By By Rob Cline, correspondent

Apr 8, 2017 at 12:37 pm | Print View

Jonathan Lethems newest novel, A Gamblers Anatomy, is filled with masks both literal and metaphorical. Alexander Bruno, a professional backgammon play who makes his living defeating rich dilettantes, hits a catastrophic losing streak at the same time a blot begins to obscure his vision. The book follows Brunos seemingly ever more humiliating adventures, which lead to his face and his life being wholly remade.

Throughout the book, masks play an important role as characters including Bruno disguise themselves voluntarily or under duress. Lethem highlights the ways in which we are unknowable to each other and to ourselves, even when we try to strip all of our masks away.

Lethem, whose enthusiasm for the works of sci-fi author Philip K. Dick is well known, offers the reader the kind of mystery one might find in one of Dicks novels. Bruno may or may not be psychic. The blot and the growth responsible for it may or may not be dampening his abilities.

A Gamblers Anatomy also is infused with the kind of paranoia (which may not be paranoia at all) that might be found in a Thomas Pynchon novel. Bruno struggles to suss out the forces in play in his life and whether they part are part of a larger scheme.

Lethem is particularly effective in scenes featuring just two characters. He deftly uses dialogue to both illuminate and obscure his characters motivations as they jostle for position in relation to one another.

The books ending, which cannot be revealed here, is of the sort that will delight, puzzle, or disappoint some readers. I would argue that Lethem earns his unusual ending, but a case could be made that he does not and therefore leaves the reader unsatisfied at books end.

If that leaves you wondering whether you should read the book, Ill say this: I think its worth the gamble.

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REVIEW | 'A GAMBLER'S ANATOMY' - The Gazette: Eastern Iowa Breaking News and Headlines

Not again, Shonda! That's what we thought when we first heard that "Grey's Anatomy" Season 13 was setting an entire episode on a plane, with a crisis unfolding mid-flight, and that's what more fans are saying now that ABC has shared a promo for the hour.

We initially hoped the crisis would just be medical, and not a problem with the flight itself, but not only does there seem to be more than bad turbulence on the April 13 flight, "In the Air Tonight," the seriously bad flight is suffered, once again, by Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo).

Mer is probably still feeling traumatized by the loss of Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh) in the Season 8 finale. If fans are still mourning Little Grey, she must be, too. The episode looks like it might be a bonding hour for Mer and Nathan Riggs (Martin Henderson) -- and they may join the Mile High Club while mid-air -- but still. The torture of Meredith Grey, and "Grey's fans, has not gone unnoticed.

"Grey's" fans reacted to the promo exactly as you might expect:

There are so many more tweets just like that. This plane *probably* won't crash, but it looks like everything else goes wrong, including some kind of medical issue. Mer just can't catch a break.

"Grey's Anatomy" Season 13 airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on ABC.

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New 'Grey's Anatomy' Promo Traumatizes Fans With Plane Crash Flashbacks - Moviefone

If the Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds" album was such a masterpiece, why did they end up being depicted on its cover cavorting with a bunch of goats?

Band member Al Jardine provides the answer in a documentary about the 1966 album that premieres on Showtime Friday night (April 7).

Basically, says Jardine, the suits at Capitol Records didnt understand the record because its sound and subject matter had veered so far away from the formula that had made the Beach Boys successful up to that time, which was surfing and hot-rod records.

They just didnt understand it ," Jardine says in the one-hour documentary, titled "The Beach Boys: Making Pet Sounds." "They didnt know what to do with it.

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"Theyre a marketing firm, he said of Capitol. How do you market [the] Beach Boys with 'Pet Sounds'? Well, we'll send you down to the San Diego Zoo and well photograph you with a bunch of damn goats. I mean, whats that all about? That was the biggest miscarriage of justice of all," he says with a laugh.

Like so many other masterpieces throughout the histories of various arts, "Pet Sounds" did not sell well at the outset, nor was it critically acclaimed.

"It took 20 years for it to go platinum, which was ridiculous," says Beach Boy Mike Love in the documentary, although the doc implies that even Love wasnt entirely on board with this new direction in the Beach Boys music.

