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Art

Artist Torkwase Dyson Uses Black Compositional Thought In Latest Exhibit At Gray

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 , Installation view of Torkwase Dyson, Errantry, 2024, at Art Basel Unlimited. Image courtesy Gary Yeh / ArtDrunk.

Installation view of Torkwase Dyson, Errantry, 2024, at Art Basel Unlimited. Image courtesy Gary Yeh / ArtDrunk.

Chicago Gallery

GRAY is pleased to present Torkwase Dyson: Of Line and Memory, the artist’s first solo exhibition in GRAY’s Chicago gallery. Installed over three distinct spaces, the exhibition debuts a monumental sculpture in steel and painted wood, an immersive installation of new paintings, and new cast glass and wood constructions. Of Line and Memory opens at GRAY Chicago with a public reception for the artist on November 8 and remains on view through January 25, 2025.

Dyson works across the disciplines of painting, drawing, installation, and sculpture, distilling the spatial and affective residues of diasporic histories to envision new modes of environmental liberation. Through an improvisational process of mindful abstraction, which she calls “Black Compositional Thought,” Dyson seeks to create work that is fluid, abstract, poetic, and open to possibility. “If there is systemic oppression, there must be systemic liberation,” says the artist, “and I am in that zone… trying to condition myself in this relationship of a transhistorical liberation practice.”1

Of Line and Memory draws from years of research and Dyson’s own spatial memory of navigating the waterways and urban architecture of Chicago. Using the South Shore Cultural Center, a lakeshore landmark with rich historical and architectural significance, as a point of departure, Dyson extracts, reduces, and refines architectural and visual cues into geometric shapes and painterly abstractions. According to the artist, “Of Line and Memory asks, as we move through dramatic and ever-changing geographies, what memories are stored in these new and improvisational choreographies?”

Down-down, 2018
Exhibited inTorkwase Dyson, 2021-22 Hall Art Foundation
Schloss Derneberg Museum, Holle, Germany

An immersive, dynamic interplay of materials emerges throughout the exhibition. The Clearing, a cantilevered steel, wood, and graphite sculpture in two parts, balances monumental, curved shapes upon the weight of rectangular steel bases. Dyson’s new paintings unlock a sense of “state change” between thinly poured layers of deep blues and reds, opaque blacks, and the shapes and lines of geometric abstraction. Likewise, her Hypershape constructions in glass and graphite-coated wood balance the solidity of wood and graphite with the translucence of cast glass.

Of Line and Memory underscores Torkwase Dyson’s deep commitment to transforming complex histories of diasporic and urban landscapes into powerful abstractions. The artist states: “the topography echoes familiar and enigmatic ecologies in my consciousness without the promise of stability. Embracing this indeterminacy, I think through how the transhistorical ethos of infrastructure space, both visible and invisible, resonates in liberation and world-building.”

ABOUT TORKWASE DYSON


American interdisciplinary artist Torkwase Dyson (b. 1973 Chicago) combines expressive mark-making and geometric abstraction to explore the continuity between ecology, infrastructure, and architecture. Working across the disciplines of painting, sculpture and architecture, Dyson deconstructs, distills, and interrogates the built environment, exploring how individuals, particularly black and brown people, negotiate, negate, and transform systems and spatial order. Throughout her work and research, Dyson confronts issues of environmental liberation and envisions a path toward a more equitable future. 

One of today’s most innovative artists, Dyson’s work has been the focus of solo exhibitions at ‘T’ Space Rhinebeck, New York; Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, St. Louis, Missouri; New Orleans Museum of Art, Louisiana; Colby College Museum of Art, Maine; Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, Chicago, Illinois; Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Suzanne Lemberg Usdan Gallery, Bennington, Vermont; Hall Art Foundation, Derneburg, Germany; and Serpentine Galleries, London, UK.  

Group exhibitions and biennials include the Liverpool Biennial, Liverpool, UK; Bienal de São Paulo, Brazil; Desert X, California; California African American Museum, Los Angeles; The Museum of Modern Art, New York; Studio Museum in Harlem, New York; Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Drawing Center, New York; Corcoran School of the Arts and Design, Washington DC; Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Washington, DC; and Wexner Center for the Arts, Columbus, Ohio, among others. Her architectural sculpture Liquid Shadows, Solid Dreams (A Monastic Playground), commissioned for the 2024 Whitney Biennial, is on view at the Whitney Museum of American Art’s fifth floor terrace through February 9, 2025. Torkwase Dyson will create the conceptual design for The Costume Institute’s Spring 2025 exhibition, Superfine: Tailoring Black Style, at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Public collections include the Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois; Hall Art Foundation, Reading, Vermont; Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, DC; The Long Museum, Shanghai, China; Mead Art Museum, Amherst College, Massachusetts; Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, St. Louis, Missouri; Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, Massachusetts; Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture, Washington, DC; Studio Museum in Harlem, New York; and Williams College Museum of Art, Massachusetts. Dyson studied sociology and social work at Tougaloo College, Mississippi, and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting from Virginia Commonwealth University and a Master of Fine Arts in Painting from Yale School of Art. Dyson lives and works in Beacon, New York.

PUBLICATION
The exhibition will be accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue, to be published in 2025.


ABOUT GRAY


GRAY is a globally recognized team of art professionals devoted to fostering the development of historically important artists’ careers and to building outstanding art collections. Founded in 1963, GRAY has established its reputation as a resource for Modern, Postwar, and Contemporary art with prominent private and institutional clients worldwide. Known for producing critically acclaimed exhibitions and programming from its galleries in Chicago and New York, GRAY represents a roster of internationally recognized artists such
as McArthur Binion, Torkwase Dyson, Theaster Gates, David Hockney, Rashid Johnson, Alex Katz, Ellen Lanyon, Jaume Plensa, Leon Polk Smith, and Evelyn Statsinger.

1 Torkwase Dyson, lecture, SAIC Visiting Artists Program, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, March 7, 2023.

Featured image- Tuning (Hypershape, 311-520), 2018, exhibited in Torkwase Dyson 2022 Hall Art Foundation, Schloss Derneberg Museum, Holle, Germany

Fashion

Raketa Releases “BIG ZERO” Arabic Classic Watch

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The Middle Eastern classic

Raketa has reimagined its most emblematic model specially for the Middle East, under the name of “Big Zero” Arabic. Its exceptional design, which has become a Raketa classic, now comes with an Arabic dial.

The traditional and emblematic ‘0’ of the Raketa Watch Factory is still present on the dial, while the rest of the numerals are in Eastern Arabic, with a font design inspired by the original Soviet style model. The black and white colour scheme of the new dial is complemented by Raketa’s logo in Arabic script, created by Mohammad Sharaf, renowned calligrapher, in the brand’s signature red colour. 

THIS IS HOW IT GOES poster by Mohammad Sharaf.

Raketa’s collaboration with this Kuwaiti artist, participant of contemporary Arabian design exhibitions and creator of bold local projects, has resulted from the growing interest in foreign watch brands in the Middle East.

Raketa in particular has found a new generation of watch-lovers in the region, who appreciate its singular designs and the manufacture’s rich history. Therefore, the “Big Zero” Arabic combines the West and the East, bringing together the history of Russian watchmaking and the Middle East’s incredible passion for fine watches.

A Unique Sound

Raketa’s mechanical movement is very Russian by its engineering design. It is also very Russian by the materials used: all the metal as well as the 24 rubis stones of the movement come from Russia. Even the hair-spring, the very heart and most complicated part of the movement, is cast from a secret Soviet alloy. All of this gives a very distinctive acoustic signature that is quite different from that of Swiss movements.

The Big Zero is one of the few Soviet-era watch designs to have conquered the hearts of the world and to have stood the test of time.

A black & white dial with oversized numerals crowned with a big 0 creates a self-evident, functional, but nevertheless radical design, which had to become the first Raketa to feature an Arabian dial. 

The transparent case back reveals the beautifully decorated Raketa automatic movement, which is entirely designed and manufactured at the Raketa Watch Factory in St. Petersburg. 

A limited production of 100 timepieces has been released this year. Future editions will be made available according to the production plan.

The origins of this bold design

When asked what inspired Soviet designers to create this bold design with a big 0, old specialists of the Raketa factory answer that it is simply more logical to start counting time from 0. Indeed, time, like everything else in our lives, always begins from 0. 

With this radically innovative concept, the Big Zero watch is at the avant-garde of time reading: time starts from 0, not from 12! It directly challenges the worldwide established convention that there should always be a 12 on the dial. 

Price

The cost is 1 700 EUR (including VAT)/ $2,568 CAD. The model is offered by Raketa’s official dealers in the Middle East (UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait) and on the official website. For customers’ convenience, Raketa watches are delivered worldwide free of charge by DHL directly up to the front door.

Specifications

Factory:Raketa Watch Factory (Saint-Petersburg)
Movement:
Calibre:2615
Functions:Automatic
Number of jewels:24
Testing positions:4
Average rate (s/d):-10+20
Average running time (h):40
Frequency/hour:18.000 / 2.5Hz
Bi-directional automatic windingYes
Stopper of self-winding unit activated during manual winding:Yes 
Decoration:Laser engraving
Neva waves Red rotor
Case:
Material:Stainless steel
Size:40 mm
Front glass:Sapphire 
Back glass:Mineral 
Crown:Ruby stone ​​inside the crown
Water resistance:10 АТМ
Strap/bracelet:
Material:Genuine leather
Width:20 mm
Sex:Unisex
Gaming

Colossal Cave Modernized And Rereleased

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Acclaimed game designer Roberta Williams revives Colossal Cave as a retro, point-&-click, cave exploration puzzler. Based on the original 1970’s design by Will Crowther & Don Woods this 3D update maintains its vintage charm, while revitalizing it for modern gamers.

Colossal Cave is a reimagining of the original text-based adventure game, first introduced in 1975 by Will Crowther and Don Woods, as a fully immersive 3D VR experience.

Colossal Cave is already well known to tens of millions of gamers worldwide. Several elements of the game, such as the codewords “Xyzzy” and “Plugh”, are recognized instantly by many gamers.

Roberta Williams, who has received widespread industry recognition including several “Hall of Fame” awards, and who is the designer of several industry leading hit games, including King’s Quest, Phantasmagoria, Black Cauldron, and many more, is adapting the game for the VR world and bringing to life its many characters.

In the game, players explore a vast and extensive cave, seeking treasures within. Along the way, they will encounter a variety of characters, some of whom will attack and some of whom will entertain. For instance, there is a Troll (at the troll bridge), a bear, a snake, dwarves (seven, of course), and a pirate. The player’s quest is to find all the treasure. The challenge is not easy, and there will be a wide variety of puzzles to overcome.

Though the audio is only in English provisions have been made for many other languages via text subtitles: French, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), Arabic, German, Polish, Portuguese, Korean, Russian, Thai

Free demo for every system- click here to try it out.

Ars Technica stated that Williams was “one of the more iconic figures in adventure gaming”. GameSpot named her tenth in their list of “the most influential people in computer gaming of all time” for “pushing the envelope of graphic adventures” and being “especially proactive in creating games from a woman’s point of view and titles that appealed to the mainstream market, all the while integrating the latest technologies in graphics and sound wherever possible.”  In 1997, Computer Gaming World ranked her tenth on the list of the most influential people of all time in computer gaming for adventure game design. In 2009, IGN placed the Williams 23rd on the list of top game creators of all time, expressing hope that “maybe one day, we’ll see the Williams again as well.” She was also a source of inspiration for the character of Cameron Howe in the AMC television drama Halt and Catch Fire.

The Original Colossal Cave was a vintage gaming icon

Williams was given the Pioneer Award at the 20th Game Developers Choice Awards in March 2020 for her work in the graphical adventure game genre and for co-founding Sierra On-Line.

SOME OF THE GAMES BY ROBERTA WILLIAMS

Ken Williams

Ken started his career as an IBM mainframe software engineer in the Los Angeles area, specializing in databases and networked systems, while consulting with a wide variety of companies, including McDonnell Douglas, Electra Records, Bekins Moving and Storage, Los Angeles Children’s Hospital, Financial Decision Systems and others.

Ken, alongside his wife Roberta, co-founded Sierra On-Line in 1979. Ken ran the company as its CEO for nearly twenty years. During Ken’s tenure at Sierra the company, Sierra regularly topped bestseller charts worldwide, releasing over 200 titles for a variety of hardware platforms and languages. Sierra became a public company on Nasdaq in 1987, grew to one thousand employees, and was sold in 1996 for one billion dollars.

Sierra was known for its technology leadership, and pioneered such technologies as vector graphics, sound and music in computer games, avatars, and network games.

In his role as Sierra’s CEO, Williams focused on innovation: “I’m not sure how typical I am of other CEOs. Most of my time is spent looking at product. To me, everything is about being able to build awesome product. Any game which does not push the state of the art leaves an opportunity for a competitor’s game to look better.”

