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|Year : 2014 | Volume
| Issue : 3 | Page : 227-233
Exploiting the phenomenal anti-ulcerogenic potential of Talinum portulacifolium ethanolic extract whole plant on Albino Rats: The therapeutic potential of Chinese Herb-mǎ chǐ xiàn kē (Portulacaceae)
Rohit Gundamaraju1, Kotla Maheedhar1, Kim Kah Hwi2
1 Department of Pharmacolgy, Malla Reddy Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Maisammaguda, Dhulapally (Post via Hakimpet), Secunderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India
2 Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
|Date of Submission||05-Dec-2013|
|Date of Decision||06-Jan-2014|
|Date of Web Publication||16-May-2014|
Research Scholar, 9-47, New Dilsukhnagar Colony, Hyderabad - 500 060
Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None
| Abstract|| |
Background: Ulcerations have been effecting humans and causing major damage in the gastro intestinal tract. A need for development of a flawless anti-ulcer medication was always in the agenda. Thus, the need to conduct a study was provoked. Objectives: The major objective of the present study is to screen the antiulcer activity of the ethanolic extract of Talinum portulacifolium (Forsk) plant. Materials and Methods: The antiulcer activity of the ethanolic extract of T.Z portulacifolium was performed on albino rats. Gastric ulcers were induced by ethanol, pylorus ligated aspirin and histamine induced ulcer models. Omeprazole was used as a standard drug for comparison. Results: Treatment with the T. portulacifolium plant extract significantly protected the ulceration induced by the three models. The gastric volume, pH of gastric juice, total acidity, free acidity and ulcer index were the parameters estimated and did show significant results. 800 mg/kg extracts of T. portulacifolium did show high significant results as that of standard drug. Percentage protection of 800 mg/kg was 79.9% and the standard drug-treated group did show 84%. So was with total acidity (38.1 + 1.45) and free acidity (16.5 + 0.76) Conclusion: The ethanolic extract of T. portulacifolium plant was found to possess a significant antiulcer activity.
Keywords: Ethanol, histamine, omeprazole, pylorus-ligated aspirin, Talinum portulacifolium
|How to cite this article:|
Gundamaraju R, Maheedhar K, Hwi KK. Exploiting the phenomenal anti-ulcerogenic potential of Talinum portulacifolium ethanolic extract whole plant on Albino Rats: The therapeutic potential of Chinese Herb-mǎ chǐ xiàn kē (Portulacaceae). Phcog Res 2014;6:227-33
|How to cite this URL:|
Gundamaraju R, Maheedhar K, Hwi KK. Exploiting the phenomenal anti-ulcerogenic potential of Talinum portulacifolium ethanolic extract whole plant on Albino Rats: The therapeutic potential of Chinese Herb-mǎ chǐ xiàn kē (Portulacaceae). Phcog Res [serial online] 2014 [cited 2021 Feb 26];6:227-33. Available from: http://www.phcogres.com/text.asp?2014/6/3/227/132600
| Introduction|| |
Ulcers are sores or open wounds that occur on the skin or along the lining of the digestive tract due to loss of tissue. They are also defined histologically as a breach in the mucosa of the alimentary tract that extends through the muscularis mucosa into the sub-mucosal layer or even deeper.  Ulcers most often occur at the junction between the body and antrum of the stomach on the anterior or non-acid-secreting side, and 1 cm proximal or distal to the pylorus. Ulcers within 1 cm proximal to the pylorus are called pre-pyloric ulcers. Ulcers occurring more proximally in the stomach is called gastric ulcer.  Ulcers are caused by various factors like microorganisms (Heliobacter pylori), lifestyle, drugs (NSAID'S), age, gender and ethnic background.
There are many kinds of medications for treating peptic ulcers like H2-receptor antagonists, proton pump inhibitors, anti-cholinergics, prostaglandin analogs etc., But unfortunately, these medications are found to generate many adverse effects on the body due to the synthetic or chemical origin. So herbal formulations are chosen to inhibit these adverse effects and deliver a safe medication to the individuals. Talinum portulacifolium is a herbaceous plant found in the family Talinaceae (formerly in the family Portulacaceae) whose common names include fame flower, water leaf etc., Several species bear edible leaves and Talinum fruticosum is widely grown in tropical regions as a leaf vegetable. Talinum paniculatum is grown as an ornamental plant. The family is cosmopolitan and it has 19 genera and more centered in South Africa and America.  It is distributed from Ethiopia to the Eastern Cape South Africa, China and also in India and Nepal. It is widely distributed in Talakona forest in Chittoor District of Andhra Pradesh. It is distributed from Rajasthan to India south words to the peninsular region.
For a long time, the tribal people of the Rayalaseema region in Andhra Pradesh, India, have used the leaves of the plant T. portulacifolium [Figure 1] (Forssk: Portulacaceae) to keep away from diabetes, ulcer, and fevers. The leaf powder of this plant mixed with boiled milk is used to treat diabetes.  Since ages, the plant was used as an aphrodisiac. The leaves of T. portulacifolium was used against stomach ache as an ancient medicine.  In places like Uganda, this antecedent of Mother Nature was employed against demonic effects of malaria and mouth ulcers. There were even evidences of isolation of flavanoids from this plant.  As flavanoids are the chemical constituents which play a prime role in anti-ulcer activity, thus this plant was chosen for this particular study.
| Material and Methods|| |
Collection of plant materials
Plant material of T. portulacifolium was collected from the moderate-sized deciduous plants found widely in the Talakona forest of Andhra Pradesh, India. The plant material was identified taxonomically and authenticated by Dr. S. Madhava Chetty, Asst. Professor Dept. of Botany, Sri Venkateshwara University, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. The voucher was preserved in the laboratory.
Preparation of plant extract
The plant was isolated, chopped into small pieces and dried under shade at room temperature for 7 days. The dried plant was powdered. This powder was used for the ethanolic extract. A 95% w/v ethanolic extract was prepared by the soxhlet extraction method. The dried powdered plant of T. portulacifolium (100 g) was extracted with 95%v/v ethanol for 24 hrs, using a soxhlet extractor. The extract was concentrated at 40°C to obtain dark greenish residue. The yield obtained from the above process was found to be 15% w/w. The extract was preserved in a refrigerator.
Albino rats (200 ± 50 g) were procured from Mahaveer Enterprises, Hyderabad, India, and used for the experiment. Rats were maintained in an air conditioned room (25 ± 2°C) with a normal night and day cycle. Rats were feed with standard pellet diet and demineralized drinking water libitum. The rats were allowed to acclimatize to the laboratory environment for a week before the start of the experiment. All experimental procedures were conducted in conformity with Animal Ethics committee (Reg. No. number 769/2010/CPCSEA) for the care and use of animals and were strictly followed throughout the study.
Procedure and experimental design
Inducing ulcer by ethanol  (Robert, 1979)
The ulcer was induced by administering ethanol. All the animals were fasted for 36 hours before administration of ethanol. The Albino rats of either sex were divided into five groups, each consisting of six rats (n = 6). Group I represented the control group, which received ethanol, omeprazole in the dose of 20 mg/kg was administered orally for Group II which was referred as the standard drug. Group III (200 mg/kg), Group IV (400 mg/kg) and Group V (800 mg/kg) received the ethanolic extract of T. portulacifolium. The gastric ulcers were induced in rats by administrating absolute ethanol (90%) 0.2 ml/100g orally, after 45 min of ethanolic extract and omeprazole treatment. They were kept in specially constructed cages to prevent coprophagia during and after the experiment. The animals were anaesthetized 1 hr later with anesthetic ether and stomachs were incised along the greater curvature and ulcerations were scored. Gastric juice was collected into a graduated centrifugation tube and was centrifuged at 1000 rpm for 10 min and gastric volume was noted. The pH of the gastric juice was recorded by PH meter. The centrifuged supernatant contents were then subjected to analysis for free and total acidity. The stomach was opened along the greater curvature and washed with running water to see for ulcers in glandular portion of the stomach. The total severity of the ulcers was determined by recording the severity of each ulcer, and sample was send to further histopathological study.
The number of ulcers per stomach was noted and severity of the ulcers of the ulcers scored microscopically with the help of hand lens (10X) and scoring was done as following:
0 = normal stomach
0.5 = red coloration
1.0 = spot ulcers
1.5 = hemorrhagic streaks
2.0 = ulcer >3 but <5
3.0 = ulcer >5
Mean ulcer score for each animal is expressed as ulcer index. The percentage protection was calculated using the formula:
Screening of Anti-ulcer Activity in pylorus ligation aspirin induced ulcer model:
The ethanolic extract of T. portulacifolium (T.P), aspirin and standard antiulcer drug, Omeprazole were prepared in DMSO suspension as vehicle and administered orally once daily at a volume of 10 ml/kg body weight. In the present study, albino rats weighing about 200-250 gms were selected and divided into five groups containing six animals in each group. Group-I animals were treated with normal saline orally for 7 days. Group-II animals were treated with omeprazole 20 mg/kg for 7 days. Similarly, Group-III , Group-IV and Group-V animals were treated with 200 mg and 400 mg and 800 mg of plant extract for 7 days, respectively. From days 5 to 7, animals of all the groups received aspirin orally as an aqueous suspension at a dose of 300 mg/kg, 2 h after the administration of respective drug treatment. Animals in all the groups were fasted for 18 hrs after the respective assigned treatment and were anaesthetized with anesthetic ether. Pyloric ligation was performed and pyloric ligation was done by ligating the pyloric end of stomach. After 4 hrs of pyloric ligation, the animals of all the groups were sacrificed and gastric contents were collected. The free acidity and total acidity were determined. In addition, the ulcer index was determined by opening the stomach on greater curvature and the scores were given 0 to 3 depending upon the severity of ulcers. Mean ulcer score was calculated as mentioned above.
Screening of anti-ulcer activity by histamine induced ulcerations
Albino rats of either sex weighing between 200 and 250 g were divided into five groups of six animals in each group.
In this method, male Albino rats of around 200-250 mg were used and grouped into five groups, each group consisting of six animals. Animals were fasted for 24 hrs before treatment and water was at libidum. Pretreatment of vehicle (distilled water 1 ml/animal) orally (p.o) was given to Group I which served as the control group. The plant extract was given at the doses of Group III (200 mg/kg), Group IV (400 mg/kg) and Group V (800 mg/kg) p.o to their respective groups of animals and Group II was induced with omeprazole (20 mg/kg po) which served as the standard drug-treated group. After 1 hr, histamine (7.5 mg/kg) was given to all groups of animals. After 6 hrs, stomachs of all the animals were isolated, opened along greater curvature, observed under a Stereo microscope and photographs were taken.
| Results|| |
Measurement of pH
The pH of gastric juice was measured by using a pH strips.
Determination of free acidity and total acidity
One milliter of gastric juice was pipetted into a 100 ml conical flask, 2 to 3 drops of Topfer's reagent was added and was titrated with 0.01N NaOH until all traces of red color disappeared and the color of the solution turned into yellowish orange. The volume of the alkali added was noted. This volume corresponds to free acidity. Then 2 to 3 drops of phenolphthalein solution was added and titration was continued until a definite red tinge reappeared. The total volume of alkali added was noted. This volume corresponded to total acidity. Acidity was calculated by the following formula:
In this method, the following parameters were studied.
- pH of gastric juice
- Volume of gastric secretion
- Free acidity
- Total acidity
- Ulcer index
- Percentage protection.
