Denmark to lay claim to North Pole

The Kingdom of Denmark is preparing to claim ownership of the North Pole, according to a Danish media report.

In a document leaked to the Danish newspaper Information, Denmark will ask the United Nations to recognize the North Pole as a geologic extension of Greenland, the vast Arctic island that is a Danish territory. Danish Foreign Minister Lene Espersen confirmed the annexation attempt, Information reported.
According to The Copenhagen Post, "The kingdom is expected to make a demand for the continental shelf in five areas around the Faroe Islands and Greenland, including the North Pole itself."
Denmark has set its sights on the geographic North Pole, a fixed point in the Arctic Ocean at 90 degrees north latitude and 0 degrees longitude. The magnetic north pole, the one your Cub Scout compass points to, is near there but moves around all the time as Earth's magnetic field shifts, according to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration.
Five countries - Canada, Denmark (via Greenland), Norway, Russia and the United States (via Alaska) - have coasts on the Arctic Ocean, but none has ever claimed ownership of the pole. Working under a United Nations mandate, high-ranking diplomats have met several times to work out a plan for mutually acceptable boundaries.
"We are in the middle of an important and civilized process of how to usefully manage the last area in the world not owned by anyone," Greenland President Kuupik Kleist told Information. "... If we did not, we would leave it to those who have already filed claims, or who will do it. It is therefore a must that Denmark is preparing claims."
It's unclear how the claim will go over with the other Arctic countries, but initial reactions have been mild.
Despite longstanding Russian interest in the region, at least one Russian media outlet was sanguine about Denmark's approach.
"This fits in well into the contemporary international law regime of the Arctic," Vassily Gutsulyak, an expert with the Institute of State and Law in the Russian Academy of Sciences, said in an interview with The Voice of Russia.
Although the Danish document downplays the economic potential of its proposed claim, the Voice of Russia said the region holds vast reserves of gas and oil, as well as such minerals as coal, gold, copper, nickel, tin and platinum. Climate change also promises to open useful shipping routes across the Arctic, it said.
A Canadian expert greeted the news with enthusiasm.
"This is a positive development because Denmark ... is working in a framework of international law," University of British Columbia (Canada) professor Michael Byers told Postmedia News. "It is exactly how these matters are supposed to be resolved."
However, not all Canadians are willing to let the pole go without a fight. A tongue-in-cheek editorial on the online forum The Mark said:
"We'll be damned if we let those no-good, well-dressed, soft-spoken, architecturally inclined, generally peaceable Danes get away with it."
@'CNN'

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ballardian Simon Sellars

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On the Passage of a few People through a Rather Brief Moment in Time: The Situationist International 1956-1972

A video documentary combining exhibition footage of the Situationist International exhibitions with film footage of the 1968 Paris student uprising, and graffiti and slogans based on the ideas of Guy Debord. Also includes commentary by leading art critics Greil Marcus, Thomas Levine, and artists Malcolm Mac Laren and Jamie Reid. Director and producer - Branka Bogdanov.
This really should have been SO much better...I still do have the Boston @ London expo catalogues though

Feel the rainbow Newt!

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Adrian Sherwood interviewed @DJhistory

Adrian Sherwood’s music, although nominally regarded as dub reggae – or sacrilege, if you’re a purist – crosses so many boundaries it’s little wonder that he’s regarded as a primary influence on industrial music. These days, the echoes between his best work in the 1980s and drum and bass and, especially, dubstep are extant. This interview coincides with a wide-ranging and long-overdue reissue programme for the On-U-Sound catalogue. He’s still making music, still following his own path, still uniquely British. He’s also a disillusioned West Ham United fan. We love him.

