from the supermassive black hole itself is directed straight towards us.

3) Black hole burps

When the central supermassive black hole ‘burps’ some extra particles they form a clump slowly travelling along the jets. As the clump propagates outwards, we can detect it first in the ‘radio blue’ and then later in the ‘radio red’.

So we may be detecting giant black hole burps slowly travelling through space.

Where to now?

This is the first time we’ve had the technological ability to conduct a large-scale variability survey over multiple radio colours. The results suggest our understanding of the radio sky is lacking and perhaps radio galaxies are more dynamic than we expected.

As the next generation of telescopes come online, in particular the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), astronomers will build up a dynamic picture of the sky over many years.

In the meantime, it’s worth watching these weirdly behaving radio galaxies and keeping a particularly close eye on the bouncing babies, too.

Kathryn Ross, PhD Student, Curtin University and Natasha Hurley-Walker, Radio Astronomer, Curtin University.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

#Space

[mysteriousooze]

Emotional Ectomagnetic Spectrum

Headcanon: the Lantern Corps and ghosts gain power from the same source.

(Scroll to Vlad’s pic for DP content, or past all of the pics for fic content.)

In the DC Universe, there are seven different Lantern Corps. Members use their lanterns to charge their power rings – but where do the lanterns get power?

Emotions. Every sentient being in the universe bleeds emotion, creating an energy field to which the lanterns are connected. Each Corps draws power from a different emotion. (Yeah, it’s hokey. Whatever. That’s canon.)

Who else gains power from emotions?

Ghosts – if you subscribe to a certain headcanon, anyway. Not like Spectra rejuvenating herself; the theory goes that ghosts haunt humans in order to feed on their yummy emotions, thus growing more powerful. And halfas cannibalize their feelings, giving them an internal power source.

If accept those both as true, then it isn’t a stretch to assume ghosts and lanterns tap into the same “emotional electromagnetic spectrum” for energy. Furthermore, I propose that the color of a ghost’s ectoplasm indicates which emotion they draw from the spectrum.

Another DP headcanon: ghosts recharge within the Ghost Zone. It makes sense, if you accept that ghosts need emotional sustenance. The Zone is where they spend most of their time. Of course, this means that the GZ (or ectoplasm in general) is/contains a source of emotional energy.

I submit that the “energy field” the lanterns draw from is the Ghost Zone.

DP canon:

Doors in the GZ can lead to pocket dimensions (like the boy in front of the static TV, you know the one.)

The GZ is a mirror dimension to the “real world,” so close that natural portals open everywhere. If the GZ is destroyed, then so is Earth.

Presumably, the GZ extends beyond the Earth’s atmosphere. A sister dimension brimming with energy, spanning the universe. 

(A metaphor: the “real world” is an assembled puzzle, while the GZ is all of the pieces loose in the box. They align, but not symmetrically. If a piece of the GZ were destroyed, the corresponding piece of the assembled puzzle would be destroyed as well, but not the whole dang puzzle/universe.)

DC canon:

Corps members keep their lanterns in pocket dimensions accessible from a secret location.

This indicates that A) Lanterns are able to reach other dimensions, if very nearby ones, and B) that the location of the pocket dimension is static, relative to the rotation of the planet.

This correlates with DP canon, wherein the Ghost Portal never leads elsewhere as the Earth orbits. The lanterns would also be capable of drawing energy from the GZ.

In conclusion, this all fits together pretty damn well, imo.

But let’s get back to the ghosts.

DC canon: an emotion’s placement on the spectrum indicates how much influence it holds over the wielder. Green, in the middle, is the most stable, but can only be controlled by those of great willpower. We’re starting on the end of the spectrum, however.

Those who are capable of great love, who have lost their loves, or been rejected are capable of wielding the violet light.

Vlad’s motivation is all about love! He yearns for it, would plot and manipulate and kill for it; he feels scorned and deprived of what he deserves. He’s spent his life becoming his idea of the perfect man, all for the sake of love.

Being on the far end of the spectrum, the violet light drives the Star Sapphires to violence through their love. I’m not saying that Vlad isn’t responsible for his own actions; he definitely is. However, I think it’s indicative that he naturally bears the toxic love of the Star Sapphires.

The Star Sapphires are mostly comprised of scorned women. It doesn’t surprise me in the least that Desiree uses the love that betrayed and harmed her to smite revenge upon the living.

Another common trait among the Sapphires is hatred of men – an outdated canon, imo, but it certainly rings true for this ghost.

The Indigo Tribe is a very special Corps, not only for the fact that most of their members are literal slaves to their rings – as it is said people can be slaves to their compassion. The users of this light are capable of absorbing and utilizing the lights of other Corps as they would their own.

Similarly, Ember’s guitar can emit different colors of ectoplasmic attacks, depending on its setting. (I consider Ember’s guitar as intrinsic as Johnny’s shadow.) The theme of being enslaved by a single, overwhelming emotion fits with Ember’s siren-like ability, as well. 

(Disclaimer: I’m not considering her blue hair for the same reason I’m not considering Plasmius’ red eyes. Those are more from their self-perception than the energy they draw from, imo.)

Blue power rings choose those capable of giving hope for the future to others when they have lost theirs.