As the documentary makes clear, "Pet Sounds" was a pet project of Brian Wilson (seen in the above photo, left, producing the album). No one argues that Wilson had been the genius behind the Beach Boys sound from the very beginning.

Wilson was interviewed at length for this documentary, and he appears frequently in it. In pushing the record company and his bandmates to participate in the production of "Pet Sounds," Wilsons goal was largely a creative one: He wanted to "write something better than surf songs and car songs," he explains.

The result was an album whose best-known songs are the singles "Wouldnt It Be Nice" and "God Only Knows." True fans of the album know the rest of the songs just as well, including "Thats Not Me," "Dont Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)," "I Know Theres an Answer," "I Just Wasnt Made for These Times" and the instrumental "Pet Sounds."

This fascinating documentary makes a strong case for the albums status as a masterpiece of the recording arts. The film delves deeply into how the sounds on "Pet Sounds" were produced. Testimony is given by many who were there, including members of the group of L.A. recording session players known as The Wrecking Crew.

Among those interviewed is Tony Asher, co-writer on eight of the songs on "Pet Sounds." Asher, who had been a composer of commercial jingles before "Pet Sounds, tells a great story about meeting Brian Wilson by happenstance in a hallway at a recording studio where they were both working. From that meeting, they forged an unlikely songwriting partnership.

Among other things, various witnesses note that Wilson was a fan of Phil Spectors "Wall of Sound" approach to making records, and under Wilsons direction, the "Pet Sounds" recording sessions featured an ever-growing body of musicians.

For example, there was not one piano, but usually three, remembers one interview subject.

For all the challenges and difficulties that went into making "Pet Sounds," the documentary gives the impression that the record company execs thought well enough of Wilson that they dont seem to have exerted any disruptive efforts to rein him in as the recording sessions dragged on and the studio became full of musicians who needed to be paid.

As for the goat photo on the album jacket, maybe no one ever explained to the Capitol execs what the title "Pet Sounds" was supposed to mean in the first place. Ironically, its not explained in the documentary either.

"The Beach Boys: Making Pet Sounds" premieres Friday night (April 7) at 8 Eastern on Showtime.

Read more:
Anatomy Of A Masterpiece: The Making Of 'Pet Sounds' - MediaPost Communications

Many of the things we use on a daily basis are becoming smart and connected to the Internet. The Internet of Things (IoT) will improve our lives by helping us reach our health and fitness goals, reduce resource consumption, increase productivity, and track and secure our assets. Many embedded developers realise the potential benefits of the IoT and are actively developing various applications, from connected home devices to wearables and home security systems. However, along with these benefits come risks. No one wants to design an application thats prone to hacking or data theft. Undesirable events like high-profile hacks can lead to serious damage to brand images and loss of customer trust, and, in the worst cases, slow down or permanently reduce the adoption of the IoT.

The IoT is often referred to as an industrial revolution. The number of connected devices will grow rapidly in the coming years. If there is any disagreement among analysts who follow the IoT, it is in the number of billions of devices that will be connected. The economic value to society is estimated to be in the range of $4-11 trillion dollars.

In the race to accelerate time-to-market for connected device products, implementing proper security is inconvenient because it adds component cost, development effort and design complexity. At the same time, in some industries, it is not crucial to have adequate security. Rather, having adequate security is a key to not being hacked. Major security and privacy issues and bad press after a vendors product has been hacked might temporarily or permanently slow down the adoption of IoT. Many consumers are already skeptical about connecting even simple devices in our homes and daily lives, and some researchers and industry watchers believe the IoT is a security catastrophe waiting to happen. In fact, quite recently, there have been a number of highly publicised hacks that are gaining wide attention so one could argue that the catastrophe is already on its way.

Hacking of quantum cryptography

The current IoT security situation resembles that of quantum cryptography, often referred to as quantum key distribution. Unlike other key distribution schemes, quantum cryptography promises unconditional security based on the laws of physics. In comparison, most key distribution schemes rely on assumptions of the computational complexity of factoring large numbers or the discrete logarithm problem.

