Deep-fried Mars Bar

A deep-fried Mars Bar is an ordinary Mars Bar normally fried in a type of batter commonly used for deep frying fish, sausages, and other battered products, although a coconut batter is also used. The Mars Bar is typically chilled before use to prevent it from melting into the frying fat, though a cold Mars Bar can fracture when heated.

The dish originated at selected chip shops in Scotland as a novelty item, but was never a mainstream item. Since various mass media have reported on the practice since the mid 1990s, in part as an ironic commentary on urban Scotland's notoriously unhealthy diet, the popularity of the dish has spread.

Popularity

It is said to have been invented in the Haven Chip Bar in Stonehaven, near Aberdeen on Scotland's North-East coast, in 1995. The first recorded mention of the food was in the Daily Record, August 24, 1995, in an article titled "Mars supper, please".

Deep-fried Mars Bars were already a gag food item, with the mention being unrelated to their actual preparation or consumption, in Rod Quantock's cooking segment parody "How to cook a Mars Bar" on the 1983 Australian sketch comedy series Australia You're Standing In It. "Cooking with Mars Bars" was a regular segment on Quantock's earlier 1981 "Ratbags" series, with the segment presented by John Derum in which all the recipes were consumed.

In a study published in The Lancet in December 2004, David Morrison (Greater Glasgow NHS Board, UK) and Mark Petticrew (MRC Social & Public Health Sciences Unit) surveyed around 300 Scottish fish and chip shops: 22% sold deep-fried Mars Bars, while an additional 17% of those surveyed had sold them in the past. Of the shops selling deep-fried Mars bars, three-quarters had only been selling them for the past 3 years. Average sales were 23 bars per week, although 10 outlets sold between 50 and 200 bars a week. The average price per bar was 60 pence, and the younger generation were the main purchasers--three-quarters were sold to children and 15% to adolescents.

Deep-fried Mars Bars were featured in a March 2003 Time for Kids article which addressed the popularity and health concern of these treats.

With the decline of the fad, and the waning of media attention on it, actual frying of Mars Bars has become less common. It can however still be found in some fish and chip shops around the country, and in England and Northern Ireland. A number of chip shops catering to tourists (particularly the legions of backpackers who visit Edinburgh's Royal Mile) still proudly declare they sell deep-fried Mars Bars, along with other treats such as deep-fried pizzas and kebabs, plus haggis pakoras.

The deep-fried Mars Bar is mentioned in UK quarterly The Idler's book Crap Towns II: The Nation Decides in the article on Glasgow. 'SJ' writes: "They aren't an urban myth: they are available in both Glasgow and Edinburgh. I ate one on a cold December night. It was quite nice. Then I was sick."

The Deep-fried Mars Bar has also travelled far across the seas, and makes an appearance at Sydney's Bondi Surf Seafood fish and chips shop on Bondi Beach's beach-front road, Campbell Parade . In this version, the Deep Fried Mars Bar is fried in a coconut batter and served with sprinkled powdered sugar soon after removal from the deep-frier. In Wellington's Strathmore Park, deep fried Moro bars are available at Acropolis fish and chip shop.

Culinary influence

The deep-fried Mars Bar has also given rise to the frying of other confections, for example, Reiver's Fish Bar in Duns annually advertises an 'Easter Special' of deep-fried Creme Egg, although this is available all year. Deep Fried Snickers have also been reported; the dish entering US cuisine primarily in that variation. In her book and television series Nigella Bites, Nigella Lawson includes a recipe for a deep-fried Bounty bar.

The "deep fried chocolate bar" idea is also fairly popular in New Zealand, however the most common bar is not Mars, but instead Moro. Deep fried Moro bars are a standard item in most fish and chip shops in towns or cities that have large universities or are popular with tourists. The most common place to find deep fried Moro bars in New Zealand is the southern town of Dunedin (which itself has a strong Scottish influence, however this is likely unrelated). Deep fried Moro bars have been available in New Zealand fish and chip shops since at least the late 1990s.

It is known that the deep-fried Mars Bar was preceded by the deep-fried pizza. It was common practice in Angus to deep fry frozen pizza from as early as 1980.

