This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Construction firm HITT has tapped Andre Grebenstein to lead its team that covers New York as vice president and office leader of its New York team will guide the growth of a region in which it has more than 50 local construction professionals He earns the promotion with more than 30 years of experience in commercial construction Virginia-based firm added that Grebenstein “has a proven track record of delivering high-end fast-track construction projects in the greater New York metropolitan region for some of the most influential Fortune 500 clients industrial and mission-critical facilities.” He is also accredited under the U.S Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design scale and as a Certified Data Center Design Professional he is affiliated with the 7×24 Exchange Metro NY Chapter and AFCOM New York and New Jersey Metro Chapter while serving as a board member with New Jersey Institute of Technology’s Civil Engineering Industry Advancement group He holds a bachelor’s in civil engineering from NJIT and an MBA in supply chain management from Rutgers University has been covering New Jersey commercial real estate for 13 years Many industry leaders view him as the go-to real estate reporter in the state a role he is eager to continue as the editor of Real Estate NJ He is a lifelong New Jersey resident who has spent a decade covering the great Garden State Restaurant chain Bojangles has opened along a major commercial corridor in Piscataway as part of a previously announced deal brokered by The Goldstein Group All RIGHTS RESERVED Copyright 2023 Real Estate NJ 101 Eisenhower Parkway Roseland Our site uses cookies. Learn more about our use of cookies: cookie policy All Rights Reserved ACCELERATING MEDICINES PARTNERSHIP and AMP are registered service marks of the U.S PALATKA – Leaders at the 5th largest dispensary in the state which has a massive grow operation inside an old furniture warehouse in Palatka said the company is ready to expand and meet consumer demand if Florida voters choose to approve a constitutional amendment later this year to legalize the drug for recreational use “Currently the total facility is about 500,000 total square feet But we’ve only to date remodeled and made useful about 75,000 feet of it We have a long way to go,” said Tom Grebenstein News4JAX got a behind-the-scenes look at the Colorado-based company’s facility where it is cultivating and processing medical marijuana RELATED: Jacksonville sheriff says legalizing recreational marijuana ‘could cause more issues’ In one 10,000-square-foot room in the facility the company said it is growing about 9,000 plants Green Dragon Florida leaders said if Florida passes a law that would make the use of marijuana legal for people over 21 in November it would need about 18 more sections to keep up with the demand Gov. Ron DeSantis said on Thursday he’s against a proposed constitutional amendment that would make recreational marijuana legal in Florida “It’s basically a license to have it anywhere you want This state will start to smell like marijuana in our cities and towns it will reduce the quality of life,” DeSantis said at a news conference in South Florida MORE | DeSantis: ‘This state will start to smell like marijuana’ if drug is legalized and it will ‘reduce the quality of life’ Grebenstein addressed that concern, one that other Florida residents have also expressed. “We have a very effective air handling system and air filter,” he said. “We take the smell abatement very seriously. We’re right next to a residential community and we don’t want those folks to be uncomfortable.” The facility grows marijuana and produces joints, buds, gummies and more for Florida dispensaries. Grebenstein said his company has helped thousands of people with medical conditions. Green Dragon said it has 37 stores, has invested $30 million into the state, and helps contribute to a stable workforce in a rural community. The property is the site of the former Florida Furniture Factory warehouse near the St. Johns River. “You can imagine about 400 to 500 people were employed here when it went out of business. It was a major blow to the city of Palatka. So, we’re thrilled to be here, and to be in a spot to bring just as many jobs back to the community,” Grebenstein said. The company said one of the benefits of legalized or medical marijuana is that there isn’t the potential for tampering like there is with other drugs that are bought on the street. It’s controlled and made with the consumer in mind, the company said. The growing industry said it is poised and ready for Florida to vote yes in November. Copyright 2024 by WJXT News4JAX - All rights reserved. Click here to take a moment and familiarize yourself with our Community Guidelines TV Listings Email Newsletters RSS Feeds Contests and Rules Contact Us Careers at WJXT / WCWJ Closed Captioning / Audio Description WJXT Public File WJXT EEO Report WCWJ Public File WCWJ EEO Report Terms of Use Privacy Policy Do Not Sell My Info FCC Applications Copyright © 2025 News4JAX.com is managed by Graham Digital and published by Graham Media Group the official handover to JAXA of the rover "IDEFIX" was completed in Kamakura IDEFIX was developed by CNES (French National Centre for Space Studies) and DLR (German Aerospace Center) and will be installed on the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission spacecraft The MMX mission will travel to the Martian sphere and explore the Martian moons before returning to Earth with a sample collected from Phobos IDEFIX handed over to JAXAFrom left to right : Markus Grebenstein (DLR) IDEFIX will land before the MMX spacecraft on the surface of Phobos and explore the moon analyzing properties of the surface regolith that will reduce the risk of the landing and sample acquisition operations by the main spacecraft as well as acquire calibration data for scientific observations IDEFIX arrived in Japan from Europe in mid-February and was delivered to the Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (MELCO) facility in Kamakura where the final testing prior to the handover confirmed that there were no abnormalities JAXA will keep preparing to ensure the safe arrival of the MMX mission at the Martian moons together with IDEFIX Markus Grebenstein (DLR) and Kawakatsu Yasuhiro (JAXA) DLR Project Manager for IDEFIX development Markus Grebenstein said:"When I saw the spacecraft panel I felt how much of an honour it was to be part of this mission It's a complex mission with very ambitious goals and many international contributions It's really great to be part of this and I was delighted that the rover was accepted by JAXA But we're convinced that JAXA will do the best with the rover and together we will have really good results." CNES Project Manager for IDEFIX development Stephane Mary said:"The main challenge with IDEFIX was to create a rover that can go somewhere where nobody has been before We had to create a design that was compatible with many different