I didn't publish anything about the Kingdom A&S event before going because I really had nothing to say before the event. I haven't completed any dance reconstructions or other projects lately that I would consider ready for competition, so I figured I would just have it be the first A&S event at which I worked purely as a judge.
In actuality, I didn't even end up as a judge. There were no dance entries at all this year (something I shall have to rectify before next year), so there was no call for a judge with my particular expertise. This left me with no serious responsibilities, which is an infrequent but pleasant condition for an event.
I did find my self pressed into service to help organize a vigil, since my apprentice brother, the Honorable Lord Gareth O'Gwynned, was elevated into the Order of the Laurel at the event. In addition, our good friend Lady Ciara was also elevated, and our fencing buddy Sirona joined the Order of the Argent Rapier, so this was a very good event in many ways.
To finish things off, Lady Andreva Rigaldi organized an excellent ball for us on Saturday evening. Naturally, the ball that was scheduled to start at 8pm didn't actually start until 10pm, since court started late, ran long, and then we had a long feast, as well. Still, we had an excellent time dancing the evening away -- as well as watching some excellent music and dance performances between sets -- before finally falling into bed around 2am.
Following this event, I have a new entry in my link bar: Greet's Middle Ages. Greet is a lady from the far south of the kingdom with whom we had a wonderful time at the event. More lovely dance partners for me is always a good thing. Despite her site actually being a weblog, I've listed it under SCA sites instead of Bloggery.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Iz Dummin Yur Kidz
Some of you may have heard that creationist Ken Ham (originator of the Answers in Genesis website, which I will not honor with a link) has opened a Creation “Science” Museum in Kentucky to disinform the masses. Far more knowledgeable people than I have already picked it apart, but I can make this silly contribution.
You can make your own silly images with the LolCats creator.
You can make your own silly images with the LolCats creator.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Friday, May 18, 2007
The A-Team Takes On Sauron
Once again, Aaron Williams shares a video that is both entertaining and disturbing at the same time.
Ow! My childhood! It hurts!
Ow! My childhood! It hurts!
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Consensus
Global Warming is one of those topics that requires a discussion of “consensus”. This is what “most” scientists agree is correct regarding a particular topic. You may have heard that the consensus of the scientific community is that global warming (a rise in average temperature) is occurring and that human activity has some role in it. This does not mean that all scientists agree on this conclusion, as a blog post by a friend of mine shows.
At the same time, NASA is releasing data from satellite observations that show a large mass of Antarctic ice recently melted away.
Scientific consensus is a changing beast. Scientists are constantly collecting and analyzing new information in an effort to build a more accurate description of the universe. Different scientists look at different data sources, and they don’t all necessarily have the same picture based on their information sources. The opinion of any one scientist on a particular matter can easily be wrong; that’s why scientists are so keen to see original data and methods included in published scientific papers. One of the basic principals of the scientific method is to repeat experiments to verify the results, checking each others' work.
Hawk is an extremely intelligent man, and far more knowledgeable than me in many fields. That said, his is not a climatologist, so he is not as prepared to validate a given climate model as someone specialized in that field. Furthermore, he is in the minority in the scientific community. One man’s dissent in a community of thousands is not grounds to ignore a potentially serious problem.
Hawk himself does not dispute the prediction that the Arctic Ocean may be completely ice-free in the summer within ten years, and his update to the article shows that the ice-growth model he cites has a limited scope. It shouldn’t surprise us to find ice accumulating in some areas, but that does not necessarily mean that the overall quantity of glacial ice in the world is increasing.
If most scientists agree that global warming is a matter of concern, it behooves us as a society to accept at least the possibility that our activities are changing the planet and consider what we can do to mitigate such changes. Future studies may show that the current concern is unwarranted, but a little caution now may save a lot of pain in the future, as well.
“I have seen scientists who are otherwise reasonable people, drift right over the edge, and now I am completely fed up. Anthropogenic Global Warming is a hoax.”Hawk is a legitimate scientist with a degree in nuclear engineering. He models space environments and radiation effects for NASA. To put it bluntly, he is a rocket scientist. To my knowledge, he has no conflict of interest or ulterior motive for disputing the scientific consensus that human activity is creating conditions that increase temperatures at the Earth’s surface. He cites computer models that indicate the amount of ice in Antarctica is actually increasing, not decreasing. There is every reason to think he honestly believes the scientific consensus on climate change to be wrong.
At the same time, NASA is releasing data from satellite observations that show a large mass of Antarctic ice recently melted away.
Scientific consensus is a changing beast. Scientists are constantly collecting and analyzing new information in an effort to build a more accurate description of the universe. Different scientists look at different data sources, and they don’t all necessarily have the same picture based on their information sources. The opinion of any one scientist on a particular matter can easily be wrong; that’s why scientists are so keen to see original data and methods included in published scientific papers. One of the basic principals of the scientific method is to repeat experiments to verify the results, checking each others' work.
Hawk is an extremely intelligent man, and far more knowledgeable than me in many fields. That said, his is not a climatologist, so he is not as prepared to validate a given climate model as someone specialized in that field. Furthermore, he is in the minority in the scientific community. One man’s dissent in a community of thousands is not grounds to ignore a potentially serious problem.
Hawk himself does not dispute the prediction that the Arctic Ocean may be completely ice-free in the summer within ten years, and his update to the article shows that the ice-growth model he cites has a limited scope. It shouldn’t surprise us to find ice accumulating in some areas, but that does not necessarily mean that the overall quantity of glacial ice in the world is increasing.
If most scientists agree that global warming is a matter of concern, it behooves us as a society to accept at least the possibility that our activities are changing the planet and consider what we can do to mitigate such changes. Future studies may show that the current concern is unwarranted, but a little caution now may save a lot of pain in the future, as well.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Would It Be So Hard?
The Welsh government seems determined to kill an infected bull that is sacred to a Hindu temple there. The bull tested positive for tuberculosis, and the standard procedure there is to slaughter TB-infected animals to “protect both human and animal health”.
Would it kill the Welsh government to let the Hindu temple pay for this animal’s treatment by a veterinarian? They seem determined to create animosity in the local community for no good reason. I know you don’t want to overuse antibiotics because of the risk of antibiotic-resistant strains evolving, but treating an isolated sick animal hardly seems to be a huge resistance-development risk.
“An animal kept by the Community of the Many Names of God has tested positive,I happen to know that TB can be cured with antibiotics, and I also know that I would be pretty pissed off if the government told me they were going to kill one of my dogs or horses because it had contracted a treatable disease.
and the case is being dealt with in the usual way. Every effort will be made to
deal with this case as sensitively as possible.”
Would it kill the Welsh government to let the Hindu temple pay for this animal’s treatment by a veterinarian? They seem determined to create animosity in the local community for no good reason. I know you don’t want to overuse antibiotics because of the risk of antibiotic-resistant strains evolving, but treating an isolated sick animal hardly seems to be a huge resistance-development risk.
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Swetnam’s Advice: A Case Study
As I’ve noted before, Joseph Swetnam strongly advises his readers to avoid killing someone if possible, even in a duel which would widely be considered honorable. As an example of the consequences of being involved in a duel to the death in Elizabethan England, I offer the case of William Bradley, who was killed on September 28, 1589.
Between two and three o’clock on that day, Bradley became involved in a duel with Christopher Marlowe (yes, the playwright). How the fight started isn’t known, but a gentleman by the name of Thomas Watson drew his own sword and tried to break it up.
Marlowe apparently withdrew from the fight, but Bradley turned upon Watson, possibly because of a standing argument that already existed between them. Watson retreated from Bradley, taking some serious injuries in the process, until he was essentially cornered against a ditch. Unable to retreat any further, Watson struck back and stabbed Bradley through the heart.
Watson and Marlowe were both arrested for murder and incarcerated in Newgate prison. Marlowe paid a fine and was released on October 1, 1589. A jury determined that Watson acted in self-defense, but he remained in prison until February 12, 1590, when he received a pardon from the Queen.
Bibliography
J. Christoph Amberger, The Secret History of the Sword, Multi-Media Books: 1999, p. 203-204.
Between two and three o’clock on that day, Bradley became involved in a duel with Christopher Marlowe (yes, the playwright). How the fight started isn’t known, but a gentleman by the name of Thomas Watson drew his own sword and tried to break it up.
Marlowe apparently withdrew from the fight, but Bradley turned upon Watson, possibly because of a standing argument that already existed between them. Watson retreated from Bradley, taking some serious injuries in the process, until he was essentially cornered against a ditch. Unable to retreat any further, Watson struck back and stabbed Bradley through the heart.
Watson and Marlowe were both arrested for murder and incarcerated in Newgate prison. Marlowe paid a fine and was released on October 1, 1589. A jury determined that Watson acted in self-defense, but he remained in prison until February 12, 1590, when he received a pardon from the Queen.
Bibliography
J. Christoph Amberger, The Secret History of the Sword, Multi-Media Books: 1999, p. 203-204.
Monday, May 07, 2007
Returned from Crown List
If you’re an SCA person living in Meridies, you’d have to be living as a hermit under a rock not to know by now that Maximillian and Lethrenn are the new heirs to the throne. With the succession assured, the Crown can move on to other business.
Included in the business at Crown List was choosing the Kingdom's Poet Laureate, Kingdom Bard, and Dance Champion for the remainder of the reign of Boru and Deidre. I had not originally realized that Her Majesty was selecting her Dance Champion at this event. I entered the "performing arts" competition because fencers who did would receive an extra life in the finals of the Queen's Rapier Champion tournament, and I went to the event primarily to enter that tournament. I wasn’t even sure with whom I would dance before I arrived, but Duchess Katrina agreed to dance with me for the competition (my Laurel is very good to me). We danced Rostiboli Gioioso, a 15th-century Italian dance with which we are both quite familiar. We had strong competition from Lady Alasais, Lady Andreva, and Lord Lorenzo this year. The outcome of the competition would remain a secret until court, which would not take place until after the Queen’s Rapier Championship tournament
Speaking of which, I made it to the finals. As did three other fencers from the Shire of Glaedenfeld. We rock! Naturally, we somehow ended up fighting each other in the first couple of rounds of the final list: It was a conspiracy, I say! Ysabel and I double-killed each other in the first of the final rounds (immediately using up both of our extra lives), and Corbin killed me in the next round. *Sigh* Lord Jean-Michel won the tournament in the end.
But, in court, I did learn that Katrina and I won the Dance Championship, so life is good.
Included in the business at Crown List was choosing the Kingdom's Poet Laureate, Kingdom Bard, and Dance Champion for the remainder of the reign of Boru and Deidre. I had not originally realized that Her Majesty was selecting her Dance Champion at this event. I entered the "performing arts" competition because fencers who did would receive an extra life in the finals of the Queen's Rapier Champion tournament, and I went to the event primarily to enter that tournament. I wasn’t even sure with whom I would dance before I arrived, but Duchess Katrina agreed to dance with me for the competition (my Laurel is very good to me). We danced Rostiboli Gioioso, a 15th-century Italian dance with which we are both quite familiar. We had strong competition from Lady Alasais, Lady Andreva, and Lord Lorenzo this year. The outcome of the competition would remain a secret until court, which would not take place until after the Queen’s Rapier Championship tournament
Speaking of which, I made it to the finals. As did three other fencers from the Shire of Glaedenfeld. We rock! Naturally, we somehow ended up fighting each other in the first couple of rounds of the final list: It was a conspiracy, I say! Ysabel and I double-killed each other in the first of the final rounds (immediately using up both of our extra lives), and Corbin killed me in the next round. *Sigh* Lord Jean-Michel won the tournament in the end.
But, in court, I did learn that Katrina and I won the Dance Championship, so life is good.
My Evilness
Pharyngula started passing this little contest around, and it's just the sort of rating chart that I'd want to know about, so...
How evil are you?
Great. He gets to be "Pure Evil" and I'm stuck with just "Twisted". Whatever. When my legions of terror strike, won't he be surprised.