Liger

The liger is a hybrid cross between a male lion (Panthera leo) and a tigress (Panthera tigris), hence has parents with the same genus but of different species. It is distinct from the similar hybrid tigon. It is the largest of all cats and extant felines.

The history of ligers dates to at least the early 19th century in Asia. A painting of two liger cubs was made by Michael Isasi (1772−1844). In 1825, G.B. Whittaker made an engraving of liger cubs born in 1824. The parents and their three liger offspring are also depicted with their trainer in a 19th Century painting in the naïve style.

Two liger cubs which had been born in 1837 were exhibited to William IV and to his successor Victoria. On 14 December 1900 and on 31 May 1901, Carl Hagenbeck wrote to zoologist James Cossar Ewart with details and photographs of ligers born at the Hagenbeck's Tierpark in Hamburg in 1897.

In Animal planet and the World of Tigers and lions and tigers (1902–1903), A.H. Bryden described Hagenbeck's "lion-tiger" hybrids:

It has remained for one of the most enterprising collectors and naturalists of our time, Mr Carl Hagenbeck, not only to breed, but to bring successfully to a healthy maturity, specimens of this rare alliance between those two great and formidable felidae, the lion and tiger. The illustrations will indicate sufficiently how fortunate Mr Hagenbeck has been in his efforts to produce these hybrids. The oldest and biggest of the animals shown is a hybrid born on the 11th May, 1897. This fine beast, now more than five years old, equals and even excels in his proportions a well-grown lion, measuring as he does from nose tip to tail 10 ft 2 inches in length, and standing only three inches less than 4 ft at the shoulder. A good big lion will weigh about 400 lb [...] the hybrid in question, weighing as it does no less than 467 lb, is certainly the superior of the most well-grown lions, whether wild-bred or born in a menagerie. This animal shows faint striping and mottling, and, in its characteristics, exhibits strong traces of both its parents. It has a somewhat lion-like head, and the tail is more like that of a lion than of a tiger. On the other hand, it has no trace of mane. It is a huge and very powerful beast.

In 1935, four ligers from two litters were reared in the Zoological Gardens of Bloemfontein, South Africa. Three of them, a male and two females, were still living in 1953. The male weighed 750 lb. and stood a foot and a half taller than a full grown male lion at the shoulder.

Although ligers are more commonly found than tigons today, in At Home In The Zoo (1961), Gerald Iles wrote "For the record I must say that I have never seen a liger, a hybrid obtained by crossing a lion with a tigress. They seem to be even rarer than tigons."

Size and growth

Imprinted genes may be a factor contributing to huge liger size. These are genes that may or may not be expressed on the parent they are inherited from, and that occasionally play a role in issues of hybrid growth. For example, in some dog breed crosses, genes that are expressed only when maternally-inherited cause the young to grow larger than is typical for either parent breed. This growth is not seen in the paternal breeds, as such genes are normally "counteracted" by genes inherited from the female of the appropriate breed.

The tiger produces a hormone that sets the fetal liger on a pattern of growth that does not end throughout its life. The hormonal hypothesis is that the cause of the male liger's growth is its sterility — essentially, the male liger remains in the pre-pubertal growth phase. Male ligers also have the same levels of testosterone on average as an adult male lion. In addition, female ligers also attain great size, weighing approximately 700 lb (320 kg) and reaching 10 feet (3.05 m) long on average, and are often fertile. In contrast, pumapards (hybrids between pumas and leopards) tend to exhibit dwarfism.

Hercules and Sinbad

Jungle Island in Miami is home to a liger named Hercules, the largest non-obese liger, who is recognized by the Guiness Book of World Records as the largest cat on Earth, weighing in at 900 lbs. Hercules was also featured on the Today Show, Good Morning America, Anderson Cooper 360, Inside Edition and in a Maxim magazine article in 2005, when he was only 3 years old and already weighed 408.25 kg (900 lb) at the time. Hercules seems completely healthy and is expected to live a long life. The cat's breeding is said to have been a complete accident. Sinbad, another Liger, was shown on the National Geographic Channel. Sinbad was reported to have the exact weight of Hercules. Hercules and Sinbad belong to the T.I.G.E.R.S. family of animal ambassadors, who put on the "Wild Encounters."`

Longevity

Shasta, a ligress (female liger) was born at the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City on May 14, 1948 and died in 1972 at age 24. The 1973 Guinness world records reported an 18-year-old, 798-kg (1,756 lb) male liger living at Bloemfontein zoological gardens, South Africa, in 1888. Valley of the Kings animal sanctuary in Wisconsin had a male liger named Nook who weighed around 550 kg (1,210 lb), and died in 2007, at 21 years old.

