Nouveau gadget révolutionnaire, le nouveau GSP Ecco est un porteclé qui vous guidera partout ou vous allez. Il peut également retrouver votre voiture garée de un parking, rentrer chez vous si vous oubliez où vous habitez, …

Comment ça marche, vous enregistrez votre position et quand vous voudrez revenir à votre position initiale, le GPS Ecco vous guidera. La distance de parcours en temps réelle est également indiquée sur votre petit gadget. Il peut y avoir 3 positions mémorisées. Pour la batterie, elle peut tenir jusqu’à 8 jours, en veille 5 heures. La batterie se recharge sur une prise électrique ou sur une clé USB.

Il fonctionne jusqu’à 16 km par rapport à votre point de départ.

Ce petit gadget a été inventé par une société américaine. Il est conçu pour les piétons. Il ne dispose pas d’une cartographie intègrée.

Le prix 99€ chez cadeaux Maestro

Il a reçu un prix d’innovation lors d’une exposition.

Sources:

• cadeau-maestro.com
• wordsofgeek.com
• janvizage

E’ l’allarme che, solo oggi, la Commissione Europea lancia. Il problema occupazione rischia di divenire, nel breve e lungo periodo, l’unico dei problemi non risolti, guarda caso, mentre le ricchezze aumentano a dismisura e la miseria si impadronisce di un numero sempre maggiore di vittime innocenti di un sistema malato e spietato. Non va diversamente in Italia, va ancora peggio nel sud Italia. La presidente di Confindustria, signora Marcegaglia, sottolinea la necessità di maggiori interventi legislativi che aiutino le imprese (ancora’) ad affrontare la ‘caduta libera’ dei posti di lavoro.’Bisogna intervenire sugli ammortizzatori sociali’, ‘bisogna investire in ricerca e sviluppo’, ‘maggiore flessibilità’, ‘meno tasse alle imprese’ è il ritornello che la presidentessa ripete in ogni assise, chiedendo al governo maggiore impegno e ai lavoratori maggiori sacrifici. Non c’è mai spazio nei lunghi, e spesso ripetitivi, ‘comizi’ della Marcegaglia su quali sarebbero gli impegni degli industriali.

Di certo c’è solo quanto accade, sotto gli occhi di tutti, nell’Italia di oggi e al Sud in particolare. Benchè il governo abbia, innegabilmente, messo in campo una serie di investimenti tesi ad evitare il tracollo produttivo e il ricorso ai licenziamenti, ci ritroviamo con un aumento del ricorso alla cassa integrazione del 553,17% (la cassa integrazione spesso, in Italia, è l’anticamera del licenziamento) e un non precisato, ma enorme, numero di licenziamenti collettivi. Basta dare un breve, certo riduttivo, sguardo alla situazione occupazionale della nostra regione.

La Fiat, dell’eroe estivo Marchionne, continua a tenere in cassa integrazione i lavoratori dello stabilimento di Pomigliano ininterrottamente da più di un anno, con brevissime pause a volte di pochi giorni, senza presentare alcun piano di rilancio né alcuna reale e seria prospettiva, come la legge prevede, facendo intendere chiaramente di voler, prima o poi, liberarsi di uno dei poli industriali più grossi rimasto ormai in Campania.L’enorme spreco di risorse pubbliche va, cioè, ad un’azienda che carica le sue inefficienze sulle spalle della collettività, che non crea lavoro, e che aumenta solo a dismisura utili e dividendi, senza reinvestirli in occupazione.

Anche qui stessa storia, stesso percorso…stesso epilogo.125 i lavoratori che rischiano, parola ottimistica in questo caso, il posto di lavoro…anche qui nel silenzio totale. Queste sono solo alcune, forse la minima parte, delle tragedie che colpiscono centinaia di lavoratori campani, che denunciano il non-senso delle parole di chi, da Capri o da Cortina, straparla di ‘impegno comune’. Il problema dell’Italia rimane nelle coscienze di chi pensa esclusivamente al proprio immediato guadagno, in chi evade sistematicamente il fisco o utilizza le congiunture sfavorevoli per aumentare i propri già enormi ricavi. Un problema di difficile soluzione, perché di coscienza e di senso della collettività non gliene frega più niente a nessuno.

Fonte:
http://www.napoli.com/viewarticolo.php?articolo=31138

Poi ci sono le nubi basse che da quasi una settimana insistono sulle pianure del nord e sulla Liguria, al di sopra delle quali il sole splende indisturbato.

Questa situazione può essere apprezzata per le temperature gradevoli, per la mancanza di pioggia, ma se si guardano le cose nel loro insieme ci si accorge che l’Italia sta vivendo un’anomalia termica non da poco.

Molto mite il clima anche sui rilievi, mentre sulle pianure e sulle bassure del nord insisteranno nubi basse o banchi di nebbia, che renderanno almeno un po’ di giustizia alla stagione autunnale.

Proprio le pianure saranno le zone più fredde, specie in assenza di nuvolosità, di nebbia e di vento.

Fonte:
http://meteolive.leonardo.it/meteolive-notizia-28803-28803.html

Telstra chief executive officer David Thodey today announced a target to reduce the company’s carbon emissions intensity by at least 10 per cent by 2015.

The scary part is that in 2008/09 Telstra emitted 1.52 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, or 64 tonnes per million dollars of domestic revenue. Remember, an average Australian household generates around 14 tonnes of CO2 equivalent.

Telstra to reduce this to at least 58 tonnes per million dollars of domestic revenue by 2015.

