Mountain Views News          Saturday, May 14, 2016

B2

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Mountain Views-News Saturday, May 14, 2016 


Jeff’s Book Pics By Jeff Brown


LAB GIRL 
by Hope Jahren

 An illuminating debut 
memoir of a woman in 
science; a moving portrait 
of a longtime friendship; 
and a stunningly fresh 
look at plants that will 
forever change how you see 
the natural world.Named 
Acclaimed scientist Hope 
Jahren(named One of 
TIME magazine’s "100 Most Influential People" 
)has built three laboratories in which she’s 
studied trees, flowers, seeds, and soil. This book 
is a revelatory treatise on plant life,but it is also 
so much more. 

 The book is about work, love, and the mountains 
that can be moved when those two things come 
together. It is told through Jahren’s remarkable 
stories: about her childhood in rural Minnesota 
with an uncompromising mother and a father 
who encouraged hours of play in his classroom’s 
labs; about how she found a sanctuary in science, 
and learned to perform lab work done “with both 
the heart and the hands”; and about the inevitable 
disappointments, but also the triumphs and 
exhilarating discoveries, of scientific work.Yet at 
the core of this book is the story of a relationship 
Jahren forged with a brilliant, wounded man 
named Bill, who becomes her lab partner and 
best friend. Their sometimes rogue adventures 
in science take them from the Midwest across the 
United States and back again, over the Atlantic 
to the ever-light skies of the North Pole and to 
tropical Hawaii, where she and her lab currently 
make their home. Her probing look at plants, 
her astonishing tenacity of spirit, and her acute 
insights on nature enliven every page of this 
extraordinary book. Lab Girl opens your eyes to 
the beautiful, sophisticated mechanisms within 
every leaf, blade of grass, and flower petal. 

 Here is an eloquent demonstration of what can 
happen when you find the stamina, passion, and 
sense of sacrifice needed to make a life out of 
what you truly love, as you discover along the 
way the person you were meant to be.

PINPOINT: HOW GPS IS 
CHANGING TECHNOLOGY, 
CULTURE, AND OUR MINDS 
by Greg Milner 

 Pinpoint tells the story of GPS, a scientific marvel 
that enables almost all modern technology—but 
is changing us in profound ways.Over the last fifty 
years, humanity has developed an extraordinary 
shared utility: the Global Positioning System. 
Even as it guides us across town, GPS helps land 
planes, route mobile calls, 
anticipate earthquakes, 
predict weather, locate 
oil deposits, measure 
neutrinos, grow our 
food, and regulate global 
finance. It is as ubiquitous 
and essential as another 
Cold War technology, 
the Internet. In Pinpoint, 
Greg Milner takes us on 
a fascinating tour of a 
hidden system that touches almost every aspect 
of our modern life.While GPS has brought us 
breathtakingly accurate information about our 
planetary environment and physical space, it has 
also created new forms of human behavior. 

 We have let it saturate the world’s systems 
so completely and so quickly that we are just 
beginning to confront the possible consequences. 
A single GPS timing flaw, whether accidental or 
malicious, could bring down the electrical grid, 
hijack drones, or halt the world financial system. 
The use, and potential misuse, of GPS data by 
government and corporations raise disturbing 
questions about ethics and privacy. GPS may 
be altering the nature of human cognition—
possibly even rearranging the gray matter in our 
heads.Pinpoint tells the sweeping story of GPS 
from its conceptual origins as a bomb guidance 
system to its presence in almost everything we 
do. Milner examines the different ways humans 
have understood physical space, delves into the 
neuroscience of cognitive maps, and questions 
GPS’s double-edged effect on our culture. A 
fascinating and original story of the scientific 
urge toward precision, Pinpoint offers startling 
insight into how humans understand their place 
in the world.

THE DEVOTION OF SUSPECT X: 
A DETECTIVE GALILEO NOVEL 
(Detective Galileo Series) by Keigo 
Higashino (Author), 
Alexander O. Smith 
(Translator)

The Devotion of Suspect X is a 
2005 novel by Keigo Higashino, 
the third in his Detective Galileo 
series and is his most acclaimed 
work thus far. The novel won him 
numerous awards, including the 
134th Naoki Prize, which is a 
highly regarded award in Japan. 
The novel also won the 6th Honkaku Mystery 
Award,The Japan 2006 annual mystery fiction 
guide books ranked the novel as the number one.
The English translation was nominated for the 
2012 Edgar Award for Best Novel and the 2012 
Barry Award for Best First Novel.