The stomachs were immersed in a 10% formalin solution for histopathological examination. These tissues were processed and embedded in paraffin wax. The central part of damaged or ulcerated tissue (if present) was cut on half along the long diameter. If the stomach was protected from the damage, then the section was taken from basal part using a rotary microtome. Sections of about 5 μm thickness were cut and stained with hematoxylin and eosin. These were examined under the microscope for histopathological changes such as congestion, hemorrhage, necrosis, inflammation, infiltration, erosion, and ulcer and then the photographs were taken.
[Table 1] is stating the efficiency of the Talinum portulacifolium against the ulcerations produced by the ethanol in the stomach. The extract of the plant 800 mg/kg did show high significance and was found to be efficient. The standard drug did show significant anti-ulcer activity. This parameter in assessed for the evident effect of the T.P against the ulcerations produced by the ethanol induced ulcers. This tabular column [Table 2] shows the extent of protection of the tissue by the plant extract.
|Table 1: Screening of anti-ulcer activity T.P on ethanol-induced ulcers in rats|
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|Table 2: Effects of ethanolic extract of T.P plant on ulcer index and percentage of protection against ulcers following ethanol induction in rats|
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[Figure 2] elucidates the stomach samples of the animal where in which the ulcerations are found to be less in plant extract-treated groups when compared to the control animal treated groups. In control treated group, the ulcerations were evident but whereas the disruption in the stomach tissue was far reduced in plant extract treated stomachs and standard treated stomach tissues. In this case, the drug treated (800 mg/kg) plant extract was found to be more significant in minimizing the ulcers than the standard drug (Omeprazole)-treated group.
|Figure 2: Effect of ethanolic extract of T.P on ethanol-induced ulcer in rat|
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Histopahtological studies of Pyloris Ligated Aspirin-Induced Ulcer in Rats
Group I: In this study, the mucosa in the control group (300 mg/kg) did shown redness, congestion, hemorrhagic sticks, necrosis and dilation of blood vessels.
Group II: In Omeprazole (20 mg/kg)-treated group, mucosa showed the mild redness, but the inflammation was absent.
Group III: At 200 mg/kg, the ethanolic extract of T.P did show hyperplasia of the mucosa, mild inflammation and congested blood vessels.
Group IV: At 400 mg/kg, the ethanolic extract T. portulacifolium-treated group did elucidate mild inflammation.
Group V: At 800 mg/kg, the ethanolic extract T. portulacifolium plant-treated group did evidently elucidate slight redness in the mucosa but there was no inflammation or congestion recorded.
[Table 3] illustrates the potential of the Talinum portulacifolium plant extract against the pyrloris ligation induced ulcerations. The significance of the 800mg/kg plant extract was comparable with that of the anti-ulcerative potential of standard drug.
|Table 3: Screening of anti-ulcer activity T.P on pyloris ligation-induced ulcers in rats|
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[Figure 3] discloses the histopathological evaluation images of the pyloris ligated aspirin induced ulcers, 3 doses of T. portulacifolium plant extract and standard drug-treated group. The 800 mg/kg treated group elucidates histopathology in comparison to standard drug-treated group. The damage was far reduced by the 800 mg/kg treated group.
|Figure 3: Histopathological evaluation of pylorus ligated aspirin-induced ulcers|
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Histopathological studies of Histamine Induced Ulcerations in Rats
Group I: In this study, the mucosa in control group-treated animals (7.5 mg/kg) did exhibit redness, congestion, hemorrhagic sticks and dilation of blood vessels.
Group II: In the Omeprazole (20 mg/kg)-treated group, the mucosa of the stomach has shown no evident inflammation.
Group III: This group was treated with 200 mg/kg of the ethanolic extract of T.P, did exhibit mild inflammation in the mucosa and congestion of blood vessels.
Group IV: At 400 mg/kg, in the ethanolic extract T.P plant-treated group has shown mild inflammation.
Group V: 800 mg/kg of ethanolic extract T.P plant-treated group has evidently shown de-generation but no inflammation of tissue.
[Table 4] delineates the anti ulcer potential of Talinum portulacifolium against histamine induced ulcerations in animals. As before present, the 800mg/kg of plant extract did manifest significant anti-ulcerogenic potential in comparison to the standard drug.
|Table 4: Screening of anti-ulcer activity of T.P against histamine-induced ulcer activity in rats|
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The [Table 5] emphasizes the effect of plant extract on ulcer index and percentage of protection. In either of the conditions, the plant extract did exhibit more significant effect than that of the standard drug. There was a significant difference of 0.17 differences in the ulcer index.
|Table 5: Effect of ethanolic extract of T.P plant on histamine-induced ulcer index and percentage protection ulceration in rats|
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[Figure 4] elucidates the histopathological evaluation of histamine induced ulcers. The above images show the microscopic images of the stomach tissues of control-treated, plant-treated and standard drug-treated groups. The evident damage caused due to disruptions in the gastric tissue in the histamine-treated group can be compared to that of the 800 mg/kg plant extract-treated group and the standard drug-treated group.
| Discussion|| |
Peptic ulcers are caused when the natural imbalances between the aggressive factors of acid, pepsin, defensive mechanisms of mucus, bicarbonate, mucosal turnover and blood supply (mucosal barrier) are disturbed.  It was reported that acid and pepsin are relatively less important as causative agents and that a defect in the defensive mechanism of gastric mucosa is the first step toward ulcer formation.  Pyloric ligation-induced ulcers are due to imbalance between offensive and defensive mucosal factors and is the ideal model to infer the mechanism by which a drug works as an anti-ulcerogenic agent. Gastric ulcer in this model occurs because of an increase in acid pepsin accumulation due to pyloric obstruction and subsequent mucosal digestion and breakdown of the gastric mucosal barrier.  A copious amount of mucus is secreted during superficial damage and provides favorable microenvironment for repair process. Hence, estimation of gastric acidity, pepsin and mucin content is a valuable part of the study to clarify the mechanism of action of the drug under trial. Studies have shown alterations in the antioxidant status following ulceration, indicating that free radicals seem to be associated with the pylorus ligation-induced ulceration in rats.  T. portulacifolium with multiple mechanisms of protective action, including antioxidant properties, may be one way forward in minimizing tissue injury in human disease. Ethanolic extract of T. portulacifolium inhibited ulcerogenic activity of pylorus ligation significantly when compared to control group rats and the effects compared with that of the standard drug ranitidine. EETp (400 mg/kg and 800 mg/kg b.w.) reduced volume of gastric juice and total acidity significantly (P < 0.01) and elevated the mean pH significantly (P < 0.001). EETp at a dose of 800 mg/kg b.w. inhibited ulcer index significantly (P < 0.001) by 74.2%, MEGS at a dose of 400 mg/kg and 200 mg/kg b.w. inhibited ulcer index significantly (P < 0.05) by 60.2% and 55.4%, respectively. EETp has also showed significant results against histamine-induced and ethanol-induced ulcerations. Omeprazole provided a fairly protective effect on the gastric mucosa while 800 mg/kg of the extract offered a highly protective effect with the result that the rat gastric mucosa remained without ulcerative lesions after exposure to the damaging effects of histamine. The production of gastric HCl is mediated through histamine which in-turn is produced by enterochromaffin-like cell or mast cell.  Treatment with 400 and 800 mg/kg of the extract significantly inhibited the formation of stomach ulcers caused by histamine administration in rats; it therefore suggests that the crude extract of T. portulacifolium leaves can suppress gastric damage induced by one of the aggressive factors. The activity of the extract could have been mediated through blockage of histamine H2-receptors or by inhibition of hydrogen, potassium, adenosine triphosphatase (H+/K+-ATpase) or proton pump activity. The effects leading to ulcerogenesis are mediated at the parietal cells by the transmitter substances Histamines, gastrin and acetylcholine which through a common path involving cyclic Adenosine monophosphate (cAmp) and calcium ions, interact with the gastric proton pump (H+/K+-ATpase) that is ultimately responsible for secreting acid into the lumen of the stomach.  Histamine appears to be necessary for the action of gastrin and acetylcholine and it is the critical regulator of gastric acid secretion.  The possible mechanisms of EETp antiulcer benefit may be due to its oxygen radicals scavenging by inhibition of lipid peroxidation, preventing the loss of gastric mucus and NPSH, and blockade of ethanol-induced apoptosis.
| Conclusion|| |
In congruence with this study, we can say that EETp could evidently inhibit the ulcerations induced by Pyloris-ligated, histamine-induced and ethanol-induced ulcerations. The data clearly states that the ethanolic extract of this traditional Chinese herb could successfully inhibit the ulcerations at 800 mg/kg body weight. Thus, this study has proved that T. portulacifolium is found to have significant anti-ulcer potential and this study will act as a key in endorsing researchers for going in depth and understanding the mechanism of ulcerations or peptic ulcers.
| References|| |
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|2.||Smith LH, Their SO. Pathophysiology, the principles of disease. International text book of medicine. 2 nd ed. Philadelphia: W B Saunders company; 1985. p. 139-51. |
|3.||Heywood VH. Flowering plants of the World. U.K: Oxford University Press; 1978. p. 336. |
|4.||Rao NT, Kumarappana CT, Lakshmib MS, Mandal SC. Antidiabetic activity of leaves of Talinum portulacifolium (forssk) in alloxan - induced diabetic rats; Pharmacologyonline 2009;2:407-17. |
|5.||Seetharami Reddi TV, Ramarao Naidu BVA, Prasanthi S. Herbal remedies for diabetes. In: Alikhan I, Khanum A, editors. Ethnomedicine and human Welfare - 3 rd . Hyderabad: Ukaaz Publications; 2009. p. 44. |
|6.||Yoganarasimhan SN. Medicinal plants of India. Karnataka Vol. 1. Bangalore: Interline Publishing Pvt Ltd; 2000. p. 85. |
|7.||Sunil J, Sanjith Nath M, Raja S, Vinatha B. Phytochemical studies on Talinum Portulacifolium (forsk). Sci J Pharm 2010;1:1-4. |
|8.||Nartey ET, Ofosuhene M, Kudzi W, Agbale CM. Antioxidant and gastric cytoprotective prostaglandins properties of Cassia sieberiana roots bark extract as an anti-ulcerogenic agent. BMC Complement Altern Med 2012;12:65. |
|9.||Singh S, Khajuria A, Taneja SC, Khajuria RK, Singh J, Johri RK, et al. The gastric ulcer protective effect of boswellic acids, a leukotriene Inhibitor from Boswellia serrata, in rats. Phytomedicine 2011;15:408-15. |
|10.||Gregory M, Vithalrao KP, Franklin G, Kalaichelavan V. Antiulcer (ulcer-preventive) activity of Ficus arnottiana Miq (Moraceae) leaf methanolic extract. Am J Pharm Toxicol 2010;4:89-93. |
|11.||Goel RK, Sairam K. Antiulcer drugs from indigenous sources with emphasis on Musa sapientum, Tamrabhasna, Asparagus racemosus and Zingiber officinale. Indian J Pharmacol 2010;34:100-10. |
|12.||Alvarez-Suarez JM, Dekanski D, Ristic S, Radonjic NV, Petronijevic ND, Giampieri F, et al. Strawberry polyphenols attenuate ethanol-induced gastric lesions in rats by activation of antioxidant enzymes and attenuation of MDA increase. PLoS One 2011;6:e25878. |
|13.||Munson PL, Mueller RA, Breese GR. Principles of pharmacology: Basic concepts and clinical applications. United States: Chapman Hall; 2009. p. 1063-81. |
|14.||Laurence DR, Bennett PN, Brown MJ. Clinical Pharmacology. 8 th ed. London: Churchill Livingstone; 1997. p. 567-78. |
|15.||Wang Q, Zhao WZ, Ma CG. Protective effects of Gingko biloba extract on gastric mucosa. Acta Pharmacol Sin 2000;21:1153-6. |
[Figure 1], [Figure 2], [Figure 3], [Figure 4]
[Table 1], [Table 2], [Table 3], [Table 4], [Table 5]