Is this enough? Telstra cycle through their IT and carfleets on a regular basis. An ongoing replace and renewal program should see a greater decrease in their footprint.

Many corporations will plant trees in good faith. Credit to Telstra for their attempts to reuse, reduce and recycle. Let’s see how long it will take for them to start advertising and marketing green products or services.

We are watching!

Telstra’s Environmental Projects

La Commissione europea ieri ha rivisto al rialzo le stime di crescita che vedono per l’area Euro un Pil a -4% nel 2009 e +0,7% nel 2010, mentre per l’Italia quest’anno è atteso un calo del Pil del 4,7%, a fronte di un +0,7%.

Sul mercato azionario sono arrivate le notizie di due grosse acquisizioni: quella del gruppo ferroviario Burlington Nothern Santa Fe da parte del fondo Berkshire di Warren Buffett per un controvalore di circa 27Mld$, in parte in cash ed in parte tramite azioni.

L’ipotesi che riteniamo più verosimile è che il comunicato prenda atto dei segnali più positivi giunti dal fronte macro (ultimo dei quali il recente rialzo dell’indice Ism manifatturiero), confermando la possibilità che entro marzo si esaurisca il piano di acquisto di titoli aventi come sottostanti mutui per un importo di circa 1800Mld$.

La possibilità di un cambio del linguaggio in tema di permanenza dei tassi fermi potrebbe emergere in sede di pubblicazione delle minute dell’incontro odierno, con possibilità di un cambio effettivo nel corso dell’ultimo Fomc dell’anno, quello del 16 dicembre.

Fonte:
http://www.wallstreetitalia.com/articolo.asp?art_id=811000

Dunque non una terapeuta ma una signora che ci sa fare con la penna e che, soprattutto, ha usato la lettura come l’omeopatia e ha scritto un curioso manuale: 100 romanzi di Primo Soccorso per curare (quasi) tutto.

Stéphanie Junot cita invece Ventiquattr’ore nella vita di una donna di Stefan Zweig: “Perché in poche pagine tratteggia con tocchi semplici, eppure brillanti, come si possa sprofondare nell’inferno della dipendenza senza volerlo, anzi cercando di darsi freno, ma senza mai aggrapparsi a nulla”.

Caso mai non funzionasse si può passare senza problemi a Del piacere e del vizio di fumare di Italo Svevo, a Sotto il vulcano di Malcom Lowry (soprattutto di sera), a Romanzo con cocaina di Mihail Ageev.

E visto che siamo in stagione di affezioni respiratorie, come non cercare rimedio – suggerisce la scrittrice – ne La signora delle camelie di Alexandre Dumas figlio, nella Montagna incantata di Thomas Mann, nelle Ali della colomba di Henry James.

Fonte:
http://www.repubblica.it/2009/10/sezioni/spettacoli_e_cultura/curarsi-con-libri/curarsi-con-libri/curarsi-con-libri.html

ROMA – Se il rapporto con le banche è diventato sempre più difficile e costoso, non mancano le possibilità di reagire da parte delle piccole e medie imprese calabresi.

Uno dei modi più utilizzati in questo momento è la moratoria sui debiti, iniziativa attuata a livello nazionale grazie all’accordo tra il ministero dell’Economia e Finanze, l’Abi, Associazione Bancaria Italiana, e le più importanti…** La lettura integrale è prevista nell’edizione digitale **

Fonte:
http://www.ildomani.it/index.php?categoria=HOMEPAGE&id=45376&action=mostra_primopiano&primopiano=1

No, non voglio fare “insabbiamento” quindi :

Questo è il mio vecchio blog.
Ora farò la stessa cosa lì.

=_=”

Yesterday I was prevailed upon to drive Beautiful Daughter to Chichester so that she could visit the Joules shop.

It was a wonderful Indian Summer day, so the drive was a pleasure.  She bought a shirt at Joules reduced by 10% and I bought some Christmas decorations.

We had lunch outdoors, in the garden of the Cloisters Cafe in the cathedral precinct.

I wore a pair of Chico trousers that I bought in Denver (not pictured), with my new Marks & Spencer top that I got in Chester earlier this month.

It was so warm that i didn’t need a coat – I wore my purple cardigan from Boden.

As I knew there would be a lot of walking I wore my Ecco shoes that Melissa doesn’t like.  These came from Stratford-upon-Avon earlier this year.

I carried my brown handbag that I purchased in Chester in about 1995.

Sun Plaza, cel mai important centru comercial din sudul Bucureştiului, se va deschide în februarie 2010, lucrările fiind aproape gata şi urmând să fie finalizate în totalitate până la sfârşitul anului 2009. Sun Plaza va fi inaugurat în februarie, integrând brand-uri importante – Zara, Pull and Bear, Bershka şi Stradivarius – parte din contractele semnate săptămâna trecută cu renumitul grup de retail Inditex.

Inditex, cunoscutul grup de retail, a ales să fie prezent în Sun Plaza cu 4 dintre cele mai de succes mărci de pe piaţa românească: Zara, Pull and Bear, Bershka şi Stradivarius, acoperind o suprafaţă totală de aproximativ 2.800 mp.

