Gregory Benford is an American science fiction author and astrophysicist, Professor Emeritus at the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of California, Irvine. He is a contributing editor of Reason magazine. Benford wrote the Galactic Center Saga science fiction novels; the series postulates a galaxy in which sentient organic life is in constant warfare with sentient electromechanical life. In 1969 he wrote "The Scarred Man", the first story about a computer virus, published in 1970. Benford was born in Mobile and grew up in Robertsdale and Fairhope. Graduating Phi Beta Kappa, he received a Bachelor of Science in physics in 1963 from the University of Oklahoma in Norman, followed by a Master of Science from the University of California, San Diego in 1965, a doctorate there in 1967; that same year he married Joan Abbe. They are the parents of two children. Benford modeled characters in several of his novels after his wife, most prominently the heroine of Artifact, she died in 2002.
Benford has an identical twin brother, Jim Benford, with whom he has collaborated on science fiction stories. Both got their start in science fiction fandom, with Gregory being a co-editor of the science fiction fanzine Void. Benford has said, he has been a long-time resident of California. Gregory Benford's first professional sale was the story "Stand-In" in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, which won second prize in a short story contest based on a poem by Doris Pitkin Buck. In 1969, he began writing a science column for Amazing Stories. Benford tends to write hard science fiction which incorporates the research he is doing as a practical scientist, he has worked on collaborations with David Brin and Gordon Eklund. His time-travel novel Timescape won both the John W. Campbell Memorial Award; the scientific procedural novel loaned its title to a line of science fiction published by Pocket Books. In the late 1990s, he wrote Foundation's Fear, one of an authorized sequel trilogy to Isaac Asimov's Foundation series.
Other novels published in that period include several near-future science thrillers: Cosm, The Martian Race and Eater. Benford has served as an editor of numerous alternate history anthologies as well as collections of Hugo Award winners, he has been nominated for four Hugo Awards and 12 Nebula Awards. In addition to Timescape, he won the Nebula for the novelette "If the Stars Are Gods". In 2005 the MIT SF Society awarded him the Asimov Prize. Benford was a guest of honour at Aussiecon Three, the 1999 Worldcon, he remains a regular contributor to science fiction fanzines, for example Apparatchik. In 2016 Benford was the recipient of the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society Forry Award Lifetime Achievement Award in the Field of Science Fiction. Gregory Benford is Professor Emeritus of Physics at the University of Irvine. With more than 200 scientific publications, his research encompassed both theory and experiments in the fields of astrophysics and plasma physics, his research has been supported by other agencies.
He is an ongoing advisor to NASA, DARPA and the CIA. Benford's work in physics at the University of California focused on theoretical and experimental plasma physics, including studies of strong turbulence in astrophysical contexts, studies of magnetic structures from the galactic center to large-scale galactic jets. Working in collaboration with, among others, science fiction writers Cramer and Landis, Benford worked on a theoretical study of the physics of wormholes, which pointed out that wormholes, if formed in the early universe, could still exist in the present day if they were wrapped in a negative-mass cosmic string; such wormholes could be detected by gravitational lensing. In 2004, Benford proposed that the harmful effects of global warming could be reduced by the construction of a rotating Fresnel lens 1,000 kilometres across, floating in space at the Lagrangian point L1. According to Benford, this lens would diffuse the light from the Sun and reduce the solar energy reaching the Earth by 0.5% to 1%.
He estimated. His plan has been commented on in a variety of forums. A similar space sunshade was proposed in 1989 by J. T. Early, again in 1997 by Edward Teller, Lowell Wood, Roderick Hyde. In 2006, Benford pointed out one possible danger in this approach: if this lens were built and global warming were avoided, there would be less incentive to reduce greenhouse gases, humans might continue to produce too much carbon dioxide until it caused some other environmental catastrophe, such as a chemical change in ocean water that could be disastrous to ocean life. Benford serves on the steering committee of the Mars Society, he has advocated human cryopreservation, for example by signing an open letter to support research into cryonics, being a member of Alcor, by being an advisor to a UK cryonics and cryopreservation advocacy group. Gregory Benford retired from the University of California in 2006 in order to found and develop Genescient Corporation. Genescient is a new generation biotechnology company that combines evolutionary genomics with massive selective screening to analyze and exploit the genetics of model animal and human whole genomes.