Fertility

The fertility of hybrid big cat females is well-documented across a number of different hybrids. This is in accordance with Haldane's rule: in hybrids of animals whose sex is determined by sex chromosomes, if one sex is absent, rare or sterile, it is the heterogametic sex (the one with two different sex chromosomes e.g. X and Y).

According to Wild Cats of the World (1975) by C. A. W. Guggisberg, ligers and tigons were long thought to be sterile: In 1943, however, a fifteen-year-old hybrid between a lion and an 'Island' tiger was successfully mated with a lion at the Munich Hellabrunn Zoo. The female cub, although of delicate health, was raised to adulthood.

Colors

Ligers have a tiger-like striping pattern on a lion-like tawny background. In addition they may inherit rosettes from the lion parent (lion cubs are rosetted and some adults retain faint markings). These markings may be black, dark brown or sandy. The background color may be correspondingly tawny, sandy or golden. In common with tigers, their underparts are pale. The actual pattern and color depends on which subspecies the parents were and on the way in which the genes interact in the offspring.

White tigers have been crossed with lions to produce "white" (actually pale golden) ligers. In theory white tigers could be crossed with white lions to produce white, very pale or even stripeless ligers. A black liger does not actually exist. Very few melanistic tigers have ever been recorded, most being due to excessive markings (pseudo-melanism or abundism) rather than true melanism. No reports of black lions have ever been substantiated. The blue or Maltese Tiger is now unlikely to exist, making gray or blue ligers an impossibility. It is not impossible for a liger to be white, but it is very rare.

Zoo policies

Keeping the two species separate has always been standard procedure. However, ligers have occurred and do occur by accident in captivity. Several AZA zoos are reported to have ligers.

In October 2008 a liger attacked its volunteer handler at an animal sanctuary in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. The handler subsequently died from his injuries.

In 1995 nineteen lions, tigers and ligers were killed near Lava Hot Springs, Idaho after escaping from a dilapidated game farm where they had been bred. Several additional animals, including three ligers, were captured by Idaho Fish and Game and were transported to other facilities. The game farm, called Ligertown, became the inspiration for Napoleon Dynamite's affinity for the animal in the popular movie which was filmed in nearby Preston, Idaho.

Billy Meredith

William Henry "Billy" Meredith (30 July 1874 – 19 April 1958) was a Welsh footballer. He was considered one of the early superstars of football due to his performances, notably for Manchester United and Manchester City. He won each domestic trophy in the English football league and also gained 48 caps for Wales, for whom he scored 11 goals. 22 of these international appearances were gained while playing for Manchester City, while 26 were gained while playing for Manchester United. His favoured position was outside right.

Early life

Meredith was born in 1874 in Chirk, a small mining town in North Wales. He started work at Black Park Colliery as a pit pony driver at the age of 12. An interest in football was kindled by his elder brothers. Elias, the eldest, was a train driver for the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway. His work allowed him to take Billy to watch professional teams such as Everton. Football was a keen pastime for the miners, and the standard of amateur teams from towns and villages in north east Wales was high as a result. Chirk won the Welsh Cup five times between 1887 and 1894, with miners making up a large proportion of the team. All the Meredith brothers played football, but Sam, two years older than Billy, was the first to make an impression. He left Chirk to attempt a professional career, and went on to play for Stoke as a full-back.

Billy made his debut for the Chirk first team in September 1892. The club played in The Combination, a league which contained a mixture of town clubs and reserve teams of clubs from big cities. At the end of his first season Meredith played in the 1893 Welsh Cup final, which Chirk lost 2–1 to Wrexham. 1893 was a time of industrial unrest for the miners, who chose to strike in response to a pay cut. Chirk withdrew from the Combination and entered only the Welsh league. In an attempt to make ends meet, Meredith not only played for Chirk, but accepted an offer to play for Football League club Northwich Victoria as well, who gave him a small fee on top of his expenses. Northwich were a struggling side, who withdrew from the Football League at the end of the 1893–94 season after finishing bottom of the Second Division. The club won just three League matches; Meredith featured in each win. Back at Chirk, Meredith gained his first honour as part of the team which beat Westminster Rovers to win the 1894 Welsh Cup.

