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she-is-ovarit · 9 months

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Trans research and scientific consensus

(2020) - Study of 139,829 students finds that in comparison to other students, transgender identity, especially non-binary identity, is associated more with perpetrating bullying than being bullied. Non-binary identity was most strongly associated with involvement in bullying, followed by [transgender] opposite sex identity and cisgender identity.

(2023) 21 leading experts on pediatric gender medicine from 8 countries wrote a letter to Wall Street Journal expressing disagreement over how gender dysphoria in youth is treated, voicing concerns against things such as the affirmative model and research conducted outside of the US has found hormonal interventions for gender dysphoria to be without reliable evidence. Among these international experts is Dr. Rita Kaltiala, chief psychiatrist at Tampere university gender clinic and author of several peer-reviewed studies on trans medicine and Finland's top authority on pediatric gender care.

(2023) Landmark study from Denmark on 3,800 transgender patients pulled data from hospital records and applications from legal gender changes and discovered 43% of this group had a psychiatric illness compared with 7% of non-trans group, and despite "gender affirming care" and legal gender changes, still had 7.7 the rate of suicide attempts and 3.5 times the rate of suicide deaths. Researchers state this rate is likely even higher due to missing data.

(2016) Study finds association with increased risk of multiple sclerosis for trans women taking estrogen/reducing testosterone levels.

(2023) Metadata study shows, at best, no improvement for patients in gender-affirming care. "The conclusions of the systematic reviews of evidence for adolescents are consistent with long-term adult studies, which failed to show credible improvements in mental health and suggested a pattern of treatment-associated harms. Three recent papers examined the studies that underpin the practice of youth gender transition and found the research to be deeply flawed. Evidence does not support the notion that “affirmative care” of today’s adolescents is net beneficial."

(2011) Long term follow up of 324 transgender people having undergone sex reassignment surgery in Sweden, found that trans women retained male patterned incidents and rates of violence and had a greater significance and rate of rape and sexual violence than cisgender men. The study also found, "Persons with transsexualism, after sex reassignment, have considerably higher risks for mortality, suicidal behaviour, and psychiatric morbidity than the general population. Our findings suggest that sex reassignment, although alleviating gender dysphoria, may not suffice as treatment for transsexualism, and should inspire improved psychiatric and somatic care after sex reassignment for this patient group."

(2020) Largest study to date on 641,860 people finds association with autism and "gender diversity", "Gender-diverse people also report, on average, more traits associated with autism, such as sensory difficulties, pattern-recognition skills and lower rates of empathy — or accurately understanding and responding to another person’s emotional state".

(2022) US study examining 10 years of data on 952 people finds large percentages of young adults prescribed hormones for trans identity no longer getting the drugs 4 years later. Discontinuation rate for both sexes combined = 30%. Female discontinuation rate as high as 44%. The standard disinformation pushed is that only 1-2% of people who begin medical transition end up desisting. But these figures show that in this cohort of young adults, the overall rate of discontinuing hormone treatment ranged from a low of 10% to a high of 44% within a space of just 4 years.

Abruzzese et al. 2023 'The Myth of “Reliable Research” in Pediatric Gender Medicine: A critical evaluation of the Dutch Studies—and research that has followed'

More to come.

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chimaerakitten · 1 year

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people talk a lot about how like. the percentage of assholes in any fandom is pretty much the same, it’s just that it’s easier to deal with 5 assholes than 5000 assholes so large fandoms always look more drama-prone than small ones.

And like, I don’t disagree, but there’s another percentage that I think does change between small fandoms and large fandoms, and that’s “percentage of people who are in this because they are In Fandom rather than because of particular attachment to the source material” which means that big fandoms somewhat homogenize as they grow.

like, ok, for example, Murderbot as a character and a series exists in such a way as to attract significant attachment to it from Aro/Ace/Agender/Etc. people especially, which in turn means it’s an a-spec centric fandom. But if it were to balloon to ten times its size overnight, the new people wouldn't be more of that relatively small demographic that’s mostly already engaged, it would be because the book had become big in Fandom In General and people were joining because that was The Thing To Do (because FOMO, or there just being a bunch of content all of a sudden, etc etc.) so the population would no longer be a self-selected group, it would be closer to representative of the Population At Large. And that would mean a homogenization of fan content with what’s popular in Fandom as a pan-media thing. It would probably stay a fandom with a strong a-spec streak, but it wouldn’t be 70% gen on AO3.

Basically, I think it’s a lot easier and more common for small fandoms to buck panfandom trends than it is for large fandoms to do that, because by and large the people in one large fandom are going to overlap with people in other large fandoms, whereas two small fandoms might have virtually no crossover of individuals or interested demographics.

#the kitten rambles #musings #fandom #murderbot

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historia-vitae-magistras · 6 months

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How do you feel about nation jobs or finances in your universe? Like are modern Matt or Alfred on government payroll even if they don’t do anything? I know you’re mentioned that Alfred is better at managing his money than Matt, is he rich??

Sorry I’m not phrasing this very well 😅

This is somewhat esoteric even for me, but I tied their abilities with money to their economic histories.

Alfred was born looking pretty pathetic next to the Spanish possessions in Mexico and South America or even British holdings in the Caribbean but, in short order, made up a significant percentage of the ships, people, and wealth of the British Empire. He became that on what was primarily the efforts of private enterprise. Alfred grows up understanding he is valuable; he represents value, and his choices create value. He's easy to love because he's a goddamn cash cow for Arthur until the Seven Years War when Britain spent a shit ton and wanted the Yanks to pay their share, and we threw a bitch fit and declared independence.

Matt, however, has the French bitching about what a money hole he is from about 20 minutes after he comes into being. The Basque, by far, made the most money initially with their fishing and whaling in the east, following what was reasonably similar to the Viking routes into Newfoundland. The fur trade that drove French settlement faced collapse about a half dozen times in his childhood, and besides a short binge economy for Ginseng and its brief boom in China, his entire existence was just fur. Dead beavers and the black market. That's it.

While the US was building ships, growing cash crops, running a fur trade economy, engaging in fishing, rope making, pitch collection, barrel making and everything and anything else, in the Caribbean, they had 90+ control over sugar production and trade routes. Canada had 10% of the population and thus 10% of the market power. We didn't do shit except freeze, fire at the British, commit war crimes against the New Englanders, ditch the farms and run off to the west to make families with indigenous women and run furs up the rivers to the point that France tried to make it illegal for people to leave the settlements of Quebec City and Montreal without permission.

So from a relatively early point, Alfred is very smart with his investments, and he's been making his investments since the early 19th century, so there's a significant but often catastrophically destroyed habit of investing. When he was younger and incredibly newly independent, he got fleeced a few times, but he's called smart and secure, especially since the 1929 crash. It's not remarkably large amounts of money because he'll never completely trust the government, and he doesn't want to attract attention or pay massive amounts of taxes, so he's very well diversified. But he's certainly not poor. All his more expensive hobbies come from a particular office in the state department that Alfred sometimes cooperates with and sometimes doesn't, depending on how anti-establishment he and the public feel.

As for Matt, having spent a lot longer as a colonial subject, it's not that he's entirely shit with money but what he knew how to do. The heart of the empire was the financial hub and was outside his control long after even the Confederation in the 1860s. The money situation has been a nightmare since the earliest days of the French Regime using playing cards to pay people. Colonial America had some similar issues. The whole concept of the US dollar originated in the 1690 invasion of Quebec when the Massachusetts Bay Colony printed its own money to fund the expedition, but Alexander Hamilton did some flash economic magic for the US in this department in the 1790s, so it got its shit together long before Canada. Matt knows what he needs to know. He was stationed in various Canadian ports, keeping an eye on his father's investments, not his own.

So, in the modern day, Alfred reads his bank statements every month, keeps track of his subscriptions and bills, and probably has an accountant. Matt is more aware of Alfred's money habits than his own. Because he's over here just kind of vaguely wondering if his debit card will work because my man cannot make heads or tails of his economy (no, seriously, Canadian economists have no idea how Canada's own shit works. Sometimes it's pretty fascinating, there's often no real consensus like the US academic economist have.) And international investors in Canada are always freaking out because the Canadian economy is always getting its shit rocked by the US economy. It's hilarious to think of people in Matt's life frustratedly trying to figure out where and what his money's doing. If their health is tied to their economies, Matt's in pretty good shape, thanks to close ties to the US, but he's randomly dying reasonably often because the US economy's tiny little ripples will randomly tear him apart. It's pretty funny (laughs so I don't sob in the Canadian job market.)