Centrul comercial Sun Plaza, care beneficiază de ancore precum hipermarketul CORA (23.000 mp), Baumax (reţeaua austriacă DIY, aceasta fiind şi prima unitate pe care o deschide in Bucureşti – 10.000 mp), magazinul de mobilier Mobexpert (10.300 mp), lanţul de electrocasnice Flanco (2.500 mp) şi operatorul multiplex Cinema City, va domina sudul Bucureştiului cu o suprafaţă totală de 210.000 mp şi o suprafaţă comercială de 80.000 mp. 2.000 de locuri de parcare dispuse pe două niveluri subterane vor deservi clienţii sosiţi cu maşina, în timp ce legătura cu staţia de metrou Piaţa Sudului, realizată prin pasajul subteran care ajunge direct în interiorul Sun Plaza – o componentă unică în România – permite un acces rapid şi uşor chiar şi din zonele mai îndepărtate ale oraşului. Sun Plaza înseamnă 150 de magazine, cafenele şi restaurante amplasate într-o zonă de ”food-court” cu 1.200 locuri la mese, spaţii de divertisment constând într-un cinema de 15 săli cu 3.000 de locuri, sub brandul Cinema City, un club de biliard şi bowling, un casino şi o terasă exterioară, îmbinate într-un spaţiu arhitectural generos şi modern, toate contribuiind la crearea ambianţei optime, potrivite întregii familii, atât pentru cumpărături, cât şi pentru relaxare.

Cele mai importante brand-uri prezente în Sun Plaza sunt Cora, Baumax, Mobexpert, Flanco, Cinema City, C&A, Marks&Spencer, Zara, Bershka, Pull and Bear, Stradivarius, New Yorker, Sephora, Deichmann, Promod, Orsay, Motivi, Douglas, Imaginarium, Sensiblu, Ecco, Okaidi, Z, Ipekyol, Triumph, Accessorize, Nine West, Bamboo, Oxygen Club, Pizza Hut, KFC şi McDonalds.

Bibliography, the ESTC, and 18th-Century Electronic Databases:  A Roundtable

Chair: Eleanor F. Shevlin (West Chester University)   Participants: James E. May (Penn State University—DuBois), James Tierney (University of Missouri—St. Louis), David Vander Meulen (University of Virginia), Benjamin Pauley (Eastern Connecticut State University), Brian Geiger (ESTC, University of California, Riverside), and Scott Dawson (Gale/Cengage).

The following offers a summary of the roundtable that took place, Saturday, October 10, 2009, at the EC/ASECS 2009 conference hosted by Lehigh University and held at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, October 8-11, 2009.

 Jim May opened the roundtable, and his remarks highlighted and extended the discussion he offered in his essay, “Some Problems in ECCO (and ESTC),” in The Eighteenth-Century Intelligencer, 23.1 (Jan. 2009), the article that inspired this session and Anna Battigelli’s forthcoming roundtable at ASECS (March 18^th, 9:45 am—11:15 am). Key issues Jim raised included the need to correct missing images, to address the “disappearance” of letters originally printed in red ink on title pages, and to bring the ESTC up to date. In addition, he noted that ECCO’s electronic index is not always representative of what is actually there digitally. Work is also needed on providing or revising information about subscription lists, textual history, and attributions in ESTC. While noting that he had already addressed problems with Burney in his The Eighteenth-Century Intelligencer article, 23.2 (May 2009) and that Jim Tierney would be discussing this tool next, Jim commented on the usefulness of Burney, particularly to those working on the history of a publication.

Turning to the Burney collection, Jim Tierney drew attention to the potentially confusing name for this electronic collection because it is not by any means restricted to newspapers. Instead, it includes a good number of periodicals as well. Specifically, the collection consists of 237 newspapers and 161 periodicals, and, furthermore, some of the titles included are neither newspapers nor periodicals. That the Burney digitized collection follows the Anglo-American cataloguing procedure of creating a new entry every time a newspaper undergoes a title change results in the illusion of more titles than actually exist as well as confusion about the history of a given newspaper. Jim also provided a detailed handout (posted here as a page) listing the digitized periodicals (note: not newspapers) in Burney. The handout includes notes about missing issues, other locations where titles in Burney can be found, and a tentative list of Burney titles duplicated by other digitization projects. The two overarching points Jim made was the failure to have scholars involved in the planning of Burney and other digitization projects and the need for far greater collaboration among the creators/purveyors of these databases, librarians, and scholars. That given titles in Burney often include only a few issues when other issues were available elsewhere and, if digitized, would have approached a more complete run, exemplify the need for far better coordination and collaboration.

While David Vander Meulen serves on the ESTC board, his remarks for the roundtable were offered in his role as a researcher and user of these tools. He began by noting that ESTC is an evolving tool—a work in progress—and that ECCO follows ESTC.  Moreover, even as it progresses, the ESTC is still “functional and valuable” even though it is incomplete. Nonetheless, “any addition to ESTC will change the context.” An important development occurred in 2006 when the British Library initiated free access to this tool. As for problems, the ESTC had made the decision to truncate titles and places. Yet ECCO generally offers the full titles, while expanded locations can occasionally be found by going to public library catalogues. To improve these resources, David explained, we need to have an easier way to convey corrections to the British Library or University of California Riverside (the North American home of the ESTC) and, equally important, an ongoing staff to process editorial changes and comments. In discussing this need for a means of processing updates, David also drew attention to whether the uncontrolled notes field should be visible. Unfortunately agencies that have funded the ESTC, as he explained in his closing remarks, have decided the project is complete.  Obviously, given ESTC’s status as a work-in-progress, such a decision presents additional problems to continued updating and correcting.