How evil are you?
Great. He gets to be "Pure Evil" and I'm stuck with just "Twisted". Whatever. When my legions of terror strike, won't he be surprised.
Friday, May 04, 2007
Anatomy of a Dance Reconstruction, Part 7
Eureka!
(Believe it or not, I actually wrote Part 6 weeks ago, and only got around to posting it today.)
Sometimes you have an issue with a dance that requires just a bit of tweaking. Allow me to recall such an issue from the last installment of this series.
This series of exchanges will be tricky. Much as they did in the previous movement, the lords and ladies will work their way around the circle in opposite directions. They will use a slow single for each exchange. Since there are forty-eight beats in the “A” section of the music, each seguito grave will take eight beats. What the dancers will hear, however, is eight measures of six beats. I expect that this clash between the rhythm of the dance and the rhythm of the music will this section the hardest part of the dance to perform correctly.
Forty-eight beats to complete six seguiti gravi, meaning each seguito grave will take eight beats. Rather difficult to keep straight in your head, since you’ll be listening to eight measures of six beats each. So, what if you could eliminate twelve beats somehow, allowing you to do the six seguiti in six measures of six counts each? It might not be absolutely authentic, but it would be far easier to perform and spread to the masses.
The solution? Reverence. Two riverenza minima would consume twelve counts (two measures), leaving thirty-six (six measures) for the seguiti gravi. An elegant solution to the problem. Where should I put the reverences, though? After some thought, the a brief riverenza before the first pass and a second when you meet your partner on the opposite side of the set (before continuing) seems to work best with the music.
Start at Part 1.
(Believe it or not, I actually wrote Part 6 weeks ago, and only got around to posting it today.)
Sometimes you have an issue with a dance that requires just a bit of tweaking. Allow me to recall such an issue from the last installment of this series.
| 48 | 6 Seguiti gravi, exchanging hands around the set, starting with your partner |
This series of exchanges will be tricky. Much as they did in the previous movement, the lords and ladies will work their way around the circle in opposite directions. They will use a slow single for each exchange. Since there are forty-eight beats in the “A” section of the music, each seguito grave will take eight beats. What the dancers will hear, however, is eight measures of six beats. I expect that this clash between the rhythm of the dance and the rhythm of the music will this section the hardest part of the dance to perform correctly.
Forty-eight beats to complete six seguiti gravi, meaning each seguito grave will take eight beats. Rather difficult to keep straight in your head, since you’ll be listening to eight measures of six beats each. So, what if you could eliminate twelve beats somehow, allowing you to do the six seguiti in six measures of six counts each? It might not be absolutely authentic, but it would be far easier to perform and spread to the masses.
The solution? Reverence. Two riverenza minima would consume twelve counts (two measures), leaving thirty-six (six measures) for the seguiti gravi. An elegant solution to the problem. Where should I put the reverences, though? After some thought, the a brief riverenza before the first pass and a second when you meet your partner on the opposite side of the set (before continuing) seems to work best with the music.
| 6 | Riverenza minima |
| 18 | 3 Seguiti gravi, exchanging hands around the set, starting with your partner |
| 6 | Riverenza minima |
| 18 | 3 Seguiti gravi, exchanging hands around the set, starting with your partner |
Start at Part 1.
Anatomy of a Dance Reconstruction, Part 6
At this point, we have all of the steps of the dance matched to the music. Now we have to interpret the movements.
We start out with men and women alternating “in the wheel”. The simplest interpretation is that the dancers will stand in a circle. We then go through the first movement of the dance, done to the “A part” of the music.
A riverenza is normally performed to your partner, but since everyone is supposed turn left to start the seguiti ordinarii, we can conclude that they all start facing the center. Given the circular arrangement and this initial facing, it makes more sense to reverence to the entire set.
Everyone then turns to the left, so the sequence of two seguiti ordinarii (doubles), two passi gravi (slow singles), and a seguito semidoppio (two quick singles and a step-ball-change) moves clockwise.
Everyone then turns back to the center, takes two slow singles toward the middle, then completes the three trabuchetti (small hops from left to right).
Everyone the faces to the left again for another sequence of two doubles, two singles, and a seguito semidoppio moving clockwise. At the end of this sequence, the lords will have to turn around to face their ladies.
The “B part” of the music now begins, and the lords and ladies start traveling in opposite directions around the set.
Each lord takes his lady’s hand, and they change places with two singles and a double. They do not turn back to face each other, though. Instead each dancer gives his or her left hand to the next person, and trades places again with two singles and a seguito semidoppio. This means that ladies are traveling around the set clockwise while lords are traveling counter-clockwise.
Assuming we number the couples clockwise around the set, the first set of exchanges leaves lord 1 paired with lady 2, lord 2 with lady 3, and lord 3 with lady 1.
Everyone now completes a series of doubles, two flanking backwards and two more forwards. Assuming that the dancers don’t change facing, everyone will need to flank back to their own left: otherwise dancers will collide with each other as they’re backing up.
This series of exchanges will be tricky. Much as they did in the previous movement, the lords and ladies will work their way around the circle in opposite directions. They will use a slow single for each exchange. Since there are forty-eight beats in the “A” section of the music, each seguito grave will take eight beats. What the dancers will hear, however, is eight measures of six beats. I expect that this clash between the rhythm of the dance and the rhythm of the music will this section the hardest part of the dance to perform correctly.
We start out with men and women alternating “in the wheel”. The simplest interpretation is that the dancers will stand in a circle. We then go through the first movement of the dance, done to the “A part” of the music.
| Beats | Steps |
| 12 | Riverenza grave |
| 12 | 2 Seguito Ordinario (doubles) |
| 6 | 2 Passi Grave (slow singles) |
| 6 | 1 Seguito Semidoppio (two quick singles and a spezzato) |
| 6 | 2 Passi Grave (slow singles) |
| 6 | 3 Trabuchetti (one hop to each foot per trabuchetto) |
| 24 | Repeat from seguiti Ordinarii through Seguito Semidoppio |
A riverenza is normally performed to your partner, but since everyone is supposed turn left to start the seguiti ordinarii, we can conclude that they all start facing the center. Given the circular arrangement and this initial facing, it makes more sense to reverence to the entire set.
Everyone then turns to the left, so the sequence of two seguiti ordinarii (doubles), two passi gravi (slow singles), and a seguito semidoppio (two quick singles and a step-ball-change) moves clockwise.
Everyone then turns back to the center, takes two slow singles toward the middle, then completes the three trabuchetti (small hops from left to right).
Everyone the faces to the left again for another sequence of two doubles, two singles, and a seguito semidoppio moving clockwise. At the end of this sequence, the lords will have to turn around to face their ladies.
The “B part” of the music now begins, and the lords and ladies start traveling in opposite directions around the set.
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito ordinario (hands) |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito semidoppio (hands) |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito ordinario (arms) |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito semidoppio (arms) |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito ordinario (both hands) |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito semidoppio (both hands) |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
Each lord takes his lady’s hand, and they change places with two singles and a double. They do not turn back to face each other, though. Instead each dancer gives his or her left hand to the next person, and trades places again with two singles and a seguito semidoppio. This means that ladies are traveling around the set clockwise while lords are traveling counter-clockwise.
Assuming we number the couples clockwise around the set, the first set of exchanges leaves lord 1 paired with lady 2, lord 2 with lady 3, and lord 3 with lady 1.
Everyone now completes a series of doubles, two flanking backwards and two more forwards. Assuming that the dancers don’t change facing, everyone will need to flank back to their own left: otherwise dancers will collide with each other as they’re backing up.
| 48 | 6 Seguiti gravi, exchanging hands around the set, starting with your partner |
This series of exchanges will be tricky. Much as they did in the previous movement, the lords and ladies will work their way around the circle in opposite directions. They will use a slow single for each exchange. Since there are forty-eight beats in the “A” section of the music, each seguito grave will take eight beats. What the dancers will hear, however, is eight measures of six beats. I expect that this clash between the rhythm of the dance and the rhythm of the music will this section the hardest part of the dance to perform correctly.
| 24 | Riverenza grave, and 2 Continenze |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Doppio presto forward |
| 12 | 2 Passi grave, and 2 Riprese to the right |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
| 12 | Riverenza gravi to partner |
| 12 | Riverenza gravi to contrary |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
| * | Riverenza grave |
And a final sequence to wrap up the dance.
On to Part 7.
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Thursday, April 26, 2007
A Little Hypocrisy in India
This isn't exactly earth-shaking news, but I do find it somewhat amusing. According to Indian Judge Dinesh Gupta...
I don't really care that Indian prudes were offended by Gere's behavior, and I don't expect the arrest warrant to amount to anything, but I find it amusing that...
[Richard] Gere and [Shilpa] Shetty "transgressed all limits of vulgarity and have the tendency to corrupt the society."...when he dipped and kissed her (not on the mouth, btw) at an HIV/AIDS awareness event in Delhi. Consequently, he issued an arrest warrant for both of them.
I don't really care that Indian prudes were offended by Gere's behavior, and I don't expect the arrest warrant to amount to anything, but I find it amusing that...
Photographs of the clinch were then splashed across front pages in India — where public displays of affection are largely taboo.... but the Judge doesn't seem to be issuing arrest warrants to papers for publishing all these "vulgar" photographs. Doesn't spreading these images all over the country "tend to corrupt the society". Better get some ointment for you signature hand, Dinesh, you've got a lot more warrants to sign.
Skeptics' Circle 59
The 59th Skeptics' Circle is up. You've read one of the articles, now read the rest.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
What They Say… What They Mean
This list could turn into something long and on-going, depending on how my readers respond (keeping in mind that I've turned on comment moderation to cut down on spam). Most of this is advertising related, although some of it is political. All of it puts a skeptic spin on a common claim.
What they say…
“Free high-speed internet!”
What they mean…
“All customers pay for high-speed internet, whether they use it or not.”
What they say…
“The media is biased.”
What they mean…
“Other media outlets don’t share our bias.”
What they say…
“Not available in stores.”
What they mean…
“Getting a refund for this product is too difficult to be worth pursuing.”
What they say…
“A $60 value for just $19.99.”
What they mean…
“We wish we could get away with selling this $20 item for $60.”
What they say…
“Money-back guarantee.”
What they mean…
“We’re legally obliged to abide by the ‘implied warrantee of fitness’.”
What they say…
“Three easy payments of just $19.99.”
What they mean…
“We want to confuse you into thinking of this as a $20 purchase, not a $60 purchase.”
What they say…
“Buy one, get one free.”
What they mean…
“The price is twice what it needs to be.”
What they say…
“Free high-speed internet!”
What they mean…
“All customers pay for high-speed internet, whether they use it or not.”
What they say…
“The media is biased.”
What they mean…
“Other media outlets don’t share our bias.”
What they say…
“Not available in stores.”
What they mean…
“Getting a refund for this product is too difficult to be worth pursuing.”
What they say…
“A $60 value for just $19.99.”
What they mean…
“We wish we could get away with selling this $20 item for $60.”
What they say…
“Money-back guarantee.”
What they mean…
“We’re legally obliged to abide by the ‘implied warrantee of fitness’.”
What they say…
“Three easy payments of just $19.99.”
What they mean…
“We want to confuse you into thinking of this as a $20 purchase, not a $60 purchase.”
What they say…
“Buy one, get one free.”
What they mean…
“The price is twice what it needs to be.”
Monday, April 23, 2007
Advice from Joseph Swetnam
Joseph Swetnam gives a bit of advice you might not expect from one of the Renaissance fencing masters.
Swetnam actually advises his students to avoid killing an opponent, if possible, because the consequences of killing a man are dire even if your action is legally defensible. This basic attitude lies behind much of his actual technique; his favorite targets are the opponent’s sword arm and shoulder.