And that's pretty fitting, considering that most Canadian economic policy is boiled down to 'hope the Americans are feeling cooperative next time NAFTA comes up for debate.'

#the ask box || probis pateo #Alfred and Matt || lonely boys with the longest borders #Alfred || o beautiful for spacious skies #Matthew || my country is winter #meatsack mechanics || the sociology and biology of nations

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bittersweetresilience · 9 months

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Adrien Agreste and Borderline Personality Disorder

DISCLAIMER: I've been a bit low on spoons this week, so I haven't gathered as much evidence as I probably could have. Also, I am but a humble student in clinical psychology. This is mainly a thought compilation for @moonieratty!

To introduce the topic, without going into it too much, personality is described by features and behavioral patterns, or traits, consistent across situations and across time. Personality disorders are therefore enduring patterns of highly maladaptive traits evaluated in personal and sociocultural context (Dozois, 2019, p. 290).

Like other disorders, personality disorders have diagnostic criteria. The DSM is used primarily for diagnosis in the US and Canada while the ICD is used more widely in Europe and other places. I'm more familiar with the DSM, but I've included a brief section on the ICD to be comprehensive. It ended up a bit longer than anticipated, so let's go below the cut. Warning for discussions of abuse, self harm, and suicide, and a brief mention of substance use.

Overview of Borderline Personality Disorder

BPD is prevalent in a small percentage of the population, about 1-2% by varying estimates, and is characterized by instability across domains of emotions, identity, interpersonal relationships, and behavior. Its onset is usually in late adolescence or early adulthood and symptoms may diminish with age, after one's thirties or forties, especially with therapeutic intervention. Along with ASPD, it has been the focus of a lot of clinical research; it is unfortunately associated with high rates of non-suicidal self-injury and suicide (APA, 2022, pp. 754–755; Dozois, 2019, pp. 308–309).

Etiological factors for BPD include both biological and environmental disturbances. Of note to our discussion is the heightened risk for BPD in cases of child abuse or neglect, as well as growing up with another family member with a serious mental health condition (NHS, 2022). It's been well established that Gabriel is emotionally neglectful if not outright abusive toward Adrien in multiple ways, so this is a clear risk factor. In addition, although I won't argue definitively for Gabriel having a psychological condition, he did keep Emilie's body in the basement, so there is clearly some kind of disturbance going on.

From a cognitive-behavioral perspective, Linehan argues that BPD stems from families who consistently invalidate childhood emotional experiences and "oversimplify the ease with which life's problems can be solved," which may cause children to learn to seek attention and communicate with others through emotional outbursts (Dozois, 2019, p. 297). This rings true for Adrien and Gabriel as well.

I have to apologize for my son, Ladybug, he's like his mother. Way too overly dramatic. (Jackady)

It doesn't seem like this is the first time Gabriel has thought this, and labeling an emotional reaction as being overly dramatic is very much invalidation of it. As for emotional outbursts, Adrien has had quite a few, mostly as Chat Noir. More on this later.

To round out this first section, attachment theory proposes a connection between poor parent-child attachments and BPD relationship difficulties. Specifically, maladaptive behavior in relationships may stem from childhood development of an anxious-ambivalent attachment style, where intense fears of abandonment interfere with a strong desire for intimacy (Dozois, 2019, p. 310). You can clearly see this in Chat Noir's relationship with Ladybug, and I'm sure other people have discussed Adrien's attachment style more in depth, but suffice to say I think this is an apt description.

Argument from DSM-5-TR

In the DSM, personality disorders are primarily diagnosed on a categorical model. There are a few general criteria which I won't be going into, but I will highlight that personality disorders are stable and pervasive, and would be diagnosed only if they were leading to significant distress or dysfunction. Adrien's mental state is not great, so the latter shouldn't be a problem, but this show does not always pay attention to consistency, so I'm going to be speculating some. Everything in this section is cited to the relevant DSM entry unless otherwise stated.

The DSM characterizes BPD with instability in relationships, self image, and affects, as well as marked impulsivity. It has no exclusion criteria, so BPD can be and frequently is comorbid with other disorders like mood disorders, PTSD, and ADHD. Of the below criteria, five need to be met in order for a diagnosis to be made.

Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment

Hey, where're you going? . . . So you're allowed to know her true identity, but I'm not? (Syren)

You're not really replacing me with a turtle, are you? (Anansi)

A lot of people have delved into Adrien's abandonment issues, which feature most prominently in his relationship with Ladybug. His fears of being replaced result in him seeking reassurance from Ladybug, and he can lash out if he does not receive the response he hopes for. Ladybug is his world, and he wants to be hers, so anything infringing on that feels to him like a threat of being abandoned, and he does not like it very much.

Impulsive behaviors like giving up his ring can be interpreted under this lens: he can avoid abandonment by doing the abandoning first. Then it will be him leaving, and not the other way around.

I also interpret Adrien's nightmare (Le Marchand de Sable) as being a fear of being alone as much as it is a fear of being trapped.

Unstable and intense interpersonal relationships alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation

We'll be united, more powerful and free. We'll defeat Hawk Moth, then we can both run away to an island! Far away from everything. We will live off nothing but fruits, and we will have a little pet hamster and we will name it— (Le Patineur)

I just can't do this anymore. I give up… on everything. Even you . . . If I become Chat Noir again, Ladybug will just end up rejecting me, over and over. (Kuro Neko)

Even though Adrien mostly keeps his head on straight regarding what he's owed and not owed by other people, his relationship with Ladybug is full of highs and lows. He thinks Ladybug is the most amazing girl, but this can recoil quickly into feeling as though Ladybug doesn't care about him enough or isn't meeting his needs.

Furthermore, he developed this idealization of Ladybug as a potential lover or caregiver at one of their first meetings (Cœur de Pierre), and continually sought to spend time together and share the intimate details of their secret identities early on. These are all common to individuals with BPD, as is the switch from idealization to feeling as if the other person "does not care enough, does not give enough, or is not 'there' enough." Ladybug is the only person Adrien consistently projects this instability and intensity on, which might be something interesting to explore.

Identity disturbance: unstable self image or sense of self

When I was a kid, I always wanted to be what my parents wanted me to be! (Exauceur)

But, does that mean Chat Noir is who I really am? Deep down inside? (Kuro Neko)

With all the secret identities, it isn't surprising that Adrien fits this criterion, but canon even explicitly draws a link between Adrien's unstable sense of self and his childhood experiences. He doesn't know who he is, and he distracts from this by being Chat Noir, only to struggle even more when he feels useless and underlooked as his hero self. His behavior shifts dramatically between trying to prove himself with grand gestures and refusing to participate or lashing out. There is definitely something to discuss on this front.

Impulsivity in at least two potentially self-damaging areas

Giving you some extra time . . . I trust you to bring me back, m'lady. (Gamer 2.0)

There are only two liars left in Paris and one of them knows the ultimate way to catch her attention . . . Crazy about you, m'lady. (Mensonge)

This is walking a thin line between impulsivity and suicidal behavior, which would be excluded from this criterion, but I'll list self sacrifice here because I can see an argument for Chat Noir's impulsive behaviors being out of love or the desire to be useful. There may still be some self injurious intent or euphoria, but Chat Noir does have faith in Ladybug to bring him back eventually. Nevertheless, this is impulsive and unhealthy. Chat Noir jumps too quickly to this option to have thought it through.

I can't think of another area, because Adrien isn't old enough for reckless driving, spending, substance use, or sex. This is also a kids' show. Just presenting these options for fanfiction writers out there.

Recurrent suicidal or self mutilating behavior, gestures, or threats

I... I don't know what to do! (Chat Blanc)

This is all our fault . . . Cataclysm. (Culpabysse)

By itself, what happened in Chat Blanc would not be solid evidence, as that was an unprecedentedly traumatic situation. Combined with Culpabysse, though, there is a strong case to be made for at least passive suicidality for this to be able to come up as an option.

You could also interpret the self sacrifice in this category. Suicidal behavior in individuals with BPD is often preempted by fears of rejection or abandonment, so an interesting analysis could be made on this front.

