So I visited the new gym on Friday.

For those of you who don’t know, my school’s been involved in a ridiculously extravagant, multimillion-dollar building project that is supposed to include all of the athletic student centres for the past few years. I’ve been paying for it through the nose and it is finally [somewhat] finished. Funnily enough, my group was the last to go through before the university got official occupany of the place, meaning it was still considered a construction site in the hands of the building company. Therefore… about thirty of us packed into a trailer for a safety lecture, had to sign a waiver, and another in-and-out sheet just to make sure we wouldn’t die while on the tour.

A scuffle for steel-toed boots, helmets, safety goggles and vests later………… and it was SO worth it.
There is no other way to describe the new place but IMMENSE. It’s clean, and huge, and I think at least six of the old gyms could fit into the new one. The pool is beautiful. Wet classroom. Accessibility options with both a ramp and elevator into the pool. It’s light and airy. The ellipticals and treadmills have built-in televisions, iPod docks and USB ports. The dance studios are spacious and bright. The locker rooms go on. And on. And on. The two elevators each fit 20+ people.

The only downside is the vast amount of stairs the place has. A couple stories underground (but they still managed to make it light!) and a few more above ground…. though I suppose whichever way you look at it you’ll be getting a workout inside that building.

The food court (and I loathe that term.. it conjures images of greasy, brat-infested malls and stressed out MILFs with designer bags in hand) is quite nice. I’m excited. Beyond belief.

On a totally different track, I watched all 11 episodes of ‘Bloody Monday’ in less than 24 hours this past weekend (so much for productivity). First of all, it was quite an interesting theme, and quite well done. There are a lot of plot twists you wouldn’t necessarily expect out of the characters–a lot more captivating than a regular romance drama. What strikes me as strange is that in Japan, dramas and crime shows are pretty much considered the same thing. Over here, soap opera stars and CSI actors do not regularly play each other’s roles, while in Japanese TV, they do. They did try to make Bloody Monday like 24, but it’s not really the same premise. Anyway, it’s weird how lovey dovey drama actors show up in crime shows. I liked BOSS a lot, and Kurosagi, both shows dealing with crime, but this one was even more intense.

Basically, it’s about a high school student who is a genius hacker, enlisted by the government to help them combat a group of terrorists who are about to unleash a deadly virus on Tokyo. You definitely have to suspend your disbelief for some parts in the plot (how does the main character survive so many gunfights with only his skinny body and HP laptop??), but other than that I would recommend it if you’re bored and need something to do.

By the way, that IS a guy in the picture. I’m 99% sure the guys wear eyeliner in that drama. There’s no way their eyes can stand out so much otherwise.

As for the acting… well Miura Haruma was okay. I mean. The hacking parts are pretty cool. Or maybe I’m just a nerd. But anyway, yeah he’s good except for when he smiles or laughs, it looks so strange and out of character. Granted, for 90% of the drama he is either desperately trying to save someone, having someone killed in front of him, being shot at, or rescuing his ill sister. The terrorist woman is really creepy. Don’t remember the actress’ name but her character is…well it’s well played, probably the best out of all the terrorists.

Bloody Monday 2 coming out in January w0000000000t.

He was Nuh Ibn Lamik, Ibn Mitoshilkh, Ibn Idris (Enoch), Ibn yard, Ibn Mahlabeel, Ibn Qinan, Ibn Anoush, Ibn Seth, Ibn Adam the Father of Mankind (PBUH).
According to the history of the People of the Book, (refers to the Jews, and Christians, so called by Allah because they received Revealed Books, Taurat, Zabur and Injeel. These names are translated ‘Torah, Psalms, and Gospels’ respectively, but the books that are extent are corrupt. Of the Revealed Books, ONLY the Quran remains exactly as it was revealed).

the period between the birth of Nuh and the death of Adam was 146 years. (According to Genesis 5 (new Revised Standard Version), Nuh was born one hundred and twenty six years after the death of Adam. Ibn Abbas narrated that the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: “The period between Adam and Nuh was ten centuries.” (Sahih Bukhari, Nuh was born 1056 years after Adam’s creation (or after he left the Garden of Eden). Thus, this hadith does not contradict the previous statement from the People of the Book as it may first appear to do. The reader should keep in mind, however that any statement or narratives taken from the People of the Book are not necessarily credible. This was taken from Genesis 5).

For many generations Nuh’s people had been worshipping statues that they called gods. They believed that these gods would bring them good, protect them from evil and provide all their needs. They gave their idols names such as Waddan, Suwa’an, Yaghutha, Ya’auga, and Nasran, (These idols represented, respectively, manly power; mutability, beauty; brute strength, swiftness, sharp sight, insight) according to the power they thought these gods possessed.

Allah the Almighty revealed:

“They (idolaters) have said: “You shall not leave your gods nor shall you leave Wadd, nor Suwa, nor Yaghuth, nor Ya uq nor Nasr (names of the idols).” (71:23 Quran).

Originally these were the names of good people who had lived among them. After their deaths, statues of them were erected to keep their memories alive. After sometime, however, people began to worship these statues. Later generations did not even know why they had been erected; they only knew their parents had prayed to them. That is how idol worshipping developed. Since they had no understanding of Allah the Almighty Who would punish them for their evil deeds, they became cruel and immoral.

Ibn Abbas explained: “Following upon the death of those righteous men, Satan inspired their people to erect statues in the places where they used to sit. They did this, but these statues were not worshiped until the coming generations deviated from the right way of life. Then they worshipped them as their idols.”

In his version, Ibn Jarir narrated: “There were righteous people who lived in the period between Adam and Nuh and who had followers who held them as models. After their death, their friends who used to emulate them said: ‘If we make statues of them, it will be more pleasing to us in our worship and will remind us of them.’ So they built statues of them, and , after they had died and others came after them, Iblis crept into their minds saying:’Your forefathers used to worship them, and through that worship they got rain.’ So they worshipped them.”

Ibn Abi Hatim related this story: “Waddan was a righteous man who was loved by his people. When he died, they withdrew to his grave in the land of Babylonia and were overwhelmed by sadness. When Iblis saw their sorrow caused by his death, he disguised himself in the form of a man saying: ‘I have seen your sorrow because of this man’s death; can I make a statue like him which could be put in your meeting place to make you remember him?’ They said: ‘Yes.’

So he made the statue like him. They put it in their meeting place in order to be reminded of him. When Iblis saw their interest in remembering him, he said: ‘Can I build a statue of him in the home of each one of you so that he would be in everyone’s house and you could remember him?’

They agreed. Their children learned about and saw what they were doing. They also learned about their remembrance of him instead of Allah. So the first to be worshipped instead of Allah was Waddan, the idol which they named thus.”

The essence of this point is that every idol from those earlier mentioned was worshipped by a certain group of people. It was mentioned that people made picture sand as the ages passed they made these pictures into statues, so that their forms could be fully recognized; afterwards they were worshipped instead of Allah.