kinds of surface (regolith) and make hypotheses about what Phobos will be like Of course exploration always involves taking some risks We're now excited to enter this new phase of the Project with the tests that will be conducted in Japan and and we're thinking about the operation on Phobos." Kawakatsu Yasuhiro said:"This handover is not only the handover of the hardware but also the handover of the responsibility where we will integrate all the spacecraft components including the many mission instruments that have each been developed independently and in parallel Then we will finally see the total spacecraft system!" JAXA also cooperated with CNES and DLR during the successful Hayabusa2 asteroid sample return mission which carried the CNES/DLR co-developed small lander "MASCOT" and will renew that collaboration again as we head together towards a successful MMX mission Copyright Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency Non-native plant species pose a significant threat to the natural ecosystems of the United States Many of these invasive plants are escapees from gardens and landscapes where they were originally planted these plants have the potential of taking over large areas affecting native plants and animals and negatively changing the ecosystem In recent years an increase in travel and international trade has rapidly introduced many new non-native species to the United States “While not all non-native plants are bad, some imported species are bullies that crowd out native plants and damage the diverse ecosystems that many living things depend on,” said James Gagliardi, a horticulturist with Smithsonian Gardens Plants with the highest invasive potential are prolific seeders and vigorous growers which have the ability to adapt well to a variety of conditions Native species have not evolved alongside these plants and have trouble competing With few predators and little competition for resources these new plants can displace native flora reducing plant diversity until a landscape is no longer able to support longstanding native plant Here is James Gagliardi’s top six list of the most prolific plant invaders in the U.S with suggestions of native stand-ins to plant in your garden: Arrival: Purple loosestrife was introduced to the United States in the early 1800s for ornamental and medicinal uses Impact: Now growing invasively in most states purple loosestrife can become the dominant plant species in wetlands One plant can produce as many as 2 million wind-dispersed seeds per year and underground stems grow at a rate of 1 foot per year Native Alternatives: Blazing star (Liatris spicata) American blue vervain (Verbena hastate) and New York ironweed (Vernonia noveboracensis) Arrival: One of many invasive varieties of honeysuckle in the United States Japanese honeysuckle was brought to Long Island in 1806 for ornamental use and erosion control Impact: The plant has become prolific throughout much of the East Coast as it adapts to a wide range of conditions Japanese honeysuckle is an aggressive vine that smothers shades and girdles other competing vegetation Many of the birds eat the fruit of this plant Native Alternatives: Trumpet creeper (Campsis radicans) and coral honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens) Arrival: Japanese barberry was introduced to the United States in the 1800s as an ornamental Seeds of Japanese barberry were sent from Russia to the Arnold Arboretum in 1875 as an alternative to European barberry (Berberis vulgaris) which had fallen out of favor as it was a host to Black Rust Stem—a serious fungus effecting cereal crops Impact: The shrub has the ability to grow in deep shade and is particularly detrimental to forest lands in the Northeast The heavily fruiting plant forms dense thicket Johnswort (Hypericum prolificum) and winterberry (Ilex verticillata) Arrival: The plant explorer John Bartram first introduced the Norway maple to the United States from England in 1756 The widely adaptable tree quickly became popular and was planted in towns as a shade tree and in rural communities Impact: The Norway maple displaces native trees and has the potential to dominate a landscape in both the Northeast and Northwest It displaces native maples like the sugar maple and its dense canopy shades out wildflowers Native Alternatives: Sugar maple (Acer saccharum) and red maple (Acer rubrum) Arrival: The introduction of English ivy dates back to the early 1700s when European colonists imported the plant as an easy-to-grow evergreen groundcover Impact: The planting and sale of English ivy continues in the United States even though it is one on the worst-spread invasive plants in the country due to its ability to handle widespread conditions English ivy is an aggressive-spreading vine which can slowly kill trees by restricting light It spreads by vegetative reproduction and by seed Native Alternatives: Creeping mint (Meehania cordata) Allegheny spurge (Pachysandra procumbens) and creeping phlox (Phlox stolonifera) Arrival: Japan introduced Kudzu to the U.S at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition in 1876 It was first promoted as an ornamental plant and later as a forage crop in the Southeast One million acres of Kudzu were planted in the 1930s and 1940s by the Soil Conservation Service to reduce soil erosion on deforested lands It was not until the 1950s that it was recognized as an invasive Kudzu grows at a rate of up to one foot a day and 60 feet annually This vigorous vine takes over areas in the Southeast by smothering plants and kills trees by adding immense weight and girdling or toppling them Native Alternatives: Carolina jessamine (Gelsemium sempervirens) and Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) Sign up for Smithsonian e-news 2020 at 11:23 pm ETCongratulations to the Raritan High School Class of 2020 (Gina Grebenstein)Congratulations to the Raritan High School Class of 2020 NJ – Decorated in green robes and black masks Raritan High School seniors finally received their long-awaited in-person graduation on Wednesday Spaced six feet apart on the high school athletic field approximately 100 graduates each celebrated the milestone at 9 and 11:30 a.m Friends and family watched from a distance – apart from the graduates as well as each other – on the bleachers that overlook the fields Class President William Zinckgraf led the Pledge of Allegiance while student musician Gabrielle Guida performed the national anthem Piotrowski gave a congratulatory speech to the seniors touting their unrelenting perseverance to excel given extraordinary circumstances “The Rockets of the class of 2020 have led the charge for a community that stands together you entered the hall of Raritan and decided to pledge that you will graduate high school You rose to the occasion even when you thought it was impossible.” Valedictorian Katherine Koestler and Salutatorian Danny Fiore also took to the podium to congratulate their peers Although it wasn’t the typical graduation that seniors expected several