 Ben Pauley spoke next about a project he has initiated. He began by noting the lack of access that many institutions (and thus their scholars and students) have to paid databases such as EEBO and ECCO. Both Internet Archives and Google Books, however, have a number of eighteenth-century books in their freely accessible databases. Yet it is typically very hard to identify properly what text one has accessed. Viewing these freely available texts as an opportunity, Ben established The Eighteenth-Century Book Tracker, a project in which he is supplying the bibliographic data so sorely lacking in eighteenth-century texts found in Google Books. Doing so has compelled him to become a textual scholar or an “accidental bibliographer.” Thus far, he has recorded about 150 copies not appearing in ESTC. At present, the project features 480 texts and 4 periodicals. Ben has been asked to write an article on the Eighteenth-Century Book Tracker for The Eighteenth-Century Intelligencer that will detail much more about his undertaking.

Speaking as the Associate Director and Resident Manager of the Center (University of California Riverside), the North American home of the ESTC, Brian Geiger explained that the British Library’s ESTC role has focused on cataloguing its own collection and that the Univ. of California Riverside  has handled everything else. In addition to reiterating points about the problem with truncated titles, he also discussed the lack of subject headings as a shortcoming. Turning to the digital surrogates of early modern imprints, he explained that the ECCO and Adam Matthews collections are based on ESTC, but EEBO is not. Next Brian addressed the need to foster better communication between ESTC and scholars. While the channels of communication between ESTC and librarians have remained strong, that has not been the case with scholars. Like Ben, Brian will also be writing an article on the ESTC for The Eighteenth-Century Intelligencer.

 Scott Dawson from Gale-Cengage concluded the presentations by roundtable panelists. He first supplied an historical overview of ECCO and Burney. In 1982 Research Publications began to microfilm the “Eighteenth Century” microform collection. By 2002 twenty-six million pages of eighteenth-century titles had been filmed. This microfilm collection is the basis for ECCO, but using the ESTC in conjunction with the microfilm has been overall a real plus for the project.  ECCO II, released at the start of this year, features 50,000 additional titles. By mid 2010 ECCO II, representing holdings from fifteen libraries, will be completed (titles from the Harry Ransom Center are still being prepared). ECCO and ECCO II, combined, will have made 185,000 eighteenth-century titles available to subscribers. As for the digitization of Burney, that project was handled by the British Library and not Gale-Cengage. Scott also addressed some of the problems that can and cannot be corrected. When pages are blurred, for instance, the microfilm plays a key role in what can be done. If the microfilm is clear, then the page is re-filmed. Yet if the problem occurred because the page is blurred in the microfilm, then, from the perspective of Gale, nothing can be done. When duplications of a title are discovered, however, the duplications can be deleted. 

After all six panelists had offered opening statements, the discussion was opened to the audience’s questions and comments. The point perhaps most stressed in the discussion with the audience was a need for far greater involvement by scholars in the creation and improvement of digital resources. In terms of updating or correcting resources, questions arose about how this might be done and what types of controls are needed. In subsequent discussions, the creation of advisory boards and (or) the involvement of a committee representing ASECS arose as possible avenues for communicating and addressing the scholar’s perspective more effectively. The establishment of an advisory board and/or ties with ASECS could play a vital role in future projects, and members of a board or ASECS committee could also devise potential solutions to some of the shortcomings with existing tools.  The resurrection of Factotum, the now defunct ESTC news publication of the British Library (ceased with issue no. 40 in 1995), or the initiation of a similar publication would be a way of establishing regular, ongoing communication with a broader base of scholars. (For those interested in the content of previous issues, see the index for Factotum.) Of course, an obstacle here is staffing and funding. Questions also arose about plans to make Burney more complete by digitizing issues not included for a particular newspaper or periodical title but available elsewhere. Yet that this digitization project had been undertaken by the British Library (see final report) and not Gale complicates the issue. Also, when asked about any plans for an ECCO III, Scott explained that the creation of ECCO II caused surprise among many libraries that had purchased ECCO because they believed that ECCO was complete at the time. When ECCO II was introduced for purchase, libraries were promised that there would not be any additional forms of ECCO.  (Depending on the discovery of additional eighteenth-century titles, however, I see no reason that another collection could not be pursued; if enough material for another collection becomes available, then scholars need to insert and assert themselves in conversations with vendors and librarians and make the need and value of a third collection known.)

Another very real, pressing concern was the large number of scholars who do not have access to these databases and for whom their institutions are not likely to be able to afford these resources even in the future. The point was raised that all universities in the U.K. have access to ECCO and ECCO II for an annual hosting fee through the auspices of the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC), “established by the UK further and higher education funding councils in 2006 to negotiate with publishers and owners of digital content.” Because the situation differs greatly in the U.S.—we have no higher education government council overseeing all our universities—we do not have such a prospect here. While Ben Pauley’s Eighteenth-Century Book Tracker promises to bring some order to the current anarchy that characterizes freely available eighteenth-century texts, his valuable project can’t and won’t solve the inequity of access in the United States.

“I’m”

Noises cackling in my head
To retrieve a shed,that’s (a) real act to regain my mind
Strangely driven to my second essence
I ask to myself,why the darkness’s not clear

I’m alone with myself,and now smell the missing gap
To retrieve the only cause that’s bouncing in my head
I’m trying with my strength on the edge of many words
Jumping in the mirror,trying to catch a broken rope

Shores of thoughts that try to born
Lazily fly around the lore
I’m lost in these halls

Sounds of past that are my shield
Screaming pain is now my sword
Ready to fight for reborn

I’m alone with myself,and now smell the missing gap
To retrieve the only cause that’s bouncing in my head
I’m trying with my strength on the edge of many words
Jumping in the mirror,trying to catch a broken rope

Wherever I’ll be,whatever I’ll do
I’ve my own name,only thing (of) that I’m sure
Ready to collapse,full of “perhaps”
Tomorrow shines,with a spark of a hope…undefined

The only thing that I recall,my name is real,but nothing’s more
I’ll scream with all my breath,does anyone can help me?

