FOM Book Groups meet monthly and focus on books with Asian subjects, both fiction and non-fiction. The aim of our groups is to get to know the region better through its writing, to discuss our views and to get to know fellow members with similar interests in a smaller group setting.
We have very diverse groups coming from different countries and of all ages. Non-native English speakers should not consider language a barrier. Though the topics are Asian, the viewpoints are global as members are from all over the world, and our discussions are always very lively! We tend to have the meetings at our homes, taking turns to host and review the books.
Click here for a short presentation.
What are we reading this month ?
Why do FOM members love our book groups ?
"Without this club, I'd be missing out on many books that would not have crossed my radar otherwise. And without the group of interesting women at each of our discussions, I'd be lacking in the various dimensions and perspectives they each bring to the table."
We are starting this new book group, dedicated to Asian fiction. We will welcome up to 12 people You should be willing to commit to attend our gatherings regularly. We plan to meet once a month. We will need to have a coordinator and we will decide together during that first meeting the ideal date/time for monthly meetings.
For this meeting, we will discuss "We, the survivors" by Tash Aw. This is the latest and 4th novel from this Malaysian author. This book is a murderer's confession – devastating, unblinking, poignant, unforgettable – which reveals a story of class, education and the inescapable workings of destiny in today's Malaysia. Ah Hock is an ordinary, uneducated man born in a Malaysian fishing village and now trying to make his way in a country that promises riches and security to everyone, but delivers them only to a chosen few. With Asian society changing around him, like many he remains trapped in a world of poorly paid jobs that just about allow him to keep his head above water but ultimately lead him to murder a migrant worker from Bangladesh. In the tradition of Camus and Houellebecq, Ah Hock's vivid and compelling description of the years building up to this appalling act of violence – told over several days to a local journalist whose life has taken a different course – is a portrait of an outsider like no other, an anti-nostalgic view of human life and the ravages of hope. It is the work of a writer at the peak of his powers.
Register by clicking on the link.
We are starting this new book group, dedicated to Asian biographies. We will welcome up to 12 people eager to discover the various past and current personalities of Asia. You should be willing to commit to attend our gatherings regularly. We plan to meet once a month.
For this meeting, we will discuss "Robert Kuok : A memoir" by Robert Kuok and Andrew Tanzer. Robert Kuok is one of the most highly respected businessmen in Asia. ... In these memoirs, the 94-year-old Kuok tells the remarkable story of how, starting in British Colonial Malaya, he built a multi-industry, multinational business group. Kuok has lived through fascinating and often tumultuous times in Asia - from British colonialism to Japanese military occupation to post-colonial Southeast Asia and the dramatic rise of Asian economies, including, more recently, China. From his front-row seat and as an active participant, this keen, multi-cultural observer tells nearly a century of Asian history through his life and times. Readers interested in business, management, history, politics, culture and sociology will all enjoy Robert Kuok's unique and remarkable story.
Want to browse our latest book reviews ?
Fiction and non-fiction, classics or contemporary. We have enough members in our group. Email our coordinator if you want to join our waiting list.
Fiction and non-fiction. We have sufficient members at the moment but contact us if you want to be in our mailing list.
Fiction and non-fiction. For couples.
We still have space for one more couple (as of 16 April 2019). Contact the coordinator below if you want to join us.
Too many books, too little time.... Here are some other books we've read in the past, arranged by destination. Click here to find out more.
Below are some answers if you're wondering what FOM book groups are about. There is no set standard and each of our groups have their different styles.
Join Us to become an FOM member for faster checkout in the future.
Enter your email address, and we'll send you a password reset email.
Your membership has been expired.
Please Click Here to renew your membership.
Your membership has been expired. Please inform your partner to renew your membership.
This event is only applicable to 0.00.
Would you like to subscribe to be a member?
Upon clicking "Register as Mentor" button, admin has to approve first. After then you will receive email notification to make payment.
Upon clicking "Register as Member" button, you will be able to make payment in the current shopping process.
This event has already been placed in your Cart. Please click here to connect to the My Cart page.
We have already received your request to register for this event.
The status is pending, awaiting your payment by cash or cheque.
You have already applied for this event to waitlist.
Would you like to join the waitlist?
There are only space available, if you would like to register with more than pax please register for the waiting list. If you would like to register for yourself only or bring one guest please proceed by clicking on 'Add to Cart'.
Sorry guest attendance is full. Click Yes to proceed registering without guest (OR) click No to proceed registering with waiting list.
Before you register for an FOM event, you must edit your Profile page to untick the box that says 'Please do not send any emails', and then click the Red Update Button at the bottom of the Profile page to save the change.


text:
Allan Rayman (512 Productions)
WHAT IT IS: Pegged as one of the most mysterious men in music, Rayman has been praised for his genre-bending style, with the Bible hailing his ability to "fuse R&B swagger with hip-hop grit all while spinning compelling stories much like a country artist." The arrival of five-track EP Courtney last November follows 2017's R&B-leaning LP, Roadhouse 01, which focused on the artist's dark alter-ego. Rayman's racked up an impressive 70m+ streams on digital platforms since his first release and had one of the most-played songs on Alt radio in Canada in 2017 with track "13." Currently, "13" can be heard throughout California as a sync for the California Lottery.
SINGLE: New single coming this summer
LIVE: Recently completed 35-date headline tour in the fall, selling out venues across U.S., Canada, Europe and U.K.; summer festival run will cover Napa's Bottlerock, Montreal's Osheaga, Cincinnati's Bunbury, more TBA; fest perfor-mances last summer at ACL, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, others
INTERNET: 500k Spotify monthly listeners; 18k Facebook likes, 20k Instagram likes
RADIO: Top 5 Alt Commercial Radio in Canada
PRESS: Paper ("Songwriter and powerhouse vocalist Allan Rayman is on the verge of shaking the music industry to its core"); included on Elton John's Beats 1 show
BOOKING: Adam Sylvester Worldwide/UTA
PUBLISHING: Allan Rayman
MANAGEMENT: Logan Kearns

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Earnings & Estimates Fairvest Property Holdings Ltd.
Per Share Data Fairvest Property Holdings Ltd.
Ratios & Margins Fairvest Property Holdings Ltd.
Income Statement Fairvest Property Holdings Ltd.
Balance Sheet Fairvest Property Holdings Ltd.
Cash Flow Fairvest Property Holdings Ltd.


