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Edinburgh Reporter
2 days ago
- Science
- Edinburgh Reporter
The astronomical sky above Edinburgh and Lothian this month
The Earth reaches the furthest point from the Sun all year and 3 planets appear to reverse orbit. As many readers will have seen, a new astronomical research facility came online in the past few months: the Vera Rubin Observatory which hosts the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope. Your present interlocutor had a (very) small part in the design process. The telescope is designed to automatically image the northern sky over the next decade. It will utilize the large 3.2 GigaPixel camera footprint—equivalent to 7 full moons across—to visit each 10 square degree tile 825 times on average. This means that any transient phenomena should be picked up by the data pipelines. Of particular interest are near Earth objects (NEOs and potential Earth impactors) and supernova that will probe the dark energy content of the universe. You can explore these new images (and more to come) via or using their web application at Aphelion is the term used for when a planet and Sun are furthest apart and, for Earth, this occurs on 3 July at 9:04 pm when the Earth will be 152,087,735 km away from the Sun. Over the whole of July, though, the Sun comes closer to Earth by 248,314 km. The Sun passes from Gemini (The Twins) on 20 July at 11:51 am and enters Cancer (The Crab). We are getting longer nights now that the Solstice has passed. Daylight shortens from 17:30 (17.493 hours) on 1 July to 16:06 (16.102 hours) on 31 July so we gain 1 hour and 23 minutes of night time, by the end of the month. We are still within the summer months of perpetual twilight, though, so reducing astronomical visibility to the brightest objects in the sky. The Sun, however, is still close to 'Solar Max' which is the peak of the 11 year Sun spot cycle. This may herald better aurorae between now and the end of the year. The Moon begins the month in Leo (The Lion) and ends in Virgo (The Maiden). The first quarter of the new Lunar cycle shows up on 2 July at 8:30 pm in Virgo (The Maiden). Lunar apogee (furthest from Earth) occurs on 5 July at 3:26 am and takes the Moon to 404,662 km away from Earth—around 20,262 km further than average—subtending an angle of 29.5 arc-minutes. The full Buck Moon makes an appearance on 10 July at 9:37 pm in Sagittarius (The Archer). This is also known as the Thunder Moon. The Moon enters last quarter on 18 July at 1:38 am in Pisces (The Fishes). Lunar perigee (closest to Earth) on 20 July at 2:48 pm finds the Moon some 368,012 km away from Earth—around 16,388 km closer than average—subtending an angle of 32.5 arc-minutes. Finally, the new Moon appears on 24 July at 8:11 pm in Cancer (The Crab) beginning a new synodic (Lunar) month which will last 29 days, 10 hours and 55 minutes. For the inferior planets: Mercury remains in Cancer (The Crab) all month but comes closer by 43,342,913 km. The 'Swift Planet' decreases in magnitude from 0.40 to 5.41 (101.23 times in brightness) over the month. Mercury reaches greatest eastern elongation (from the Sun) on America's Independence Day and aphelion (furthest from the Sun) on 14 July. On 17 July, Mercury appears—at least on sky—to reverse orbit to retrograde. From then on, Mercury approaches Earth coming closest on 28 July but is lost for observing by 31 July when it reaches inferior conjunction. After this time is transitions from an evening planet to a morning planet. Venus begins the month in Taurus (The Bull) and ends in Gemini (The Twins) but recedes by 33,872,820 km. The 'Morning Star' planet decreases in magnitude from -4.14 to -4.00 (1.14 times in brightness) over the month. For the superior planets: Mars begins the month in Leo (The Lion) and ends in Virgo (The Maiden) but recedes by 28,884,201 km. The 'Red Planet' decreases in magnitude from 1.49 to 1.60 (1.11 times in brightness) over the month. Mars visits the Moon on the evening of 28 July passing 1.3 degrees north of the waxing crescent Moon. Jupiter remains in Gemini (The Twins) all month but comes closer by 18,057,658 km. This does not alter the brightness much which remains steady at -1.75 magnitudes. The 'Gas Giant' is emerging from (solar) conjunction last month becoming visible just before sunrise. In fact, on 23 July, in the pre-dawn hours, Jupiter will be 4.9 degrees south of the waning crescent Moon. Saturn remains in Pisces (The Fishes) all month but comes closer by 70,506,621 km. Saturn increases in magnitude from 0.96 to 0.80 (1.16 times in brightness) over the month. The 'Ringed Planet'—still appearing ringless until November or so!