I'm not the only one
Topic: Whatever
Living in Macedonia, where people (especially women) tend to dress up when they leave the house, broke me of the habit of appearing in public in sweatpants. Apparently, the Balkans have inspired the NBA to attempt sartorial improvements, as well:

According to The Washington Post, the idea for the new dress code was born out of a dinner in honour of the US Olympic basketball team in Belgrade last year. While the Serbian national team wore matching sports jackets, many of the NBA players arrived in sweat suits, oversize jeans, diamond earrings and platinum chains. Coach Larry Brown was said to have been so embarrassed he considered sending some of the worst dressed players back to their hotel.

I almost forgot - it's a 'holiday'!
Topic: Whatever
In honor of his recent visit and current campaign to bring his world tour to Australia, please allow me to be the first (and hopefully, only) person to wish you all a Hoffy Halloween!

Sweet, sweet sleep
Topic: Whatever
The Guardian reports that scientists are beginning to figure out why it helps to sleep on a problem.

In different stages of sleep our brains piece together thoughts and experiences, then file them in a structured way, giving us clearer memories and ultimately, better judgment.

Heh. So, sleep deprivation basically explains my entire semester. I'm glad something does.

Flashback
Topic: Whatever
I'll be getting back to work any minute now, but I just took a quick break to read 50 Books, and these posts gave me a flashback to the agonizing process of packing up my books before I moved, and how much I miss my books, and I how I hope that my friends are enjoying the ones that were left in their care.

It is so incredibly weird to me that I have one, tiny, "bookshelf" (actually a CD/DVD rack that happens to work as a bookshelf) that isn't even full. I brought next to no books with me, which was difficult. "These books represent security and home," Doppelganger says, and I can definitely relate to that. I love a public library, and I intellectually accept that it wasn't necessary to bring my entire collection with me, but there's something about having my books on hand that's deeply comforting.

When I go to friends' flats, I find myself contemplating their bookshelves with a deep sense of envy, stemming both from the fact that they have bookshelves (possibly my favorite category of furniture) and that they have many, many books to put on them. I've been slooooooowly re-amassing a collection of second-hand books, but I've been trying to keep my book-buying in check because I know I'll just have to go through another agonizing cull in a year or so.

Although, as Doppelganger says, the idea of getting rid of books is usually more painful than actually doing it. I usually find that once I sit down and start sorting, its not hard to figure out which books I'm just done with. Most notably, in the pre-Australia move, I realized that I was done with Dune and The Lord of the Rings. There was a long period of my life in which I read both series straight through at least once a year. Those days are over. It was strange to put those books in the donation pile without feeling a pang of loss, but when a phase is over, its over.

I was trying to think if there are books I regret getting rid of over my various moves, and I don't think so. Maybe my copy of War and Peace, but I only would've kept that to prove that I had read it, and that didn't seem like sufficient reason to bring it with me from Skopje, since its such a brick of a book. I do miss some of the books that I've left with various friends. Sometimes I wish that I'd kept American Gods, Blonde, The Toughest Indian in the World, and Snake Hips, but at least I can hope that they are, or at least were, being enjoyed by other people who I know love books. Other than that, I think I've kept every book that there's the even the slightest chance that I might want to read again.

Okay, then. Enough with thinking about books, and back to reading them. Which just isn't as enjoyable when I have to take notes. How is it that education manages to take the fun out of reading?

Update: See Antipixel for further reflections on the pain of packing and the comfort of unpacking books. Have a look at the photographs, too - they're gorgeous.

Artsy
Topic: Whatever
The Melbourne International Arts Festival has been on for the past two weeks, and I promised myself I wasn't going to miss this one like I missed the film festival and the student arts festival -- by being so damn busy and scatty that I didn't bother to set aside time to see anything. So I got a festival program, and I looked for performances with student discounts, and I set aside the time to go see a performance: Stephen Petronio Company from New York.

Little did I know when I bought the ticket weeks ago that I was going to be so stressed and obsessed with school that I wasn't going to be able to focus on the performance until at least halfway through the opening solo piece, "Broken Man". My attention issues weren't helped by the fact that I'm not in the least familiar with latest in modern dance, so I always feel a bit at sea when watching it. Fortunately for me, the visuals of The Gotham Suite are gorgeously designed -- the lights, set and costumes work beautifully together -- and they eventually got my attention on the performance, where it belonged.