text:
Health Inequities and the Path Ahead: Panel Shares Small Steps Organizations Can Take to Enable Better Patient Representation and Outcomes
By Laurie Halloran
Mon, May 9th 2022
"Health Inequities and the Path Ahead: Panel Shares Small Steps Organizations Can Take to Enable Better Patient Representation and Outcomes" by Laurie Halloran was originally published in MedTech Intelligence. Click here to read the original article.
MedExecWomen board President, Helen Routh, noted at a recent conference: "Innovation in healthcare, particularly post-COVID, requires us to work across industry sectors, alongside clinicians and payers." Laurie Halloran, president & CEO of Halloran Consultant Group shares insights she heard from a panel of strong female leaders on how the industry can take action to improve health inequities, which will be an ongoing topic at future conferences.
This past year, I attended a conference of which I'm a co-founder, "Medical Innovation in a Post-COVID World," filled with panels and fireside chats that covered an array of medtech industry topics. One panel at the event, with Camille Chang Gilmore, MBA, vice president, Human Resources and global chief diversity, equity, & inclusion officer at Boston Scientific; Christine Jackson, senior director, Health Economics, Policy & Reimbursement at Medtronic; and Chelsey Berstler, vice president, Affordability, Government Programs at UnitedHealth Group, illuminated the health inequities that exist in life sciences and spoke movingly about healthcare disparities. While the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted health inequities, statistics indicate that minority groups have consistently been disadvantaged within the healthcare system. These numbers reveal numerous factors that all combine to decreased patient outcomes, and therefore, awareness of these disparities is essential to taking action to improve these outcomes as an industry.
The panel provided a thoughtful, informative discussion, leaving conference attendees, including me, with critical reminders about the prevalence of health inequities in the U.S. healthcare system, and tangible ways to address these inequities within their organizations to provide better experiences for patients, more accurate and unified patient representation, and ultimately, to achieve better patient and clinical trial outcomes.
Health Inequities at-a-Glance
When looking at healthcare provider representation and access to treatment, the statistics around the disadvantages of minority groups are staggering. And even more so, the impact of these gaps on patients needs to be examined because that understanding may drive change at an organization level, and over time, collectively at an industry level.
Here is a snapshot of the data:
About 25% of Black adults and 30% of Hispanic adults say it is difficult to find healthcare at a location that is easy for them to get to, compared to 18% of White adults
About two-thirds (65%) of Black adults and over half (54%) of Hispanic adults say it is very or somewhat difficult for them to find a doctor who shares their background and experiences, while most White adults (53%) say this is easy
20% of Black adults and 19% of Hispanic adults say they were personally treated unfairly because of their race or ethnicity when getting healthcare for themselves or a family member in the past 12 months, while just 5% of White adults say this has happened to them
These statistics are just a few examples of the inequities that exist within the healthcare system, which can lead to unnecessary suffering and even loss of life. The themes extracted from this data include a lack of access, not feeling understood, and mistreatment. The severity of these impacts on patients and on the healthcare system makes it essential for all organizations operating in this field to delve into these data, educate their organizations and promote awareness, and establish initiatives in their organization to move conversations into action to drive change.
Small Steps Can Lead to Substantial Impacts
An important first step organizations can take to address health inequities is to establish the company's commitment to the cause. This commitment is not a one-size-fits-all approach, but rather, there are options to consider. Here are a handful of examples that may lead to tangible results:
Start from the top: Set the stage from the top level of executives to empower others to recognize the inequities, understand the impact, and participate in the mission. This commitment can be demonstrated in a variety of ways, one of which is an action pledge where CEOs can unite an organization by offering internal programs and making meaningful donations that benefit those who are disadvantaged by the healthcare system to bridge the gap between education and action
Consider making diversity a core value: In doing so, diversity remains central to the company, its goals, and its employees when this begins a common fabric of the company. As a result, employees from all backgrounds will feel a greater sense of belonging if they can connect with the company's values, feel more represented, and see their organization deliberately a part of the conversation on a consistent basis
Identify a diversity strategy: Develop an internal diversity strategy by homing in on a plan, which will contain multiple internally facing components, such as educational tools and behavior assessments to identify gaps and help strengthen workplace inclusion. In parallel, organizations may benefit if they define a "blueprint" on employee behavior by identifying the ideal conduct and tactics that will enable the company to achieve its diversity goals. Once the blueprint is defined, leaders in that organization should reflect on the current internal behaviors to determine what changes are needed and what internal behaviors should be corrected (and overseen) to move toward that ideal state. Lastly, organizations should understand all the components that it will take to reach this expectation and put in place measures to evaluate progress.
While the overall goals are the same, programs to address health inequities will vary by organization. A panelist shared an example of their organization's "close the gap" initiative and the context behind the mission to bring tangible examples to life, providing attendees with ideas of how they too can take part in the bigger mission. For example, a component in the organization's initiative is the use of data specific to ZIP codes; data in particular ZIP codes are used to inform healthcare providers of the prevalence of diseases in those geographic regions, as well as the available opportunities for treatment, making those providers and the communities they serve feel seen and heard.
In summary, that organization's initiative is committed to making sure everyone is allowed an equal opportunity to receive the quality healthcare they deserve, and simultaneously, this knowledge can be used to make better informed decisions on behalf of providers and patients.
With these examples, organization leaders can use their influence to initiate change and establish small steps to enable big changes to achieve better patient representation and outcomes. These steps range from a CEO action pledge, building core values, designing employee behavior blueprints, and educational tools. As these organizations move forward in their journey toward equity, it's important not to lose sight of their long-term mission even if some initiatives are met with hesitation and some results are slow to progress. As one of the panelists stated so eloquently "diversity is a given, inclusion is a choice, equity is a goal. Belonging is our ultimate end point."