Even in the depths of a frozen wasteland, Frostbite leads his people with palpable optimism. They’ve achieved science, art, and philosophy worthy of any sci-fi utopia. Their warrior culture is jovial, meant for recreation rather than conflict. He certainly gave hope to Danny.

I never said that ghosts could only use one color, did I?

Danny gained the ability to use blue ectoplasm later in his character development. After he learned to base his self-worth on himself, rather than on others’ opinions; after he wins more fights than he loses; after he gets a handle on his grades. He’s in a more positive place in his life. Most of Amity Park accepts him as a hero, and he’s even on their sign as their town hero. He’s become a symbol of hope.

Now, at this point one might say, “But Amelia, they’re blue because of ice powers.” to which I say, “bullshit.” Ice has no color, and neither does water. They reflect the sky, granting a blue appearance. IMO, their ice powers are illuminated from within by blue ectoplasm.

If you’re still not convinced, here’s another example:

Looks familiar. Pandora ain’t using ice powers; that’s blue ectoplasm. Considering she crafted a box to contain the world’s worst evils in order to make it a better place, I think she qualifies as one who brings hope.

Those of an indomitable will that can overcome great fear are capable of wielding the green light.

This kid was hunted by his parents, his government, terrifying other-dimensional ghosts, and a rich, old man smarter and stronger than himself. His own body didn’t obey him, or even the laws of physics – and that’s not even mentioning the normal perils of puberty! Bullies targeted him; teachers were biased against him; his grades, and all control over his life, were slipping.

Fear dogged his footsteps, but rather than hide, run away, or even keep his head down to make things easier on himself, he chose to fight. It would have been easy to say ‘my parents’ portal, my parents’ problem.’ He tackled his obstacles one day at a time, relentlessly putting the safety of others before his own, and relied on his friends to help him through – even if that just meant goofing off to destress.

That took serious determination – or, shall I say, willpower.

Disclaimer: green is the natural color of ectoplasm. I am not suggesting that the murky depths of the GZ are aglow with the universe’s supply of bullheadedness. Nor do I believe that the Fright Knight’s ectoplasm-empowered/enchanted sword is made of stubborness. All that is charged with willpower is green, but not all that is green is willpower.

(No ghostly examples for these. I blame color palettes, but I’m biased.)

Yellow is close to the center, and like blue, these rings choose those capable of instilling great fear in others.

Orange can be harnessed by those whose greed knows no bounds. Wielders become twisted, obsessively guarding their property and stealing from others. 

I don’t need to tell you about the Ghost King’s breathtaking anger issues.

In DC, the red light of rage has the most profound effect on its wielders of them all. Red Lanterns are reduced to little more than rabid animals, and the rings poison their blood so that if they’re removed, the result is death.

However, ghosts are not Lanterns. They are not beings of flesh and blood overwhelmed by otherworldy power. This isn’t foreign to ghosts. This is a ghost’s natural state of existence.

For example, Vlad exibits negative traits of a Star Sapphire. But in the case of a Corps member (correct me if I’m wrong,) the ring is forcing this behavior. Not the light. The ring. Vlad is perfectly capable of changing his ways, of using the Power of Heart™ for good.

This is why I think Danny can use two different types, with green as his primary color. Not a DP post without a pun. Like when Desiree’s eyes glare crimson when she’s furious – she’s tapping into the red light, but when she attacks, it’s still violet, because love is still her source of power. I’m such a nerd, wow

If we can accept all of that, then we can get to the interesting stuff!

Danny could charge a GL’s ring, but he’d be exhausted afterward and maybe not hold his ghost form. A last resort.

Vlad’s cube thing that doesn’t let Danny use his powers? Could totally work on a Lantern. (The Plasmius Maximus, however, requires ghost biology, so no dice)

Danny’s ghost sense goes off when there’s a Lantern around, but only when the ring’s activated. Same thing with ghost shields – they work when they‘re powered up. The first time GL encounters this, they don’t know that. It’s such a stupidly simple solution they didn’t even consider, so they’re just outside trying to smash through with brute force when they could literally walk right in, its hilarious

Lanterns are basically artificial halfas. None of the really fun powers, like invisibility/intangibility, but anything that involves shaping or charging ectoplasm? They’re experts

GL could totally teach Danny how to use some of  his powers

The Oans probably have the technology to stabilize Dani

The Fenton’s portal? That engine Jack made that uses ghosts as an energy source? Or really any of their ghost tech? Is basically following the same path of technological development as the Oans! GLs can track ecto-technology on their rings, as long as its active. Imagine their shock when they find Oan-like tech on Earth! They know about the emotional spectrum, but that’s it. The Oans don’t want anyone replicating their technology, so their people have no idea where their power really comes from If the GLs report back to the Oans about ecto-tech development on Earth, things may get political real fast

If the suit Technus made for Valerie is powered by the red light, what if it starts influencing her personality/emotions?