—crosses to a retrograde orbit on 14 July. You may catch a glimpse of Saturn during civil twilight on 16 July. Uranus remains in Taurus (The Bull) all month but comes closer by 62,919,841 km. Neptune remains in Pisces (The Fishes) all month but comes closer by 71,422,081 km. Neptune increases in magnitude from 7.76 to 7.71 (1.05 times in brightness) over the month. The 'Blue Giant' also crosses to retrograde on 5 July. There are four meteor showers in July but visibility is nigh on impossible either due to twilight, Moon illumination, latitude or shooting star rates but we mention them for completeness. The July Pegasids (175 JPE) peak on 10 July and are radiant from Pegasus (The Winged Horse) near the star Markab. Only 3 meteors per hour are expected during a full Moon. The parent body is thought to be comet C/1979 Y1 (Bradfield). We fare slightly better with the other 3 showers which occur between new Moon and first quarter. On 28 July, we have the Gamma Draconids (184 GDR) radiant from Draco (The Dragon) near the star Rastaban. The parent body is unknown but the ZHR is a lowly 5. Overnight on 30/31 July, we have the southern Delta Aquariids (005 SDA), radiant from Aquarius (The Water Bearer) near it's namesake star. There may be up to 25 meteors per hour but, as the name implies, viewing is much better at southern latitudes. The parent body is thought to be comet 96P/Machholz. Also on 31 July, we have the Alpha Capricornids (001 CAP) radiant near the horns of the sea goat. The ZHR is, again, low at 5. Discovered in 1871, the parent comet is 169P/NEAT but the Earth won't pass through the main cometary debris for another 2 centuries! Although both amateurs and professionals eagerly anticipate the recurrent nova known as the Blaze Star, we would prefer it to be later in the year and, certainly, outside summer's perpetual twilit sky! Vigilant observers should continue to monitor the sky near CrB epsilon-13 to see if Corona Borealis (The Northern Crown) gains another jewel. Alphecca (sometimes called Gemma or alpha-CrB) is the brightest star in the constellation, at 2.2 mag, and should guide you to this transient event. At the time of our sky map, some constellations visible are Draco (The Dragon) at zenith, Camelopardalis (The Giraffe) in the north, Pegasus (The Winged Horse) in the east, Coma Berenices (Berenice's Hair) in the west, and Serpens Cauda (The Serpent's Tail) in the south. The ecliptic hosts Pisces (The Fishes), Aquarius (The Water Bearer), Capricorn (The Sea Goat), Sagittarius (the Archer), Scorpio (The Scorpion), Libra (The Scales), Virgo (The Maiden) and Leo (The Lion). The 'Summer Triangle'—Vega in Lyra (The Lyre), Altair in Aquila (The Eagle) and Deneb in Cygnus (The Swan)—is prominent at mid-to-high altitude in the south-east. The 'Diamond of Virgo'—Arcturus in Bootes (The Herdsman), Cor Caroli in Canes Venatici (The Hunting Dogs), Denebola in Leo (The Lion) and Spica in Virgo (The Maiden)—is low in the west. Circumpolar constellations—always above the horizon—include Cassiopeia (The Seated Queen), Cepheus (The King) and Ursa Major (The Great Bear). Like this: Like Related


Boston Globe
23-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
A professional puppeteer builds a world with its own set of rules
In 'Party Animals,' five friends try to throw a birthday party. It features original music by Boston composer Puppeteer Sarah Nolen will perform her show "Party Animals" on Boston Common July 5. Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff 'I told him, 'I want to make a show that has hand puppets and rock 'n' roll. I want it to feel in the vein of ' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up One character wields a yo-yo, another wraps a gift. Both posed engineering problems for the puppet designer: How do you manipulate a poet and his yo-yo? She only has two hands. 'I'm cueing all my music with my foot,' she said. 'It's very much like a one-man band.' Advertisement Sarah Nolen demonstrates how she holds her puppets "The Cheerleaders" when performing. Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff Where to find her : Age : 38 Originally from : 'I grew up in the hippie cowboy town of Austin, Texas.' Lives in : Waltham Making a living : Puppets are Nolen's full-time job. In addition to her work at Puppet Showplace Theater, she designs and builds puppets for other productions and films, performs her own shows locally, and teaches. Advertisement In Sarah Nolen's Waltham studio, "everything's on wheels." Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff Studio : The puppeteer lives in the loft of her Waltham Mills studio. 'I'll come down in the morning and be like, I need to make some breakfast,' she said, 'and then it'll be 11:30 a.m. and I'm in my robe hot gluing something.' Downstairs, 'Everything's on wheels,' she said. 'It's a rehearsal space. Sometimes it's molding and casting. Sometimes it's painting, sometimes it's sewing, sometimes it's woodworking.' Using L200 foam and pool noodles for the mane, puppeteer Sarah Nolen made 'Aslan' for a 2021 Boston College production of 'The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.' The large puppet calls for three puppeteers. Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff How she started : In fourth grade, Nolen created a show about Rapunzel in her living room. 