text: Homeworks on Software Design course taught at Academic University in 2017.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Stock dividends pay off for insurer's pension fund
Old-fashioned investment strategy makes defined benefit plan a performance star
Chris Clair
WESTFIELD CENTER, Ohio — Focusing on dividends paid big dividends — literally and figuratively — for Westfield Group's $135 million pension plan in 2002.
The Ohio-based property and casualty insurance company earned -5% on its defined benefit investments last year, Chief Investment Officer John M. "Marty" Haney said. That's 419 basis points better than the median rate of return for corporate pension funds in 2002, according to Wilshire Associates' Trust Universe Comparison Service.
Westfield Group also finished the year slightly overfunded, an anomaly in 2002. Only 11% of 320 corporate pension funds surveyed by Wilshire Associates as of Dec. 31 had assets that met or exceeded liabilities.
To be sure, Westfield Group has seen most of its pension fund surplus dry up in the past three years. "We have felt the pain, no doubt," Mr. Haney said. "There's no place to hide."
But Westfield Group, which manages all of its assets internally with a staff of five people, uses what Mr. Haney described as a defensive investing strategy. The company has 60% of its assets in equities and 40% in bonds, he said, making it a "plain vanilla" portfolio. Ron Stephonic manages the bond portfolio and George Wiswesser manages equities.
Of the equity portion, 82% is invested in large-cap value companies that pay dividends. These are companies like General Electric Co., Pfizer Inc., Eli Lilly & Co., Abbott Laboratories and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., Mr. Haney said.
The remaining 18% is invested in so-called "specialty mandates" — about 8% in two international mutual funds, 4% in small-cap value equities, 4% in small-cap growth and around 2% in Standard & Poor's MidCap 400 Depository Receipts, also known as the MidCap SPDR, Mr. Haney said.
The entire bond portfolio is in investment-grade securities, and 45% are rated AAA.
It is Westfield Group's equity investing style, though, where Mr. Haney thinks his staff has added the most value. He is particularly happy with the focus on companies that not only pay dividends, but also grow those dividends at an annualized rate of around 10% per year.
Dividend-based investing is "old-fashioned, but we've always liked it because we think it's been the purest way of identifying management's confidence about the future," Mr. Haney said. "If firms are raising dividends consistently, it gives us a measure of confidence in management and where they feel the business is headed."
This disciplined and defensive style, Mr. Haney said, caused the pension fund to miss out on the raging bull market in 1997-'98, but it has also allowed the fund to escape the "carnage" of the past several years.
In fact, Westfield Group's pension fund has outperformed corporate plans over the three-, five- and 10-year periods ended Dec. 31, according to Wilshire Associates TUCS data.
Mr. Haney said the defined benefit plan returned an annualized 2.8% for the three years ended Dec. 31, an annualized 4.9% over five years and 9.8% over 10 years. By contrast, the median pension fund in the TUCS universe returned -4.6% for three years, 3.1% for five years and 8.7% for 10 years.
Using MITTS
One relatively new investment strategy for the pension fund is market index target-term securities, or MITTS, which are essentially zero-coupon bonds that guarantee return of 100% of the principal at maturity, plus some percentage of market returns obtained using options. The concept is not new to the company; for about five years, Westfield Group has had roughly $4 million of its $2 billion in insurance assets invested in MITTS. But the strategy was added to the defined benefit plan only in the last year.
Westfield Group hired Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc., New York, to manage about $1 million in MITTS investments, which Mr. Haney said are included in the convertible bond category for allocation purposes.
MITTS comprise two separate pieces — the zero-coupon bond, which is priced at a discount to a face value of, say, $100 per unit, and an embedded option. If the bond sells at a 25% discount, the buyer pays $75 for one MITTS unit and uses the remaining $25 to buy equity index options.
Investors will not lose any of their principal when they purchase the investment from Merrill Lynch and hold it to maturity; it is guaranteed by the zero-coupon bond. If the market goes up, they participate in some of the gain — how much is determined by interest rates and volatility. If the market goes down, investors just get their principal back.
Westfield Group's MITTS use a Merrill Lynch zero-coupon bond as the underlying investment and gain exposure to the Russell 2000 index through options. The MITTS currently held mature in September 2004, Mr. Haney said.
Institutional application
Although developed primarily for private clients, MITTS have a practical application for tax-exempt institutional investors, said Mitch Cox, head of investment origination for Merrill Lynch's Global Private Client Group.
Institutional investors who want the protection of a zero-coupon bond but exposure to, say, the S&P 500, could buy MITTS from a firm like Merrill Lynch, provided the price is right. MITTS are listed and traded in the secondary market, allowing institutional investors the chance to pick a MITTS source that fits their needs, Mr. Cox said.
"Volatility, interest rates and other factors affect the price of MITTS, and the price at which MITTS can be acquired via the market," Mr. Cox said. "For example, changes in interest rates affect the bond-like component of MITTS, while changes in volatility can affect the equity price. At the end of the day, investors . . . can draw their own conclusions about the trading price of MITTS and select investments they think have incremental intrinsic value."
Westfield Group does not dabble in the secondary market; it holds the MITTS to maturity. In fact, the MITTS have performed well enough so far that Westfield Group plans to increase its allocation more than tenfold, to roughly $13 million.
"I think a fair analysis of these things (MITTS) will lead you to the conclusion that they do provide some worthwhile exposure to stocks with a bond floor," Mr. Haney said. "That's kind of the best of all worlds in a pension account."
Equity boost
Mr. Haney said the pension fund has been helped so far this year by decent equity returns. The Standard & Poor's 500 stock index is up 15% year-to-date through June 17. But he does not expect that horse to carry the fund much farther.
"Equity numbers ... look positive, but we don't feel they can be sustained based on earnings projections through the rest of the year," Mr. Haney said. "But (equities) are the best of a bad lot. People have to put their money somewhere."
Westfield Group will continue to follow its defensive investing strategy, even though some may regard it as plodding. In this case, Mr. Haney said, he would rather be the tortoise than the hare.
The "gunslingers" who made their names on 50% returns in the late 1990s "are now walking around with bodyguards," Mr. Haney said. "We believe in Modern Portfolio Theory, not so-called 'best ideas' investing, and the cathartic purge of the last few years has proven that point."


text:
Bruno Valencony (* 16. Juni 1968 in Bellerive-sur-Allier) ist ein ehemaliger französischer Fußballtorwart.

Karriere
Valencony begann seine Karriere beim drittklassigen Ausbildungsverein INF Vichy. Dort rückte er 1986 als 18-Jähriger in den Kader der ersten Mannschaft auf und kam zu seinen ersten Einsätzen. 1987 wechselte er zum Zweitligisten SC Bastia. Bei Bastia war er zunächst nur Reservist. In der Saison 1989/90 durfte er erstmals für die Mannschaft auflaufen und kam auf insgesamt zehn Einsätze. Dennoch dauerte es bis zur Saison 1993/94, dass sich Valencony endgültig im Tor festsetzen konnte. Er stand bei jedem Spiel auf dem Platz und feierte mit seinem Team den Aufstieg in die erste Liga. Auch in der Eliteklasse konnte er seine Stammposition verteidigen. Mit dem Einzug in das Finale des Coupe de la Ligue 1995 gelang ihm einer der größten Erfolge seiner Karriere, auch wenn es mit 0:2 gegen Paris Saint-Germain verloren ging. 1996 verließ er den Verein und wechselte zum ebenfalls erstklassigen OGC Nizza. Mit diesem stieg er 1997 am Ende seiner ersten Saison in die zweite Liga ab, konnte aber gleichzeitig mit dem Gewinn des nationalen Pokals den einzigen Titel seiner Karriere holen. Im Finale besiegte Nizza EA Guingamp nach einem 1:1 mit 4:3 im Elfmeterschießen, wobei Valencony den entscheidenden Elfmeter hielt. In den folgenden Jahren wurde er mehr und mehr aus dem Tor verdrängt. Nach dem Wiederaufstieg in die erste Liga 2002 kam er zunächst gar nicht mehr zum Einsatz. Daher arbeitete der damals 35-Jährige Valencony ab 2003 nebenbei als Torwarttrainer des OGC. In der Saison 2004/05 kam er nach zwei Spielzeiten ohne Einsatz in der ersten Mannschaft zu seinem letzten Spiel in der Liga. Am Ende der Saison beendete er mit 37 Jahren seine Karriere. Er arbeitete fortan als hauptberuflicher Torwarttrainer für Nizza. Als solcher war er unter anderem an der Ausbildung von Hugo Lloris beteiligt. 2012 wurde sein Vertrag nicht verlängert.

Einzelnachweise

Fußballtorhüter (OGC Nizza)
Fußballtorhüter (SC Bastia)
Geboren 1968
Mann
Franzose

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Bliss is one of the most unique restaurants in all Cabarete. It is hidden just off the main road across the street from Ocean Dream Resort, so if you are not looking for it, you will probably miss it. But Bliss interesting menu of Italian-International fusion cuisine is something that you don't want to pass by!
The new owners, the Chef Andrea and his wife Nara, are from Italy and their menu strongly reflects the Mediterranean influence. The appetizer are various and fresh and of course you will find a great selection of Pasta! Andrea makes the pasta himself and the stuffed ravioli really bring the flavor of Italy. Main courses explore interesting flavored combinations such as Pork lion confit with brased cabbage and apple and Tuna Pan seared with roasted three sesame seeds crust, ginger carrots pure' and soya sauce, to get to the traditional dishes such as seafood casserole with Italian sauce, Mahi Mahi, Steaks, Salmon, Surf & Turf... One suggestion, do not miss the deserts!! If you have a sweet tooth try the Picasso, a combination of the best homemade deserts of the house.
Once you step inside Bliss, you forget that you just exited a busy street. The surrounding are tranquil and enchanting. A small Buddha statue, which somehow fits very well to this place, overlooks a small swimming pool situated in between the bar and dining area.There are gentle beats pulsating in the background and plush seating areas to lounge in.The atmosphere and menu at Bliss are truly unlike anything else you will find in Cabarete. It is a great place to have a celebration, enjoy a fine meal or sip on a cocktail while meditating next to the pool.
Catering: Bliss offers catering service. Please call for details.