Renaissance dueling customs actually allow this kind of attitude. Typically, a duel would not be fought to the death. The purpose of a duel was to demonstrate courage and conviction, to show that you meant what you said and weren't afraid to stand up for it, not necessarily to kill someone. A duel would usually end when one of the combatants could no longer continue; the duelists would bring seconds and physicians to the duel to make that determination.
Swetnam thinks that most duels were the result of ill-advised challenges made by drunken hot-heads, and he was probably right. Most offended parties probably thought the offender would retract his words or otherwise repent when challenged to a potentially deadly struggle, only to find that the offender was just as drunk, hot-headed, or foolish as the challenger.
That being the case, it was probably best for all concerned if a duel ended with the loser disarmed or just slightly injured. There would be no murder charges, and the family of the loser would have little reason to seek vengeance.
“... when two good men meet, the conquest will be hardly and dangerously ended on the one side, except Discretion be a mediator to take up the matter before it come to the worst, if by friends it be not ended before hand; but if thou canst, hurt thy enemy, yes, although it be but a little, or unarm him of his weapon, which thou mayst very easily do if thou do fight with good discretion. And either of these are accounted for a victory....”I’m not sure if he is unique in this attitude, but I’m fairly sure that many fencing masters (among them Salvatore Fabris, I’m told) advise their students that a duel is a death match. Don’t play nice; don’t hold back; the surest way to survive is to kill your opponent.
Swetnam actually advises his students to avoid killing an opponent, if possible, because the consequences of killing a man are dire even if your action is legally defensible. This basic attitude lies behind much of his actual technique; his favorite targets are the opponent’s sword arm and shoulder.
Renaissance dueling customs actually allow this kind of attitude. Typically, a duel would not be fought to the death. The purpose of a duel was to demonstrate courage and conviction, to show that you meant what you said and weren't afraid to stand up for it, not necessarily to kill someone. A duel would usually end when one of the combatants could no longer continue; the duelists would bring seconds and physicians to the duel to make that determination.
Swetnam thinks that most duels were the result of ill-advised challenges made by drunken hot-heads, and he was probably right. Most offended parties probably thought the offender would retract his words or otherwise repent when challenged to a potentially deadly struggle, only to find that the offender was just as drunk, hot-headed, or foolish as the challenger.
That being the case, it was probably best for all concerned if a duel ended with the loser disarmed or just slightly injured. There would be no murder charges, and the family of the loser would have little reason to seek vengeance.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Returning to Practice
I made it back to fencing practice last night. I've been out of the loop for too long, so hopefully this will become routine again. I'm slowly learning that Swetnam's advice regarding distance really does make sense, at least if you're planning to use his techniques. I do much better if I keep to the very long range that he recommends; allowing my opponents to get too close leads to some rather desperate efforts at defense if not immediate defeat. Consequently, I'm learning to keep myself back to proper distance unless I'm actually launching an attack.
Jaime was at practice last night, and she has improved quite a bit since the last time we sparred. I have to go at full speed to successfully attack her now, and she's become quite the little demon in a dagger fight. We'll have to make sure to get her authorized soon.
Jaime was at practice last night, and she has improved quite a bit since the last time we sparred. I have to go at full speed to successfully attack her now, and she's become quite the little demon in a dagger fight. We'll have to make sure to get her authorized soon.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
What Transpired at Fools' War
I managed to arrive at Fools’ War early enough on Saturday morning to enter the rapier tournament. The list ended up with eleven entries, a small enough group to run a round-robin style tournament. Most of the competitors were people I do not face very often, and this turned out to be a good contest. I managed win seven of my ten bouts, tying for first place with Jean-Michel and Kurt the Hager (whose name may be hideously misspelled). Although I’d defeated both of them in the first round, Kurt defeated both me and Jean-Michel in succession, securing victory for himself in the final round. Nonetheless, I was quite pleased with my performance in the fencing tournament. I spent most of the remainder of the day learning drills from Jean-Michel and sparring with the other fencers present.
Saturday evening, Fjorleif and I enjoyed the hospitality of House Bohun for a potluck feast, and I don’t think we’ve ever had more enjoyable company for dinner. Fools’ War is frequently a “party war”, with several camps hosting parties with a variety of games. In addition, there is usually a European Revel with dancing. This year, however, there was freezing cold, so Fjorleif and I bundled ourselves under a huge heap of blankets after dinner instead of wandering about in the cold, dark night.
Saturday evening, Fjorleif and I enjoyed the hospitality of House Bohun for a potluck feast, and I don’t think we’ve ever had more enjoyable company for dinner. Fools’ War is frequently a “party war”, with several camps hosting parties with a variety of games. In addition, there is usually a European Revel with dancing. This year, however, there was freezing cold, so Fjorleif and I bundled ourselves under a huge heap of blankets after dinner instead of wandering about in the cold, dark night.
A Creationist's Argument
“Zor” at the Stardestroyer.net BBS recently shared an email message from a Young Earth Creationist he met at his university. Apparently this message follows a conversation that the two of them had when she noticed him reading Richard Dawkins’ book, The God Delusion. It contains examples of pretty standard creationist thinking, so I thought I’d look into it a bit. I’m using Nicole as an example because she seems to be pretty sincere but misinformed, instead of being one of those creationists who routinely lie.
In this particular example, Nicole’s claim that “Evolution says that everything came from nothing” is a strawman. As noted above, the Theory of Evolution does not say that. It’s easy to make a misrepresentation of the theory seem like nonsense – much easier than arguing against the real Theory of Evolution.
Progressionism: Everywhere in the world, if you dig for fossils, you will find that as you get deeper, the fossils become simpler. This trend is known as progressionism and it indicates that highly evolved animals occupy only a small, recent portion of the fossil record, so they couldn't have been there from the beginning.
Structural similarity: There are fundamental similarities between divergent species within their families. For example, the forearm skeletal structures of hundreds of vertebrate species (including man and ape) are remarkably similar.
Biochemical similarity: The chemical makeup of numerous related species is profoundly similar. For example, human DNA is 98% identical to that of other apes. At a more fundamental level, the protein enzyme known as cytochrome is part of the respiration process and is found in everything from plants to bacteria, fungi, and mammals.
Embryological similarity: The embryos of different species are often indistinguishable from one another, even when the end product is radically different, eg- lizards, birds, and mammals. This early similarity indicates common origins.
Transformed organs: Many related species have similar organs in similar places, but altered to perform different functions. This is consistent with evolution from one species to another, but a staggering coincidence if one believes in individual species design.
Poor design: Many biological structures are obviously haphazard and less than optimal. For example, all vertebrates swallow and breathe through the same tube, which creates a choking hazard that can easily be fatal. Evolution accepts that these will occur when parts are pressed into new functions, but a Creator or Designer would be expected to correct these flaws.
Vestigial features: The human appendix, the fingerbones of whales, the hollow bones of flightless birds… there are many examples of features that serve no useful purpose for modern species. These features make sense only if the modern species descended from ancestors that actually used those features.
Geographical distribution: Thousands of separate species which are similar in every respect are coincidentally located in such a manner that they appear to have spread outward from a single place of origin.
Paleontology: The fossil record demonstrates that the structure of animals has historically been consistent with their environmental conditions. Some animal lineages – horses being a good example – have a well-defined “family tree” of ancestral species going back through time.
Observed adaptation: We have observed changes in populations of existing species in response to new environmental pressures. Examples include bacterial resistance to antibiotics and insects growing resistant to pesticides.
This list is a tiny sampling of the wealth of evidence supporting the Theory of Evolution. If you truly don’t know about any of this, you need to start studying the subject before you criticize the theory.
Acknowledgment: I borrowed the “quickie evidence” from Creationtheory.org.
Hey [Zor],A standard problem with creationist thinking is the assumption that the Theory of Evolution is supposed to explain everything in the universe. That’s expecting far too much from the theory. The Theory of Evolution only explains how all of the varied species of life on Earth are related, having diversified from a single common ancestor after life on Earth actually began. The Theory of Evolution does not even attempt to explain “how everything got there in the first place”, yet creationists seem to think it should. Please, folks, if you’re going to try to disprove a theory, at least try to understand what the theory actually claims to explain before you dispute those claims.
Here is some food for thought concerning our discussion the other day!
I'm not exactly sure how to begin, but i think the origins of everything would be a good place to start. The heavens and the earth were created by God, in the beginning. God was, is and is to come...this would explain the origins of everything. We exist because we were created by God to exist, to serve Him, for His glory. Evolution cannot expain the origins of everything because there is no way that everything that exists today and the order in which it exists came from nothing and then evolved into what it is today by random chance and selection. (even if evolution were true, it still does not explain how everything got there in the first place).
It takes more faith to believe in evolution than it does creation because creation has a Creator, a Maker of the earth, the heavens, life itself. Evolution says that everything came from nothing. Doesn't it make a ton more sense to believe that we were created by an almighty God than from nothing 'a bazillion' years ago?This is a good example of a creationist using a “strawman argument” against the Theory of Evolution. The term comes from old military training exercises, in which trainers would set up a straw dummy that soldiers – swordsmen, archers, horsemen, etc. – could attack to develop their skills. The “strawman”, of course, doesn’t dodge or fight back, because it’s not a real opponent. Similarly, a “strawman argument” is a harmless imitation of the real argument that is easy to strike down.
In this particular example, Nicole’s claim that “Evolution says that everything came from nothing” is a strawman. As noted above, the Theory of Evolution does not say that. It’s easy to make a misrepresentation of the theory seem like nonsense – much easier than arguing against the real Theory of Evolution.
Take for example, an airplane. There is careful design and thought put into an airplane. It must be DESIGNED and then built, it wasn't as if there was an enormous storm and then POOF! one day there is a brand spanking new airplane sitting on the runway, ready for use. (the 'airplane' i am referring to is the earth and how everything in it works, for example-the water cycle, the human body, etc).Here, Nicole makes another strawman argument, this time trying to compare the origins of the universe (which, as we’ve already noted, is outside the scope of the Theory of Evolution) to the construction of an airplane. The Theory of Evolution doesn’t involve a “Poof!” in which numerous animal species appear from nowhere. In fact, her analogy has far more in common with Creationism than the Theory of Evolution.
You had mentioned in class that there was plenty of evidence for evolution. I'm wondering what the specific examples are and the proofs behind them.The sad part is that she probably really doesn’t know. Here are a few quickies:
Progressionism: Everywhere in the world, if you dig for fossils, you will find that as you get deeper, the fossils become simpler. This trend is known as progressionism and it indicates that highly evolved animals occupy only a small, recent portion of the fossil record, so they couldn't have been there from the beginning.
Structural similarity: There are fundamental similarities between divergent species within their families. For example, the forearm skeletal structures of hundreds of vertebrate species (including man and ape) are remarkably similar.
Biochemical similarity: The chemical makeup of numerous related species is profoundly similar. For example, human DNA is 98% identical to that of other apes. At a more fundamental level, the protein enzyme known as cytochrome is part of the respiration process and is found in everything from plants to bacteria, fungi, and mammals.
Embryological similarity: The embryos of different species are often indistinguishable from one another, even when the end product is radically different, eg- lizards, birds, and mammals. This early similarity indicates common origins.
Transformed organs: Many related species have similar organs in similar places, but altered to perform different functions. This is consistent with evolution from one species to another, but a staggering coincidence if one believes in individual species design.
Poor design: Many biological structures are obviously haphazard and less than optimal. For example, all vertebrates swallow and breathe through the same tube, which creates a choking hazard that can easily be fatal. Evolution accepts that these will occur when parts are pressed into new functions, but a Creator or Designer would be expected to correct these flaws.
Vestigial features: The human appendix, the fingerbones of whales, the hollow bones of flightless birds… there are many examples of features that serve no useful purpose for modern species. These features make sense only if the modern species descended from ancestors that actually used those features.
Geographical distribution: Thousands of separate species which are similar in every respect are coincidentally located in such a manner that they appear to have spread outward from a single place of origin.