GL could take Danny into space. GL could take Danny to visit other planets. Danny could explore space with the Lanterns and he would be so happy

Danny vs GL: if it boils down to a battle of stamina, GL wins. His ring has more lasting power than Danny. As a halfa, however, Danny has full ghost powers; if he’s tricky enough, he could squeeze out a win. GL, on the other hand, is only limited by his imagination in what he can create. I’m inclined to say GL would win, unless Danny is willing to use the Ghostly Wail to knock him out, then flee on foot – but even then, GL’s ring would have a recording of him becoming Danny Fenton (Plus GL has way more allies than Danny. Basically, our boy might win a battle, but def not the war)

The Oans and the Observants could totally be in cahoots, and neither of them like Danny

That pocket dimension GLs keep their Lanterns in could totally be behind a locked door in the GZ, and now I’m imagining Vlad scheming up a way to find one

What if GL’s space travel utilizes the GZ’s natural portals like the infi-map?

There’s so much potential here, guys!!

[ftnbooks-blog]

A large text this time by Ludwig Seyfarth ,which can also be found on the Paul Schwer site. Why?…because FTN art has acquired 2 works by Paul Schwer and which will be for sale shortly.

„One would be tempted to believe that this structure used to have some convenient form, and now it was only broken. This does not seem to be the case; at least there is no indication; nowhere are approaches or fractures to be seen that would point to such a thing; The whole thing seems pointless, but completed in its kind. Incidentally, nothing more can be said about it, since Odradek is extremely flexible and can not be caught. „- From: Franz Kafka, The Care of the House Father

Extremely agile and unstoppable – that‘s also what Paul Schwer and his art say. The objects (an auxiliary term for quite different things) that Schwer produces do not move themselves, but almost systematically dispense with the usual names and categories with which works of art are classed in terms of genre, media or style.

How consistently Paul Schwer places his work between the chairs of conventional art forms, the various attempts make it clear that they capture it in an orderly manner. In the Wikipedia article he is called installation artist. On the website of the Goch Museum, he is considered one of the most famous German sculptors. And the radio contribution by Thomas Frank, which was broadcast to the exhibitions in Ratingen and Goch, sees the aspect of extended painting as central, thus ultimately following the artist himself. Somewhat surprisingly, he then places Paul Schwer in the art-historical tradition of stained glass. The fact that each interpreter sees a different artist, depending on the perspective, could be due to a very divergent design vocabulary within the work. Even well-known artistic oeuvres do not offer a uniform picture. Suppose someone is not familiar with Pablo Picasso‘s work and enters a solo exhibition of this painter who has become the cliché of the modern artist. If he then sees works from the blue and pink period, then the cubist, the classicist and the later phases, he is likely to expect to attend a group exhibition.

That would hardly be suspected in an exhibition by Paul Schwer despite the diversity of media and materials. Plexiglass and polyethylene terephthalate (PET9, wood or fluorescent tubes are repeatedly used materials that, in addition to a clear color, a game with transparency and semi-transparency and a play of surface shapes and complex volumes,a clear, consistent „handwriting“.

At the same time, however, seemingly contradictory things are always connected with each other. Both the individual object as well as an overall arrangement in an exhibition or in an outdoor space (often Paul Schwers works outdoors) often suggest a lability and fragility, a situation that would immediately get out of hand with a small change in the heavyweight.

Not just a house is upside down, on the edge of the roof (which we will come to). The relationship between two- and three-dimensionality always stands in the balance. The „painterly“ application of color does not take place on a flat surface. The most common image carrier is a transparent, heated PET fluid (or Plexiglas) that has been thrown in a fluid state and re-hardened. Thus, the „image ground“ becomes a plastic, free-standing object or lying on the ground object. The latter is reminiscent of the irregular outline of a crumpled paper, as if a picture or a drawing were discarded and thrown away, which also applies to the various red forms in the exhibition in Goch.

Thus, each image is simultaneously a sculpture, with sculptural elements, so to speak on the other side, also tending to be architectural elements in space. The prototype for this are the natural-brown or green lattices, which are made of roof battens and based on the outline of two pillars in the room, which reach below the ceiling in Goch and divide one of the two exhibition rooms, divided into different directions, into compartments. However, these rooms in the room are not completed; The grids are not fixed walls, but largely open to the view. The different sawed out sections correspond exactly to the dimensions of the door and window openings of the room. Other elements that also have an optical outline function are colored rectangular discs made of corrugated polyester, which hang pictures on the construction like single panels – not all at the usual eye level, but their size and position is also derived from the architectural conditions of the room.

The reference to the conditions of space based on strictly geometrical forms and dimensions could almost be read as a continuation of the tradition of Minimal Art. But one may also be reminded of the Cabinet of Abstracts, which El Lissitzky set up between 1926 and 1928 in the Sprengel Museum Hannover and which since 2017 has been accessible there as a reconstruction. Lissitzky designed a kind of Gesamtkunstwerk for the presentation of works by other artists as well, based on a clear constructivist vocabulary of forms. However, Paul Schwer also incorporates in his „Gesamtkunstwerk“ other elements that would be unthinkable to Lissitzky or strict minimalists. Thus, several red PET objects form a radical contrast to the geometric reduction. Complex wrinkled and folded forms can not be grasped at a glance, suggesting a baroque overabundance, an impression of the random and the chaotic. A staging of the exhibition space based on such strong formal counterparts may seem like an attempt to bring things right back to their original level after an explosion or other destruction.

The corrugated iron hut, which stands diagonally upside down in the other showroom, could also have been torn away by a flood. It does not seem habitable anymore, even when light is on. Inside, there is an accumulation of fluorescent tubes, the cables of which hang down at the bottom, reminiscent of a torrent of water.