This enables Genescient to develop novel therapeutics. Phi Beta Kappa Woodrow Wilson Fellow Fellow of the American Physical Society Vi
CSS Resolute was a tugboat built in 1858 at Savannah Georgia as the Ajax which served in the Confederate States Navy during the American Civil War. Resolute entered Confederate service in 1861 and operated as a tow boat, receiving ship, tender to the sidewheeler CSS Savannah on the coastal and inland waters of Georgia and South Carolina. On 5–6 November 1861, under Lieutenant John Pembroke Jones, CSN, in company with CSS Lady Davis, CSS Sampson, Savannah, under the overall command of Flag Officer Josiah Tattnall, CSN, offered harassing resistance to a much larger Union fleet preparing to attack Confederate strongholds at Port Royal Sound, S. C. During November 7, while Resolute had been sent to Savannah with dispatches, the Union fleet under Flag Officer Samuel Francis du Pont, USN, pounded the Confederate Fort Walker and Fort Beauregard until they were abandoned. Upon her return, Resolute helped evacuate the garrison of Fort Walker and returned to spike the Confederate guns at Pope's Landing on Hilton Head Island.
That month, on November 26, Resolute, in company with Sampson and Savannah, under Flag Officer Tattnall, weighed anchor from under the guns of Fort Pulaski, S. C. and made a brief attack on Union vessels at the mouth of the Savannah River. On January 28, 1862, accompanied by Sampson and Savannah, she delivered supplies to the fort despite the spirited opposition of Federal ships. While on an expedition to destroy the Charleston and Savannah Railway bridge spanning the Savannah River, in cooperation with gunboats CSS Macon and Sampson, under Flag Officer William W. Hunter, CSN, on December 12, 1864, Resolute received heavy fire from battery I, First New York Artillery. Although hit twice, she was not damaged until she was disabled in collision with the two gunboats during their retreat. Although the gunboats escaped, Resolute grounded on Argyle Island on the Savannah River, she was captured on the same day by soldiers of Company F of the 3rd Wisconsin Veteran Infantry, commanded by Captain Charles Ransom Barrager, under Colonel W. Hawly, USA, in the army of General William T. Sherman, destroyed.
This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
Nusco is a town and comune in the province of Avellino in the south of Italy, east of Naples, with c. 4,100 inhabitants. It is situated in the mountains between the valleys of the Calore Ofanto Rivers. Hannibal crossed this area during the Punic Wars; as the legend goes, some of Hannibal's elephants became ensconced in the mud of the river to the east. As his elephants drowned the General mourned the death of these great beasts; as such, the river that extends through this valley became known as, remains, the Ofanto River. The Lombards built in Nusco a castle to defend the valley from the Ofanto river to the Calore one, it played a important role between Irpinia's people until the 17th century. In the 1656 a plague struck Irpinia killing up to a third of Nusco's population. In addition to its drastic effect on people, the plague irrevocably changed Nusco's social structure, it started to lose its economic power, until the second half of the 20th century Nusco's history was linked to the history of the Church.