Raritan Rockets demonstrated the unforgettable experience who will be attending Brookdale Community College called the ceremony “honestly great” and “memorable considering the circumstances” Senior Celia Grebenstein echoed Simmons’ comments: “It was an overall memorable moment for me and my classmates,” said Grebenstein “It was a little bit different than I expected it to be population-wise but I guess I also didn’t know what to expect considering the guidelines of safety due to the pandemic my friends and I will always have something to remember during these hard times.” Get more local 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The conference had 31 attendees from t12 countries: Canada 14 religious organizations were represented: Alliance for Inclusive Heathenry Those of us who arrived on Thor’s Day (Thursday) were greeted by the Wild Hunt – not the news and commentary website you’re now visiting but the furious host of the sky described in a German newspaper of 1832 as a troop that makes “quite a racket” as it that passes by “in the upper layers of the air.” The day we arrived the storm Xavier blew gale-force winds across northern Germany A group of us rode a shuttle bus from the Berlin airport to the hostel hosting the conference and what should have been about a one-hour drive stretched to almost eight we waited for two hours under a full moon in the forest for a crew to cut up and clear the remains of an ancient and massive oak that lay across the road after being felled by the storm and it gave us an opportunity to get to know each other before joining the rest of the attendees and we were quite happy to finally arrive safely at the hostel Altar of the sacred center at Frith Forge [Karl E This was the first time I had seen the Hammer Rite performed at a Heathen ritual and it was striking to see how its performance and other elements of the rite seemed to be derived from Mircea Eliade’s idea of the “symbolism of the center” laid out in The Myth of the Eternal Return whether directly or through a chain of influence in modern pagan religions explaining some of the details to a non-Heathen friend attending the conference as a representative of the American Theological Library Association I wondered how much of Heathenry today puts theories of 20th-century scholars of religion into ritual practice The first of the conference presentations was “Ancestor Worship and Its Role in 21st-Century Ásatrú” by John Potts and Gunna Einarsdottir of De Negen Werelden (Netherlands) Their in-depth discussion of ancestor veneration examined literary and archaeological sources for historical practice nineteenth-century influences on concepts of ancestry (including the tracing of a line from racialist Völkisch thought through the work of Vilhelm Grønbech and into modern Heathenry) and various approaches to ancestry in today’s practices They concluded by highlighting the small step that can lead from ancestor veneration to a racist ideology of Blut und Boden (“blood and soil”) which left a bit of a question mark hanging over the opening ritual with its focus on soil and homeland Gunna Einarsdottir and John Potts discuss ancestor veneration [Karl E The rest of the day was taken up by presentations on organizations represented The basic idea was for all of the Heathen groups to learn about each other’s histories and practices as part of the conference’s larger goal of building and strengthening bonds between Heathen communities Grebenstein emphasized “a need for mutual engagement in order to understand each other better,” stating that The world is becoming weirder at an accelerating pace we do share at least a similar – or even an equivalent – mind-set as a foundation for frith [old Norse “peace”]: dialogue I honestly consider Frith Forge to be an act of international understanding Diana Paxson spoke about the founding of the Alliance for Inclusive Heathenry at the Parliament of the World’s Religions in 2015 she discussed a recent and fundamental change on the Heathen landscape driven by Asatru Folk Assembly founder Stephen McNallen’s partnership with the so-called “alt-right,” saying “I got through the 1960s and 1970s without getting involved in a rally but that has changed.” She now feels that the current political climate and the open involvement of some Heathens with white nationalism requires her to get involved in public protest In Paxson’s 2006 book Essential Ásatrú: Walking the Path of Norse Paganism the brief discussion of racism in the religion makes no mention of McNallen or his organization None of the many mentions of McNallen and the AFA makes any reference to racialist beliefs Paxson includes the AFA in her annotated list of Heathen organizations for new practitioners to check out writing without challenge that the group “states that it opposes racial hatred and honors other indigenous religions.” This public neutrality regarding the AFA has been a stance within the Troth for many years the organization’s monumental two-volume textbook on Heathenry and Heathens of positive intent must change with them The announcement of McNallen as a speaker at the Berkeley rally in April led Paxson to take a public stand she stated that McNallen is a “smooth speaker” who “has disguised his true feelings for 30 years,” but is now “letting it all out.” Recently both he and the organization are now openly embracing racist positions and groups with right-wing Heathens wearing helmets and marching in rallies with Identity Evropa and other extremist groups and with neo-Nazis including runes and other Norse symbols in their logos and placards Paxson felt she and her group needed to show up with banners and signs reclaiming the religious symbols of Heathenry “Part of my identity as a Heathen,” she said “is to protest the hate groups using Heathen symbols.” The long shadow of McNallen’s organization chilled some discussion at the conference When Troth steersman (board president) Robert L Schreiwer asked for video cameras to be shut off when he discussed the AFA some European members expressed dismay at the fact that Troth leadership fears lawsuits from McNallen’s organization if they speak out too clearly about racist elements in its policies and statements The threatened use of lawsuits to intimidate Post-conference discussion has included much back-and-forth over how to best forward inclusiveness in worldwide Heathenry while also providing help in identifying racialist and white nationalist groups for those who are new to the religion or not connected to a larger community The aversion to direct conflict has led some members of the Troth’s leadership to oppose specifically naming any racist (or “exclusive”) organizations in the website now being designed by participants to promote inclusive Heathenry and serve as a resource and guide for those new to the religions The second group seems to take a more rigorously anti-racist stand Pohl declaring that “drawing a clear line once and for all” makes racists avoid the group’s events and prevents them from wanting to join