domain: chemistry


6 of 6 people found this review helpful
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By masterofnone2 on
Vehicle2012 Chevrolet Volt 4dr Hatchback (gas/electric hybrid DD)
ReviewWhat a car!
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domain: geography


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This post, ‘The Friendly roommate in white salwar’ is written for the ‘Ultimate Blog Challenge‘ and ‘The Blog Chatter‘ on Day 19. I am blogging for 31 days in October, writing short stories. Hope you enjoy reading the story.
The Friendly roommate in white salwar
The bricked colonial building stood on top of the sloping hill station of Shimla, surrounded by a line up of concrete houses with thatched corrugated roofs in the shadow of oak and pine trees. At nightfall, echoes were heard, voices whispering unheard stories and silent murmurs of wild animals that faded in the dark from a looming distance that disappeared in the hills.
The 18-year-old girl spent her first night in the British Gothic hostel that owed its naissance to the British rule and slept like a baby leaving behind her family behind in Delhi. The neo-gothic architecture played a haunting song from the Raj era flowing from the aerial views of thick forests, green mountainous slopes laden with pine and oak trees, dotted red-roofed chalets. The hostel lies behind the majestic Bishop Cotton School’s heavy iron gate and insignia stood tall and thriving.
The hostel corridor bore silence in the night and lyrical voices singing lullabies. Echoes of footsteps were heard behind as if a gentle tap bore a protective shoulder to the lone girl, Sayami, caught in her dreams. She loved to watch the towering pine trees that hid the white sky and whispering streams, and snow cakes covering the pathway.
It’s been one month since Sayami landed in Shimla. She was enthralled by the panoramic view of houses lining and jostling for space, nestled among the pine trees and cloud hidden behind the mountains. The row of houses are made of bricks on the slope and covered with mud and metal tin roofs. There were modern houses made of mortar bricks and modest dwellings that made the charm of Shimla. The stream of vehicles followed a straight line on the narrow road toward the hilly slope.
She waited for hours for the hostel matron to come and the petite, warm lady sat on her chair. “Come Sayami. What can I do for you?” She hesitated, “Ma’am! I filled the form for the single room. I am still in the guest room.” The matron gently nodded and looked at her with a sympathetic glance, “Sorry dear. The single rooms are taken. I can only give you a double occupancy.”
Sayami dragged her luggage inside where two beds with fresh white bed sheet were sprawled in the huge, white coated room. A tall girl wearing white Salwar Kameez lay on the other bed and her eyes decked on a book. Her face lit up at the sight of Sayami. “Hi, Didi (elder sister). I am Sayomi from Delhi. What a pleasant surprise. I thought that I’d be alone.” The girl who looked like a dream with near perfect white face, black jet long hair nodded and her smile drove Sayomi closer to her. She felt an instant connection with the tall, stranger girl.
There was something unusual about Sayami’s roommate. Every time, Sayami came back from class, her friend would recline in the same position on the bed, wearing the beautiful white Salwar Kameez and her head drenched in a book. Her face shone bright like the light that pierced inside the room. Sayami always asked, “Didi! You didn’t go for lecture today?” Her companion bobbed her head with a smile on her face.
There was a project presentation in college and Sayami was freaking out. Her roommate wiped the tears and sweat on her face and head with her pallu. No words were exchanged. At times, Sayami felt she was speaking to the four walls. When she came back from lecture, she was amazed to see that her ‘Didi’ has beautifully designed her presentation on the white sheet of paper with perfect drawings, pictures, and colors.
Sayami was elated, ‘WoW! Didi! Chalo! Let’s go for a stroll in Shima and I will treat you with hot ginger tea. Waise aap kuch bolti bhi nahin (You never say anything) but love your smile, spreading my life with joy and bubbling energy.’
Both girls walked past the old bungalows and row houses, old derelict churches, enjoyed the cold breeze that wafted, admiring school children walking in their crisp green uniform, laughing and prancing around in the snowflakes. Their steps trudged the slope, separated by metal gates and admiring the sky, view of houses, colonial buildings while the oak trees gave them shade from the blistering sun. They sat on the ridge to admire the aerial view of old estates and houses on the slope reaching to the hill.
The hot milk mixed with ginger boiled in the huge vessel and flowed straight into small glasses as the steam blew on their faces. Men and women, wrinkled faces and the whole youth spent in the business of selling fresh tea to warm cold hands and the stomach in the harsh winter while life was never easy on them. Sayami and her friend gulped the tea and the smile never waned away on the face of the former. She wondered how her ‘Didi’ can smile every day and takes life so easy. Even the tea sellers couldn’t take their sight away from Didi who spends her whole day sitting on the bed with a spark on a face whose glow was intact.
It was the end of the third year in college and Sayami was almost on the verge of tears to leave Shimla and her Didi who became a companion in her life. Her friends asked, “So, Sayami, three years has ended in the flick of time in the beautiful Shimla. You will miss college and hostel, na?” She wiped a tear from her eye, “Haan yaar. I will miss ‘Didi, my roomie who takes good care of me in our room, helping with project and exams.”
The girls expressed disbelief, “What bullshit are you saying? What Didi? You stay alone in the double room.” Sayami stubbornly said, “No! No! What you girls saying? I am mad or what?” The girls didn’t laugh and said, “No one stays in the room, apart from you. If you don’t believe us, go and ask Matron Ma’am.” She ran and knocked on the office door, “Ma’am! It’s a double room. My friends are saying that I stay alone and there is no other girl in the room.”
The matron was surprised, “What’s wrong, Sayami? Of course, you stay alone Beti (daughter). We gave you a double room because the single rooms were taken. She almost choked and thought what has befallen on her.
Sayami gently pushed the wooden door that creaked open. The most beautiful girl with the perfect figure was lying on the bed in her white Salwar that bore no stain and her face shone like the stars in the sky. The exuded a smile and didn’t bat an eyelid when Sayami stammered, “Didi! See what they are saying that I live alone in the room! Why don’t you say anything, Didi? Say something, na.”
Her eyes lolled in Sayami’s direction but the smile never faded. She didn’t utter a single word. Sayami inched towards the bed to touch her but hit the empty, white sheet on the bed. There was no one. Her Didi has suddenly disappeared. She smiled at Sayami from a distance where she became invisible to disappear in the mountains and looking for a new, innocent friend whose space she could invite herself.
Postscript: It’s a ‘real’ incident narrated to me way back in 2007 by my hostel mate Subhodeep as we sat in his room, facing Marine Drive spending the hours past midnight that ushered in the sight of sunrise in South Mumbai. Of course, I have never been to Shimla but my dear friend Devangini Chauhan gave me lots of inputs. Hope you liked the story.