Paleontology: The fossil record demonstrates that the structure of animals has historically been consistent with their environmental conditions. Some animal lineages – horses being a good example – have a well-defined “family tree” of ancestral species going back through time.
Observed adaptation: We have observed changes in populations of existing species in response to new environmental pressures. Examples include bacterial resistance to antibiotics and insects growing resistant to pesticides.
This list is a tiny sampling of the wealth of evidence supporting the Theory of Evolution. If you truly don’t know about any of this, you need to start studying the subject before you criticize the theory.
Also, you had mentioned that everything that exists today is derived from one cell. How is that possible, what with the diversity of living things on earth? If everything that exists is derived from one cell, why would there not continue to be more and more life forms evolving, coming into existence (like bacteria reproducing-wouldn't more and more life forms continue to be reproduced?) Its not as if the entire evolutionary process would be stopped!This statement shows that the Nicole simply doesn’t understand reality, let alone the Theory of Evolution. The whole point of the Theory is to explain how today’s diversity of living things evolved from a single common ancestor over the course of time. The most bizarre question she asks is “why would there not continue to be more and more life forms evolving, coming into existence?” New species are evolving. The evolutionary process has not stopped.
I'm also just curious about what your basis for being an athiest is-do you just not believe that God exists at all, or is it that you don't want to acknowledge His existence?Nicole doesn’t realize it, but she’s an atheist, too. Does she believe in Vishnu? Odin? Zeus? Quetzalcoatl? Zoroaster? Baal? The religious difference between her and Zor is that he believes in one less god than she does.
There is so much more that I could and would like to write (as proof for creation), but I'll just leave it at that for now. I look forward to your response!In Nicole’s case, I’d settle for just one piece of testable, verified evidence supporting Creation. Nitpicking the Theory of Evolution – especially such bad misrepresentations of it as she has presented – simply doesn’t cut it. To make the case for Creationism, you’ve got to show that Creationism does a better job of explaining the physical evidence than the Theory of Evolution.
cheers,
nicole
Acknowledgment: I borrowed the “quickie evidence” from Creationtheory.org.
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Going to Fools' War
Fjorleif and I will be travelling down to Macon, GA, this weekend for Fools' War. As the name suggests, this is one of the sillier SCA events you can attend, including activities like the Anti-A&S competition. I'm considering entering that competition, but my ideal partner in crime for it won't be present; I would have to recruit someone on site, and I'm not sure who would be well-suited for what I have in mind. Further, Lady Julianna might take offense if I were to attempt this competition without her. Oh well, we'll see what happens.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Science-Bible Shippers
You may not be familiar with the term “shipping” as used in this context. In internet fandom, shipping refers to a serious interest in the development of a romantic relationship between two fictional characters. In the case of J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter novels, for instance, there have been two major shipper groups: the Harry-Hermione shippers and the Ron-Hermione shippers. At this point, I’ll note that a spoiler for the novels is coming up, so if you haven’t already read Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, you may want to stop reading now.
Moving on, shipper “cults” can become pretty invested in seeing a particular relationship develop. Some become so invested that they can become hostile to an author if the particular relationship they’ve been hoping to see never materializes. J. K. Rowling was reportedly surprised by the reaction of some Harry-Hermione shippers when she revealed in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince that the Harry-Hermione romance was never going to happen. Some of her fans became angry and claimed they were going to return their copies of the book, get rid of all their other related books, and stop following the series altogether.
So what does this have to do with science and the Bible? Well, I suspect that a certain faction of the religious have always expected that scientific discoveries would vindicate their Biblical beliefs. As an example, the so-called “Theory” of Intelligent Design was the latest effort to create a solid relationship between God and science. ID would show that while the scientific evidence of an ancient Earth and the slow development of various species from a common ancestor was accurate, the whole process would never have worked without the hand of God intervening and managing the process all the time.
Unfortunately, ID failed to do anything of the sort. It turned out to be nothing more than another collection of dubious criticisms of the Theory of Evolution, some poorly conceived mathematical arguments, and a big Argument from Ignorance. The failure of ID to produce any convincing evidence is part of a long record of unsuccessful efforts to find scientific support for Biblical claims.
And so it seems that as another Science-Bible shipper cult dies a gruesome death in cases like the Kitzmiller vs Dover suit, devoted followers of the cult are turning against the side they believe failed in the relationship. Naturally, most see science as the side that let them down. Right now, virtually any scientific claim – be it climate change, pollution, shrinking oil supplies, etc. – is subject to dismissal by religious fundamentalists who believe that science has rejected them.
If the religious would just stop looking for scientific validation of their beliefs, they'd probably be a lot happier.
Moving on, shipper “cults” can become pretty invested in seeing a particular relationship develop. Some become so invested that they can become hostile to an author if the particular relationship they’ve been hoping to see never materializes. J. K. Rowling was reportedly surprised by the reaction of some Harry-Hermione shippers when she revealed in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince that the Harry-Hermione romance was never going to happen. Some of her fans became angry and claimed they were going to return their copies of the book, get rid of all their other related books, and stop following the series altogether.
So what does this have to do with science and the Bible? Well, I suspect that a certain faction of the religious have always expected that scientific discoveries would vindicate their Biblical beliefs. As an example, the so-called “Theory” of Intelligent Design was the latest effort to create a solid relationship between God and science. ID would show that while the scientific evidence of an ancient Earth and the slow development of various species from a common ancestor was accurate, the whole process would never have worked without the hand of God intervening and managing the process all the time.
Unfortunately, ID failed to do anything of the sort. It turned out to be nothing more than another collection of dubious criticisms of the Theory of Evolution, some poorly conceived mathematical arguments, and a big Argument from Ignorance. The failure of ID to produce any convincing evidence is part of a long record of unsuccessful efforts to find scientific support for Biblical claims.
And so it seems that as another Science-Bible shipper cult dies a gruesome death in cases like the Kitzmiller vs Dover suit, devoted followers of the cult are turning against the side they believe failed in the relationship. Naturally, most see science as the side that let them down. Right now, virtually any scientific claim – be it climate change, pollution, shrinking oil supplies, etc. – is subject to dismissal by religious fundamentalists who believe that science has rejected them.
If the religious would just stop looking for scientific validation of their beliefs, they'd probably be a lot happier.
Monday, March 26, 2007
Where there are Knights, there will be Knaves
I'm just passing on a bit of disappointing news from Gulf Wars XVI.
Greetings all,
Gulf Wars XVI was great, and later I may write up a nice post on the good times, but unfortunately, my first post must be about the really bad experience...
Sunday morning we discovered that someone had stolen most of our gear that I had left by our pavilion space Saturday evening at the battlefield. I should not have left it there overnight, however, we had left plenty of armor, weapons, etc. there during the week without incident. I have been in the SCA for over 25 years now, and, blissfully ignorant, have never had anything stolen before.
Whoever did this stole a goodly number of items of no small monetary value, probably more than a thousand dollars of stuff (in replacement value). But of more import, they stole from me an innocence, an ideal, a feeling of comfort and security. Now, when I take the field at the next foreign war, I will know that someone on that field may be a thief, a low, base, vile, dishonorable varlet.
Now I will know that all my opponents and even my allies may not be honorable men and women of valor.
This was unfortunately not a case of mistakenly gleaned items, but of theft. Our very large weapon pile was picked over, the thieves left a couple of weapons they did not want. Crispin's armor bag was turned into Lost and Found, but the helmet and gauntlets had been removed from it and it was found at a different location than it was left. At least one other person also had her helmet and gauntlets stolen in a similar manner.
Please forward this email on to every SCA list that might prove helpful. The far corners of the Knowne Worlde should know these items are stolen. Maybe someone will notice someone coming home from the war with a bounty of new used weapons and armor. Maybe the theives will give themselves away somehow and justice can be served (a police report has been filed).
All told, there were 5 fiberglass spears, 5 glaives/pole arms, 2 great swords, 2 long swords, 2 chairs, 1 pavilion, 1 helmet and 1 pair gauntlets stolen from us.
Spear: Nine foot long Black fiberglass shaft (older, thicker-walled variety of shaft) covered in wood grained contact paper; self-made thrusting tip, tapered, no shield hook; large knob end on the handle with black grip tape.
Spear: Nine foot long Brown fiberglass shaft (newer variety of shaft, very light) covered in very tattered wood grained contact paper; Mandrake Armory thrusting tip kit with shield hook; small knob end on the handle with black grip tape.
Spear: Nine foot long black duct taped shaft with decorative white
crosses; self-made cylindrical thrusting tip; the spear was a few inches too
long and did not pass inspection.
Spear: Nine foot long black and purple decorated shaft; self-made thrusting tip (tapered) with a decorative yellow fleur-de-lis on the thrusting tip's face.
Spear: Nine foot long red fiberglass shaft, un-taped, cracked slightly; self-made thrusting tip and shield hook.
War Glaive: Rattan 7 1/2 foot long shaft, has a unique bend to it with shaved sides; grip tape handle and grip at top of the haft; self-made thrusting tip and butt spike; self made flat teardrop shaped hand guard at the juncture of haft and blade.
Short Glaive: Six foot long shaft, blade silver and blue duct tape, haft covered with black duct tape and spiral wrapped with grip tape; thrusting tip and butt spike self-made using black rubber ball hitch covers; flat oblong hand guard at juncture of haft and blade.
Glaive: Apx. seven foot rattan shaft, stained to look like a darker wood; silver duct tape blade with black contrast edge.
Glaive: Apx. Seven and a half foot long rattan shaft; silver duct tape blade with black contrast edge; two large, red taped, busted-ass thrusting tips on either end.
Great Sword: Apx. six foot rattan greatsword, light and strong; shaved handle, silver duct tape with black tape contrast edge.
Great Sword: Apx. six foot rattan greatsword, light and strong; shaved handle, silver duct tape with black tape contrast edge.
Field Pavilion: "First Up" brand 10x10 popup pavilion, blue canopy, white metal frame; black triangular dagging sewn around bottom edge of canopy; patches with Tymm Gard's and the Triskele Legion's devices sewn over the "First Up" logos on the canopy.
Gauntlets: Mild steel mitten gauntlets; Blacksword Armory design and make; they were painted black with white letters drawn upon them.
Helmet: Mild steel bascinet with bar grille; Blacksword Armory original item. I will post links to pictures of the missing items later...
Swords: Inch and a quarter diameter rattan, shaved handles; Asgard black plastic cup hilts; silver duct tape with yellow contrast edges; no thrusting tips.
Chair: Wooden framed, short legged "Director's" style; beige mesh waterproof fabric back and seat; sold at Target stores.
Chair: Dark wooden folding chair, period design with a carved back piece and lion head carved into the ends of the arm rests. This chair is fairly unique and not readily replacable.
Please forward any info to Anushka at aleannain_AT_insightbb_DOT_com
Greetings all,
Gulf Wars XVI was great, and later I may write up a nice post on the good times, but unfortunately, my first post must be about the really bad experience...
Sunday morning we discovered that someone had stolen most of our gear that I had left by our pavilion space Saturday evening at the battlefield. I should not have left it there overnight, however, we had left plenty of armor, weapons, etc. there during the week without incident. I have been in the SCA for over 25 years now, and, blissfully ignorant, have never had anything stolen before.
Whoever did this stole a goodly number of items of no small monetary value, probably more than a thousand dollars of stuff (in replacement value). But of more import, they stole from me an innocence, an ideal, a feeling of comfort and security. Now, when I take the field at the next foreign war, I will know that someone on that field may be a thief, a low, base, vile, dishonorable varlet.
Now I will know that all my opponents and even my allies may not be honorable men and women of valor.
This was unfortunately not a case of mistakenly gleaned items, but of theft. Our very large weapon pile was picked over, the thieves left a couple of weapons they did not want. Crispin's armor bag was turned into Lost and Found, but the helmet and gauntlets had been removed from it and it was found at a different location than it was left. At least one other person also had her helmet and gauntlets stolen in a similar manner.