Affective instability due to marked reactivity of mood

He's still only thinking of himself! I just want this terrible day to be over and done with! I hate Christmas! (Pire Noël)

Sorry! Sorry! I didn't mean to make you so mad. I get it. You're sick of me . . . No one can help me, Kagami. (Glaciator 2)

Adrien's prolonged episodes of anger and despair reflect a high reactivity to emotional stressors, especially interpersonal ones. In general, he just doesn't feel very well unless something is actively bringing him joy. Most of his outbursts are brief, though, and I will discuss them as part of a later criterion.

Chronic feelings of emptiness

I'm not Adrien, so I wouldn't know if this is the case, but I can say he has experienced at least one depressive episode (Kuro Neko) and emptiness would not be unfamiliar. You can look at him and decide.

Inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger

How was your amazing evening with your "friends"? . . . What do you think? (Glaciator)

Why not? No one'll know if I quit. No one'll care! (Syren)

A two-person plan?! There's only one two-person plan, and that's Ladybug and me! (Sentibulleur)

Give me a break, Miss "I can't even come up with a superhero name"! (Hack-San)

Anger in individuals with BPD can manifest as bitterness, sarcasm, or recurrent verbal outbursts, which Chat Noir absolutely exemplifies. These outbursts are often followed by feelings of shame or guilt and contribute to a feeling of being bad. Chat Noir apologizes after being harsh in Glaciator, and I wouldn't be surprised if he felt badly about the other times. Again, these outbursts are often precipitated by interpersonal fears and perceived threats of abandonment. Unlike other symptoms, this specific one tends to be unique to BPD.

Transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociation

I cannot recall any evidence for this but headcanon away, my friends.

All in all, I think Adrien has a strong case for BPD presentation according to the DSM. Canon is not always consistent, but I think it presents an interesting and mostly coherent narrative for this lens. From this perspective, Adrien's behavior reflects a deep intolerance of being alone and a dependence on other people to define the self.

As a corollary, BPD behavioral patterns are frequently linked to self sabotage and self undermining right when a goal is about to be realized, which could manifest as dropping out of school right before graduating or ending a relationship when it seems to be going well. Food for thought. Individuals with BPD may also feel more secure with transitional objects like pets than with interpersonal relationships, which could reflect in Adrien's relationship with Plagg.

To add some subjective understanding to this clinical mumbo jumbo, I've added a source of genuine BPD experiences below (Mind, 2022).

Argument from ICD-11

With the release of the ICD-11, a dimensional model for diagnosis of personality disorders became the new standard. What this means is that individuals are no longer labeled as having 'histrionic' or 'dependent' or, indeed, 'borderline' personality disorders, but are rather assessed as having any form of personality disorder on a sliding scale of severity and with trait domain specifiers (Swales, 2022). To put it more simply, people are diagnosed only with a general personality disorder or personality difficulty which can be optionally specified as deviating on one of the personality traits in the Big Five model, which is well established in personality psychology.

This move has several benefits. Stigmatization related to particular personality disorders can be reduced, and differential diagnosis and comorbidity between personality disorders becomes irrelevant. However, people retain access to treatment and support. Evidence-based treatments like dialectical behavior therapy are particularly well established and crucial for BPD; for this pragmatic purpose, the ICD contains one additional specifier for borderline pattern personality disorder (Bach et al., 2022; Swales, 2022).

The DSM and ICD are designed to be compatible with each other in many ways, and in this case, the borderline specifier in the ICD is directly lifted from the criterion of the DSM (WHO, 2023, 6D11.5). Based on our previous discussion, Adrien would be equally qualified for a diagnosis in France. I would likely describe his personality disorder with moderate severity, where multiple areas of functioning are affected and self harming behaviors may be present, but not all areas or relationships may be equally impacted and traits are not as rigid and inflexible (WHO, 2023, 6D10.0–6D10.2).

Interestingly, the ICD includes three additional manifestations of borderline pattern which are optional and may vary across time (WHO, 2023, 6D11.5).

A view of the self as inadequate, bad, guilty, disgusting, and contemptible

An experience of the self as profoundly different and isolated from other people; a painful sense of alienation and pervasive loneliness

Proneness to rejection hypersensitivity; problems in establishing and maintaining appropriate levels of trust in relationships; frequent misinterpretation of social signals

I'm fascinated by the number of adjectives in here. I simplified very slightly, as I did with the DSM criteria, but I had to keep all these adjectives. Anyway, I won't elaborate for too many more paragraphs, so let's say sentimonster moment and leave it at that. I will spare you my mirrored Félix essay. For now.

Qualifications and Limitations

First of all, Adrien is a teenager. The distinguishing factor between a personality disorder and regular adolescent difficulties would be longevity and identity concerns beyond his developmental phase (APA, 2022, p. 758). Second of all, Adrien has a uniquely terrible home life and magical problems. Some of his behaviors could be normal considering his experiences and sociocultural context, and this matters when it comes to psychological evaluation. Take everything with a grain of salt!

More generally, the categorical model of the DSM has several issues, not to mention diagnostic issues related to culture, gender, and stigma. Some but not all of these issues are addressed by the dimensional model it includes in a later section, which shares theoretical foundations with the model of personality disorders in the ICD. Even so, issues remain. Diagnosis, access to treatment, and political statements are intrinsically linked in complex ways. I won't get into all of the nuances, but be safe, remember this is a fictional character, and keep an open mind.

REFERENCES:

American Psychiatric Association. (2022). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed., text rev.). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425787

Bach, B., Kramer, U., Doering, S., di Giacomo, E., Hutsebaut, J., Kaera, A., De Panfilis, C., Schmahl, C., Swales, M., Taubner, S., & Renneberg, B. (2022). The ICD-11 classification of personality disorders: A European perspective on challenges and opportunities. Borderline Personality Disorder and Emotion Dysregulation, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40479-022-00182-0

Dozois, D. J. A. (2019). Abnormal psychology: Perspectives (6th ed.). Pearson.

Mind. (2022, September). What does BPD feel like? https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/borderline-personality-disorder-bpd/experiences-of-bpd/

National Health Service. (2022, November 4). Causes - Borderline personality disorder. https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/borderline-personality-disorder/causes/

Swales, M. A. (2022). Personality disorder diagnoses in ICD-11: Transforming conceptualisations and practice. Clinical Psychology in Europe, 4(Special Issue). https://doi.org/10.32872/cpe.9635

World Health Organization. (2023). International statistical classification of diseases and related health problems (11th ed.). https://icd.who.int/

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loveofball · 1 month

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Mental health and physical health

As stated before I used soccer to escape reality at times. An example in my life where soccer helped me overcome a bad point in my life was when I moved into the states. I was a new kid in a new country, completely clueless; I had no idea how to talk to my classmates, not to mention school was completely different here. This was a lot for a seven year old to overcome so I felt quite overwhelmed until one day the teacher brought out a soccer ball for us to play with. I feel like the language barrier is not as prominent when playing sport so I was able to enjoy it with peers. From then on I was interacting with more peers which boosted the speed of my adjusting to a new culture significant

Although it was a personal experience that I had. Sports have been proven to increase serotonin; serotonin is a chemical released from your brain to regulate mental health while also improving mood. Another study suggest that sports are linked in lower stress, anxiety, depresstion and also suicidal behaviors. Beside the mental benefits an individual receives from sports another equally more beneficial is the physical aspect.

-reduce the chance of cancer and diabetes

-increased activity levels

-Improved cardiovascular fitness

- Decreased body fat percentage

-Increased overall quality of life

Although I don't play comparative soccer any longer, I make an effort to go down to our local soccer field and play a few picks multiple times per week because of the benefits it has to my overall health. I'm aware that I'm getting older which means further down the road I won't be able to do the thing I'm able to do now; that inspires me to make the most of it now while i still can but also in a study that I read it talks about the importance of building usable muscle on an emphasis on leg muscle. These are muscles that a person uses on a daily basis. In the study researchers took two groups of elderly individuals, one that was physically active in their youth and one that was not. They compared the muscle between the two groups. They concluded that the person who was active still had the muscle percentage of a thirty year old while the other group showed signs of major muscle decay losing about fifty percent of muscle. paring information that I learned with the knowledge that a majority of people get checked in nursing homes because they are unable to assist themselves in that bathroom, I feel it important for the majority of the population to stay active in their youth. This will not only help in the present but also long term.

