Monthly Archives: January 2011

Art

Balé Folclórico da Bahia storms NYU’s Skirball Center

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Balé Folclórico da Bahia
Sacred Heritage
NYU Skirball Center
29-30 January 2011

Choreography: Walson Botelho, José Carlos Arandiba, Rosângela Silvestre

Dancers: Estevam Alves, Alan Dias, Diogo França, Nidinha Foseca, Rafael Leal, Glauber Lima, Joice Nogueira, Reinaldo Pepe, Valfredo Pereira, Luana Pessanha, Jair Santana, Edileuza Santos, Darlan Silva, Rose Soares, Agatha Souza, Priscila Vaz

Musicians: Alcides Marais, José Ricardo Sousa, Fábio Santos, Mário Sérgio Santos, Joel Souza

Singers: João Gonzago, Dora Santana, Miralva Couto

The Brazilian folk dance company Balé Folclórico da Bahia stormed into NYU’s Skirball Center for a two-night engagement featuring dances and music based on Brazil’s rich African, indigenous, and Portuguese colonial narratives and influences.

Spectacularly talented dancers, musicians, and singers executed choreography and music from Brazil’s rich and complex history, complemented by brilliant costumes by Walson Botelho, Antonio das Gracias, and Ninho Reis.

Visit the company’s website for more information.

Art, Social Progress

Berlinale Forum Announces 2011 Program

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With 39 films in the main program and 6 films as specials, the 41st Forum of the Berlinale will be screening 24 world premieres and 12 international premieres February 10 through 20. In addition, Forum will show 8 films by the seminal Japanese director Shibuya Minoru, who directed more than four dozen films between 1937 and 1966.

Last year, Berlinale Forum selected Winter’s Bone, The Oath, Sawako Decides, among other important finds.

More to come, but for now, here’s the raw list for this year:

Main Programme
Amnesty by Bujar Alimani, Albania/Greece/France – WP
Auf der Suche (Looking for Simon) by Jan Krüger, Germany/France – WP
Ausente (Absent) by Marco Berger, Argentina – WP
The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye by Marie Losier, USA/France – WP
Brownian Movement by Nanouk Leopold, The Netherlands/Germany/Belgium – EP
Cheonggyecheon Medley: A Dream of Iron by Kelvin Kyung Kun Park, Republic of Korea – IP
Day Is Done by Thomas Imbach, Switzerland – WP
Dom (The House) by Zuzana Liová, Slowak Republic/Czech Republic – WP
E-Love by Anne Villaceque, France – IP
De Engel van Doel (An Angel in Doel) by Tom Fassaert, The Netherlands/Belgium – WP
En terrains connus (Familiar Ground) by Stéphane Lafleur, Canada – WP
FIT by Hirosue Hiromasa, Japan – IP
Folge mir (Follow Me) by Johannes Hammel, Austria – IP
Halaw (Ways of the Sea) by Sheron Dayoc, The Philippines – EP
Heaven’s Story by Zeze Takahisa, Japan – IP
Hi-So by Aditya Assarat, Thailand – EP
Jagadangchak: shidaejeongshin kwa hyeonshilchamyeo (Self Referential Traverse: Zeitgeist and Engagement) by Kim Sun, Republic of Korea – WP
Kazoku X (Household X) by Yoshida Kōki, Japan – IP
Man chu (Late Autumn) by Kim Tae-Yong, Republic of Korea/Hongkong, China/USA – EP
Made in Poland by Przemysław Wojcieszek, Poland – IP
Les mains libres (Free Hands) by Brigitte Sy, France – IP
El mocito (The Young Butler) by Marcela Said, Jean de Certeau, Chile – WP
Nesvatbov (Matchmaking Mayor) by Erika Hníková, Czech Republic – IP
Ocio (Idleness) by Alejandro Lingenti, Juan Villegas, Argentina – IP
Osmdesát dopisů (Eighty Letters) by Václav Kadrnka, Czech Republic – WP
Os residentes (The Residents) by Tiago Mata Machado, Brasil – IP
Patang (The Kite) by Prashant Bhargava, India/USA – WP
Poor kor karn rai (The Terrorists) by Thunska Pansittivorakul, Germany/Thailand – WP
Sekai Good Morning!! (Good Morning to the World!!) by Hirohara Satoru, Japan – EP
Silver Bullets/Art History by Joe Swanberg, USA – WP
State of Violence by Khalo Matabane, Republic of South Africa/France – EP
Submarine by Richard Ayoade, Great Britain – EP
Swans by Hugo Vieira da Silva, Germany/Portugal – WP
Take Shelter by Jeff Nichols, USA – IP
Territoire perdu by Pierre-Yves Vandeweerd, France/Belgium – WP
Traumfabrik Kabul (Kabul Dream Factory) by Sebastian Heidinger, Germany/Afghanistan – WP
Unter Kontrolle (Under Control) by Volker Sattel, Germany – WP
Utopians by Zbigniew Bzymek, USA – WP
Viva Riva! by Djo Tunda Wa Munga, Democratic Republic of Congo/France/Belgium – EP