The other pieces in The Gotham Suite were group pieces. I found "City of Twist" easy to follow: it was about people in the city, and the way that we move together sometimes, and apart at others, and at cross purposes at yet other times. It was about the chaos of the city, too -- there was so much going on onstage sometimes that I didn't know where to look, and knew that I was missing something by choosing to watch a particular bit of action. And it was, ultimately, sad. "City of Twist" was a response to post-Sept. 11 New York, and it feels weighted with the shock of the immediate aftermath of the attacks.

"The Island of Misfit Toys" I had a bit more trouble with, in terms of what was being communicated. It feels a bit like every bad stereotype I ever absorbed about "the city" growing up -- it's grim, it's bewildering, no one cares about anyone else, you'll be in over your head, used and tossed aside. The music was composed by Lou Reed, so naturally the mood was dark and decadent and a bit grimy. "City of Twist", although not uplifting in its mood, at least had moments of gentleness that made it a bit easier to watch than "Misfit Toys". But the movement in "Misfit Toys" was stunning. I think it's the first choreography I've seen that directly acknowledges how sexy it is to dance. Its also the first choreography I've seen in which lifts and support movements were done without regard to the "man lifts, woman looks pretty" tradition in ballet. Women lifted men, men lifted men, women lifted women. I was fascinated because it was so unexpected. Petronio's choreography seems to me to be interested in exploring the strength and suppleness of the human body, rather than treating the male body as strong and the female body as fluid.

The applause at the end of the performance just went on and on. But no one stood up. I've heard that its nearly impossible to get a standing ovation in Melbourne, which is quite a change from the States. Another change from the States is that I only saw a few people wearing jeans, even though it was a matinee performance. And most of the people who were wearing jeans had dressed them up with a nice shirt and shoes. I really appreciate that people dress for the theater here. To me, going to the theater ought to be a special occasion, and it ruins the mood if half the audience is wearing jeans and t-shirts.

It started to rain as I left the theater, which suited me. It would've been too jarring to walk out into bright sunshine. Of course, the one thing I forgot to bring with me was an umbrella. It wasn't a cold rain, though, so it was almost pleasant to walk in. And now that it's stopped raining, I think I'll go out for a proper walk. I love the smell of the city after a good steady afternoon rain washes the air clean.

Admin issues
Topic: Whatever
Okay, I'm going to be trying something new for the comments section, and I suspect that it may make all the old comments disappear. So if you happen to notice that a comment you made has vanished, it's not because I'm suddenly into censorship. I'm just trying out some fancy new stuff, and my technical knowledge isn't sufficient to test it out without sacrificing the existing comments. So if your comments did vanish, please accept my apologies.

Update: Hmmm. Apparently my technical knowledge is even more insufficient than I originally thought, because I can't get the new comments system working. Everything anyone has said is safe, at least until I sort out the issue.

It's not easy being green
Topic: Whatever
Especially when you're used as a little green pregnancy test.

Background and summary: there is a summit going on in Washington DC right now, and its aim is to launch a rescue plan for threatened amphibian species that is projected to cost tens of millions of US dollars a year for at least a decade.

Anyone who has paid any sort of attention to environmental issues for the past decade is probably well aware that there have been many reports that things have been going badly for amphibians - the many stories about the growth in the numbers of grossly mutated frogs, for example - but apparently last year a global study called the Global Amphibian Assessment (GAA) found that the situation was more dire than expected. Nearly a third of amphibian populations around the world were found to be threatened with extinction according the criteria set out by the World Conservation Union (IUCN). (By comparison, according to the GAA key findings, 23% of mammalian and 12% of bird species are so classified.) The plans being discussed at the DC summit are a response to these findings.

While habitat loss was found to be the most serious threat to amphibians, a recently discovered fungus has been taking a severe toll on amphibian populations. The fungus causes a disease called chytridiomycosis that causes skin damage that impairs amphibians' ability to absorb air and moisture through their skins. The fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, has been found in the Americas, Europe and Australia, the areas with the highest numbers of critically endangered and threatened amphibian species.