#Body #body positive #mind and body #longterm

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newstfionline · 8 months

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Sunday, September 17, 2023

13,000 workers go on strike at major US auto makers (AP) About 13,000 auto workers have walked off the job at three targeted factories after their union leaders couldn’t reach a deal with Detroit’s automakers. The United Auto Workers union is seeking big raises and better benefits from General Motors, Ford and Stellantis. They want to get back concessions that the workers made years ago, when the companies were in financial trouble. A small percentage of the union’s 146,000 members walked off the job at a GM assembly plant in Wentzville, Missouri; a Ford factory in Wayne, Michigan, near Detroit; and a Stellantis Jeep plant in Toledo, Ohio. Both sides began exchanging wage and benefit proposals last week. Though some incremental progress appears to have been made, it was not enough to avoid walkouts. The strike could cause significant disruptions to auto production in the United States.

Muslim Students’ Robes Are Latest Fault Line for French Identity (NYT) The mass French return to work, known as the “rentrée,” is often marked by renewed social conflict. This year has been no exception as the summer lull has given way to yet another battle over a recurrent national obsession: How Muslim women should dress. Late last month, with France still in vacation mode, Gabriel Attal, 34, the newly appointed education minister and a favorite of President Emmanuel Macron, declared that “the abaya can no longer be worn in schools.” His abrupt order, which applies to public middle and high schools, banished the loosefitting full-length robe worn by some Muslim students and ignited another storm over French identity. The government believes the role of education is to dissolve ethnic or religious identity in a shared commitment to the rights and responsibilities of French citizenship and so, as Mr. Attal put it, “you should not be able to distinguish or identify the students’ religion by looking at them.” Since then, organizations representing the country’s large Muslim minority of about five million people have protested; some girls have taken to wearing kimonos or other long garments to school to illustrate their view that the ban is arbitrary; and a fierce debate has erupted over whether Mr. Attal’s August surprise, just before students went back to their classrooms, was a vote-seeking provocation or a necessary defense of the secularism that is France’s ideological foundation. Where some see laïcité as the core of a supposedly colorblind nation of equal opportunity, others see a form of hypocrisy that masks how far from unprejudiced France has become.

Crowds descend on Munich for the official start of Oktoberfest (AP) The beer is flowing and millions of people are descending on the Bavarian capital to celebrate the official opening of Oktoberfest. Revelers decked out in traditional lederhosen and dirndl dresses trooped to Munich’s festival grounds Saturday morning, filling the dozens of traditional tents in anticipation of getting their first 1-liter (2-pint) mug of beer. The Oktoberfest has typically drawn about 6 million visitors every year. The event was skipped in 2020 and 2021 as authorities grappled with COVID-19, but returned in 2022.

If 3.3 Million Ukrainian Refugees Never Come Home? The Economics Of Post-War Life Choices (Ukrainska Pravda) Approximately 6.7 million Ukrainians have left their country since the Russian invasion. The longer the war lasts, the more these refugees will consolidate their new lives in their host countries, resulting in a heavy population drain for Ukraine. Earlier this month, the Kyiv-based Center for Economic Strategy (CES) presented a study on the attitudes of Ukrainian refugees that shows a large number of them will likely not return to their homeland even after the end of the war. According to their calculations, Ukraine may lose 3.3 million citizens. There is also a strong likelihood that a large number of men currently fighting in the war will move abroad in order to reunite with their families that have settled there. Even in peacetime, counting Ukrainians is not an easy task. A full-fledged census was conducted in the country only once: in 2001. It concluded that Ukraine had a population of 48.5 million.

Erdogan says Turkey may part ways with the EU (AP) President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday that Turkey may part ways with the European Union, implying that the country is thinking about ending its bid to join the 27-nation bloc. “The EU is making efforts to sever ties with Turkey,” he told reporters before departing for the 78th U.N. General Assembly in New York. “We will evaluate the situation, and if needed we will part ways with the EU.” He was responding to a question about a recent report adopted by the European Parliament, which stated “the accession process cannot resume under the current circumstances, and calls on EU to explore ‘a parallel and realistic framework’ for EU-Türkiye relations.”

China Is Investigating Its Defense Minister, U.S. Officials Say (NYT) China’s defense minister, Gen. Li Shangfu, has been placed under investigation, according to two U.S. officials, fueling speculation about further upheaval in the military after the abrupt removal of two top commanders in charge of the country’s nuclear force. General Li has not been seen in public in more than two weeks. He had been expected to take part in a meeting last week in Vietnam, but there was no word of his attendance. The investigation points to questions about the Communist Party’s leader Xi Jinping’s confidence in his own military, a pillar of his ambitions abroad and dominance at home. Just six weeks ago, Mr. Xi replaced the two most senior commanders of the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force, which oversees China’s nuclear missiles. The abrupt dismissals suggested that Mr. Xi was seeking to reassert his control over the military and purge perceived corruption, disloyalty and dysfunction from its ranks, analysts have said. Mr. Xi still appears politically unassailable, with the Communist Party leadership, military top brass and security services packed with his loyalists. Even so, the sudden downfall of such high-ranking officials has exposed the pitfalls in a system so dominated by a single leader and has raised questions about Mr. Xi’s judgment because the officials under scrutiny been promoted by him.

History Turns Upside Down in a War Where the Koreas Are Suppliers (NYT) Washington and Moscow flooded the Korean Peninsula with arms and aid as they fueled the war between South and North seven decades ago. Now, in a fateful moment of history turning back on itself, Russia and the United States are reaching out to those same allies to supply badly needed munitions as the powers face each other down again, this time on the other side of the globe, in Ukraine. “In the post-Cold War era, South and North Korea have been virtually the only countries that have remained on a constant war footing, with large artillery and other weapons stockpiles ready to use,” said Yang Uk, a military expert at the Asian Institute for Policy Studies in Seoul. “The fact that South and North Korea remain stuck in a Cold War armed confrontation explains why Washington and Moscow come to them seeking weapons.” Artillery ammunition has been in particular demand as both sides in the Ukraine conflict tear through their stores faster than production can catch up. South Korean and American officials have been tight-lipped about how many shells South Korea has provided to the United States. But recent news reports indicated that South Korea has sold or lent at least hundreds of thousands of artillery shells to the U.S. military. Moscow has repeatedly warned Seoul against supplying weapons to Ukraine. But South Korea has been pressed by the United States, its most important ally, to help the war effort.

A year after Mahsa Amini’s death: Repression and defiance in Iran (Washington Post) A year ago, the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of Iran’s morality police sparked a popular uprising, led by women and young people, that rattled the pillars of the Islamic Republic: clerical rule, gender segregation and the security state. In the end, the leaderless movement, clustered in pockets across the country, was no match for the keepers of Iran’s authoritarian system. Its clerical leaders are still standing, having brutally crushed the demonstrations. More recently, they have strengthened the kind of strict social controls that gave rise to the protest movement. The last year allowed the world to glimpse the seething anger just below the surface of a repressive society, and to document government abuses. But it also highlighted the resilience of the regime. But Tehran has not emerged from the uprising unscathed, according to analysts, human rights advocates and ordinary Iranians—many of whom say they are just waiting for the next spark.

There’s a glimmer of hope on Yemen’s war front. Yet children are still dying of hunger (NPR) Malia Qassim Mahmoud found herself at Al-Thawra hospital in Taiz, seeking help for the third time for the acute malnutrition affecting her family. Two years ago, her older son was severely malnourished. He recovered but his growth has been stunted; she says the 6-year-old is much smaller than other kids his age. A year later, she herself had to be hospitalized for malnutrition. Then it was her 1-year-old baby, lying limp in her arms, his skin a sickly yellow color, unable to even open his mouth as his mother tried to feed him protein paste. “Most days we can only get water and flour and I make a doughy paste and that’s what we eat,” Mahmoud said. “We can’t afford more, and we haven’t received any aid through the war.” This family is among at least 20 million people in Yemen who need food assistance in the midst of what the United Nations calls one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world. In 2014 Houthi rebels overthrew the Saudi-backed government. They took control of parts of Yemen, sparking a civil war. The U.N. estimates that the conflict in Yemen has caused over 377,000 deaths, most of which were due to hunger and lack of health care. A slowdown in fighting has raised hopes that the war could end, but the number of people needing medical attention or hospitalization due to malnutrition has not decreased.