Jeff’s History Corner By Jeff Brown

THE SVALBARD GLOBAL SEED VAULT

The Svalbard Global Seed Vault, opened 2008, is 
a secure seed bank on a Norwegian island about 
810 mi from the North Pole.Conservationist Cary 
Fowler, in association with the Consultative Group 
on International Agricultural Research started the 
vault to preserve a wide variety of plant seeds that are 
duplicate samples, or “spare” copies, of seeds held in 
gene banks worldwide. The seed vault is an attempt 
to insure against the loss of seeds in other genebanks 
during large-scale regional or global crises. 

 Primary funding for the Trust came from Norway, 
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and from various 
governments worldwide.The seed vault serves as a 
safe haven for the world’s vast variety of edible plant 
seeds. In the event of a nuclear war or catastrophic 
natural disaster, the vault keeps “backup” seeds 
frozen and safe until they can be reclaimed. It will 
be more frequently accessed when genebanks lose 
samples due to mismanagement,war, accident, 
equipment failures, funding cuts, and natural 
disasters. These events occur with some regularity. 
War and civil strife have a history of destroying 
some genebanks. The national seed bank of the 
Philippines was damaged by flooding and later 
destroyed by a fire; the seed banks of Afghanistan 
and Iraq have been lost completely. 

 According to The Economist, “the Svalbard vault is a 
backup for the world’s 1,750 seed banks, storehouses 
of agricultural biodiversity.”By the request of 
Norwegian government, no genetically modified 
seeds are stored at the vault.Seeds stored in the vault, 
which is built 390 ft. into a sandstone mountain and 
covered in a thick layer of permafrost, are kept at an 
icy minus 0.4 degrees Fahrenheit . Should the power 
at the facility fail for any reason, the seeds will likely 
stay frozen thanks to the permafrost that covers the 
vault.And there’s very little chance that any one 
could make off with the world’s most precious supply 
of seeds. 

 The vault is secured by four sets of locked doors, 
according to the Crop Trust. There are also the 
Svalbard archipelago’s most notorious security 
guards to consider. The area surrounding the vault 
is extremely remote, secluded and home to a number 
of polar bears.As of 2015 the vault holds just less than 
865,000 seed samples from all over the world, but it’s 
capable of holding many more. In total, the vault can 
handle about 2.5 billion seeds (or about 500 seeds 
each from about 4.5 million varieties of crops).The 
storage process can protect the seeds for thousands 
of years. 


On the Marquee: Notes from the Sierra Madre Playhouse

TECHNICALLY, IT’S A NEW PLAYHOUSE!

SEAN’S SHAMELESS REVIEWS 

New Songs You Should Check Out 

By Sean Kayden


Young The Giant – 
“Amerika” – It has been over 
two years since we last heard 
Young The Giant when they 
released their solid sophomore 
release, “Mind Over Matter.” The quintet is back 
with a brand new single called “Amerika.” It’s taken 
off their third LP, “Home of the Strange” due out 
August 12th. Young the Giant’s lead singer, Sameer 
Gahdia, brings this new music to life with his raw and 
emotional vocals that will have you thinking deeply 
about the song’s meaning, as you reflect upon certain 
aspects of your life or maybe in this case, your love 
life. With subtle synthesizers, rhythmic guitars, and 
dynamic drums, “Amerika” is a definite winner for the 
return of Young The Giant. Expect to hear more from 
these guys throughout the year. 

Kevin Morby – “Drunk on a Star” – This Dylan-
esque song is undoubtedly beautiful and earnest. 
Kevin Morby channels 60s/70s singer-songwriters 
with his new record, “Singing Saw.” This young and 
talented singer/songwriter shows off a weary voice 
with deeply pensive lyrics. “Drunk on a Star” is a 
dreary folk-rock endeavor, with chill-worthy guitars 
and a pleasant melody. This particular track comes off 
Morby’s third solo LP. His record has received much 
critical praise and while I personally can’t speak for 
the rest of the record, one thing is for sure, “Drunk 
on a Star” is hypnotizing. Check out his full album, 
“Singing Saw” out now. On a side note, Morby was 
the bassist for the prolific folk indie band, Woods. 

Local Natives – “Past Lives” – Another band on 
the list that has been absent for quite some time is 
Local Natives. In January 2013, they released what 
was probably the best album of that year entitled 
“Hummingbird.” It was majestic, daring, bold, and 
breathtaking. After three years, the band has come 
out of hibernation with a brand new tune called “Past 
Lives.” It’s more upbeat than anything offered on their 
last effort, but still affecting. It’s a soaring rock song, 
searching for something. It’s the kind of song to be 
played in big stadiums and it appears Local Natives 
should be on their way. “Past Lives” is without a 
doubt, the best rock song of the year. Only problem 
right now, Local Natives hasn’t mentioned a single 
detail about a forthcoming third album. Hopefully, 
that will change in the not so distant future. 