text:
After Afghanistan, Abuja assesses the new geopolitics and its local choices
President Buhari's government says it wants arms and technology, not troops, from the West but even those might be heavily rationed
There is no comparison between the military deployments and trillions of dollars spent by the United States and its allies in Afghanistan and the West's involvement in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa. That gap is unlikely to change as the debate rages about the West's strategy in Afghanistan and the Middle East (AC Vol 58 No 21, Guns, gas and nukes).
Nigeria's government is well aware of that. Western militaries have sent less than 10,000 troops to the Sahel and are now drawing those down. Aside from the US's drone bases in Niger, Western military aid to the region is in the tens of millions of dollars and probably falling.
That assessment seems to have prompted President Muhammadu Buhari's op-ed piece in London's Financial Times in the wake of the fall of Kabul on 14 August. He argued that Africa was the front line in the battle against Islamist insurgents: 'As Africans, we face our day of reckoning just as some sense the west is losing its will for the fight.'
Adding that 'Africa has enough soldiers', Buhari said that what Nigeria needed most was weapons, drones and access to intelligence and surveillance. Even those requests to Washington are fraught with obstacles.
The US Congress is holding up a consignment of attack helicopters for Nigeria while it reviews the Nigeria's human rights record as Nigeria's military takes on the militants of the Islamic State West Africa Province.
And a recent interview by Nigerian retired Naval Commodore Kunle Olawunmi suggesting that Islamist militants had infiltrated the security services and the political system may reinforce Washington's reluctance to share intelligence with Abuja.
Nigeria is already looking elsewhere – to China, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia – for the equipment and military agreements it wants. The latest country to join the list is Russia (AC Vol 58 No 6, Squaring the triangle).
Officials in Abuja say that a defence agreement with Moscow covering new equipment and military training will help them defeat ISWAP (AC Vol 62 No 10, The northern nexus). President Buhari originally expressed interest in such a pact with Russia at a Russia-Africa summit hosted by President Vladimir Putin in 2019.
But the timing of the deal looks significant in the wake of post-Afghanistan geopolitics.
Guns, gas and nukes
Guns, gas and nuclear cooperation were among the goodies offered by Russian Prime Minister Dimitry Medvedev in a 72-hour tour of Algiers and Rabat between 9 and 11 October.
Squaring the triangle
Momentum is building behind General Haftar but the UN-supported government in Tripoli still has strong advocates
International support for General Khalifa Haftar and his Libyan National Army (LNA), based in the east, is growing beyond his core base of external supporters of Egypt, Russia and ...
The northern nexus
As the security emergency spreads across the core northern states, insurgents and bandits are devastating an already weakened regional economy
Until recently, governors in the northern states were chary of criticising President Muhammadu Buhari's government on security policy. That is changing as the crisis intensifies an...
Votes, damned lies and opinion polls
Maximising the turnout and countering rigging could be the key to making a success of tomorrow's elections
Anyone following the opinion polls for a guide to the outcome of tomorrow's presidential and parliamentary elections will be disappointed. Yet they have played an important role in...
Clogged-up commission
What is holding up publication of a major report into how oil spills have wrecked the ecology of Bayelsa state in the Niger Delta? The Bayelsa State Oil and Environmental Commissio...


text:
07900 241816 mel@sociallysound.co.uk
Channel Audits
Case study: One-to-many or one-to-one – what marketing solution gets the best results?
One-to-many or one-to-one – what marketing solution gets the best results?
If you want to run a lead generation campaign within Facebook Ads, what form does that normally take? Advert clicking through to landing page, where potential customers then sign-up via their email address? This is the route that a vast majority of ads take… but what if there is another way? A way that leaves the consumer feeling that the message was more personalised? A way that could actually lead to a higher conversion rate?
The client, Nicole, initially came to me wanting more people to sign-up for her free webinar. She had experimented with Facebook Ads before, but admitted she had no idea how to run ads, didn't really want to learn and wanted to hand over the entire project to someone who did. She had a budget of £200 and a date set for the webinar.
After discussions with Nicole, we decided to split her budget in half and spend £100 on conversions to the 'traditional' landing page ad set-up and the other £100 on a Messenger campaign leading into sign-ups via a chatbot. Using chatbots was new ground for Nicole but – as she specialises in marketing herself – she recognised that the personalisation of the chatbot could elicit a higher conversion rate.
Nicole provided me with all the assets for the landing page campaign, while I got to work creating the chatbot flow within ManyChat for the Messenger campaign. The ad creative and budget were the same for each campaign. However, due to the relatively low budget, I did target different audiences in order to maximise our chances for success.
For the Messenger campaign, I used the Messages objective within Ads Manager and then inputted the JSON code from ManyChat to ensure that the ad linked to the correct chatbot flow once the user clicked on the 'Send Message' button. As users worked through the chatbot flow their information was stored into a Google sheet and the flow was linked into Nicole's CRM, where her email nurture sequence then took over once the user was booked into the webinar.
Both campaigns ran for 10 days with identical creative and both had a daily budget of £10. Overall, sign-ups through the Messenger campaign were 33% higher than the Conversion campaign; cost per lead was lower at £5.58 versus £9.26 for the Conversion campaign; and click-through rate was also higher at 0.9% versus 0.7%.
On the day of Nicole's webinar, I also used the Confirmed Event Reminder functionality within ManyChat to send all sign-ups from the Messages ad a chatbot flow reminding them of the event. This methodology helps to decrease the amount of no-shows that can often happen for such events.
It is worth noting that this campaign ran during Q4, the most costly time of year for Facebook Ads as competition is high. However, despite a low budget, Nicole was more than happy with the results that we got. The Messages ads, via the ManyChat chatbot, outperformed the traditional landing page sign-up formula and were cheaper. We have to bear in mind that the audiences used in each campaign were different, so not a strict like-for-like test, but it has opened Nicole's eyes to the potential that chatbots can bring to the marketing mix, both organically and through paid social, and she is keen to continue to explore this medium.
Please note: This ad campaign ran before the EU/US privacy shield came into effect in Europe on December 16th 2020. Since this date, there have been many changes and restrictions placed on running Messenger campaigns within Facebook Ads Manager. Please contact me for more information.
Blog: Chatbots – what not to do if you want to stay compliant
Blog: Running Facebook Ads in Q4? Time to check your strategy and fix any 'leaks' before you launch
Case study: Events company – New Year ticket promotion
Blog: Emma Van Heusen – a review of the Facebook ADcelerator course
© Socially Sound | Privacy Policy | Website designed & hosted by 1935 Design


text:
Q: why the shape of image tensor is (?, ?, ?) Here is my code,
img_path = tf.read_file(testqueue[0])
my_img = tf.image.decode_jpeg(img_path)
sess.run(my_img)
print my_img.get_shape()

Which results in,
(?, ?, ?)

Why did I get this result?