In the midst of Morocco earthquake chaos, surprising heroes: Donkeys (NPR) When the villagers of Morocco’s High Atlas Mountains were stricken by a powerful earthquake on Friday, they found themselves facing a situation they had never known before. They dug desperately in the rubble to rescue loved ones or find their bodies so they could bury them, rescue crews having been held up by mountain roads choked with rocks that fell in the magnitude 6.8 quake. Heavy machinery was dispatched to clear the roads, and rescue teams worked to open access points to the mountain. But it took time—time the villagers did not have. The villagers, used to the mountainous terrain, found a foolproof method to move themselves and materials around: their donkeys. Photos have emerged of villagers using donkeys to move rubble out of the way, to get relief supplies to more difficult-to-reach spots, and to move people to where they need to go. The nimble-footed creatures have been able to pick their way along tracks that are barely visible, loaded with bulging saddlebags and sometimes hauling a person on their backs to boot.

Amazing science: The Ig Nobels (AP) Counting nose hairs in cadavers, repurposing dead spiders and explaining why scientists lick rocks are among the winning achievements in this year's Ig Nobels, the prize for humorous scientific feats, organizers announced Thursday. Jan Zalasiewicz of Poland earned the chemistry and geology prize for explaining why many scientists like to lick rocks. “Wetting the surface allows fossil and mineral textures to stand out sharply, rather than being lost in the blur of intersecting micro-reflections and micro-refractions that come out of a dry surface.” Other winning teams were lauded for studying the impact of teacher boredom on student boredom; the affect of anchovies' sexual activity on ocean water mixing; and how electrified chopsticks and drinking straws can change how food tastes.

#headlines #news

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nnugatoryextravagance · 8 months

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for the worldbuilding ask!! don't think i know a lot of you worlds, so choose a random one for 🌸 and 🔮!!

YEEAAH LES GO so sorry I got delayed answering this the sleepy got me also iam gonna go with just Phonia since I've had it on the mind most lately

[Original ask post 💥💥💥]

🌸 - Phonia being this universe's closest "Earth equivalent" also used to have a very similar population to Earth, maybe even a little more in fact. For a single reason I'm gonna be able to discuss immediately after this though the planet had a very sudden record drop from a little over 8 billion residents total, to barely 750,000. Oopsie daisy

🔮 - Preliminary context for this part, thousands of years ago prior to when the majority of my stories take place, Phonia was best well known as a planet full to the brim with all kinds of expensive minerals that would be dug up and sold everywheres else to whoever was buying. Reason this ended up Very Abruptly Stopping though was because a solid 10,000 years ago-ish it had gotten to the point where so much of the planet hardly had anything solid left inside of it from all the mining that a good 75% or so of the surface landmasses and oceans finally caved in during what came to be known as "The Great Collapse", also the worst disaster the planet had ever seen and for, obvious reasons (you really dont get much worse than several countries suddenly becoming one with the abyss and the world population suffering such a significant drop that it took 2 different calculator websites to get a rough percentage of the loss because the numbers are so big its stupid, oh yeah and it permanently changed the planets climate and cultures forever, not even just because of how much of the latter was lost and no longer exists now)

All types of mining gear or digging now are strictly prohibited under any circumstances and the only exceptions are items for personal use like shovels or wild animals who burrow large holes as a natural behavior (since I mean, what are you gonna do? arrest a bird?), there is also a special recovery unit that was made by the government dedicated to finding anything salvageable in the rubble as well as freeing any souls still stuck down there (I never mentioned souls cant pass through solid materials 99% of the time now did i, oops) and it still operates in the present era too and has steadily grown every year since the incident

#sludgetalkz #answered asks #illusionaryneil ask #im having so so so much fun w these asks omg

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taiwantalk · 8 months

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The great truth sometimes is just naturally understood and should be explicitly said.

one of the great truth is that Soviet Union was always a russian empire disguised as communist utopian ideology. and communist regimes everywhere were only the military support decided by russians, geopolitical chess match and resource tribute states for russians to continue to rule Eastern European states.

today, everyone just naturally think that present day russia is the continuation of soviet union and that means none of the former soviet states were ever treated equal to russians during soviet union.

and so the world is lying to itself when the world does not put in the context that russia is trying to reconquer all its subject states and force its way on everyone else. Soviet Union was a serfdom state and that’s why ethnic russians still inherently feel that they have an obligation to protect their special influence vested to them formerly despite that they are no longer living in russia.

taiwan has a similar dilemma because the right wing nationalists, kmt, still feel an obligatory bond with china even though they’re entirely protected and live freely in taiwan-delusional sense of grandeur. as if they’re part of a much greater cause.

ethnic russians and the taiwan’s nationalists who fled china in 1948 take freedom & prosperity in the new democratic country for granted and they want to leverage their ties with motherland to return back to their rightful throngs.

they don’t make up a significant percentage of population in each country but we all know what they do. they’re the oligarchs who insist on doing business with Russia or China and all their downstream people feel the same in that they’d gladly trade the country that they live in to fulfill their desire to once again rule the rest.

#ukraine #russia #taiwantalk

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an-aura-about-you · 1 year

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December 21st, 1997

The Joy We Hide from the King

Somewhere Else Under the King

In this entry there's a pizza party:

The longest night of the year. It is, in a way, antithesis to the day when the King can look upon the World of Men. It is also a time of inane office parties nobody wants to go to. Or at least, inane office parties nobody that Martin Blackwood knows wants to go to. And, in a surprising turn of events, Martin knows a lot of people.

So here they are in his and Jon’s flat.

The table is stacked with pizzas and all the leftover pastries the cafe crew could get away with salvaging from work. Mulled cider flows freely, and even though the group as a whole decided on non-alcoholic to accommodate everyone, there’s a delightful intoxication in the air.

They had put on a nature documentary about the arctic with the volume turned down low for background, but nobody’s paying attention to it. Instead, they’re all chattering away about this year’s holiday plans or past holiday happenings. And while there’s plenty of seating available, it just isn’t convenient to have it all in the living room. Even just moving the armchairs from the library was enough of a hassle without making it impossible to maneuver in the living room. So Trilby, Jim, and Claire are in the armchairs from the library, Jessica is shamelessly draped over Lydia and Frank on the sofa, and Jon is shamelessly curled up in Martin’s lap in the armchair that matches the sofa.

Martin can’t remember the last time he was with so many people that were all happy. Or rather, he can, intellectually, if he tries, but the feeling hasn’t been touched in so long. It’s been even longer since he’s touched on the feeling that most if not all of the people in this room hold at least a little affection for him. In fact, had it ever been this many people?

Is this real?

He steps on his mind’s brakes as soon as the thought shows up, desperate to stop that spiral before it goes any further. He reflexively taps on Jon’s shoulder.

“Hmm?” Jon hums, turning to him with a smile. “What is it, love?”

“Could do with some air,” he answers quietly. “Think I’ll step out on the balcony for a minute.”

Jon gently places a hand on his cheek, the party chatter quieting down a little. “Do you want me to come with you?” he asks, lowering his voice as well.

“Would you?”

Jon gets up and gives Martin room to do the same.

“Hey, you alright, Martin?” Lydia asks as he gets to his feet.

He nods without thinking, but he doesn’t say a word on his way out.

The cold December night helps, as does a deep, stinging breath.

Jon doesn’t say anything for a moment, just places his hand on Martin’s shoulder. It’s good, grounding out here. Martin places his hand on top, running his thumb over Jon’s knuckles.

“Too much party?” Jon asks. “We can call it a night.”

“No,” Martin says. “I mean, it is a lot? And it’s good, but still a lot.” He shrugs. “I think I’ve got more practice handling ‘bad a lot’ instead of ‘good a lot’ at this point. Not that I handle ‘bad a lot’ well, but it at least sets some expectations. So I gotta re-calibrate?”

Jon nods in understanding. “Yes.” And then, “I haven’t been too clingy, have I?”

“What? No!” Martin assures him, holding an arm out for a hug. “Why do you ask?”

Jon accepts it, wrapping his arms around Martin’s middle. “It’s just… I like our friends here, I do! But I don’t think I’ve ever been with so many at once. It’s easier when I’m close to you. But I shouldn’t trap you if you need to leave.”