Club career

Meredith's performances for Northwich gained the attention of several League clubs. Bolton Wanderers' Di Jones, a former Chirk player, spoke with Meredith about a possible move, but Bolton secretary J.J. Bentley regarded Meredith as too inexperienced, and his frame too slight. Lawrence Furniss, an official at Ardwick, had first noticed Meredith while refereeing a Northwich match. Meredith also played in both meetings between the clubs that season. Later in 1894, Ardwick, by then known as Manchester City, vigorously pursued Meredith's signature. Two club officials travelled to Wales to meet the player. One was secretary-manager Joshua Parlby, the other either Furniss or chairman John Chapman. The pair were met with suspicion. Anecdotes by contemporary figures suggest they were initially chased away by locals, and were only allowed to speak to Meredith after they bought drinks for his mining colleagues. Meredith did not wish to abandon life in Chirk. His mother was particularly against the idea: "It is all very well for you gentlemen to leave your big cities and come to our villages to steal our boys away... Our boys are happy and healthy, satisfied with their work and innocent amusements... if Billy takes my advce he will sick to his work and play football for his own amusement when work is finished." Meredith did eventually sign for Manchester City, but as an amateur. He continued work at the pit for at least a year, commuting back and forth for matches.

Meredith made his Manchester City debut against Newcastle United in November 1894, in a 5–4 defeat for City. The following week Meredith played his first home match for the club, and scored two goals against Newton Heath — who would later become Manchester United — in the first Manchester derby to take place in the league, though the Heathens won the match 5–2. In January 1895 Meredith turned professional.

In his first full season at Manchester City, Meredith finished as top scorer, despite playing on the wing. He repeated the feat the following year, but was outscored by Billie Gillespie in 1897–98. The final match of that season saw Meredith score his first hat-trick for the club in an emphatic 9–0 win against Burton Swifts. He was loved by the City fans and would draw huge crowds for any public event he attended.

Meredith's career with City was distinct in two parts. His first time was tarnished by allegation that he bribed Aston Villa's Alec Leake £10 to lose a match and in 1904 he was hit with an 18 month ban from playing for City.

In May 1906, he moved to Manchester United, made his debut on 1 January 1907 in a 1–0 win against Aston Villa, and quickly became a firm favourite amongst the fans there. In 1921 he returned to City where he continued to play with his customary toothpick in his mouth until the age of 47. In 1924 he played for City in the FA Cup where he was still able to score against Brighton. His last match was against Newcastle in the semi-finals at the age of 49 years and 245 days, making him one of the oldest players ever to play in the FA Cup. In total, Billy appeared 390 times for Man City and scored 150 goals and won 1 FA Cup with City. Meredith played 335 games for Manchester United, scoring 36 goals, and won 2 Football League Championships, 1 FA Cup and 2 FA Charity Shields while with them.

In 1928, he became the manager of the short lived Manchester Central.

International career

Meredith made 48 appearances for the Wales national football team during his career, scoring 11 goals in the process. He was chosen by the selectors for 71 consecutive matches, but only made 48 appearances as on many occasions his club refused to release him for international duty.

Controversies

Meredith was regarded as a controversial figure, despite his immense talent on the football pitch. During his time at both the Manchester clubs he fell out with managers, threatened to walk out and was also the leader in a demand for higher wages.

Bribery scandal

Meredith was found to be involved in a bribery scandal at the conclusion of the 1904–05 season.

Death and tributes

Billy Meredith died in Withington, Manchester, England in 1958 at the age of 83, the same year as the Munich Air Disaster.

After spending many years in an unmarked grave, the Professional Footballers Association, the Welsh FA, Manchester City and Manchester United, in a remarkable tribute to the man's influence, all agreed to cover the cost of upkeep on a new headstone and, after consultation with Billy's 94-year-old daughter, a special service was held to mark the new headstone.

Billy is honoured in the Hall of Fame at the City of Manchester Stadium.

It was announced in August 2007 that Meredith was one of the 10 new inductees for 2007 to the English Football Hall of Fame.