the organization Some European groups have a relationship with the public that is radically different from what is usually seen in the United States. Having taken an overtly inclusive stance from its beginning, Sweden’s Samfundet Forn Sed responded to a journalist writing an investigative feature on the organization shortly after its founding by acting in a completely transparent manner giving him all of their paperwork and making members available for interviews He later confessed that he had planned to write about them as a racist group but — given complete access — he was totally unable to Norway’s Åsatrufellesskapet Bifrost seemed likewise straightforward in their stance against racism which has been strongly pronounced since the organization’s beginning All potential members go through personal interviews and screening and there is a clear willingness to exclude unwanted people In contrast to the regular American desire to “avoid being political,” Silje Herup Juvet strongly stated We have a political platform stating ‘welcome to a multicultural society.’” Rather than allowing racists and nationalists to set the public terms “We took control of the narrative and made a statement of all our positions.” Åsatrufellesskapet Bifrost cooperates with other minority religions in Norway (including Muslims and atheists) and its members refuse to attend events that also include Heathen organizations that are not publicly declared against racism “Being not racist is not enough,” said Juvet the organization goes further than many others and keeps an archive record of the sayings and actions of national and international Heathen individuals and groups The Norwegian organization is also notable for its growth and accomplishments since its founding in 1995 and its state recognition the following year Now with nearly 400 members and 10 blót groups (analogous to American kindreds) Åsatrufellesskapet Bifrost receives the same annual monetary amount per capita as the state Lutheran Church of Norway the group has had its own graveyard in Oslo the organization owns an impressive 600-square-meter community house with library The property is situated between two wolf packs and also includes a small barn and fifty acres of forest The group’s goal is to use the building in ways that bring positive attention to inclusive Heathenry the new property of Åsatrufellesskapet Bifrost [May-Britt Bjørlo Henriksen] The Troth’s own presentation went quite far over its scheduled time due to the large number of questions from the other attendees The elements that brought the most question and comment were the role of clergy and the ban on hailing Loki in ritual The Troth’s clergy training program is quite different from anything in the other organizations — some of which have no clergy at all — and the roles of clergy members as counselors and officiants were also a bit far from the experiences of many members of the audience gave a solid explanation of her perspective on and philosophy of clergy training and the role of the goði in the community The Troth’s Loki ban states that Loki cannot be hailed as part of a rite at any event sponsored including events hosted by local groups affiliated with the Troth kindred program There was a heated reaction after the policy was explained with at least one audience member stating that this seemed like the enforcement of Christian doctrine you get a lot of European support.” His statement was greeted by a round of applause Schreiwer led a candlelit ritual to the Germanic figure Holle He had not been present for the other organizations’ presentations and had actually missed his own scheduled talk on Urglaawe a newer Heathen religion that focuses on Pennsylvania German culture so he prefaced the rite with explanations of his tradition’s beliefs and rituals He also offered his own perspective on the toasts and speeches of each attendee explaining how Urglaawe belief did or did not agree with their statements While many of us know Holle as the Frau Holle figure of German folklore and fairy tale she is a major goddess for practitioners of Schreiwer’s faith Grebenstein gave a talk based on the book Sterbendes Heidentum (“Dying Heathenry”) by German ethnologist Bernhard Streck He also explained theories presented in relatively recent academic work by Bernhard Maier and Jan Assman Grebenstein’s theme was that Heathens should “look for inspiration in other polytheistic cultures that still exist or haven’t ceased as ancient Germanic or Norse polytheism have done.” He asked the question “Why not learn from others that have ‘survived’ Christianization or have not even been touched by it?” For him Heathens are engaged in reinvention rather than reconstruction The day was packed with a wide variety of talks Paxson repeated her presentation from the Parliament of the World’s Religions “Staving off Ragnarök: a Heathen Response to Climate Change,” which views the current ecological crisis through the lens of Norse mythology Juvet and Gunna gave a brief report on Heathen and Heathen-related festivals around Europe Pohl made a fascinating and deeply researched presentation on Frija addressing a wide range of materials from literature She discussed Roman reports and modern scholarly theories on early Germanic tribes I hope that she will publish her work as a paper to serve as a resource for a wider Heathen audience After an unfortunately under-prepared PowerPoint presentation that led an audience member to ask “What’s the point of this lecture?” things got back on track with another presentation from Paxson this one titled “Balancing on the Rainbow Bridge: How do We Reconcile Ethnic Pride and Heathen Tradition?” She strongly challenged the term “universalism,” stating that it “is not the correct term for what we’re doing.” Instead she advocated for “inclusivity,” the term commonly used by participants throughout the conference She challenged the view that a European religion should be for Europeans only and forwarded a notion of inclusion via acculturation into a group and through articulation of shared values Grebenstein led the second main ritual of the conference focused on an idea of “frith to take.” In a beautiful rite attendees were encouraged to reflect on information exchanged and friendships forged then to take what they had gained throughout the conference and bring it back to share and energize their own local communities One of the highlights of Frith Forge occurred during the ritual when the horn being passed around the circle came to Juvet She announced she was breaking the Troth’s Loki ban and hailing the trickster “This is how we do it in Norway,” took a large draught from the horn and ran along the ring of participants while gleefully spitting the liquid over several of them The evening concluded with a large-group discussion of “Frith Hospitality and Inclusion in Heathenry/Asatru.” According to Amanda Leigh-Hawkins of the Troth’s International Relations and Exchange Program to discuss how inclusive groups and individuals handle the challenge