Sierra’s extensive list of hit products include: Leisure-Suit Larry, King’s Quest, Phantasmagoria, Space Quest, Red Baron, Nascar Racing, Hoyle’s Card Games, Dr. Brain, Mickey’s Space Adventure, Half-Life, Ultima, and many more.

After selling Sierra, Ken and Roberta retired to Mexico where they lived for over twenty years. They also purchased a small, rugged, ocean-crossing capable yacht and used it to explore the world, visiting over twenty-five countries and crossing both the Atlantic and the Pacific. Their adventures include crossing the Bering Sea as part of a three-boat group calling themselves “The Great Siberian Sushi Run”. Ken and Roberta enjoy a “second 15 minutes of fame” as world cruisers and Ken wrote four books about their travels.

In 2021, while locked down by the Pandemic, Ken found time to write about the “Sierra days” and captured the history in the bestselling book, “Not All Fairy Tales Have Happy Endings”. With a renewed interest in games, Ken decided to dig into how modern games are produced and spent time learning the Unity 3D Engine. In a loop back to their earlier history, Roberta suggested Ken program a game. Thus, was invented their new company: Cygnus Entertainment.

Culture

How To Get Paid To Speak Live

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TED talks, YouTube rants and Mr. Peanut, the mascot for Planters Peanuts, are all signs of just how highly valued the art of oratory is today.

“Yep, even Mr. Peanut (voiced by Robert Downey Jr.) has been seen in Planters ads over the past couple of years giving TED-style presentations; people are spending top dollar to attend a well-presented speech with useful information from an inspired perspective, and the best speakers may be regarded fairly as today’s rock stars,” says expert speaker coach Jane Atkinson, author of “The Wealthy Speaker 2.0”.

“The ability to command a fee is a sign that you’ve made it as a speaker. However, as with rock stars, it’s a long way to the top if you’re just starting. But if you have something to offer then you can reach that fee status, and there’s a reliable path to follow.”

The three phases to becoming a paid speaker.   

• Ready. “Picking a lane” in your topic is the first step to becoming not only a paid speaker, but a wealthy one, too. Ask yourself the questions, “What topic do I want to be known for five years from now?” and “Will someone pay me for that information?” When looking to hire a speaker to deliver a keynote speech for a conference, who will be picked from a pool of experts – a jack of all trades or someone who hits the center of the bull’s-eye on a topic? When picking a lane, consider delving into topics including leadership, engagement, corporate culture or communication. This is the phase in which you’ll want to really develop your bona fides, including your material and establishing the goal of how you’d like to help your audience.

• Aim. Here is the marketing phase that cannot be underappreciated. It includes aspects like your website and what you do to drive traffic there, which may include a well-written blog with relevant content, and media exposure. However, the most important way to market yourself is to do a truly excellent job with your actual speech. A good speech for a speaker is like a great pastry for a baker – a quality product speaks volumes itself. There is no better form of marketing than a great speech. Therefore, if you think your speech could use help, take care of it right away. No amount of marketing dollars, no fancy Facebook page and no ultra-cool website can overcome a mediocre presentation. However, when you market yourself, you’ll want to include a number of materials, including your brand, promise statement, photos, a bio illustrating credibility, testimonials and more.

• Fire. Now, you need to identify your target market and determine the best method to reach them. You need to roll out your product and continue to build momentum. Be ready to fire your message to your target market via a public relations campaign strategy. There are multiple ways of effectively getting good attention from the media, but don’t believe all attention is good attention. Carefully consider your press releases. Atkinson says the mistake most speakers make is sending out a press release that does not answer the question: “So what?” They don’t tie it to anything relevant into which the press can sink their teeth. Another way to “fire” is to identify your ideal customer, also called the The Attraction Method, as detailed in the book, “Attracting Perfect Customers: The Power of Strategic Synchronicity” by Stacy Hall and Jan Brogniez.

“If you feel as though you have something to offer audiences via oral presentations, then you probably do,” Atkinson says. “These days, so much content can be had for free online, but that doesn’t take the place of a live experiential presentation. A presentation that is ‘epic’ will remain in your memory for years. The ability to present your content live, and make the presentation worthwhile and relevant, means you can earn a reliable stream of revenue based on what you’re good at.” For the Silo, Jane Atkinson.

Props and good lighting can add dramatic effects like this lecture at Hogwarts.
Props and good lighting can add dramatic effects like this lecture at Hogwarts.

Supplemental- Top 10 Highest Paid Public Speakers in the World 

Earth

Safe Living With Canada’s Urban And Rural Coyotes

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Coyotes are a canine species similar to wolves, found only in North and South America and like other wild animals, sometimes come into conflict with humans.

Since migrating to the province of Ontario from the western side of Canada more than 100 years ago, coyotes have adapted well to urban environments and can now be found in both rural and urban settings. Coyotes are most abundant in southern agricultural Ontario and urban areas and there are ways to prevent and manage conflicts.

Factors That Influence Possibility Of Sightings

Changes in land use, agricultural practices, weather, supplemental feeding and natural food shortages may contribute to more coyote sightings in your community.

Homeowners and renters in areas of potential encounters should take these steps to make sure coyotes aren’t attracted to their homes and to keep their pets safe.

To reduce the potential for coyote encounters, the Ministry of Natural Resources has the following tips for the public.

Do not approach or feed coyotes

  • Coyotes are usually wary of humans and avoid people whenever possible. However, they are wild animals and should not be approached.
  • People should NOT feed coyotes — either intentionally or unintentionally. It makes them less fearful of humans and makes them accustomed to food provided by humans.
  • Aggressive behavior towards people is unusual for coyotes, but people should always exercise caution around wildlife. Secure garbage, compost and other attractants
  • Do not provide food to coyotes and other wildlife. Properly store and maintain garbage containers to help prevent coyotes from becoming a problem.
  • In the fall, pick ripe fruit from fruit trees, remove fallen fruit from the ground and keep bird feeders from overflowing as coyotes eat fruit, nuts and seeds.
  • In the summer, protect vegetable gardens with heavy-duty garden fences or place vegetable plants in a greenhouse. Check with your local nursery to see what deterrent products are available.
  • Place trash bins inside an enclosed structure to discourage the presence of small rodents, which are an important food source for coyotes.
  • Put garbage at curb-side the morning of the scheduled pickup, rather than the night before.
  • Use enclosed composting bins rather than exposed piles. Coyotes are attracted to dog and cat waste as well as products containing meat, milk and eggs.
  • Consider eliminating artificial water sources such as koi ponds.
  • Keep pet food indoors. Use deterrents and fences to keep coyotes away from your home and gardens
  • Use motion-sensitive lighting and/or motion-activated sprinkler systems to make your property less attractive to coyotes and other nocturnal wildlife.
  • Fence your property or yard.  It is recommended the fence be at least six-feet tall with the bottom extending at least six inches below the ground and/or a foot outward, so coyotes cannot dig under the fence.  A roller system can be attached to the top of the fence, preventing animals from gaining the foothold they need to pull themselves up and over the top of a fence.
  • Electric fencing can also help deter coyotes from properties or gardens in some circumstances.
  • Clear away bushes and dense weeds near your home where coyotes may find cover and small animals to feed upon.
  • Close off crawl spaces under porches, decks, and sheds. Coyotes use these areas for denning and raising young.

Keep pets safe

  • Cats and small dogs may be seen as prey by coyotes, while larger dogs may be injured in a confrontation. To avoid these situations consider the following suggestions:
  • Install proper fencing.
  • As coyotes are primarily nocturnal, pets should be kept inside at night.
  • Keep all pets on leashes or confined to a yard.
  • Keep cats indoors and do not allow pets to roam from home.
  • Spay or neuter your dogs. Coyotes are attracted to, and can mate with, domestic dogs that have not been spayed or neutered.

If You Encounter A Coyote

  • Do not turn your back on or run. Back away while remaining calm.
  • Use whistles and personal alarm devices to frighten an approaching or threatening animal.
  • If a coyote poses an immediate threat or danger to public safety, call 911.
  • Never attempt to tame a coyote. Reduce risk of predation on livestock
  • Barns or sheds can provide effective protection from the threat of coyotes preying on livestock.
  • Guard animals, such as donkeys, llamas and dogs, can be a cost-effective way to protect livestock from coyotes. Guard animals will develop a bond with livestock if they are slowly integrated and will aggressively repel predators.
  • For more information on preventing livestock predation and claiming compensation from the government, please visit the Ministry of Agriculture and Food website.

Managing Problem Wildlife

  • Landowners are responsible for managing problem wildlife, including coyotes, on their own property.
  • The Ministry of Natural Resources helps landowners and municipalities deal with problem wildlife by providing fact sheets, appropriate agency referrals, and information on steps they can take to address problems with wildlife.
  • The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act sets out the legal actions property owners can take to deal with problem wildlife. Generally, landowners or their agents may harass, capture or kill problem wildlife to prevent damage to their property.
Reviews

Audio-Technica Intro New Open Ear Audiophile Headphones

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STOW, OH, October, 2024 — Our friends at Audio-Technica are at it again and have just announced the introduction of their ATH-ADX3000 Open-Air Dynamic Headphones, designed to bring true high-end sound quality to the under-$1,000 usd headphones category. Celebrating 50 years of headphone design and production, the new ATH-ADX3000 features Audio-Technica’s most advanced driver technology to deliver natural, spacious audio.

A Few Takeaways (more below)

Light and comfortable, weighing less than 10 ounces and with velour earpads, the ATH-ADX3000 headphones are comfortable, to say the least. If you are a home recordist know that they’re ideal for long mix sessions, and not just due to comfort or their open-back design.

58-millimeter integrated driver units house tungsten-coated diaphragms (which produce excellent transient response), voice coils, baffles, and pure iron magnetic circuits. Coupled with Audio-Technica’s proprietary Core Mount Technology that optimally places the driver units, this results in full-range audio reproduction across an astonishing 5Hz–45kHz frequency response that needs to be heard to be believed.

These near-flagship headphones come with a specially designed aluminum carrying case.

Uses the A2DC proprietary coaxial connector which reduces connector rotation and glitchy connections.

The Nitty Gritty

The ATH-ADX3000’s open-back design allows unrestricted airflow of the diaphragm, for extremely pure audio quality with realistic soundstaging and imaging, with nearly no use of dampening material or acoustic aids. The ATH-ADX3000 features a full-range driver that is designed entirely by the engineers at Audio-Technica and manufactured and hand-assembled in Audio-Technica’s Machida, Japan factory. The driver utilizes the same technology as the company’s acclaimed flagship ATH-ADX5000 headphones.

Japanese Craftmanship

As a leading innovator in transducer technology for over 60 years, Audio-Technica places special emphasis on driver design to achieve the optimal sound from each pair of headphones. Did we mention that the ATH-ADX3000’s integrated driver units are handmade in our Machida, Tokyo, facility to ensure the highest quality? Sure did- but it is worth repeating.

Audio-Technica’s exclusive Core Mount Technology positions the driver’s voice coil in the middle of its housing, so that the acoustic space is balanced in both the front and the back of the driver. Audio-Technica lead engineer Hiromichi Ozawa noted, “Our engineers worked hard to achieve a frequency response that is not easy to obtain by using only natural air flow. Our expertise in driver technology influenced our approach to open-back headphones, and enabled us to ensure that the driver diaphragm moves with the purest motion possible.”

The ATH-ADX3000 employs a 58 mm tungsten-coated diaphragm, pure iron magnetic circuit, voice coil, and aluminum housing, which are all combined in a single integrated driver unit. The diaphragm is extremely lightweight and responsive, and the pure iron magnet enables exceptional dynamic range and high efficiency. Together, this approach creates an optimum structure that offers superb clarity and stereo imaging, with articulate bass, a smooth midrange, and detailed, extended high frequencies.

The ATH-ADX3000 is designed for long-wearing comfort, thanks to its light weight of only 280 grams. It’s supplied with a detachable 3.0m (9.8-foot) cable with A2DC connectors and comes with a robust aluminum storage case.

A2DC Connector

The Audio-Technica ATH-ADX3000 Open-Air Dynamic Headphones is available starting October 24, 2024, at a suggested retail price of $999 usd/ $1,387 cad.

Audio-Technica was founded in 1962 with the mission of producing high-quality audio for everyone. As we have grown to design critically acclaimed headphones, turntables and microphones, we have retained the belief that great audio should not be enjoyed only by the select few, but accessible to all. Building upon our analog heritage, we work to expand the limits of audio technology, pursuing an ever-changing purity of sound that creates connections and enriches lives. For the Silo, Frank Doris.

Art

Alex Katz Receives United States National Medal Of Arts

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President Biden awards National Medal of Arts to Alex Katz

Alex Katz has been awarded the 2023 National Medal of Arts. Katz received the award from President Joseph Biden in a private ceremony at the White House. 