“No, that wasn’t an issue.” Martin kisses the top of his head. “Sorry it’s like that for you, too.”

Jon shrugs in his embrace. “It is what it is. Just another learning curve.” He tilts back to look Martin in the eyes. “I’m glad there are so many people who love you, though.”

Martin scoffs. “You made a significant percentage of the local population fall in love with me.”

“Not on purpose!” Jon protests, but he’s laughing. “Why would I want to add to the competition?”

“What competition?” Martin asks with a laugh of his own, squeezing him tight.

They jump at a knock on the balcony door, and Trilby pokes his head out. With the door cracked, they can hear some kind of commotion coming from the TV.

“While you were out here, Jess found the remote and changed the channel to a cheesy monster movie marathon,” he explains. “Is everything okay?”

Jon looks to Martin for an answer, and he quietly says, “It’s okay if it’s not. We’ll figure out something to do.”

Martin takes one more breath and nods. “Yeah, just needed some air. I’m heading back in.”

And it’s easier once they’re inside, everyone a bit more spaced out. Frank and Lydia are at the table getting more pizza, Claire and Jim are talking about travel plans to see their respective families while refilling their ciders, and Jessica is perched on the sofa watching the movie marathon.

“Hey, you guys want on the sofa?” Jessica offers, scooting to sit by one of the arms. “Or were you cuddling in the armchair by design?”

“We could sit on the sofa,” Martin says.

“I’m too transparent,” Jon says at the same time.

Jessica laughs and reaches a hand out to Martin, curling her fingers in a gimme motion. “Don’t sulk, Jon. There’s enough room for you two to cuddle here, only now I get to sit with Martin, too.”

“Are we just playing Musical Chairs?” Trilby asks, joining the table group for a pastry.

“Dibs on the armchair!” Lydia calls, running over to claim it.

“Wait, that’s gotta fit two!” Frank yells, rushing to claim an arm just as Lydia takes the seat.

It’s something Martin hasn’t seen before, mainly because he’s never been in a position to see it before. He ends up laughing and taking the middle spot of the sofa, tugging Jon along with him to take the other side.

Jessica wastes no time wrapping her arms around the arm Martin has closest to her, giving him a little squeeze. Funny how it’s such a little hug but still a good, warm hug all the same.

Jon, in turn, tosses his legs over Martin’s lap and likewise squeezes his hand. “Alright, love?” he asks.

Martin nods and tugs his hand over for a kiss to the back.

“Just let us know if we need to move,” Jon tells him.

“Or if we need to send someone to get you more pizza,” Jessica offers.

Martin levels a look at her and tries to move the arm she’s squeezing in demonstration. “Between you and Jon, I don’t know how I’ll be able to eat it even if I get it.”

“By the way, how did you find a monster movie marathon in December, Jess?” Jon asks.

Jessica shrugs and wiggles her fingers, saying, “I’m magic like that.”

“Are we sure Jess isn’t psychic?” Jim asks, camping out at the table now for more pizza. “She can always find monster movie marathons.”

“I am an esper," Jessica points out as the program cuts to a horror host segment. "But I think this works because, and this is crucial, I like monster movie marathons, even if I’m magic about it.”

#tma #chzo mythos #aura's fanfiction #on this day in aura's tma/chzo mythos fanfiction

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singapore-travel · 2 months

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The Rules For Tourists In Singapore

We all love Singapore and its culture for several reasons. It is a sovereign city located in Southeast Asia. It is seen as an economic power and also for its multicultural harmony.

Located on the intersection of global trade networks, it has transformed into a vibrant capital center in terms of finance and technology attracting human resources and financial investments from across the globe.

A great percentage of its population includes ethnic Chinese, Malaysians, Indians, and others which leads to a colorful variety of cultures languages that are used and traditions.

Singapore is clean, green, and very tightly organized one can find over there modern infrastructure with high involvement in sustainability.

Therefore tourists are required to follow the given Singapore law for tourists. Find some of the essential and simple-to-follow tips mentioned below.

1. Tipping is not customarily done

It may come as a shock to tourists from cultures where tipping wait for workers and other members of the hospitality industry is customary to hear that gratuities are not required in Singapore. Rather, the Goods & Service Tax, which is automatically applied to every payment, will already cost you what is essentially a gratuity.

2. Avoid littering

Singapore is known as "The Fine City" due to the sheer volume of Singapore laws for tourists and penalties imposed for offenses that in other nations may go entirely unpunished. The city's continued cleanliness and friendliness may be largely attributed to these penalties and the culture they foster.

Littering fines are among the most significant categories of charges that many visitors find unexpected. Enforcement is relatively unusual, even though many localities may have placed notices with fines of up to several hundred dollars for littering.

In Singapore, however, community service orders may be imposed in addition to penalties of up to $1,000. These rules are also taken seriously by the local government. If you have any kind of food or wrapper in public, find a container where you can properly dispose of it, and don't leave anything behind.

3. Avoid chewing gum

In Singapore, chewing gum cannot be imported or sold. This implies that guests are not even permitted to enter the premises carrying gum. Because there is no longer any risk of someone tripping over chewed gum on the sidewalk and having to remove it from their shoe, this contributes to a further reduction in the amount of rubbish and filth in the city.

Before traveling to Singapore, think about giving up your favorite chewing gum in favor of something different, like mints.

4. Refrain from eating or drinking when using public transit

Singapore likewise imposes stringent rules on riding conduct to maintain hygienic and clean public transportation for all users. You cannot bring food or beverages on board.

This implies that you are unable to have a morning cup of coffee or tea while using public transit, even if you are rushing late for a class or at the start of the workday.

Before attempting to board, make sure you have finished any food or beverages, or otherwise, you risk paying high fines. This not only keeps things cleaner overall, but it also deters rats who may otherwise find the train or bus appealing.

5. Avoid jaywalking

Illegally crossing a road outside of a designated location is known as jaywalking. Although a lot of people think this is a pretty innocent practice, it puts drivers and pedestrians at serious risk and can lead to unneeded traffic delays.

To avoid penalties or other consequences, obey this legislation. Take note of the designated crossing locations and the rules for safe crossing.

6. Smoking is only permitted in areas that have been specified

In many sections of the city, smoking is now prohibited in Singapore; individuals are only allowed to smoke in certain locations. Those who prefer smoking should be aware of the whereabouts of these areas and not think that just because they're outside, they may light up a cigarette.

Smokers should also be careful to remember that it is illegal to litter in cities and refrain from throwing any trash even something as little as a cigarette butt on the ground. Rather, they must be disposed of appropriately in a garbage can.

7. Abstain from drug usage

In Singapore, drugs are illegal and it is punishable if one uses them with life imprisonment apart from fines. As far as drugs are concerned, the town’s restrictions tend to be considered some of the most rigid. Drugs, even in small doses, can lead to severe legal consequences.

If one is found in possession of more narcotics, both domestic and international residents may face harsh penalties. Try not to enter Singapore with any illicit or restricted drugs.

8. Remember the laws about alcohol

While it is not strictly prohibited in Singapore as many other narcotics are, visitors should make sure they are well aware of the regulations governing the sale and use of alcohol in the city. In Singapore, as in most of Europe, the same legal age; is 18 years old those who are older than this one can purchase and consume alcohol.

Furthermore, people are not allowed to have a drink outdoors from 10.30 p.m until 7 am of the following day when Liquor is banned in public areas between these hours Serving from when an establishment ends its night till it re-opens for business the next morn is not allowed in licensed premises.

Additionally, there are select locations (Little India & Geylang) where people are prohibited from drinking in public from 10.30 pm on Fridays to 7 am on Mondays and from 7 pm on weeknights. This area, known as the Liquor Control Zone, was established to stop the spread of Covid.

Stated differently, anyone hoping to have a fun-filled evening out should be aware of the legal boundaries around the consumption of their favorite libations. This will allow them to prepare appropriately and prevent any infractions. Fortunately, it is acceptable to drink at home day or night.

9. Avoid attempting to enter Singapore with smokes

While Singapore does have designated smoking spots across the city, the city tightly controls visitors' ability to carry cigarettes into the area. Cigarettes cannot be brought into the nation, regardless of whether you are a foreign visitor or a domestic returning from a foreign trip.