domain: literature


text:
Padres relying on running game
The White Sox' improved pitching staff is one of several April developments that will bear watching this season.
Beyond the headlines, the daily statistics and leaderboards also revealed some trends that will bear watching this season. Here are 10 some surprising, some not-so-surprising that happened to catch our eye:
1. The White Sox's pitching
Ozzie Guillen's team is 4-2 this year when it scores two runs or fewer. That sounds like no big deal, until you consider the White Sox had a 3-86 record in those games over the previous two seasons.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
MORE MLB HEADLINES
- Lester scratched from start but no trade yet
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- Eleven suspensions issued for Triple-A brawl
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- Extended Sizes - Majestic Men's Replica Texas Rangers Prince Fielder #84 Home White Jersey

domain: sports


text:
COVID, capitalism, and communism
Platypus Review 141 | November 2021
DISASTERS REVEAL THE TRUE NATURE OF CAPITALISM, and there is no greater disaster than the state of capitalism today, from the climate, austerity programs, migration, and the pandemics of COVID and HIV. While corona is a virus that kills millions of people, capitalism imperils the entire working class. As with other disasters, it requires a revolution to eliminate its root causes and prevent new variants and pandemics. There is really no time to lose while we debate the perfect response and spend endless hours begging politicians to act.
In a nutshell, capitalism is the driver of pandemics and the major barrier to their elimination, because of its lethal physical and social effects on the working class. This article calls for a coordinated, international movement led by a party to establish a worker-controlled communist state.
Origins of COVID-19
Biologically, the corona virus is a retrovirus that invades the cells of an animal or person, destroying cells, and leading to disease. HIV is also a retrovirus that kills immune cells, causing infections. Corona primarily damages the lungs, inducing suffocation and harming other organs as well. Vaccines prevent viral diseases, such as polio, but they do not cure them. Over time, if the viral spread continues, variants or mutations occur that may be more transmissible and deadly, such as the Delta variant. Therefore, we need to look upstream to the social and economic factors that lead to viral diseases. Corona originates in animals; it uses zoonotic transmission, spilling over from animals to humans.
Structurally, COVID-19 originates from capitalist modes of production. It is closely related to the food industry. Capitalists commodify or commercialize everything. People and animals are marketable, bought, sold, and exploited for profits accruing to a minority. The food industry is a prime example.
What are the ways the food industry causes spillovers and pandemics? Rob Wallace, an important epidemiologist writing on pandemics’ structural origins in Big Farms Make Big Flu and Dead Epidemiologists, describes how major agricultural corporations like Tyson, Monsanto, and Smithfield and investors like Goldman-Sachs externalize profits and socialize the risks and costs. That is, take the loot and offload the problems on us.
- Farming closer to forests and deforestation, leading to closer contact between people and animal carriers, such as bats and chimps.
- Factory farming, caging animals like chickens and pigs in crowded conditions that reduce immunity and facilitate the spread of disease.
- Speeding up production in meatpacking plants with little protection for workers, who are “treated as sides of beef.”
- Globalizing the production and consumption of food so that an infected pig grown in Asia can be barbecued in the US and other distant regions.
- Decreasing regulation and monitoring of production sites.
Under capitalism, the government serves the rich, whether led by Democrats or Republicans. It facilitates the spread of disease except when it threatens corporate profits. Therefore, we see governments encourage masks and vaccination while opening schools and businesses.
Government culpability for COVID-19 and other diseases include:
- Increasing worker vulnerability through austerity programs that eliminate or reduce jobs, unemployment compensation, rent cancellation, affordability and availability of food, access to health care, and housing.
- Reducing funding for 700 jobs at the CDC, which is responsible for disease prevention, surveillance, and vaccine recommendations.
- Decreasing inspections of factories.
- Spreading confusing messages. There is no national policy about prevention and protection; each state can make decisions about vaccination and masking.
- Allowing misinformation about immunizations and masking.
- Creating trade policies, such as the TRIPS agreement that protects pharmaceutical companies from sharing their vaccine and drug information, and others, like NAFTA, which prohibit countries from interfering with corporate profits.
- Enforcing immigration policies that criminalize and endanger people trying to enter the U.S. and European countries, leaving them unvaccinated, caged in crowded conditions, or living unsheltered.
- Denying asylum to thousands of Haitians and Central Americans from entering the U.S. under the guise of avoiding disease transmission, a provision of the Title 42 public health law.
- Incarcerating people in crowded conditions and denying their release, especially elderly and sick people.
- Hoarding the vaccines and refusing to support the vaccine patent waiver to give other countries access to the technology to produce vaccines.
The effects on the working class are disastrous. As of mid-September, approximately 228,000,000 have contracted the virus, and close to 5,000,000 have died.
COVID-19 represents the typical distribution of disease. Its morbidity, hospitalization, and mortality rates are higher for low income black, Latin, and indigenous people than better-resourced white workers on average. Because of the typical racist labor patterns, these workers provide services in retail, transportation, and hospitality, and are therefore more likely to be exposed to the virus. Many of their jobs do not provide sick leave that would allow them to heal and get the vaccine. White workers also suffer from racism. On average, their wages are higher, and their unemployment rates are lower. However, the ability of racist ideas to divide workers and create conflicts between them, imperils all workers’ economic and social well-being. The unity of workers globally is critical.
This is clearly unrelated to anything biological; there are no genetic differences between these groups. However, politicians and the public continue to blame patients for choosing unhealthy behaviors and exposures. Immigrants are often portrayed as disease vectors, and the risk of transmission to U.S. residents is used as a reason to block their entrance into the U.S.
Never mind that impoverished people live in crowded and risky environments where exposure to the corona virus is more likely. Or that remote working is impossible because they have jobs that require face-to-face working conditions. Forget that 30,000,000 people under 65 in 2020 have no health insurance to cover medical visits with primary caregivers and secure medication for conditions that predispose them to more severe COVID-19 complications. Ignore the history of oppressive healthcare and experimentation that fosters mistrust and vaccine hesitancy.
Oppression of women
The pandemic has pulled women out of their jobs as they take primary responsibility for childcare and household tasks. Women serve as the primary commodities in the social reproduction of the working class through giving birth, raising children, and providing elder care. Women have lost $800 billion in income globally, losing over 64 million jobs. Ten percent of U.S women left their jobs, and 47% took unpaid sick leave. These factors will increase pay and gender inequities, and reduce family income, creating family conflicts and mental stress.
Nationalism and vaccine equity
Access to vaccines follows the pattern of access to any other essential component of life. Countries like the U.S. have an abundance of vaccines, while countries in Africa have a scarcity due to the profit imperatives of the pharmaceutical companies that produced Moderna (primarily funded by NIH), Pfizer, and others. Globally, 5.5 billion doses have been given. However, 80% have been given in high- and upper-income nations and only 2 percent in Africa; low-income countries have only vaccinated 1.5 doses for every 100 people.
Anti-working-class vaccine refusal
Masks, social distancing, and vaccination can reduce the risk of acquiring and spreading the virus. The U.S. promulgates a culture of individualism and selfishness. In this context, the government allows people to refuse life-saving interventions during a global pandemic under the guise of individual choice. As of this publication, unvaccinated people have flooded hospitals, pushing out patients who need elective surgery and cancer treatment, and exhausting caregivers who face a situation that is totally preventable. Idaho now allows hospitals to ration care, such as ICU beds and oxygen.
Anti-vaccination is anti-working class. Being anti-vaccination is an anti-working-class position. It is also racist since black, indigenous, and Latin workers are contracting and dying from COVID-19 at higher rates.
The right-wing nationalists inflame the anti-vaccine movement by spreading lies and attacking science. This gutter-racist and anti-science propaganda serves to divide the working class of the United States. The white nationalists want to continue the terms that represent the brutality of racism that our class has felt for centuries. They want to silence us by turning a rational and scientific response to a deadly disease into a personal choice under the guise of freedom. Freedom is the understanding of necessity not reckless actions that endanger the world.
Teachers and health care providers who refuse vaccination under the excuse that it is “my body, my choice,” belittle the very real struggle women have over their own means of reproduction. They are a danger to their students and patients, as well as their families and themselves.
The history of racist and sexist medical experiments worldwide rightly sows distrust in the medical establishment and the government. However, when vaccination is soundly based on scientific evidence, vaccine hesitancy will cause black and Latin students and their families to suffer more. The bosses have their own reasons for wanting to get us to sacrifice for the social good, like protecting their profits and building for war, but we need to fight for workers to serve our own interests. It is not “segregation” to quarantine potential disease carriers during a global pandemic!
Amid a pandemic, people who vaccinate exemplify social responsibility to their fellow workers to keep the vulnerable from dying. Participation in vaccine clinical trials and the dedication of healthcare workers are other displays of social responsibility. Whether conscious or not, they serve the working class.
Organizing goals: reforms, socialism, or communism?
