A warm summer's day

It is too pleasant here on the porch to do much else

First sale on eBay

It worked. As noted a few days ago, my windsurfer Independence was put up for sale on eBay. It was listed for “pick up” only as being 12 ft. long it would have been difficult to ship. Two people bid and one met my price. Within a couple of hours after he won the auction, Jesse appeared in our driveway with his dad to pick up the board. He brought cash. After some instruction as to how to assemble mast and sail we tied it to the top of his car and off they drove into the sunset. I had many good times on that board but as I have another, it wasn’t getting used much and was just collecting dust in the garage. I hope that Jesse will have many enjoyable sails on the Independence at his place on a lake in NH.

Sailing with Tiny on Casco Bay Maine

My 89 year old friend Tiny and I took the Windchaser out for a spin on Casco Bay. In the morning the sky was blue with high clouds signaling the change in the weather to rain. Regardless this intrepid duo raised the main and motored out of the harbor into 20 knot winds from the South. A course by Bustin’s Island allowed a reasonable tack that put the boat over on its side. We passed the Goslings and focused on a return plan as low clouds were building and rain looked more and more probable. We almost made it. As we motored past “Pound of Tea” island a gentle but cool rain started to fall. It didn’t build too far and after a time at the mooring tidying things up we took the dingy “plan B” to shore no worse for the wear. This year I have a dingy rack so “plan B” rests out of the water most of the time avoiding the extensive bottom growth experienced in the past. It is amazing how much stuff can grow on blow molded polyethylene.

Were the Neanderthal our ancestors?

These ancient hominids with brains as large or larger than ours went extinct about 35,000 years ago. Some think that they bred with European Cro-Magnon humans and thus made a contribution to the human race. Recent analysis of ancient DNA from says no. The first Neanderthal DNA to be sequenced was mitochondrial DNA which exists in 100-1000 copies per cell and is only inherited from the mother with no contribution from the father. Because of the high copy number and short length it is the most likely to survive for thousands of years. The mitochondrial DNA sequences suggested that there is no close relationship and that our common ancestor was in the distant past. As there is only one Y chromosome per male cell it is much more difficult to recover from ancient sources. Svante Paabo from the Max Planck institute in Germany used a new technique that is much more tolerant of the degradation found in ancient DNA to sequence 75,000 base pairs from non-mitochondrial nuclear Neanderthal DNA. The specimen was a 45,000 old male from Croatia. Some of the sequences were from the individual’s Y chromosome. The data suggested that Neanderthals and humans had a common ancestor over 315,000 years ago, long before modern humans walked the earth.

A note. The Journal Nature wanted $30 for a one page synopsis of this presentation. I was able to get it for free at the U. Mass. Medical School library but of course had to physically be in the library. This system is outrageous as all paper journals are out of date and don’t have the capabilities of the electronic versions. Tax payers in the U.S. and in this case, Germany, pay for the research, travel and publication costs and then any one who wants to use the information has to pay again. Hopefully, paper journals will die a quick and permanent death and we will not have to pay twice for the electronic versions.

Windsurfer for sale

I am selling my spare windsurfer on EBay Item number: 7249486696

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7249486696&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMESE%3AIT&rd=1 .

At one time my wife was interested but that hasn’t really happened so I don’t need two boards. It’s a great buy. Have fun bidding.

Seminar on Alzheimer’s disease including innovative microscopy and immunotherapy

Today I attended a seminar at Harvard Medical School by Dr. Hyman ( http://adams.mgh.harvard.edu/cagn/Faculty/hyman.html ) on developments in the understanding of Alzheimers. Two aspects of this presentation were most interesting.
First, Elan pharmaceuticals is in trials of Beta amyloid immunotherapy ( http://www.elan.com/research_development/Alzheimers/ ) as a way to remove the Alzheimrs related beta amylod from the brain and second, the use of a technique called multiphoton confocal microscopy that allows high magnification viewing of live brain tissue.
From Elan’s web site: Beta amyloid immunotherapy is the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease by inducing or enhancing the body’s own immune response in order to clear beta amyloid from the brain. Active immunization stimulates the body’s own immune system to manufacture anti beta amyloid antibodies that may attach to amyloid and clear it from the brain. This, in turn, appears to reduce the build up of beta amyloid in the brain tissue of patients. Through a monoclonal antibody approach (passive immunization), synthetically engineered antibodies directed at beta amyloid are injected into the bloodstream and are thought to help reverse beta amyloid accumulation.
multiphoton confocal microscopy ( http://www.loci.wisc.edu/multiphoton/mp.html ) can look a light only coming from a slice of tissue. Fluorescent tags are used to make specific tissue glow specific colors. The pictures are similar to those form tissue sections but of living tissue. By placing a window in the head of mice the same cells in the same mouse can be observed from day to day. Thus, changes can be monitored in a single animal providing information that is almost impossible to obtain if the animal has to be sacrificed in order to observe the brain tissue microscopically. This is great stuff.

