Keeping Kosher in a non-Kosher World

In this thread, we will discuss issues surrounding keeping kosher in environments not entirely under one's control as well as the issues surrounding having people with different standards of kashrut eat with one another, either in their respective homes or in a neutral space.  We will also grapple with issues of Jewish/Gentile interaction over food and how food in general serves as a medium for securing a distinctive religious and social identity.

Musical Instruments on Shabbat

A full paper on this topic--still under development--can be found here:

In particular, I think there is an angle not yet integrated here that relates to a concern about using tools to make noise, which accounts for general permissions in many quarters to make noise as long as one uses either one's body or non-musical instruments, as in the case of banging on a table.