Special Screenings
Dreileben – WP
Etwas besseres als den Tod by Christian Petzold, Germany
Komm mir nicht nach by Dominik Graf, Germany
Eine Minute Dunkel by Christoph Hochhäusler, Germany
Eine Serie von Gedanken by Heinz Emigholz, Germany – WP
Himmel und Erde by Michael Pilz, Austria, 1979-82 (Revival screening)
Sleepless Nights Stories by Jonas Mekas, USA – WP
The Stool Pigeon by Dante Lam, Hongkong, China – EP
Twenty Cigarettes by James Benning, USA – WP

Shibuya Minoru
Honjitsu kyushin (Doctor’s Day Off) by Shibuya Minoru, Japan 1952
Gendaijin (Modern People) by Shibuya Minoru, Japan 1952
Seigi-ha (Righteousness) by Shibuya Minoru, Japan 1957
Akujo no kisetsu (The Days of Evil Women) by Shibuya Minoru, Japan 1958
Mozu (The Shrikes) by Shibuya Minoru, Japan 1961
Kojin kojitsu (A Good Man, a Good Day) by Shibuya Minoru, Japan 1961
Yopparai tengoku (Drunkard’s Paradise) by Shibuya Minoru, Japan 1962
Daikon to ninjin (The Radish and the Carrot) by Shibuya Minoru, Japan 1964

EP = European premiere
IP = International premiere
WP = World premiere

Health

Biology-driven Cancer Drug Development

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Lord CJ, Ashworth A. Biology-driven cancer drug development: back to the future. BMC Biol. 2010 Apr 12;8:38. Review. PubMed PMID: 20385032; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC2864096. [Free full text via PubMed.]

For readers of Siddhartha Mukherjee’s excellent book The Emperor of All Maladies who are looking for more on the recent history of cancer research, a good place to start is this article by two investigators at The Institute of Cancer Research in the UK. Lord and Ashworth recap biology-driven drug development leading to tyrosine kinase inhibitors, and describe how our conceptual understanding of cell networks may facilitate new therapeutic advances.

Health

A Review of Traditional Chinese Medicine for Gynecological Disorders

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Zhou J, Qu F. Treating gynaecological disorders with traditional Chinese medicine: a review. Afr J Tradit Complement Altern Med. 2009 Jul 3;6(4):494-517. Review. PubMed PMID: 20606770; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC2816470. [Free full text via PubMed.]

Researchers from King’s College London and Zhejiang University conducted a review of 32 commonly used Chinese medicinal formulas in treating gynecological disorders. From sources dating from 1237 A.D., the authors survey effects of TCM in disorders such as endometriosis, infertility, dysmenorrhea, abnormal uterine bleeding, premenstrual syndrome, menopausal syndrome, uterine fibroids and chronic pelvic inflammation, polycystic ovarian syndrome, cervicitis and vaginitis.

The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.

Health

Increased Bladder Cancer Risk among Hairdressers – Meta-Analysis

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Harling M, Schablon A, Schedlbauer G, et al. Bladder cancer among hairdressers: a meta-analysis. Occup Environ Med. 2010 May;67(5):351-8. Review. PubMed PMID: 20447989; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC2981018. [Free full text via PubMed.]

Epidemiologists at the Institution for Statutory Accident Insurance and Prevention in the Health and Welfare Services and the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf conducted a meta-analysis of 42 studies to determine summary risk ratios for the risk of bladder cancer among hairdressers.

The researchers found an increased risk for bladder cancer, in particular for hairdressers in jobs held for more than 10 years. They noted, however, that they could not rule out residual confounding by smoking and that it is still an open question whether hairdressers working before and after 1980 (when some aromatic amines were banned as hair dye ingredients in the European Union) have the same risk for bladder cancer.

The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.