It was narrated that Umm Salmah and Umm Habibah told Allah’s Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) about the church called “Maria” which they had seen in the land of Abyssinia. They described its beauty and the pictures therein. He said: “Those are the people who build places of worship on the grave of every dead man who was righteous and then make therein those pictures. Those are the worst of creation unto Allah.” (Sahih al Bukhari).

Worshipping anything other than Allah is a tragedy that results not only in the loss of freedom; its serious effect reaches man’s mind and destroys it as well. Almighty Allah created man and his mind with its purpose set on achieving knowledge the most important of which is that Allah alone is the Creator and all the rest are worshippers (slaves). Therefore, disbelief in Allah, or polytheism, results in the loss of freedom, the destruction of the mind, and the absence of a noble target in life. (By worshipping anything other than Allah, man becomes enslaved to Satan, who is himself a creature and becomes harnessed to his own baser qualities).

Into this environment Allah sent Nuh with His message to his people. Nuh was the only intellectual not caught in the whirlpool of man’s destruction which was caused by polytheism.

Allah is His Mercy sent His messenger Nuh to guide his people. Nuh was an excellent speaker and a very patient man. He pointed out to his people the mysteries of life and the wonders of the universe. He pointed out how the night is regularly followed by the day and that the balance between these opposites were designed by Allah the Almighty for our good. The night gives coolness and rest while the day gives warmth and awakens activity. The sun encourages growth, keeping all plants and animals alive, while the moon and stars assist in the reckoning of time, direction and seasons. He pointed out that the ownership of the heavens and the earth belongs only to the Divine Creator.

Therefore, he explained to this people, there cannot have been more than one deity. He clarified to them how the devil had deceived them for so long and that the time had come for this deceit to stop. Nuh spoke to them of Allah’s glorification of man, how HE had created him and provided him with sustenance and the blessings of a mind. He told them that idol worshipping was a suffocating injustice to the mind. He warned them not to worship anyone but Allah and described the terrible punishment Allah would mete out if they continued in their evil ways.

The people listened to him in silence. His words were a shock to their stagnating minds as it is a shock to a person who is asleep under a wall which is about to fall and who is vigorously awakened. This person may be alarmed and may even become angry although the aim was to save him.

Nuh’s people were divided into two groups after his warning. His words touched the hearts of the weak, the poor, and the miserable and soothed their wounds with its mercy. As for the rich, the strong, the mighty and the rulers they looked upon the warning with cold distrust. They believed they would be better off if things stayed as they were. Therefore they started their war of words against Nuh.

First they accused Nuh of being only human like themselves.

‘The chiefs of the disbeliveers among his people said: “We see you but a man like ourselves.”‘ (11:27 Quran)

He, however, had never said anything other than that. He asserted that, indeed, he was only a human being; Allah had sent a human messenger because the earth winhabited by humans. If it had been inhabited by angels Allah would have sent an angelic messenger.

The contest between the polytheists and Nuh continued. the rulers had thought at first that Nuh’s call would soon fade on its own. When they found that his call attracted the poor, the helpless and common laborers, they started to verbally attack and taunt him: ‘You are only followed by the poor, the meek and the worthless.’

Allah the Almighty told us:

“Indeed We sent Nuh to his people (he said): “I have come to you as a plain Warner that you worship none but Allah, surely, I fear for you the torment of a painful Day.” the chiefs of the disbeliveers among his people said: “We see you but a man like ourselves, nor do we see any follow you but the meanest among us and they too followed you without thinking. And we do not see in you any merit above us in fact we think you are liars.” (11:25-27).

Thus the conflict between Nuh and the heads of his people intensified. The disbeliveers tried to bargain: “Listen Nuh, if you want us to believe in you, then dismiss your believers. They are meek and poor, while are elite and rich; no faith c an include us both.” Nuh listened to the heathens of his community and realized they were being obstinate. However, he was gentle in his response. He explained to his people that he could not dismiss the believers as they were not his guests but Allah’s.

Nuh appealed to them:

“O my people! I ask of you no wealth for it, my reward is from none but Allah. I am not going to drive away those who have believed. Surely, they are going to meet their Lord, but I see that you are a people that are ignorant. O my people! Who will help me against Allah, if I drove them away? Will you not then give a thought? And I do not say to you that with me are the Treasures of Allah nor that I know the unseen, nor do I say I am an angel, and I do not say of those whom your eyes look down upon that Allah will not bestow any good on them. Allah knows what is in their inner selves (regards to Belief). In that case, I should, indeed be one of the Zalimeen (wrongdoers, oppressors etc).” (11:29-31 Quran)

Nuh refuted the arguments of the disbeliveers with the noble knowledge of the prophets. It is the logic of intellect that rids itself of personal pride and interests.

The rulers were tired of Nuh’s arguments. Allah the Exalted related their attitude:

They said: “O Nuh! You have disputed with us and much have you prolonged the dispute with us, now bring upon us what you threaten us with, if you are of the truthful.” He said: “Only Allah will bring it (the punishment)on you, if He will, and then you will escape not. And my advice will not profit you, even if I wish to give you counsel, if Allah’s Will is to keep you astray. He is your Lord! And to Him you shall return.” (11:32-34 Quran)

The battle continued; the arguments between the disbeliveers and Nuh became prolonged. When all the refutations of the disbeliveers collapsed and they had no more to say, they began to be rude and insulted Allah’s prophet:

‘The leaders of his people said: “Verily, we see you in plain error.” (Ch 7:60 Quran)

Nuh responded in the manner of the prophets:

“O my people! There is no error in me, but I am a Messenger from the Lord of the Alamin (mankind, jinn and all that exists)! I convey unto you the Messages of my Lord and give sincere advice to you. And I know from Allah what you know not.” (7:61-62 Quran)

Nuh continued appealing to his people to believe in Allah hour after hour, day after day year after year. He admonished his people and called them to Allah day and night, in secret and openly. HE gave them examples, explained Allah’s signs and illustrated Allah’s ability in the formation of His creatures. But whenever he called them to Allah, they ran away from him. Whenever he urged them to ask Allah to forgive them, they put their fingers in their ears and became too proud to listen to the truth.

Allah the Almighty related what Nuh faced: Verily, We sent Nuh to his people saying: “Warn your people before there comes to them a painful torment.”

He said: “O my people! Verily, I am a plain Warner to you, that you should worship Allah alone, be dutiful to Him and obey me, He (Allah) will forgive you of your sins and respite you to an appointed term. Verily, the term of Allah when it comes, cannot be delayed, if you but knew.”

He said: “O my Lord! Verily, I have called my people night and day (secretly and openly to accept the doctrine of Islamic Monotheism), but all my calling added nothing but to their flight from the truth. Verily! Everytime I called unto them that You might forgive them, they thrust their fingers into their ears, covered themselves up with their garments, and persisted (in their refusal), and magnified themselves in pride. Then verily, I called to them openly (aloud); then verily, I proclaimed to them in public, and I have appealed to them in private, I said to them: ‘Ask forgiveness from your Lord, Verily, He is Oft Forgiving; He will send rain to you in abundance, and give you increase in wealth and children, and bestow on you gardens and bestow on you rivers.”