A: To answer this question and provide some details.
static information
tensor_name.shape returns the shape information available at graph compilation time. It relies on the tensor-properties.
tf.decode_jpeg is registered here. During creating the graph, TensorFlow runs a shape propagation under the InferenceContext. Given the shape-properties known from the input tensors, each operation provides hints how its output tensors will look like.
For example, the "rgb2gray" operation would just copy the shape of the input tensor (say [b',h',w',c'] and set the output to [b',h',w',1]. It does not need to know the exact values for b', h', w', as it can just copy these previous values.
Looking at the specific implementation for tf.decode_jpeg, this operation clearly can handle a channels attribute:
// read the attribute "channels from "tf.image.decode_jpeg(..., channels)"
TF_RETURN_IF_ERROR(c->GetAttr("channels", &channels));
// ....
// set the tensor information "my_img.get_shape()" will have
c->set_output(0, c->MakeShape({InferenceContext::kUnknownDim,
                                 InferenceContext::kUnknownDim, channels_dim}));

The first two dimension are set to InferenceContext::kUnknownDim as the operation only knows there is a height and width, but the specific values can be varying. It makes a best guess how the channel axis looks like. If you specify the attribute tf.decode_jpeg(..., channels=3) it can and will set the last
This results to a shape (?, ?, ?), as the if-branch channels ==0 gets active here.
run-time information
On the other hand, tf.shape defined here ends up here. This inspects the actual tensor-content here:
// get actual tensor-shape from the value itself
TensorShape shape;
OP_REQUIRES_OK(ctx, shape_op_helpers::GetRegularOrVariantShape(ctx, 0, &shape));
const int rank = shape.dims();
// write the tensor result from "tf.shape(...)"
for (int i = 0; i < rank; ++i) {
  int64 dim_size = shape.dim_size(i);
  // ...
  vec(i) = static_cast<OutType>(dim_size); // the actual size for dim "i"
}

It is like tf.shape is saying to its previous operation:

You can tell me whatever conclusion you came up with some minutes ago. I do not care how you clever you were at this point or how much work you have put into your guess about the shape. See, I just look at the concrete tensor which now has a content and I am done.

consequences
This has some important consequences:

*

*tf.shape is a tensor, while tensorname.shape is not

*some attributes require an integer. Hence there is no way of using the tensor tf.shape

*Graph-Optimization (like XLA) can only rely on information given in tensorname.shape

*If you know the shape of the image (having a database of only 128x128x3 images), you should set the shape, e.g., using tf.reshape(img, [128, 128, 3]
You might be interested as well in tf.image.extract_jpeg_shape which is implemented here.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
The Delines - Hare and Hounds, Kings Heath, Birmingham Tuesday 17th June 2014
Listening to the sound of country soul is an aesthetically pleasing experience and the current vogue for this style of Americana music is generating some extremely strong albums. On the back of excellent releases by the UK's Danny and the Champions of the World and the US's Shinyribs, The Delines have come up trumps with one of the year's most atmospheric and mesmeric albums in COLFAX. It's a double UK delight that the band, founded by Richmond Fontaine's Willy Vlautin, are currently visiting this country to promote the launch of this debut record.
Midlands promoters Cosmic American had little reluctance to book the band and were rewarded with a near sell-out crowd in the Hare and Hounds' smaller music room. To the great pleasure of the many knowledgeable music fans attending the show, COLFAX was played in its entirety and the band perfectly balanced the set by interspersing several contrasting tunes from outside the album thus keeping the overall performance fresh. The pin drop silence of respect to the vocals of Amy Boone and the buzz at the end of the show suggested an overwhelming approval to a project which hopefully may not be confined to a solitary release.
The story behind COLFAX indicates that the highly literate Vlautin had a plan to write a number of songs that suited the flawless vocals of Amy who for over a decade has been a leading light in the Austin music scene as the voice behind Damnation Tx. With a background steeped in the culture of alt-country, Vlautin had no hesitation in bringing in the horns, keys and pedal steel to give the sound a steer in a soulful direction. The ease of the transportation of the vibes of COLFAX from studio to the stage is a credit to the road band put together which included bassist Freddie Trujilo, Cory Gray on keys and trumpet and Vlautin's fellow Richmond Fontaine percussionist Sean Oldham.
Prior to Willy, Amy and the boys filling the room with an hour and half of Americana bliss, Irish duo The Lost Brothers opened up with a set of two part harmony inspired folk songs backed by the fine pedal steel guitar talents of Dave Murphy. The guys had become acquainted with Willy while based in his home city of Portland, Oregon and proved to be the ideal warm up act. So impressed with the steel contribution of Murphy, he became the honorary missing piece of The Delines jigsaw for the evening when joining the band for the final third of the set. This segment included a couple of fantastic tracks not on COLFAX led by the limited release song 'Slim and Margy' (available only on a Record Store Day 45) and a cover of the Webb Pierce classic 'There Stands the Glass'.
Also outside of COLFAX, Willy and Amy excelled as a vocal duo on the Dolorean number 'What One Bottle Can Do', while a new song during the encore, 'Golden State', indicated that there may be more to come from The Delines. Amy showed why she is such a respected artist in Austin, Texas with one of her songs 'Heart, Trust and Pride', while even Freddie stepped forward to sing a number from his solo work 'Freddy Fender'.
However this night was all about COLFAX and right from the start, the hypnotic tones of 'Calling In', 'Colfax Avenue' and 'The Oil Rigs at Night' filled every crevice of the tightly packed room. The latter is the finest track on the record but after listening to the album live it was strongly rivalled by 'Stateline'. The encore saw Amy stroll back on stage solo to deliver the Randy Newman song 'Sandman's Coming' from the keyboard and as per the record, the closing moments belonged to '82nd Street'.
It is my prediction that COLFAX will grow and grow as an album and it was a privilege to be in a position to listen to an intimate performance of it. Willy Vlautin deserves every ounce of praise heading in his direction for inspiring The Delines project and Amy Boone is welcome back in Birmingham anytime to grace us with her vocals.
www.thedelines.com
Labels: Alt-Country, Americana, Country, US
Kacey Musgraves - The Ritz, Manchester Friday 27th...
Holly Williams - The Glee Club, Birmingham Tuesday...
Dolly Parton - LG Arena, Birmingham Sunday 22nd Ju...
Massy Ferguson - Victory and Ruins Spark and Shine...
Zoe Muth - World of Strangers Signature Sounds
The Delines - Hare and Hounds, Kings Heath, Birmin...
The Kennedys + Edwina Hayes - Kitchen Garden Cafe,...
Maverick Festival 2014 - Preview
Hatful of Rain - Kitchen Garden Cafe, Kings Heath,...
Dolly Parton - Blue Smoke/Best of Sony Masterwor...
Dennis Ellsworth - Hazy Sunshine Busted Flat Reco...
John Fullbright - The Glee Club, Birmingham Tuesda...
Miranda Lambert - Platinum Sony Music Entertainme...
Sam Baker - Elford Village Hall, Staffordshire Sat...