Please forward this email on to every SCA list that might prove helpful. The far corners of the Knowne Worlde should know these items are stolen. Maybe someone will notice someone coming home from the war with a bounty of new used weapons and armor. Maybe the theives will give themselves away somehow and justice can be served (a police report has been filed).
All told, there were 5 fiberglass spears, 5 glaives/pole arms, 2 great swords, 2 long swords, 2 chairs, 1 pavilion, 1 helmet and 1 pair gauntlets stolen from us.
Spear: Nine foot long Black fiberglass shaft (older, thicker-walled variety of shaft) covered in wood grained contact paper; self-made thrusting tip, tapered, no shield hook; large knob end on the handle with black grip tape.
Spear: Nine foot long Brown fiberglass shaft (newer variety of shaft, very light) covered in very tattered wood grained contact paper; Mandrake Armory thrusting tip kit with shield hook; small knob end on the handle with black grip tape.
Spear: Nine foot long black duct taped shaft with decorative white
crosses; self-made cylindrical thrusting tip; the spear was a few inches too
long and did not pass inspection.
Spear: Nine foot long black and purple decorated shaft; self-made thrusting tip (tapered) with a decorative yellow fleur-de-lis on the thrusting tip's face.
Spear: Nine foot long red fiberglass shaft, un-taped, cracked slightly; self-made thrusting tip and shield hook.
War Glaive: Rattan 7 1/2 foot long shaft, has a unique bend to it with shaved sides; grip tape handle and grip at top of the haft; self-made thrusting tip and butt spike; self made flat teardrop shaped hand guard at the juncture of haft and blade.
Short Glaive: Six foot long shaft, blade silver and blue duct tape, haft covered with black duct tape and spiral wrapped with grip tape; thrusting tip and butt spike self-made using black rubber ball hitch covers; flat oblong hand guard at juncture of haft and blade.
Glaive: Apx. seven foot rattan shaft, stained to look like a darker wood; silver duct tape blade with black contrast edge.
Glaive: Apx. Seven and a half foot long rattan shaft; silver duct tape blade with black contrast edge; two large, red taped, busted-ass thrusting tips on either end.
Great Sword: Apx. six foot rattan greatsword, light and strong; shaved handle, silver duct tape with black tape contrast edge.
Great Sword: Apx. six foot rattan greatsword, light and strong; shaved handle, silver duct tape with black tape contrast edge.
Field Pavilion: "First Up" brand 10x10 popup pavilion, blue canopy, white metal frame; black triangular dagging sewn around bottom edge of canopy; patches with Tymm Gard's and the Triskele Legion's devices sewn over the "First Up" logos on the canopy.
Gauntlets: Mild steel mitten gauntlets; Blacksword Armory design and make; they were painted black with white letters drawn upon them.
Helmet: Mild steel bascinet with bar grille; Blacksword Armory original item. I will post links to pictures of the missing items later...
Swords: Inch and a quarter diameter rattan, shaved handles; Asgard black plastic cup hilts; silver duct tape with yellow contrast edges; no thrusting tips.
Chair: Wooden framed, short legged "Director's" style; beige mesh waterproof fabric back and seat; sold at Target stores.
Chair: Dark wooden folding chair, period design with a carved back piece and lion head carved into the ends of the arm rests. This chair is fairly unique and not readily replacable.
Please forward any info to Anushka at aleannain_AT_insightbb_DOT_com
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Back from Gulf Wars 16
Well, I’m back from Gulf Wars XVI and I’ve had a day to recover, so I can finally post something about it. The bad news is that I was a complete camera slacker, so I’ll have to prevail on some other people to provide pictures for me at some point.
Dance activities went pretty well at the war, and I think I’ve got a better handle on how to do things for next year. Among other things, I’ve got a good idea of what days and times are best for dance classes, and I know that putting classes on the schedule definitely does help with attendance. I'll be starting a new mailing list for dance hosts and instructors soon to plan the next war's activities better. On a related note, Lady Francesca and I won the Populace Prize for performing arts.
Since I was coordinating dance activities, I didn’t spend as much time fencing this year as I have in previous years. I participated in the Verona Street Brawls on Monday and got to spar some with the Queen of Ansteorra; I must say it’s always a pleasure to have royalty come out to join us on the rapier field. I didn’t armor up again until Thursday for the Ladies of the Rose tournament, in which I didn’t last long (which is becoming a distressing pattern – I need to practice more). Helped hold one of the flags for a while in the Ravine Battle, despite our major numerical disadvantage, and I fought in the Field Battle, as well. Numbers were killing us in the war point battles, though.
My final bit of fencing fun was the Fort Battles on Saturday afternoon. These aren’t worth war points, which makes them far more relaxed and fun. We had even teams, which generally does not bode well for the invaders. In fact, I was rather surprised when our side successfully invaded the fort on one of our turns attacking. Capitan Ricarte Bereguer Halcon came up with the idea of just ignoring the windows and the sally port and rushing everyone through the main gate immediately. This proved to be a bit of a surprise for the defenders and we took the fort with surprisingly few casualties. That was the only time the attackers won.
Now I just have to scrounge around and see if I can scare up some pictures.
Dance activities went pretty well at the war, and I think I’ve got a better handle on how to do things for next year. Among other things, I’ve got a good idea of what days and times are best for dance classes, and I know that putting classes on the schedule definitely does help with attendance. I'll be starting a new mailing list for dance hosts and instructors soon to plan the next war's activities better. On a related note, Lady Francesca and I won the Populace Prize for performing arts.
Since I was coordinating dance activities, I didn’t spend as much time fencing this year as I have in previous years. I participated in the Verona Street Brawls on Monday and got to spar some with the Queen of Ansteorra; I must say it’s always a pleasure to have royalty come out to join us on the rapier field. I didn’t armor up again until Thursday for the Ladies of the Rose tournament, in which I didn’t last long (which is becoming a distressing pattern – I need to practice more). Helped hold one of the flags for a while in the Ravine Battle, despite our major numerical disadvantage, and I fought in the Field Battle, as well. Numbers were killing us in the war point battles, though.
My final bit of fencing fun was the Fort Battles on Saturday afternoon. These aren’t worth war points, which makes them far more relaxed and fun. We had even teams, which generally does not bode well for the invaders. In fact, I was rather surprised when our side successfully invaded the fort on one of our turns attacking. Capitan Ricarte Bereguer Halcon came up with the idea of just ignoring the windows and the sally port and rushing everyone through the main gate immediately. This proved to be a bit of a surprise for the defenders and we took the fort with surprisingly few casualties. That was the only time the attackers won.
Now I just have to scrounge around and see if I can scare up some pictures.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Anatomy of a Dance Reconstruction, Part 5
Chained walk done in the wheel.For this chained walk, the dancers are “swimming” around the circle by exchanging hands in what English Country Dances would call a “hey”.
Each man will take the right hand of his lady, and they will do together 1 Seguito grave with the left; then taking the hand of the other lady by the left, they will do another Seguito with the right; and so they will follow from hand to hand, doing always the chain in the wheel, until they will have done 6 Seguiti: to the end of which each one will be discovered again in his place with his lady: and they will do this in 3 times of the Sonata.
The seguito grave is normally three steps in three counts, followed by a pause on the fourth count. According to Caroso, it will take six seguiti gravi to complete a journey around the circle and return to your partner. This section of the music has forty-eight ordinary beats, so one seguito grave is going to have to use eight of them.
This is going to be one of the trickiest parts of the dance to interpret. In Contrapasso, this portion of the music takes eight seguito ordinario, so using the same arrangement of the music to complete six seguito grave could be problematic. The Dragonscale Consort arrangement of Contrapasso in Due the music may be incompatible with Contrapasso Nuovo.
After that they will do together the Riverenza grave, and 2 Continenze,The riverenza grave will take twelve beats, and the continenze six beats left and six right.
with 4 Seguiti flanked, 2 back, and 2 forward.This is the same set of flanked seguiti ordinario that we saw during this movement of the music before. As before, the sequence will take twenty-four ordinary beats.
All together will do 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Doppio presto forward, starting with the left, and they will take hands in the wheel,As before, each passo grave will take three ordinary beats and the seguito ordinario will take six.
then back they will do 2 Passi grave, and 2 Riprese to the right, starting with the right.Each passo grave will take three beats and each riprese will also take three.
Letting go of hands then, they will do of new the said 4 Seguiti flanked, as of above.Four more flanked seguito ordinario in twenty-four beats.
Finally each man will take the right hand of his lady, and doing the Riverenza with the left foot; and each one turning the body to the lady which will stand to the left hand, they will take her left hand, and will do the Riverenza with the right:A riverenza grave to your partner and another riverenza to your contrary (the person standing to the opposite side of you from your partner), each taking twelve beats.
then all letting go will do 4 Seguiti flanked, 2 back, and 2 forward, scurrying, starting it with the right:Four more flanked seguito ordinario in twenty-four beats.
finally they will end the Ballo with doing the Riverenza with the left foot, which they will be found to have forward.And a final riverenza.
| Beats | Steps |
| 48 | 6 Seguiti gravi, exchanging hands around the set, starting with your partner |
| 24 | Riverenza grave, and 2 Continenze |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Doppio presto forward |
| 12 | 2 Passi grave, and 2 Riprese to the right |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
| 12 | Riverenza gravi to partner |
| 12 | Riverenza gravi to contrary |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
| * | Riverenza grave |
On to Part 6.
Science in the Media
I came across this photo and caption on Yahoo News.
Liu Shuping, a farmer specializing in raising pigs, presents a newly-born piglet with one head, two mouths, two noses and three eyes, for photographers in Xi'an, northwest China's Shannxi Province March 6, 2007. Experts attributed it's condition to genetic variation, local media reported. Picture taken March 6, 2007. CHINA OUT REUTERS/China Daily (CHINA)Despite the opinion of some unnamed “expert”, this little pig does not have a genetic variation. This is a developmental error, not a genetic error. Specifically, we’re looking at a small-scale manifestation of conjoined twins. Makes you wonder who the China Daily considers an expert.
Friday, March 02, 2007
Anatomy of a Dance Reconstruction, Part 4
We have now reached the first change of the music. I generally think of this second movement of the music as a sort of chorus, although it’s certainly not one in the same sense as the chorus of a cascarda like Laccio d’Amore or Gracca Amoroso. It has a repetitiveness, though, that makes me think of it that way. This movement of the music is where the dancers start to really interact with each other.
The passi gravi still take three beats each, but the seguito semidoppio is a trickier step to perform in the allotted six beats of music. The two passi presti together should theoretically take three beats, with the seguito spezzato taking the remaining three, but you may find it hard to stretch two quick steps over three beats of music. Just how to make the rhythm look and feel natural is something to work out when you actually start performing the steps to the music. My guess is that I’ll arrange the passi presti in two beats, the spezzato in the next three, and rest briefly on the sixth beat. This part of the change will take another twelve counts.
In the third set of exchanges, we take the other person by both hands instead of just one. This could potentially be a little awkward when switching in the middle. Again, the switches will take twenty-four beats, followed by flanking out and back for twenty four beats.
Summing all that up…
In our next installment, we’ll go back to the first movement of the music, as the entire piece essentially repeats in full, but with movements for the dancers.
On to Part 5.
After each one will take the right hand of his lady, and will do 2 Passi gravi, with 1 Seguito ordinario, starting it with the left, and changing place.Going by our previous timing cues, each passo grave will take three (ordinary) beats and the seguito ordinario will take six. First time around, the lords will switch places with their partners while holding right hands. This will take twelve counts
Then the man taking the left hand of the lady which he will find to the right hand, they will do together 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito semidoppio, changing place always: they will not be sorry, if the second turn they will be found without their lady, because then to the end of the third change, each one will be discovered again with his own.Here’s where this dance differs most interestingly from Contrapasso. Instead of the partners reversing their turn to go back to their original places, they separate and start working their way around the circle. They take the left hand of the next lord/lady in the circle to do a second switch.By the third repeat of the “chorus”, they’ll find each other again.