Rottweiler

The Rottweiler, or Rottweil Metzgerhund ("Butchers Dog"), is a "medium to large size, stalwart dog" breed originating in Germany as a herding dog. It is a hardy and very intelligent breed. Rottweilers also worked as draught dogs, pulling carts to carry meat and other products to market. "Rottweiler breeders aim at a dog of abundant strength, black coated with clearly defined rich tan markings, whose powerful appearance does not lack nobility and which is exceptionally well suited to being a companion, service and working dog."

The Rottweiler was kept busy in these traditional roles until the mid-19th century when railroads replaced droving for getting livestock to market. Although there are still Rottweilers working stock all over the world, many other roles have been found for this versatile breed.

During the First and Second World Wars, Rottweilers were put into service in various roles including as messenger, draught and guard dogs. Currently they are often used as search and rescue, assistance, guide dogs for the blind, guard and police dogs in addition to their traditional roles.

History

Although an extremely versatile breed used in recent times for many other purposes, the Rottweiler is first and foremost one of the oldest, if not the oldest, of herding breeds. A multi-faceted herding and stock protection dog of exceptional ability, it is capable of working all kinds of livestock under a wide variety of conditions.

The breed is an ancient one, whose history stretches back to the Roman Empire. In those times, the legions traveled with their meat on the hoof and required the assistance of working dogs to herd the cattle. One route the army traveled was through Württemberg and on to the small market town of Rottweil.

The principal ancestors of the first Rottweilers during this time was supposed to be the Roman droving dog, local dogs the army met on its travels, and dogs with molosser appearance coming from England and The Netherlands.

This region eventually became an important cattle area, and the descendants of the Roman cattle dogs proved their worth in both driving and protecting the cattle from robbers and wild animals. However, by the end of the 19th century as railroads became the main method for moving stock to market, the breed had declined so much that in 1900 there was only one female to be found in the town of Rottweil.

The first Rottweiler club in Germany, named DRK ("Deutscher Rottweiler-Klub" — German Rottweiler Club) was created the 13 January 1907, and followed by the creation of the SDRK ("Süddeutscher Rottweiler-Klub" — South German Rottweiler Club) on the 27 April 1907 and became the IRK (International Rottweiler Club).

The DRK counted around 500 Rottweiler, the SDRK 3000 Rottweilers. The goals of the two clubs were different. The DRK wanted to produce working dogs and did not emphasize the morphology of the Rottweiler. The main stud dog of this club was Lord von der Teck. The IRK tried to produce a homogeneous morphology according to their standard. One of the main stud dogs of this club was Ralph von Neckar.

The various German Rottweiler Clubs amalgamated to form the Allgemeiner Deutscher Rottweiller Klub - e.V (ADRK) which is recognised worldwide as the home club of the Rottweiler.

The build up to World War I saw a great demand for police dogs, and that led to a revival of interest in the Rottweiler. From that time the breed has become popular with dog owners, and in 1935 was officially recognized by the American Kennel Club. In 1936, Rottweilers were exhibited in Britain at Crufts. In 1966, a separate register was opened for the breed. In fact, in the mid 1990s, the popularity of the Rottweiler reached an all time high with it being the 1st most registered dog by the American Kennel Club.

Description

Appearance

Head: Broad, with rounded forehead and strong muzzle
Teeth: Scissor bite, 42 teeth.
Eyes: Dark, or an orangey brown
Ears: Triangular, carried forward, occasionally folded slightly
Tail: Natural bob tailed or if present the tail was usually docked. Docking is banned in Germany and U.K. An un-docked Rottweiler tail is usually around 4-6 inches and thick, level in extension of the upper line; at ease may be hanging.
Limbs: Straight, with heavy bone
Feet: Round, compact, webbed, with thick, hard pads.

The breed is always black with clearly defined tan or mahogany markings above the eyes, on the cheeks, muzzle, chest and legs. The coat is medium length and consists of a waterproof undercoat and a undercoat. Rottweiler coats tend to be low maintenance, although they experience shedding prior to their seasons (females) or seasonally (males). The skull is typically massive, but without excessive jowls.