of when and how to be (ironically) exclusive of hateful or disrespectful individuals in order to provide a safe and any other form of prejudice in Heathenry/Asatru… This will be a time to build alliances among inclusive groups and individuals so that we may more strongly support our shared inclusive values together There were strong differences of opinion over how to best deal with organization members found to belong to hate groups or to espouse racist views Some issues that had bubbled up at times earlier in the conference were more clearly articulated here and differences between American and European approaches were more prominent Perhaps the most profound difference was how the inclusiveness – the foundational theme of the conference – was understood inclusivity is not synonymous with diversity standing up for our beliefs means actively welcoming Heathens from diverse racial and building communities that reflect that diversity of the United States similarly standing tall really seemed much more about speaking out against resurgent and racist nationalism keeping hateful individuals out of their organizations and actively challenging those who hold and promote racism The Americans seemed very wary of publicly denouncing individuals and organizations that everyone agreed are overtly racist and the Europeans seemed somewhat taken aback by questions about the all-white make up of their inclusive groups Assembled attendees at Frith Forge [Robert Lewis] There also has to be participation from people of color who have left inclusive organizations after being made to feel uncomfortable or unwelcome It will be difficult for some to hear their testimony but it needs to be heard – especially after one participant performed an imitation of an African-American woman’s manner of speaking during the large-group discussion on inclusivity There are attitudes and behaviors that even those of us who argue for inclusion have deep within us and the only treatment is to dig deep into our assumptions and lay them bare The organizers did a lot of hard work to make it happen A major outcome of the final discussion was the agreement of the participants to work together on building a website resource on inclusive Heathenry and Ásatrú that will have detailed information and guides for the general public and religious practitioners One of the important ideas regarding the website is that it will provide guidance for those new to the religion — especially young people — to help them recognize warning signs of racist or otherwise extremist Heathenry Such a resource is much needed and can do a lot of good Grebenstein closed the conference as he opened it and conversations at the conference will continue to resonate within the participants and lead them to push for positive change within their own organizations and communities The Wild Hunt is not responsible for links to external content Visit our The Wild Hunt subreddit! Point your favorite browser to https://www.reddit.com/r/The_Wild_Hunt_News/ to be notified of new articles posted to our subreddit Seigfried is a Theology and Religious History Faculty at Cherry Hill Seminary Adjunct Professor in Humanities at Illinois Institute of Technology and goði (priest) of Thor's Oak Kindred the International Journal of Indic Religions Newberry Library Digital Collections for the Classroom Pathways for Ecumenical and Interreligious Dialogue Series Religion News Association's Religion Stylebook Routledge Inform Series on Minority Religions and Spiritual Movements Sightings of the Martin Marty Center for the Advanced Study of Religion and he is the first Ásatrú practitioner to hold a graduate degree from the University of Chicago Divinity School Pingback: Apostasy | Gangleri's Grove Built with the Largo WordPress Theme from the Institute for Nonprofit News By appointing Rick Medford as vice president of change management and technology MEININGER Hotels intends to accelerate its use of digital for management on the one hand and customer satisfaction on the other Rick Medford has been the group's head of IT since 2019 The group intends to capitalise on his professional experience during which he helped lead change at Marks & Spencer He keeps the IT hat on but is now tasked with leveraging digital technologies to improve management efficiency and customer satisfaction much more than fancy lettering on a wedding invitation Now throw into the mix gold leaf gilding and you have an art form that is beautiful and timely The mind boggles at the possibilities; I am excited to learn about those possibilities and be part of a sacred art form,” said Roberta A Theriault and fellow student Nicholas Bobrovsky of Pittsfield traveled to Clinton’s Museum of Russian Icons for a two-day workshop with calligraphy and gilding expert Maryanne C The museum decided to hold the workshop “because we saw how closely related to other Biblical art It takes a lot of discipline and dedication,” said Administrative Manager Jocelyn J Both students are iconographers in the Russian style; Mr Bobrovsky whose family was originally from Russia My parents ran away from the Russian Revolution in 1917 to Czechoslovakia then from there to Paris in 1938 from the communists and in 1952 we came to America He belongs to a Russian Orthodox Church in Pittsfield and asked the priest if he could paint some new icons egg tempera or acrylics; acrylics is easier and you don’t have to use 5 million eggs!” said Mr who came to the class to hone his technique in lettering the prayers on icons Grebenstein assured her students that although the alphabets “You can analyze the letter forms — and these techniques that we will be learning can be used with whatever alphabet you are using.” Bobrovsky is also on the fundraising committee to build a new church and he says that not only can he use the letter and gilding techniques on the four or five icons he produces each year for other churches in Massachusetts and in New York “I think that the discipline of making the lines and being consistent (when lettering) is the most challenging just as hard as putting on the varnish,” said Mr It was noted that Russian iconographers adhered to strict rules in the creation of icons with one person doing everything: the preparation of the boards lettering and varnishing the finished product There are no clouds or shadows on icons and specific colors were used for backgrounds and clothing “The two major areas that artists were allowed to be creative were the halos and folds in garments,” said Ms who has been studying the art for 25 years Halos are typically painted with a gesso layer to adhere the gold leaf to the image being painted Hand-tooled images or designs can be delicately sculpted into the gesso layer then gold leaf is delicately pressed into the gesso The final step in gilding is to burnish the gold leaf to a shiny finish “illuminating” or infusing the letter or image with light it takes a long time and a lot of practice,” said Ms whose studio produces one-of-a-kind books for poetry and weddings and hand-lettered documents for corporations She also teaches at museums and art schools ­Anuschka Pashel is “interested in all things beautiful,” says the retailer Which is why the former Ford model doesn’t limit the types of products she sells in her Denver boutique who was born and raised in Germany to Czech parents began her post-modeling career as a floral designer and opened Bloom by ­Anuschka as a floral atelier in 2011 “But it worked really well with the jewelry right away,” she recalls we really have something here.” She’s since built up an exquisite multifaceted jewelry section in the store that reflects her eye for sophisticated bohemian design “I’ve always had a passion for jewelry,” she says Inset: Pashel’s own bracelets with antique millefiori Venetian glass beads 2025 © RX USA. 