text:
The best and worst of Doctor Who series 10
Unsurprisingly, this article features spoilers for series 10 of Doctor Who. It's hard to know how to judge Doctor Who in general, and series 10 in particular... Read More...
Who's next for Doctor Who?
Yep, it's that time again. It's time to start speculating who could be the next Doctor. Since current Time Lord, Peter Capaldi, announced he was leaving the sho... Read More...
TV News Roundup: AMC teases the arrival of new The Walking Dead villain
AMC has released a trailer for The Walking Dead's return, teasing the arrival of a major character from the comic book series. The second half of season 6 will ... Read More...
TV News Roundup: Trailers For Doctor Who, The Musketeers & Last Tango In Halifax
Will this year's Doctor Who Christmas special be Clara Oswald's last outing? Showrunnner Steven Moffat has written the special, titled Last Christmas, and has h... Read More...
TV News Roundup: Netflix Unveils Marco Polo & Luther Set to Return
Netflix have unveiled a new trailer for their upcoming historical series Marco Polo, ahead of its premiere on Friday 12th December. Created by John Fusco (Hidal... Read More...
Did Doctor Who Series 8 Live Up To Expectations?
From the cinematic opener 'Deep Breath', we all knew that we were in for something different, something darker, something with more meaning as Doctor Who began ... Read More...
Doctor Who Series 8, Episode 2 Review
'Into The Dalek' It feels like a gift that we get a Dalek episode in only the second week of Doctor Who. Yes, they might lack originality as villains, but th... Read More...
'Deep Breath' It's good to be back. It had been too long since the last series episode of Doctor Who back in May 2013. It's almost as far back since Peter C... Read More...
TV To Look Forward To: Doctor Who Series 8
The coming months see a number of shows beginning on and returning to UK screens. The divisive Agents of Shield and the fantastically bleak The Leftovers to nam... Read More...
TV News Roundup: Emmy Nominations Announced & New Doctor Who Trailer
The first full-length trailer for Doctor Who landed this week, with glimpses of dinosaurs in London, Peter Capaldi's new-look Tardis and a return of the Daleks.... Read More...
TV News Roundup: Broadchurch Adds New Cast Members & Netflix Eyes Queen Elizabeth II Drama
The new Doctor lands in August. Yes, the BBC have released the first teaser trailer for the new series of Doctor Who, giving us a glimpse of Peter Capaldi's new... Read More...
TV News Roundup: New Musketeers Villain And First Look At Jamaica Inn
Following last week's finale of The Musketeers comes the news that Marc Warren (Mad Dogs) has been cast in the second season in the key role of Rochefort. With ... Read More...


April 6, 2019 come out for an Inspirational talk & discussion on art and beauty with Dr. Andrew Gill from the Theocentric Guild. Artist Jerrel Sustaita will also be making a painting live during the talk.
Join Jerrel Sustaita in person as he broadcast live via Facebook from the Dallas Public Library creating a new painting inside the Lillian Bradshaw Gallery amidst 100+ of his other works and his solo show Selfie Nation.


text:
Feminism Feminized western males Hegel Homosexuality National Socialism Real men West's darkest hour
Against the empire of Yin
"The only way to restore vitality
to Western Civilization is to
recalibrate its yin-yang balance."
Presently, almost all white males are thoroughly and grotesquely feminized (even quite a few white nationalists), most beyond repair. Now that I am reproducing translations of a book on the toughest empire of Yang in western history—Sparta—, I would like to quote what Takuan Seiyo says about the empire of Yin that is destroying our civilization.
What we need is a Hegelian synthesis between yang Sparta and yin Athens: a sort of modern Rome, i.e., national socialism (what half-Jew Seiyo so much fears). Like Rome, the Third Reich incorporated and eliminated—the Hegelian aufheben—the contradictions in both extremes: it was highly cultured as well as a tough military state.
Seiyo wrote (excerpted):
We will examine in later installments in more depth what's on the scales in the balance that has gone awry. For now it suffices to say that according to Oriental cosmology, the forces in the eternal cosmic play are the hot, male, condensing element, or yang, and the cold and wet, female and expansive element, or yin. Arnold Toynbee, who posited that all democracies die from suicide, applied the ideas of yin and yang to discern patterns in history. For Toynbee, history is like a current alternating between the yin pole, which he equated with a quiescent civilization, and the yang pole, which he equated with turmoil, barbarian conquest and drastic change.
In his 1939 magnum opus, Study of History, Toynbee explained the rise and fall of empires according to this yin–yang paradigm, but a deeper scrutiny of applied Oriental cosmology might find that it was oversimplified. For what is most salient about the force of yin is not its quietism but its expansive femaleness.
The West has careened dangerously out of balance, and its political and philosophical concepts have not been able to identify correctly what it is that's out of balance. The forces of the West's postmodern decay are vested disproportionately in such disparate groups as city dwellers, lawyers, teachers, actors, artists, public sector employees, people with graduate degrees and academics; Jews, Swedes, Norwegians, diaspora Irish; blacks; Muslims and Mexican and Central American mestizos (but not in their original countries); women; adolescents; homosexuals.
The entropic motors that seem to be preponderant in these groups may be, singly or in combination, a drive for power or money; identity politics stemming from racial, ethnic, or gender pride wounded in the past but pretending as the present; utopian proclivities combined with naiveté; compassionate feelings overriding empirical analysis; displacement of personal feelings of inferiority—what Nietzsche called ressentiment, or ideological hatred.
People of good faith ought to diagnose and combat in their personal lives the decline that feminism has wrought on them and on the West. Men are at fault here for having caved in completely, instead of employing a reverse Lysistrata tactic, or anything else that might have worked in this dire predicament. At least a varied group of courageous women has begun beating back this particular fungus. The cultural left's reaction to Sarah Palin shows how effective that can be.
The vast heterosexual majority may want to consider that it's time to protest the outsize din raised by the homosexual and the comically self-labeled GLBTA minorities. We will not ask if you will not tell; frankly, we don't want to hear or see too much either. Don't rub our faces in your orifices.
Maybe it's time to say to the churches, if this be your retail markup, I am buying directly from the wholesaler. Because, as Chesterton has noted, some humanitarians care only for pity, but their pity is often untruthful.
However mortified by the Holocaust and appreciative of the inestimable contribution that the Jewish minority has made to the West, people of good faith and sound mind may have to start putting public Jewish figures on the spot, as Jews, for the destructive currents they propagate. Because if the establishment club of "racism" "fascism," "antisemitism" "homophobia" and "sexism" keeps the West's hundreds of millions of reasonable indigenous people cowering in their diminishing corners, soon the West will have decayed so much that tens of millions of newly-unreasonable people will be rising, and their numbers will be growing at an astonishing rate.
← Donate button → Sparta – VIII


text:
breadcrumbs: Athletics: breadcrumbs: Junior High Boys Basketball: breadcrumbs: Osborne(A)
564f49ae4fbd1 Coach Hatfield
Bulldogs Top Warriors
The Southern Cloud Warriors fought hard but fell to the Osborne Bulldogs on Thursday night at Osborne. The final score was 45 – 28. Nathen Goheen led the Dogs with 12 points, followed closely by Dawson Lantz with 11 points.
The Warriors were led by Gus Rice with 12 points, followed by Ethan Kennedy who had 8 points and 7 rebounds. Colton Walters had maybe his best effort of the season with 5 points and 10 rebounds. Adam Hauck had 3 points to round out the Warrior scoring.
The Warriors only trailed by 8 with 4:12 remaining on the clock and had 3 good shots to reduce it to 6, but couldn't get a shot to go down. The Dogs then went on 9 – 0 run to end the game.
"We don't like losing but I did feel like we made some progress. We had a couple of spurts where we didn't defend well enough and Osborne can really shoot, so if you don't guard them really close they are going to hit 3's on you and that is what happened. Still, we played man defense for a good portion of the night and we did a decent job of it, so there were some positives. We shot the ball 43 times, that is a season high for us, we just have to make a better percentage." Remarked Warrior Coach Rick Hatfield.
The Warrior B-Team also lost in a heartbreaker 14 – 13 in double overtime. Dawson Lantz made two free throws with 19 seconds left to put the Dogs up by 1. The Warriors were not able to score on their possession and the Dogs pulled it out. Dawson Lantz scored 7 points for the Dogs, Colton Walters scored 8 points to lead SC. Shane Williams scored 3 points and Donovan Burch scored 2 points to round out the Warrior scoring.
The Warriors play at Linn on Tuesday night to round out the pre-Thanksgiving portion of their schedule.
Mostly clear, with a low around 17. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph becoming northeast after midnight.