Size

Technically a "medium / large" breed, according to the FCI standard the Rottweiler stands 61 to 68 cm (24-27 inches) at the withers for males, and 56 to 62.5 cm (22-25 inches) for females, and the average weight is 50 kg (110 pounds) for males and 42 kg (93 pounds) for females.

Temperament

Rottweilers are a powerful breed with well developed genetic herding and guarding instincts. As with any breed, potentially dangerous behaviour in Rottweilers usually results from irresponsible ownership, abuse, neglect, or lack of socialization and training. Inherent breed characteristics are not a factor.

The breed has received some negative publicity. In the US, the Rottweiler was the number one breed of dog named in fatal human attacks in 2000, in a report by the CDC. These reports must be read in the context of the breed's popularity as it was the most popular breed in the United States in the same period.

The portrayal of Rottweilers as evil dogs in several fictional films and TV series, most notably in The Omen, and sensationalist media hysteria has added to their negative publicity. This hysteria has led to Rottweilers being banned in some municipalities and are sometimes targeted as dangerous dogs by legislation, such as in the Netherlands and Portugal. However, the Dutch law has since been changed as of 2008. On the other hand, not all mainstream media has portrayed the breed in a negative light: for example, a gentler side of the Rottweiler's personality was observed in the movie Lethal Weapon 3 where a Rottweiler guarding a gun smuggling operation was placated by the main character, played by Mel Gibson, with dog treats. The dog was subsequently rescued and de facto adopted by the protagonist.

Working Style

As has been proven in many working disciplines worldwide, the Rottweiler is highly trainable. This versatile breed can be trained to do just about anything. Many Rottweilers hold advanced titles in Obedience, Agility, Jumping, Tracking, Carting, Schutzhund etc.

However the breed is primarily a stock dog of exceptional ability. Herding instinct is very high and the Rottweiler gathers naturally. There is seldom a need to reprimand for gripping or biting as the Rottweiler is unusually inhibited in using mouth on stock. When necessary he will nip with the front teeth only not using the canines.

The more confidence a Rottweiler has the less forceful he becomes unless it is needed and the easier he is to train.

The Rottweiler has a natural gathering style with a strong desire to control. He generally shows a loose-eye and has a great amount of force while working well off the stock. They make much use of their ability to intimidate.

The Rottweiler will often carry the head on an even plane with the back or carry the head up but have the neck and shoulders lowered. Some females will lower the entire front end slightly when using eye. Males will also do this when working far off the stock in an open field. This is rarely seen in males when working in confined spaces such as stock yards.

The Rottweiler has a reasonably good natural balance, force-barks when necessary and when working cattle uses a very intimidating charge. There is a natural change in forcefulness when herding sheep. When working cattle he may use his body and shoulders and for this reason should be used on horned stock with caution.

The Rottweiler, when working cattle, will search out the dominant animal and challenge it. Upon proving his control over that animal he will settle back and tend to his work.

Some growers have found that Rottweilers are especially suited to move stubborn stock that simply igonores Border Collies, Kelpies etc. A Rottweiler will use his body to physically force the stubborn animal to do his bidding if necessary.

When working sheep the Rottweiler shows a gathering/fetching style and reams directions easily. He drives sheep with ease.

If worked on the same stock for any length of time the Rottweiler tends to develop a bond with the stock and will become quite affectionate with them as long as they do as he says.

BMW CS Concept

The BMW CS Concept was a concept car displayed by BMW in 2007 at several international motor shows and again in April 2008 at the New York International Auto Show. It is a fastback sedan that features many new innovations for BMW, such as door handles that only come out when sensors detect motion.

It has dimensions slightly bigger than the E65 7-series.

Gran Turismo and cancellation

Tom Purves, CEO of BMW America, stated that CS Concept could be produced, following positive initial comments in 2007 by BMW dealers.

This was followed up in 2008 by an announcement by BMW that the concept goes into production in the form of the BMW Gran Turismo. BMW later cancelled in November 2008 because of financial reasons.

Design and Style

The Concept CS features future design cues on BMWs. From the front, there are big kidney grilles, which are intregated with the bumper. There are also turning indicators on the side. The headlights contain an "eyebrow".

At the rear, the vehicle has tailpipes intregated in the bumper, and rectangular tailpipes. These design cues can be found on the current 7 series (F01/02 platform).