Multiphoton Studies in Alzheimers disease models
Speaker's Name: Bradley Hyman, M.D., Ph.D.
Speaker's Affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital
Location_Line 1: Room 122, Goldenson Building
Location_Line 2: CBR Institute for Biomedical Research, Inc.
Location_Line 3: 220 Longwood Ave, Boston
Contact Name/Phone#: Kyle Shovlin, 617-278-3226
Details:
Dr. Brad Hyman,John B Penney Professor,Massachusetts General Hospital,
Harvard Medical School will be delivering a CBRI Seminar on June 15,
2006 at 220 Longwood Ave. -Goldenson Rm 122

From Ft. Lauderdale to Rhode Island on a trawler passagemaker

My world has just about stopped swaying back and forth after our wonderful trip from Fort Lauderdale to Rhode Island. It was an exciting experience and will be related in this blog as I get the time. Many thanks to the two gracious owners and our expert captain.

While most of the journey was delightful, we did run aground, loose the wing engine, overheat the generator, require the repair of an open through - hull that could have sunk the boat, become a target for the Navy, suffer attack by thousands of flies off the coast of Delaware, doge container ships in the fog and learn of the murder of an acquaintance.

The picture is of a Selene 47 passagemaker, similar to the one used on this adventure, that steams along at only 8 nautical miles per hour but can cross oceans in substantial comfort.

Chronicle of the great ship Auriga and its perilous journey to the far North

On a windy, rainy day I hurtled down an empty interstate toward Chris's new rented dock in Warren RI. The purpose was to park the Jeep to provide transport on our return. During the process we met Mr. Cherry, a full time live “a-boarder”, had a couple of beers at a local watering hole and drove to Chris's home on the shore. Chris, Irina and I walked along the shore in the moonlight to a special pizza parlor where we enjoyed a jalapeno et. al. pizza washed down with Guinness. Back home we watched “House” on their new HD flat screen television and went to bed.

PassageMaker Auriga Chronicle 5/17/06

We shook out the sand at 4:00 am & drove to the airport for a 7:10 am flight under a bright sun and clear blue sky. The flight went well and we easily made the connecting flight in Philadelphia after a long walk from concourse to concourse. Chris’s ear infection seemed to be of little trouble so it was good that he did not take the day and a half long train ride to Ft. Lauderdale. All bags appeared in baggage claim and we speed off into the suburbs of Fort Lauderdale in our new rental car. The boat was at a dock in a residential area. Each small house backed up to a palm lined canal with many such boats both sail and power in tight parallel rows. Dinner was at a Mexican restaurant with tamales and blue agave tequilas. The smoky taste of blue agave tequila imparts a special pleasure to margarita drinking. The night was warm early on but cooled as the dawn approached. However, the boat across the canal periodically discharged water from its cooling system which, through the open porthole, sounded like the Jolly Green Giant urinating. .

Chronicle of the PassageMaker Auriga 5/18/06

Irina made coffee in the morning and we feasted on cookies and zone bars. During the day there was more back and forth to boat and grocery store getting supplies interspaced with various repairs and instillations including a new GPS. The CD player had a frustrating short that we were unable to repair. We spent more time getting supplies, repairing a bilge pump level switch, checking fluids, and purchasing a new personal flotation device (PFD) that inflates automatically upon hitting the water. I have one on my boat and now will have two just in case plans A and B don’t work. Dinner was at an Irish pub with fish and chips and Gunnies.

Chronicle of the PassageMaker Auriga 5/19/06

We drove around town with the laptop on searching for an open WiFi hotspot to download a driver needed to repair a GPS. We found several hot spots but none that would allow us access to the web. Our professional captain, Kevin, arrived by air and proceeded with a through boat inspection revealing some hose clamps that needed to be replaced. We shopped for more supplies and were back at the Irish pub for a dinner of mahi mahi, Chris & Irina returned the rental car while Kevin and I inspected the boat engine room. We needed some spare fluids for transmissions etc but it was too late as we had no car.

Chronicle of the PassageMaker Auriga 5/20/06

The excitement of the departure provided little sleep. We were up at 5:30 to prep for leaving the dock. Coffee and coffee cake were provided for breakfast. We started the engine and received instructions on lines from the Captain. Irina and I let go the lines a little early but with maneuvering we left the very tight dock space and headed out through twisted channels and 4 bridges for the ocean. At a critical juncture, we ran aground but were able to back off without incident and head to the fuel dock for back up oils and fluids. The dock store did not have everything we needed so the dock master took Chris in his own car around town to get the remaining items. We left the dock heading into a strong tidal current on the bow. Kevin planed the tactics well having us take the lines off in the correct order at the correct times. There were many boats, small and gigantic, as it was the weekend. Shortly after entering the open sea, Kevin scheduled a surprise “man overboard” drill with Irina doing well and :Chris and I doing less well, A small leak into the engine room bilge was a concern but we kept going monitoring it every two hours.