The passi gravi still take three beats each, but the seguito semidoppio is a trickier step to perform in the allotted six beats of music. The two passi presti together should theoretically take three beats, with the seguito spezzato taking the remaining three, but you may find it hard to stretch two quick steps over three beats of music. Just how to make the rhythm look and feel natural is something to work out when you actually start performing the steps to the music. My guess is that I’ll arrange the passi presti in two beats, the spezzato in the next three, and rest briefly on the sixth beat. This part of the change will take another twelve counts.
The Semidoppio done, they will do 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward.A similar set of flanked seguiti ordinarii occurs in Contrapasso. This entire sequence will take twenty-four ordinary beats. I suspect that everyone will need to make these moves toward the outside of the circle to avoid collisions.
Second change.The exchanges now continue, the only difference being that the we “arm” our way around instead of just taking hands. By arming, we meant that you lightly hold the other person by the elbow. The switches will take twenty-four beats, followed by flanking out and back for another twenty four beats.
The men will take the lady who stands to the right hand by the right arm, and they will do the same which they will have done in the first change when they took her by the hands, always changing ladies, and place.
Third change.
The men taking the lady which stands to the right by both hands, they will do the same changes said above. And to the end of this change each one will be discovered again at his place, as they were standing when they started the Ballo.
In the third set of exchanges, we take the other person by both hands instead of just one. This could potentially be a little awkward when switching in the middle. Again, the switches will take twenty-four beats, followed by flanking out and back for twenty four beats.
Summing all that up…
| Beats | Steps |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito ordinario (hands) |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito semidoppio (hands) |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito ordinario (arms) |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito semidoppio (arms) |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito ordinario (both hands) |
| 12 | 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito semidoppio (both hands) |
| 24 | 4 Seguiti ordinarii, 2 flanked back, and 2 forward |
In our next installment, we’ll go back to the first movement of the music, as the entire piece essentially repeats in full, but with movements for the dancers.
On to Part 5.
Monday, February 26, 2007
Born Free?
My brother- and sister- in- law treat us well when we visit. That usually includes complete breakfasts in the mornings. Such breakfasts often include eggs. I'm going somewhere; wait for it.
My sister-in-law purchased some rather special eggs which were served when we last visited. All-natural, vegetarian-fed eggs under the brand name "Born Free" in fact. It's a very impressive label. You might even get the impression that they were from free-range chickens. If you got that impression, you'd be wrong.
Here's the basic label. Note that it says "Born Free" in very large characters.
Note also that it says "from caged hens" in rather small, white characters on a very light background.
Let me emphasize that for you if you're having trouble reading it.
Despite being called "Born Free", these are not free ranged chickens. The eggs come from "caged hens". While you might be interested in eggs from chickens fed an all-vegetarian diet (and my good lady wife points out that feeding hens corn is actually typical), you wouldn't want to buy these eggs on the assumption that they're coming from free-range chickens.
Have we learned to read the fine print, now?
My sister-in-law purchased some rather special eggs which were served when we last visited. All-natural, vegetarian-fed eggs under the brand name "Born Free" in fact. It's a very impressive label. You might even get the impression that they were from free-range chickens. If you got that impression, you'd be wrong.
Here's the basic label. Note that it says "Born Free" in very large characters.
Note also that it says "from caged hens" in rather small, white characters on a very light background.
Let me emphasize that for you if you're having trouble reading it.
Despite being called "Born Free", these are not free ranged chickens. The eggs come from "caged hens". While you might be interested in eggs from chickens fed an all-vegetarian diet (and my good lady wife points out that feeding hens corn is actually typical), you wouldn't want to buy these eggs on the assumption that they're coming from free-range chickens.
Have we learned to read the fine print, now?
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Anatomy of a Dance Reconstruction, Part 3
In our last entry, we defined the steps that we would be using in this dance.
With those sorted out, we can now try to make them fit the music (you can download a brief sample from the Dragonscale Consort's album page). Of course, one of the first things that you’ll notice when listening to the music is that it isn’t arranged in measures of eight or sixteen counts. It’s arranged in measures of twelve or twenty-four counts. Consequently, a step that usually takes four beats will take six beats in this particular dance.
Again, we’ll want to work with just a manageable portion of the text, so we’ll go with the introductory portion of the dance.
Next, we have two ordinary sequences, which are ornamented doubles. An ordinario normally takes four counts, so in this dance they will take six. Since an ordinario consists for four steps, we’ll have to figure out a way to space them out over six beats. For me, that usually means taking the steps in the first four beats and then resting on the last two.
Unfortunately, at no point have we actually determined which dancers are going in which direction while “walking in the wheel”. Having no visual reference for how the dance was performed in period, this will be a matter of interpretation, which we’ll examine in a future post.
On to Part 4.
| Step | Description |
| Continenze | Move the left foot four inches away from the right, then close, including a smooth dipping motion. A continenza takes four counts. |
| Doppio presto | A double with rising and lowering of the heels, done in two counts. |
| Passi grave | Single steps that take two beats each |
| Passi presti | Single steps that take one beat each |
| Riprese | From feet even, move the left foot 4 inches away from the right, raising both the heels a little; then close, lower both heals. A ripresa, takes two counts. |
| Riverenze grave | For the riverenza grave, draw your left foot back in a straight line until the toe is even with your right heel, then bend and widen at the knees to descend. Rise by straightening at the knees while bringing your left foot forward until it’s even with your right. The whole motion takes eight counts. |
| Seguito grave | Three passi in three counts, followed by a pause on the fourth count. |
| Seguito ordinario | Move the left foot forward so the heel is even with the right toe; advance the right foot similarly in the second beat; the left advances again in the third beat, and the right falls even on the fourth. This is essentially a double in four counts. |
| Seguito semidoppio | Two passi presti and one seguito spezzato. The whole sequence takes four counts. |
| Seguito spezzato | Place the left foot a half step forward; in the second beat, place the right toe next to the left heel and raise both heels, then settle. |
| Trabuchetti gravi | From a standing start with your feet even, hop a little to your left, leaving all your weight on your left foot and keeping your right foot up. Then hop back to your right, landing on your right foot and keeping your left up. Be careful not to let one foot slip behind the other during the trabuchetti; both feet should remain even from a front-to-back perspective. All of this takes place in two counts. |
With those sorted out, we can now try to make them fit the music (you can download a brief sample from the Dragonscale Consort's album page). Of course, one of the first things that you’ll notice when listening to the music is that it isn’t arranged in measures of eight or sixteen counts. It’s arranged in measures of twelve or twenty-four counts. Consequently, a step that usually takes four beats will take six beats in this particular dance.
Again, we’ll want to work with just a manageable portion of the text, so we’ll go with the introductory portion of the dance.
To do this Contrapasso, 6 people will befall you, 3 men, and 3 ladies; the which will stand in the wheel with this order, that is, 1 man and 1 woman,We begin with our starting positions. We have three couples arranged “in the wheel”, but we’re left wondering what Caroso means by a wheel. It’s undoubtedly some kind of circular arrangement, but we don’t really have enough information to know whether everyone’s facing inward, or the couples are facing around clockwise, or what. We’ll have to see what follows to determine the details.
and all without taking hands will do together the Riverenza grave,This is our first actual movement direction. The couples are not holding hands. They all perform a Riverenza grave, which we learned in the last post would normally take eight ordinary beats. For this dance, then, the move will take twelve ordinary beats.
and 2 Seguiti ordinarii turned to the left:
Next, we have two ordinary sequences, which are ornamented doubles. An ordinario normally takes four counts, so in this dance they will take six. Since an ordinario consists for four steps, we’ll have to figure out a way to space them out over six beats. For me, that usually means taking the steps in the first four beats and then resting on the last two.
and walking in the wheel, moreover to the left, they will do 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito semidoppio;Passi gravi typically take two beats each, so these will take three beats each. The seguito semidoppio normally takes four beats, so it will take six in this dance: three beats for the initial two passi presti and three more for the spezzato.
then turning back facing, with finding them in the manner which they were standing in the start, they will do 2 Passi gravi and 3Two more passi gravi will take another six counts, and three trabuchetti will take another six.
Trabuchetti, starting it with the right and concluding to feet even.
They will return to do the same walk another turn.And at this point we repeat everything we’ve already done except the opening Riverenza, which has nothing to do with us walking in the wheel.
| Beats | Steps |
| 12 | Riverenza grave |
| 12 | 2 Seguito Ordinario (doubles) |
| 6 | 2 Passi Grave (slow singles) |
| 6 | 2 Seguito semidoppio (two quick singles and a spezzato) |
| 6 | 2 Passi Grave (slow singles) |
| 6 | 3 Trabuchetti (one hop to each foot per trabuchetto) |
| 36 | Repeat from Seguiti Ordinarii |
Unfortunately, at no point have we actually determined which dancers are going in which direction while “walking in the wheel”. Having no visual reference for how the dance was performed in period, this will be a matter of interpretation, which we’ll examine in a future post.
On to Part 4.
Monday, February 19, 2007
Anatomy of a Dance Reconstruction, Part 2
If you're just joining us, you may want to read Part 1 before proceeding.
For dance reconstruction purposes, we needn’t bother with the facsimile and transcription of the dance right away; we’re primarily interested in the translation. The other pieces are only important if we want to include them in A&S documentation.
With the translation in hand, we’ll want to start trying to match the steps to the rhythm of the music, so we’ll look at the first paragraph of description.To do this Contrapasso, 6 people will befall you, 3 men, and 3 ladies; the which will stand in the wheel with this order, that is, 1 man and 1 woman, and all without taking hands will do together the Riverenza grave, and 2 Seguiti ordinarii turned to the left: and walking in the wheel, moreover to the left, they will do 2 Passi gravi, and 1 Seguito semidoppio; then turning back facing, with finding them in the manner which they were standing in the start, they will do 2 Passi gravi and 3 Trabuchetti, starting it with the right and concluding to feet even. They will return to do the same walk another turn.Immediately, we start to encounter a good bit of dance jargon. Unless we know what the author means by Riverenza grave and Seguiti ordinarii, we’re not going to get very far. Caroso describes the common steps used in his dances separately from the dances themselves, so at this point we need to start looking up the definitions of the steps used in this dance. Rather than do them all in detail, we’ll take a look at his description of the Riverenza grave. The description is quite verbose, but it contains various important bits of information, so we’ll break it into manageable chunks.
The Riverenza grave is done keeping the body and the legs well straight, with the middle of the left foot most in front of the right, and 4 inches distant from it, being careful that the points of both feet stand well straight.The opening statement provides a general description of our starting position. We stand up straight, feet slightly apart, left foot leading some, and toes pointed forward.
And because in the major part of the Balletti happen 8 perfect beats of music, which are 16 ordinary beats;This may seem innocuous, but it’s actually pretty useful to know. Not all of Caroso’s dances have this timing, so you need to be ready to adapt. In fact, we’ll be doing it in this very dance.
but have to know that in the first 4 beats begin and finish all the Riverenza: and in the last four, the 2 Continenze, as I will say to you later.Caroso has left us with a bit of a quandary, here. When he says that the Riverenza takes 4 beats, he doesn’t say whether he means “perfect” beats or “ordinary” beats (this is the sort of oversight that offends me as a technical writer). When the time comes, we simply have to figure out which way works to the music. Having heard the music, I can say with assurance that, in this case, he means “perfect” beats.
The first time, stand in perspective with the left foot forward, as was said, and with your facing turned towards that of the lady: and not as it is done by others, who keep turned towards the bystanders, who stand opposite: in that manner it seems that they despise the lady with whom they wish to dance: and that here with each effect whom they owe always to revere and to honor:Bow to your partner, not to the audience. It should be clear that any bow you make to the audience is not part of the dance. In the first of our four perfect beats, your left foot should be in front of you.