text:
Nice try, Marvel. 'Dr. Strange' casting is still whitewashing.
Because when you think "really old mystical Asian man," you think... Tilda Swinton?
Marvel has been hard at work expanding its cinematic universe, with plans for a Doctor Strange to hit theaters later this year. Fans were pretty stoked when the first official images emerged of star Benedict Cumberbatch as the Sorcerer Supreme. But we're still scratching our heads over the casting of Tilda Swinton as The Ancient One. Because when you think of a really old mystical Asian man, you think Tilda Swinton.
We haven't seen any character images, so I can't quite call it yellowface. But more likely there's some serious racebending going on here. And as usual, in painfully typical Hollywood fashion, it's an Asian performer who gets racebent off the screen. The Ancient One, traditionally depicted as an Asian man, is now a British woman.
Created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko and first introduced in 1963's Strange Tales #110, The Ancient One plays a significant role in the Doctor Strange mythos. Short version: born over five hundred years ago (hence, ancient) in Tibet, he was a Himalayan farmer who discovered magical powers, did the whole combatting evil thing, and later was a mentor to Stephen Strange, who became his successor as Sorcerer Supreme.
If you know anything about the origins of the character, yes, it's steeped in a lot of old-school exotic stereotypes and Oriental mysticism. Washing out the Asian-ness of The Ancient One of appears to be Marvel's attempt to sidestep some of the character's more racist undertones for a contemporary audience.
In a recent interview with EW, Marvel Studio president Kevin Feige attempted to explain how The Ancient One got magically turned into a white lady for the Doctor Strange movie.
"We're never afraid to change. In the comic books, Jarvis is an elderly butler. In the movies, he's an A.I. system which becomes Paul Bettany's Vision. We are always looking for ways to change. I think if you look at some of the early incarnations of the Ancient One in the comics, they are what we would consider today to be quite, sort of, stereotypical. They don't hold up to what would work today. Also, within the storyline of the comics, and our movie, 'the Ancient One' is a title that many people have had. We hit very early on on, What if the Ancient One was a woman? What if the title had been passed and the current Ancient One is a woman? Oh, that's an interesting idea. [Clicks fingers.] Tilda Swinton! Whoah! And it just hit."
Oh, these old stereotypes just will not do for a movie in 2016. Marvel is not having it. So how do you fix it? Just add a white woman! Can't you see? This whitewashing is happening in the name of progress.
That's some kind of lazy bullshit.
Do they intend on scrubbing out the other orientalist elements from Doctor Strange lore? In the name of progress, I mean. I'm willing to bet the movie still involves Stephen Strange journeying to Asia, learning some secret ancient Asian magic shit, and fighting bad guys with said secret ancient Asian magic shit. But now, it'll be a white lady teaching the white guy the secret ancient Asian magic shit.
How about working a little bit harder and finding a smart way to address and revise an Asian character's stereotypical elements, instead of just trying to fix this shit through casting? This is not a knock on Tilda Swinton, who is a phenomenal performer. But this is not creative or progressive casting. It's whitewashing.
More here: Tilda Swinton says her Doctor Strange character's gender is 'in the eye of the beholder'
FILE UNDER: comic books, dr. strange, marvel, movies, racebending, tilda swinton