What is the matter with you, that you fear not Allah (His Punishment), and you hope not for reward from Allah or you believe not in His Oneness. While He has created you in different stages. (23:13-14 Quran)

See you not how Allah has created the seven heavens one above another, and has made the moon a light therein and made the sun a lamp? And Allah has brought you forth from the dust of earth. Afterwards He will return you into it (the earth), and bring you forth (again on the Day of Resurrection) Allah has made for you the earth wide spread (an expanse) that you may go about therein broad roads.

Nuh said: “My Lord! They have disobeyed me, and followed one whose wealth and children give him no increase but only loss. They have plotted a mighty plot. They have said: ‘you shall not leave your gods, nor shall you leave wadd, nor Suwa, nor Yaghuth, nor ya’uq nor Nasr (names of the idols). Indeed they have led many astray. O Allah! Grant no increase to the Zalimeen (polytheists, wrongdoers, and disbeliveers etc) save error.”

Because of their sins they were drowned, then were made to enter the Fire and they found none to help them instead of Allah. (71:1-25 Quran).

Nuh continued to call his people to believe in Allah for nine hundred fifty years. Allah the Almighty said:

Indeed We sent Nuh to his people and he stayed among them a thousand years less fifty years (inviting them to believe in the Oneness of Allah (Monotheism) and discard the false gods and other deities). (29:14 Quran)

It happened that every passing generation admonished the succeeding one not to believe Nuh and to wage war against him. the father used to teach his child about the matter that was between himself and Nuh and counsel him to reject his call when he reached adulthood. Their natural disposition rejected believing and following the truth.

Nuh saw that the number of believers was not increasing, while that of the disbeliveers was. He was sad for his people, but he never reached the point of despair.

There came a day when Allah revealed to Nuh that no others would believe. Allah inspired him not to grieve for them at which point Nuh prayed that the disbeliveers be destroyed. He said:

“My Lord! Leave not one of the disbeliveers on the earth. If you leave them, they will mislead Your slaves and they will beget none but wicked disbeliveers.” (71:27 Quran)

Allah accepted Nuh’s prayer. The case was closed, and He passed His judgment on the disbeliveers in the form of a flood. Allah the Exalted ordered His worshipper Nuh to build an ark with His knowledge and instructions and with the help of angels. Almighty Allah commanded:

“And construct the ship under Our Eyes and with Our Inspiration and address Me not on behalf of those who did wrong; they are surely to be drowned.” (11:37 Quran)

Nuh chose a place outside the city, far from the sea. HE collected wood and tools and began to day and night to build the ark. The people’s mockery continued: “O Nuh! Does carpentry appeal to you more than prophethood? Why are you building an ark so far from the sea? Are you going to drag it to the water or is the wind going to carry it for you?” Nuh replied: “You will come to know who will be put to shame and suffer.”

Allah the Almighty narrated:
As he was constructing the ship, whenever the chiefs of his people passed by him, they made a mockery of him. He said : “If you mock at us, so do we mock at you likewise for your mocking. And you will know who it is on whom will come a torment that will cover him with disgrace and on whom will fall a lasting torment.” (11:38-39 Quran)

The ship was constructed, and Nuh sat waiting Allah’s command. Allah revealed to him that when water miraculously gushed forth from the oven at Nuh’s house, that would be the sign of the start of the flood, and the sign for Nuh to act.

The terrible day arrived when the oven at Nuh’s house overflowed. Nuh hurried to open the ark and summon the believers. He also took with him a pair, male and female, of every type of animal, bird and insect. Seeing him taking these creatures to the ark, the people laughed loudly: “Nuh must have gone out of his head! What is he going to do with the animals?”

Almighty Allah narrated:

So it was till then there came Our Command and the oven gushed forth (water like fountains from the earth). We said: “Embark therein, of each kind two (male and female), and your family, except him against whom the Word has already gone forth, and those who believe.” And none believed him except a few. (11:40 Quran)

Nuh’s wife was not a believer with him so she did not join him; neither did one of Nuh’s sons, who was secretly a disbeliever but had pretended faith in front of Nuh. Likewise most of the people were disbeliveers and did not go on board.

The scholars hold different opinions on the number of those who were with Nuh on the ship. Ibn Abbas stated that there were 80 believers while Ka ab al Ahbar held that there were 72 believers. Others claimed that there were 10 believers with Nuh.

Water rose from the cracks in the earth; there was not a crack from which water did not rise. rain poured from the sky in quantities never seen before on earth. Water continued pouring from the sky rising from the cracks; hour after hour the level rose. The seas and waves invaded the land. The interior of the earth moved in a strange way, and the ocean floors lifted suddenly, flooding the dry land. The earth, for the first time was submerged.

Allah told the story thus: He (Nuh) said: “Embark therein in the Name of Allah will be its moving course and its resting anchorage. Surely, my Lord is Oft Forgiving, most Merciful.” so it (the ship) sailed with them amidst the waves like mountains, and Nuh called out to his son, who had separated himself (apart), “O my son! Embark with us and be not with the disbeliveers.” The son replied, “I will betake myself to a mountain, it will save me from the water.” Nuh said: “This day there is no savior from the Decree of Allah except him on whom He has mercy.” And a wave came in between them so he (the son) was among the drowned.

It was said: “O Earth! Swallow up your water, and O sky! Withhold (your rain).” The water was diminished (made to subside) and the Decree (of Allah) was fulfilled (the destruction of the people of Nuh). And it (the ship) rested on Mount Judi, and it was said: “Away with the people who are Zalimeen (polytheists, and wrongdoing)!”

Nuh called upon his Lord and said, “O my Lord! Verily, my son is of my family! Certainly, Your Promise is true, and You are the Most Just of the judges.” HE said: “O Nuh! Surely, he is not of your family; verily, his work is unrighteous, so ask not of Me that of which you have no knowledge! I admonish you, lest you be one of the ignorants.”

Nuh said: “O my Lord! I seek refuge with You from asking You that of which I have no knowledge. And unless You forgive me and have Mercy on me, I would indeed be one of the losers.”

It was said: “O Nuh! Come down (from the ship) with peace from Us and blessings on you and on the people o\who are with you(and on some of their offspring), but (there will be other) people to whom We shall grant their pleasures (for a time), but in the end a painful torment will reach them from Us.” (11:41-48 Quran)

With the issue of the divine command, calm returned to earth, the water retreated, and the dry land shone once again in the rays of the sun. The flood had cleansed the earth of the disbeliveers and polytheists.

Nuh released the birds, and the beats which scattered over the earth. After that the believers disembarked. Nuh put his forehead to the ground in prostration. The survivors kindled a fire and sat around it. Lighting a fire had been prohibited on board so as not to ignite the ship’s wood and burn it up. None of them had eaten hot food during the entire period of the floor. Following the disembarkation there was a day of fasting in thanks to Allah.