How did you get into music?
The first record I heard that I liked was ‘Walking To New Orleans’ by Fats Domino when I was about seven. The school I went to in High Wycombe had lots of Pakistani, Indian and West Indian kids and I used to hang around my friend Gilbert Barker’s house. He was Vincentian and his sister Jean used to play all the 7-inches, reggae and calypso; but mainly reggae. I got into it instantly. But I was into funk and we used to go over to Dunstable, to the California Ballrooms and underneath the Ballroom there was the Devil’s Den which is where they used to have all the funk. We used to stay at my mate’s family, the Redison family, in Luton and there it was pure reggae. We were waking up to John Holt’s A Thousand Volts Of Holt playing!
So you must have been into those crossover records like ‘Monkey Spanner’ and ‘Double Barrel’.
Well what happened, I was DJing at school for fun at lunchtimes in the science lab to raise money for the old people’s Christmas fund. It was really crap but good fun. Eventually we went down to the Newlands Club and the DJs were Judge Kilroy and Chalky White. My friend, Joe Farquharson, ran the Newlands. He was Jamaican and he was like a father figure to me. Judge Kilroy and Chalky White were playing slamming dance music of the time, stuff from the States, interspersed with ska, rocksteady, bluebeat and modern reggae (but not much). The main emphasis was on the black American stuff. They’d play Adriano Celentano’s ‘International Language Of Love’, and then it would be into ‘Lottery Spin’ by Zap Pow, then loads of funk; two or three ska tunes you could shuffle to, maybe a few tunes for a smooch and then back on to the funk. That’s how it used to run in them days. They were good DJs and eventually we got to DJ there in the afternoons and then in the evenings and that’s how I started with my love for the music.
Were you collecting then, too?
I used to go from High Wycombe very early on a Saturday and get to Record Corner in Bedford Hill in Balham for 9.30am. This is from 15 or 16 years old. They used to import soul and they were more of a soul shop than reggae but I bought reggae there too. I remember buying ‘Rastaman Chant’ by the Wailers on a black Tuff Gong import. After Record Corner I’d go to Shepherd’s Bush market to Caesar’s and I’d end up in Harlesden, where I got free copies off the Palmers – the guys that ran Pama – because Joe had previously worked for them at Soundville. Then I’d go from there back to High Wycombe and drop a few of the new tunes that afternoon at Newlands. I’d be back there by 1.30pm.
How did you get involved in the industry?
Through the Newlands. That club was brilliant. In the afternoons we used to have Emperor Rosko, Johnnie Walker, Dave Lee Travis, Noel Edmonds, Judge Dread, all doing PAs in the afternoon at our thing for the kids. I started doing that in 1971 when I was 13 or 14. The opening thing Joe put on there was his mate Johnny Nash. There was a roadblock, about 2000 people. The club could only hold about 600 legally but they managed to get a 1000 in. It was only a little place. I had some mad nights down there. In 1975 or ’76 we had a really hot summer. It was so hot no one wanted to go in the club. So that was the end of the Newlands...

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@'DJhistory'

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Stephen Lawrence murder suspects to stand trial

Two men are to stand trial accused of being part of a racist white gang that "targeted and killed" the black teenager Stephen Lawrence because of the colour of his skin, the appeal court has said.
The killing in 1993 in Eltham, south-east London, is one of the most high-profile unsolved murders in Britain.
The men charged are David Norris, who has never before been charged over the stabbing, and Gary Dobson, who stood trial previously and was found not guilty.
Dobson was acquitted of killing Lawrence, 18, after a private murder prosecution brought in 1996 by the parents of the talented youngster who dreamed of being an architect.
A new law established in 2003 abolished the longstanding ban on people being retried for the same crime after being found not guilty, if "compelling" new evidence came to light.
The appeal court agreed on Wednesday that new evidence was compelling enough to allow Dobson's acquittal to be quashed.
In effect, the appeal court, in a ruling by the lord chief justice of England and Wales, wiped the legal slate clean. This means Dobson and Norris will stand trial for the murder of Lawrence, in November at the Old Bailey in central London.
The Crown Prosecution Service and police charged Dobson and Norris in September 2010, but some of the toughest reporting restrictions on the media meant the dramatic development in the long-running case could not be reported until now.
In March, a hearing was held at the appeal court to decide if the acquittal of Dobson could be set aside, watched by Lawrence's parents, Doreen and Neville. The media was also banned from reporting that hearing.
The judgment says the murder of Stephen Lawrence was a "calamitous crime" and declares he was "a young black man of great promise, targeted and killed by a group of white youths just because of the colour of his skin".
The new evidence that convinced the appeal court to quash Dobson's acquittal is based on forensics.
The media is restricted in its reporting to Wednesday's judgment from the court of appeal.
According to a summary of its judgment: "The present application depends on the reliability of new scientific evidence which by reference to the grey bomber jacket (LH/5) and the multi-coloured cardigan (ASR/2) closely links Dobson with the fatal attack on Stephen Lawrence.
"It does not and could not demonstrate that Dobson wielded the knife which caused the fatal wound, but given the circumstances of the attack on Stephen Lawrence – that is, a group of youths in a violent enterprise converging on a young man, and attacking him as a group – it would be open to a jury to conclude that any one of those who participated in the attack was party to the killing and guilty of murder, or alternatively manslaughter (a verdict which would, if there had been sufficient evidence, also have been available at the first trial).
"If reliable, the new scientific evidence would place Dobson in very close proximity indeed to Stephen Lawrence at the moment of and in the immediate aftermath of the attack; proximity, moreover, for which no innocent explanation can be discerned."
Counsel for Dobson, Timothy Roberts QC, argued the new forensics were unreliable because they "are likely to be the product of contamination over the years, that is, by contact with Stephen Lawrence's blood and his clothing". This was "the result of outdated or incompetent storage or packaging or transporting arrangements".
Furthermore, Roberts said Dobson's acquittal should stand because "the huge wave of constant publicity over the years, directly identifying some of those suspected of the murder with involvement in the crime" meant there could not be a fair trial.
In the judgment by the lord chief justice, the appeal court decided there was enough new evidence for Dobson to stand trial for Lawrence's murder for a second time: "There is sufficient reliable and substantial new evidence to justify the quashing of the acquittal and to order a new trial.
"This decision means – and we emphasise that it means no more than that – the question whether Dobson had any criminal involvement in Stephen Lawrence's death must be considered afresh by a new jury, which will examine the evidence and decide whether the allegation against him is proved. The presumption of innocence continues to apply."
The judgment states that its ruling does not mean that Dobson is guilty and stresses that the court of appeal "is certainly not required to usurp the function of the jury, or … indicate to the jury what the verdict should be".
Lawrence was murdered just after 10.35 pm on 22 April 1993. He was waiting at a bus stop in south-east London with a friend, Duwayne Brooks.
According to the judgment: "As they waited peacefully for the bus, a group of white youths crossed the road towards them. One of the youths used abusive racist language. This was followed by a sudden and immediate attack, as the group converged on or charged at them.
"Duwayne Brooks managed to make his escape, but Stephen Lawrence was felled.
"He was stabbed twice to the upper torso … Major blood vessels were severed. The injuries were fatal.
"Mortally wounded, Stephen Lawrence managed to get to his feet. He ran after Duwayne Brooks, but after a little while, he collapsed on the pavement. He died shortly afterwards in hospital."
Vikram Dodd @'The Guardian'