These causes and effects can help us determine our goals. Exploitation, the ability of capitalists to make profit from workers’ production, forms the basis of capitalism. Elections, union organizing, legislation, collectives, mutual aid, or social safety nets do not abolish this fundamental feature. They do not change the class of people who control the economy and government, who can always take back any gains workers make. The calls for abolition of prisons and policing may win some changes, such as using mental-health social workers instead of police officers to intervene in confrontations. However, the ruling class will not eliminate police departments since they are essential to control workers. The ruling class will not create the social conditions that reduce the impoverishment behind many criminalized activities, such as drug wars or sex work. Do we really want to free killer cops like Derek Chauvin or allow many others to work unindicted and unconvicted?
To prevent outbreaks like corona, workers need to seize and maintain power. A communist society based on collective ownership of land, resources, and production can create humane and safe means of food production. It can eliminate wages that create hierarchies of inequality. Without profit and exploitation, we can reduce racist practices and beliefs, and socialize (share) so-called women’s work with public childcare, cooking and dining, and respite for parents.
Communism differs from socialism in these major ways. Socialism maintains a wage system, uses elections to “win,” and doesn’t change the class controlling industry. It does redistribute resources to workers and promotes healthy policies. However, socialists cannot achieve equality without taking control, and capitalists do not relinquish power without a tremendous armed battle.
Communism espouses similar goals that socialists have. However, it will abolish the wage system that ranks workers in a hierarchy based on jobs and wages. People will contribute services and receive the necessities, recognizing that we all have basic needs. Families with more children or medical problems will receive housing, food, and care based on these needs. Communists organize a party to debate political positions, organize struggles, and deploy people to different issues. They unite workers from around the world to fight racism, the oppression of women, and poverty, recognizing that capitalism oppresses workers of all nationalities and so-called racial categories. Communists use democratic centralism to make and carry out decisions, spending as much time as necessary to decide and then having everyone implement the decision. We can learn from the mistakes of the Soviet Union and China as we develop new ways to organize society and make new mistakes. Both societies allowed bourgeois (business) people to share power with the working class, thinking that they would support communist goals. They didn’t. Capitalism wasn’t born in a day; communism will develop and advance as we learn what works to achieve our goals.
In the field of public health, the state can pour people and other resources into scientific research, vaccinations, health care for all, and decent living conditions.
After the revolution in Russia, people’s health improved dramatically due to improved nutrition and housing. Life expectancy increased by close to 30 years by 1970, and infant mortality dropped from 250 deaths per 1000 births to 20 per 1000 births. The Soviet government aimed to eliminate all infectious diseases, often using authoritarian means. It created the Sanitation and Epidemiology Service to identify and quarantine people with infections, vaccinate populations, conduct medical research, and build medical schools, plague-research labs, and sanitation training centers; its reach and effects spread into nearly every Soviet village. While many may condemn their forceful measures, they eliminated infectious diseases, including cholera, TB, tetanus, typhoid, measles, and whooping cough. The director of the major research lab said that the interventions worked, “and isn’t that what mattered?” When the Soviet Union dissolved, life expectancy plummeted and chronic diseases increased as the government stopped funding research.
The Chinese communist state also achieved huge improvements in public health after the 1949 Revolution. It mobilized masses of people to remove snails from waterways to successfully stop the spread of schistosomiasis, offered jobs to drug dealers and sex workers to end their practices, and legalized divorce so women could leave exploitative relationships. They also mobilized young people to train as teachers and “barefoot doctors,” the forebears of physician assistants. Deployed to the rural villages, they increased literacy and provided basic healthcare that villagers never had. Many people who condemn the Cultural Revolution are wealthier people who lost their personal wealth and position without hearing the voices of poorer workers.
Organizing strategies: reform struggles, mutual aid, anti-racism; Left/liberal errors
Our goals influence our organizing strategies. People trying to reform capitalism, such as demanding higher wages or voting rights, focus on lobbying politicians and staging rallies for the media.
Building cooperatives is another popular strategy. People hope these non-profit worker- and community-owned enterprises will grow and overwhelm capitalism. However, these cannot scale up to include everyone, and more importantly, there will never be a peaceful change of power and economic systems (see South Africa!).
There are some important benefits of reforms. First, we cannot sit by and do nothing when our brothers and sisters suffer so much from COVID, hunger, climate disasters, and the lack of housing. Second, campaigns teach us how the system works, whom we can trust, and how to breach divisions. Most importantly, we can meet people who want to fight for more.
However, continuing to vote for politicians who claim to be against pharma greed but vote against negotiating drug prices in Medicare or who claim to be concerned about climate change but support fossil-fuel industries, is clearly a losing strategy. Spending weeks and months with legislators, who pass legislation that will be vetoed or make speeches when they already know a reform is doomed, is another time and life waster for progressive folks.
Mutual aid is often charity rather than class solidarity, but many good folks are in this effort. This is an early form of political commitment that mirrors the adage “from each according to political commitment and to each according to need.” The selfless rescue missions of ordinary people, including white men evacuating black families from flooded homes during Hurricane Katrina, demonstrate the solidarity of workers facing disasters. Rebecca Solnit, in A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities That Arise in Disaster (2010), presents the stories of workers providing recovery and mutual aid that the government refused to provide. While mutual aid cannot replace the working class in power, it builds trust and solidarity among neighbors and can be used to make demands on the government and raise revolutionary ideas.
Many public health workers have felt overwhelmed by the efforts to deal with structural racism, COVID-19 disparities, pandemic unemployment, and evictions. Energized by the George Floyd protests many felt that change might really be possible. Efforts to remove police from schools and replace police with mental-health advocates seemed like a no-brainer. Certainly, the pandemic made it seem like mutual aid in neighborhoods could help workers survive while a new government could keep workers solvent and housed. Few thought the Democratic Biden government would allow people to lose unemployment benefits and refuse rent cancellation. Zoom connected people all over the world in vibrant discussions and organizing; surely that solidarity would help build the movement. Vaccines of all sorts would stop COVID. Workers would be respected, and universal healthcare would be the logical solution just like free vaccinations.
Unfortunately, the expanded activity has not guaranteed any of these things. State power still resides with finance capital on Wall Street and the bankers and industrialists of the U.S. Racism and sexism remain unchecked and worsened in many areas.
Police murder continues. More families lose loved ones, including white people, but disproportionately among black and Latin workers. The criminal legal system continues to incarcerate at the same rate so that jails that were partially emptied during COVID are back in strength during Delta. School-board members and residents with BLM signs in their yards resist changes to policing in schools and neighborhoods.
Internationally fascist groups are gaining strength, and the EU does not even want to support the TRIPS waiver to make vaccine production possible around the globe. China is now seizing its opportunity in Afghanistan to expand its Belt and Road Initiative, tightening its control over Hong Kong and the Uyghurs, and building its military in the South China Sea. Vaccine imperialism is a new concept as Chinese vaccines compete in South America and Africa.
The only hope for the working classes of the world is a communist revolution built on antiracism and working-class solidarity, rejecting all alliances with anti-U.S. imperialist powers, such as China. If destroying capitalism is our goal, it is urgent to unite the working class, including GIs, conduct political education to win hearts and minds, and recruit masses of people to the party. Meeting activists in the struggles for reform is necessary, but only using our time to build a revolutionary communist party with the outlook of seizing state power can be worth anything in the long and short run. We invite you to join the Progressive Labor Party, read our newspaper, Challenge-Desafio at plp.org, and join our study groups.
 Rob Wallace, Dead Epidemiologists: On the Origins of COVID-19 (New York: Monthly Review Press, 2020).
 “Coronavirus in the U.S.: Latest Map and Case Count,” New York Times, available online at <https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/us/covid-cases.html>.
 See <multiracialunity.org> for articles promoting this argument.
 “COVID-19 cost women globally over $800 billion in lost income in one year,” Oxfam International, April 29, 2021, available online at <https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/covid-19-cost-women-globally-over-800-billion-lost-income-one-year>.
 Usha Ranji, Brittni Frederiksen, Alina Salganicoff, and Michelle Long, "Women, Work, and Family During COVID-19: Findings from the KFF Women's Health Survey,” Kaiser Family Foundation, March 22, 2021, available online at <https://www.kff.org/womens-health-policy/issue-brief/women-work-and-family-during-covid-19-findings-from-the-kff-womens-health-survey/>.
 Tyler Pager, Laurie McGinley, and Dan Diamond, “U.S. to buy hundreds of millions more doses of Pfizer vaccine to donate to the world,” Washington Post, September 17, 2021, available online at <https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/09/17/biden-pfizer-vaccine-global/>.
 Laurie Garrett, Betrayal of Trust: The Collapse of Global Public Health (New York: Hyperion, 2000).
 Joshua S. Horn, Away with All Pests: An English Surgeon in People's China, 1954–1969 (New York: Monthly Review Press, 1971).
 Dongping Han, The Unknown Cultural Revolution: Life and Change in a Chinese Village (New York: Monthly Review Press, 2008). See also an interview with Han that was part of the symposium, “Rediscovering China’s Cultural Revolution 1966–76: Art and Politics, Lived Experience, Legacies of Liberation,” hosted by Revolution Books at the University of California at Berkeley, November 6, 2009, available online at <https://www.c-span.org/video/?290017-1/the-unknown-cultural-revolution>.
 A play on a phrase from Karl Marx, “Critique of the Gotha Programme” (1875).