'Toilet paper was the hair,' she said. After college, she worked as a production assistant on reality shows ' What she makes : 'What don't I make?' Nolen said. 'With puppetry, you're building a world that is not human-centric. That world has its own rules, it has its own aesthetic, and it has its own needs. Whatever world that is, it's going to come with different starting points.' A wooden marionette is posed on Sarah Nolen's work table in her Waltham studio. Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff How she works : 'You're learning on the job every time,' she said. 'There's always a surprise.' To make giant puppets for an Advice for artists : 'You never know when inspiration will come from,' Nolen said. 'Don't limit your palette of curiosity.' Advertisement Puppeteer Sarah Nolen poses with "Sammy." She made "Sammy" with assistance from puppet builder John Cody, for the 2021 movie 'Don't Look Up.' Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff


Time of India
22-06-2025
- General
- Time of India
From national crisis to national cure: Lessons from Indore's clean sweep
V. Raghunathan is a former Director of the Schulich School of Business (India Program), York University, Toronto, a former professor at IIM Ahmedabad and a former President of ING Vysya Bank. A prolific author, he has written over 15 books, including the national bestseller Games Indians Play (Penguin). With more than 600 published papers and articles, his latest books include The Lion, The Admiral, and A Cat Called B. Uma Vijaylakshmi (Westland, 2025) and To Every Parent; To Every Child (Penguin, 2025) and Irrationally Rational: 10 Nobel Laureates Script the Story of Behavioural Economics (Penguin 2022), among others. LESS ... MORE We are a nation of stark contradictions: deeply spiritual, revering rivers like the Ganga and Yamuna in our mythology and rituals yet ranked among the world's most polluted nations. If we are ashamed, it's not showing. At least not enough. Our sacred rivers are heavily contaminated by untreated sewage, industrial effluents, and religious offerings. Urban drainage systems remain outdated, and sanitation workers –many from marginalized communities – risk their lives cleaning sewers without proper safety gear, reflecting systemic neglect and caste-based discrimination. Air pollution, especially in Delhi, and streets clogged with garbage and stench further underscore the crisis. Even India's proud railway network discharges waste directly onto tracks, exemplifying systemic neglect. Despite ambitious initiatives like Swachh Bharat, many toilets remain unused, and waste management remains primitive, burning, burying, or dumping refuse in open spaces. Public areas are overwhelmed with plastic, food waste, and debris, driven by cultural laxity and apathy. Education campaigns alone have limited impact without enforcement or civic pride. Ultimately, India's sanitation challenge isn't just infrastructural; it demands a cultural reset, transforming slogans into ingrained civic habits. But amid this pervasive gloom, there is a shining beacon: Indore. Once a typical mid-sized city plagued by waste, stench, and civic apathy, Indore has redefined what's possible. It has topped India's Swachh Survekshan rankings for six consecutive years, proving that cleanliness is not a fantasy but an achievable reality. This success didn't happen by chance; it was the result of deliberate design, relentless execution, and a profound cultural shift. India doesn't lack the knowledge or technology; it lacks the will and persistent effort. Indore demonstrated that with political resolve, professional leadership, and active citizen participation, transformation is inevitable. So, what exactly did Indore do right? Can its model be replicated across India? The answer lies in a series of strategic steps: A mission-oriented approach Indore's core strength was establishing a unified, empowered, and accountable sanitation task force. Instead of responsibility being scattered across multiple departments, the city brought together municipal officials, private waste contractors, sanitation workers, engineers, health officials, and citizens. This was more than creating committees; it was about making cleanliness a civic mission. Targets were set, budgets allocated, and results tracked. The city's leadership, from the mayor to the frontline workers, embraced the vision of making Indore India's cleanest city, and they delivered. For other cities, a similar Decentralised Urban Sanitation Mission (DUSM) should be established – an autonomous, professional body with a dedicated chief sanitation officer and cross-functional teams. Funding from the Centre and states must prioritize sanitation as a core public health issue, not an afterthought. Segregated at source Indore broke new ground by enforcing 100% household segregation of waste into wet, dry, and hazardous categories. It was not just about