For years the town experienced the misery of rural towns. Vestiges of feudal relationships left the peasant farmers with little richness. In the late 19th century, families left Nusco for other, wealthier regions of Italy, as well as for new opportunities in South America and the United States; these emigrants from Nusco never forgot their roots. Some of them returned to their homeland; the earthquake in 1980 did not destroy important buildings. The Lombard castle The cathedral; the Renaissance portal was moved to the church of St. Anthony; the Church of Saint Stephen, holding the remains of Saint Amatus of Nusco. The Church of St. Anthony, it stands beneath the remains of the old castle, just beyond the Superior Gate that allowed entrance into the eastern section of the medieval town. Lanciano, Italy Vinci, Italy Nicholas Laucella, Principal Flautist with the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Sant’Angelo dei Lombardi–Conza–Nusco–Bisaccia Official website
Peg Birmingham is an American academic who serves as Professor of Philosophy at DePaul University. Much of Birmingham's work has focused on the work of Hannah Arendt, to whose thought she is considered to have made a profound contribution, although her interest has ranged through other subjects in modern social and political philosophy, as well as feminist theory. Birmingham received her bachelor's from the University of Wisconsin, Green Bay in 1978 before moving to Duquesne University where she received her master's and doctoral degrees in philosophy in 1980 and 1986, respectively. After receiving her doctoral degree, Birmingham accepted an appointment as Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Marist College, where she stayed until 1990. In 1990, she moved to the New York City campus of Pace University as Assistant Professor of Philosophy and Edward J. Mortola Scholar. In 1992, she accepted an appointment at DePaul University as full Professor of Philosophy. Birmingham has published two books - Hannah Arendt and the Right to Have Rights: The Predicament of Common Responsibility in 2006, Dissensus Communis: Between Ethics and Politics in 1995.
She's contributed a large number of book chapters, an encyclopedia entry, a dozen peer-reviewed papers. Most of Birmingham's work has focused on or built on top of the work of Hannah Arendt In Hannah Arendt and the Right to Have Rights: The Predicament of Common Responsibility, Birmingham rejects claims that Arendt's notion of a basic'right to have rights' is fundamentally flawed, argues that the right to have rights is something that should be guaranteed by humanity Birmingham views Arendt as having constructed the notion of the'right to have rights' in such a way as to be meaningful in a world that lacks universal humanity. Birmingham views Arendt's work as a whole as an effort to construct a'right to have rights' absent the concepts of shared humanity, individual autonomy, other common justifications behind the idea of a'right to have rights.'
Bird Songs is the 22nd album by Joe Lovano released via the Blue Note label in 2011. The album features Esperanza Spalding, James Weidman, Otis Brown III, Francisco Mela performing songs written or performed by the jazz musician Charlie Parker. Chris Barton of Los Angeles Times stated "Though a showcase for history and his band expertly show the many ways these classics can still throw sparks". John Fordham of The Guardian noted "capricious than Django Bates's tribute to Charlie Parker last year, but just as inspired and rich in references, Joe Lovano's Bird Songs is not just a stunning celebration of Parker's music, but a salute to the sax giants – Sonny Rollins, Dexter Gordon, Ornette Coleman and Wayne Shorter – who were liberated by it". Phil Johnson of The Independent added "It's an homage to Charlie Parker, but not, says Lovano, a tribute record. Rather, Parker's music is approached from a post-Coltrane, post-free jazz aesthetic, with the rhythmic edginess of bebop elided into an all-the-time-in-the-world fluidity.
A masterpiece". All compositions by Charlie Parker except as indicated "Passport" – 5:27 "Donna Lee" – 4:30 "Barbados" – 6:19 "Moose the Mooche" – 6:34 "Loverman" – 9:03 "Birdyard" – 1:47 "Ko Ko" – 6:20 "Blues Collage" – 1:52 "Dexterity" – 2:49 "Dewey Square" – 8:25 "Yardbird Suite" – 11:58 Joe Lovano: Saxophone Esperanza Spalding: Bass James Weidman: Piano Otis Brown III: Drums, Percussion Francisco Mela: Drums, Percussion Official website
The Shoshana Foundation is a non-profit organization, founded in 1986 upon the death of Richard F. Gold, a long time administrator at both the New York City Opera and Chamber Opera Theater of New York; the foundation's work focuses on assisting promising opera singers at the start of their careers by providing The Richard F. Gold Career Grant to young singers nominated by their music opera apprenticeship program. Music schools involved in the scholarship program include the Juilliard School Opera Center, the Manhattan School of Music, the Mannes College of Music among others. Opera apprenticeship programs include the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, San Francisco Opera, New York City Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, the Wolf Trap Opera Company. Winners are asked to give at least one charity performance in the year following their award, the expenses of which are met by the foundation. Winners of The Richard F. Gold Career Grant include: Renée Fleming Denyce Graves Brian Asawa Christine Goerke David Daniels Stephanie Blythe Chad Shelton Stephanie Novacek Michael Maniaci Kate Lindsey