„Model“ for this architectural sculpture is a corrugated iron hut that Paul Schwer has seen far away from human settlements in Iceland. Travel memories often form associative starting points for his spatial stagings. The second room was inspired by the facade of a vegetable shop in Istanbul, where the artist had a scholarship in 2015.

However, such references and narrative references never become clear; mental impressions, like physical materials, enter into the composition of an „installation“. After all, is Paul Schwer ultimately an „installation artist“ who combines various individual elements into a spatial entity? Or does he create three-dimensional images that extend concepts of painting into space? Even though Paul Schwer himself, as already mentioned, tends towards the latter „categorization“, in the end it is up to us how we classify our mode of experience conceptually. The emotional impact can also vary depending on the observer. Thus, the strong color and the physical force of the sculptural forms combined with the often surprising light effects of the fluorescent tubes can trigger a feeling of expressive affection. If you look more closely at the constructive components, you will discover in Paul Schwer‘s work a seemingly contradictory, almost hermetic feature, in which the elements, as on different levels of presentation, almost seem to interlock with one another like a Russian doll.

Furthermore, one could ask how Paul Schwer‘s art of spatial presentation could be classified in the context of contemporary installation art. If we follow Claire Bishop‘s 2005 installmentage „Criitical History“ in the Tate Modern Press, different forms of installation are distinguished not by their spatial presentation, but by the way they are viewed („viewer“) that are, are mentally and physically involved. Dream scene, heightened perception, Mimetic engulfment and Activated Spectatorship are the guidelines here, which are also based on different subject theories. The recipient subject is involved, but also decentred: psychoanalytically, phenomenologically, libidinally or in the sense of a post-structuralist political subject.

The receiving subject is called upon to actively explore the spatial staging. But this is no self­assured subject with a sovereign command of a unitary space as in Renaissance perspective but one that is decentred in the sense of post­structuralist theories. There is no sovereign viewer’s standpoint from where the entire spatial installation can be grasped in one sweep. This is a central characteristic of Paul Schwer’s spatial stagings, aligning them with the procedures of many well­known installation artists like Allan Kapow, Lucas Samaras, Paul Thek, Ilya Kabakov, and Gregor Schneider.

However, the combination of different, seemingly incongruent things in stage­like spatial ensembles also calls to mind the psychoanalytically inspired combinatorics of the Surrealists. And perhaps the individual elements brought together by Paul Schwer take on a »sense« only if read as Freud read dreams: as picture puzzles whose deeper meaning does not lie in what is to be seen in the images.

Paul Schwer (1951) A large text this time by Ludwig Seyfarth ,which can also be found on the Paul Schwer site.

[dorcasrempel]

A new way to corrosion-proof thin atomic sheets

A variety of two-dimensional materials that have promising properties for optical, electronic, or optoelectronic applications have been held back by the fact that they quickly degrade when exposed to oxygen and water vapor. The protective coatings developed thus far have proven to be expensive and toxic, and cannot be taken off.

Now, a team of researchers at MIT and elsewhere has developed an ultrathin coating that is inexpensive, simple to apply, and can be removed by applying certain acids.

The new coating could open up a wide variety of potential applications for these “fascinating” 2D materials, the researchers say. Their findings are reported this week in the journal PNAS, in a paper by MIT graduate student Cong Su; professors Ju Li, Jing Kong, Mircea Dinca, and Juejun Hu; and 13 others at MIT and in Australia, China, Denmark, Japan, and the U.K.

Research on 2D materials, which form thin sheets just one or a few atoms thick, is “a very active field,” Li says. Because of their unusual electronic and optical properties, these materials have promising applications, such as highly sensitive light detectors. But many of them, including black phosphorus and a whole category of materials known as transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), corrode when exposed to humid air or to various chemicals. Many of them degrade significantly in just hours, precluding their usefulness for real-world applications.

“It’s a key issue” for the development of such materials, Li says. “If you cannot stabilize them in air, their processability and usefulness is limited.” One reason silicon has become such a ubiquitous material for electronic devices, he says, is because it naturally forms a protective layer of silicon dioxide on its surface when exposed to air, preventing further degradation of the surface. But that’s more difficult with these atomically thin materials, whose total thickness could be even less than the silicon dioxide protective layer.

There have been attempts to coat various 2D materials with a protective barrier, but so far they have had serious limitations. Most coatings are much thicker than the 2D materials themselves. Most are also very brittle, easily forming cracks that let through the corroding liquid or vapor, and many are also quite toxic, creating problems with handling and disposal.

The new coating, based on a family of compounds known as linear alkylamines, improves on these drawbacks, the researchers say. The material can be applied in ultrathin layers, as little as 1 nanometer (a billionth of a meter) thick, and further heating of the material after application heals tiny cracks to form a contiguous barrier. The coating is not only impervious to a variety of liquids and solvents but also significantly blocks the penetration of oxygen. And, it can be removed later if needed by certain organic acids.

“This is a unique approach” to protecting thin atomic sheets, Li says, that produces an extra layer just a single molecule thick, known as a monolayer, that provides remarkably durable protection. “This gives the material a factor of 100 longer lifetime,” he says, extending the processability and usability of some of these materials from a few hours up to months. And the coating compound is “very cheap and easy to apply,” he adds.