I’ve got it now,mission is here
crashing the past,knowing lives without fear
My body boils,empty the choice
I will be tempred,(and) forever I’ll go on and on

Blindly trying to seeking,a real nightmare living
fly to future for a goal,that helps to find my soul
(soul) is trying to speaking,make the noise for linking
where’s the secret of our land,or knowledge…at the end?

—————————————————————-
“I’m” (Sono)

Schiamazzi nella mia testa
per ritrovarmi,un atto reale per riconquistare la memoria
Stranamente spinta verso la mia seconda essenza
mi chiedo,perchè la tenebra non sia così chiara

Sola con me stessa,ora sento l’odore del vuoto dentro me
per recuperare l’unica cosa che rimbalza nella mia testa
Sto provando con forza,sui confini di molte parole
saltando nello specchio,cercando di aggrapparmi ad una corda spezzata

Rive di pensieri cercano di nascere
volano pigramente attorno alle tradizioni
Mi sono persa in queste sale

Suoni del passato sono il mio scudo
il dolore urlante è la mia spada
sono pronta a lottare per rinascere

Sola con me stessa,ora sento l’odore del vuoto dentro me
per recuperare l’unica cosa che rimbalza nella mia testa
Sto provando con forza,sui confini di molte parole
saltando nello specchio,cercando di aggrapparmi ad una corda spezzata

Ovunque sarò, qualunque cosa farò
Ho il mio nome,l’unica cosa di cui sono sicura
Pronta a crollare, piena di “forse”
Il domani brilla, con una scintilla di speranza…indefinita

L’unica cosa che ricordo,il mio nome è reale, ma niente di più
Lo urlerò con tutto il mio respiro,qualcuno può aiutarmi?

Ho capito ora, la missione è qui
fracassare il passato,affrontando la vita senza paura
Il mio corpo ribolle,vana è la scelta
Sarò temprata e per sempre andrò avanti…e avanti

Ciecamente provando a cercare…che vera vita da incubo
volo nel futuro per un obiettivo, che aiuti a trovare la mia anima
(l’anima) sta cercando di parlare,fa rumore per collegarsi
dove è il segreto della nostra terra, oppure la conoscenza…alla fine?

by

Hungin & Munin

ECCO Wins Outstanding Socially Progressive Business Award

The first-ever SCORE Awards was held to recognize the success of America’s small businesses during a time of economic recovery.

SCORE honored East Cooper Community Outreach (ECCO) with Outstanding Socially Progressive Business Award. ECCO was initially conceived in 1989 by Monsignor James A. Carter, pastor of Christ Our King Catholic Church, in response to the devastation caused by Hurricane Hugo. ECCO’s ministry of “Neighbors Helping Neighbors” works to improve poverty, substandard housing, lack of access to health and dental care, hunger, and the threat of homelessness challenged a prospering community.

In 2007, ECCO turned to Coastal SCORE to help grow services. Volunteer experts from SCORE helped ECCO analyze its computer servers and made recommendations to upgrade the hardware, significantly improving ECCO’s performance. SCORE also offered strategic planning support and gave advice on ECCO’s micro-loan initiative. In 2008, ECCO provided at least one basic need service to more than 5,000 clients.

Learn about all the 2009 SCORE Award winners.

SCORE Association
View more posts by SCORE

Meyjitte Boughenout  collaborates with Ecco Bistro owner and chef Philip Johnson .

Philip Johnson's Ecco Bistro

The Benchmark on the Coast

Absynthe Restaurant owner Meyjitte Boughenout has garnered many honours.
And so has Philip Johnson.  There’s Michelin Stars, Gourmet Traveller Australian Restaurant of the year accolades and a myriad of other marks of distinction. With wines supplied by Craggy Range both Chef Boughenhout and Chef Johnson were given the job of expertly matching these wines with an assemblage of 6 courses.
To utter that I was a small bit thrilled to be sitting down to dine with these 2 prominent figures in our states dining direction would be a tad dry.

Food

Lightly cured ocean trout, white chocolate cannelloni, almond coriander paste – M. Boughenhout
Cauliflower veloute, pan-fried scallop, green olive bubble – M. Boughenhout
Beetroot risotto, goats cheese, pickled golden beets, candied walnuts – P. Johnson
Roast quail, cotechino sausage, peas, sweet corn and basil – P. Johnson
Braised lamb shank with sultana raisins, celeriac puree, mushroom ravioli – M. Boughenhout
Iced coconut parfait, sesame wafer, pineapple sorbet, lime and pineapple salsa – P. Johnson

Visit Craggy Range.com

Wine

2008 Fletcher Family Riesling, Marlborough NZ
2008 Gimbett Gravels Chardonnay, Hawke’s Bay NZ
2008 Sluicings Pinot Noir, Central Otago NZ
2007 ‘Sophia’ Merlot/Cabernet Franc, Hawke’s Bay NZ
2007 ‘Le Sol’ Syrah, Hawke’s Bay NZ
2006 ‘Noble’ Sauvignon Blan/Riesling, Martinbourough  NZ

Those unfamiliar with the restaurant will applaud the wine on display behind the glass of the  floor to ceiling cellar. The bar is compact and welcoming for an aperitif of the green muse. Dining is also in close quarters, with a minimalist approach to art aside from 2 glorious tulip’esque obelisks. The customer is compelled to converge to the art that adorns Absynthe’s plates thus not consuming ones observations with excessive décor. And think about it, the fabric of what Meyjitte is creating here is on the plate, not the walls.