The Quran draws the curtain on Nuh’s story. We do not know how his affairs with his people continued. All we know or can ascertain is that on his deathbed he requested his son to worship Allah alone, Nuh then passed away.

Abdullah Ibn Amru Ibn Al as narrated that the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: “When the death of the Messenger of Allah Nuh approached, the admonished his sons: ‘Indeed I would give you far reaching advice, commanding you to do 2 things, and warning you against doing 2 things as well. I charge you to believe that there is no god but Allah and that if the seven heavens and the seven earths were put on one side of a scale and the words “there is no god but Allah” were put on the other, the latter would outweigh the former. I warn you against associating partners with Allah and against pride.” (Sahih al Bukhari)

Some traditions said that his grave is in the Scared Mosque in Mecca, while others said that he was buried in Baalabak, a city in Iraq.

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Dragon slayer via Mugley

I

I’ve got issues with bureaucracies. In the past, a few years ago, it actually made me quite angry. I’m not like that anymore, but it just gets frustrating. Today, the plan was simple. Pick up my health check, get some documents from NTNU and go to the NIA office. This was what I was told to do. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out as planned.

When I arrived at the hospital, I was informed that I didn’t have the measles antigen, so I would need to be vaccinated. $20 and half an hour later, it was done. The woman from whom I had to pick up the health check realized that a part of my health check wasn’t done. She wanted me to come back next week. I saw no deal. I came to the hospital on the 17th to get it done. I was only here for a pick up. Now she wanted me to wait even longer?

I argued and made a big foreigner mess. I didn’t shout, but I made it clear that it was her fault (or the hospital’s) and that she needed to resolve this. 20 minutes later, some doctor performed a cursory exam of my skin for Hansen’s disease and I was done.

I went to NTNU and met Ying Ying. She was nice and helped me out with some docs. It took 15 minutes. I left for the NIA office. I arrived quickly enough, with about 1 hour to spare until closing, but I learned that it was here that I had to apply for an ARC, not get the resident visa. I had to go to BOCA¹ to get the resident visa. It was too late. They renewed my Visitor’s visa and took some of my paperwork, which means that I’ll have to get another printout from NTNU on Monday. Then off to BOCA and back to the NIA office. I was told that it might take a few days to get the resident visa, a week or two. I just want to be done with it.

II

I’ve been back in Taiwan for about 5 months and I only did one Visa run back in July because I arrived with a landing visa, not a visitor’s visa. Getting a visitor’s visa in Canada is quite expensive if you don’t have a car. I was living in Quebec. The TECO office is in Ottawa, 5 hours away.

The last time I did this, I spent over $400. This included travel and the visa itself. Back in May, I also spent a hellish night/day in Ottawa. This was because you need to arrive before 10AM at the TECO office in order to get your visa the same day. There are no overnight buses or really early morning buses from Quebec to Ottawa. The latest leaves at 8PM and arrives in Ottawa at around 1AM.

Siberian huspy pups, red/white color combo

III

I’ve been a bit sad about the Siberian husky that I found in the park yesterday. He would have been a great dog to have, but it would have been too much. I hope that he found his master. I’ll get a Taiwanese friend to ask Temple Man what happened with him. Siberian huskies are very beautiful. This one had are brownish/reddish white fur and they tend to have clear blue eyes. This one was docile and very friendly.

The bad thing about adopting an unfixed adult dog is that you didn’t raise him, nor did you train him. Admittedly, since he was pretty friendly, this wouldn’t have been hard, though I didn’t like how he kept marking everything. Even in our courtyard and my patio, he just kept at it. It was quite annoying.

A working dog like that needs hours of exercise every day. Spike is very laid back. In total, he does get somewhere between 1-2 hours a day outside. With a that husky, I would have to take him along while running or biking (daily) in order to work him out. Technically, that’s not a bad thing. I’d probably have taken him out while running, though he’d have to learn to run behind him. From what I’ve seen with Chad’s dog Ash, that isn’t easy since huskies like to run fast out front.

Once we get back to North America, I’ll get myself a medium-sized dog. It will either be a Siberian husky or a border collie. Naturally, we still plan on being French bulldog fanciers. Frenchies are great companion dogs.

IV

So I think that I’m nearing the end of Dragon Age, even though it says that I have only completed 25% of the game. I think I’ll try to complete the side quests before I complete the main quest. It sounds like once you start the Landsmeet portion of the game, it sets the wheels in motion for the final part of the game. I completed the DLCs The Stone Prisoner and Warden’s Keep. The first one adds Shale, a golem, to your companion roster. The second one gives you access to a castle as a base of operations. There is a chest there where you can store all of your gear, cheap merchants, and you gain two new abilities. The mage abilities are called Power of Blood and are very close to blood magic, but so effective. Dark Sustenance sacrifices health for mana and Blood Grasp sends some of the caster’s tainted blood onto targets. Works even better on darkspawns.

* * * * *

[¹]: Bureau of Consular Affairs of Taiwan

(CFD.net.au – Contract for Difference, Share, Forex, ETFs, Commodities Traders) – Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has lashed out at electricity generators who he says are running a fear campaign on the emissions trading scheme.

Mr Rudd has defended the amount of support the sector will get under the ETS, but the Opposition says it holds grave concerns about blackouts and soaring electricity prices.

Mr Rudd has told Radio 5AA in Adelaide the Government’s regulator has found those concerns are baseless.

“They’ve looked at all the investments by the electricity suppliers. They’ve looked also at the fear campaigns being run by the electricity generators,” he said.

“If you’re an electricity generator at the moment and you are facing the introduction of a carbon pollution reduction scheme some of them may get out there and arc up the fear campaign. You know that’s what’s happening out there.”

Source: Power firms running ETS scare campaign: Rudd

.243 Trajectory_ 24″x48″_ gunpowder, graphite, goldleaf, white acrylic on wood panel.

The title  comes from the gunpowder curve, which is based on the trajectory of a bullet shot from a .243 Remington rifle. (y axis= 1″ = 2″ of drop, x axis= 1″ =10 yards)

video of the burn:

The government has published the results from its consultation on changes to Conduct Regulations. It had been feared that changes would be made to the Limited Company opt-out but thankfully this has not been touched for either limited company contractors or umbrellas.

Read the ARC News bulletin for more information.

Register for Interim Jobs

When Seth went to Applebee’s to spend his lunch break with his girlfriend, he had no idea his whole life was about to fall apart.  First, his girlfriend uses the lunch as a quick and easy chance to dump him, since they both have to get back to work in 30 minutes and he can’t make too big of a scene in public.  Then, Seth sees his dad coming into Applebee’s with a woman who is NOT Seth’s mother.  And, to top it all off, he gets back to work late and gets fired… for the 4th time that year.  Not exactly the best day ever, by any means.  But Seth is determined to take control of his life and figure things out.  How does he plan on accomplishing such a feat?  Via an anonymous podcast called “The Love Manifesto,” of course!  Despite the depressing undertones of a break-up and parental infidelity, this book manages to be laugh-out-loud funny more often than not.  Plus, residents of the Capital Region will probably get an extra thrill when they recognize the names of places in Seth’s travels!