In addition to theoretical modeling of the molecular behavior of these coatings, the team made a working photodetector from flakes of TMD material protected with the new coating, as a proof of concept. The coating material is hydrophobic, meaning that it strongly repels water, which otherwise would diffuse into the coating and dissolve away a naturally formed protective oxide layer within the coating, leading to rapid corrosion.

The application of the coating is a very simple process, Su explains. The 2D material is simply placed into bath of liquid hexylamine, a form of the linear alkylamine, which builds up the protective coating after about 20 minutes, at a temperature of 130 degrees Celsius at normal pressure. Then, to produce a smooth, crack-free surface, the material is immersed for another 20 minutes in vapor of the same hexylamine.

“You just put the wafer into this liquid chemical and let it be heated,” Su says. “Basically, that’s it.” The coating “is pretty stable, but it can be removed by certain very specific organic acids.”

The use of such coatings could open up new areas of research on promising 2D materials, including the TMDs and black phosphorous, but potentially also silicene, stanine, and other related materials. Since black phosphorous is the most vulnerable and easily degraded of all these materials, that’s what the team used for their initial proof of concept.

The new coating could provide a way of overcoming “the first hurdle to using these fascinating 2D materials,” Su says. “Practically speaking, you need to deal with the degradation during processing before you can use these for any applications,” and that step has now been accomplished, he says.

The team included researchers in MIT’s departments of Nuclear Science and Engineering, Chemistry, Materials Science and Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and the Research Laboratory of Electronics, as well as others at the Australian National University, the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Aarhus University in Denmark, Oxford University, and Shinshu University in Japan. The work was supported by the Center for Excitonics and the Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, and by the National Science Foundation, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Royal Society, the U.S. Army Research Office through the MIT Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies, and Tohoku University.

A new way to corrosion-proof thin atomic sheets syndicated from https://osmowaterfilters.blogspot.com/

[argorpg-blog]

CONGRATULATIONS and welcome to the crew of the Argo II, ROSE! The Gods have spoken: welcome aboard AMARUS, known as KIT ALEXANDER, with a faceclaim of AVAN JOGIA. Please take a look at our checklist, and send in your account in the next 24 hours.

ADMIN NOTES: Rose! The amount of detail and thought you put into your app was just astounding. Those little bits of color and extra thought (”plum carpet”!!) managed to make Kit a three dimensional, complex character to fall in love with. We were both absolutely blown away by the way you managed to convey his bitterness and complication with the gods without making it seem too overdone. We love Kit, and we’re excited to see him here!

OUT OF CHARACTER

NAME/ALIAS: Rose AGE, TIMEZONE, PRONOUNS: 20, GMT, she/her ACTIVITY  & EXTRAS: I’m a university student who also works part-time, so I’m a busy bee lol. But I always find time to write so I should be around lurking pretty much always, and if not here for replies everyday, then every other day or so. Also I’ve kinda fallen in love with this rp, you’ve done a fantastic job.

IN CHARACTER

DESIRED SKELETON: Amarus CHARACTER NAME: Kit Alexander AGE & GENDER: 25, cismale, he/him FACECLAIM: Avan Jogia, Matthew Daddario, Ezra Miller

BIOGRAPHY:

Fortune favored the bold. Your father might have been bold once- must have been to have endeared himself to a deathless goddess who walked the world with wind in her hair, dispensing luck with a brush of her fingers and a heady smile. But you knew him in the aftermath of that intoxication. Luck left your father, but he’d already fallen headfirst into her thrall. Your earliest memories are of sitting at your father’s feet, halfway under the table, tiny fists clenched around a toy car as men who seemed larger than life roared at a television across the room, money changing hands. The plum colored carpeting of your living room caught the wheels of your car, but the tile of the place where your father leaned over the counter and wrote checks in his tightly looping script was better, even though you were told off when the toy’s tiny plastic wheels left marks on the walls. Your father would strap you into the car, pressing a kiss on the top of your head and whispering that you were his lucky charm.

School was when you first discovered other children. Before then it had been you and your father, the men who came to the little home you shared to yell as if the horses, or dogs, or baseball players who flickered on the tv could hear, and grumble as bills were passed across the table, the men who looked over their counters to smile down at you, asking you questions as you slipped to safety behind your father’s legs. You didn’t know how other kids worked, didn’t know the right things to say or do. It didn’t help that your father’s luck, a fickle, nebulous thing, swung your lives between poverty and excess with seemingly no rhyme or reason. Children weren’t kind to silent little boys who came to school in threadbare clothes but with the newest gameboy tucked in their bags, more inclined to speak in whispers to adults than learn the latest skipping game than dominated the playground. Teachers were at a loss as to what to do with little boys who seemed to take innately to math- reeling off probability as if was second nature- but hardly spoke to anyone.

In a life dictated by your father’s fortune, the infectious joy of his successes buoyed you between the dark periods when a gamble didn’t go his way. Being someone’s lucky charm only earns you praise until their luck fails. Betting evolved from a hobby, a diversion, to an occupation by the time you were old enough to compare your life to those of your classmates and find it lacking. Maybe that was why your father’s fortune took a sharp turn for the worse when you were eight, and watching mothers pick up their children as you sat in front of school, heart leaping every time you thought you saw your father’s car. A string of losses led to the loss of the house with the plum carpet, the loss of the comforting weight of your father’s hand on your head, the whispered assertion that you were his joy, his happiness, his lucky charm.