Although quantum cryptography was discovered in 1984, it took until the year 2000 before commercial cryptography systems were brought to market. Relying on single photons, a quantum cryptographic system is complicated to build, and yet time-to-market is of the essence. In 2010, the first security loophole that completely broke the security of these quantum cryptography systems was published. Quantum cryptography is, theoretically, impossible to break, but, in reality, side-channels, or loopholes, were not considered during system design. Also, interestingly, no loopholes were discovered until a dedicated team was assembled to break into such systems. Up until the time this team was established, the entire industry was focused on making quantum cryptography systems robust and getting them to market.

The quantum cryptography analogy teaches us important lessons. Most notably, it shows how security is an ongoing process requiring a multidisciplinary approach to anticipate potential hacks. When striving to make something as complex as a quantum cryptographic system work, the same engineering team cannot possibly be able to understand how an attacker could break into the system. These are conflicting thought processes. Thus, a quality assurance and security team needs to be separate from the engineering team building secure systems.

Another key point is that the hacking of the quantum cryptography system surely has temporarily, if not permanently, reduced market acceptance of and belief in this technology. Thus, it would probably have been beneficial for the industry to invest more in security up-front, leading to a longer time-to-market and greater cost but also substantial gain in the end.

Anatomy of a secure IoT thing

The technology necessary to make the IoT secure already exists. But the lack of knowledge of how to implement this technology is usually the root cause of most security loopholes. A secure Internet-connected thing does not, however, guarantee a secure system. Nevertheless, developers should at least be aware of the following types of security.

Hardware-level security

The secure IoT-device has a number of security features. First and foremost, it uses asymmetric cryptography to perform secure boot and secure boot loading or over-the-air (OTA) firmware updates. The secure IoT-device also uses hardware cryptographic accelerators that are faster, more energy efficient and less vulnerable to side-channel analysis.

In a secure IoT device, the debug port is closed. If it is necessary at some point to reopen the debug port (in the case of a remote memory access or for other reasons), this is accomplished by an authenticated challenge response scheme using public key authentication.

While secure boot and boot loading prevent adversaries from modifying the program memory, the secure IoT device further restricts access to reading the program memory. This means devices that feature internal memory or on-board flash. In the case of external memory, it also means that the contents of the external memory are signed and encrypted.

Software security considerations

To ensure that the software running on the secure IoT device further enhances security, it must be hardened in critical sections. This means that it can resist skipping single instructions. Examples include the secure boot signature check or a password signature check. This approach ensures that if an adversary is able to make the processor skip an instruction, it does not have security-critical consequences. Furthermore, to avoid security issues in the code or a third-party library causing system-wide access, TrustZone for ARM v8M can be used to compartmentalise the various libraries.

Secure communications

Most integrated circuits communicate with other ICs, other IoT-devices, gateways and/or the cloud, and it is necessary to secure these communication channels. When communicating with other ICs, it means turning on encryption and authentication to ensure integrity and confidentiality. One example could be storing data on off-chip memory or the wired bus between sensors or communication ICs and the main processor.

When communicating with other IoT-devices, communication protocols such as ZigBee, Thread or Bluetooth low energy are typically used. Most of these protocols have security options, and it is important to turn on these security options.

Another important consideration is device commissioning. Once secrets have been deployed between the communicating devices, securing data traffic is straightforward. However, it is not straightforward to distribute the secrets. For wireless devices, this typically involves the commissioning step in which the device is brought on to the wireless network, e.g., using Bluetooth to commission a connected light bulb to a ZigBee-based lighting mesh network. The options for commissioning depend on the systems general capabilities, as well as a trade-off between ease-of-use and security. Suffice it to say that the secure IoT-device does not compromise security. In addition, the secure IoT-device uses TLS/DTLS to establish secure end-to-end connections to the cloud.

Application layer

The application layer might be on the device, in the cloud service or a combination of the two. In many applications, it is necessary to have password protection, typically in the application layer. The secure IoT-device forces the user to change the password and blacklists the most frequently used passwords. If possible, the device can even enforce two-factor authentication.

System considerations

From a system point of view, a number of seemingly harmless subsystems can add up to an insecure system as a whole. Therefore, to make a secure IoT-device, there are few assumptions for implementing security within each subsystem. Each subsystems security is independent or minimally dependent upon the other subsystems security.