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Home / Science & Nature / Anthropology / There is little doubt that human activity is affecting planet Earth Rick Potts is the director of the Human Origins Program and curator of anthropology at the National Museum of Natural History Potts has studied the relationship between environmental change and human adaptation leading excavations in the East African Rift Valley Potts explores the human period of Earth’s history and what it means for the future by looking far into the past Rick Potts studies and samples a portion of the long climate core obtained by drilling at the early human site of Olorgesailie The core contains clues to the climate of the past 500,000 years Potts: The Anthropocene is sometimes viewed as a new geological era on earth: the age of humans that age has been so short-lived at this point that it’s more of a way of thinking about ourselves–acknowledging the enormous impact of human beings on planet earth Potts: Asking to pinpoint the beginning of the Anthropocene is like asking “When was the beginning of being human?” One could point to walking upright and making tools to do things and manipulate the world Or one could look to recent times of the enormous population explosion since the industrial age But there are all sorts of steps in between and I would say that the making of a stone tool more than 2 million years ago and controlling fire nearly a million years ago were the first real signs that something new was on the scene Approximately 2 million years old the Kanjera Stone Tool from Kanjera South is the oldest man-made object in the Smithsonian According to anthropologist Rick Potts at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History the start of the Anthropocene is marked by the use of the first man-made tools Potts: Humans control six times more water – fresh water – than is free flowing across the continents Eighty-three precent of all viable land on earth is occupied so the imprint of human beings on the landscape is extensive Just from silts eroded from agricultural land into the ocean we can totally alter the nature of marine ecosystems Potts: I would say that the scientific evidence is really profound that the earth is warming These problems are going to need to be solved by a concerted action across the world Denying climate change is unfortunately part of the range of the ways people try to adjust to a fairly difficult situation Rick Potts’s team recovered the first long climate core from an early human site by drilling to the floor of the East African Rift Valley in southern Kenya The core reached sediments more than 160 meters below the ground Potts: I think there are some things that are too late Even if we stop right now the earth is going to warm immensely Population increase – it’s hard to get people to stop having fulfilling lives with families I think a vision for the Anthropocene is really a matter of–do you try to lower the river or raise the bridge Lowering the river is really hard to do when the flood of Anthropocene events are coming closer to our own communities I think we need to look at a third option: that is accommodate the rising tide of problems that the Anthropocene poses and realize we’re all in the same ship together I believe we need to figure out a way to have a ship that is larger than ourselves and includes as much biological diversity and cultural diversity that can fit into the large boat Tags: , , , Home / Research News / Paleontologists had found vertebrae and ribs of a Titanoboa on previous excavations which allowed them to estimate the massive size of the snake and do inferences on the climate conditions when it was alive But in order to get additional information about this animal Smithsonian intern Catalina Suarez Gomez excavating a fossil in the Cerrejón coal mine in Colombia While on a field trip with five paleontologists in the Cerrejón coal mine in Colombia geologist Gersom Garcia alerted Suarez Gomez and biologist Jorge Moreno to additional Titanoboa bones discovered on a walk “We took a closer look and there were some different fragments I looked at Jorge’s face and he looked at me ‘These are skull fragments of a snake!,’ he said Finally….This is the skull of Titanoboa!’” A Smithsonian team excavates a crocodile fossil in the Cerrejón coal mine in Colombia “Finding the skull of a snake is like looking for needle in a haystack as the bones are very small and do not hold together as a human skull does,” said Carlos Jaramillo a research biologist at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute who oversaw Suarez Gomez’s work “You have to have an acute observation skill I was very impressed that Catalina was able to find it The skull provides an unparalleled source of information to understand the anatomy and function of Titanoboa.” Now in her second year at the Universidad Nacional de La Plata in Argentina for a PhD in paleontology Suarez Gomez considers the Smithsonian a game-changer “My time at the Smithsonian was one of the best chapters of my life,” Suarez Gomez said but I also could know kind and smart people from many cultures and countries I had everything I needed: many academic and physical resources support from the best scientists and kind people around.” “I think the Smithsonian was a breaking point in my life,” she continued my life is divided in 2 parts: BS (Before Smithsonian) and AS (After Smithsonian) And I think the ‘AS’ part could be pretty much the best part Being a former Smithsonian intern has opened many doors for me.” To learn more about internship and fellowship opportunities at the Smithsonian, visit https://www.smithsonianofi.com/ Tags: , , Katie Cramer is a MarineGEO Post-Doctoral Fellow and travels to Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama throughout the year to conduct research Her recent paper in the Bulletin of Marine Science “History of human occupation and environmental change in western and central Caribbean Panama,” gathers decades of research on human activity in Caribbean Panama provides a historical context for the differing levels of coral reef degradation Cramer answers a few questions about her research for Smithsonian Insider Katie Cramer collects coral skeletons