Tax-free cigarettes are restricted in Singapore, and cigarettes bought within the city are charged taxes and levies. This makes buying them in Singapore pricey, but still far less expensive than trying to smuggle in any illegal cigarettes and running the danger of being detected by customs officials and facing hefty fines.

Other tobacco compared to smoked products such as e-cigarettes are also prohibited from being offered for free. Such regulations can affect the capacity of immigrants to camouflage with society and not unintentionally violate the law, which may involve fines or other punitive actions.

Bottom Line

Singapore is a clean, pleasant city that attracts visitors from all over the world because both the government and the populace take its rules and regulations extremely seriously. After going over this list, take in everything that Singapore has to offer and enjoy your stay.

Although Singapore might be an interesting destination to live, visit, and learn, visitors need to make sure they are conversant with the rules and laws that apply there. Following the Singapore laws for tourists will help improve the living and tourist experience there.

#singapore tourist visa #singapore #singapore visa #singapore laws for tourists

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monasteryicons · 2 months

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Religion Could Be A Miracle Drug - Church attendance is correlated with longer life and a sense of meaning.

If one could conceive of a single elixir to improve the physical and mental health of millions of Americans — at no personal cost — what value would our society place on it?

Going a step further, if research quite conclusively showed that when consumed just once a week, this concoction would reduce mortality by 20% to 30% over a 15-year period, how urgently would we want to make it publicly available? The good news is that this miracle drug — religion, and more specifically, regular church attendance — is already in reach of most Americans. In fact, there’s a good chance it’s just a short drive away.

Indeed, health and religion are very much connected. Professor VanderWeele’s new research with colleagues at Harvard University — building on more than 20 years of prior work in this area — suggests that attending religious services brings about better physical and mental health. Adults who do so at least once a week versus not at all have been shown to have a significantly lower risk of dying over the next decade and a half. The results have been replicated in enough studies and populations to be considered quite reliable.

This science does not endorse one faith over another or suggest what society is to do with such information. But there are two opportunities — one societal and one personal — for good to come from this work. The news media, the academy and the broader public could use this new understanding to weigh religion’s greater societal value. And for individuals, this research provides a not-so-subtle invitation to reconsider what religion can do for them.

The Health Benefits

Nearly half of the country — roughly 2 in 5 Americans — reports having attended a religious service in the past week. The draw for many may be meaningful liturgy, perhaps a sense of forgiveness and ultimately, salvation. Few would say they come for good health. Why might attending services improve one’s health? The Nurses' Health Study finds that social support is critical, yet this accounts for only about a quarter of the effect. Other mechanisms seem to be important as well, possibly due to behavioral norms at services. For instance, those attending are less likely to smoke, or more likely to quit altogether, producing significant health benefits.

Religious service attendance affects mental health, too. The research at Harvard and elsewhere indicates that, possibly due to a message of faith or hope, those who attend services are more optimistic and have lower rates of depression. The research from Harvard has also shown that attendance protects against suicide. Others have found that churchgoers report having a greater purpose in life and develop more self-control — both mechanisms by which service attendance might affect health.

Today, a greater percentage of Americans are choosing no religion at all, and we are witnessing the erosion of religious institutions. For some, church attendance is seen as quaint and outdated, and “spirituality” has become a code word for, “No thanks, I’m sleeping in on Sunday.” What this go-it-alone movement will usher out, it seems, is the benefits of being in the pews. After all, the research has shown that service attendance, rather than private spirituality or solitary practice, strongly predicts health. Something about communal religious participation appears to be essential.

Religion’s Better Angels

What to make of all this? First, the associations between religion and health should force us to reevaluate religion’s role in society and public life. Religion is often perceived negatively today, and at times it’s well earned. But the effects of religious participation are often profoundly positive, a point too often neglected or ignored. The health benefits can be added to a long list of virtues found with an active religious life.

Attending religious services has been shown to increase the likelihood of a stable marriage, to elevate one’s sense of meaning, and to expand one’s social network. It leads to greater charitable giving and more robust volunteering and civic engagement. The effects are profound across numerous domains of life. This has important implications for the extent to which society promotes and protects religious institutions, the maintenance of their nonprofit tax-exempt status, and how the contribution of such institutions is portrayed in the media, the academy, and beyond.

Who could possibly conceive of such an elixir, one that stands to change society in ways small and large, subtle and profound? We’ll leave that question to a higher power.

by Tyler J. VanderWeele of Harvard University and John Siniff

#church #catholic #orthodox #worship

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cancer-specialist-in-pune · 4 months

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Breast Cancer : The journey

Breast Cancer is the most common cancers in women in India. The numbers are increasing every year. While a part of that can be attributed to increasing life expectancy, a significant blame can be laid upon worsening lifestyle in our population.

When diagnosed in Stages I, II or III, most women with breast cancers can be cured with a combination of treatments that include surgery, radiation, and systemic therapy (chemotherapy, hormonal and in certain cases targeted therapy).

However, the biggest challenge is when a patient is diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer. Stage IV, in simpler terms means that the cancer has already spread from the breast to other organs including liver, lungs, bones, brain etc. There is a limited role for local treatment in this situation. The major back bone of treatment is systemic therapy. Which is chosen as per the breast cancer subtype or disease biology. Dr. Pratik Patil Cancer specialist in satara share some Key Points.

What to expect when a patient is diagnosed with a Stage IV breast cancer?

The general perception among common people is that stage IV breast cancer is a death sentence with expected life span about a year. There are enough reasons for that to change. There have been tremendous advances in the understanding of the disease leading to emergence of new, more effective breast cancer treatment options. The average life expectance of these patients is now anywhere between 8 to 10 years. Infact there is a significant percentage of patients who live much longer and succumb to other diseases than cancer.

Are all Stage IV Breast Cancers the same?

All patients diagnosed with breast cancer are subjected to not only a biopsy but also further testing to look at expression of markers like Estrogen Receptor (ER), Progesterone Receptor (PR) and Her 2 receptor. In certain cases, other specialised tests including Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) are also undertaken. This then helps divide breast cancer patients into further subtypes like Hormone Receptor Positive breast Cancers, Her 2 positive Breast cancers and Triple Negative Breast cancers. This means that different treatment options can be offered to patients with Stage IV breast cancer.

How do we treat Hormone Receptor Positive breast Cancers?

These are traditionally the least aggressive subtype of breast cancers. The thumb rule of treatment is ‘avoid chemotherapy unless absolutely needed”.

The back bone of treatment is hormonal therapy. Most of the drugs are in the form of oral medications. In the past half a decade or so, at least 5 new medications have emerged showing greater effectiveness in controlling these cancers, with many more in the pipeline. These drugs are not only more effective than the older medications, in many instances they are safer and work for a longer period of time. Typically patients receive a combination of two hormonal drugs in most setting. Chemotherapy is reserved for those patients where there are no further options of hormonal therapy or a very fast response is needed. The average life span is upto 3 to 5 years with the treatment.

How do we treat Her 2 positive Breast Cancers?

These are the most aggressive subtype of breast cancers being most difficult to control. Traditionally, the only treatment options for these patients have been chemotherapy.

However, that seems to be changing. There is recent data to suggest, that a new class of treatment, called Immunotherapy, has shown promising results for these cancers. These drugs reactivate our body’s immune system, own immune cells then kill the cancer cells. Initial studies suggest better outcomes and improvement in survival for selected patients with Triple Negative Breast Cancers.

Another drug that seems to be making waves is the antibody drug conjugate called — Sacituzumab-Govitecan. This drug has shown impressive results in heavily pretreated Triple Negative Breast Cancers and is now being tested in the frontline settings.

There is an impressive array of clinical trials that is evaluating the effectiveness of newer chemotherapy and targeted therapy for these patients.

So what happens when one is diagnosed with stage IV breast Cancer?

The first step is usually a biopsy, with sub typing as discussed earlier, followed in most cases with Whole Body PET CT. On confirmation of diagnosis, subtype and stage, the treating oncologist will typically evaluate the disease pattern, patients’ general condition and fitness and appropriate treatment options are then considered. The case is discussed in a Multi-Disciplinary Tumour Board for optimising treatment choices. Once treatment is started, the first few weeks are spent optimising medications to ensure minimisation of side effects. Most patients undergo a PET CT for disease re evaluation typically 2 to 3 months after initiation of treatment.