It is necessary for developers, device makers and service providers involved in the IoT ecosystem to accept the costs and time-to-market delays of implementing effective security at all levels within the IoT, from device to cloud, and from the beginning of each development effort. Concerted efforts to implement security throughout the IoT will help prevent devastating security loopholes, resulting bad press, and a market that might not want to invest in IoT even when the loopholes have been closed.

Lars Lydersen, director of product security, Silicon Labs,was a part of the team that broke into unbreakable commercial quantum cryptographic systems. Currently, he has shifted his focus to classical embedded security systems and works at Silicon Labs in Oslo, Norway. Lydersen holds an MsC in electronics and a PhD in quantum cryptography from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

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Anatomy of a secure internet-connected thing - Electronics Weekly - Electronics Weekly

Shonda Rhimes, one of Hollywoods most popular and powerful women, has joined the national board of Planned Parenthood.

Rhimes, creator and producer of prime-time television shows Greys Anatomy and Scandal, assumes a formal role in the organization at a time when antiabortion activists and some Republican lawmakers have set their sights on defunding Planned Parenthood.

The fact is that womens health is under fire right now, Rhimes said in an interview with Elle Magazine, which first reported the news. And so to me, it feels like its important to help fight back.

Rhimes has used her shows to present leading female characters who are celebrated for exercising their agency, and for exploring a range of social issues including abortion. Olivia Pope, the heroine of Scandal, had an abortion in a 2015 episode that also included a floor fight in Congress over defunding Planned Parenthood. In 2011, a female character in Greys Anatomy also had an abortion.

[Scandal stuns views with an abortion scene]

Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood, told Elle that the organization would look to use Rhimess creative energy and storytelling ability to educate the public about the organizations work.

And she couldnt be joining us at a better time, Richard said. When so much basic health care is under attack, as we saw just a few weeks ago as a room full of men negotiated away maternity benefits for women, its never been more important for peoples stories to be told.

She was referring to a much-criticized White House meeting in which President Trump and Vice President Pence met with members of the House Freedom Caucus to discuss a plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Among the benefits under consideration for elimination was maternity care. The effort failed after factions within the GOP failed to agree on an overall plan. The Republican-led Congress also has been unable to come up with a measure to defund Planned Parenthood.

[Conservatives fall short of another goal: Defunding Planned Parenthood]

Anti-abortion groups and conservative lawmakers have for years sought to block the use of Medicaid funds to reimburse Planned Parenthood for services it provides to low-income patients. Federal law prohibits the use of Medicaid funds for abortions, except in the case of rape, incest or to the save the life of the mother.

Planned Parenthood has argued that the vast majority of its services involve providing basic gynecological health care, including Pap smears, offering low-cost contraceptives and providing referrals for other screenings, such as mammograms.

Rhimes, who has served on the Planned Parenthood Los Angeles board, told Elle that shes never used the organizations services but has friends who have.

The fact that Ive never had to use a Planned Parenthood, the fact that Ive never been in need of medical services I couldnt afford or didnt have access to, doesnt mean I shouldnt be concerned about the fact that other women dont have that access, she said.

Fans of Shonda Rhimes's shows already know Meredith Grey, Olivia Pope and Annalise Keating, and they're about to get acquainted with Alice Vaughan on "The Catch." Here's how Rhimes's newest TV drama uses some signature traits of a Shondaland show. (Nicki DeMarco/The Washington Post)

Read more here:
Shonda Rhimes, creator of 'Grey's Anatomy' and 'Scandal', joins Planned Parenthood board - Washington Post

The day before law enforcement arrested the Rev. Kenneth Adkins in August 2016, he admitted to Georgia Bureau of Investigators agents he sent photos of his male anatomy to a man hes accused of molesting when that person was underage.

Adkins is on trial in Glynn County Superior Court regarding multiple felonies for allegedly engaging in sexual acts with two victims A.J., a boy, and T.V., a girl when they were both 15 years old, between August 2009 and March 2010.

Prosecutors played for the jury a recording of the GBIs interview with Adkins, in which after a friendly back-and-forth, the agents began pressing Adkins for clearer answers on his involvement with evidence they already had in hand.

At one point, they specifically questioned his involvement with two photographs of a black males private parts sent from Adkins public relations companys email account to A.J. in November 2014.