distributing coloured bins; it involved sustained public education, strict penalties, and daily feedback. Over 1,600 'safai mitras' or sanitation ambassadors, were deployed, each assigned specific households and trained to promote cleanliness. GPS-tracked waste collection vehicles monitored punctuality and coverage. Wet waste was processed locally through composting and bio-methanation, dry waste was sorted for recycling, and hazardous waste was carefully disposed of. This professional backbone and community buy-in reduced landfill dependence, increased recycling, and restored dignity to sanitation workers. India must emulate this model, not with promises, but with on-ground action. Professionalisation of sanitation services Dependence on contractual labour and outdated methods hampers progress. Indore invested in professional facility management firms, performance-based contracts, and tech-enabled monitoring. Workers received protective gear, uniforms, insurance, and training. Routine cleaning, proactive drain clearance, and emergency response systems became standard. India needs a National Institute of Urban Cleanliness Management to train municipal leaders, engineers, and frontline workers. Sanitation must become a science and profession, not caste-based toil. Staff must be paid better, insured, housed, and protected; dignity and safety are non-negotiable. Upgrade Infrastructure Physical infrastructure is vital. Indore replaced open drains with covered sewers, built public toilets every 500 meters, and installed modern dustbins based on data, not politics. A central control centre monitored real-time operations, waste vehicle movements, and public complaints. QR codes allowed citizens to rate toilets; apps and helplines made reporting issues easy. Transparency built trust, encouraging usage. Every city must conduct ground-level audits, prioritize maintenance over new construction, and ensure infrastructure supports daily cleaning and waste disposal. Behavioural change: As in the 'Roko-Toko' revolution Perhaps Indore's most understated achievement is the cultural shift it inspired. The 'Roko-Toko' campaign, meaning 'Stop and Remind', encouraged children, shopkeepers, and volunteers to politely stop people from littering, offering chocolates or tokens as incentives to do the right thing. This simple act fostered pride and made cleanliness a matter of honour. Schools actively engaged students in cleanliness drives, while local celebrities, radio shows, and community events helped reinforce the message. To deepen this impact, India should emulate the Japanese model by mandating schools, both government and private, to involve staff and students in maintaining cleanliness, including proper waste disposal and toilet hygiene, with staff equipped with protective gear like gloves and masks. This requires a serious overhaul of school curricula to include environmental civics and sanitation ethics. Public campaigns must move beyond preachy slogans; humour, pride, and community ownership should become the driving forces. 'Swachh Bharat' will only succeed when cleanliness becomes a daily habit, ingrained in the cultural fabric rather than just posters and slogans. The War on Plastic and Air Pollution Plastic waste must be tackled at the source. Indore promoted cloth bags, ran buyback schemes for plastic, and encouraged eco-friendly packaging like areca leaves and coconut shells. Strict enforcement of single-use plastic bans is essential. Additionally, air quality must be integrated into sanitation efforts; dust suppression, mechanized street sweeping, and emissions control are public health priorities, not luxuries. Railways and rural adaptation Railways and transit hubs are critical fronts in the fight for hygiene. All trains must adopt bio-vacuum toilets with automatic locks when stationary, preventing waste discharge onto tracks. Major stations should be managed by professional cleaning firms under strict service-level agreements, with regular audits to ensure standards. Tracks must be maintained like hospital floors – clean and hygienic. In rural India, the focus must go beyond toilet construction. Toilets must be functional, with reliable water supply and maintenance. Village-level composting, segregated waste collection, and panchayat-linked funding can incentivize sustained performance. Awareness campaigns should address behavioural taboos respectfully, fostering long-term change. In conclusion, Indore is not a miracle; it is a model. If a city with all its complexities can lead the way, every municipality, district, and state in India can follow suit. But this requires political resolve, civic participation, and consistent, professional execution. The real lesson is not just how to clean a city but how to build a culture of cleanliness, one that endures. If India can do this, we can finally stop bowing to the Ganga with one hand while poisoning her with the other. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.


