James Frey's Blog, page 37
February 7, 2023
Dudamel to NY Phil
By Olivia Hampton, Leila Fadel
When the New York Philharmonic‘s current music director, Jaap van Zweden, announced he would be leaving his post next year, president and CEO Deborah Borda had only one new maestro in mind: Gustavo Dudamel.
“There are so many things that are remarkable about Gustavo Dudamel,” Borda tells NPR’s Leila Fadel. “But I think number one is his ability to communicate with both musicians and audiences and to express pure joy in music. And this is something that we simply can’t quite put into words. It’s spontaneous combustion.”
The 42-year-old Venezuelan’s charismatic approach has made him one of the world’s most sought-after conductors. He will officially lead the oldest symphony orchestra in the U.S. starting with the 2026-27 season, for an initial five-year term, beginning as music director designate in the 2025-26 season. Dudamel follows in the footsteps of giants such as Gustav Mahler, Arturo Toscanini and Leonard Bernstein, all former New York Philharmonic music directors.
Broken Sun
Scientists are trying to understand the impact this huge prominence will have on Earth.
Edited by Amit Chaturvedi
The huge solar flare as seen on the North Pole of the Sun.The Sun has always fascinated astronomers. And now, a new development has baffled scientists. A huge part of the Sun broke off of its surface and created a tornado-like swirl around its North Pole. Though scientists are trying to analyse how this occurred, the video of the development has stunned the space community. The remarkable phenomenon was caught by NASA’s James Webb telescope and shared on Twitter by Dr Tamitha Skov, a space weather forecaster, last week. The Sun keeps emitting solar flares (called prominence) that sometimes affect communications on Earth, hence scientists are more concerned about the latest development.
“Talk about Polar Vortex! Material from a northern prominence just broke away from the main filament & is now circulating in a massive polar vortex around the north pole of our Star. Implications for understanding the Sun’s atmospheric dynamics above 55 degrees here cannot be overstated!” Dr Skov said in a tweet last week.
February 5, 2023
Killer Watches
from Business Insider via Yahoo! News
A woman said her Apple Watch regularly ‘thinks I’m dead’ during her spin classes, NYT reportsby Sam Tabahriti
Apple’s Stan Ng talks about the new Apple Watch series 5 during a special event on September 10, 2019 in the Steve Jobs Theater on Apple’s Cupertino, California campus. Justin Sullivan/Getty ImagesA spin-class teacher said her Apple Watch regularly “thinks I’m dead” as it detects potential accidents during her classes – but failed to react when she had a genuine accident.
“My watch regularly thinks I’ve had an accident,” Stacey Torman, from London, England, told the New York Times, describing whether it be when she is riding the bike, cheering people on, or waving at her students to congratulate them during her spin classes.
Torman added that, at moments “I want to celebrate,” her watch “thinks I’m dead.”
February 4, 2023
God Bless Manure
by Jessica Fu
Hundreds of dairy farms across California have sold the rights to their manure to energy producers. Illustration: Ricardo Cavolo/The GuardianThe energy industry is turning waste from dairy farms into renewable natural gas – but will it actually reduce emissions?
On an early August afternoon at Pinnacle Dairy, a farm located near the middle of California’s long Central Valley, 1,300 Jersey cows idle in the shade of open-air barns. Above them whir fans the size of satellites, circulating a breeze as the temperature pushes 100F (38C). Underfoot, a wet layer of feces emits a thick stench that hangs in the air. Just a tad unpleasant, the smell represents a potential goldmine.
The energy industry is transforming mounds of manure into a lucrative “carbon negative fuel” capable of powering everything from municipal buses to cargo trucks. To do so, it’s turning to dairy farms, which offer a reliable, long-term supply of the material. Pinnacle is just one of hundreds across the state that have recently sold the rights to their manure to energy producers.
February 3, 2023
The Old Man In The Amber
Picture courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.HA.comEmbedded within a clear piece of amber, a small praying mantis sits at attention, frozen forever in time. The piece, which measures just slightly over one inch tall, was sold via Heritage Auctions for $6,000 in 2016. The pristine piece of amber, which comes from the Dominican Republic, gives a rare view of this incredible mantis.