One agent could be heard saying, I know it was sent from your phone to your email to (A.J.).

Adkins then said he only sent the photos because A.J. asked for them. That also occurred well after A.J. reached majority age, and Adkins reiterated that he did not mess around with children.

Lawrence Kelly, a special agent with the GBI who specializes in mobile phone data forensics, said metadata pulled from the emailed images showed they were sent from a Samsung Galaxy Note 4, operating on a Verizon network. The data also showed the phone was registered the day before the images were sent, which means the phone was likely, but not conclusively, obtained the day it was registered.

When questioned by Adkins attorney Kevin Gough if it was possible Adkins could have sent the photos accidentally, Kelly said it was. Kelly also acknowledged that the timestamps of when the email was sent and received indicated that, as Gough suggested in a question, it was sent from Georgia and received by A.J. while on Army deployment in Germany.

A contention made by prosecutors is the photos indicate a physical relationship between Adkins and A.J., though Kelly admitted it would be rather difficult to have a physical relationship at that immediate time, separated by an ocean.

According to investigators, one woman, J.C. who was of age at the time told them she, A.J. and Adkins engaged in sexual acts at an area hotel, though she was initially reluctant to do so. Adkins allegedly warned her about saying anything about it, and gave her $200 to remain quiet.

In the GBI interview, Adkins, at first, denied getting a room for A.J. or the three of them, saying he frequently reserved rooms for any number of functions. But, again, pressed on the topic, Adkins said, I dont think I was in the room with A.J. and J.C., and reiterated that he did not have sex with them.

At the end of testimony Tuesday, the defense had to wrap up one of the basic logistics of trial work not typically seen by the public Adkins had run out of ties. Gough asked Superior Court Judge Stephen Scarlett if he could give his client his own tie, but after a short discussion in which the participants appeared to understand the light humor of the situation in comparison to those of such gravity beforehand Gough was allowed to take the necessary sartorial items to Adkins at the Glynn County Detention Center during a meeting scheduled for later Tuesday.

Court is scheduled to resume with testimony by A.J. at 9 a.m. today at the Glynn County Courthouse.

See the article here:
Adkins admits emailing photos of male anatomy | Local News | The ... - The News (subscription)

Thomas Gallatin Apr. 5, 2017

The Washington Post recently ran a story with the provocative headline, GOP lawmaker: The Bible says the unemployed shall not eat. The article referenced comments made during a House Agriculture Committee hearing over the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) a.k.a. food stamps. The original version of the article at least acknowledged that Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-TX) cited 2 Thessalonians 3:10 in a rebuttal to an expert witness a representative from the Jewish anti-hunger group MAZON, who made reference to a passage in Leviticus about feeding the hungry.

Yet the Washington Post didnt actually quote Arrington in its rush to indict and label him and Republicans as uncaring and out of touch with the needs of the poor at least not until later revisions were made. The article states, House Republicans have historically cited the verse if a man will not work, he shall not eat as justification for cutting some adults' SNAP benefits. Arrington referenced the verse in a discussion about increasing the work requirements for unemployed adults on the food stamp program. But critics say that advances a pernicious myth about the unemployed who receive SNAP.

The truth is it was the Washington Post that was actively attempting to advance a pernicious myth regarding both the intent and reasoning of Republicans and Rep. Arrington specifically. And they were exposed for it.

Shortly after the articles release, The Federalists Sean Davis called out the Beltway rag over its sloppy and biased reporting. Davis pointed out that the Post failed to quote Arrington and failed to properly apply the Biblical context of both Scripture references.

The Washington Post, evidently catching wind of criticism for its lackluster piece, responded by heavily editing the original article, including changing the headline to GOP lawmaker: The Bible says if a man will not work, he shall not eat, as well as adding Arringtons exact words.

Arrington said, I did hear, Mr. Protas [the MAZON representative], your opening remarks where you quoted Leviticus, I believe and I think thats a great reflection on the character of God and the compassion of Gods heart and how we ought to reflect that compassion in our lives. But theres also, you know, in the Scripture, tells us in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 he says, For even when we were with you we gave you this rule: If a man will not work, he shall not eat. And then he goes on to say, We hear that some among you are idle. I think that every American, Republican or Democrat, wants to help the neediest among us. And I think its a reasonable expectation that we have work requirements. I think that gives more credibility, quite frankly, to SNAP. Tell me, what is a reasonable and responsible work requirement as part of the SNAP program?