Between the hilarious story and the fact that there are excerpts from Seth’s podcasts, this book just screams audiobook — so I really hope I will be able to add a book and audiobook to my collection when it is released on June 8, 2010!

Happy Reading!

1. Weld (+ Arc)
2. Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
3. After The Goldrush
4. On The Beach
5. Tonight’s The Night
6. Ragged Glory
7. Rust Never Sleeps
8. Zuma
9. Sleeps With Angels
10. Mirror Ball

NP: John Prine – Sweet Revenge

Auliana II at the start gate in Las Palmas

Crew safely evacuated – yacht abandoned pending salvage

The ARC yacht Auliana II has been abandoned and the crew evacuated following the loss of the yacht’s rudder in the early hours of Monday morning.

Skipper Christian Potthoff-Sewing, from Bielefeld in Germany and his seven crew members were safely ashore in Arguineguin, Gran Canaria, late yesterday evening (23/11/2009) some 36 hours after taking the start of ARC 2009 in the IRC Racing Division.

At around 04:00 on Monday 23/11/2009 the yacht lost its rudder some 70 nautical miles southwest of Gran Canaria.  The exact cause of the breakage is unknown, though the on-watch crew doesn’t think that the yacht struck any debris in the water.

Unable to make steerage back toward Gran Canaria, the skipper contacted MRCC Las Palmas at 0600 on Monday, requesting assistance with a tow. At around noon, a lifeboat from the Spanish Maritime Rescue Service (Salvamento Maritima) was on station and the tow was soon underway. However, owing to the increasing wind strength (between 20 and 28 knots) and direction of the swell, the towing line repeatedly pulled deck cleats off the lightweight racing yacht - Auliana II is a one-off JV53.

With the daylight fading, the entire crew was evacuated from the yacht as a safety measure, though attempts to tow the yacht continued. The salvage crew was unable to secure a line to the deck-stepped mast, and after several more frustrating attempts, the decision was made to abandon the yacht and return the crew ashore.

The yacht is fitted with a Yellowbrick Iridium satellite tracker and its position is being monitored by MRCC Tenerife, as attempts continue to salvage the yacht.

Meanwhile, the all-German crew received a warm welcome as they stepped ashore in Gran Canaria, where they arrived looking tired, but in good spirits. They were given hot tea and food and offered a change of clothes and taken to a local hotel.

Hoy domingo 22 de Noviembre comenzó la Regata. Tuve la suerte de ir en el Pandora (www.pandorachartes.com) un motovelero de 231 metros de eslora que tiene su base en el Puerto Deportivo.

Primeros salieron los “Formula 1″  de la racing Division. El primero en cruzar la salida fue el Maxio UMATALU, pero parece que se adelantaron y han sido penalizados con 3 horas. LA verdad es que en una travesía tan larga no se si es un gran penalización, pero ya lo veremos al final. Le siguieron el KATAWA y el BAGHEERA. El Bagheera es el de velas más espectaculares, todas en negro.

En cuanto a los cruceros, que es lo más autentico de la flota, pues cada uno salió un poco dependiendo de como se tomabana la regata. Unos más en serio y otros más relajados.

Destacaria el swan finlandes CANTANA tripulado por una pareja, que se lo pasaron muy bien, aunque no era el barco más pequeño, que es el ZAHARA de 29 pies.

Ya iremos siguiendo a la flota.

Desde ya debo advertir que mi favorito es el HARTBEAT. Un Truly Classic 78 de 23.77 metros de eslora  holandes.

La mala noticia para tres barcos que vimos que tuvieron que volver al muelle deportivo por problemas. A ver si son capaces de resolverlos durate el día y no pierden la oportunidad de participar en la regata. Un dia no es mucha perdida en una Reagata tan larga

My Version of the many posts in the interwerbs.

This year’s AFA was really epic except for the traps. The program outline’s really fruity and succulent!
My version of the AFA entry will be split into 3 Parts
1 ) The DC x GSC Experience.
2 ) Personal shoots.
3 ) Regional Cosplay and other Whatnots.

So lets get the first one started!

Mirai and her Bike.

Kodomut really did a great job for the bikie!

BRS

Really a joy to see it up close!

Excellent crafting!

Trust me. All the delays shall be worth it.

Peek!

Figmas

I Love Ani-Song ;P

らきすた！

Posing by: Akiyama-San.

Hmmmm...

The White Devil with Pink Feathers.

Puchi Puchi!

iM@s

Deathnote Puchies

Nendoroids

Moe Moe Kyun!

Her hat attaches on via a magnet!

More stuff about the Event:

Dcal
Ederuferuto
Kodomut
Maverick
Scorchnroses
BanzaiEffect
XS-27
Alafista
Figure.fm
LEon

This review is based on an ARC copy. I got my copy through Barnes & Noble’s First Look Book Club. This book will be released in February 2010.

Heather Webber’s Truly, Madly is a fast-paced, fun read with a dash of mystery and suspense thrown in for good measure.

Lucy Valentine, daughter of world-renowned matchmaker Oscar Valentine, is a little skeptical when it comes to love and matchmaking, but when her father gets caught in a compromising and career-threatening position, Lucy is left to run Valentine, Inc. and maintain the companies near perfect record for matches. Nevermind that Lucy lost the famous (and secret) power that has made the Valentines successful matchmakers for countless generations, independent Lucy has a job to do and a lot to prove.

But Lucy soon finds that there is more to matchmaking than finding complementary auras. When client Michael Lafferty tells Lucy the story of a long-lost first love, Lucy finds herself tangled in a mystery that she never expected.

Hiring Sean Donahue,  PI, to find  Michael’s old girlfriend, Lucy feels an instant electric connection that challenges everything she’s ever thought about love and attraction.

What is a reluctant matchmaker to do when she knows she’s cursed to never find her own perfect match?

—

When I first heard about Truly, Madly on the First Look Book Club, I thought it sounded like a fun read and it certainly was. I was not expecting to enjoy it as much as I did, but the book was very readable and I didn’t want to put it down! The blurb on the back of the book promises that there will be at least two other books in the series (there is a preview of the next book, Deeply, Desperately) and I will definitely be looking for them in future.

The characters were charismatic and believable (yes, even with the psychic powers), and the plot was engaging and well-developed.

I recommend this book for anyone interested in a fun romantic mystery. I think fans of Meg Cabot’s series will probably enjoy it as well.

For more information on the Lucy Valentine series, visit Heather Webber’s site

I am awaiting some images to come in from the start of the ARC 09 in Las Palmas – so in the meantime here’s one from 2008 that will be virtually replicated anyway.