For a good Canadian analogy- The National Medal of Arts is to art what the President’s Trophy is to NHL hockey teams- it is the highest award given to artists and arts patrons by the American federal government. It is awarded by the President of the United States to individuals or groups who are deserving of special recognition by reason of their outstanding contributions to the excellence, growth, support, and availability of the arts in the United States. 

Red Hat (Renee), 2013

Oil on linen

84 x 60 inches

213.4 x 152.4 cm

Past recipients of the National Medal of Arts include Mark Bradford, Ken Burns, Spike Lee, Steven Spielberg, Carrie Mae Weems, and Ruth Asawa.

Alex Katz © 2011 Vivien Bittencourt

Alex Katz (American, b.1927) is one of the most recognized and widely-exhibited artists of his generation.

Coming of age between Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art, Katz began exhibiting his work in 1954, and since that time he has produced a celebrated body of work that includes paintings, drawings, sculpture, and prints. His earliest work took inspiration from various aspects of mid-century American culture and society, including television, film, and advertising, and over the past five and a half decades he has established himself as a preeminent painter of modern life, whose distinctive portraits and lyrical landscapes bear a flattened surface and consistent economy of line. Utilizing characteristically wide brushstrokes, large swathes of color, and refined compositions, Katz created what art historian Robert Storr called “a new and distinctive type of realism in American art which combines aspects of both abstraction and representation.”

Tracy, 2008
Oil on linen
48 x 66 inches
121.92 x 167.6 cm

Since the 1950s, Alex Katz’s work has been the subject of more than 200 solo exhibitions and nearly 500 group exhibitions around the world.

Katz early student work included a series of drawings made on his subway commute from Queen’s to his downtown art classes. These drawings were later painted and have been acclaimed as being proto proto pop art.

His work can be found in nearly 100 public collections worldwide, including the Art Institute of Chicago; the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC; the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; the National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institute, Washington, DC; the Philadelphia Museum of Art; The Tate Gallery, London; and the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, among many others. This story courtesy of friends at the Richard Gray Gallery.

Featured image- Thunderstruck Sunset 1 2007

Sci-Tech

Inside The High Flying & Spying World Of Hot Air Balloons

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Remember early last year when we were besieged by strange, large balloons in our airspace- the kind of balloons that certain nations are using to spy on us or possibly manipulate the weather?

Okay let’s put those conspiracy theories aside for now. Hopefully everyone has seen a hot air balloon in flight at least once because they are majestic and otherworldly and quite calming to watch drifting around up in the blue sky above.

But have you ever wondered when the first one was invented? Or how much hot air is required to get them safely off the ground and ready for a flight around the skies? Or where they are stored when they aren’t being used? Our friends at SpareFoot were wondering the same thing, and the data they shared with us below is quite astonishing.

Hot Air Balloon InfoGraphic

Supplemental– Baumgartner’s record setting Free Fall event utilized Hot Air Balloon to reach “edge of space”

Art

The Iconic 909 Techno, House & Acid (Drum) Machine

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Vogue- Madonna. Girls Aint Nothing But Trouble- DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince. Garage Palace- Gorillaz & Little Simz. Pump Up The Jam- Technotronic. Take Me Home 2016 Remaster- Phil Collins. Hunter- Bjork. Revolution 909- Daft Punk. Purple Hearts- Kendrick Lamar w Summer Walker & Ghostface Killah. What do all of these hit songs (and many more) have in common?

“The Roland TR-909 Rhythm Composer is an iconic drum machine powerhouse that’s defined genres and ignited dance floors since its debut. Known for its instantly recognizable punchy classic drum sounds, the TR-909 delivers that quintessential rhythm that has shaped techno, house, acid, and beyond.” Tone Tweakers.

To say that the 909 is a versatile instrument is an understatement.

Creatively transformed into distinct and unique sonic identities by adding interesting studio effects to its sound samples and through different methods of programming tracks, the differences between rhythm styles and drum sounds between hit songs is amazing .

The drums in Phil Collins’s “Take Me Home” are characterized by a powerful and distinctive gated reverb effect on the snare, creating a dense, atmospheric rhythm that drives the song.

“The laid-back vibe of “Purple Hearts” compliments the snappiness of the vintage TR-909 sound. The drums help carry the smooth groove throughout the song, and the cymbals add some sparkle and shimmer to an otherwise tight percussion sound.” Native Instruments.

909 sighting. Fat Boy Slim’s “You’ve Come A Long Way Baby” liner notes.

The TR-909 drum machine was created in 1984 by the Roland Corporation. Forty years later, it is still a highly sought after drum machine commanding a serious amount of purchase money. For perspective, the cost for the 909 in 1985 was $1,095 usd ($3,502 usd allowing for inflation) but has appreciated substantially in value since then- the 909 regularly sells for double this amount or more, not surprising since it is renowned for its iconic analog drum sounds which have become staples in electronic music genres such as techno, house, and acid. The TR-909’s distinctive sound and easy-to-use interface have made it a classic piece of equipment, shaping the sound of countless tracks and influencing generations of musicians and producers.

Attack of the 500$ Clone

“Great care has been taken in designing the RD-9 to achieve new possibilities in beat creation by reviving a timeless design from one of the most classic drum machines of yesteryear. By taking a fresh and modern approach on a classic drum machine, the RD-9 gives you the power to harness the phenomenal sound of the venerable TR-909 and tap into some new features as well. Colossal bass drums through sizzling hi-hats can be manipulated to take your rhythm performance to the next level. This is an analog beat-making monster.” Behringer

Art

Jeannie Motherwell Exhibit Encapsulates Spirit Of Cape Cod

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 Boston, MA. JEANNIE MOTHERWELL Profoundly Fun Existential Crisis, acrylic on cradeled panel, 40″ x 30″ x 2″ 

M Fine Arts Galerie presents PROFOUNDLY FUN, a solo show of new abstract paintings by artist Jeannie Motherwell. The artist, who trained at Bard College and the Art Students League in NYC, finds inspiration in landscapes—earthly or otherwise. A New York City native, Motherwell spent countless seasons on Cape Cod, a place that continues to maintain a special place in her heart and oeuvre.
Just as relevant to her work as the waves, the light, and the bay, are stars, galaxies, and nebulae. Indeed, the act of looking at a Motherwell is to be transported out of the room—in this case, a window-lined gallery in Boston’s SoWa Art & Design district. Where you end up is anyone’s guess. Windward, acrylic on cradeled panel, 20″ x 60″ x 2″ 

“In exploring space, I try to make space. I am intrigued with complex and expansive space on a flat surface. The painting process I use creates the unexpected for me. By pouring and pushing paint, I can engage in the element of surprise, often using a bright and intense palette, or through my continued passion for black and white. In process, while editing, I employ undulating, bleeding, and layering, as my paintings are often inspired by the mysteries of outer space and what astronauts often refer to as “inner space” (the skies and the sea).” -Jeannie Motherwell  
PROFOUNDLY FUN features new works in acrylic and oil on clay boards, a fine porcelain surface upon which saturated hues spill, swirl, and seep, with rich contours feathering out into delicious white space. 
Be Known, acrylic on cradeled panel, 48″ x 36″ x 2″  

For the Silo, Madison Maushart.
PROFOUNDLY FUN runs until October 31
M Fine Arts Galerie
460 Harrison Ave C24
Boston, MA 02118
Sci-Tech

Amidst Waves of Data Breaches, U.S. Gov Advised Agencies: Implement Zero Trust Architecture

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It’s been nearly two years since arguments and questions kept rising following the FAA outage that happened on January 11th, 2023, which resulted in the complete closure of the U.S. Airspace and most of the airspace here in Canada.

Although the FAA later confirmed that the outage was, in fact, caused by a contractor who unintentionally damaged a data file related to the Notices to Air Missions (NOTAM) system, the authenticity of the fact is still debated. 

The FAA initially urged airlines to ground domestic departures following the system glitch Credit: Reuters

“The FAA said it was due to one corrupted file – who believes this? Are there no safeguards against one file being corrupted, bringing everything down? Billions of Dollars are being spent on cybersecurity, yet this is going on – are there any other files that could be corrupted?” questions Walt Szablowski, Founder and Executive Chairman of Eracent, a company that specializes in providing IT and cybersecurity solutions to large organizations such as the USPS, Visa, U.S. Airforce, British Ministry of Defense — and dozens of Fortune 500 companies.

There has been a string of cybersecurity breaches across some high-profile organizations.

Last year, on January 19th, T-Mobile disclosed that a cyberattacker stole personal data pertaining to 37 million customers, December 2022 saw a trove of data on over 200 million Twitter users circulated among hackers. In November 2022, a hacker posted a dataset to BreachForums containing up-to-date personal information of 487 million WhatsApp users from 84 countries.

The Ponemon Institute in its 2021 Cost of a Data Breach Report analyzed data from 537 organizations around the world that had suffered a data breach. Note all of the following figures are in US dollars. They found that healthcare ($9.23 million ), financial ($5.72 million), pharmaceutical ($5.04 million), technology ($4.88 million), and energy organizations ($4.65 million) suffered the costliest data breaches.

The average total cost of a data breach was estimated to be $3.86 million in 2020, while it increased to $4.24 million in 2021.

“In the software business, 90% of the money is thrown away on software that doesn’t work as intended or as promised,” argues Szablowski. “Due to the uncontrollable waves of costly network and data breaches, the U.S. Federal Government is mandating the implementation of the Zero Trust Architecture.“

Eracent’s ClearArmor Zero Trust Resource Planning (ZTRP) consolidates and transforms the concept of Zero Trust Architecture into a complete implementation within an organization.

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“Relying on the latest technology will not work if organizations do not evolve their thinking. Tools and technology alone are not the answer. Organizations must design a cybersecurity system that fits and supports each organization’s unique requirements,” concludes Szablowski. For the Silo, Karla Jo Helms.

Sci-Tech

China Innovates Shenzhen Sea World With Robot Whale Shark

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SHENZHEN, China (October, 2024) — After five years of renovations, Xiaomeisha Sea World have taken the bold step to include forward-thinking robotic alternatives to using live animals to educate and entertain visitors.

“We are thrilled to see Xiaomeisha Sea World taking a step toward more compassionate entertainment with its animatronic whale shark, and we hope this move encourages people to reconsider why they feel entitled to see live marine animals in confinement — especially when it comes to species who are known to suffer extreme psychological and physical harm as a result of captivity — and that that this aquarium will continue to lead the way with more exhibits that don’t use live animals.”  Hannah Williams, Cetacean Consultant for In Defense of Animals.

Xiaomeisha Sea World’s decision comes in the context of a broader global movement toward protecting marine life. In recent years, New Zealand made headlines for banning swimming with dolphins to prevent the disturbance of wild populations — a step in recognizing the importance of reducing stress on these sentient beings. In Mexico City, the ban on keeping dolphins and whales in captivity has been a landmark victory, specifically citing the former use of living dolphins in displays that landed the city’s aquarium on In Defense of Animals’ “10 Worst Tanks” list.

Developed by Shenyang Aerospace Xinguang Group under the Third Academy of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation Limited, this groundbreaking achievement marks a significant step forward in modern marine technology.

The nearly five-meter-long, 350-kilogram bionic marvel is capable of replicating the movements of a real whale shark with remarkable precision, including swimming, turning, floating, diving, and even movements of its mouth.

At Xiaomeisha Sea World- cutting edge display technology is front and center.

Wild whale and dolphin populations are in global decline. Fishing has caused a severe decline of Indian Ocean dolphins and Pacific Ocean orcas — who also suffer additionally from ship traffic and marine noise. The marine animal entertainment industry puts further pressure on wild animals since it depends on continual top ups of captive populations with wild captures of dolphins and small whales, such as Japan’s infamous Taiji Cove drive hunt. Each year, dolphins face traumatic experiences during live captures, either being killed or traumatically ripped from their pods and shipped for a life of confinement.

In light of the inherent cruelty and conservation impacts of traditional aquarium captivity, Xiaomeisha Sea World’s animatronic whale shark represents a promising shift towards humane marine entertainment. We encourage Xiaomeisha to build on this achievement by becoming the world’s first fully animatronic aquarium. By adopting more “species” of advanced marine robots — which include manta rays, dolphins, and orcas — Xiaomeisha could address lingering concerns, such as new reports of fish with white spot disease, crowded tanks, “lots of excrement in the snow wolf garden,” ongoing harmful beluga whale shows, and firmly put to rest the heartbreaking legacy of Pezoo, a zoochotic polar bear who suffered in extreme confinement for years. Transitioning away from outdated live-animal performances would position Xiaomeisha as a global leader in innovative, ethical marine exhibits.

Exciting developments in next-generation animal entertainment are taking place around the world. Time Magazine named Axiom Holographics’ animal-free Hologram Zoo in Brisbane among the best inventions of 2023.

Edge Innovations in California has created hyper-realistic animatronic animals, including dolphins that can swim, respond to questions, and engage closely with audiences — without any of the ethical concerns associated with real captive animals. These lifelike creations offer enhanced levels of interaction and can thrive in confined environments like theme parks, aquariums, and shopping malls, preventing real animals from suffering and premature death.

“A tidal wave of excitement is building for the future of animal-free entertainment, driven by cutting-edge technologies like animatronics, holograms, and virtual reality. “Aquariums and zoos have a unique opportunity to captivate audiences with these immersive experiences — without capturing live animals. Modern technology can bring the wonders of animal life to people in ways that were never possible before. We urge Xiaomeisha Sea World to fully embrace animatronics and seize this chance to proudly and openly lead the way to a sustainable, cruelty-free model that respects marine animal lives.” Fleur Dawes, Communications Director for In Defense of Animals.

For the Silo, Hannah Williams/IDA.

In Defense of Animals is an international animal protection organization with over 250,000 supporters and a 40-year history of defending animals, people, and the environment through education, campaigns, and hands-on rescue facilities in California, India, South Korea, and rural Mississippi. For more information, visit https://www.idausa.org/campaign/cetacean-advocacy

Culture

Watercolorist Designs Large Scale Homes That Integrate With Surroundings

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Beverly Hills Artist, Energy Guru & Landscape Designer Also Does Dreamy Homes!

Beverly Hills-based architect Brian Tichenor is a man of many talents, widely recognized for original, artful building designs that integrate large-scale residences and their surrounding landscapes. A graduate of UCLA, Tichenor is a member of the architecture faculty at rival school University of Southern California. Some of his most notable projects include the new LA Times Headquarters and Nantworks, a campus of DNA sequencing and R&D labs on reclaimed oil fields in the north Baldwin Hills that use methane capture, solar infrastructure, and co-generation to achieve energy self-sufficiency.

The Artist

In the art world, Tichenor’s colorful watercolors are found in the homes of many art collectors. And Brian has completed more than 100 gardens throughout the world. With his wife, fellow architect Raun Thorp, he is the author of Outside In: The Houses and Gardens of Tichenor & Thorp, published by Vendome Press in 2017.

A ten-acre estate in Alamo, thoughtfully designed by Tichenor, has been listed for sale at $17.75 million usd/ $24.4 million cad.

Known as Lark Ridge Estate, the property includes Tichenor’s trademark landscaping featuring Mediterranean-style gardens, a lion’s-head fountain with Emperador dark marble surround, a dark plaster pool, and an octagon-shaped spa, complemented by the property’s stunning views of Mt. Diablo and the surrounding valley.

Three houses sit on the grounds, protected by private gates. The 9,812-square-foot main house includes six bedrooms and nine bathrooms. The two-story mansion is the classic Mediterranean with a red-tile roof.  Exquisitely designed for indoor-outdoor living, the floor plan offers grand-scale entertaining spaces, casual living areas, sitting rooms, private bedroom retreats, enormous walk-in closets, spa-like bathrooms, dual-executive-office spaces, a gym, and a media room.

French doors, extensive use of Venetian gold from Italian artisans, antique fireplaces, rock crystal chandeliers, and custom onyx-and-marble countertops impart an air of decadent luxury. Each room is unique, with truly stunning wall coverings, including parchment and gold-leafed wallpaper in the executive office, pearlized Venetian plaster walls in the master suite,  custom hand-painted grass-cloth walls in the family room, and a fireplace from New York’s Plaza Hotel. Miele appliances, state-of-the-art AV & security systems, motorized shades, and a computerized lighting system offer the ultimate in high-tech living.

The 917-square-foot carriage house provides a one-bedroom/one-bathroom guest home with a full kitchen and laundry room over an impressive nine-car secondary garage. The 718-square-foot tennis house offers a similar one-bedroom/one-bathroom layout with a kitchenette. Perfect for entertaining, the tennis house opens onto the full-sized lighted tennis court with a basketball hoop and the entertainment deck with a two-way fireplace. An outdoor kitchen and bar, ample poolside lounging areas, and resort-inspired amenities are sure to charm even the most discerning guests.

Located 28 miles south of San Francisco, Alamo is a suburban community known for its bucolic feel and relaxed atmosphere, close enough to San Francisco and Silicon Valley for a comfortable commute but secluded from the hustle and bustle of the city. Lark Ridge Estate sits just above the Iron Horse Regional trail, beloved by walkers, runners and cyclists. Numerous parks and wilderness areas surround the community, which has not yet been heavily developed. Celebrities who call Alamo home include Olympic gold medalist Kristi Yamaguchi, MLB record-setter Mark McGwire, and Oakland Raiders owner Marc Davis. 

The listing is held by Dana Green of Dana Green Team of Compass, Lafayette, California.

Photos:  Courtesy of Compass

Source: larkridgeestate.com

Fashion

Time Master 70’s Is Tribute To Iconic 1970s

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Porsche Club of America - The Time Master 70’s: A Tribute to the Iconic Era of the 1970s

The 1970s was an unforgettable decade for racing, design, and craftsmanship, particularly in the automotive world. Sports cars of the time, especially the Porsche 911, stood as symbols of precision, speed, and elegance. Inspired by this golden era, Ferro & Company introduces the  Time Master 70’s — a timepiece that captures the spirit of the 1970s, designed for those who appreciate the beauty of both classic cars and fine watches.

Note- prices are in USD.

A Fusion of Precision and Heritage

Much like the legendary Porsche models of the 1970s, the Time Master 70’s is a perfect blend of bold design and engineering excellence. Drawing inspiration from the sleek dashboards and smooth curves of 70s sports cars, this watch embodies the timeless style and craftsmanship of the era. Whether you’re a car enthusiast or a collector of fine watches, the Time Master 70’s offers a link to the past, with modern reliability.

1975 Porsche 911S Cabriolet dashboard instrument faces.

Porsche Club of America-The Time Master 70’s: A Tribute to the Iconic Era of the 1970s
Key Specifications
  • 39 mm Brushed Stainless Steel 316L Case: Built to last, the case reflects the robust yet elegant design of classic sports cars. 
  • 47 mm Lug to Lug: A comfortable fit for everyday wear. 
  • 20 mm Lugs: Compatible with various straps for personalization. 
  • 10.4 mm thick (Japan MVT) / 11 mm thick (Swiss MVT): Slim enough for versatility, substantial enough to make an impression. 
  • Flat Sapphire Crystal with A/R Coating: Scratch-resistant and designed to reduce glare, ensuring clear readability. 
  • Movement: Choose between the reliable Japan Miyota 9039 Automatic or the precise Swiss ETA 2824-2 Automatic . 
  • 6 mm Screw-down Crown: Ensures water resistance and durability. 
  • 10 ATM (100-meter Water Resistance): Built to withstand the elements, perfect for daily adventures. 
  • 20 mm 316L Stainless Steel Bracelets with On-the-Fly 6-click internal micro-adjust system: Offers unparalleled comfort and ease of adjustment. 
  • Super Luminova BGW9 Lume hour indices with Super Luminova Orange hands: High visibility in low-light conditions, just like the gauges on a race car’s dashboard.
Porsche Club of America-The Time Master 70’s: A Tribute to the Iconic Era of the 1970s
Porsche Club of America-The Time Master 70’s: A Tribute to the Iconic Era of the 1970s

Inspired by 1970s Automotive Excellence

For Porsche enthusiasts & other supercars from the era, the Time Master 70’s offers more than just a timekeeping function. Its design is inspired by the sleek lines and elegant simplicity of 70s sports car models. The clean dial mirrors the precision instruments found in the cockpits of vintage sports cars, while the bold, luminous hour indices ensure visibility reminiscent of race car dashboards.

1973 Dodge Charger dashboard.

Just as a Porsche 911 is a symbol of balance between design and power, the Time Master 70’s reflects the same ethos—perfectly balancing functionality and aesthetics. The precision of the Swiss ETA 2824 or Japan Miyota 9039 movement mirrors the finely-tuned engines that defined an era of automotive glory.

Porsche Club of America-The Time Master 70’s: A Tribute to the Iconic Era of the 1970s

Limited edition

The Time Master 70’s is quickly becoming a collector’s item, with only limited units remaining. This limited-edition watch is nearly sold out! If you’re looking to own a piece of 1970s-inspired heritage, now is the time to act . With shipments scheduled for mid-October, this is your last chance to secure your Time Master 70’s.

Ready for the Open Road?

Whether you’re behind the wheel of a classic car or simply enjoying your everyday adventures, the Time Master 70’s is your ultimate companion. With its striking design and precision engineering, it’s more than just a watch—it’s a tribute to the elegance and excitement of the 1970s racing era.

Porsche Club of America-The Time Master 70’s: A Tribute to the Iconic Era of the 1970s

Don’t miss the opportunity to own a timepiece inspired by a legacy of speed, craftsmanship, and timeless style. Order your Time Master 70’s today! The time Master watches will ship by mid October.

Earth

Last And Largest Supermoon of 2024 Is Nearly Here

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The full Hunter’s Moon—a moon known for its extra-bountiful glow in autumn, one that traditionally helped hunters harvest venison into the late evening, before the winter freeze—will rise on Oct. 17. It will loom larger and brighter than ever. The reason?

It will be a supermoon. But not just any supermoon.

The Hunter’s Moon this October will be the biggest supermoon of the year, the fourth and final one of 2024.

How the Hunter’s Moon Got Its Name

Both Colonial Americans and Canadian Settlers once had to hunt to fill their stores before settling into their lodges for the winter. To this end, they would hunt late into the evening while deer and other large game were easy to spot in the open stubble fields after the harvest.

These night hunts were assisted by moonlight from October’s full moon, which mysteriously rose sooner than expected and loomed larger than was typical. It was as if it provided light specifically for their hunting.

What looked like a helping hand from the full moon gave rise to its traditional name: the Hunter’s Moon.

This year, the Hunter’s Moon falls on Oct. 17, reaching peak illumination at exactly 7:26 a.m. EDT. It will be below the horizon for stargazers here in Canada and the rest of North America at that time. But at sunset that evening you can look eastward and find it still quite full, as it will seem the following evening, on Oct. 18, and the evening prior, on Oct. 16. Moons don’t change their cycles on a dime.

It Will Be a ‘Supermoon’

Similar to September’s huge Harvest Moon, October’s full moon will be a supermoon. It will appear larger and will be closer to the Earth than usual, which happens because the moon’s distance from Earth isn’t fixed. Our largest natural satellite travels along an oval-shaped orbit, so sometimes it’s nearer and other times further away.

Full Harvest Moon to Fall in September Will Be a Supermoon—Here’s Why It Will Loom Gigantic

Scientists Have Confirmed Cave on Moon That Could Be Used to Shelter Future Explorers

When a full moon occurs near the point closest to Earth along said orbit, a point called the perigee, a supermoon results. This occurred in September’s Harvest Moon and will happen again for October’s Hunter’s Moon, making it the fourth and final supermoon of the year; the largest in 2024.

The Hunter's Moon traditionally follows the Harvest Moon. (Shutterstock/Harry L/Richard OD)
The Hunter’s Moon traditionally follows the Harvest Moon. Shutterstock/Harry L/Richard OD

On Oct. 16, perigee will be reached. At exactly 8:57 p.m. EDT, the moon will be 222,055 miles from Earth, roughly 17,000 miles nearer than average. Not 12 hours later, the full moon will fall. Supermoons can loom 7 percent larger than normal, though human eyes can’t usually tell. It’ll also shine slightly brighter.

Facts And Folklore of Autumn Full Moons

As full moons go, autumn’s are famously big. Supermoon or no supermoon, farmers have long relied on fall full moons for moonlight when working late to bring harvests in before the frost. Folklore says these moons are larger and even seem to forestall their departure mysteriously, as if gracing the harvest with extra illumination.

The “Hunter’s Moon” usually falls in October, but not always. Full moons in September, October, and November sometimes swap names. Harvest Moon always denotes the moon closest to the equinox (the first day of fall) and usually falls in September, and so, they are most commonly in September. But every so often, October’s full moon is closest to the equinox (which is in late September) and thus assumes the title Harvest Moon. When that happens, the Hunter’s Moon gets bumped into November.

Swapping names is unusual for full moons; they don’t follow that tradition in other months. April’s Pink Moon and June’s Strawberry Moon don’t shift, nor do moons of other months. Furthermore, most moon names denote the month’s entire lunar cycle, whereas the Harvest Moon and Hunter’s Moon denote just the full moon event.

Colonial Americans traditionally hunted after the autumn harvest to fill their stores for the winter months. (Shutterstock/Maciej Pawlik)
Colonial Americans traditionally hunted after the autumn harvest to fill their stores for the winter months. Shutterstock/Maciej Pawlik

Autumn moons loom larger than usual, too. Astronomers say this is just an optical illusion. Autumn moons often appear near the horizon because the moon’s arc is so affected by Earth’s axial tilt during the equinox. They may seem larger when viewed next to terrestrial foreground objects like trees or buildings. The psychological impact this has makes the moon look grander.

It’s just an illusion, though—the “moon illusion.”

But there’s more to the equinox than smoke and mirrors. Some of the strangeness is real, as autumn moons follow a perplexing schedule. On average, throughout the year, the moon rises 50 minutes later each night as its orbit carries it steadily eastward. But around the equinox, it may rise as few as 23 minutes later. This boon to farmers is no illusion.

Astronomers twist their tongues to explain it.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac says it’s because the moon’s arc has its greatest northerly component during fall and is thus at its longest. Now traveling rapidly northward, it appears to rise sooner than expected, and all the more so the further north you go.

All together—the Hunter’s Moon, the extra moonlight, the equinox, the moon illusion, and the largest supermoon of 2024—it seems we’re in for a sublime lunar spectacle. There’s a chill in the air. So grab your fall coat for an evening under the warm glow of the Hunter’s Moon. For the Silo, Michael Wing.

Featured image- Designed by friends at The Epoch Times Shutterstock/solepsizm/Richard OD/Harry L

Fashion

Porsche Cayenne Minivan Built For Mark Zuckerberg’s Wife

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When a Porsche minivan doesn’t exist, billionaire Mark Zuckerberg makes one himself, with the help of West Coast Customs FOR HIS WIFE PEDIATRICIAN Dr. Priscilla Chan.

A Personal Touch to Porsche

In social media posts, Zuckerberg proudly shared his creation, revealing how he personally designed the vehicle. The customized SUV features a stretched wheelbase, lower ride height, and a larger rear spoiler. Additionally, the car sports black alloy wheels paired with yellow brake calipers, giving it a sleek, aggressive stance. This minivan, which still carries the DNA of a high-performance vehicle, adds a dash of Silicon Valley flair to the family’s collection.

The Porsche That Became a Minivan

Zuckerberg’s project began with the Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT, a model already known for its performance and luxury. Fitted with a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 engine producing up to 650 horsepower in updated form, the base model is an impressive machine. However, the tech mogul wasn’t content with the stock design. He wanted something more practical, particularly for family use. Thus, the Cayenne was stretched, and sliding doors were installed, giving it the feel of a minivan with the heart of a performance SUV.

Porsche’s Minivan Vision

Interestingly, Porsche itself once entertained the idea of a minivan with its Vision Renndienst concept, designed in 2018. The Renndienst, however, never went beyond the prototype stage. The Renndienst model had a futuristic design with six seats, placing the driver in a central position.

Although Zuckerberg’s minivan doesn’t replicate this setup, it opens up the possibility of what Porsche could achieve if they embraced the concept for production.

A Luxury Minivan Market?

While the luxury SUV market is saturated, the minivan sector, especially in regions like Asia, has seen growing demand for high-end models. Zuckerberg’s bespoke Cayenne reflects that trend, though it is unclear if the customization was purely aesthetic or if performance upgrades were made as well. With the ongoing development of a three-row electric SUV from Porsche set to release by 2027, one can’t help but wonder if the tech billionaire’s vision might influence the automaker’s future designs. For the Silo, Verdad Gallardo.

>>Join the conversation about this custom Cayenne minivan right here via our friends at Rennlist.com.

Vintage

Founders Of Hot Rodding Include Canada Born Hilborn

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These 5 Hot-Rodders Forged the Legacy of the Flathead

The impact of Ford’s flathead V-8 on the hot rod scene is undeniable. But the individuals that immortalized this engine—and, along the way, laid the foundation for the hot-rod scene—are the real heroes.

photo- Brandan Gillogly

n the early 1900s, horsepower was almost exclusively for the Gatsbys of the world. Ford’s flathead V-8, introduced in the depths of the depths of the Great Depression, changed all that. But it needed some help from car obsessives, who went on to invent what we now know as hot-rodding. Learn about them below, then check out Preston Lerner’s deep dive on the Flathead and its impact here.—Ed.

While it’s not without its flaws, the Ford flathead V-8 marked a significant milestone in the history of American performance. Ford’s mass production of the flathead opened up racing to a whole new audience and helped an industry flourish. Ford wasn’t alone, however, as the factory-built flathead was just a building block. Several individuals, through their own innovation and business acumen, were able to build flathead V-8s to horsepower levels that pushed boundaries of speed, developed a massive segment of our hobby, and forged long-lasting businesses, many of which are still with us today. Here are five pioneers of the aftermarket that used the flathead V-8 to cement themselves and their companies in American culture.

Ed Winfield

Ed Winfield
Magnifico

1901-1982

Known as “The Father of Hot-Rodding,” Winfield got his first job in a blacksmith shop when he was just eight. By the time he was 11, he was stripping down the neighbor’s Model T to shed weight and make it faster. Two years later, he was working on carburetors in Harry A. Miller’s Los Angeles shop where Barney Oldfield’s groundbreaking Golden Submarine race car was being built. With a knack for machinery and an intimate knowledge of engines, Winfield started his own carburetor company in 1919 and began grinding cams the following year. His carburetors were used on eight of the ten Indy 500 winners from 1933-1946, the only exception was Wilbur Shaw, who had won with a Winfield-fed Shaw/Offenhauser engine in 1937 and switched to Maserati power for his wins in 1939 and 1940.

Winfield did it all, from serving as a riding mechanic and racing at Ascot Speedway to working with major automakers in developing engines. Winfield also helped a young Ed Iskendarian with cylinder head work. He was inducted into the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2011.

Vic Edelbrock Sr.

Vic Edelbrock Senior
Magnifico

1913-1962

Already an established mechanic, Vic Edelbrock Sr. designed the Slingshot intake manifold for flathead Ford V-8s in 1938 and tested it on his own 1932 Ford roadster on Southern California’s dry lakes. After WWII, Vic moved into a new shop in Holywood and designed his first cast aluminum cylinder head for flathead V-8s. Also in 1946, Edelbrock created its first catalog of speed parts, and soon its products were found on cars competing in virtually every form of racing, whether it was on the 1/4-mile, on circle tracks, or America’s dry lakes. His son, Vic Jr., took over the business after his passing and expanded the business to include fuel injection and superchargers. Vic Jr. passed away in 2017, but the company continues to make performance parts. To this day, the company makes Victor and Victor Jr. cylinder heads and intake manifolds that keep their legacy alive.

Stu Hilborn

Stu Hilborn
Magnifico

1917-2013

Born in Canada, Hilborn came to southern California in time to graduate high school and attend junior college in Los Angeles before enlisting in the Army Air Corps (you’re going to notice a trend here). While working on aircraft, Hilborn began scheming up a new way to feed fuel to engines, and once he was back in Southern California, he built a dry lakes racer that would prove his constant-flow fuel injection could compete and win against carburetors. The sleek racer was the first to eclipse 150 mph on the dry lakes and graced the fourth cover of Hot Rod magazine in April, 1948.

Hilborn continued to modify and improve his fuel injection design, and in 1952 Bill Vukovich drove the Fuel Injection Special in the Indy 500, where he led 150 laps and was just nine laps from the finish when a steering issue sidelined the car. That was tough luck for Vukovich, but 22-year-old Troy Ruttman passed him and took the win. Rutman, like Vukovich, was running Hilborn fuel injection, as were the remaining drivers on the podium. You can think of Hilborn’s mechanical fuel injection taking over for Winfield’s carburetors, as the individual throttle body system became the induction of choice for America’s top racers, dominating the Indy 500 for decades, claiming 34 victories along the way. Hilborn stacks appeared on road racers of all kinds, and the company’s two-port units could be found atop supercharged drag cars as well, but it all started with the dry lakes flathead.

Alex Xydias

Alex Xyadias
Magnifico

1922-2024

Alex Xydias passed away earlier this year at the age of 102, leaving behind an impressive legacy of business achievement and generosity. His name is synonymous with the So-Cal Speed Shop, the Burbank speed equipment emporium he founded after leaving the Army Air Corps in 1946. The most famous product of that enterprise is the iconic belly tank lakester that graced the January 1949 cover of Hot Rod magazine after it ran using Ford V-8-60 power. The So-Cal Speed Shop followed on the success of the lakester with a sleek streamliner that would go on to be powered by a Mercury flathead that would push the car to 210.8962mph, the fastest time of Speed Week 1950, earning Xydias back-to-back spots on the coveted Hot Rod trophy, and the first in excess of 200mph.

So-Cally Belly Tank Lakester front three quarter
Brandan Gillogly

Xydias forged relationships with speed parts manufacturers and helped get race-winning parts into the hands of southern California hot-rodders through his shop, but So-Cal Speed Shop also sold parts across the country through its mail-order catalog, using the fame of his racing success to get more enthusiasts involved by proving what the flathead was capable of.

Ed Iskenderian

Ed Isky Eskidarian
Magnifico

1921-

Ever a hot-rodder, Ed Iskenderian’s T roadster was and continues to be an influential build, but there’s a reason he’s known as the Camfather. Shortly after returning from United States Army Air Corps service during WWII, Iskendarian was eager to return to building engines, particularly flatheads, but the booming demand vastly exceeded supply. He didn’t waste time waiting for other cam grinders to catch up. Instead, Isky, already experienced with tool and die work, purchased a machine and converted it to grind cams. Not only were his camshafts effective, but Isky was a talented marketer, coining the term “5-Cycle Cam” to describe his camshafts that used valve overlap and the escaping exhaust gases to scavenge the incoming intake charge. In addition to his many pioneering valvetrain advancements, Isky is also credited with selling logo t-shirts before anyone else.

Iskendarian cams are still used by some of the quickest and fastest racers today.

Featured image via –Historic Vehicle Association For the Silo, Fabian Hoberg / Hagerty.

Politics

Alleged Terrorist Plotter Was Seeking Refugee Status in Canada

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The Pakistani national who allegedly plotted to travel to New York to murder Jews was seeking refugee status in Canada, according to an immigration consultant.

Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, who came to Canada in June 2023 on a student visa, was arrested on Sept. 4 by the RCMP for allegedly intending to carry out a mass shooting targeting Jews in New York City. He was charged by U.S. authorities with attempting to provide material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), and the United States is seeking to have him extradited.

Fazal Qadeer, an immigration consultant who had worked with Khan, said Khan was applying for refugee status on the basis of sexual orientation, saying he is gay, CBC reported on Oct. 7.

It is not known what Khan’s refugee claim status was when he was arrested, but Qadeer said Khan had recently had a lengthy interview with Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

Immigration Minister Marc Miller said in September that Khan entered Canada on a student visa.

According to a U.S. criminal complaint that was unsealed in September 2024, Khan repeatedly expressed his support for ISIS and his intention to carry out a terrorist attack around November 2023.

u.s._v._khan_complaint_0Download

That month, he began interacting online with an undercover FBI agent, and explained his plan to attack Jewish religious centres in the United States around the time of the one-year anniversary of Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist attack against Israel.

Pakistani National Charged in Murder-for-Hire Plot Against US Official

What We Know About the Alleged ISIS Terror Plot by Pakistani National Arrested in Canada

In a statement, IRCC said it would not comment on individual cases, but that all asylum claimants receive an “independent and fair assessment on the individual merits of their claim,” which included whether they fear persecution based on race, religion, political opinion, nationality, or if they are LGBT.

Minister ‘Confident’ in Screening System

Khan’s arrest came months after a father and son were arrested by the RCMP in Richmond Hill, Ont., for allegedly being in the “advanced stages of planning a serious, violent attack in Toronto.” The two are facing nine terrorism charges, including conspiracy to commit murder on behalf of ISIS.

Ahmed Eldidi had been admitted into Canada in 2019 and later given citizenship, while Mostafa Eldidi was granted refugee status, according to documents provided by IRCC.

Miller defended Ottawa’s immigration system when appearing before the House of Commons public safety committee in September, saying the government remains “confident in the way our biometric system works in the progressive screening that operates in our country.”

Miller told the committee that Ahmed Eldidi had his initial temporary resident visa application refused because of concerns he would not leave Canada at the end of his authorized stay, but his second application was approved after an officer was satisfied he merely intended to visit Canada. He was given a favourable recommendation, Miller said, and officers found no issues that made him inadmissible to Canada.

Conservative MPs on the committee questioned screening procedures and accused the Liberal government of removing the mandatory requirement for police background checks for arrivals from some countries including Pakistan in 2018.

The IRCC’s website currently states that those applying for permanent residence, citizenship, or the International Experience Canada program “may need to provide a police certificate for any other programs” if they have a prior criminal record, but does not specifically mention Pakistan. For the Silo, Matthew Horwood.

Featured image- RCMP logo is seen outside the force’s ‘E’ division headquarters in Surrey, B.C., on March 16, 2023. The Canadian Press/Darryl Dyck.


Fashion

Slam Dunk- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s Marina Del Rey Home For Sale

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Considered by many to be the greatest basketball player of all time,  Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was chosen as the NBA’s most valuable player six times and an NBA All-Star nineteen times during his storied twenty-season career for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers. Famous for his dunking skills, he was so dominant on the UCLA Bruins varsity squad that the NCAA banned the dunk after the 7’2″ superstar led his team to a 30-0 season and the first of three college national championships. He would go on to be the #1 pick in the NBA draft in 1969 and was named the league’s Rookie of the Year. He would win five more MVP awards before becoming an assistant coach for several teams, including the Los Angeles Clippers and the Lakers.

In addition, he has made numerous appearances in film and television and published several best-selling books. 

photos- Noel Kleinman.

Now the swanky Marina del Rey pad Abdul-Jabber called home from 2011 to 2021 has hit the market. Across the street from the Ritz Carlton and the California Yacht Club, the luxe but laid back four-bedroom, three-bath residence is one of just twelve homes in an exclusive gated community. 

Kareem’s former home was thoughtfully designed for its very tall owner, featuring enlarged doorways and other modifications.

An airy open-floor plan connects the large living room and formal dining room area with a stellar kitchen, complete with granite counters, a spacious island, custom cabinets, and stainless steel appliances. Sliding doors open onto a side garden patio. 

On the second level, find hardwood floors and a stunning primary suite with a fireplace, a massive walk-in closet, and a fantastic private balcony with views of the nearby marina. The luxurious spa-inspired bathroom includes dual vanities plus a separate Jacuzzi spa tub and steam shower. A third floor offers an additional bedroom perfect for a home office, with another patio offering views of the Ritz Carlton and the marina. An oversized garage offers space for two cars and four additional outdoor parking spaces. Additional features include a whole-house water filtration system, automatic lighting, and a monitored/remote-access camera security system.

Marina del Rey is a coastal community noted for its small-craft harbor, one of the largest in North America with over 5,000 boats.

A destination for kayaking, bird-watching, and recreation of all kinds, the harbor is often visited by harbor seals, sea lions, and dolphins. The home is just steps from the harbor and the Marvin Braude bike path. A short walk takes you to Trader Joe’s, the unique shops of Abbot Kinney and several world-class restaurants. Rapper Ice Cube has a home in Marina del Rey, while other celebrities keep their luxury yachts in the local harbor and frequent its shopping and dining hotspots.  For The Silo, Bob Walsh/ friends at toptenrealestatedeals.com

The listing is held by James Allen at Compass. 

Transportation

Over Half Canadians Opposed To Fed’s Unaffordable 2035 Ban On Gas Powered Cars

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Over Half of Canadians Oppose Fed’s Plan to Ban Sale of Conventional Vehicles by 2035: Poll
An electric vehicle is seen being charged in Ottawa on on July 13, 2022. The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick

More than half of Canadians DO NOT support the federal government’s mandate to require all new cars sold in Canada to be electric by 2035, a recent Ipsos poll finds.

Canadians across the country are “a lot more hesitant to ban conventional cars than their elected representatives in Ottawa are,” said Krystle Wittevrongel, research director at the Montreal Economic Institute (MEI), in a news release on Oct. 3.

“They have legitimate concerns, most notably with the cost of those cars, and federal and provincial politicians should take note.”

The online poll, conducted by Ipsos on behalf of the MEI, surveyed 1,190 Canadians aged 18 and over between Sept. 18 and 22. Among the participants overall, 55 percent said they disagree with Ottawa’s decision to ban the sale of conventional vehicles by 2035 and mandate all new cars be electric or zero-emissions.

“In every region surveyed, a larger number of respondents were against the ban than in favour of it,” MEI said in the news release. According to the poll, the proportion of those against the ban was noticeably higher in Western Canada, at 63 percent, followed by the Atlantic provinces at 58 percent. In Ontario, 51 percent were against, and in Quebec, 48 percent were against.

In all, only 40 percent nationwide agreed with the federal mandate.

‘Lukewarm Attitude’

Just 1 in 10 Canadians own an electric vehicle (EV), the poll said. Among those who don’t, less than one-quarter (24 percent) said their next car would be electric.

Fewer Canadians Willing to Buy Electric Vehicles: Federal Research

ANALYSIS: ‘Bumpy Road’ Ahead as Canada Moves Toward 2035 EV Goals

A research report released by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) in March this year suggests a trend similar to that of the Ipsos poll’s findings. The report indicated that only 36 percent of Canadians had considered buying an EV in 2024—down from 51 percent in 2022.

“Survey results reveal that Canadians hold mixed views on ZEVs [Zero-Emission Vehicles] and continue to have a general lack of knowledge about these vehicles,” said the report by EKOS Research Associate, which was commissioned by NRCan to conduct the online survey of 3,459 Canadians from Jan. 17 to Feb. 7.

The MEI cited a number of key reasons for “this lukewarm attitude” in adopting EVs, including high cost (70 percent), lack of charging infrastructure (66 percent), and reduced performance in Canada’s cold climate (64 percent).

Canada’s shift from gas-powered vehicles to EVs is guided by federal and provincial policies aimed at zero-emission transportation. The federal mandate requires all new light-duty vehicles, which include passenger cars, SUVs, and light trucks, sold by 2035 to be zero-emission—with interim targets of 20 percent by 2026 and 60 percent by 2030.

Some provincial policies, such as those in Quebec, are even stricter, including a planned ban on all gas-powered vehicles and used gas engines by 2035.

‘Unrealistic’

The MEI survey indicated that two-thirds of respondents (66 percent) said the mandate’s timeline is “unrealistic,” with only 26 percent saying Ottawa’s plan is realistic.

In addition, 76 percent of Canadians say the federal government’s environmental impact assessment process used for energy projects takes too long, with only 9 percent taking the opposite view, according to the survey.

A study by the Fraser Institute in March said that achieving Ottawa’s EV goal could increase Canada’s demand for electricity by 15.3 percent and require the equivalent of 10 new mega hydro dams or 13 large natural gas plants to be built within the next 11 years.

“For context, once Canada’s vehicle fleet is fully electric, it will require 10 new mega hydro dams (capable of producing 1,100 megawatts) nationwide, which is the size of British Columbia’s new Site C dam. It took approximately 10 years to plan and pass environmental regulations, and an additional decade to build. To date, Site C is expected to cost $16 billion,” said the think tank in a March 14 news release.

On April 25, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada since 2020 has attracted more than $46 billion cad in investments for projects to manufacture EVs and EV batteries and battery components. A Parliamentary Budget Officer report published July 18 said Ottawa and the provinces have jointly promised $52.5 billion cad in government support from Oct. 8, 2020, to April 25, 2024, which included tax credits, production subsidies, and capital investment for construction and other support.

On July 26, a company slated to build a major rechargeable battery manufacturing plant in Ontario announced that it would halt the project due to declining demand for EVs.

In a news release at the time, Umicore Rechargeable Battery Materials Canada Inc. said it was taking “immediate action” to address a “recent significant slowdown in short- and medium-term EV growth projections affecting its activities.”

For The Silo, Isaac Teo with contribution from the Canadian Press.

Isaac Teo
Transportation

Porsche Rarities Coming To Auction

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Broad Arrow Auctions has released the complete digital catalog for its upcoming inaugural Chattanooga Auction, set for 12 October 2024 at the Chattanooga Convention Center in Tennessee and we have it here for you to drool over (see below).

Among the 90+ collector cars on offer at the single-day sale are no less than 15 variations of the 911 model, including such rarities as the 1984 Porsche 911 SC RS Gruppe B “Evolutionsserie”, the vertible “missing link” in any Carrera RS collection.

Friday, October 11 9:00 am – 5:00 pm ET
Saturday, October 12 9:00 am – 1:00 pm ETAuction
Saturday, October 12 1:00 pm ET

Drool Time

Broad Arrow Auctions – The Chattanooga Auction 2024 – CatalogDownload
1984 Porsche 911 SC RS Gruppe B “Evolutionsserie”Lot 180
Estimate: $2,600,000 – $3,500,000 USD/ $3,528,000 CAD- $4,750,000 CAD

Looking for something less German? View all lots- click here.

Featured image-

2019 Porsche 911 Speedster Heritage Design Package Lot 140
Estimate: $375,000 – $425,000 USD/ $509,000 CAD- $577,000 CAD
Vintage

Most Successful TV Theme Songs Ever

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If your old enough to remember big ass tube tv’s or roof antennas dangling on the roofs of the neighborhood houses then consider this- theme songs from those TV shows can immediately bring back memories and nostalgia from your childhood or teenage life. That is pretty powerful stuff right? One of the reasons why many theme songs continue to be so memorable is because they’re truly unique, written and performed by top-notch musical talent.

But which iconic tune has had the most influence over the years?

By exploring IMDb’s 100 greatest TV theme songs, our friends at Spin Genie have revealed the composers and musicians who have accumulated the most success for their contribution to iconic TV series. Using this data we will analyze the total streams, monthly listeners, and estimated earnings in CAD dollars for the appropriate TV show theme tune.

We will also judge the TV series by reviewing IMDb ratings and Rotten Tomatoes scores, as well as the annual searches for each theme song. Sound fair? Let’s dig in.

PS If you have some spare time in between binging on your favorite TV shows, check out the latest online slots available on Spin Genie.

The most successful TV theme songs:

  1. The Sopranos

Woke Up This Morning – Alabama 3

Royalty score: 8.43 out of 10

In first place is  “Woke Up This Morning”, a song by British band Alabama 3 from their 1997 album Exile on Coldharbour Lane. Best known as the opening theme song for the American television series The Sopranos. “Woke Up This Morning” has over 37.9 million streams on Spotify, with estimated earnings of $231,206, and the band has 320,321 monthly listeners. The Sopranos is one of the most influential TV dramas, smashing IMDb ratings with a score of 9.2 out of 10. On Rotten Tomatoes, the drama received a 96% audience rating and recorded 24,600 annual worldwide searches for its theme song as of July 2024.

  1. Get a Life

Stand – R.E.M.

Royalty score: 7.57 out of 10

Following up in second place is “Stand”, a song by American alternative rock band R.E.M., released as the second single from the album Green in 1989. It was used as the theme for the 1990-1992 Fox sitcom Get a Life, starring Chris Elliott. The theme song has amounted to 46.6 million Spotify streams with earnings of almost $284,100. 

Get a Life is one of the top-rated TV series on our list, recording a perfect 100% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The show also performed well on IMDb, with ratings of 8.1 out of 10.

  1. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air – DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince

Royalty score: 7.07 out of 10

DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince’s “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”  rounds out the top three, heard in 1990 as the theme song for the NBC sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The lyrics were composed by rapper and sitcom star Will Smith, performing under his stage name, the Fresh Prince, with Jeffrey Townes producing the song under his stage name DJ Jazzy Jeff. Originally, composer and producer Quincy Jones pitched the song, but Smith wrote the lyrics after reading up on an episode script. Jones immediately loved it and accepted it as the theme song.

Further findings: 

  • The song “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” from the sitcom of the same name is the most streamed theme song on Spotify, with a total of 123.2 million streams.
  • The Sopranos achieved the best IMDb rating of 9.2 out of 10, making it the highest-reviewed TV show.
  • M*A*S*H, an American war comedy-drama television series that aired on CBS from 1972 to 1983, has the most-searched-for theme song with almost 200,000 people searching for it. It’s a song that was written specifically for the show by Johnny Mande and Michael Altman and is called “Suicide Is Painless”.

For the Silo, Charlotte Greaves/ Digital Loft.

Sci-Tech

USB Juice Jacking Is New Way Hackers Attack Travelers

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How to avoid being hacked during this Fall’s travel season. 

According to a recent study by cybersecurity firm NordVPN, one in four travelers has been hacked when using public Wi-Fi while traveling abroad. However, unsecured Wi-Fi is not the only factor travelers should be worried about. 

Last year, the FBI published a tweet (see below) warning users against smartphone charging stations in public places (airports, hotels, and shopping malls). Hackers may have modified the charging cables with the aim of installing malware on phones to perform an attack called juice jacking. 

“Digital information, although it exists virtually, can also be stolen using physical devices. So it is important to take a 360-degree approach and secure your device from both online and offline threats,” says Adrianus Warmenhoven, a cybersecurity advisor.

What is juice jacking?

Juice jacking is a cyberattack where a public USB charging port is used to steal data or install malware on a device. Juice jacking attacks allow hackers to steal users’ passwords, credit card information, addresses, names, and other data. Attackers can also install malware to track keystrokes, show ads, or add devices to a botnet.

Image

Is juice jacking detectable?

Juice jacking attacks can be difficult to detect. If your device has already been compromised, you may notice some suspicious activity – but that won’t always be the case.

For example, you may notice something you don’t recognize on your phone — like purchases you didn’t make or calls that look suspicious.

Your phone may also start working unusually slowly or feel hotter than usual. Chances are you may have picked up malware. For a full list of signs to watch out for read on and find out how to know if your phone is hacked.

How to protect yourself

Since no sign of juice jacking is 100% reliable, it is best to avoid falling victim to this attack by using the following the advice:

  • Get a power bank. Power banks are a safe and convenient way to charge your device on the go. Getting a portable power bank means that you’ll never have to use public charging stations where juice jacking attacks occur. Always ensure your power bank is fully charged so you can use it on the go.
     
  • Use a USB data blocker. A USB data blocker is a device that protects your phone from juice jacking when you’re using a public charging station. It plugs into the charging port on your phone and acts as a shield between the public charging station’s cord and your device.
     
  • Use a power socket instead. Juice jacking attacks only happen when you’re connected to a USB charger. If you absolutely need to charge your phone in public, avoid the risk of infected cables and USB ports and use a power outlet. This is typically a safe way to charge your mobile device and other devices in public.

For the Silo, Darija Grobova.

Earth

North America’s Largest Convention Center Installs Bird Saving Window Film

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CHICAGO (October, 2024) — After receiving nearly 50,000 emails from In Defense of Animals supporters, McCormick Place Lakeside Center has taken a crucial step in safeguarding migratory birds by installing bird-safe window film on its iconic glass walls. This renovation addresses the soaring number of bird deaths caused by window collisions at the convention center, which claimed the lives of over 1,000 birds in a single night last fall.

“Windows collisions rank among the deadliest threats to birds,” said Katie Nolan, Wild Animals Campaigns Specialist for In Defense of Animals. “With wild birds in steep decline — over 3 billion lost in the past 50 years — we are delighted that the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority has taken a crucial step by installing bird-safe window film at McCormick Place. This sets a new standard for all North American buildings to follow. Building managers can save millions by installing bird-safe window film and turning off lights.”

McCormick Place, situated along the Mississippi Flyway — a crucial migration route — has long been a site of concern for bird collisions, particularly during spring and fall migrations. In Defense of Animals and its Interfaith Vegan Coalition witnessed the devastating impact firsthand when attending a conference at McCormick Place in 2023.

“The bird deaths we witnessed at McCormick Place were heartbreaking,” said Lisa Levinson, Campaigns Director for In Defense of Animals. “While a member of our Interfaith Vegan Coalition was able to rescue one injured bird, many more had perished in a single night. We couldn’t be happier that McCormick Place has stepped up to protect these vulnerable birds.”

The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, which manages McCormick Place, announced the $1.2 million usd/ $1.62 million cad project to install bird-safe film has been completed, covering two American football fields’ worth of glass / or approximately 1.3 Canadian football fields’ worth of glass. The newly installed bird-safe window film is a critical part of reducing bird collisions, along with measures such as dimming or turning off lights during peak migration seasons. These actions help protect migratory birds, many of whom face deadly threats from light pollution and reflective windows.

McCormick Place’s efforts align with broader city initiatives like Lights Out Chicago, which aims to reduce bird deaths by encouraging buildings to dim their lights during migration periods. The installation of bird-safe window film will go a long way in ensuring that migratory birds continue to travel safely through the city. For the Silo, Jarrod Barker.

Art

British Contemporary Artist Paints Nuke Blasts

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Kirsty Harris depicts the most iconic man-made event that might take place in a landscape: the detonation of the atom bomb.

Often working at scale, Harris confronts her audience with a vision of awe and beauty. Mushroom clouds hang over desolate expanses of the Nevada desert, provoking contemplation at the intersection of humanity, brutality, technology and nature.

Harris’s practice is steadfast; her paintings are informed by deep research, and this arduous process is echoed in depictions of a split-second event painted over a period of several months.

– Zavier Ellis for the Saatchi exhibition 2023

Buster Jangle, Easy, 50 x 60 inches, 2016

CBP: Your paintings reconstruct photographic documents of the atomic bomb tests, often in the Nevada desert, in a range of exhibition display formats. Can you introduce the core themes of your work?

KH: I am interested in the way these events from history disrupt and scar those barren landscapes. These swirling, bubbling apparitions are like curses or spells that we’ve cast on ourselves, so violent. 

My work might feel confrontational, maybe abrupt at first, then hopefully unravelling into something more. I am also drawn in by the stories and myths that run alongside the scientific nature of the subject. We all know that beauty doesn’t have a moral duty to be inherently good. It’s something I think about, the push and pull of awe. The tests made in the desert are so fascinating, the photographs are very rich, colourful, and vivid, due to the way the light refracts and the type of film used. These practice runs at annihilation are so beautiful – it’s unreal. It’s dark.

Georg, oil on un-stretched linen, 59 x 79 inches, 2023

CBP: You talk about early memories and family history in attending CND rallies as a child. Can you discuss this influence on the subject of your painting today?

KH: As I was becoming more and more interested in landscape painting I noticed they all have something occurring, could be farmers, the sun setting, a stormy sky, a battle, a tiny stream. Alone at Tate Modern I was looking at a painting of a single cloud by Richter and then suddenly something clicked in my head. I was walking around, eyes wide with a slack jaw, thinking “oh wow this is what I must do. Paint mushroom clouds.”

The anticipation of piling onto a coach and ending up somewhere waving my homemade banner and singing and chanting at CND protests are evocative memories from my childhood. In our doorway at home, visitors were welcomed by a massive poster of Thatcher & Reagan parodied in a Gone With The Wind movie-style poster, complete with a billowing mushroom cloud in the background. We collected protest badges and leaflets and the atmosphere was potent and thrilling, but I didn’t catch on to what we were shouting about until later. So it was always there in me. A weird relationship with the subject matter. 

Plowshare, oil on linen, 80cm x 60cm, 2024

CBP: Many years ago I visited a small museum in the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History, Albuquerque, New Mexico near the atomic bomb test sites. The original photographs of the test bombs were shown alongside reportage photographs of the real bombs and their impact (I think). Also displayed was a fascinating comic book type narrative depicting the daily life of the factory workers who built the bomb and their families. I recall being quietly absorbed by the experience, though I questioned what it was I was looking at, in terms of archive material, as a museum display, and how it made me feel. 

When you research and paint your subject, how do you negotiate what you feel about the source material and its transition into you what you are painting? Has it changed over time?

KH: It feels like science fiction. 

Through the extensive documentation of nuclear detonations, I can view how these expansive entities change millisecond to millisecond, from the fireball to the pure white cloud left hanging at the end. In my publication, Completely er, unfolding itself (2019), I transcribed the first live official television broadcast of an atomic explosion – given the code name ‘Charlie’ – in 1942. The reporters struggle, grasping for the language to describe the mushroom cloud in front of them – and I get where they were coming from. 

We are in such close proximity right now to digital versions of war. Scrolling through instagram you have temu trying to sell you some shitty plastic drawers and then 1 second later a mother holding her tiny dead child wrapped in tarpaulin, and worse. It’s so brutal. 

I keep thinking how can we be doing that to ourselves, can they never see themselves in the faces of the people they kill and torture. Nothing is worth this brutality. 

I guess my brain is always negotiating how much to watch in order to feel informed but not go reeling into despair, like all of us.

Blue Danube, Oil paint on lightbox tondo, 80cm x 80cm x 11cm, 2023

CBP: In 2007 Mark Wallinger created ‘State Britain’, for the Tate, a meticulous recreation of real-life antiwar demonstrator Brian Haw’s banned protest camp outside the Houses of Parliament. Rather than importing elements of the real camp as a readymade, Wallinger chose to painstakingly recreate it as a painted facsimile. This solitary studio activity would have given him time to reflect on its impact, the life sacrifice Brian Haw made, and what he as an artist was recreating. 

How does time and the meticulous process of painting your subject impact on the meaning of the work for you?

KH: Like the women at Greenham Common, Brian Haw was the artwork, the awesome spectacle. Inconvenient clutter. The resilience is truly remarkable. Wallinger’s piece pays tribute to this but, a little like the fake Lascaux caves. Good if you can never see the real thing, but there’s no point looking up close. I found the political implications of it very interesting.

Large paintings take me such a long time, it’s ridiculous.

I have to continually change my vantage point. If it’s possible I turn the painting upside down, take photos of it and desaturate it. Stand up painting, sit down painting. Up the ladder, sat on the floor. I always imagine the next one will be more straightforward but in 25 years, that has never happened, so why would it now? But while there is much anxiety balled up in the action of painting, it is also a hypnotic and calming process. Studying a millisecond of time for so long. I don’t know if it matters to anyone else how long I’ve looked at the painting or the source material, but the act of looking is so important to me. Displaying a painting on your wall at home, you might not realise it but with so much flashing and moving imagery invading our lives (with invitation) a semi-permanent, static, image has a big impact. I love it when there are different layers of meaning to dive into, even if they are not explicit your subconscious will identify them. Looking at an artwork every day builds up a special relationship and enriches the way my mind moves. 

Buster Dog,oil on glass, 25cm x 20cm x 4cm, 2021

CBP: Scale feels important both in terms of the impact of your subject for the viewer and your immersion into it when painting it. Can you talk about this aspect of the work?

KH: When you start a painting, there are near unlimited decisions to make. One I used to have trouble with was how big it should be. So I started to use data to construct systems that help me decide. In my paintings, often each square inch (or centimetre) of linen represents a certain number of tons of TNT. This in turn is the unit of measurement chosen, by the military, to denote the yield of the detonation.

These hidden codes might reward an inquisitive viewer.

Really, what I want to do is make paintings so vast that that’s all they see and think about for a moment. 

Investigating ideas of scale in a different way: Since 2013 I have been adding to and updating an audio composition entitled How I Learned to Stop Worrying (1945-2024). It is a musical account of every officially recorded nuclear explosion detonated between 1945 and the present day: each different instrument represents a country that partook; each month in history lasts a second on the recording; each note played depicts a single bomb. Eight musicians contributed to the piece and it was quite an epic translation of data to plot out the notes.

Grapple, oil paint on glass, table, 75cm x 50cm x 60cm, 2023

CBP: Can you reveal some of the mark making techniques and tools you use in your painting. 

KH: On my larger paintings I staple the linen flat to the wall and then prime it with clear primer. This enables me to really push on the canvas without worrying if I will hit the crossbar. I would love to be laying down decisive, thick, final brush marks, but what comes out is me dabbing layers and layers of thin oil paint, leaving it to evaporate and then repeating the process. My paintings are usually very matt which somehow feels right given that I’m painting dust clouds and sand half the time. 

I painted a lot of small paintings on glass during lockdown.

There was something comforting about the contained nature of those pieces. It is quite a different process but still I am basically dabbing on paint until it gets thick enough to create some depth. In a development from these smaller pieces I created a much larger light box piece, Blue Danube, 2023. It plays with the notions of nuclear tourism, emitting its own light in a kind of perverse advert.

Nevada, oil on board, 30cm x 40cm, 2024

CBP: Your titles are short but ranging from factual to enigmatic, how do title your work?

KH: Hard to explain how some titles come to me. A lot of the detonations use people’s names for code names, a bit like cyclones. 

Some of my favourites:

“The instrument is not the Music” is the title of a tapestry where the image is a female scientist inspecting and testing a metal instrument. A still from a British documentary it shows the intricate process in a factory where workers unknowingly fabricate the components that will eventually be assembled to create an atomic bomb. tbf my boyfriend came up with that one. He is great at titles if I get stuck.

“Blue Danube” I liked because it is a river (starting in the Black Forest and ending in the Black Sea) a piece of classical music and a bomb. All the Bs, the Beautiful Blue Danube.

Always noting potential titles down in my phone notes, I also dedicate time to skim reading when I need quite a few titles at once. They always come!

Installation shot at Saatchi Gallery 2023, Charlie, oil on un-stretched linen, 112 x 69 inches, 2017

CBP: Can you talk about your studio practice routine when carrying out archival research?

KH: There is the National Archives (UK) and Internet archives (USA) which I find very useful. I trawl through images via the normal channels and in addition watch out for vintage postcards on ebay, old photographs that people have sent me from their Uncle or Grandad’s collection. Declassified documents made into pdfs. We have a decent projector at home now so it’s great to watch documentaries on a large screen. Sometimes I take screenshots from military footage so the freeze-frame I choose may not have been studied widely. It’s interesting how in some images, due to the way the camera has responded, the sky looks black and the clouds are bright white. I have some exciting opportunities coming up, some top secret documents that someone is going to let me look through. And I’d like to work out ways to access small archives. There is one in particular in Germany that looks amazing.

At the moment I’m looking for glow. 

Teapot HA, oil on un-stretched linen, 64cm x 51cm, 2019

CBP: What projects are you working on at the moment?

KH: I have time to settle into the studio right now and test out some things I have been thinking through. Last year was a busy one with a solo show at Studio KIND and a big group show at Saatchi Gallery. I am looking forward to a group show in London with some top painters (heroes) next year. Plus a possible group show in New York, just waiting to find out. I also have a soft focus vision of a show in the UK in a massive derelict space. It will be nice to hibernate like a little bear in my studio this winter and come back with new energies.

Sanctuary II, oil on un-stretched linen, 302cm x 217cm, 2018

Kirsty Harris b. 1978 Raised in Yorkshire, artist and curator based in east London.

Co-founder of Come Quick Disaster and on the steering committee for Mental Health Arts organisation – Broken Grey Wires.

Recent solo and 2 person shows include; 2023  THAT LETHAL CLOUD, StudioKIND, Braunton, Devon, UK., HEAVY WEATHER, Splice, Perseverance Works, London, UK.    2022  INTERVENTION, DIY performances during the 59th Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy.

Recent group exhibitions include; 2024 LATRINE’S HAUS OF ART, Vane Gallery, Gateshead, UK. SEX SELLS – BEYOND THE HISTORICAL MATRIX, Semjon Contemporary, Berlin, Germany, HOW LONG IS FOREVER, Galerie 37, Schöneberg, Berlin, Germany. BEYOND THE GAZE – RECLAIMING THE LANDSCAPE, Saatchi Gallery, London, UK. Curated by Zavier Ellis. 2023   A GENEROUS SPACE 3, Huddersfield Art Gallery, Yorkshire, UK. Invited by Karl Bielik, TWO PLUS TWO MAKES FOUR, Auxiliary Warehouse, Middlesbrough, UK. Curated by Broken Grey Wires, THE SUBVERSIVE LANDSCAPE, Tremenheere Gallery, Cornwall, UK. Curated by Hugh Mendes. X – Contemporary British Painting, Newcastle Contemporary Art, UK. Curated by Narbi Price. 2022 ROYAL ACADEMY SUMMER EXHIBITION, Royal Academy, London, UK.

@kirsty_harris_art

Featured image- Charlie. by Kirsty Harris.

Reviews

New Flagship Turntable From Audio-Technica Delivers

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STOW, OH, September 30, 2024 — Our friends at Audio-Technica are pleased to announce the introduction and availability of its AT-LP8X Semi-Automatic Direct Drive Turntable.

The AT-LP8X is Audio-Technica’s new flagship turntable and its first-ever semi-automatic model.

It is designed to deliver exceptional vinyl record playback, with features including a VM95 Series cartridge (included), adjustable VTA (vertical tracking angle), a newly-designed motor, and additional refinements.

In addition to delivering outstanding sound from 33-1/3, 45 and 78-RPM records, the Audio-Technica AT-LP8X offers the convenience of semi-automatic operation, where the tonearm raises itself off the record and the motor stops at the end of a side. The AT-LP8X comes with a pre-mounted high-performance AT-VM95E Dual Magnet phono cartridge with an elliptical stylus, for superior resolution, stereo imaging, and tracking. The cartridge is pre-mounted on Audio-Technica’s new AT-L10 removeable headshell (also available separately) for easy installation. The AT-VM95E is compatible with any VM95 Series replacement stylus.

Adjustable Vertical Tracking Angle VTA

The J-shaped aluminum tonearm is inspired by classic Audio-Technica designs and has adjustable VTA, enabling it to be optimized for virtually any phono cartridge. In addition, the AT-LP8X provides adjustments for anti-skating and tracking force, and comes with a sub-counterweight that enables the use of cartridges with a weight range from 14 to 23.5 grams.

The AT-LP8X incorporates a new low-torque direct drive DC motor, with a speed sensor system that ensures accurate speed stability. It features a 1-inch-thick (25 mm) rubber-damped, anti-resonance, die-cast aluminum platter and a rubber mat, the most substantial platter ever offered on an Audio-Technica turntable, for reduced resonance and more accurate and uncolored vinyl playback. It also features a new internal switching power supply that is optimized for audio use, ensuring minimum noise in the signal chain. The AT-LP8X comes with a detachable RCA cable, removeable hinged dust cover, and 45-RPM adapter.

The Audio-Technica AT-LP8X Semi-Automatic Direct Drive Turntable is now available, at a suggested U.S. retail price of $999 / CAD $1,348. For the Silo, Frank Doris.

Audio-Technica was founded in 1962 with the mission of producing high-quality audio for everyone. As we have grown to design critically acclaimed headphones, turntables and microphones, we have retained the belief that great audio should not be enjoyed only by the select few, but accessible to all. Building upon our analog heritage, we work to expand the limits of audio technology, pursuing an ever-changing purity of sound that creates connections and enriches lives.

— For further information regarding product availability and pricing in Europe, contact Tanya Williams ([email protected]) please mention The Silo when contacting.

Politics

Canada’s Digital Services Tax is in US Crosshairs 

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From: Jon Johnson
To: Global Affairs Canada 

On August 30, the US requested consultations respecting Canada’s Digital Services Tax Act under the dispute settlement procedure set out in the Canada-US-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA). The US maintains that by imposing the tax, Canada has failed to provide US service providers and investors treatment no less favourable than it provides to Canadian service providers and investors. Given Canada’s unique trade relationship with the US, this could have major implications.

The essence of the complaint is that Canada is violating a specific CUSMA obligation to grant US firms terms that are no less favourable than its own companies receive.

This is called national treatment. The crux of the US argument is that the revenue and earnings thresholds are so high that no Canadian service provider would be subject to the tax, but at least some US providers would be. While the DST is not discriminatory on its face, its practical effect is discriminatory. 

Canada’s taxation of digital services has been an on-going contentious issue with the US. The new legislation entered into effect on June 20 and imposes a 3-percent levy – retroactive to January 1, 2022 – on revenue (not income) earned from digital services when certain thresholds are met. Annual gross revenues in a calendar year must exceed €750 million for the tax to apply. The taxpayer must also earn at least C$20 million in Canadian digital services revenue in a calendar year. Affected companies are to start paying the tax next June 30. 

On August 1, the Congressional Research Office released a paper outlining multiple concerns. It cites industry associations that maintain that Canada’s DST could “cost US exporters and the US tax base up to $2.3 billion annually and could directly result in the loss of thousands of full-time US jobs.” The paper also cites possible violations of CUSMA and WTO obligations. 

The paper also notes that the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has applied sanctions under Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act against digital services taxes enacted by other countries. Section 301 is much broader in its application than either CUSMA or the WTO.

The CUSMA panel could decide for the US if the facts establish that only US companies meet the €750 million threshold for overall earnings and whose Canadian digital earnings exceed C$20,000,000. 

Aside from the possibility of an adverse panel decision and action by the US under Section 301, there are other factors that Global Affairs Canada should consider before the Canadian government commences with the retroactive portion of the tax.  

CUSMA is up for renegotiation on July 1, 2026. The process on the US side starts with a USTR report to Congress, due by the end of 2025, that will include an assessment of CUSMA’s operation, as well as a recommendation on CUSMA extension. As Canadian initiatives to impose digital taxes have been a US concern for years now, the recommendation will doubtless address the question of Canada’s DST regime. If that regime remains an open issue and US concerns are not satisfied, the stage could be set for the ultimate demise of CUSMA in 2036.

CUSMA Article 32.6 also provides that a party can withdraw from CUSMA upon giving six months’ notice to the other parties.  

Decision time for the Canadian government falls on June 30, 2025, and it has to decide whether to go ahead and start collecting its retroactive DST and face the inevitable hostile reaction of its largest trading partner. This has to be carefully managed, or this small issue could become a big one. For the Silo, Jon Johnson.

Jon Johnson is a former advisor to the Canadian government during NAFTA negotiations and is a Senior Fellow at the C.D. Howe Institute.

Transportation

8 Cars That Deserved Better Engines

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What vehicle never got the engine it deserved? That’s the question posed to our friends at Hagerty Auto Insurance. Their love of cars goes back decades, or centuries and they’ve all been wondering how much better certain cars would be if they had a different engine …

… Or a better engine, something that truly spoke to the rest of the car. Let’s see what alternate car realities they would have created.

A Standard V-8 for Every Cadillac

engine cadillac VVT
Lies! All lies! Cadillac

For me, it’s the fact that all Cadillac cars (cars—Escalade excluded) from the last 20 or so years lack a standard V-8 engine. GM has an excellent LS motor, and a baby Caddy with a modest 4.8-liter small-block would give buyers more reason to avoid a thirsty BMW for a slightly more thirsty Caddy.

As the Caddy becomes larger, the V-8 engine follows suit (5.3-liter CTS, 6.2-liter CT-6, etc.) with increased displacement, and forced induction for the V-series examples. The inherent torque and simplicity of a pushrod V-8 complements the minimalist architecture of GM’s new EV powertrains, and exclusively pairing those two in a luxury car brand will make Cadillac more appealing than any of its competition. — Sajeev Mehta

As under-the-radar-good (and as mod-friendly) as the ATS-V’s LF4 V-6 is, I agree. After having spent over ten thousand miles with the smaller of the Alpha-chassis Caddys, the ATS should have gotten the 455-horse LT1 from the Camaro, and the ATS-V should have gotten the LT4. — Eddy Eckart

V-8 Bronco Raptor/ Ford GT

2024 Ford Bronco Raptor climb front three quarter
Ford

Ford Bronco Raptor. Lack of a V-8 is … yeaaaaah. For the record, I am fully aware that you can’t easily fit that V-8 into Ford’s T-6 frame. Actually, here’s the same opinion again: This also applies to the most recent Ford GT. — Matt Tuccillo

For sure, the Ford GT shoulda had a V-8. — Larry Webster

I think I’ll also jump on the Ford GT bandwagon, as I don’t care for the reasoning of why it got the EcoBoost V-6. That car deserved a V-8 based on heritage alone. – Greg Ingold

That buttress really flies Sajeev Mehta

Yes, please! Kill the flying buttress, make room for a 900+ horsepower Coyote with a twin-screw supercharger. — Sajeev Mehta

V-8 Prowler

1997 Plymouth prowler rear three-quarter
FCA

The Plymouth Prowler comes to mind. Chrysler Corporation came up with a car that was a modern nod to the classic hot rod but forgot the one factor that people want from a hot rod: A V-8 engine. You have to actively try to miss that detail. I don’t think anyone would’ve minded seeing a 318 Magnum out of a Ram pickup in the Prowler, as long as it came with eight cylinders. — Greg Ingold

Honda Motors in a Modern Lotus

Lotus Evora GT40 front three quarter
Lotus

Any modern-day Lotus fits in this category. They make do with Toyota engines but the chassis deserves the character of a Honda motor. — Larry Webster

Having a Lotus with a K-Series would be excellent! Totally agree with that take. — Greg Ingold

A Straight-Six SLK

Mercedes-Benz

Let’s not overlook the original Mercedes SLK. This folding-roof roadster needed Mercedes’ juicy and punchy 2.8-liter straight six. That supercharged four-cylinder engine was disappointing, and the manual gearbox was even worse. — Larry Webster

SHO-inental, If Only

1989 continental signature series engine
Sajeev Mehta

I only thought of this car/engine combo since I yanked my 1989 Continental Signature Series out of storage. Turns out it needed new rubber, and tires from a 1989 Ford Taurus SHO are a smidge wider on the same-sized wheel. Getting a set of those and slapping a set of 1/4-inch spacers on the rear gave it a stance that I can’t stop looking at. And now, curiously, it’s getting a lot more compliments. Even the manager of a local burger joint stopped me from giving my order so he could compliment me on it.

He thought it was a Town Car, but that’s not the point. These moments get this Lincoln-restomodding fool thinking about one thing: Ford needed an automatic transmission ready for the Taurus SHO sooner, and should have slapped it all into the 1989 Continental. Such a tragedy! — Sajeev Mehta

Citroën DS

citroen ds engine
Le nuancier DS

The Citroën DS was so unconventional and interesting that it’s easy to forget there was only ever an old-fashioned, underwhelming OHV four under the hood. The later SM got a Maserati V-6, but the DS was never so lucky. — Andrew Newton

The Sky Shoulda Been the Limit

2007 Saturn Sky Red Line front three-quarter
GM

GM flogged its Ecotec four-banger, and I know they made crazy power for drag racing. But I thought the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky deserved a more refined motor. — Larry Webster

They needed an LS, maybe just a small-displacement 4.8-liter, to keep Chevrolet appeased with their Corvette’s dominance. But I am sure that was discussed in some conference room at GM, and it was quickly shot down. — Sajeev Mehta

Featured image- Ford GT with Ecoboost 6 cylinder engine.