Stage IV Breast Cancers are now typically treated like Diabetes or other chronic illnesses. Most patients can expect to be on some medication most of the times. Typically medications are changed when they stop working or give intolerable side effects. Patients can expect to sometimes have a repeat biopsy.

The goals of treatment for Stage IV Breast Cancers are not only longer survival but a good quality of life. That is being achieved not only through more effective medications, but also safer drugs and improvement in supportive care. Most patients will also be under the care of Palliative Care Physician along with a team that comprises of Clinical Psychologist, Dietician, Physiotherapist, Oncology nurse practitioner etc.

Conclusions:

There have been significant clinically meaningful treatment advances in Stage IV Breast Cancers. The story of these patients now revolves around long survivals, safe and more effective treatments and multi modal team based care. This ensures that the modern patient can go back to her normal life very soon after the diagnosis and treatment initiation. It is indeed, the beginning of a new journey for these patients.

#cancer specialist in pune #cancer specialist in satara

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pcsasg · 5 months

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Social networks in China: IDENTICAL BUT DISTINCT

Among all the topics that we’ve learnt, week 11 topic which is “global social media: China” is one of the most interesting topics for me. Why? One of the reasons is because China’s technologies are one of the most powerful around the world.

Based on (China Population 2023 (Live), n.d.), China estimates population by the latest United Nations’ projections on 1st July 2023 are 1,425,671,352 citizens.

Ordinary Chinese citizens are enjoying access to information using methods that were unthinkable until a few years ago thanks to the Internet. China's Internet is surprisingly unrestricted, in contrast to a world where everything was pre-screened by editors at government-owned media. Social media are routinely utilised by Chinese Internet users, especially the domestically constructed social media connections. The social media platforms used in the nation aren't exactly the same as those in the western world.

Limitations on foreign websites and social networking sites have not eliminated social media; rather, they have developed a prospering local ecosystem that is permitted by the government and is favored by Chinese-owned properties. Although Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube have been banned in China, their Chinese counterparts are developing. Chinese social media users are among the world's largest numbers of users, by some measures. Chinese Internet users spend an average of 2.7 hours a day online, based on a Boston Consulting Group study (refer to Understand and Tap into China's Digital Generations). This is far greater than users in other developing countries.

Contrasting platforms on social media

Ogilvy's 360 Digital Influence group has created a series of social media "bulls-eyes" that show local synonyms on the inner circle and global platforms on an outer ring in order to demonstrate how social media has developed in Asia.

Although useful, this comparison might also be misleading. China's online behaviors and social media platforms different severely from those that could be categorized as the equivalents in other countries. Censorship is not a sole explanation for this variation. Similar to other Asian countries, different regions' strategies to Internet usage are shaped due to variables such as language, culture, economic growth, and the digital ecosystem which helps them. Digital ecosystems, or the platforms that people rely their online communications around, may differ greatly between nations as well as within one. Significant differences could occur between nations with akin economic development levels. Internet users in Japan and South Korea, for example, are prone to leaning toward locally developed social media platforms like GREE (www.gree.jp) and Cyworld (www.cyworld.co.kr), accordingly, rather than accessible worldwide ones, even in the absence of government blocks.

Variety social media usage behaviours reveal a lot regarding the world wide web and the nation in question. Chinese internet users, for instance, access online video platforms somewhat differently compared to do Americans when it relates to YouTube. Youku and Tudou are overflowing with more time shape content, as much as 70 percent of which is properly produced, compared to the brief clips of cute animals or entertaining household accidents that have become popular among YouTube audiences. The Chinese websites show more like digital video recorders or online television stations in the way they show content. Even though people in China produce and upload videos, longer-format professional videos make up an immense percentage of online video content. A large portion of this content is made up of foreign programs which have been uploaded, pirated, and with subtitles hours after they were aired in the US.

Like Facebook, but different

RenRen (www.renren.com), the Chinese version of Facebook, is trendy within university students who use it for interacting and connecting with one another. The website is organized according to the users' graduation class and school. A lot of users share videos as well as pictures of their activities.

The more niche social networking site Douban (www.douban.com) attracts avid readers, movie fans, art students, and music lovers. Users connect based on similar passions and regularly engage in non-Internet-based activities such as going to nearby art exhibits.

The Internet as social media

The reality that some Internet users solely utilize social media platforms to access the Internet is a broader consequence of China's wide-ranging utilization of social media. This is just because of the huge amounts of new users that are continually joining on the internet. By the first quarter of 2010, China had 420 million netizens, up 36 million to the end of 2009. This data is sourced from the China Internet Network Information Center. When a new user first enters in, their friend usually introduces them to one prominent service, like how to use Sina Weibo for free friend interaction or China's version of eBay, Taobao (www.taobao.com), for buying products. Therefore, the new user's concept of the Internet is defined by that one service. The examples provided illustrate how many Chinese internet users have no ability to differentiate between social media as well as the Internet itself. Social media is the worldwide web to them, and the opposite of that.

This might be my final post, haha. Who knows, if one day I get some inspiration, I’ll continue blogging. If.

References

China Population 2023 (Live). (n.d.). https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/china-population

Thomas Crampton – Social Media in China: The Same, but Different. (n.d.). Thomas Crampton. https://www.thomascrampton.com/china/social-media-china-business-review/

#Week11 #MDA20009

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eclectic-pragmatist · 7 months

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Destiny

Destiny is defined as that which is predetermined. While this definition is not incorrect, it is also simplistic to a fault. Destiny actually represents a complex concept, and complexity is the domain of humans. Yes, other life forms exhibit their versions of complexity, but these are functionally simplified to primarily accommodate survival and reproduction. Conversely, the complexities of human intellectual processing have been developed and refined over a very long time.

While the complexities of human destiny are the inherent result of endless, ever more complex intellectual combinations over time, one of the most meaningful accompanying results is how we cope with these as societies and as individuals within these societies. Agreeing to what are good, questionable or unacceptable outcomes can be the bane of modernity. Even if we accept this reality of contradiction for what it is, it doesn't alter the challenges of coping with the inevitable tasks of doing so.

Modern societies embrace endless combinations of change that exponentially create advancement opportunities for citizens around the world. Hundreds of technologies in multitudes of endeavors create better lives for so many. Many, but not all, citizens take these for granted and have very high expectations for their futures. This, in itself, is reasonable and desirable. But sometimes goals and expectations can raise ethical and moral concerns about destinies that will likely benefit some but also prove detrimental to others.

Societies can and will find themselves confronting issues that can or will create strong disagreements. I'm thinking particularly of those issues that seem to be tampering with some fundamental aspects of human existence. On a planet with a multitude of serious issues related to the basic functioning of the earth's quality of life and even life itself, there are conflicts emerging between those who are facing a range of negative realities in coming decades and those who are more concerned with finding ways to increase human lifespans by years, perhaps decades.

Here are the realities. While there are more people living into their 80s/90s or even low 100s, they represent a modest percentage of planet inhabitants, whereas vastly more millions are doomed to far worse, shorter lives. Most of the now eight billion people on this planet are facing an array of large scale issues. The planet simply has run out of viable space to grow enough food for the current global population size, and the latest billion took only a half-dozen decades to come into existence. Birth rates actually need to be reduced significantly overall. Advanced economies average two to three children per family, or fewer, but the numbers are higher in too many developing/poor societies.

Human destiny has changed radically in the last two hundred years. All of the population growth and economic progress that has made modern life what it now is for many (but far from all) has also resulted in an array of significant problems. We actually know what it would require to slow and eventually reverse these issues, but how many want to actually accept the necessary changes. Perhaps not all of the changes are equally necessary, but some are absolutely critical. Climate change and population growth drive much of current critical issues.

Some say today's current problems originated in the mid to late twentieth century, but this is a naive assumption. It actually began with the industrial revolution and has simply accelerated at increasing rates from there. The last three plus decades have simply ramped up the rates of change in increasingly negative ways around the globe. This "destiny" was inevitable. There is reason to believe these issues will increase far longer because the rates of mitigation are nowhere near what is necessary. Future generations will have increased technology but also increased quality of life issues that will be even more negative.

It's very easy to ignore what doesn't happen to one's self — until it does. We all do this to varying degrees. Obviously differences in wealth, status, location and resources will affect how much we can mitigate circumstances. But in the long view societies need widely available mitigations because the successes of citizens literally determines destiny.

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