But fortune hadn’t forsaken all those around you. A girl who shared her snack with you did a perfect cartwheel at recess. The cat who lived in the apartment next to the one you and you father had eventually left the back of the car for narrowly avoided the wheels of a speeding truck as it sauntered off, leaving you wide-eyed from where you had been crouched in the gutter, petting it. While you sat, swinging your legs, at the kitchen table of the old lady who lived downstairs and tutted until you agreed to come in for a slice of cake, she found her wedding ring down the back of a chair. It had been lost for years. She’d cried, pulled you into a hug, called you lucky. You’d smiled, shoveled the rest of the cake into your mouth, turned tail and ran.

When you were fourteen, limbs made to look even ganglier by clothing that was inevitably too short, you decided that the universe demanded balance and you were its scapegoat. A turn of good luck for those around you was more often than not your misfortune. Even when you saw the first monster, your voice breaking around a scream at the eyes and the teeth and the smile, sprinting down the road, weaving around obstacles, you pushed against a man, who stumbled away and out of the path of a bucket of paint falling from a window a level above the sidewalk. He was saved a nasty concussion, at the very least, but you were slowed by the collision. Within the block the thing had you in it’s claws, fingers boring punctures into your arm, bruises blooming almost immediately. You’d wiggled free, loosing your jacket as you kicked and writhed, and when you fell hard back to the ground it might have been luck that put a brick within arm’s reach. Might have been luck that saw the brick’s arching trajectory straight into the creature’s yellow eye. But it just as easily could’ve been coincidence, and the good aim that had you picked early in P.E. despite your reputation as a pariah. You didn’t put much stock in luck, anyway.

Your father noticed the loss of the jacket more than the blood that stained your sleeve, and the bruises that steadily turned purple, then green, then yellow. You grew even warier than you had been, keeping your back to walls and keeping to yourself. It didn’t help. The next monster chased you for further than you had ever run, pushed you out into the edges of the city where you passed empty storefronts without really seeing them. By the time you stopped running, when you couldn’t have run any more, the monster was gone- where and since when you couldn’t have guessed. It was there, slumped against the wall of an abandoned strip mall full of shattered glass and trash trapped in dying weeds, that your mother came to you for the first time.

Fortuna smiled, and you were caught between laughing and crying, between confusion and anger, dark humor and utter exhaustion.

Going to Lupa was a better alternative than continuing to try your luck with your father, who had increasingly begun to pretend you didn’t exist. Camp Jupiter, where you weren’t chased by monsters and disappointment, was better than peeling linoleum and empty stares. The Romans welcomed you with open arms- a son of Fortuna was a good sign, a good addition to any legion, a source from which to take good favor as if it were nothing. When war came knocking, and the demigods stormed Mount Othrys like so many child soldiers, you were there. You’d thrown yourself into training, trying to dig out a place for yourself by your own merit, but you’d never be as gifted with a sword as a child of Mars, as tactically minded as one of Minerva. When you were there at the defeat of Krios, watching people you’d known for years be wounded, die, you were there as a lucky charm.

Your mother was beloved, feasts were held for her, and yet when you looked at the tattoo that held her symbol it was with a resentment that was unshakable. As the lines under your tattoo signifying your years in the legion multiplied, you surrounded them with art snaking up and down your arms that had nothing to do with your mother or the other gods and goddesses whose children were nothing but pawns in a greater game. You smothered the implication of your loyalty with flowers and vines, animals and symbols. But you didn’t bother to smother your cynicism. And all people saw was the outstretched, kind hand of luck regardless.

FATAL FLAW/DEFINING CHARACTERISTIC:

Amarus- bitter

Kit has never been shy about his distrust of the gods. As far as he’s concerned, the entire pantheon is full of dysfunctional and manipulative egotists, and the Romans are tragically deluded in their devotion. Even before he discovered the truth of his parentage and all that that meant, he was already skeptical of luck- the thing that just so happened to be his birthright, and utterly inescapable. That his childhood was so consumed by the fickleness of fortune made him bitter from the start- when he arrived at Camp Jupiter as a long-legged fourteen year old it was with tired eyes and a prematurely jaded attitude.

His bitterness made him ambivalent for years, but since he’s gotten older it’s morphed into something harder. To let himself be buffeted around by the whims of his mother and the rest of the gods and goddesses is to let them win. Kit is no optimist, but he’s fighting for something better regardless of the fact that losing seems inevitable. He’s driven by resentment, and it could very easily be his downfall.

Entwined as his future is with the gods and goddesses as well as his fellow demigods, it’s only a matter of time that his derision of the divine sparks with someone’s quick temper. His distrust is so invasive that he’s wary of any help the gods try to extend to anyone, regardless of the situation. In terms of character growth and development, this could definitely change, but his reasons for accepting the call to arms in this quest are decidedly not born of any loyalty to his mother.  