Justin Vernon on 'Bon Iver, Bon Iver' (Interview w/ Triple J's Zan Rowe)

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Australian journalist arrested for technology conference report

An Australian journalist was arrested after writing an article about vulnerabilities of Facebook's privacy controls.
Ben Grubb, deputy technology editor of the Sydney Morning Herald was later released without charge. But police retained his iPad.
His article, Security experts go to war: wife targeted, was a report from an IT security conference at a Queensland resort.
It was addressed by a security expert, Christian Heinrich, who demonstrated how he had gained access to a woman's privacy-protected Facebook photos.
He was demonstrating that people who use social networking sites should not trust their privacy settings.
When police arrested Grubb they told him they were acting on a complaint from a person whose Facebook photo had been accessed without a password.
Darren Burden, an executive with the paper's publisher, Fairfax, said: "Ben was reporting on something actually said and presented at that conference. It's fundamental for journalists to be able to report these events."
Though Queensland police denied arresting Grubb, he recorded his conversation with the detective who questioned him - it's hilarious, by the way, a genuine Plod classic - he was formally arrested in order for police to confiscate his iPad.
Grubb refused to hand it over voluntarily because he explained it was a tool of his trade.
A police spokeswoman later said it would "be returned as soon as possible."
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
Roy Greenslade @'The Guardian'

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Ubudoll @ VPRO

Can anyone help me with this?

There is a link at the Pere Ubu web site that used to link to an Ubudoll (David Thomas & Jackie Leven) gig that was recorded for VPRO in The Netherlands.

Unfortunately it has disappeared since I last listened to it (probably a couple of years ago now)

Unfortunately my Dutch isn't good enough to navigate around the site...

If anyone can find it there or indeed if they have a copy of it I would be really grateful if they could get in touch.

Bedankt/

PS: I believe there might also have been a recording made of a gig in Leiden. I do have the Paris gig recording. 

Origins of UbuDoll

Using night lights to measure economic growth

(Image: Xi Chen)

When you're rich, you turn on the lights.
It might seem a crude observation at face value, but researchers have discovered that a brightly lit country at night can help indicate how wealthy it really is.
Using familiar birds-eye satellite images of cities at night, researchers from Yale and Quinnipiac Universities in the US analysed US Department of Defense imagery from 1992 until 2008.
The team divided the world up into cells and measured each cell's "luminosity" - how bright each cell was. Even this process was mired in technical difficulties as obstacles such as automatic correction for glare, cloud cover and distortions caused by water vapour have to be removed. A figure was attributed to the brightness of each country's grid cells and these figures were combined and then aggregated over a year to give an annual luminosity value.
Official GDP figures from the World Bank were matched with each year to see if there was any correlation. A series of statistical calculations were then run to see whether an increase in light over time matched an increase in economic output - where it was known.
The results were far from conclusive. What the team found was that the figures were close but not quite precise enough to be useful for large, wealthy countries such as the US or Australia. This was because the margin of error in analysing the luminosity value was far larger than that in the official GDP figures.
However they found that when they turned their gaze on poorer and developing nations the match between actual economic output and night time luminosity provided rather more insight. In some countries like Cambodia, Somalia or North Korea - where there is very little economic data and there hadn't been a recent population census - analysis of the cells helped trace how well a nation was faring.
And in some areas, particularly the Democratic Republic of Congo, the luminosity counts helped track the country's economic health over time, where it had been difficult to do so before because of instability or violence.
The research is not the first to assume that lights at night are analogous with prosperity but is the first to look at compare actual economic figures with luminosity in this way.