domain: economics


text:
“I haven’t figured it out yet.” Such a hopeful phrase! It suggests two very important things:
- That there is more to learn
- That I will learn it 🙂
I’m still here in Santa Clara at Stitches West and I’ve come to another realization. I signed up for too many classes—the same mistake I made my first time as Stitches West 14 years ago when it was in Oakland.
In my defense, it’s been 10 years since I was here. That said, I’ve loved every class and will likely love the two (!) more I have tomorrow. The issue is making sure I really learn what I’ve learned.
So far I’ve picked up many new ways of closing garments and making the chains, buttons, etc., in a class with Margaret Fisher. She even taught me how to sew in a zipper! I also learned two stranded color knitting with a designer from my neck of the woods, Lorilee Beltman. I can’t wait to try out her designs! Today was continental knitting with the fabulous Leslye Solomon, who I remember from her classes when I was first going to Stitches West all those years ago. This is when my brain started to fry a bit.
When a neighbor would get stuck in class and lean in to ask me how to do something—because I tend to plow on even if I don’t know what I’m doing—I would answer, “I haven’t figured it out yet, but here is what I’m trying.” I didn’t feel bad about that, I felt energized!!
After class, this being my only half day of classes, walking around the market I felt a bit dizzy. Yes, that is a sensory overload place too, but it was more than that—I WAS TIRED. So I hoofed it back to the hotel to rest. ZZZZzzzz.
After my nap I picked up right where I left off from class while I was waiting for dinner and there it was. No, it wasn’t smooth (not yet!) and no it wasn’t pretty (not yet!), but this will come. I know it!
And now I must gird my loins for the two classes I have tomorrow—before I get on a plane and fly home.

domain: hobby


Queen’s Park Arena is located in the south side of Glasgow, in the neighbourhood of Queen’s Park. The full address is Queen’s Park Arena, 520 Langside Road, Glasgow, G42 8QR.
By public transport, you can take the train to Queens Park railway station, which is only a 10-minute walk away from the arena. Alternatively, you can take the bus to Langside Road, which is served by several routes, including the number 4, 5, 6, 7, 31, 34, and 90. From there, it’s just a short walk to the arena.
If you’re coming by car, there is limited on-street parking available on Langside Road and nearby residential streets. Please note that parking restrictions may apply, so make sure to check the signs before leaving your car.
Cycling to the arena is also a great option, and there are bike racks available on-site for you to lock up your bike securely.
Overall, Queen’s Park Arena is easily accessible by public transport, car, or bicycle, and we encourage everyone to use sustainable transport options where possible.


text:
With so many fancy restaurants to choose from in the Hotel Zone, sometimes you just need an escape. Maybe you’d like to feel like a local for a bit. We have some great places where you can eat delicious food at economical prices in local hot spots downtown.
Plaza De Toros ( The bullring)
Hosting weekly bullfighting events, Plaza de Toros has many restaurants on the outside of the ring including: Barbacoa De La Tulum, Las De Guanatos and El Pirata Cojo. Located at the heart of all of the action, some of the restaurants feature live music and T.V.’s that show live sporting events. With liter and yard drinks available paired with great tacos and botanas, this place is perfect for a Friday night out.
In the heart of downtown Cancun lies Mercado 28, an open-air market full of restaurants and plenty of shops that sell souveniers. With restaurants featuring everything from seafood to tacos it easy to see why locals frequent Mercado 28. Make sure to bring cash and your appetite.
Located across the street from Plaza Las Americas, Plaza Solare is home to chic restaurants and bars such as El Costeñito, The Black Pub and Wings Army. Locals come here to have good food, cold brews and a fun night out with friends.
Parque de las Palapas
Hidden between the busy street of Tulum and Yaxchilan, Parque de las Palapas is a booming with local food, entertainment and vendors selling handmade crafts and clothing. Named for the roofs that top the carts in the park, locals come here to enjoy authentic, economical foods and snacks. This park offers a playground for kids as well as electronic cars for children to ride all over the park while parents snack on esquites (corn kernels mixed with mayonaise, lime juice, cheese and topped with chili powder) and churros (Mexican fried dough) . This spot is perfect for a Friday, Saturday or Wednesday evening out.
With so many touristy places to visit in Cancun it’s nice to step out of the Hotel Zone and try something different. Not only will you experience local food but the vibrant local culture as well.

domain: food


Jake Sullivan, Assistant to US President Joe Biden for National Security and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman last month discussed normalizing the Kingdom’s relations with Israel, Axiom reported.
In late September, Sullivan visited the Saudi city of Neom on the shores of the Red Sea. During the talks, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman did not immediately abandon the idea of normalizing relations between his country and Israel.
Riyadh indicated that the implementation of such an initiative requires time and some preliminary steps, a list of which was provided to the US side.
Some of these points are related to the improvement in relations between the US and Saudi Arabia regarding the general human rights situation in the Kingdom, Axios notes.
Earlier, following talks between US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, the Israeli side announced that “at least one more country will sign the Abrahamic Accords next year, a document on the normalization of relations with the Jewish state.”
A White House spokesman said last week that the US maintains “undisclosed” contacts with Arab and Muslim countries that might be ready to establish diplomatic ties with the Israeli side.
If Saudi Arabia signs the Abrahamic Accords, other Arab and Muslim countries that have supported the Palestinian side in the Israeli-Palestinian and Arab-Israeli conflicts could follow suit, Axios suggests.


Note to self: Never take time off again during November because its way too much work to get caught up on all the news I missed.
So consider this entry a for-the-record digest of some of what you needed to know about the city between Nov. 12 and 23 but were too busy raking leaves, getting the kids to school and watching late-night TV to keep up with.
Ive got space for three items.
- Ill start with news that should have dominated every newscast, front page, etc. sorry, editorializing here but didnt: the child poverty rate.
First Call B.C., a child and youth advocacy coalition of more than 90 provincial organizations, released its annual report card showing B.C. has the second highest rate of child poverty in Canada.
Manitoba ranked first, a spot B.C. held previously for eight consecutive years. The coalitions findings were collected in 2010 and found 119,000 poor children in B.C. Thats about one of every seven children in the province.
The findings caught the attention again of Vision Vancouver Coun. Andrea Reimer, who was to introduce a motion at council Tuesday in another attempt to apply political pressure to the crisis.
As Reimer pointed out in her motion, council is on record in June 2010 of endorsing the B.C. Poverty Reduction Coalitions call for a plan to reduce poverty. Her latest motion calls for council to reaffirm its position.
B.C. is one of only three Canadian provinces that does not have a plan to reduce poverty, according to Reimer, although Im sure Premier Christy Families First Clark would beg to differ; call me, Madam Premier, well talk.
One other stat on this: The percentage of people living in poverty in Vancouver, as defined by Stats Can as an income below the low income cutoff line, is the highest of any city in Canada at 17.8 per cent; call me, Madam Premier, well talk.
- Some good news, sort of, on the homelessness front being homeless is not a crime, according to a statement from Mayor Gregor Robertson.
The mayor issued the statement after 57-year-old Clarence Taylor, a former homeless man, filed a lawsuit against the city regarding portions of bylaws. Taylor claims police and city workers issued him several tickets between 2009 and 2012 for constructing structures on the street.
I have asked the city manager and chief of police, once they have reviewed the details of the lawsuit, to provide me with current information on bylaw tickets issued to people who may be homeless, the mayor added. The city is committed to ensuring that our bylaws are enforced appropriately and are not punishing those who are homeless.
- Ever had your place burglarized? Not only does it leave you feeling vulnerable but try getting a cop to show up at your door to investigate the crime.
On average, a resident can expect to wait upwards of six hours for a cop to answer a report of a break-and-enter thats, of course, with no suspect on scene.
So whats the Vancouver Police Department going to do about it?
Create a team of 30 full-time, unarmed community safety personnel to show up sooner to your door after a break-in and conduct other duties such as traffic control, provide security at crime scenes, picking up documents essentially tasks that keep frontline officers from showing up at your door.
A lot more to come on this, including whether council will approve the $6.5 million to implement what is billed as a three-year experiment.
The Vancouver Police Union, not surprisingly, hasnt signed off on this either. City council was to get a first look Tuesday at a report on the proposed community safety program.
© Copyright 2013


text:
Markets crash all the time. You should, at minimum, expect stocks to fall at least 10% once a year, 20% once every few years, 30% or more once or twice a decade, and 50% or more once or twice during your lifetime. Those who don't understand this will eventually learn it the hard way.
Someone emailed me last week asking why this is:
Have you ever wondered exactly what those initials after a financial professional’s name mean? You’re definitely not alone. The easy way to tell is to visit the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, which provides a list of professional designations and what they mean.
Let’s face it, medical expenses can have a major impact on your budget, especially as you get older.
If you’ve heard about a Health Savings Account or maybe your work offers one, then it just may make sense to give it some serious consideration – and, in my opinion, it typically makes a lot of sense.