EXTRAS:

cultivated contention: I’d like to explore Kit’s interactions with the Greek demigods relating to the feud and separation that the gods created between the two groups. For him, it’s just another in a string of manipulations and lies coming from the careless pantheon, it’ll be interesting to see how he responds to this once his knee-jerk reaction to be friendly with the Greeks just to spite the gods wanes.

fundamental differences: In a world so concentrated in the godly, Kit defines himself through his distrust of the gods. I’d like to see him befriending someone who’s on this quest for all the right reasons despite this completely different worldview.

in the end, all there is is luck: Exploring Kit’s response to any sort of intervention or aid from his mother would be very interesting. Depending on the situation it could be philosophy-shifting.

[sciforce]

A Quick Guide to E-Learning Tools: Virtual/Augmented Reality

E-learning has long proved to be a part of our lives with numerous educational platforms and online courses offered by renowned universities — as well as small groups of enthusiasts — not to mention dedicated corporate courses and trainings. At Sciforce, we also give our colleagues an opportunity to obtain new skills and deepen their knowledge at our Sciforce Academy.

Yet, modern technologies let us go far beyond traditional online lectures, peer forums and occasional tutoring — adding a new dimension to teaching practices and bringing fun and the feeling of discovery to students.

In this brief guide we’ll ponder over modern technologies in education and their potential to change the learning experience.

The first tool we are going to discuss is virtual/augmented reality — the reality which has been around in one form or another for many years. The term virtual reality is used to describe an immersive experience in an environment which is generated by the computer and doesn’t actually exist but which is presented to our senses in such a way that we experience it as if we were really there. Augmented reality, on the contrary, combines digital information with the existing environment: a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented (or supplemented) by computer-generated sensory input, including sound, video, graphics or GPS data.

Everyone remembers the recent PokemonGo craze and the desire of almost every teenage to be an owner of the Google Glass. As a toy, it may keep you busy for a month. As a learning tool, it has the potential to revolutionize the educational process. It enables students to immerse themselves in a highly engaging 3D environment while letting them practice without fear of any harm.

High-Risk Training

The sphere that immediately comes to mind is simulation of high-risk scenarios. Virtually any industry that involves risk-taking can benefit from augmented reality which mimics every aspects of the real world. Ideally, it can be done in real time so that students will experience the same pressure and stress. As a result, students would gain valuable experience about the consequences of their actions and decisions without leaving the safety of their classroom. Virtual reality will lead them through a volcano eruption or extinguishing a fire in a skyscraper without staking their lives and health.

Medical training

Another sphere which would benefit from both virtual and augmented reality is training of future health professionals. Perhaps one of the main features of virtual reality is that it can be used to teach healthcare professionals new skills or refresh their existing skills within the safe environment and without causing any danger to patients.

The new technologies will help medical practitioners to immerse themselves into the 3D view of the human anatomy and lead them through complex medical procedures by letting them practice by virtually touching and manipulating objects. The ability to get real-time live feedback regarding a serious medical situation is quite profound and much better than any viable solution at the moment then see which body part was affected or visualize ways in which to treat or assess the situation.

Language learning

Virtual or augmented reality can reinvent the process of language –and culture — learning. Ideally, a student could be sitting at the desk learning French, and an augmented reality glasses could project a French classroom setting. This would immerse students not only in the language but in the culture. Or to go a step further, augmented glasses could project a real-time French classroom that they would be able to interact with just like the one they were currently in.

And can you imagine studying Shakespeare in the engaging yet safe 3D setting of the medieval town as it was seen by the poets’ contemporaries?

AR Microlearning Resources

Augmented reality click-and-scan technology is already in use. People can scan an augmented reality code or trigger object to learn more about the corresponding. In education, a chemistry textbook might transport students to a virtual lab where they conduct experiments learning about chemical reactions and compounds.

Augmented reality resource links can also be incorporated into eLearning materials to enrich them with interesting facts, stats, and ideas that allow online learners to explore on their own. Educators might develop an augmented reality resource list that features microlearning content to provide learners with immediate eLearning support, as the augmented reality activities are bite-sized and easily accessible.

3D Learning Models

In the past, online learners were able to view static images, diagrams, and charts on their computer screen. Augmented reality gives them the ability to manipulate three-dimensional visualizations or even interact with hot spots to learn more about the individual components. For example, a clickable 3D diagram of manufacturing equipment or a process line highlights the characteristics and functions of each part and component. These same principles can be applied to any complicated process in every field, from a model that illustrates photosynthesis at a cellular level to a visualization of deep learning process.

Online Group Collaboration Projects That Span The Globe

With eLearning augmented reality geography is no longer a barrier, and all online learners can share ideas and feedback in a virtual meeting space. They’re able to use mobile devices and smart glasses to make the experience even more interactive, the feature that changes the whole concept of the classroom. As Sharon Stoerger, a professor at Rutgers University, put it, “These virtual world experiences also extend the boundaries of the traditional classroom where collective intelligence, as opposed to individual experience, becomes an important approach.”

Surely enough, virtual and augmented reality applications are quite costly and require much effort to transfer all types of learning to virtual & augmented reality due to the resources required. Nevertheless, they have the capacity to engage learners and this is the heart of any instruction. Now, when students want to be both educated and entertained, these technologies are poised to become prevalent in the future.

Augmented reality is just taking its first steps into the consumer world, and the possibilities associated with this technology are fascinating. Whether it will be a huge commercial success has yet to be seen, but its potential is unavoidable.

