The gatekeepers of the top scientific journals are people who themselves failed to publish in those journals when they were in academia. Had they been able to do so, they would today be authors, not professional editors. Could it be that the best science produced in the world today is being judged by the worst scientists? If true, that would be very unsettling.
It is quite doubtful that anyone would start graduate school or postdoctoral training with the idea in mind to become a journal editor. The vast majority of graduates initiating postdoctoral studies do so with an intent to become principal investigators. Something happens along the way. Disenchantment with an active career in science? Too few positions available? Harsh competition? Family choices? Perhaps all of the above.Read more...
“The Singles Collection” is a compilation album featuring a selection of tracks from the first 4 volumes of Chromatographies.
Chromatographies is the jazz and ambient guitar project of Carlos Ibanez. The recordings consist of solo guitar performances that alternate improvised ambient guitar meditations with jazz guitar pieces.
“Synaptic Wisdom”, the latest track in the Chromatographies project, is an ambient guitar meditation to bring focus on the inner workings of our synapses. Totally improvised on the Casimi C5S baritone acoustic guitar tuned to open D, it is meant as a background to meditation and introspection.
The interplay between light, water and time can give extraordinary results in slow-shutter photography, a technique in which long(ish) exposures (1/15 – 1 sec) combine with various camera movements to yield magical streaks of light reflections on a surreal background. The covers and inlay photography of the four albums of my ambient and jazz guitar music project “Chromatographies” used this technique to turn familiar land and cityscapes into abstract paintings of movement, light and color.
The gallery above shows the photographs used for the four covers each followed by an (approximately) corresponding image taken with a normal shutter speed and no camera movement. Click on each picture for an enlarged image and try to guess where they were taken. Read further below for the spoilers.Read more...
Series/parallel box custom-made by Goodwood Audio (partially seen under VENTRIS) now allows DIG→BlueSky and ElCapistan→VENTRIS to run either in parallel or in series.
IRIDIUM and ENZO return to the main board; ICONOCLAST went ot the auxiliary board; the EXPRESSIONATOR was retired.
Switches on the side of the board (not seen here) allow to toggle the volume pedal between expression, volume, both or off.
My 6th residence at the Stellenbosch Institute For Advanced Study (STIAS), and the 3rd of my Permanent Fellowship, has begun. My project here will be a continuation of my first residence in 2015 “New approaches to anti-obesity therapeutics”.
During my first 2015 residence, I presented some of the approaches followed by my laboratory to investigate this problem, based on studies of the ALK7 protein, a highly abundant receptor molecule in rodent and human adipocytes that is a key regulator of fat metabolism and plasticity. Major advances have taken place in the past 9 years in the field as a whole, the best known of these being the development and clinical application of GLP-1 agonists.Read more...
“Acoustic Ribosomes”, the fourth volume of the Chromatographies project, is now live in Bandcamp for download or streaming. The download includes a digital booklet. There are also CDs available.
Chromatographies is the jazz and ambient guitar project of Carlos Ibanez. The recordings consist of solo guitar performances that alternate improvised ambient guitar meditations with jazz guitar pieces.
Different from previous volumes, the present recording mainly features acoustic instruments. In addition to original tracks, it includes pieces by Ralph Towner, Egberto Gismonti and Jimmy Page.
Tracks featured in this recording:
Sacred Place (Ralph Towner)
Cystine Knot Waltz [knotted]
Salvador (Egberto Gismonti)
The Three-Antibody Problem
Jamaica Stopover (Ralph Towner)
Cystine Knot Waltz [unknotted]
Bonding Hydrogens
Solitary Woman (Ralph Towner)
Cystine Knot Waltz [reknotted]
Peace On The Chromosome
The Rain Song (Jimmy Page)
Compositions by Carlos Ibañez except as indicated.Read more...
Our latest guitar acquisition is a cross-over nylon string guitar made in 2005 by John Buscarino. This is his Grand Cabaret model with a number of special woods and appointments. This instrument was purchased through the wonderful (and highly addictive) Dream Guitars shop and website run by Paul Heumiller in North Carolina. Full specs can be found at their website here. Dream Guitars had two instruments that caught our attention and we schedule a live demo with them to see and hear the two instruments through an uncompressed video link. There were several features in this instrument that tilted the decision. A wider nut and the cedar top were the more critical, aside of its fancy woods and appointments. What’s a crossover guitar?Read more...
There were several features in this instrument that tilted the decision. A wider nut and the cedar top were the more critical, aside of its fancy woods and appointments. What’s a crossover guitar?