Torches – “Future” - “I don’t care what the future 
holds for me,” Azad Cheikosman sings in Torches’ 
new single “Future.” The heedlessness pop endeavor 
is catchy with spacey snynths and Cheikosman’s 
endearing vocals. It looks like he is trying to convey 
the notion that one should not worry about tomorrow 
when today is barely right in front of you. It’s a song 
that could easily define a millennial generation. While 
Torches have released songs here and there over the 
years, their debut record, “Heads Full of Rust” was 
released back in 2012. “Future” should mark the first 
single of an anticipated sophomore LP release. 

The Temper Trap – “Fall Together” – The 
Melbourne band was huge in 2009/2010 with their 
hit song, “Sweet Deposition.” It was featured in the 
successful indie rom-com, “(500) Days of Summer” 
around that time. The song came off their debut 
album, “Conditions.” Instead of being a band with 
just one good song, the introduction record was 
rather solid. After massive success, the group hit a bit 
of wall with their sophomore slump, which was self-
titled. Perhaps the choice to self-title the reord was to 
redefine themselves. However, it proved to be a step 
backwards rather than one forward. That was back in 
the summer of 2012. The Temper Trap is now back 
with a brand new song called “Fall Together,” which 
will be featured on their third LP, “Thick as Thieves” 
due out June 10th, four years after their last effort. 
It’s a fun song that definitely has radio appeal. Their 
sound is a little bit like Imagine Dragons, which can 
be a toss up for most people. Nonetheless, it’s an ideal 
summer track, that’s loud, big, and anthemic. It will 
unquestionably be a hit for the band as they are once 
again try to reinvent their sound and image. Honestly, 
while it isn’t the most original song I’ve heard in 
recent time, there is something amiable here. I’d keep 
an eye out for the next single. However, at this point 
in the game, you’ve either stuck with the band all these 
years or have dismissed them long ago, but for better 
or worse, “Fall Together” will be difficult to avoid this 
upcoming summer season. 

By Artistic Director, Christian Lebano

Anyone coming to The Glass Menagerie or any 
future show is in for a big surprise. Because of a 
very generous donation from the Charles & Ruth 
Gilb Family Foundation, we have been able to make 
long-desired upgrades to our electrical system. 
This upgrade will allow a much more stable and 
dependable use of our power. Menagerie is the first 
beneficiary of this huge improvement. Anyone 
who sees it will notice the beautiful lighting that 
Pablo Santiago, the show’s lighting designer (ably 
assisted by Rebecca Hairston,) created for the show. 
But what they won’t realize is that this lighting 
design would not have been possible without the 
technical upgrade. This is an example of what I’m 
trying to accomplish at the Playhouse – making 
your experience as wonderful and artistically rich as 
possible.

 While we pulled every length of cable that was 
running all over the theater, we used this opportunity 
to upgrade our sound system at the same time. We 
now have a beautifully balanced sound, achieved with 
the help of Menagerie’s sound designer Jeff Gardner 
(who has created a lovely soundscape for our show). 
This has been on my to-do list for a long time and I’m 
thrilled that we were able to make it happen.

 There are so many other improvements I would 
like to make to the theater – we have a priority list 
that covers everything from the outdoor carpet at the 
front of the theater to new doors to the theater and 
the auditorium to a new stage floor to new display 
boxes to a concession window in our kitchen and the 
holy grail of new bathrooms. And my personal hope 
that we can recreate the original box office (I don’t 
know if code would allow that – but boy I want to 
make that happen.) All of this is done with you in 
mind, our loyal patrons. The experience of coming 
to the Playhouse should be a great one – and we are 
doing everything we can to make it one. Look for air 
conditioning in the lobby soon – paid for partly by a 
matching grant from the Sierra Madre Community 
Foundation.

 All of this, of course, takes money. We are 
currently raising funds to allow us to hire a dedicated 
development professional. We are doing so much 
with so little, that a steady stream of support would 
make such a difference. And as our programs have 
continued to grow, I have less time to devote to more 
initiatives and need help with the fundraising piece.

 If you have any desire to help, or any ideas that we 
can build on, please do not hesitate to contact me at 
ArtisticDirector@SierraMadrePlayhouse.org. 

* * *

 The Glass Menagerie opened really well. We 
have gotten some of the best reviews we’ve ever 
received for this show. We are extending to June 19. 
I hope to see you there! Tickets are now on sale as 
well for Carney Magic on Friday & Saturday, June 
10 & 11 – John Carney is a marvelous magician who 
will bring his sleight of hand work to SMP. AND we 
have two Colburn concerts scheduled – June 5 & 19. 
Please visit our website at SierraMadrePlayhouse.org 
or call Mary at 626.355.4318 to purchase tickets.