and shells from excavation pit near Bocas del Toro (Photo courtesy Scripps Institution of Oceanography) I tracked historical changes in coral reef ecosystems by collecting fossils from pits excavated underneath modern reefs along western and central Caribbean Panama This paper was a logical follow-up to the main study I wanted to better understand the antiquity of human-caused change on Caribbean coral reefs and to provide context for the differing levels of reef degradation between these regions today Cramer: Largely unrestricted fishing and coastal deforestation have significantly degraded the marine ecosystems along Panama’s Pacific and Caribbean coasts which contains the majority of Panama’s coral reefs outbreaks of coral disease and coral bleaching have dramatically reduced the extent of corals over the past few decades This constitutes a massive loss in habitat for millions of reef-associated species and climate change are often cited as culprits but there is very little data about the state of reefs before the 1980s when reef research really began in earnest This is why we need historical and paleontological data about reefs – to sort out which human activities are most damaging Katie Cramer on the road in Panama transporting coral samples from Bocas del Toro to Panama City Menu.page-176135896{--colorD:#f9ce60;--colorJ:#f9ce60;--gradientTransparentJ:#f9ce6000;--colorDC:#f9ce60;--colorDA:#f9ce60;--colorDF:#f9ce60;--colorJD:#f9ce60;--colorDJ:#f9ce60;--colorJF:#f9ce60;--colorJG:#f9ce60;--colorDDC:#f9ce60;--colorDTransparent:#f9ce60;--colorJTransparent:#f9ce60}ScienceESA wants to send a 50-pound rover to a tiny strange Solar System moonNever before has an exploration vehicle with wheels traveled on a small celestial body Aurelian Popescu / 500px/500Px Unreleased/Getty ImagesJapan and Germany have a history of collaboration in scientific and technological endeavors. The countries have a Joint Committee on Cooperation in Science Technology that has met many times over the decades powerful economies and sophisticated technological know-how so it makes sense they’d collaborate on scientific activities This time, their cooperation concerns a small, potato-shaped chunk of rock: Mars’ moon Phobos In 2024, the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) plans to launch the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission to Phobos and Deimos. Deimos will get the fly-by treatment but JAXA has more ambitious ideas for Phobos They intend to land a spacecraft on Phobos — maybe twice — and collect samples for return to Earth (JAXA has a track record of gathering samples from elsewhere The German Aerospace Center (DLR) will send a rover on the mission a small 25 kg (55 lb) wheeled vehicle that will be “dropped” on the surface of Phobos from a height of about 50 meters we are breaking new ground in terms of technology because never before has an exploration vehicle with wheels traveled on a small celestial body with only one-thousandth of the Earth’s gravitational pull,” said Markus Grebenstein from the DLR Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics in Oberpfaffenhofen Getting the rover onto Phobos’ surface is not an ordinary landing procedure The little vehicle will be dropped onto the moon and tumble as it falls it’ll need to right itself and get to work “As the rover free-falls onto Phobos following separation from the spacecraft it will perform several ‘somersaults’ upon touchdown without damage and come to rest in an unpredictable position it must autonomously upright itself with the help of the propulsion system and unfold its solar panels,” said Grebenstein it will travel very carefully at only a few millimetres per second in order to retain contact with the ground with its special wheels despite the low gravity.” it’ll use its instruments: a radiometer and a Raman spectrometer for in-situ measurements of the moon’s surface It’s because of the questions around Phobos and its sibling Scientists aren’t sure if they’re captured asteroids from the main belt or elsewhere in the Solar System — possibly from as far away as the Kuiper Belt — or if they’re rubble pile asteroids that formed at Mars Some evidence shows that they’re being torn apart by Mars’ gravity They may even have been destroyed once already and reformed again or they may be the result of an impact that sent Martian material into orbit The Raman spectrometer will reveal Phobos’ mineralogical composition. Mineralogical composition is critical to understanding Phobos’ origins. Like any Solar System body, its composition tells scientists where it’s from. For instance, some elements are far more common in the inner Solar System, while others only form beyond the frost line The rover’s radiometer will measure the power of the moon’s electromagnetic radiation It’ll be tuned to the infrared spectrum and effectively measure Phobos’ temperature That helps lead to an understanding of the moon’s porosity which scientists can compare to other Solar System bodies Scientists can use that data to help understand the moon’s origins The rover will also have four cameras: two are for navigation and two will monitor the wheels on the ground The mission’s crowning achievement will be the sample return JAXA intends to outdo its impressive sampling achievement from the Hayabusa 2 mission That mission returned samples of asteroid Ryugu that are carbon-rich fragments They’ll help determine the source of water and organic molecules delivered to Earth JAXA hopes to collect a much larger sample than the Ryugu sample the mission only has 90 minutes to collect samples before darkness returns and the spacecraft needs to leave the surface It’ll take its measurements and then die on Phobos it’ll contribute to the sampling operation The MMX Rover will reach the surface first and help determine the landing spot for the Exploration Module Data and images from the rover will also serve as a reference for the orbiter’s instruments There are layers of international cooperation on this mission But Spain is helping develop the Raman spectrometer and the French space agency is involved in the project So when the mission hopefully lands on Phobos and succeeds in collecting samples there’ll be teams of jubilant scientists and engineers in several countries Happy JAXA personnel showed their “V” for victory signs after Hayabusa 2 successfully collected samples from asteroid Ryugu This article was originally published on Universe Today by Evan Gough. Read the original article here This article was originally published on November 27 Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker excitement and high-pressure of one of the world’s biggest live telecasts the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest was staged at the International Exhibition Centre in Kiev production for the two live semi-finals and final were world class The shows were enjoyed by 7,500 people packing in to the venue and around 200 million on TV all appreciating the amazing production design by Florian Wieder working