The Post truncates his last few sentences, but upon reading the updated and edited article, the papers dubious characterization of both Arrington and the Republicans loses credibility, showing more glaringly the articles original bias as being primarily an anti-Republican propaganda piece. So much for the Posts Democracy Dies in Darkness tripe.

This episode proves to highlight a couple of important points. First, the Post is as agenda-driven as ever. The leftist commitment of the paper is beyond question. There simply is no reasonable attempt at balanced reporting in the entire piece, even after the edits it was shamed into making.

Second, and far more important, the article exposed the fundamental disagreement between leftists and conservatives when it comes to understanding the role of government.

The U.S. has a long history arguing over the extent government should play in contributing to welfare. Historically, conservatives have long championed a limited government that allows taxpayers to keep more of their money so as to assist their needy family, friends and neighbors as they are able and see fit. Conservatives have correctly argued that massive government income redistribution programs create greater dependency and less individual responsibility. Often these welfare programs, no matter how well intentioned, prove to rob individuals of the needed motivation to work as they lose the initiative for self-reliance, one of the foundational keys to pursuing happiness.

Leftists, on the other hand, dont trust individuals to make wise enough decisions and see the federal governments role as primary in determining what is in the best interests of its citizens. Therefore, regarding problems like poverty, leftists see only a need for greater federal involvement, which of course translates into greater spending as well as loss of freedom. For leftists, statism is the only solution.

Arringtons statement and quotation of Scripture voiced a legitimate concern over the abuse of a system that provides food stamps designed as a safety net, not a free-for-all. The Bible does indeed place a high value on looking out for the needs of others, but it also spends a great amount of text on rebuking laziness, as well as condemning theft and deceit. Due to the propensity of mankind to act selfishly, individuals are often motivated by these base evil desires and take advantage of the generosity of others, be it the government or other individuals.

Essentially, the Washington Post condemns without offering any genuinely honest or thoughtful commentary over the realistic concerns voiced by conservatives regarding both the appropriate role of government and the attendant budgetary concerns. Nor does the Post even attempt to accurately portray the various Biblical statements.

Its quite evident that the Post is content to misconstrue and grossly misinterpret Christian teaching in an effort to shame all Republicans for not supporting excessive government welfare programs.

At the Washington Post, it is truth, not democracy, that is dying in darkness.

Excerpt from:
Culture, Science & Faith Anatomy of a Smear Piece - Patriot Post

Maggie Pierce is not having a good week.

The Greys Anatomy doctor just lost her mother to breast cancer last episode in a heartbreaking hour. After finally learning abouther moms condition, Maggie (Kelly McCreary) set out in her usual type-A fashion to fix her from risky surgery to a cutting-edge clinical trial treatment. Sadly, nothing could save Maggies mom, and she passed away.

Maggie may not have been able to fix her mother, but she can fix somebody. So in this weeks episode, she takes on a big case even though her fellow doctors arent sure she should.

Perhaps theyre right, because in this exclusive clip, asMaggie and Arizona (Jessica Capshaw) perform surgery, the patient starts to lose vitals.

Dr. Pierce, whats your move here? Arizona asks. Maggie remains still and silent. Is she freezing up? Is she unable to continue out of grief?

Greys Anatomy airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on ABC. Watch recent episodes of Greys Anatomy for free on Yahoo View.

Read more from Yahoo TV: Prison Break Recap: Michael Scofield is Resurrected, With a Twist Brockmire Preview: Star Hank Azaria Talks Creating One of TVs Funniest New Characters Spring TV Preview 2017: Get the Scoop on New and Returning Shows

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'Grey's Anatomy' Sneak Peek: Maggie Is Paralyzed [Video] - Yahoo - Yahoo TV (blog)

Have you ever wondered why it is that Street Fighter characters all seem to be based on the same basic build? You haven't? Oh. Well...off you go.

For the rest of you, it turns out that the classic Street Fighter look has nothing to do with a lack of creativity on the part of the designers, but rather a basic anatomy template that Capcom has been using for years.