The amber itself derives from the extinct Hymenaea protera, a prehistoric leguminous tree. Most amber found in Central and South America comes from its resin. Amber from the Dominican Republic is known as Dominican resin, which is noted for its clarity and a high number of inclusions.
Heritage Auctions dates the piece in question to the Oligocene period, placing it anywhere from about 23 million to 33.9 million years old. It’s an important period of time where the archaic Eocene transitions into more modern ecosystems of the Miocene period, which lasted until 5 million years ago. Incredibly, the mantis itself doesn’t appear so different from what we see today.
February 2, 2023
Paco Rabanne Gone
His death was confirmed by Spanish group Puig, which controls the Paco Rabanne fashion house and fragrance business.
Paco Rabanne, the Spanish-born designer synonymous with a Space Age aesthetic and best-selling perfumes, has died at age 88 in Portsall, France.
His death was confirmed by Spanish group Puig, which controls the Paco Rabanne fashion house and fragrance business.
“Paco Rabanne made transgression magnetic,” said José Manuel Albesa, president of Puig’s fashion and beauty division. “Who else could induce fashionable Parisian women to clamor for dresses made of plastic and metal? Who but Paco Rabanne could imagine a fragrance called Calandre – the word means ‘automobile grill,’ you know – and turn it into an icon of modern femininity?”
Winning!!
A 22-year-old assistant high school girls basketball coach was fired after posing as a 13-year-old player during a recent junior varsity game, WAVY TV 10 Sports Director Craig Loper reports.
A video obtained by the news station shows Arlisha Boykins wearing a jersey for the Churchland High School JV girls basketball team and actively playing in the team’s game against Nanesmond River High School. Boykins was impersonating a 13-year-old player who was out of town for a club basketball tournament at the time of the incident, the teenager’s parents told WAVY TV 10.
February 1, 2023
Zevon Rocks
Joel sent a letter to the nominating committee urging them to consider the late singer-songwriter
On Wednesday morning, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced its slate of nominees for the Class of 2023: Kate Bush, Sheryl Crow, Missy Elliott, Iron Maiden, Joy Division/New Order (interestingly, the two groups — the latter of which was formed after Joy Division lead singer Ian Curtis’s suicide — are being nominated as one entity), Cyndi Lauper, George Michael, Willie Nelson, Rage Against the Machine, Soundgarden, The Spinners, A Tribe Called Quest, The White Stripes and Warren Zevon.
Zevon’s nomination in particular was a long time coming; this is the first time the legendary singer-songwriter has been nominated for the Hall of Fame, despite the fact that he has been eligible since 1994. And it turns out Billy Joel may have had something to do with the late musician’s nomination. Joel told the Los Angeles Times recently that he wrote a letter to the Hall’s nominating committee urging them to consider the “Werewolves of London” singer.
January 31, 2023
Whirly Elon
Experts believe the phenomenon was linked to frozen rocket fuel that was ejected during the launch (Picture: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan)The mystery behind a swirling whirlpool that appeared over Earth’s skies may have been solved.
The flying spiral was pictured in the early hours of January 18 by the Mauna Kea Observatory in Hawaii.
It is now believe that the phenomenon was actually the launch of a new satellite by Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
That day the firm launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral to deploy a GPS satellite into a medium-earth orbit for the US Space Force.
January 29, 2023
Battle In New Canaan
by Ms. Tootsie
The four finalists from each heat will play against each other for the ticketed final on Saturday, February 4th, 2023, from 8pm. With sudden death for 2 bands, the 2 remaining bands must play the SAME song. It is then that the official judges will decide on the winning band. Guest Judges include renowned author James Frey, Brian Fox, from School of Rock, New Canaan and Andrew Ault, Musician and Art Director.
The event is held each year to raise money for Meal on Wheels. It is generously sponsored by Karl Chevrolet and produced by Rock Paper Scissors Custom Events. It has become the perfect way to kick off a new year by watching live, talented and local bands.
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