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French and African peacekeepers have begun verifying the start of a process aimed at disarming northern rebels and the army in divided Ivory Coast.
Teams of international peacekeepers started work Friday in the government-run south and the rebel-held north to verify that both sides have started pulling back heavy weaponry from the conflict's front-lines.
Rebels and the army were also due to tear down checkpoints along the country's highways.
Commanders from both sides told VOA Friday they had complied with what is being called a pre-disarmament process. A spokesman for the French peacekeepers, Georges Peillon, says it's now to up his teams to verify this is true.
Mr. Peillon says the verification is officially scheduled to take three days, but he says it will probably take much longer.
He says it's the first step in a process of disarmament, demobilization of fighters from both sides and reintegration of rebels, many of whom are soldiers, into the regular army.
Fighting between the army and rebels ended late last year with the deployment of several thousand peacekeepers, but the rebels remain armed and in control of the northern half of Ivory Coast.
Rebels said earlier this week their political leaders would rejoin a power-sharing government in the southern commercial capital Abidjan, but there are no government meetings planned until early next year.
The rebels quit the government in September, accusing President Laurent Gbagbo of blocking implementation of a stalled French-brokered peace accord signed last January. It includes giving voting rights and Ivorian citizenship to many northerners now considered immigrants.
France has taken an active role in resolving the crisis in its former colony, which is the world's leading cocoa producer.

domain: news


text:
Hate is a powerful phrase and it carries some severe weight. I consider “hate crime” or “hate speech” – due to that I take advantage of the time period moderately. I personally don’t “hate” any sport, passion or pastime.
I feel it’s superb for folks to get pleasure from one sport over one other and even attempt to argue their perspective on why one sport is extra attention-grabbing or difficult than the opposite. I’ve associates from the UK that may argue endlessly on the professionals and cons of Baseball vs Cricket or American Soccer vs European Soccer (Soccer). Their arguments can get heated at occasions however I’ve by no means heard them get indignant or use the phrase “hate”.
Relating to speaking about pickleball issues can get a bit of intense. Probably the most apparent subjects is the issue of pickleball noise.
Since we printed that publish just a few years in the past it’s gotten fairly just a few feedback. A number of of which I made a decision to not publish. I’m not a fan of censorship however among the feedback have been so filled with expletives and anger that I assumed it didn’t add worth to the dialog – they have been, properly – hateful.
However that’s solely one of many complaints my good friend had concerning the sport. Listed below are the remaining. I’m guessing a few of you realize what’s coming however chances are you’ll be stunned by a few of them and even probably the most die-hard pickleball followers might discover themselves agreeing, not less than partially with a few of these.
Why Some Folks Hate Pickleball
It’s Not Tennis
This argument is my good friend’s largest grievance. As a long-term tennis participant, he simply can’t recover from the truth that they aren’t the identical. The controversy is unending. As extra folks cross over from tennis to pickleball I don’t see this one fading anytime quickly, if something it’s more likely to be an much more dialog. On one stage I get what he’s saying or not less than why he compares them since I additionally performed tennis for many years and used to play with him.
It’s true that pickleball shares a few of its roots with tennis and virtually all of the skilled pickleball gamers we’ve seen come from a aggressive tennis background – however you don’t hear them complaining!
is performed on an identical courtroom (oftentimes the sharing the identical courtroom – one other grievance beneath). Nevertheless, most racket (or paddle) sports activities have shut similarities in order that’s the place the argument doesn’t actually rise up. Through the years I’ve performed desk tennis, racquetball, tennis, paddle and pickleball (in addition to fast stints of squash and “padel” in Spain and “Kadima” on the seashore). I simply get pleasure from taking part in them, positive they’ve similarities however it doesn’t detract from the opposite sport. I don’t mull round complaining about how the racquetball courtroom isn’t as massive as a tennis courtroom or the best way a ball bounces in comparison with one other. I simply reap the benefits of the chance to play and revel in it whereas I can.
This one I get. I imply it’s not value getting in a tizzy over – however you need to admit it’s a fairly ridiculous identify!
I let this go years in the past and by now I’ve adopted the identify wholeheartedly. I even get a kick out of claiming the identify – particularly after I’m in a non-pickleball crowd. The look on folks’s faces is priceless, it’s not unusual for them to assume I’m pulling their leg – they’ll’t imagine it’s actually known as that.
I do assume that if it had a extra “severe” sounding identify that individuals would take it ….properly, extra significantly. I nonetheless assume that it’s an uphill battle for the game, whether or not you’re making an attempt to persuade your parks and rec division to speculate tens of millions or the IOC to make pickleball the subsequent Olympic sport.
Whereas there may be nonetheless debate on the place the identify pickleball got here from at this level within the recreation I’d say it’s a executed deal. It’s right here to remain so we’d as properly embrace it.
This goes again to #1
Because of the rising recognition of pickleball and the shortage of devoted pickleball courts in some areas, gamers are having to mark the tennis courts with the pickleball strains.
The issue – some tennis gamers hate the strains, they discover them complicated. Anybody who performs indoor pickleball – or any leisure sports activities in a YMCA, church fitness center, faculty intramural courtroom or comparable facility- has in all probability had the expertise.
The multitude of coloured strains on the ground will be actually complicated. The identical is true for those who’re making an attempt to play basketball on a courtroom that has parallel strains for volleyball, indoor soccer or different sports activities. It’s straightforward to in a cut up second to second-guess if a shot goes in or out as a result of our confused by the strains.
We’ve talked about this earlier than – it’s comparatively straightforward to make a house pickleball courtroom with some chalk or tape. That’s not an issue for those who’re taking part in in your driveway however for those who’re sharing a courtroom with tennis gamers, it is perhaps a greater answer to make use of temporary markers like these on Amazon that may simply be eliminated. They’re not excellent, nonetheless a possible tripping hazard and never a full define of the perimeter however nonetheless a good middle-of-the-road compromise for tennis and pickleball gamers.
Pickleball Is Taking Over!
Pickleball is rising at phenomenal charges. Whereas some folks thought it was a fad even years in the past when it was first known as the “fastest-growing sport” within the US it actually hasn’t slowed down. Even the worldwide pandemic has not been in a position to cease the expansion and it’s projected to have double-digit progress by means of the subsequent decade! Participation continues to broaden at a roughly 10% annual progress charge.
With that progress, many cities are changing considerably idle tennis courts to pickleball and lots of residential communities are including pickleball courts to their properties. All this to the delight of some and the dismay of others. I can perceive why avid tennis gamers or non-pickleball-playing residents of a neighborhood won’t need to full for courtroom time or take care of additional visitors or doubtlessly greater HOAs to assist assemble and keep the courts.
Take a look at this checklist of prime pickleball cities (for courtroom density) – as others have commented there- it’s only one potential approach to measure recognition however nonetheless an attention-grabbing checklist.
Pickleball Isn’t A Exercise
My good friend’s spouse was a marathon runner. At 61 attending to her automotive on an icy car parking zone, she slipped, had a nasty fall and ended up with a damaged hip. She was instructed by her orthopedic surgeon that she ought to by no means run now with the prosthetic hip. Strive pickleball I stated!
She’s tried it and located it fulfilling, she’s athletic and has good hand-eye coordination. She nonetheless performs and has enjoyable however for her, it’s simply not a exercise. She nonetheless misses that “runner’s excessive”, she must sweat and get a success of endorphins. I get it.
There are positively well being advantages to pickleball and I feel it may be an excellent exercise for lots of people. You get transferring, it really works your stability and coordination. If you happen to play outside you get some contemporary air and a dose of vitamin D.
However even Dr. Baggish of Harvard says. “The sport is greatest as a complement to your train routine, not a alternative for cardio exercise.”
I’d say there’s a potential caveat – singles pickleball, particularly on the aggressive stage – you need to hustle to cowl the identical quantity of sq. footage by your self.
Pickleball scoring is complicated. I don’t have a counter-argument for him.
This one goes each methods. What I imply by that’s that at my age I see the discrimination on each ends of the spectrum.
On the one aspect, there are folks a lot youthful than me that don’t need to get into the game as a result of they assume it’s just for “outdated folks”.
On the opposite aspect, there are some folks that don’t need to be related to the game as a result of it makes them “really feel outdated”.
A part of this may simply be my good friend’s wrestle with getting older – this can be a actual problem in life and one thing all of us ultimately should confront.
The stereotype continues to be prevalent – many individuals affiliate pickleball with “seniors“, snowbirds in FL, and retirement communities.
Whereas the numbers did again that as much as some level, years in the past nearly all of gamers have been 65+ however as the game continues to develop the demographics are beginning to stability out throughout all age teams.
We began with this one, so I’ll finish with it additionally. This is likely one of the largest complaints that haters have. It’s a actual downside that communities are going through. I gained’t go into element right here since we’ve got an entire publish about it on the positioning.


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Brian Jacobs was a Knight-Mozilla Open News Fellow at ProPublica. He previously worked at Azavea (Philadelphia, Pa.), designing geospatial and civic applications. He also helped develop a web-based data processing platform for the MIT Senseable City Lab (Singapore), to transform and visualize city-scale data streams.
The state hopes to save its rapidly disappearing coastline with a 50-year, $50 billion plan based on science that’s never been tested and money it doesn’t have. What could go wrong?
How we got aerial photographs for our project on Louisiana’s effort to save its southeastern coast.
Scientists say one of the greatest environmental and economic disasters in the nation’s history -- the rapid land loss occurring in the Mississippi Delta -- is rushing toward a catastrophic conclusion. ProPublica and The Lens explore why it's happening and what we’ll all lose if nothing is done to stop it.
A growing body of research shows injured civilians, particularly those injured as a result of violence, are developing PTSD at rates comparable to veterans of war. But many hospitals are doing little to address the problem. We asked 21 top-level trauma centers in cities with the nation's highest murder rates whether they screen injured patients for signs of PTSD.