The ARC start in Las Palmas (this was 2008) always photographed by Clare Pengelly

I am SO hoping I will get hold of a photo of this bunch to add to this page – these guys sound (and are) crazy lovely and between them have an extraordinary amount of cruising and racing experience.

•••

The Grumpies Racing Team are actually entered in the ARC 09 Cruising Division 1 on board the Jeanneau 45.2 Fenella. These characters are drawn from the Tuesday night meetings of grumpy old men at the infamous Chequers Inn in Lymington. If it were not for Tim Hagon dragging the average age down they would have aggregated 300 years on the planet.

Philip ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson – owner/skipper

My parents had a delightful habit of taking the family for a picnic off Princes Green (in Cowes on the Isle of Wight) during Cowes Week and as a small boy I would enjoy swimming amongst the yachts as they tried to cheat the tide._The excitement was intense, with the noise of the winches and the cries of ‘starboard’, ‘water’ and the odd grounding!  This was the taster I needed to get me into sailing.  By the age of eight I’d bought my own Cadet for £30 and joined the Island Sailing Club. At school I sailed Enterprises, GP 14s and Hornets. I remember meeting Uffa Fox and tried to work my way into the Cowes scene by making a few bob rowing drunken yachties out to their boats on Cowes Roads .

Whilst coming down on the train from London , I was press ganged at the bar to take part in the Channel Race on of the first Swan’s bought into the country, by Dave  Johnson, a Swan 36 known as ‘Carte Blanche’; I was still in my suit as we tacked round the Nab Tower! My new love for ocean racing had been cemented and  I went on to compete on several successful yachts such as ‘Mavarick’, ‘Carrillion’, ‘Marionette’, and ‘Yeoman’, winning our class in the Bermuda Race as well  the Admiral’s Cup in ‘77 and the Sardinia Cup ’79.

I was lucky enough to compete in 13 Fastnet Races  including racing in the disastrous ‘79 race. When I was courting, I persuaded my then future wife Gillie, to sail around the world. The idea worked and we were married. Unfortunately my father became critically ill and kids came along not to mention the dreaded mortgage and the idea was postponed; it was 37 later that I fulfilled my promise by completing our circumnavigation on my yacht ‘Fenella’ during the the Blue Water Rally 2006. The ARC is my next challenge, prior to sailing around the British Isles,­ another challenge that I am immensely  looking forward to.

Richard Jenner

Much older than would like to be but (happily) no longer working.
Spends most time messing about on water but not a perfectionist. For a little light relief enjoys occasional game of golf and regular intake of ale and wine.

Sailed all his life in various dinghies and yachts, mostly racing but have cruised in various parts including BVI, Med, France and West Country.
Recently aquired a 33′ Beneteau with wife Louise with plans to cruise more than race.

Currently Commodore of Lymington Town Sailing Club and a member of the Philip Hutchinson Old Boat Owners Club.

Tim Hagon

40,000 miles on various yachts including J-Class, IOR maxis, multihulls and superyachts. Will that do?

Alan Spriggs

Probably the first person to enter (at the press launch in the snow) and take part in the Atlantic RACE for Cruisers in 1986 in Pennypincher his Beneteau 375. Less race orientated than other members of Fenella’s crew but has 90,000 cruising miles in the log including a circumnavigation with Europa 92 in his Oyster 46 Pennypincher, crewing on the winning ARC yacht Gulkarna in 1993 and a single handed transatlantic in Pennypincher his Hallberg Rassy 42E to avoid the faux millennium celebrations in 1999/2000. Usually sails two handed with his wife….Penny.

John Morrow

He likes to sail everything from small dinghies to larger stuff and currently owns an XoD in Lymington for racing and a Maxi 1100 for relaxing. Prone to early passage seasickness but  always recovers in time for post race parties. He spent some time in the Southern Ocean in a Challenge yacht although he hears the Atlantic will be warmer!

Some quiet reflection from Andy who is sailing the ARC on Erasmos 1 – A Canadian entry Bavaria 44

28:07.65N  15:25.70W

It’s 7:00 am and the sun is rising over the marina from the east but it hasn’t broken the horizon yet.  It’s starting to get light, and it’s very quiet and peaceful.  Some low clouds scudding across the sky but they don’t look threatening.  I woke early today, around 6:30, which is different from the normal routine over the last fortnight of about 8:00 am.

Since the crew was still sound asleep I grabbed a bathroom bag and as quietly as possible snuck out to the public bathrooms for one last shave, wash and toothbrush in a bathroom where you don’t bang your elbows on the walls.  I’ll miss that luxury for the next few weeks J.  There were two other people in the bathroom, even at that early time, and we each went about our business.  Both men about my age or a little older, and we chatted innocuously.  It was clear to each of us we were sailors about to go.  And as men do, we did not strike up long and deep conversations, we politely made some jokes about a drunk wandering by outside on the street singing, finished our business and left.

But as we left we looked each other in the eye and quietly and sincerely said a simple “Have a good one”.  Nothing else, not deep nor profound.  Just a nod and a statement.  We each knew exactly what those four words meant.  And for me that sums up both the peril and the promise that is in front of us.  Be careful but enjoy.  It’s time to chase the promise.

As I walked alone along the marina road back to the boat I was overwhelmed momentarily by the emotional intensity of that quiet morning moment.  Our boats are modern and well made, we have enormous resources (SSB’s, VHF’s, EPIRBS etc etc) at our call, and we will be both guided by the ARC and in the company of 225 other boats.  But I think there is still something incredibly personal and emotional in the journey we will each make over the next two to three weeks.  Perhaps we are all, at some level, dreamers and adventures in spirit.

So to each and everyone on this journey, “Have a good one”.

Andy – 7:38 AM on Day 1 the Start Day.  Time to get the weather forecast and find out what these clouds portend.

Sofia och Maria på båten Cantare laddar inför starten av seglingstävlingen över Atlanten. De gästbloggar hos oss en gång i månaden. De tidigare inläggen kan ni läsa här och här.

Dags att korsa Atlanten!

Nu är det inte långt kvar, på söndag den 22 november klockan 13.00 går startskottet i Atlantic Rally for Cruisers! Då kastar vi loss härifrån Las Palmas för vår hittills längsta etapp, den över Atlanten. Det är ca 2800 sjömil till målet i St Lucia och vi beräknar att det åtminstone kommer ta oss 25 dagar att komma över.

Kan ni föreställa er 25 dagar i en segelbåt som inte är större än 9,33 x 2,78 m? 25 dagar utan att se land, möjligtvis kommer vi att se andra båtar då och då, men det kan gå flera dagar utan att man siktar något. Det kommer bli en verklig utmaning, inte bara fysiskt utan framförallt psykiskt. Hur klarar psyket att bara se vatten och varandra under en hel månad? Vår vardag kommer mestadels att bestå av att segla, sova, äta och dricka. Vi hoppas ju även få tid för att sola, läsa och bara filosofera. Men vem vet, ute på havet kan man överraskas av hårt väder och då gäller det att vara förberedd!