As part of a Gamasutra article, Toshiyuki Kamei spoke about a guide Capcom uses which outlines the basic anatomy structure they adhere to for some of their characters. The guide was partially created by former Capcom artist Akira Yasuda and goes into pretty in-depth detail regarding the basic design and movement of certain Capcom charactermodels.

The guide seems to largely focus on Capcom fighting games - particularly Street Fighter - and Kamei admits that it hasn't really been formally updated over the years. That means that most of the technical design references it mentions actually relate to the sprite era of gaming graphics.

Even so, the guide is treated as the foundation of fighting game character design to this day. It's not hard to see why. The sketches within the book detail everything from shoulder muscle movement to the proper design of abdominals (Spoilers: the proper design is "ripped") and giveyou a good idea of what kind of detail character artists have to think in if they want to create semi-believable characters.

Actually, the outdated nature of the guide makes many of the sketches featured within it that much more impressive. At a time when technology barely allowed for anything more advanced than a pixel, artists were already imagining details and designs that wouldn't even be possible until decades later. The fact that any of this information is still relevant - much less valid - is pretty shocking.

The drawings are pretty stunning, and well worth looking over carefully if you've an interest in game design or comic book art: we love that Yasuda's even gone to the effort of showing cross-sections of the character's limbs.

Continue reading here:
Street Fighter: the anatomy guide Capcom uses for its games - Den of Geek UK

Ellen Pompeo may have made her directorial debut on Grey's Anatomy last week but it was Kelly McCreary's Maggie who took center stage in "Be Still, My Soul." The emotional hour focused on a desperate Maggie putting her mother Diane (LaTanya Richardson Jackson) on an aggressive experimental treatment in attempt to save her from inflammatory breast cancer and firing Meredith (Pompeo) as her mother's surgeon in the process. Unfortunately, Diane passed away after complications from the clinical trial. Grey's Anatomy Recap: Is Maggie Able to Save Her Mother?>>>

According to McCreary, who went through a range of emotions in the episode, she struggled with her character's tough situation. She also had to put herself in Maggie's shoes as she prepared for the inevitable tragedy.

"To prepare, I did a lot of reading about IBC and the treatments, just the way that Maggie goes through trying to find out about what other patients had experienced," she continued. "In other words, I did research in the same way that Maggie did as she was trying to figure out how to treat her mother."

Despite the devastating loss that will surely have an immense impact on Maggie's life moving forward, McCreary takes some comfort in knowing that Maggie was able to make peace with her mother before she died.

McCreary also believes that Maggie will stay true to her character even while suffering the loss of her mom. "That's who Maggie is at her core," McCreary says of Maggie's optimism. "I don't think that this is going to change that. But I do think she's going to take to heart all of that lovely advice that her mom gave her in her final moments, when she told Maggie to just live life more fully and give herself permission to be a little messy."

"Are we going to see Maggie go dark? I don't know what the future holds, but Maggie will grieve in the way that seems, from the outside, to be relatively healthy. The thing about grief is that we think of it in stages, or we've been told that it's stages, but those stages go in cycles. So when she gets to anger, or returns to anger or denial, maybe some dark stuff will come up then," she explained.

Obviously Maggie will have to lean on Meredith at this very difficult time and hopefully what they have or have gone through will be stronger than the outcome of the whole Nathan situation.

"Maggie's mom has died now. So, the question of whether Meredith should have told her becomes less about the fact that they are together and Maggie wants him. It's less about the fact that Meredith took something that Maggie wanted, and more about ... something else. ... It's not about Meredith taking the boy Maggie had a crush on. Maggie has experienced something that makes that sort of trivial at this point. I don't want to give too much away about that storyline, because it is one of the major questions left to be answered this season," she told TV Guide.

"I think that it will definitely bring her closer to Meredith -- and Amelia, too, with the loss of her father. Even though the circumstances are completely different, they share something that they didn't share before, and it'll bring a new level of understanding and closeness, I think, to those relationships," she added.

(Image courtesy of ABC)

Link:
'Grey's Anatomy' Star Kelly McCreary Discusses Filming Maggie's ... - BuddyTV (blog)