[micaramel]

Artist: Mai-Thu Perret

Venue: David Kordansky, Los Angeles

Exhibition Title: Féminaire

Date: May 19 – July 1, 2017

Click here to view slideshow

Full gallery of images, press release and link available after the jump.

Images:

Images courtesy of David Kordansky, Los Angeles. Photos by Brian Forrest.

Press Release:

David Kordansky Gallery is pleased to announce Féminaire, a new exhibition by Mai-Thu Perret. The show will open on May 19 and remain on view through July 1, 2017. An opening reception will be held on Friday, May 19 from 6:00pm until 8:00pm.

Mai-Thu Perret’s sculptures, ceramic works, performances, and texts exist at the intersection of contemporary culture, art historical insight, and visceral materiality. She explores (and generates) feminist narratives and counter-narratives that cast the role of the art object in new light, introducing utilitarian, symbolic, and even mystical possibilities in contexts that are often limited to formalist readings.

Féminaire consists primarily of two bodies of work: a monumental installation of figurative sculptures positioned on a single plinth and a gridded wall arrangement of dozens of ceramic wall pieces. These distinct groups of objects are positioned at either end of the gallery, creating a showdown of competing geometries whose gravity and imposing presence are reminiscent of political monuments and spiritual architecture.

The title of the figures, Les guérillères, is borrowed from a 1969 novel by Monique Wittig that tells the speculative story of a war waged by women to take control of society. Its militant protagonists find echoes in Perret’s sculptures, which are also informed by the YPJ, a real-world female militia that has been fighting in the ongoing Syrian civil war. The figures are constructed as three-dimensional collages, and the artist makes use of her entire repertoire of materials, including glazed ceramics, steel, papier-mâché, wicker, and bronze, as well as found elements like synthetic hair and clothing. The sculptures stand and sit in various positions of waiting and repose, actively pensive and patient. Many of them carry guns, and in one case a ceramic dog lies nearby on a wool blanket. Warriors at rest, far from home but resonant of domestic textures, they are reminders that war extends beyond the battlefield into every facet of life, and that in armed conflicts, culture is just as contested as territory.

Perret evokes both the formality of battle memorials and an archaic sense of ceremony by placing the sculptures together on a chest-high base with a sloping front-side. Like mannequins or cyborgs, they broadcast an uncanny, silent gaze that implicates the viewer in their world; but because they are in fact modeled on the forms and faces of the artist’s friends, they deny retreat into purely fictional anonymity. As in the work of relevant predecessors Edward Kienholz and Paul Thek, Perret’s art conjures the intensity of living beings with tangible bodies.

Immediate physicality is also a defining feature of the ceramic wall works that hang opposite the figures. Hung in a grid-like arrangement, they too have been configured so that each object functions both on its own and as part of an overarching totality. Feelings of transcendent universality, specifically the historic appeals to spirit of geometric abstraction, are presented as not only coexistent with, but inseparable from human passions and particularities.

Beginning with uniform rectangular slabs, Perret uses her hands to distort the material into torqued, unpredictable shapes; the depth and variation of applied glazes accentuate their contours and dimensional relief. Each therefore records a clearly articulated interaction between the artist’s body and the clay that absorbs her actions. As a material with implied connections to the body, both in terms of its inherent malleability as well as the vessels it has been used to create for millennia, the clay offers an alternative (if less explicit) mode of figuration when seen alongside the sculptures that stare back from across the room. At the same time, with their nuanced colors and hanging relationship to the wall, these works also find Perret engaging in conversations commonly associated with painting.

An image-based screen-print endows the physical and formal issues raised throughout the exhibition with the suggestion of a narrative framework. For such works, Perret typically borrows from literary and philosophical sources, but also generates her own Dadaist interventions. This enigmatic print, evocative of a page from a book or a poster announcing a performance, also emphasizes the circular nature of her practice: at the beginning of her career, the artist composed a fictional narrative entitled The Crystal Frontier that documents the activity of women in a separatist utopian community. The objects in Féminaire can be seen as elements in an exploded version of this foundational text, and the evolution of Perret’s practice can be understood as a circular process that challenges the dominant linearity of prevailing historical models.

In 2016, Mai-Thu Perret (b. 1976, Geneva) was the subject of a solo exhibition at the Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas. Other recent solo exhibitions include shows at NICC, Brussels (through June 1, 2017); Fondation Speerstra, Apples, Switzerland (with Martine Bedin, 2014); Le Magasin, Grenoble, France (2012); Haus Konstruktiv, Zurich (2011); and the University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor (2010). Forthcoming and recent group exhibitions include Medusa, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, France (2017); India’s Search for Power 1966 – 1982 (Indhira Gandhi’s Foreign Policy), Dak’Art 2016, Biennale de l’Art Africain Contemporain, Dakar, Senegal (2017); NO MAN’S LAND: Women Artists from the Rubell Family Collection, Rubell Family Collection, Miami (2015); Collection on Display: Experimental Arrangements, Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Zurich (2015); Female Power, Museum voor Moderne Kunst Arnhem, The Netherlands (2013); Anti-Establishment, CCS Bard Hessel Museum, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York (2012); and ILLUMInations, International Pavilion, 54th Venice Biennale (2011). Perret lives and works in Geneva.

Link: Mai-Thu Perret at David Kordansky

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