text:
Archive for Iain Banks
Influences on Johnny Mackintosh: Harry Potter
Posted in Battle for Earth, Harry Potter, Influences, Writers with tags Addison-Wesley, aliens, Boston, Chamber of Secrets, Deathly Hallows, dreams, football, gadgets, Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter quiz, House of Blues, Iain Banks, Iain M Banks, Irvine Welsh, JK Rowling, Jo Rowling, magic, Paul Auster, Philosopher's Stone, Prisoner of Azkaban, Science, Sorcerer's Stone, space, Tibor Fisher, wizards on August 31, 2011 by keithmansfield
Most of the entries in this series of things that have impacted on the Johnny Mackintosh books have been either science fiction or science based. I have though saved the biggest influence until last and it comes from another world, but one which many readers will know well: Jo Rowling's spectacular creation, Harry Potter.
Some people might have heard the story of how I came to begin reading about the boy wizard from Godric's Hollow, but for those who haven't here goes. Of course as a publisher I'd heard about Harry and his creator JK Rowling, but I figured he was for kids and I had no interest whatsoever in books about witches and wizards and magic and broomsticks, even though the buzz about this remarkable creation wouldn't go away.
I was working for a company called Addison-Wesle y who were based in Boston, Massachusetts, so had been spending time over there. At the end of the week everyone from the office was out a party in a club (I think the House of Blues) and I would be heading back to the UK the next day. I was approached be someone looking a little sheepish who said she had something to tell me – that everyone in the office thought I was Harry Potter.
In hindsight it's obvious. At the time, as you can see, I wore ridiculous round battered glasses, had black messed up hair, spoke with an English accent and (though I normally cover it under mounds of foundation) I do actually have a lightning-shaped scar on my forehead. Then there are all the mad things that seem to happen when I get angry, but that's another story…
The next day I found and bought Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone at Logan International Airport and read it on the flight home. Curiously, although I may have read all the Harry Potter books 20-40 times, I've still never read the Philosopher's Stone version of book one where it all began. At that time Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets was also published so I bought that at Heathrow Airport on the way home, and Prisoner of Azkaban soon followed. I loved this world that the woman who was to become my writing idol had created. It's a tribute to her that she could even make things like magic and dragons and Quidditch sound interesting. But most of all it was what we call the voice of the books, and the cleverness of telling everything from Harry's point of view, even when he got the wrong end of the stick.
It had never occurred to me to write the sort of books that children might want to read (as well as adults). I'd been trying to pen the ultimate cutting edge modern novel, a kind of cross between Iain Banks, Paul Auster, Tibor Fisher and Irvine Welsh (there's a thought!) when one day, walking back from the writing class I'd been going to it hit me like a sledgehammer. Although I enjoyed reading authors like those four listed, there was nothing I loved reading more than Harry Potter. Just as it was books from my childhood that had left further, indelible marks on me. And that I felt that about Harry despite, not because of, the subject matter. How much better it might be if I could write the same sort of story, but replacing magic with science, and having aliens instead of goblins and house elves, and football instead of Quidditch, and pack it with fun gadgets and computers.
I began writing Johnny Mackintosh and the Spirit of London. The other novels I'd tried to create had all been hard work – this was like reading my all-time favourite book, but it was up to me how it developed. It flowed so well. And, many twists and turns later, it's remarkable that the third in my own series publishes tomorrow.
I have no doubt that Jo Rowling is the greatest writer and storyteller of her (my) generation and seriously underrated. I suspect a lot of it is due to jealousy of her success. Whenever I read other books aimed at the same market, often by lauded authors, I find myself picking holes in their writing and technique, but I can't find fault with the writing behind Harry Potter. When I was first working on the Johnny Mackintosh stories I would actually read the Harry Potter books in a continuous loop to remind myself of the incredible voice I was trying to find. If a new book was coming out I might have to pause my own writing for a while so I could time it perfectly to finish, say, Goblet of Fire, the day before Order of Phoenix came out so I could carry straight on into the new book.
Sound a little obsessive? Maybe, but I am Harry Potter's number one fan and don't let anyone tell you different. In fact, here's a Harry Potter Quiz I once wrote for the Sunday Telegraph magazine, just before The Deathly Hallows came out. They asked me to create something ungooglable. They also wanted me to include a fair amount of film stuff (as they didn't realize fans cared about the last book being released, not the fifth film). Also, they wanted multiple choice and so I gave five answers to each question, but the final piece was printed with only four possibilities, so not all the questions work as intended. But I'm still proud of it. The STEWS setting was my idea too.
When I pitched the Johnny Mackintosh books to agents and publishers the 10 second sell I began with was "Harry Potter in space" (or sometimes "Harry Potter meets Star Wars in case they thought at this stage that Harry Potter alone hadn't made enough money). People who know me will know that dreams are a big part of my life and I suspect the same is probably true of JKR, because of the way she weaves Harry's into the stories. I've done the same. The best bit about the Potter books is the way so many clues are hidden in plain sight. It's wonderful trying to spot them – for instance, Chamber of Secrets is particularly packed full of clues that point to events into the far future, even including books six and seven. I've tried to do the same. Up until about draft 30 of Spirit of London (yes you read that right) I think my setting for Johnny was too similar to that of Harry's, in that I had my own hero living with foster parents. Then, after a year of rewriting and plotting, I came up with the idea of Halader House and the children's home in which my story begins.
I could wax lyrical about the boy who lived for days/weeks/months, but I'm sure you get the idea. Tomorrow my third book will be published and it's a huge thank you to Jo Rowling for helping that happen. And now I might just pop out and see if I can buy a copy of and then start on a book I've still never read: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.
Influences on Johnny Mackintosh: Iain (M.) Banks
Posted in Influences, Writers with tags alien hunting, cousin Verity, Culture, eclipse, General Systems Vehicle, GSV, Iain Banks, Iain M Banks, Look to Windward, Seti, solar eclipse, The Crow Road, Transition, Whit on August 25, 2011 by keithmansfield
Not long after I'd signed the contract to write Johnny Mackintosh, I came across Iain Banks in a London pub. I remember telling him I had a publishing deal and that he was my biggest influence, to which he replied, "I shall bask in your reflected glory". It was a very lovely and typically self-effacing thing to say, especially given the great man had consumed several whiskies by this point.
Banks' Culture novels are the most compelling modern fiction I know of. They present a utopian future of enlightened humanoids at pretty much the highest level of galactic civilization without "subliming" – the act of moving on to the next plane of existence.
Some of Banks' books are under the moniker Iain Banks while others are written as Iain M. Banks (his middle name is the uber cool "Menzies"). I believe Banks regrets the distinction that was foist upon him in the early days of his writing. Publishers (I should know because I am one) are always trying to classify books and identify the correct market. I suspect his didn't want people not buying future novels "from the critically acclaimed fiction of the author of The Wasp Factory" because they might turn out to be science fiction (heaven forbid). What are known as "genre" books can often get a very raw deal from publishers and critics. I'm sure Banks believes his Culture novels would be a good read for anyone, just as I've always said the Johnny Mackintosh books are aimed squarely at a general audience and not hard-core sci-fi fans. In fact, the Culture books are the only science fiction I've read since I was a kid. I remember one reviewer saying of Johnny Mackintosh and the Spirit of London that it was reminiscent of "Asimov, Clarke, Moorcock and Dick" which I thought great only for the review to continue that these authors were "totally out of vogue now". I've lost count of the times people have said to me, "I don't normally read/enjoy science fiction, but I love your books" while sci-fi fans appear nowadays to be looking for something else.
Back to the Culture. Banks' novels take place at the boundary of the Culture's influence – the society itself is so stable that any story rooted in it would most likely be pretty dull. Everything's good and there's no conflict of note. Instead we tend to read about their equivalent of the Foreign Office, a body called Contact, and their division that performs dubious activities of questionable legality to ensure society and the wider galactic civilization function as they should: Special Circumstances.
This society has developed an incredibly high level of artificial intelligence and the machines work in harmony with the humans. Overall the society is run by these "minds" whether in charge of a spaceship or an artificial planetary-scale habitat known as an "orbital". Now Sol is, I suppose, the mind of the Spirit of London, but she doesn't come from Iain Banks – equally well she could originate from Zen in Blake's 7 or Rommie in Andromeda (pictured), or just from my own head.
I think where Banks has really influenced me is in the style of the story-telling. What I mean is that there's normally a very long set-up and then everything comes together in a frantic, fast-paced conclusion. Sometimes you're only seeing the situation from the point of view of a few characters (as with Johnny) and you only realize at the very end that rather more of the Culture's resources have been brought to bear on events than you knew – that you're just seeing a part of the story.
I think I re-read Look to Windward as I was writing Johnny Mackintosh: Star Blaze so the book ran along similar lines and it was only the strictures of my editor that brought it more into line with what you might more normally expect for a book that children read.
Where I have borrowed most openly from Banks is the design of Galactic Emperor Bram Khari's flagship, the Calida Lucia. The idea of fields and a flexible ship structure, complete with potentially gigantic hold, are very similar to a Culture General Systems Vehicle (GSV), although I haven't come across any of those that have carpets which massage your feet.
I often find myself falling in love with Banks' characters – they're so alive and attractive. For instance, in one of my all time favourite books The Crow Road, like hero Prentice I fall first for "beautiful cousin Verity" before realizing by the end just how perfect Ashley has been throughout. Then there was the adorable Isis Whit, title character of the novel Whit, and I defy any geeky bloke not to love the plethora of femail Special Circumstances operatives who constantly save the day.
A recent Banks publication was Transmission, published without the "M." but a story about travel between parallel Earths as different political factions fight for supremacy. A brilliant little detail in the books was an idea for locating aliens that doesn't involve huge radio telescopes and vast amounts of computer resources to decode the signals. It looks at the problem from a completely different angle. What is it about Earth that makes our planet special – possibly a unique place in the galaxy? The answer is that by a great cosmic fluke the Sun and Moon appear exactly the same size in the sky, which in turn gives us the phenomenon of the total solar eclipse.
This is a sight that must be rare, even in our galaxy of 400 billion suns. If you're a super-advanced alien being with unparalleled resources at your disposal, perhaps you get your kicks by seeing the sights? Perhaps you come to Earth as an eclipse tourist? Next year there are total eclipses in the western United States and Queensland, Australia. I intend to be present at both, thinking of my writing idol and keeping half an eye out for extraterrestrials while enjoying the view.