In the second, draw back the left foot in a straight line, until the point of this is even with the right heel: keeping it level on the floor, and not elevating the heel: be careful in the drawing back the foot, of bowing a little with the head, and the body, accompanying this act with what grace which would better favor it, and having both the knees well extended.In the second of the four perfect beats, you draw your left foot back until your toe is even with your right heel, keeping your foot flat on the floor. Incline your head slightly at this point.
The third, one owes to diminish down the legs together with the body, widening the knees some with beautiful grace.In the third beat, bend at the knees to lower your body.
The fourth and final, one must advance it, returning the left foot to even with the right, and raising the body and the head togetherIn the fourth beat, rise back up, straighten your head, and bring your feet even.
We have started the Riverenza with the left foot, because the pattern of revering of the body of the heart; and also because the constancy, and stability of our body is the right foot: the which must not move ever before we have done the Riverenza, nor less in the dance. Be careful now, which each act, or movement in the start of the Balli always must be done with the left foot.This particular statement gives useful guidance for all step reconstructions; it tells us that the opening moves of all of Caroso’s dances (and 16th century Italian dances in general) will begin with the left foot.
Nor do I wish to let go of to say, which of the many ways this Riverenza will be diversely done, forsomuch as that some people finding themselves with feet even at the start, draw the left foot back flaking instead of in a straight line, and standing with the legs straight and with the point of said foot on the ground: others, drawing a little back, cross it around the right: others, drawing it purely back, rest with the point of that behind the heel of the right: and others pulling it turn their body, and keeping with the point behind on the ground: the which manners all, because they are extremely clumsy and foul, have resolved to note for caution everyone to avoid this, and to shun them.Here Caroso notes that there are many variations on the performance of the Riverenza, although he doesn’t approve of them. From this we might conclude that we shouldn’t panic if we don’t perform the step exactly as he teaches, nor should we be surprised if we find another 16th century dance master (like Cesare Negri) describing a step differently from Caroso. Putting all these details together, we have four “perfect” beats or eight “ordinary” beats to complete the Riverenza grave. From a standing position with our feet slightly apart and toes pointed forward, we do the following…
- Extend the left foot forward slightly.
- Draw the left foot back until its toe is even with the right heel, keeping the foot flat on the floor. Also, incline the head slightly.
- Bend at the knees to lower the body.
- Rise back up, straightening the head, and bringing the feet even.
Remember that you are showing reverence to your partner, not to the audience.
I will leave it as an exercise for the reader to reconstruct the other steps used in the dance, including the Seguito ordinario, Passo grave, Seguito semidoppio, Trabuchetto, Seguito grave, Continenze, Doppio presto, and Riprese.
Continue to Part 3.
Friday, February 16, 2007
Too Damn Cute
I used to have a dachsund that would have been perfect for this...
In unrelated news, Skeptics' Circle 54 is up.
In unrelated news, Skeptics' Circle 54 is up.
Monday, February 12, 2007
Anatomy of a Dance Reconstruction, Part 1
I have no idea whether anyone would be interested in how I go about such things, but I figured I might as well do a post on how I personally go about researching a Renaissance dance for reconstruction.
Step one, of course, is to settle upon a dance to reconstruct. I typically start by looking through my collection of recorded music, since the music is essential to both the reconstruction and performance of the dance. I’m looking for three features at this stage:
Contrapasso has been researched before, both by myself and others, but I’ve yet to see Contrapasso Nuovo on a dance list anywhere, so it fulfills criterion #2.
Finally, the entire text of Il Ballarino is available on the internet in facsimile, transcription, and translation. Easy access to source material is a huge bonus, especially if you want to demonstrate your process to an internet audience. This dance easily meets criterion #3.
This concludes the first stage of dance reconstruction -- choosing the dance. I’m going to stop here for the moment, since I plan to milk this topic for at least three posts.
The process continues in Part 2.
Step one, of course, is to settle upon a dance to reconstruct. I typically start by looking through my collection of recorded music, since the music is essential to both the reconstruction and performance of the dance. I’m looking for three features at this stage:
- I like the music,
- the dance isn’t commonly performed in my kingdom, and
- a period description of the dance is readily available.
Contrapasso has been researched before, both by myself and others, but I’ve yet to see Contrapasso Nuovo on a dance list anywhere, so it fulfills criterion #2.
Finally, the entire text of Il Ballarino is available on the internet in facsimile, transcription, and translation. Easy access to source material is a huge bonus, especially if you want to demonstrate your process to an internet audience. This dance easily meets criterion #3.
This concludes the first stage of dance reconstruction -- choosing the dance. I’m going to stop here for the moment, since I plan to milk this topic for at least three posts.
The process continues in Part 2.
Friday, February 09, 2007
Amber Hnefatafl Pieces
Aardvarchaeology has posted an article about some amber game pieces uncovered at a boat grave dig in Sweden. His find leads to an interesting hypothesis about the people who played hnefatafl in 9th-10th century Sweden.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Pewter Casting Resources
I had a comment from "Rhiannon" that asked...
Hi there, I've been trying to find out how/where to learn to cast pewter, in the high hope of casting a set of pieces for a game a little like chess, only with dragons and mages.
Would you be able to tell me how you learned (or perhaps give me some pointers)?
I can't seem to find her comment anywhere in the blog anymore, but I did get the email notification in late January, so for anyone else who might be wondering, I found an article about Pewter Casting in Soapstone Molds on the internet.
Hi there, I've been trying to find out how/where to learn to cast pewter, in the high hope of casting a set of pieces for a game a little like chess, only with dragons and mages.
Would you be able to tell me how you learned (or perhaps give me some pointers)?
I can't seem to find her comment anywhere in the blog anymore, but I did get the email notification in late January, so for anyone else who might be wondering, I found an article about Pewter Casting in Soapstone Molds on the internet.
Monday, February 05, 2007
Fear the French!
There can be no greater terror...
...than a French Dalek!
On an unrelated note, I did have a good time at Saltare. I'm hoping to get some video from Rhys to make a good post about it.
...than a French Dalek!
On an unrelated note, I did have a good time at Saltare. I'm hoping to get some video from Rhys to make a good post about it.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Monday, January 29, 2007
Shooting Yourself in the Foot
I don't want Muslims to think I'm deliberately busting on them in this post. I'm not singling them out, it's just that they're the ones who made the news most recently. Fundamentalists of other stripes also engage in similar acts of self-endangerment in the name of religion (the Amish and Jehova's Witnesses being notable American religious groups with medical taboos).
EDIT: My bad. I had the Amish confused with the Quakers when I first wrote the post. The Quakers are innocent of anti-vaccination hysteria.
In a Times article mentioned on the SD.net BBS, I heard that a fundamentalist Muslim doctor is advising Muslims not to let their children receive vaccinations for common childhood diseases.
The inevitable result of such claims, of course, is that the number vaccinated people in the targeted groups will decline, which will lead to a resurgence of easily preventable illnesses. Furthermore, the resurgence won't just be limited to the segments of the population that avoid vaccination. Since no vaccine is 100% effective for all recipients, the small percentage for whom the vaccine didn't "take" will be at greater risk of running into a carrier from whom to get the disease. The groups who subscribe to anti-vaccine propaganda will suffer the most, but they'll bring the infection rate up a little bit for everyone else, too.
Admittedly, there probably are "haram" ingredients in vaccines. Does that mean you're just supposed to ignore them and let Allah decide whether your child gets polio, measles, or mumps? Or do you use the vaccine and ask forgiveness? Allah does forgive, doesn't he? I don't know if there's an unforgiveable sin in Islam, but Dr Shuja Shafi, a spokesman for the health and medical committee of the Muslim Council of Britain, doesn't seem to think this would be one.
EDIT: My bad. I had the Amish confused with the Quakers when I first wrote the post. The Quakers are innocent of anti-vaccination hysteria.
In a Times article mentioned on the SD.net BBS, I heard that a fundamentalist Muslim doctor is advising Muslims not to let their children receive vaccinations for common childhood diseases.
Dr Abdul Majid Katme, head of the Islamic Medical Association, is telling Muslims that almost all vaccines contain products derived from animal and human tissue, which make them “haram”, or unlawful for Muslims to take. Islam permits only the consumption of halal products, where the animal has had its throat cut and bled to death while God’s name is invoked.It's not like the world needs more anti-vaccination hysteria. Various fringe groups have emerged in recent years with conspiracy theories about vaccines being deliberately tainted to cause infertility or negligently laced with heavy metals (used as preservatives). Such claims generally don't require evidence to convince the crowds they're aimed toward, either. Among conspiracy theory crowds, lack of evidence is considered proof of a cover up.
The inevitable result of such claims, of course, is that the number vaccinated people in the targeted groups will decline, which will lead to a resurgence of easily preventable illnesses. Furthermore, the resurgence won't just be limited to the segments of the population that avoid vaccination. Since no vaccine is 100% effective for all recipients, the small percentage for whom the vaccine didn't "take" will be at greater risk of running into a carrier from whom to get the disease. The groups who subscribe to anti-vaccine propaganda will suffer the most, but they'll bring the infection rate up a little bit for everyone else, too.
Admittedly, there probably are "haram" ingredients in vaccines. Does that mean you're just supposed to ignore them and let Allah decide whether your child gets polio, measles, or mumps? Or do you use the vaccine and ask forgiveness? Allah does forgive, doesn't he? I don't know if there's an unforgiveable sin in Islam, but Dr Shuja Shafi, a spokesman for the health and medical committee of the Muslim Council of Britain, doesn't seem to think this would be one.
In terms of ingredients in vaccines, there are so many things that are probably haram, but in the absence of an alternative we are allowed to take it for the sake of our health.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Saltare Approaches
Yes, I’ve been a blog slacker for over a week. In my defense, I’ve been rather busy helping organize this year’s Saltare dance event as well as coordinating dance activities for Gulf Wars.
Saltare 2007 will be taking place on February 3rd in the student center of the University of Alabama at Huntsville, with some activities in the nearby Tom Bevill Center.
Saltare 2007 will be taking place on February 3rd in the student center of the University of Alabama at Huntsville, with some activities in the nearby Tom Bevill Center.
Friday, January 12, 2007
How Bill Gates Went Broke
I have to share this email from a very dear friend of mine who I can only hope sent it to me as a joke; the name is being withheld to protect the (hopefully) innocent. According to Snopes, variations of this particular gag have been bouncing from mailbox to mailbox since 1997. This is the “Bill Gates wants to go broke” incarnation. We’ll go through it bit-by-bit to look at all the tell-tale signs of an email hoax.
THIS TOOK TWO PAGES OF THE TUESDAY USA TODAY - IT IS FOR REAL
Lots of capitalized text is a good indicator of nonsense, since apparently ANYTHING IS MORE BELIEVABLE IF YOU TYPE IT IN ALL CAPS.
To all of my friends, I do not usually forward messages,
Of course, that line was presumably written by the instigator of the chain, so they’re technically not forwarding the message. They just expect millions of other gullible people to do it for them.
But this is from my friend Pearlas Sandborn and she really is an attorney. If she says that this will work - It will work. After all,What have you got to lose?
The old “what have you got to lose?” line is a favorite in chain letters. After all, what’s the risk of losing the good will of all the friends in your email address book compared to the negligible possibility that Bill Gates is giving away billions of dollars for no good reason.
SORRY EVERYBODY.. JUST HAD TO TAKE THE CHANCE!!! I'm an attorney, And I know the law. This thing is for real. Rest assured AOL and Intel will follow through with their promises for fear of facing a multimillion-dollar class action suit similar to the one filed by PepsiCo against General Electric not too long ago.
I don’t remember any such lawsuit; do you? It must have happened, though. Even though I should remember a multi-million dollar lawsuit fought between two of the world’s largest corporations, surely a LAWYER wouldn’t be making this up! I mean, her friend used her name in the letter and everything!
Dear Friends: Please do not take this for a junk letter
Perish the thought! I’m really starting to believe this, people. The author of this letter is INCREDIBLY PERSUASIVE.