Paper Title: Experimental Study of Hydrodynamic Impact Pressures on High Speed Planing Craft
E Begovic, C Bertorello, A Bove, S De Rosa, E Fasano, F Franco, N Santoro, University of Naples Federico II, Italy
This paper presents an experimental research for the assessment of pressure field on the bottom of a mono-hedral hard chine hull at high relative speed. Tests have been performed in rough sea for two wave lengths at Fn ranging from 0.79 to 1.46. The measured pressures have been analysed in time and in frequency domain. The pressure distribution along a rectangular panel of the hull bottom has been identified. The comparison of measured values and those ones provided by Classification Societies has been performed and pressure results have been used to investigate the interactions between the fluid and the craft structure. The elastic behaviour of different bottom panels is analysed, and the scantling of a typical bottom panel, made from four materials, have been calculated, in order to investigate the structural dynamic behaviour.
Transactions RINA, Vol 158, Part B1, International Journal of Small Craft Technology, Jan-Jun 2016
DOI No: 10.3940/rina.ijsct.2016.b1.174
Search and Order IJSCT papers
All International Journal of Small Craft Technology (IJSCT) papers are listed in the RINA Publications Database. You can search the database by author name and paper title. Publications may be ordered and paid for online. Other publications are also listed, some of which may be downloaded free of charge. Follow the link to Search Publications & Order.


Defense Distributed, a group run primarily by gunsmith Cody Wilson, has released a video of an AR-15 with a 3D-printed lower receiver firing off over 600 rounds, a unique feat in the realm of 3D-printed parts. The part, called the AR Lower V5, worked nearly perfectly while firing 600 rounds and, as Wilson notes, “the test ended when we ran out of ammunition, but this lower could easily withstand 1,000 rounds.”
The AR-15 is a modular firearm and Wilson and others are attempting to modify – and eventually replicate – using 3D printers. Gunsmiths have been building gun parts for decades and so this is definitely nothing new. However, with the ubiquity of 3D printing and the ease with which manufacturers can design and share models, the process of 3D printing a gun is ramping up quite quickly.
Ars Technica interviewed Wilson:
Is this a 3D-printed gun? No. Does it point to a future where you will no longer require a $500,000 military-spec milling machine to build a real gun? Yes, and this is definitely the beginning of a very interesting period in firearms history.


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Hertz (NASDAQ: HTZ) has announced that it will continue rapidly electrifying its fleet of rental vehicles following its record earnings report for 2022.
Hertz is a clear leader in electrification in the car rental market, and buyers have responded accordingly. Hertz reported record earnings for 2022, despite numerous setbacks in the economy. Moving forward, Hertz made it clear that it will continue to double down on the things that made it so successful last year; electrification, expanded distribution, and excellence in execution.
According to Hertz’s earnings report from this morning, the company earned a record $8.7 billion in revenue during 2022, $2 billion of which was earned in Q4 of the year. On top of that, Hertz had a record GAAP net income of $2.1 billion in 2022, reaching $3.36 per diluted share. Key financial contributors include a heightened EBITDA margin of 27% and increased fleet utilization globally compared to 2021.
Hertz did not have EV-specific sales or rental data in its earnings deck.
Following this revenue boom, Hertz stock jumped by over 7 percent, encouraged by the continued growth of the travel industry post-COVID.
But what differentiator had made the company so profitable? Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr points to electrification:
“Our team delivered on renewed demand for travel, which is continuing. In 2023, we will build on our progress to grow our business across the Hertz, Dollar, and Thrifty brands. We look to our investments in electrification and technology to yield increasing operating leverage and improved returns and an even better product to our customers around the world.”
Hertz made shockwaves in the rental industry when it announced that it was purchasing 100,000 Tesla Model 3s at the end of 2021, and since then, the company has only increased its investment. Following the massive Tesla deal, Hertz has ordered 175,000 EVs from General Motors and 65,000 from Polestar. Furthermore, the company has partnered with BP Pulse to begin installing charging infrastructure at each rental location.
While Hertz’s earnings presentation stated that it would grow its “EV fleet across multiple OEMs,” the rental agency did not specify what other automakers it may work with to purchase more EVs.
On top of these investments, Hertz has also been unique in its efforts to make their new massive fleet of EVs as profitable as possible. Perhaps the best example is the rental agency’s partnership with Uber, allowing Uber drivers to rent an EV for a discounted weekly fee.
This is to say nothing of the inherent benefits Hertz’s EV fleet has brought the brand. Just last year, Hertz executives excitedly announced that interest in EV rentals had shot through the roof, all while reducing operating costs for the company.
Hertz is headed in the right direction financially, largely thanks to its massive investments in electrification over the past year and a half. Hopefully, the company will continue to grow its electrification focus, resulting in continued positive financial indicators and a more sustainable mobility offering overall.
William is not a Hertz shareholder, nor does he own shares in index/mutual funds including the Hertz corporation.
What do you think of the article? Do you have any comments, questions, or concerns? Shoot me an email at firstname.lastname@example.org. You can also reach me on Twitter @WilliamWritin. If you have news tips, email us at email@example.com!


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We absolutely love zombies here at ShockTillYouDrop and while Summit Entertainment’s zombie drama Warm Bodies, adapted by director Jonathan Levine (All the Girls Love Mandy Lane) from Isaac Marion’s novel is taking a different approach to the genre, we’re still hopeful that it will still have the type of flesh-eating survival fun we expect, especially with the great cast Levine has assembled.
One of them is Analeigh Tipton, star of last year’s Crazy, Stupid, Love, who will play Nora Greene, the best friend of the main character, played by Teresa Palmer. While interviewing Analeigh for her new movie, Whit Stillman’s Damsels in Distress, Shock’s non-horror site ComingSoon.net asked her about playing the role. They learned that they’ve made quite a few departures from the character in the book for the movie, and that the book’s author may write her backstory for a possible webseries.
“It was really exciting when I realized how I’m going to play a character in a book—that’s thrilling—and then I met the writer Isaac and I later learned that the character in the book is half-black and she’s in her 30s and she’s missing a finger, so my character is a little different,” she told them. “I’m not missing a finger, but all the character traits are there. She’s kind of this laid-back, protective, outspoken character that’s not afraid to tell people how it is. So that is a different character than I’ve ever really played. My character in ‘Warm Bodies’ is sure of everything and she gets to hold a machine gun.”
Even though the movie rights were picked up by Summit Entertainment in a slew of post-“Twilight” book acquisitions and it involves a similar supernatural romance as that successful franchise, we understand it’s a very different type of movie. ComingSoon.net also asked the actress whether Isaac Marion had been showing any intention of writing more with the characters from Warm Bodies, especially if the first movie takes off when released next February, and learned they might do some auxiliary material for the movie in a related webseries.
“’Warm Bodies,’ for him was a unique book – it was his first novel out – and he’s got some pretty cool books that I think some producers are looking at,” she said, “but I know Rob Corddry was interested in taking his zombie character and Isaac wants to take my character and do her backstory, so I think they’re going to go into a few backstories and maybe even make a webseries, which would be really cool. I hear that’s in the works, so that would be awesome.”
Warm Bodies is scheduled for release on February 1, 2013.
(Photo Credit: Andrew Raffin/WENN.com)

domain: artistic


Velvet Star pillow with name in the size of 40x40cm (+ -10%) is made of velvet fabric which is extremely pleasant to the touch.
Pillow Velvet Star with name
Our products are made only of high quality fabrics, safe for children, bearing the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 Certificate. These materials do not cause allergies or irritation. Thanks to this, you can be sure that your gift will be enjoyed for many years.
All our blankets and pillows are very easy to keep clean - they can be machine washed at 30 ° (delicate program).
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Endure Push Button Tape Measure, 60" Length (Pack of 3)
Endure's 60" push button tape provides accurate measurement in a small, easily transportable package. The flexible tape allows for measurement of non-rigid surfaces. Endure's tape measures are perfect for use with fabric, paper, and medical/anatomical applications.
- Length: 60" or 150cm
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- Pack of 3 tapes - blue, red, and yellow
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text: The primary objective of Structural Control (SC), in the context of real-time control of Flexible Manufacturing Systems (FMS), is to ensure deadlock-free operation of these systems. However, from the performance perspective, the application of structural control poli-cies (SCP's) during the system operation should be viewed as an additional set of constrains to be considered during the evaluation of the effective capacity of the FMS. The work developed in this paper aims at the development of computational models able to provide good capacity esti¬mates of the structurally controlled FMS. Two approaches are discussed: The first approach is based on a Continuous-Time Markov Chain (CTMC) model, and leads to very accurate estimates of the system capacity, but due to its very high (nonpolynomial) computational complexity, it can only be applied to small-sized FMS. Its value basically lies in the fact that it can function as a pilot towards the development of other, more approximate, but computationally tractable techniques. Such a technique is developed in the second part of the paper. Both approaches are demonstrated and tested on a small example.

domain: design


text:
R. Kelly keeps the raunch up with his new sexually-injected single “Cookie.” And if you’re thinking about Oreos and Chips Ahoy! cookies, well then you’re thinking about the wrong kind of sugary sweet snack. The sexed up new track has the R&B legend spitting out verses such as “I love to lick the middle like an Oreo/ Turn up/ I want to bite it and get inside it till I get you gone” and also “break your back like a lobster” …yes. All of this happens while is voice is autotuned and singing along to a trap beat.
This track joins his other songs “Tear It Up” which will also be appearing on his new album Black Panties. The release date has now been pushed back to December 3, 2013.
Stream the new Kells song below: