Hardbopjazz

It's down again.

Earth's Oldest Known Object on Display 1 hour, 30 minutes ago Science - AP By RYAN J. FOLEY, Associated Press Writer MADISON, Wis. - A tiny speck of zircon crystal that is barely visible to the eye is believed to be the oldest known piece of Earth at about 4.4 billion years old. For the first time ever, the public will have a chance to see the particle Saturday at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where researchers in 2001 made the breakthrough discovery that the early Earth was much cooler than previously believed based on analysis of the crystal. To create buzz about an otherwise arcane subject, the university is planning a daylong celebration of the ancient stone — capped with "The Rock Concert" by jazz musicians who composed music to try to answer the question: What does 4.4 billion years old sound like? "This is it — the oldest thing ever. One day only," said Joe Skulan, director of the UW-Madison Geology Museum, where the object will be displayed — under police guard — from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. "The idea of having a big celebration of something that's so tiny — we're playing with the obvious absurdity of it." With the aid of a microscope, anyone will be able to check out the tiny grain, which measures less than two human hairs in diameter. A concert by Jazz Passengers, a six-piece group from New York hired to compose music for the event, will follow on Saturday evening. In posters hanging on campus, the concert is advertised as "a loving musical tribute to the oldest known object on Earth." Composer Roy Nathanson said the concert will mix humor, jazz music, computer-generated beats, and the occasional rocks being banged together to "follow the geological history of how this zircon came about." "It's an amazing story. The whole thing is something that captures your imagination," said Nathanson, 53, a saxophonist who spent one year composing the performance. Analysis of the object in 2001 by John Valley, a UW-Madison professor of geology and geophysics, startled researchers around the world by concluding that the early Earth, instead of being a roiling ocean of magma, was cool enough to have oceans and continents — key conditions for life. "It's not very much to look at because it's so very small. But to me, the miraculous thing about the crystal is that we've been able to make such wide-ranging inferences about the early Earth," Valley said. "This is our first glimpse into the earliest history of the Earth." Valley found that the planet had cooled to about 100-degrees Centigrade less than 200 million years after it was formed. Before the research, the oldest evidence for liquid water on the planet was from a rock estimated to be much younger — 3.8 billion years old. As part of Saturday's event, Valley will display a brand new, $3 million ion microprobe that he and other researchers will use to analyze tiny samples such as the zircon crystal. The hand-built instrument weighs 11 tons and takes up an entire laboratory. Valley, who has tried to obtain the equipment for 22 years, had to travel to Scotland and Australia while he analyzed the zircon to use equipment there. A federal grant is paying for most of the new instrument. After the festivities the object will return to its native Australia with Simon Wilde, professor at Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Western Australia, who made its discovery in 1984. The sample will eventually be put on display at a natural history museum in that country. ___

My favorite things. MJ

I just found an out of print CD of the 1982 Aurex Jazz Festival in Japan. (East World Jazz [J] EWJ 80238) This Cd's kicks ass. The artists are: Clark Terry (tp, flh, vo) J.J. Johnson, Kai Winding Dexter Gordon (ts) Tommy Flanagan (p) Kenny Burrell (g) Richard Davis (b) Roy Haynes (d) Has anyone here heard this recording?

When listening to music, I find my live CD's to be more enjoyable then most of my studio recordings. There is something special of hearing it done live, which you can't always get in a studio.

So, I take it you have bought all the cds you want and are looking for more. I'm not a member there. I have too much already to listen to that I don't get a chance to enjoy.

Has anyone tried http://www.tradersden.org I think everyone from easytree jumped over to there. Right now the server is down do to too many users.

Many more.

I stand corrected.

Alex Scnchez of the D-ray tested positive for steroids. 1 Down and many to go.

No. 10 years ago I would have gone. Not playing anymore.

I've been to that one many times. Great show. MAkes you wish you were rich.

That's the one. I saw the first one that was made years ago a guitar show in NYC. From their web site. D'Angelico New Yorker NYL-1TD Teardrop A faithful rendering of a one-of-a-kind 1957 masterpiece from America's premier luthier. Brace yourself if you're lucky enough to see or play this guitar, it's breath taking. Your jaw will drop in amazement of this unbelievable work of art. It is a collector's piece no doubt, as we can't imagine anyone would want to drag this out to the gig. It does however have an extraordinary acoustic sound (does not come with electronics) and a great feel with excellent playability. These are made in extremely limited quantities (only four to date) so if you are a serious guitar collector get in line and place your order today. No collection would be complete without this rare jewel.

Does anyone remember the D'Angelico Guitar that I believe was called the Manhattan? It had a strange shape to the rear of the body. Sort of a loop to the shape. I've been trying to find a photo of it on line but no luck.

We were just talking about this film Wednesday at work. A co-worker bought the film for $9.99. It is a great film.

Supposedly this was where Michael learnt to like boys.

I agree. It all bull shit.

That web site is an obsession. To find out all that infomation must have taken a lot of work.

Before my time, but this was one of the worst cars of all time.

Here are some of the worst cars of all time. This was conducted by Forbes. I can safely say, I never owned any of them.

This is funny. You're lloking to come east, and I am in the mists of trying to move west, Phoenix area. What's the traffice like in Phoenix? It can't be as bad as the New York City area.

Thanks Claude, that's a great site. Now to find if this stiff is for sale some where.

Outside of "Hothouse" which he preforms with Dizzy, is there something esle of him of film?

Thanks, will do.

Anyone know more about this label? ESP