Chronicle of the PassageMaker Auriga 5/21/06

The size of the leak was increasing so we headed into Palm Beach dropping the hook at 2:00 am. The channel was very narrow being demarked only by unlit day markers. Kevin did an excellent job of keeping us in the channel until we could turn into the mooring field. After sunrise we started work on the problem.

As luck would have it, the problem was at the most inaccessible part of the boat behind two large gel batteries. Irina did an excellent job of crawling over the batteries to find the problem, the rest of us being to big to maneuver in the tight space. It seems to me that for effective cruising a couple must be composed of one large person for lifting heaving items and one small for crawling into tight spaces. A cooling water return hose had come off its stern port side through-hull fitting. The fitting had a short vertical connector that kept the open inlet above the waterline so water came in only intermittently keeping us from sinking. However, as the rocking increases when under way so does the amount of seawater entering the boat. Very little water was seen at the dock as the water was not being forced into by boat. The loose hose and fittings were behind two large gel batteries accessible through a small opening in the floor and one in the top of the bench. Ropes were attached to a battery and three of us heaved up a battery with difficulty, especially because it had to be turned 90 degrees during the extraction to clear the opening in the bench. The errant hose was reattached and batteries replaced. Soon the Auriga was underway again cursing out past the mega yachts in Palm Beach harbor.

Chronicle of the PassageMaker Auriga 5/22/06

I t is a bright and clear morning with my watch starting at 7:00 am. Irina, Chris
and I take watches of three hours with six hours off. Our captain does not take a watch as he is always on call. Breakfast was coffee and toasted bagels with cream cheese and strawberry preserves. All the crew is up. An aircraft carrier to the east was on maneuvers and was in view for over two hours. It hailed us to get out of the way although he was over 6 miles away. We decided to comply. Other craft were hailed over the period and several times helicopters buzzed us. Perhaps we were a target in war games.

Kevin started up the Yanmar diesel wing engine, which overheated and was shut down. This smaller engine with its saildrive is our plan B if something happens to the main engine. The weather continues to be excellent.

For dinner Arenia made cheese and cracker appetizers followed by meatballs in Italian tomato gravy with roasted potato chunks on the side and fresh bread. Dissert was cheesecake. This was quite an accomplishment on a rolling boat.

Chronicle of the PassageMaker Auriga 5/23/06

This is our second day of continuous motoring with the crew is getting accustomed to the 24 hour routine of 3 hour shifts with 6 hour brakes in between. We encountered some rain but nothing difficult, especially as we are completely contained inside the boat unlike most sailboats.

We decided to try the smaller Yanmar wing engine again to see if the exhaust cooling water was flowing. It was not. We now believe that the seawater pump impeller may have been damaged yesterday when the Yanmar was started as it turned out that the seawater intake valve partially closed restricting cooling water flow.
During the day, it was noticed that the engine would periodically slow and then regain speed. A review of the options resulted in the discovery of a clogging fuel filter that would periodically restrict flow. As the engine slows less fuel is required and the flow catches up allowing the engine to again increase rpm. It was decided that we would approach the shore near Cape Fear
This is our second day of continuous motoring with the crew is getting accustomed to the 24 hour routine of 3 hour shifts with 6 hour brakes in between. We encountered some rain but nothing difficult, especially as we are completely contained inside the boat unlike most sailboats.

We decided to try the smaller Yanmar wing engine again to see if the exhaust cooling water was flowing. It was not. We now believe that the seawater pump impeller may have been damaged yesterday when the Yanmar was started as it turned out that the seawater intake valve partially closed restricting cooling water flow.
During the day, it was noticed that the engine would periodically slow and then regain speed. A review of the options resulted in the discovery of a clogging fuel filter that would periodically restrict flow. As the engine slows less fuel is required and the flow catches up allowing the engine to again increase rpm. It was decided that we would approach the shore near Cape Fear

Chronicle of the PassageMaker Auriga 5/24/06

A beautiful sunny day greeted us as we passed within 6 miles of the infamous diamond shoals horn marker off Cape Hatteras. A blue sky met the bluer ocean. We watched radar blips transform themselves into cloud topped sailboats and wall-like container ships. My call to home on the sat-phone captured only my own voice of on the answering machine. I will try later. We are traveling far enough from the shore that our cell phones do not work. In many ways this is a very easy job with little to do except for the watches every six hours. The most difficult aspect of watch duty is staying attentive to the situation late at night with no one else around. We are not allowed to read and will be chewed out if another boat gets within five miles without waking the captain. This is appropriate as large ships come up very fast.