Våra veckor här i Las Palmas har till stor del bestått av förberedelser för att kunna tackla alla situationer som skulle kunna uppstå ute på Atlanten. Vad gör vi om vi t ex måste överge båten? Hur får vi i livflotten i vattnet? Vad ska vi ta med oss om vi måste överge båten? Inne i båten har vi förberett en “grab bag” som vi ska ”grabba” med oss och ta med i livflotten. I grabbagen finns bl a en extra GPS, extra VHF, nödraketer, vatten, mat och termofiltar. Det gäller att ha en plan för alla situationer som kan uppstå. Något som absolut inte får hända, men vars risk inte kan uteslutas, är en man över bord. Om någon trillar i är det oerhört svårt att dels hitta tillbaka till personen, och dels att få upp personen ur vattnet. Vi har övat man-över-bord-situationer med en fender och insett hur svårt det är i verkligheten. För att undvika att spolas överbord eller på annat sätt trilla i vattnet när vi seglar på natten eller i hårt väder är vi alltid säkerhetskoppade med sele och karbinhake från flytvästen till båten.

Ombord lurar även andra faror man bör vara medveten om, och då är det ofta den mänskliga faktorn som ligger bakom. I byssan kan oförsiktighet lätt leda till brännskador då båten gungar när man lagar mat. Oavsett hur varmt det är ute är regeln att laga mat i heltäckande kläder och inte i bikini. Om en skada eller sjukdom ändå skulle vara framme är telefonnumret till Europeiskas larmcentral, där vi kan få tag på läkarassistans, uppsatt bredvid satellittelefonen.

Vi hörs om en dryg månad, då från paradiset Västindien!

/Sofia Ivansson

Sofia Ivansson

Matagal tagal na rin ang hindi ko pagbablag! Blag talaga. Kadalasan naman na blag ko kapag may nangyayaring makabuluhan sa buhay ko e o yung mga tipong nakapanghihina ng loob. Katulad ng pagkuha ko sa ARC ko. Aba ewan, di ko alam kung ikatutuwa ko ba o ikalulungkot na wala nga akong PTC pero 3 naman ang line of 7 ko. Last quarter may 1 akong PTC pero 2 lang naman ang line of 7. Apat nga ata e.

Eto pa. Nagalit samin ang Teacher/Adviser namin. I know it’s our fault kasi hindi nga namin binasa yung manuscript. Yun nga. Nakapanghihina lang. Fieldtrip pa. Wala namang kwenta. Sana maayos na yung mga gulo. Ang dami na kasi e. Isa-isahin natin. Inuna natin si Ms. Yves, sumunod si Sir JM followed by Sir Iean and the most recent was Sir Dan. Siya pa! Ang bait bait nun e. Yung tipong walang magawa sa buhay kung hindi asarin ako. Pero okay lang kasi nakababawi naman ako sa kanya. Galit na siya ngayon. Grrr!

Narinig niyo yon? Sabi niya? Ng Adviser natin. “LDS, You’ve become rude this past few weeks”. Bastos naman kasi talaga. Lumagay naman kasi sa tamang kalalagyan. Oo, mabait. Pero pag sa klase umiwas iwas naman sa mga side comments. Ang ingay kasi e. Sakit sa tenga! Magsasalita lang si Basilio magrereact na kayo? Siya nalang ba buhay niyo? Nakakaasar naman kasi talaga. Parang di kayo makakasurvive ng Seton nang hindi siya pinapansin e. Tinatawag niyo siyang abnormal pero what seems to be normal about you? Wala rin diba? Sa ginagawa mong yan. Abnormal ka rin. Natutuwa ka sa bagay na wala namang katuturan. Sinasabi niyong bakla siya? Bakit bakla ka rin? Inagawan ka ba niya ng lalaki? Hindi naman diba? My point is, bakla man si Basilio o hindi, abnormal man yan, wala namang ginawa sayong masama yan. E yung mga may-ari nga ng mga quizzes na hindi niya pinasa e hindi naman ganyan ang trato sa kanya bakit kayo ganyan? Insecure? Kasi kaya niya magpaka abnormal sa klase. Kaya niya magpaka normal? O ineemphasize niyo lang na abnormal siya para matabunan ang pagka abnormal niyo? Grow-up Guys, Di na nakatutuwa. Di niyo maiaangat ang sarili nyo sa ginagawa niyo. Napagdaanan ko na yan. I don’t regret it. Pero Seniors na kayo e. Mas matindi pa kayo sa mga Gradeschool. Grow up!

See her stuff at the Art Renewal Center website.  This is a worldwide scholarship and very competitive.  She is among the youngest of the winners also.  Congratulations, Amelia.

You guys thought I was kidding when I said all my kids are outstanding, huh? Sorry. Please excuse the brag.  I just had to.

It’s good to be back at school. I missed most of last week because I was teaching 30 hours. I didn’t miss much³, but I felt terrible. In the future, I won’t want to miss any school at all. My classmates were actually worried about me, which was kind of nice.

I ran some errands.

I finally got my health check. As usual, I’m doing this at the last minute, but it will be in time so that I can get a Resident Visa and an ARC. I went to the hospital on Renai Rd. To my surprise, the health checks are about 2.2 times more expensive. I seem to remember them costing about 800 NTD (~$24). I paid about 1,880 NTD (~$58) for mine. Luckily, I was at the hospital at around 2:40PM and I was finished by 3:20PM. It was pretty quick. I got some blood drawn and a chest x-ray. Since I had already gone to this hospital in 2007, everything else was kept on file. That was pretty neat. All that’s left is to collect it next week, get my Resident Visa and then get my ARC. Pretty straightforward, though they make you jump to a bunch of hoops.

I got dinner at Evan’s. I had a cheeseburger. It was pretty good. I need to remember that they have lunch special on Wednesdays only. Yesterday, I bought $13 worth of fruits at a fruit shop. That doesn’t sound like much, but it is. I bought 30 Taiwanese oranges. They were 6¢ each. That was damn cheap. They don’t taste as good as Sunkist oranges and they are green for some reason¹, but hey, at 6¢ it’s hard to say no. I plan on detoxing from the bad carbs that I’ve been eating over the last few months². It hasn’t gotten out of hand, but I know that I need to completely cut out carbs for a while.

I went to get a haircut at my usual place Fully near Taipower Building on Fuxing N. Rd. I got a great massage and head massage from my hairdresser. Initially, about 2 years ago when I first started going there, I was surprised when I got it. Now, it was something relaxing. My hairdresser is meticulous and gives a hard massage. It’s painful at times, but feels pretty good.

It’s been a few weeks since I took any photos, so yesterday, I snapped away. As always, I started with my pets. I got some nice shots of both Yoda the cat and Spike the French bulldog together on the couch between my legs.