The participants in the summit are currently debating the merits of a theory, proposed by team of researchers from South Africa and Australia led by a professor at James Cook University in Australia, that suggests that the fungus was spread by the use of a species of African frog (Xenopus laevis) for pregnancy testing in the 1930s and '40s. The BBC story at the first link has more details, but apparently, the female of the species would lay eggs when injected with a sample of urine from a pregnant woman. Consequently, thousands of frogs were shipped annually from Africa to Europe, North America and Australia to be used for pregnancy and fertility testing.

This article (link via BBC) gives a history of the use of Xenopus in the hobby acquariums and laboratories of Europe. I recommend reading the first few pages - the scientific bits can be skipped over without losing the thread of the story, which relates the rise of Xenopus as a significant laboratory subject while throwing out a number of casual but tantalizing references to scientific politics and rivalries at the end of nineteenth century. But if that's too much to read, the 3rd and 4th pages are the real highlight, as they relate the story of Lancelot Hogben, a left-wing British scientist who began working Xenopus during his tenure at the University of Cape Town in the late 1920s, and both continued his own work with the species and advocated its use to others upon his return to England. Fascinating stuff.

Okay, having already outed myself as a nerd (to the maybe three people reading this who didn't already know that was the case), let me just take it to the next level. Since I've got classes in colonialism and globalization this semester, and a class taught by a committed feminist animal rights activist, I'm seeing all kinds of links to topics that have been coming up in my classes. The ethics of using animals in medical testing is an obvious issue raised by this story (the Xenopus test sounds far more humane than the other contemporary pregnancy tests, but it was still being raised in an unnatural environment and subjected to unknown stresses in the course of testing). It also provides an unusual illustration of one of the many ways that the resources of colonized countries were exploited for the benefit of the colonizer. And it describes how colonization facilitated the mobility of intellectual and natural resources, which was an earlier version of the massive flows of people, information and other resources that students of globalization are currently examining. I've also got an idea that there's a link between Xenopus and the process of bringing pregnancy and childbirth under the control of modern medicine, but that's a suspicion, not anything I'm capable of backing up with arguments or examples at the moment.

All that out of the story of an odd little African amphibian. Amazing, isn't it? Obviously, if the link between Xenopus and the prevalence of chytridiomycosis in Europe, Australia and the Americas can be proven, it will be yet another example of the unintended, unforeseen, and potentially devastating consequences of shuffling animals around the world with insufficient thought for the impact on the local environment. It seems appropriate that researchers from Australia, which suffers from the depradations of introduced species like the cane toad, rabbit and camel, among others, would find a possible link between the introduction of imported species and the decline of native ones. Unfortunately, the end result of this story is to make me feel a bit wary about human capacity to plan to "save" threatened amphibians without causing negative consequences to other species, because we really don't have the most stellar record when it comes to predicting the consequences of our own actions, particularly in sensitive and complex settings like ecosystems.

Multitasking
Topic: Whatever
Procrastinating, engaging in self-indulgent silliness and inflicting my opinions on others. If only I could bring this sort of productivity to, you know, the stuff I ought to be doing.

Picked this meme up from Kate on Moment to Moment: You go here and enter the year you graduated from high school in the search box to find the top 100 hits of that year. Cut and paste the top ten (or the whole list, if you're feeling ambitious) and add commentary. Highlight songs you liked from the rest of the list.

And now, 1995:

1. Gangsta's Paradise, Coolio
   This song was *that* popular? Yeah, well, now that I think about it, Weird Al wouldn't have parodied it if wasn't. Overwrought, yet not totally insufferable. As I recall, even when it was most overplayed, I didn't hate it.
   
2. Waterfalls, TLC
   Meh.
   
3. Creep, TLC
   Double meh.
   
4. Kiss From A Rose, Seal
   Overwrought and insufferable.
   
5. On Bended Knee, Boyz II Men
   No recollect... oh, no, I do remember this one. Also overwrought. I seem to recall fairly mercilessly mocking someone who did like it.
   
6. Another Night, Real McCoy
   I wish I didn't remember this one. Insipid and obnoxious and prone to becoming a relentless earworm.
   