Campaign ME
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Campaign ME
The Loudest Roar returns for its third year
Now in its third year, The Loudest Roar has reopened for 2025, offering emerging creatives the opportunity to engage with the Cannes Lions awards process by predicting this year's Grand Prix winners. Developed in the region, the platform focuses on three key categories – Titanium, Innovation, and Glass: The Lion – known for recognising ideas that challenge convention and redefine the role of creativity in society and business. Participants can watch shortlisted case studies, submit their Grand Prix predictions, and see how their judgment compares once the official winners are announced. Voting has now closed for the Innovation category, but entries for Titanium and Glass remain open via While the top-scoring participant receives a prize, the broader aim is to create a learning environment that encourages critical thinking around award-winning creative work. The platform also features a growing resource library, with over an hour of insights from 20+ Cannes Lions veterans offering guidance on how experienced jurors evaluate campaigns. Some of the most referenced cues include: 'Will the work still inspire at 8am and at 11pm?' – Oliver Apers, ECD, BETC Paris 'Look for innovative ideas that are iterated over time.' – Tracey Follows, CEO, FutureMade 'Be subjective, but ready to change your mind.' – Mihnea Gheorghiu, Global CCO, LePub To date, The Loudest Roar has attracted over 500 participants from 77 countries, with an average Grand Prix prediction match of less than 20 per cent. This gap between jury outcomes and emerging creative instincts has sparked conversations about evolving standards of impact and originality. In 2024, the platform introduced its first Jury Room Simulation in Dubai, moderated by former Cannes juror Jennifer Fischer. Students from UAE-based universities took part in the exercise, collaboratively discussing shortlists and learning what it's like to assess and defend work in a jury-style format. 'The dream is to make it the go-to platform for predicting and discussing Cannes Lions, like a fantasy league for our industry and hopefully the wider public, one day,' Chirag Khushalani, Ideator of The Loudest Roar. Participants can sign-up and predict on the platform's website:


Time Out
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' review
This review is from 2019. The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe returns for 2025 in a production based upon Sally Cookson's original that's redirected by Michael Fentiman, with set and costume design by Tom Paris. Katy Stephens stars as the White Witch. Kind of caught halfway between 'Game of Thrones' and 'The Wind in the Willows', it's fair to say that CS Lewis's 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' – with its well-spoken child heroes, twee talking animals and heavy Christian vibes – can be left looking a bit old-fashioned. Endlessly adapted long before the current era of sophisticated CGI-driven fantasy, has its time passed now that everything from 'His Dark Materials' to 'The Wheel of Time' is being adapted for the telly? Truthfully, the answer to that question probably lies with the fate of Netflix's imminent lavish adaptation. But for now, we have a very smart stage version from Sally Cookson, that balances the stiff-upper-lipped charms of the book with a real sense of the encroaching wildness – even madness – of the fantastical kingdom of Narnia. The opening section is jolly hockey sticks à gogo, with the audience cast as wartime child evacuees, spirited away from the Blitz on the same train as Lewis's young heroes the Pevensies. By the end, it's become something that feel rapturously wild, as Narnia awakes in a frenzy of colour and feeling from the century-long magical winter placed on it by Laura Elphinstone's sleekly malevolent White Witch. Yes, Lewis shoved loaded, fairly blatant Christian allegory into his story, chiefly in the death and resurrection of the noble lion Aslan. But it was never as straightforward as 'The Bible'-but-with-lions, and Cookson's take feels more indebted to ancient rites of death and rebirth that Christianity absorbed. Aslan, in particular, is out there, a glowing-eyed psychedelic monstrosity with blue wings that looks like a fusion of lion and dragon, with a human avatar in the form of musclebound, fur-clad Wil Johnson, who's more barbarian shaman than Christian priest. It if it's not as overly dark as many fantasy books, it's perhaps easiest to remember it for all the cute stuff at the beginning, as the youngest of the children, Lucy, steps through a wardrobe into snowbound Narnia and befriends the neurotic faun Mr Tumnus. It's harder, perhaps, to recollect that by the end a sort of strange incarnation of Father Christmas has given the kids real weapons and they have engaged in a bloody fight to the death with the White Witch's army of demons. Indebted more to childhood fantasies of pretend sword battles than grim psychological realism, the journey from youthful innocence to stabbing killer wolves in the face is a pretty full-on trajectory to realise on stage, and with the exception of John Leaders's uptight Edmund, the Pevensies here don't really make the impression that the lion or the witch do. But if a slight lack of psychological acuity is the trade-off for embracing the full-on weirdness of the book, it's worth it. Cookson and designer Rae Smith delight in the novel's eccentricities rather than fight them: their Narnia is a DIY-inflected nirvana where a very funny sight gag about talking animals communicating via cans on strings can sit next to Elphinstone being genuinely terrifying, swelling to enormous height as cackling fiends gather around her. Pretty much everything in the book is retained, and if the first half slightly struggles to find a coherent tone to process it all, in the second half it arrives at its destination – a wilderness of pure imagination, unshackled, ecstatic and pagan.