* * * * *

[¹]: They are actually tangerines and they are pretty darn good.
[²]: I’ve been wanting to do this for a while, but I just got onto it today, after eating fried rice at my school yesterday.
[³]: That’s actually wrong. I spent about 3hrs today catching up on what we did in Complex Analysis and the Stokes theorem proof was especially challenging. I started swearing when I noticed that it was a few pages long. My classmates found that funny. I as in my office.

Avec flocons de neige j’ai abordé un processus téléonomique simple, celui de l’addition de molécules d’eau à un cristal en formation, pour montrer que l’histoire de chaque flocon, même de chaque branche d’un flocon, joue un rôle important dans la structure finale que l’on obtient. Ceci est vrai aussi pour les formes à six branches, qui semblent être les seules qui ont eu l’attention de notre ami Staune.

Il est probable que l’explication aurait été plus élégante si on parlait de brisures de symétries, mais je laisserai le soin aux professionnels calés de vous entretenir de ça.
Après avoir très brièvement évoqué un système très contraint qui ne se prive pas de pouvoir donner un gros, très gros paquet de formes différentes, j’aimerais passer au point de vue de Michael Denton au sujet des formes platoniques.

Les protéines se trouvent à l’extrémité de la chaîne de transmission d’information décrite par le dogme central de la biologie moléculaire. Nous avons vu, par l’exemple, combien la forme d’une protéine est influencée par la séquence génique qui code pour elle, au point où même une mutation synonyme puisse l’affecter et combien cette modification de la forme peut-être sensible aux conditions environnementales.

J’aurais bien sûr pu choisir d’autres exemples de changements de forme d’une même protéine, mais j’en avais marre des classiques, comme les changements conformationnels de l’hémoglobine, je cherchais quelque chose de plus sexy (et j’ai été gâté). Mais comme c’est dans les vieux pots qu’on fait la bonne soupe et que j’ai envie de faire couler le sang, je reviens vers mes cours de licence pour poser une question intéressante : quelle est la forme de l’hémoglobine ? Je ne parle pas des formes de l’hémoglobine que l’analyse biochimique banale nous révèle, ni des formes transitionnelles entre les différents états en fonction du pH ambiant et de la saturation du milieu en O₂, je parle de la forme platonicienne que Denton, et à sa suite Staune, perçoit dans les protéines.

Le papier de Denton & Marshall dans Nature, est une lettre publiée dans Concepts : Laws of form revisited [lien pdf direct]. Comme vous pouvez avoir sous les yeux le pdf dans une autre fenêtre, je vais continuer en ne citant que quelques extraits.

Commençons par préciser l’évidence (sachant qu’il y a des jeans gens qui ne la voient pas obligatoirement) : le matérialiste athée réductionniste fondamentaliste, que je suis, considère que tout ce qui est naturel est naturel. Je dis ça dans le sens que je n’évoquerais pas un esprit surnaturel quelconque pour expliquer un phénomène naturel.

Je suis donc naturellement d’accord avec les auteurs quand ils disent que :

However, recent advances in protein chemistry suggest that at least one set of biological forms — the basic protein folds — is determined by physical laws similar to those giving rise to crystals and atoms.

Qu’est-ce qui pourrait déterminer les formes de quoi que ce soit à part les lois naturelles ? IMO, rien. Là où la divergence prend racine est juste la phrase suivante :

They give every appearance of being invariant platonic forms of precisely the type that the pre-darwinian biologists were seeking.

Franchement, je n’ai aucune envie de discuter ce que les biologistes pré-darwiniens cherchaient, parce que je pense que l’on peut trouver tout et le reste suivant le milieu culturel des uns et des autres. Par contre j’aimerais bien signaler en passant que les formes platoniques sont sur le mode créationniste, qui suppose une entité surnaturelle, le démiurge, qui les a pensées. Est-ce que les auteurs sont en train de prônes l’existence du démiurge de Platon ? Ils ne le disent pas, mais connaissant par ailleurs Denton je peux bien penser que oui.

Protein folds, the basic constructional units of proteins, each consist of a folded chain of between 80 and 200 amino acids.

Chers amis, mon cul. L’unité constitutive des protéines est l’aminoacide, il n’y a pas à chier. Et il y en a 20(+2) qui rentrent dans la composition de la majorité des protéines. Les protéines sont des polymères moléculaires produits par addition successive d’aminoacides lors de la traduction des ARNm, résidu par résidu, sur la base de l’information portée par cet autre polymère qu’est l’ARNm.

Après l’histoire se complique. Les protéines adoptent plusieurs conformations, sont coupées, les chiralités des aminoacides peuvent être changées, leurs chaînes latérales sont modifiées par des additions diverses, allant de la phosphorylation (plutôt simple), via l’addition de lipides, à l’addition de longues chaînes d’osides. Leur conformations changent en fonction du pH, de l’interaction avec d’autres protéines, des lipides, des acides nucléiques, l’eau, les ions, etc.
Elles n’ont pas une forme.

On peut certes classer certaines formes générales des domaines protéiques en se permettant certaines approximations. Ca permet d’avoir une description approximative d’une protéine. Mais personne (?) n’est dupe au point d’imaginer qu’une hélice alpha, par exemple, reste forcement une hélice alpha dans n’importe quel compartiment cellulaire, dans n’importe quelles conditions de température, force ionique ou pression (! tiens pour faire plaisir aux mécanosensibles, salut VF). Je parle bien d’une hélice alpha particulière, pas des hélices alpha en général. Une des formes que les auteurs revendiquent comme ayant l’apparence des formes platoniques. Bien sûr les helice/sheet transitions sont monnaie courante. Non pas seulement elles le sont, mais il y en a une marrante , que j’aime bien, où l’on a un intermédiaire évolutionnaire entre le sauvage qui est en β-sheet et le double mutant switch Arc qui est en hélice α : le mutant Arc-N11L passe son temps à passer d’une forme à l’autre à l’échelle de la milliseconde. Un équilibre dynamique entre les deux, dont les deux populations sont déterminées par le pH, les solvants, la température et la liaison avec leur ligand [doi:10.1038/81985]. Comme je disais plus haut, forme mon cul !

Quid des formes platoniques de Denton & Marshall ?

Ce sont du même genre de constructions intellectuelle approximatives que l’on utilise pour classer les cristaux de neige. Chacun ses critères sans que personne ne se leurre comme la compagnie proche de l’Intelligent Designer qui voit derrière sa classification la main du démiurge de Platon. Cette compagnie ayant une fâcheuse tendance à oublier ce qui la contredit, ou à rephraser les choses comme ça l’arrange :

Protein folds, the basic constructional units of proteins […]

Je ne vais pas aller plus loin dans l’analyse du délire (oui, j’ai bien choisi le terme délire) de Denton. Parce qu’il est suffisamment déconnecté de la réalité pour qu’il ne vaille pas gâcher plus d’électrons.
Bien sûr, s’il y a des questions spécifiques j’essaierai d’y répondre. D’autant plus que maintenant j’ai en prêt un exemplaire du TNBI