closely with lighting designer and DoP Jerry Appelt plus a massive technical team managed on site by head of production MA Lighting was once again chosen to provide a powerful flexible and stable networked control solution for 1,816 lighting and LED ‘pixel’ fixtures plus playback video elements for the upstage video wall An impressive total of 12 x grandMA2 consoles were installed into the venue: 8 x grandMA2 full-size Five desks were active during the show session operated by Raphael Demonthy (main show light operator) Thorsten ‘Icke’ Berger (follow spot caller) and Sebastian ‘Huwi’ Huwig (playback video) freelance lighting and systems tech working for PRG Germany and brought on-board as a network and lighting data specialist He used Paessler PRTG software to monitor the entire lighting and video data / hardware control network Another grandMA2 desk was used by the Swedish delegation during their show to control moving treadmills and their associated LED specials and one grandMA2 was on standby in case of emergencies The dot2 core was used side stage to fire all the pyro cues These were joined by 25 x MA NPU (Network Processing Unit) two active but not in the session plus three spare 4 x grandMA2 fader wing and 16 x video servers all in the control network These grandMA2 control elements were specified by gaffer and lighting technical manager Matthias Rau and they reached the maximum amount of 31 x MA class 1 network devices (desks and MA NPU) plus the MA 8Port Nodes and MA 3D on top The total parameter count being controlled across the MA network was 88,466 and the fixtures being controlled including all their respective individual LED pixels amounted to 9,857 A massive 18,536 cues were in the final showfile activated across 164 console executors (Playbacks) and 226-patched universes two in the arena – one at FOH split left and right – one house left and one house right and one behind the stage/video wall with three fibre rings running around the arena connecting these to FOH via switches – 34 in total plus four 8port truss mounts – for the whole control network running in RLinkX mode for full redundancy Ring 1 was dedicated only to MA-Net2 protocol Ring 2 was a mix of MA-Net2 and ‘Funny Net’ and Ring 3 was ‘Funny Net’ – which consisted of assorted VLANS Internet and any other extraneous VLAN that was needed located left and right of the stage; dealing with data and power feeds for the whole stage area LX1 – 1 of 40 lighting trusses – nicknamed “The Beehive” dealt with the centrepiece which comprised 56 MagicPanel FX units and 40 hybrid moving lights which also ran over DC 3 positioned upstage of the video wall All the floor fixtures and a 39 x 9 matrix of 24-pixel LED strobes also ran over DC 3 The audience trusses – complete with around 595 fixtures – all had their data and power supplied via DCs 4 and 5 under the FOH area Another 24 x Magic Panel FXs were integrated into the front of the stage all running on Art-Net to simplify the DMX cabling due to the high amount of DMX channels per unit There were also around 2,500 x LED strips integrated into the large scenic arch / set portal and the stage steps and flooring The attractive LED circles around the delegation seating areas in the green room at the back of the arena consumed around 600 metres of LED tube and all of these components were routed via the Funny Net PRTG played a fundamental role in monitoring both the network and all the system hardware It allowed Collins to see any irregularities immediately on one screen and identify and deal with any issues across the entire system quickly and efficiently “No matter what you need from the grandMA2 system there is always a way to do it and often there are several approaches to achieve what you need” it was not just the ability to see what everyone is doing and how stable the system was running but to also go back and look at the history of who or what has caused issues which was absolutely essential in a setup this size with five operators.” The 2017 Eurovision Song contest telecast was directed by Ladislaus Kiraly for host broadcaster National Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine (UA:PBC) and is produced by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) It was won by Portugal’s Salvador Sobral with the song “Amar pelos dois” (Loving for the Both of Us) marking Portugal’s first ever victory or placing in 53 years of Eurovision participation PRG Germany was the event’s main lighting and video equipment contractor they agreed collaboration with production rental specialist Litecom from Denmark who provided the MA Lighting grandMA2 control hardware and data networking infrastructure www.malighting.com We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings we will not be able to save your preferences This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again More information about our Cookie Policy Students and teachers from San Andrea school attended the fourth and final meeting of the Comenius project 'Europe Goes to Theatre' which was held in May in the village of Grebenstein in Kassel Over the past three years the project has introduced the students to the languages of the partner countries while developing their theatre skills through plays based on European tales and literature students from the five participating countries performed the play Birds by Aristophanes in the school hall of Heinrich-Grupe-Schule San Andrea School was represented at the meeting by school head Dorothy Lapira Kassel and the surrounding German landscape inspired the Grimm Brothers to write their fairytales and the meeting participants took the occasion to visit the very place where the brothers often sat down with Dorothea Viehmann to write the stories that were later published as fairytales for which they are so famous today The program also included a visit to Weimar home of the famous German writer Goethe and the Sababurg Castle The local school's participation in the project was made possible though EU funding received through the European Union Programmes Unit please register for free or log in to your account A drama evening was held earlier this month at San Andrea Senior School to conclude to the students' work in the Comenius project 'Europe goes to theatre' The project was aimed at using drama to motivate students to improve their knowledge of the cultures of Italy Bulgaria and Turkey and their respective languages Apart from coming into contact with the work of various authors from these countries the students also experienced acting in a foreign language An exhibition of the students' work was also launched on Parents' Day at the school A meeting of the project partners was held in February in Izmir at the Hatice Güzelcan Anatolian High School the group also visited the ruins of the city of Ephesus and its various ancient remains and the house where the Virgin Mary is believed to have lived during her stay in Ephesus The final project meeting will be held in Grebenstein please register for free or log in to your account.