The first of 6 offerings arrive on a  table that shies away from linen, why conceal matchless furnishings with costly cloth, I be of the same mind. The cannelloni here was a real unearthing.

Cured Tasmanian Trout

Curled around a mound of ocean trout pearls was a palpable high quality white chocolate allowing a bitter sweetness to battle it out with the salty vesicles of roe. The trouts preparation saw the protein of the fish altering it’s usual cooked state to a jelly like diversion.

Spherification on the Gold Coast.

Appearing next came a single scallop, allowed the cookery process to just 1 side, keeping the pure texture whilst permitting the natural sugars to caramelize to welcome supplementary flavour. The ‘olive bubble’ getting all quizzing each other. Meyjitte here borrowing on the technique of spherification. Though not as striking to look at a proper gathering of astringency, natural sweetness furthermore I also picked up on a hint of vanilla, from either the veloute or the scattering of dainty crisp croutons that completed a well applauded dish.

see this...beetroot risotto, I can still smell it....food that leaves a lasting impression

An arousal of the nasal passage welcomed Mr Johnson’s first gift. The delightfulness of the beetroot could have been sniffed for the entire evening. Amid the plump swollen crimson grains of vialano nano rice were also a macedoine of beetroot for honesty. The chevre when stirred through at the table allowing the grains separation. Extremely moorish.

Quail

The quail with a flat approach to presentation allowed a half de boned little creature per serve. Sweet corn came in the guise of a almost ultra wet polenta like puree. The basil as a thick unpassed oil playing the colour thing well on the plate. Great earthy flavours in the quail, interested to know chefs supplier, good quality here. Very nice submission.

a capsule of care, dedication...and flavour

The lamb shank which was to be Chef Boughenout’s final collation saw the braised lamb pulled from the bone. Close conversation divulged a chicken mousse then binding the meat amid sultana raisins and wrapped with a salty prosciutto de parma. The result was off course a testament to it’s slow cooking, a gelatinous full bodied spectacle that surpassed all before. A mound of celeriac puree held the meat in place while sautéed Swiss browns amid the clarified braising juices added to the authority of this dish.

if you sift through the restaurants here, you will find food akin to this...food that makes you think...we need more

The finale was welcomed from Chef Philip Johnson. Though the parfait was highlighted as the main component I took pleasure in the pineapple salsa, more so the chosen preparation method. I guess here either a compression technique or the flesh was cooked en sous vide? Coriander and chilli led to ubiquitous collection of flavours. The sesame tuille gave texture amid the similar smoothness of the parfait and sorbet . Not overly cloying and also refreshing the palate as well.

This to me is the benchmark of dining on The Gold Coast. The crowd was evenly mixed. Young professionals, couples and really good to see a fellow restaurateur and 2 of our cities talented young chefs appreciating and learning from this experience.

Meyjitte Boughnehout, Mary-Jeanne Hutchinson (Director, Craggy Range Winery) Philip Johnson

What more do I say?  An absolute gem of an evening.

I had the best part of a day in Durham, and was determined to get a good photo of the cathedral.

The night before I plotted my route on a map that the hotel receptionist gave me.   I knew which bridges to cross and where the paths were beside the river.

Unhappily, the day was cloudy, with rain threatening. 

The trees alongside the River Wear were heavy with rain from the previous night, and I had to put up the hood on my Gortex coat to keep my hair dry.

Two men launching a canoe told me to go into the garden of a pink house to get the best shot of the cathedral.  They assured me that the people who lived in the house weren’t at home and that nobody would see me there.

For this expedition, I wore my Boden jeans that I got this year. 

I wore my purple Ecco shoes from Chichester (also 2009), my grey striped Boden top (2009) and a heather coloured jersey from la Redoute.

To add a touch of sophistication (joke) I added some beads that I bought in Matlock in 2008.

I carried my Marks & Spencer bag that I purchased in Sheffield in 2007.

On top I wore my Gortex parka , which I have not shown.

Hope you think my photo of the cathedral was worth the effort.

Taking place in New York State, A woman who is murdered is connected to a prominent man in town; plus a few unsavoury characters.  As the investigation continues, and seemingly disrupts the family life of this man among the lives of her son and other estranged family.  It is a journey to the soul, the inside of a family, and the overcoming of what has affected an entire town amidst rumours, the truth, and what other people think.

Eddy Diehl is the married man that had an affair with Zoe.  Her estranged husband is also suspect in the murder of Zoe in her home early one morning as she was about to leave for Vegas to see if she has a shot at a serious singing career.  She never got to Vegas; no one actually knew that she was even going there.

Why in the world would Eddy have an affair with one girl in a small town that everyone knew, that was seen as off the beaten track when he had everything at home – loving family, wife, successful children?  The drinking that lead to Eddy’s demise and subsequent addiction with getting himself cleared so that the stigma of being accused would forever be off his shoulders.

As Joyce Carol Oates tells the story in different angles and perspectives through Eddy, her ex husband, her son, the ex wife, and the son; she emits this sense of the unknown since it takes the police forever to be cleared from the suspect list and what it ultimately does to both families – the shock, the anger, the distrust, The feelings of being persecuted when one is innocent, and then death by police squad.

Lately, this is happening more and more in our everyday lives, the hurt it causes all of us, the communities that it happens in, and the anguish and pain it causes the families affected is just heartbreaking.

HarperCollins / Ecco

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I have looked at the BBC weather forecast for Durham and it is not good.  Tomorrow afternoon is supposed to be White Cloud, with 11 centigrade.