Journal reference: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1017031108
Niall Firth @'New Scientist'

First Listen: Boris - 'Attention Please'

You can't really accuse Boris of slowing down. The Japanese heavy music trio hasn't released a proper "rock" album since 2008's Smile, but in the interim put out a split 10" with the pop-metal band Torche, a collaborative EP with The Cult's Ian Astbury and an excellent series of seven-inch singles called Japanese Heavy Rock Hits. But still, rabid Boris fans (and they are the collector types, mind you) have been waiting for something more substantial. Attention Please is just one of four — four! — Boris albums coming out this spring. Its release coincides with that of Heavy Rocks (not to be confused with the 2002 album of the same name) and two Japanese-only titles: another collaboration with noise master Merzbow called Klatter, as well as New Album, which frustratingly mixes tracks from Attention Please and the new Heavy Rocks with other material. Completists, the ball's in your court.
Attention Please, out May 24, is not only the best of this new Boris batch, but also a far-ranging leap forward for a band that felt stuck on Smile. Anchored by lead guitarist Wata, Attention Please is the first Boris album to exclusively feature her intimate vocals. After her scant but enjoyable vocal contributions on 2006's Rainbow, the focus is welcome.
The great thing about Boris has always been its noncommittal attitude toward style. On one album, the band will serve up mammoth-sized drone; on another, soft electro-pop with sky-pealing guitar solos. On Attention Please, style runs the gamut from one song to the next, but the album never loses momentum. Songs like "Hope," "Les Paul Custom '86" and "Spoon" belong to a lost 4AD record, conjuring images of surfing the Aurora Borealis in a Camaro, denim-jacket collars flipped way up. It's shoegaze for moody skate punks. Featuring Wata's most alluring croon, "Party Boy" is a minimal four-on-the-floor dance romper for glam-metal geeks with teased hair. And "Tokyo Wonder Land" is a song that could have only come from Boris; it's got a head-bobbing lullaby groove on a Casio beat throttled by Wata's ceiling-ripping guitar solos. Despite Boris' wide sonic interests, everything comes together coherently on Attention Please, the band's best record since Pink.
Lars Gotrich @'npr' 

Hear 'Attention Please' In Its Entirety

High Tech Soul – The Creation Of Techno Music (Documentary - 2009)

'High Tech Soul' is the first documentary to tackle the deep roots of techno music alongside the cultural history of Detroit, its birthplace. From the race riots of 1967 to the underground party scene of the late 1980s, Detroit’s economic downturn didn’t stop the invention of a new kind of music that brought international attention to its producers and their hometown.
Featuring in-depth interviews with many of the world’s best exponents of the artform, High Tech Soul focuses on the creators of the genre — Juan Atkins, Derrick May, and Kevin Saunderson — and looks at the relationships and personal struggles behind the music. Artists like Richie Hawtin, Jeff Mills, Carl Craig, Eddie Fowlkes and a host of others explain why techno, with its abrasive tones and resonating basslines, could not have come from anywhere but Detroit.
With classic anthems such as Rhythim Is Rhythim’s “Strings of Life” and Inner City’s “Good Life,” High Tech Soul celebrates the pioneers, the promoters and the city that spawned a global phenomenon.

The film features: Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson, Eddie (Flashin) Fowlkes, Richie Hawtin, Jeff Mills, John Acquaviva, Carl Cox, Carl Craig, Blake Baxter, Stacey Pullen, Thomas Barnett, Matthew Dear, Anthony “Shake” Shakir, Keith Tucker, Delano Smith, Mike Archer, Derrick Thompson, Mike Clark, Alan Oldham, Laura Gavoor, Himawari, Scan 7, Kenny Larkin, Stacey “Hotwax” Hale, Claus Bachor, Electrifying Mojo, Niko Marks, Barbara Deyo, Dan Sordyl, Sam Valenti, Ron Murphy, George Baker, and Kwame Kilpatrick.
The film’s soundtrack includes: Aux 88, Cybotron, Inner City, Juan Atkins, Mayday, Model 500, Plastikman, Rhythim Is Rhythim, and more.

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