Chronicle of the PassageMaker Auriga 5/25/06

We Instituted the no shower rule because water was a little low. The Auriga has a reverse osmosis water maker but it was not activated for this trip. One can only do so much. The boat has two televisions with videotape and we watched 'clear and present danger' on the TV in the main cabin.

Supper was some excellent lasagna and garlic bread. With little exercise and great food I am gaining weight. The biggest excuse for eating is that a little food continually in one’s stomach prevents sea sickness. The Auriga was brought close to the Delaware coast to get within cell phone and blackberry range. This technique worked well but resulted in the boat being attacked by thousands of flies. They stayed with us for the remainder of the trip. However, as we don’t need to go outside the flies can have the deck all to them selves. Meatball sandwiches were made for lunch. Later a tug with a barge on a wire contacted us on the VHF radio to warn us of his presence. We saw him on radar but a tug and a barge on a wire can be mistaken for two vessels running together.

Chronicle of the PassageMaker Auriga 5/26/06

We motoring in the dark is with concern. All is dark except for the instruments. Their colored glows are minimized to maintain night vision. Even the glow of a watch dial can reduce one's night vision. A green glow emanates from the radar, auto pilot and depth finder. The engine gauges are ominously red. We cover the GPS as it's display cannot be reduced sufficiently. Even with these precautions, little is seen looking out the pilot house windows. The radar is essential. We zoom into a 3 mile range and out to 24 miles to see what is coming and what is very close, The gain is adjusted. At a high gain, the screen is filled with dots. As it is decreased, the spurious signals disappear but the smallest craft and buoys stay on the screen. At lower gain settings only the largest signals are left. This process helps us to size our opponents. The most dangerous hazard is a tug pulling a barge as one can end up between the two vessels with disastrous results. On the radar, they appear as two blips moving together, one behind the other. Of course, it could also be one boat following another. The true situation is confirmed by placing a call on the VHF radio to the ship at such and such a latitude and longitude. During this watch a tug put out a VHF call to the vessel at our position advising us of his con configuration, which was a great help. Things did not improve much as the sun rose above the horizon. We were in a thick fog! Every two minutes we would blow the foghorn. As we were approaching the New York harbor area on a holiday, there was a lot of traffic in the fog. IT would help to have an automatic horn that would blow every two minutes. Certain VHF radios can perform this function through their hailing function using an accessory outside speaker.

Chronicle of the PassageMaker 6/27/06

At 2:00 AM we carefully motored into Block Island harbor off the Eastern tip of Long Island. The fog was thick and anchoring was difficult as there were many hard to see winter sticks attached to mooring chains. The winter sitcks had yet to be replaced by the more visible mooring balls. As it was foggy and we had time to waste so as not to arrive at the dock before low tide, we got a few hours sleep safe in the foggy port before continuing on the final leg of our journey.


Our craft and crew resumed motoring at 7:00 am in thick fog. There were many blips on the radar so the situation was tense as we approached Newport Rhode Island on Narragansett Bay. The fog was lifting as we passed the Naval School proceeding up to our dock on the river near Providence. Several large container ships passed on our way up the channel. The tide was still flowing briskly as we approached the dock so we motored around the area passing a large marina waiting for slack water. It turns out that slack water comes 45 minutes after the official low tide so our wait was a little longer than expected. Mr. Cherry, our new neighbor in the next slip, was at the dock to aid the landing at 90 degrees to the river flow. A major problem in such an exercise is coordination as everyone has his or her own idea as to what is best. Captain Kevin was adamant that only his orders were to be followed, a policy that makes a much sense in such a touchy situation. Mr. Cherry had a friend who was a problem on the bowline, but no harm was done. We made it! The journey was fantastic with many thanks to the owners and captain.

While resting after docking Cherry mentioned that the owner of the slips had been found floating in the river so was not available for consultation. It seems that his estate now owns the facility. Once things were secure, we fired up the old jeep and headed to the airport to get a car and take our captain to the train.

Hunt Hound Show

Several local fox hunts participated in a Hound show in Sterling MA. A good time was had by all. Old North Bridge Hounds took several firsts including the envied “pack class” trophy. Congratulations to Mim and Hum.

Launching the Windchaser

Yesterday I finished preparing the hull for launch staying overnight on the boat up on stanchions. In the evening I took in the Di Vinci Code which seemed to follow the book. In the morning I told John that the boat was ready and they proceeded to remove blocks and pallets that were in the way and send her to the sea. A hydraulic trailer is used to move the boat from the stanchions to the travel lift which lowers the craft into the water. Staff then jumps aboard to see if water is gushing in from any hole. None found, the boat is put at the dock for engine commissioning and rigging.