7. Fantasy, Mariah Carey
   Don't remember, wouldn't want to, dislike on principle.
   
8. Take A Bow, Madonna
   '95 appears to have been a banner year for overwrought pop songs. Bleh.
   
9. Don't Take It Personal (Just One Of Dem Days), Monica
   No memory of this one.
   
10. This Is How We Do It, Montell Jordan
    Sort of remember being vaguely annoyed by this song.

Well, it appears that the only good thing to be said for 1995's top ten is that at least there's no Celine Dion. Let's see how far down the list we have to go to find a song I can both recall, and recall liking.

Surprisingly enough, not far:

11. I Know, Dionne Farris, which I still rather like. I bought the album this song was on, and still listen to it every once in a while. There's something about her voice that I find really appealling.

13. Freak Like Me, Adina Howard, which I *ducks head, mumbles* also like the Sugababes' cover of.

*continues down the list* Ugh, '95 was not a good Top 40 year. Bryan Adams ballad, Bon Jovi ballad, two Hootie and the Blowfish ballads, and it was the year Sheryl Crow inflicted "Strong Enough" on the world. *gags*

39. As I Lay Me Down, Sophie B. Hawkins, I don't know why I liked this song. I remember thinking that the lyrics were pretty pedestrian, which usually puts me off, but not in this case. Maybe it just stood out because all the other popular music was such utter crap.

55. Roll To Me, Del Amitri, so relentlessly likeable that I should've hated it, but didn't, and don't. I'm a sucker for boys with guitars singing in harmony. Possibly because of the insidious influence of my parents' love of Simon and Garfunkel.

Aaaaaaand that's all folks. Wow. I really was expecting that there would be a few more songs I liked - it's not like my taste in music is way out of the mainstream - but the bottom half of the list is a wasteland, with occasional appearances by artists that I usually like singing songs that I don't. I'm trying to remember what I was listening to in 1995. I think I had just discovered Tori Amos. I know I was still into Pearl Jam. I think I might've been in a fairly serious Chris Isaak phase at that point, as well. And if the radio was on, it was only on the late lamented WDRE. Wasn't I such a stellar little nonconformist, with my penchant for "modern rock"?

Who's next: I want to see what Dave, DamselFish, and agnoiologist think of their high school top 100 list. Oops: Didn't mean to overlook blancheflor. Sorry!

"I knew him before he was famous."
Topic: Whatever
I've always wanted to be able to say that. And Paul says he wants to be famous. So, in the interests of promoting both goals, I suggest you read his recently published story, "Taking Care of the Boat". It's good (and if you don't believe me, believe the people who shortlisted it for the Raymond Carver Awards). It's short. It might make Paul an international celebrity, thereby enabling me to fulfill a lifelong dream. It's a win-win situation all around. Don't you want to do your part to help make all this happen?

Well, that didn't take as long as anticipated
Topic: Whatever
It turned into a perfect day for reading just after lunch -- the wind picked up and acquired a bite, clouds rolled in, and it started to rain. Almost as if the weather was endorsing my decision to curl up with a blanket and a pot of tea and just not move for several hours.

So I had blocked off the weekend to read Half-Blood Prince and I managed to knock it off in about 9 hours. I'm debating the merits of reading it again. I probably will -- I've got no other novels in the house at the moment, and no inclination to read anything that's not fiction. But I didn't find it as satisfying to read as the previous books. It doesn't seem to me that the characterizations in this book, particularly those of minor characters, are as engaging as they were in previous volumes. Obviously, it still held my attention, but I felt like the sub-plots and side jokes that I enjoyed in the previous books were missing from this one.

Rowling covers a lot of ground, but the story feels a bit rushed and didactic, as if to say, "I need to tell you this. Pay attention! This is important. So is that. This and that. Got it?" I felt like several plot points were telegraphed too obviously. There were also several instances where events from a previous book that were related to character or story development and continuity were referenced in a way that suggested that Rowling couldn't quite figure out how to use them, so just sort of threw in a "remember this?" sentence in a way that I found a bit jarring.

That said, I liked the way the book fills in quite a lot of significant back story, takes some interesting and unanticipated twists, and establishes a clear mood for the next book. I enjoyed the evolution of Ginny Weasley, and Harry's character is developing nicely as well. I think its possible that I may not fully appreciate this book until the next one is published, since it seems the book's primary function is to push the story along to the final showdown between Harry and Voldemort by tying up some loose ends, providing motivation for future action, and establishing what the stakes are for various characters.

Okay, yeah, I'm going to read it again.