Wednesday it is predicted to rain, with a maximum temperature of 12.  Oh dear.

For the journey up, I shall wear my grey and black Boden dress that I bought this year.

I’ll wear purple tights and my purple shoes by Ecco that I bought in Chichester. I am travelling my train and my journey includes crossing London via the underground system so I need comfortable shoes.

I will add my purple jacket by Sandwich that came from Warrington in 2008..

My handbag will be my old faithful from Marks & Spencer, purchased in Sheffield in 2008.

Nej det här inlägget handlar inte om årets nobelpristagare i litteratur! Jag känner inte till Herta Müller så jag kan inte yttra mig om hon var ett bra val eller ej. En av mina favoritförfattare är Joyce Carol Oates men hon kanske är för populär?

Jag har äntligen hittat ett par skitsnygga stövlar som – hör och häpna – passar! De var alldeles för dyra men jag är säker på att jag kommer att använda dem i många år! De är enkla, tuffa tack vare sina detaljer och av bra kvalitet (vad jag kan förstå). Äkta skinn och Ecco – jo jo! Nu blir det totalt köpstopp för mig i…ja jag vågar inte dra till med något för rätt vad det är så dyker det upp någon konsert som lockar, en blus eller nå´t annat men jag måste försöka hålla i slantarna. Jag är självklart glad över mina stövlar men…priset var som sagt högre än vad jag tänkt mig.. Dum och oekonomisk eller förståndig som satsar på kvalitet?

Ade1a has just informed us about this timely 18th century conference taking place at Columbia U. on the 16th of October, featuring a keynote by Matthew Kirschenbaum (U Maryland), talks by Columbia faculty and grad students, and special sessions on EEBO and ECCO.   She hopes that NY-area 18c scholars will come, and that those who cannot visit, will visit the blog and post questions.  I’m looking forward to hearing more about the conversations that take place there.

DM

When I woke up this morning I did not know that today is National Poetry Day.  Well, at least here in the UK it is.

I thought it was just an ordinary Thursday.

I get up early on Thursdays to publish the new week’s edition of www.looklovely.net.

Today I had a long-ish ‘to do’ list, and got most of it done.

I had to go into Eastbourne for a few errands, such as taking my new jeans to be altered.

While I was there I came across a man standing in the middle of the main shopping street, reciting Wordsworth.  He had a good voice, and I thought he gave a good rendition, but nobody else appeared to be paying attention.

At the end of the poem he said, “Today is National Poetry Day.”

When Wonderful Husband came home from work I asked if he knew it was National Poetry Day, and he said “Yes, Keats won.”

If I had known when choosing my clothes, I might have aimed for a more poetic look.

As it was, I wore my striped Banana Republic top that I bought in Rochester New York in 2008, with my ‘this year’s’  Boden jeans.

I wore my purple Ecco shoes that came from Chichester this year.  I have got some purple laces but could not find them.

To combat the slight chill of autumn, I wore my green Whistles cardigan, purchased in Brighton in 2005.

My old faithful Marks & Spencer handbag (Sheffield, 2007) got another outing.

Yesterday was my second ever visit to Peterborough.  I was there about 15 years ago, and that was for work.

The weather yesterday was wet, but not cold.  

Peterborough has a huge indoor shopping centre, with John Lewis and Marks and Spencer.  I always need fresh air though, and was disappointed to find the outside was fairly messy as many of the streets seemed to be dug up.

There were construction vehicles and cement mixers everywhere!

So I took refuge in the Cathedral.  This was a good move.  There was hardly anybody there, and it is an exceptionally interesting Cathedral.  Katherine of Aragon (first wife of Henry VIII) is buried there.

I bought a photography permit and enjoyed taking pictures.

Then I walked back to John Lewis and had lunch.  On the way I called in a few hairdressers and left business cards for www.looklovely.net.  I never know for sure whether these have any effect, but I like to think that it helps to build ‘brand image’.

For this outing I wore my orange Jaeger jersey that I bought in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2006, with my orange beads from Amsterdam (2008).

I wore my In-wear skirt that I purchased in Norwich a few weeks ago.  I tried to brighten this up with a pair of purple tights.

As I was on my feet all day I wore my purple Ecco shoes (with orange laces) .  I bought these in Chichester this year.

It was raining, so I wore my brown Basler mac.  This was acquired in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2006.

PHILADELPHIA – Margaret Foti, Ph.D., M.D. (h.c.), chief executive officer of the American Association for Cancer Research, will receive the inaugural European CanCer Organisation Award for Lifetime Achievement on Sept. 21, 2009, in Berlin. This award honors Foti’s outstanding contributions to cancer research and her remarkable scientific leadership in the worldwide cancer community.

“Under Dr. Foti’s leadership, the AACR has become a unique organization promoting worldwide collaboration,” said Alexander Eggermont, M.D., Ph.D., president of ECCO. “By bringing together leading scientists from around the globe, she opens the doors for research partnerships that lead to breakthrough developments in cancer treatment and prevention. We are honored to recognize Dr. Foti’s lasting impact on international cancer science and medicine.”

The ECCO Board of Directors established the Award for Lifetime Achievement earlier this year to honor an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the fight against cancer by demonstrating a lifetime commitment to defeating the disease. Foti will receive the award at the Opening Session of the ECCO 15-34th ESMO Multidisciplinary Congress.