Bill Gates sharing his fortune. If you ignore this, You will repent later.
Important messages like this always make major grammar errors, like leaving the verbs out of sentences. These messages are so important, you just HAVE to send them right away, without running a spelling/grammar check or anything.
I also like the quasi-Biblical threat (since no one uses "repent" in normal communications).
Microsoft and AOL are now the largest Internet companies and in an effort to make sure that Internet Explorer remains the most widely used program, Microsoft and AOL are running an e-mail beta test.
Obviously, the best way to insure the continued success of a WEB BROWSER is to run a massive EMAIL beta test that throws away money.
When you forward this e-mail to friends, Microsoft can and will track it (If you are a Microsoft Windows user) For a two weeks time period. For every person that you forward this e-mail to, Microsoft will pay you $245.00 For every person that you sent it to that forwards it on, Microsoft will pay you $243.00 and for every third person that receives it, You will be paid $241.00. Within two weeks, Microsoft will contact you for your address and then send you a check.
Absolutely TRUE! And Microsoft also uses this technology to track down terrorists and turn them in to the government. That’s how we caught Osama Bin Laden and utterly destroyed Al-Qaeda! Oh, wait…
Regards. Charles S Bailey General Manager Field Operations
1-800-842-2332 Ext. 1085 or 904-1085 or RNX 292-1085
This is unquestionably a real person with a real title, and I have no doubt those numbers are legit.
Thought this was a scam myself, But two weeks after receiving this e-mail and forwarding it on. Microsoft contacted me for my address and within days, I received a check for $24, 800.00. You need to respond before the beta testing is over. If anyone can affoard this, Bill gates is the man. It's all marketing expense to him. Please forward this to as many people as possible. You are bound to get at least $10, 000.00
Let me try doing a little math, here. The version of this that I got was apparently forwarded four times. The number of “To” addresses in the forwards varied from twelve to thirty-five. If we’re conservative and guess that the average victim forwards this to ten acquaintances, that’s over 2.6 million dollars in advertising expenses in just four chain links. If this conservative chain continued one link per day for the two weeks this promotion is supposedly running, Bill and company would need to pay out over 2.3 QUINTILLION dollars (2.3 million billion or $2,320,000,000,000,000)! That’s over 46 thousand times what Microsoft earns in a year (before expenses). It’s also about 900 times the 2006 budget of the United States.
Are we seeing the nonsense, yet?
We're not going to help them out with their e-mail beta test without getting a little something for our time. My brother's girlfriend got in on this a few months ago. When I went to visit him for the Baylor/UT game, she showed me her check. It was for the sum of $4,324.44 and was stamped "Paid In Full".
And just for some added internal inconsistency, we have this conundrum (which actually reiterates a problem I skipped over earlier in the letter). What good is it for us to forward this email – which is part of a TWO WEEK beta test – if some guy's girlfriend got into it and got paid MONTHS ago? Supposedly you get paid a couple of weeks after you forward the letter, meaning THE PROMOTION IS OVER BEFORE ANYONE GETS PAID. If people have already gotten paid, there is absolutely NO CHANCE that you will get any renumeration for forwarding this email, even if it weren't a hoax from the start.
Can we stop forwarding nonsense like this now?
THIS TOOK TWO PAGES OF THE TUESDAY USA TODAY - IT IS FOR REAL
Lots of capitalized text is a good indicator of nonsense, since apparently ANYTHING IS MORE BELIEVABLE IF YOU TYPE IT IN ALL CAPS.
To all of my friends, I do not usually forward messages,
Of course, that line was presumably written by the instigator of the chain, so they’re technically not forwarding the message. They just expect millions of other gullible people to do it for them.
But this is from my friend Pearlas Sandborn and she really is an attorney. If she says that this will work - It will work. After all,What have you got to lose?
The old “what have you got to lose?” line is a favorite in chain letters. After all, what’s the risk of losing the good will of all the friends in your email address book compared to the negligible possibility that Bill Gates is giving away billions of dollars for no good reason.
SORRY EVERYBODY.. JUST HAD TO TAKE THE CHANCE!!! I'm an attorney, And I know the law. This thing is for real. Rest assured AOL and Intel will follow through with their promises for fear of facing a multimillion-dollar class action suit similar to the one filed by PepsiCo against General Electric not too long ago.
I don’t remember any such lawsuit; do you? It must have happened, though. Even though I should remember a multi-million dollar lawsuit fought between two of the world’s largest corporations, surely a LAWYER wouldn’t be making this up! I mean, her friend used her name in the letter and everything!
Dear Friends: Please do not take this for a junk letter
Perish the thought! I’m really starting to believe this, people. The author of this letter is INCREDIBLY PERSUASIVE.
Bill Gates sharing his fortune. If you ignore this, You will repent later.
Important messages like this always make major grammar errors, like leaving the verbs out of sentences. These messages are so important, you just HAVE to send them right away, without running a spelling/grammar check or anything.
I also like the quasi-Biblical threat (since no one uses "repent" in normal communications).
Microsoft and AOL are now the largest Internet companies and in an effort to make sure that Internet Explorer remains the most widely used program, Microsoft and AOL are running an e-mail beta test.
Obviously, the best way to insure the continued success of a WEB BROWSER is to run a massive EMAIL beta test that throws away money.
When you forward this e-mail to friends, Microsoft can and will track it (If you are a Microsoft Windows user) For a two weeks time period. For every person that you forward this e-mail to, Microsoft will pay you $245.00 For every person that you sent it to that forwards it on, Microsoft will pay you $243.00 and for every third person that receives it, You will be paid $241.00. Within two weeks, Microsoft will contact you for your address and then send you a check.
Absolutely TRUE! And Microsoft also uses this technology to track down terrorists and turn them in to the government. That’s how we caught Osama Bin Laden and utterly destroyed Al-Qaeda! Oh, wait…
Regards. Charles S Bailey General Manager Field Operations
1-800-842-2332 Ext. 1085 or 904-1085 or RNX 292-1085
This is unquestionably a real person with a real title, and I have no doubt those numbers are legit.
Thought this was a scam myself, But two weeks after receiving this e-mail and forwarding it on. Microsoft contacted me for my address and within days, I received a check for $24, 800.00. You need to respond before the beta testing is over. If anyone can affoard this, Bill gates is the man. It's all marketing expense to him. Please forward this to as many people as possible. You are bound to get at least $10, 000.00
Let me try doing a little math, here. The version of this that I got was apparently forwarded four times. The number of “To” addresses in the forwards varied from twelve to thirty-five. If we’re conservative and guess that the average victim forwards this to ten acquaintances, that’s over 2.6 million dollars in advertising expenses in just four chain links. If this conservative chain continued one link per day for the two weeks this promotion is supposedly running, Bill and company would need to pay out over 2.3 QUINTILLION dollars (2.3 million billion or $2,320,000,000,000,000)! That’s over 46 thousand times what Microsoft earns in a year (before expenses). It’s also about 900 times the 2006 budget of the United States.
Are we seeing the nonsense, yet?
We're not going to help them out with their e-mail beta test without getting a little something for our time. My brother's girlfriend got in on this a few months ago. When I went to visit him for the Baylor/UT game, she showed me her check. It was for the sum of $4,324.44 and was stamped "Paid In Full".
And just for some added internal inconsistency, we have this conundrum (which actually reiterates a problem I skipped over earlier in the letter). What good is it for us to forward this email – which is part of a TWO WEEK beta test – if some guy's girlfriend got into it and got paid MONTHS ago? Supposedly you get paid a couple of weeks after you forward the letter, meaning THE PROMOTION IS OVER BEFORE ANYONE GETS PAID. If people have already gotten paid, there is absolutely NO CHANCE that you will get any renumeration for forwarding this email, even if it weren't a hoax from the start.
Can we stop forwarding nonsense like this now?
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
ID vs Evo: The Game
Actor Kirk Cameron (of Left Behind fame) and Christian author Ray Comfort have produced a board game called Intelligent Design versus Evolution, available from Living Waters. Unsurprisingly, they market it as “a board game that reveals the insanity of perhaps the greatest hoax of our times -- the unscientific ‘theory of evolution.’”
I won’t delve deeply into the hubris of an actor and author who really know nothing about the subject thinking they’re going to bring down one of the best-supported theories in modern science with a board game. I don’t have the game, nor do I intend to spend money to get a copy, so I don’t know exactly what ID/Creationism arguments they use on the game cards (although history suggests there won’t be anything that hasn’t already been repeatedly refuted by people who actually understand the Theory of Evolution).
What I will present is a small introduction to selective quoting by Creationists. I first learned about this game when it became a topic on Mike Wong’s bulletin board. Mike’s BBS is a haven for neither Creationists nor the politically correct, so the denizens wasted no time belittling Kirk’s and Ray’s newest pet project. Low and behold, someone at Living Waters found the BBS thread discussing the game, and they promptly added a “What evolutionists are already saying” heading to the sales page, quoting from the BBS:
You might get the impression that the evolutionists being quoted are credentialed evolutionary biologists, since the page doesn’t bother to say where the comments came from. Further, notice the frequent ellipsis dots? Creationists are quite fond of selectively quoting their adversaries. For instance, one BBS denizen actually said “This critter made me spit my water out” in reference to the image at right. I’m not exactly sure where he got the image, although I expect it came from the game material somewhere.
Another quote was cut short without even using the ellipsis dots to show they’d made a cut. The original line was “I get the feeling that this game will not be allowed to be sold most places, under the argument that it is either A: Deliberately deeding kids false information, or B: doing the ID movement more harm than good.”
The final quote, at least, is an accurate one, and the others don’t seem to have originated at the BBS. Still, it’s pretty lame that Creationists are trolling science fiction bulleting boards for advertising "endorsements".
On a related note, I’d like to share this YouTube video of Ray’s infamous “well-designed banana” argument being shot down ruthlessly.
I won’t delve deeply into the hubris of an actor and author who really know nothing about the subject thinking they’re going to bring down one of the best-supported theories in modern science with a board game. I don’t have the game, nor do I intend to spend money to get a copy, so I don’t know exactly what ID/Creationism arguments they use on the game cards (although history suggests there won’t be anything that hasn’t already been repeatedly refuted by people who actually understand the Theory of Evolution).
What I will present is a small introduction to selective quoting by Creationists. I first learned about this game when it became a topic on Mike Wong’s bulletin board. Mike’s BBS is a haven for neither Creationists nor the politically correct, so the denizens wasted no time belittling Kirk’s and Ray’s newest pet project. Low and behold, someone at Living Waters found the BBS thread discussing the game, and they promptly added a “What evolutionists are already saying” heading to the sales page, quoting from the BBS:
What evolutionists are already saying:
"You think Bush is bad?? I've found something worse . . . Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort's board game!"
". . . made me spit my water out."
". . . a board game by two idiots in North America who are ex-nothings will prove science wrong."
"I get the feeling that this game will not be allowed to be sold most places."
"I'd love to buy this game, then completely rip apart every 'brain card' online with cold, hard data!"
You might get the impression that the evolutionists being quoted are credentialed evolutionary biologists, since the page doesn’t bother to say where the comments came from. Further, notice the frequent ellipsis dots? Creationists are quite fond of selectively quoting their adversaries. For instance, one BBS denizen actually said “This critter made me spit my water out” in reference to the image at right. I’m not exactly sure where he got the image, although I expect it came from the game material somewhere.Another quote was cut short without even using the ellipsis dots to show they’d made a cut. The original line was “I get the feeling that this game will not be allowed to be sold most places, under the argument that it is either A: Deliberately deeding kids false information, or B: doing the ID movement more harm than good.”
The final quote, at least, is an accurate one, and the others don’t seem to have originated at the BBS. Still, it’s pretty lame that Creationists are trolling science fiction bulleting boards for advertising "endorsements".
On a related note, I’d like to share this YouTube video of Ray’s infamous “well-designed banana” argument being shot down ruthlessly.
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