“It is an extraordinary honor to receive this award from ECCO, a remarkable organization that represents 24 cancer organizations and over 50,000 cancer professionals in Europe, one that fosters excellence in research, education, policy and treatment. Because of its important mission to promote partnerships among individuals and organizations in the cancer field, AACR being one of them, ECCO continues to have an enormous impact on quality patient care,” said Foti. “The AACR and I look forward to continued collaborations with ECCO to raise awareness of cancer as a serious public health problem, promote worldwide collaboration and support research for the good of cancer patients everywhere.”

Foti has been CEO of the American Association for Cancer Research since 1982. During her tenure, membership has grown from 3,000 to 30,000 scientists residing in nearly 90 countries. She began her career as an editorial assistant for Cancer Research, the most highly cited cancer journal in the world, and was rapidly promoted to managing editor. Under Foti’s leadership, the AACR has launched five additional journals that together contribute 20 percent of all peer-reviewed cancer literature.

In addition, the AACR convenes more than 20 meetings a year worldwide on timely scientific subjects and five educational workshops that train basic and clinical scientists. These conferences draw thousands and lay the groundwork for ongoing collaboration, leading to the acceleration of the latest breakthroughs in the field. The AACR also holds think tanks on high-priority scientific areas, facilitates programs that bring together scientists and survivors on issues of mutual interest, plays a key role in science policy and is the scientific partner of Stand Up To Cancer, a groundbreaking translational research funding initiative launched in 2008 which has provided funding for meritorious research that is being conducted in Europe.

In June, Foti was awarded an honorary Doctorate in Medicine from the University of San Pablo CEU in Madrid. She also holds Honorary Doctorates in Medicine and Surgery from the University of Rome La Sapienza and from the University of Catania in Sicily. Earlier this year, she received the first Margaret Kripke Legend Award from the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, and she was cited in August by Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter for her dedication to increasing public awareness of the importance of cancer research.

Foti’s other national and international awards include the: Award of Appreciation from the Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research Chairpersons, Award with Recognition and Appreciation from the Israel Cancer Association, Italian League Against Cancer Commendation, Distinguished Service Award from the George Washington University Medical Center’s GW Cancer Institute, Distinguished Service Award from the Association of American Cancer Institutes, AACR Margaret Foti Award for Leadership and Extraordinary Achievements in Cancer Research, Ville de Paris Award, Cina del Duca Award for raising public awareness of cancer globally, Community Caring Award from the William S. Graham Foundation for Melanoma Research and the Special Recognition Award from the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

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The mission of the American Association for Cancer Research is to prevent and cure cancer. Founded in 1907, AACR is the world’s oldest and largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research. The membership includes 30,000 basic, translational and clinical researchers; health care professionals; and cancer survivors and advocates in the United States and nearly 90 other countries. The AACR marshals the full spectrum of expertise from the cancer community to accelerate progress in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer through high-quality scientific and educational programs. It funds innovative, meritorious research grants, research fellowship and career development awards. The AACR Annual Meeting attracts more than 16,000 participants who share the latest discoveries and developments in the field. Special conferences throughout the year present novel data across a wide variety of topics in cancer research, treatment and patient care. The AACR publishes six major peer-reviewed journals: Cancer Research; Clinical Cancer Research; Molecular Cancer Therapeutics; Molecular Cancer Research; Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention; and Cancer Prevention Research. The AACR also publishes CR, a magazine for cancer survivors and their families, patient advocates, physicians and scientists. CR provides a forum for sharing essential, evidence-based information and perspectives on progress in cancer research, survivorship and advocacy.

About ECCO

ECCO is a non-profit organization formed in September 2007 to replace the Federation of European Cancer Societies (FECS). It has six founding members: EACR (European Association for Cancer Research), EONS (European Oncology Nursing Society), ESMO (European Society of Medical Oncology), ESSO (European Society of Surgical Oncology), ESTRO (European Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology) and SIOPE (European Society for Paediatric Oncology). There are 24 member societies in total, representing more than 50,000 cancer professionals. ECCO plays an important role in engaging with policymakers to promote the interests of cancer patients, those who care for them, and those without whose research there would be no advances in treatment and care. Its official journal is the European Journal of Cancer.

About ESMO

ESMO is a non-profit leading European professional organization focused on advancing the specialty of medical oncology and promoting a multidisciplinary approach to cancer treatment and cure. It represents more than 6,000 oncology professionals in more than 100 countries. Its scientific journal, Annals of Oncology, ranks among the top clinical oncology journals worldwide. Recognized as an authoritative voice in the fight against cancer, ESMO offers consultative expertise to oncology organizations and European authorities on important issues related to cancer research, prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure.

About the ECCO-ESMO congress

Since 1983 the ECCO conference has been organized every two years to promote the need for a multidisciplinary approach to cancer, and since then it has been Europe’s premier cancer meeting. As of this year, the biennial multidisciplinary conference is hosted jointly by the European CanCer Organisation (ECCO) and the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO). It is the only congress in Europe that covers the entire spectrum of cancer from basic science and translational research, to prevention, treatment, nursing and supportive care for all types of tumors.

This unique platform is a forum for leading cancer experts from around the world to present their latest research and debate controversial issues surrounding the future of research, treatment and care. The congress expects to host about 15,000 participants from 120 countries, making it the largest oncology meeting in Europe to date. In more than 2,000 presentations, the conference will discuss the latest advances in prevention, treatment and survivorship, proteomics, biomarkers, pharmacogenomics and imaging, as well as the latest evidence on epidemiological trends, complementary therapies and quality of life issues. For the first time, the meeting also features a patient advocacy track and a track on oncopolicy, which is aimed at strengthening European policy on cancer research and care.

Media Contact:

Michele Leiberman
(267) 646-0622
michele.leiberman@aacr.org