split: train

text:
You hear about it all the time now, I mean, people just started disappearing. Kids first. Easy targets I guess. You'd hear stories about girls who disappeared in the woods of Maine. Inner-city kids, vanishing. All over the place. Just gone.

We knew. I mean deep down, we did. Something in our psyche expressed it in our culture. Subtle shit, movies where children were possessed or disappear. Slenderman, I guess, was I guess the big one for a while, but that was years ago. Back before shit really started to get bad.

My name is Ian. The reason I know about this stuff, about what's really going on, is because when my daughter was nine she was taken from me. Not by some monster, not by some disease or accident. If only she was so lucky. She was taken by the government. She was taken from me and experimented on and now, I don't even know. Okay, let me tell you how it all started.

Actually, I can't really tell you how it started, the law books have been locked up a long time now, decades. But I can tell you what I think happened. You know those laws, the big ones, the long motherfuckers that nobody spends the time reading. Well. Shit started getting added in, bit by bit, stripping us of our rights. Nothing horrifying at first. No big jumps, nothing drastic, and like a bunch of frogs in hot water we just sat there and took it. Like we were the lucky ones in the Jacuzzi.

She was eligible. That's the word they used: "Eligible." Like she was the luckiest kid in school because we were allowed to pay for healthcare. You know, she was never really all that sick. That's the fucking thing. Just a little cough, never bad, and she had really dry skin. God, she hated that, she just wanted to have nice skin. She'd see the pictures of these beautiful models, and she'd come home from school and tell me that one day that was going to be her. She wanted to look like that.

She had the prettiest smile too. I'll never forget that, must have been pretty much the best damn thing in the world.

But you don't know the stuff they do. You get there, and it's this beautiful facility and the people at the desk are exceptional. And they take your picture and you get this slick looking white card. On every one I've ever seen these people have these smiles. Like there isn't anything that could go wrong with the world. The kind of smile that says "Okay, I'm here. I made it. I finally made it." and we wait, and we wait, and we wait. and when they finally do see us they won't let her see the doctor with me in the room, because I wasn't "eligible."

And she looked at me, with this little scared, sad smile. And gave me this little nod. Like it was all going to be okay, because she was going to be brave. And the door slid closed. And that's the last time I ever really saw my Anna.

title: American Horror Story. Part 1

question: What illness did his daughter have?

answer: Mentions a cough but doesn't specify an illness.

question: What rights were taken away?

answer: Unclear

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Ian, the narrator, tells his sad story of how the government took his sick daughter, Anna. Although she was just supposed to be getting treatment, Ian never sees Anna again.


text:
Cancer, an unwelcome house guest.

 When you are at your happiest moment, everything in life is where it should be. After years of work and struggle, your ducks are finally in a row. You've been preparing a meal the entire day. It actually started the day before with a trip to the butcher to get the perfect cut of meat. Next, you let it marinate over night to make sure it is just right. Today was spent cleaning and tidying making sure the house was in order, creating an atmosphere to allow you to truly enjoy your meal. It is essential that nothing is out of place just to ensure that there are no distractions. When things feel right, the perfect playlist fills the airwaves as you begin to prep the rest of the meal, everything needs to be done ahead of time to make sure all cooking times are precise and all components of the meal are ready to plate at the same time.

The vegetables are cut and ready to be put on the barbecue, the salad awaits its dressing, and the barbecue is warming. This is when things start to change for the worse, the doorbell rings. You don't have time to visit with guests, nor do you have enough food to invite them to stay, the only option is forcing them to go. The mistake has already been made though, the moment you put down the tongs and move toward the door, you have gone too far, past the point of no return so to speak. The door opens and before waiting to hear if they are welcome, your new guest steps into the house. They don't bother with formal greetings, they simply sit down and start introducing themselves. No concern for what you were previously doing, or what plans you may have for the balance of the evening. They make themselves at home and spread out, not realizing that their comfort directly diminishes your own.
You entertain your guest, let them feel welcome for a moment but knowing they can't stay. You decide the best option is to start serving cocktails, hoping maybe their stomach will become upset and they will leave on their own. When this doesn't work, the radio gets turned up a little louder in an effort to to make their stay less enjoyable, you want to disrupt their stay. In order to be effective. You must turn up the radio so that it becomes uncomfortable, even for yourself. Your entire body aches, nothing seems better than your bed. But, your memory and thoughts of the food you have waiting keep you on track, keep you fighting and pushing, pushing your guest out the door. Then, just when you think you could not possibly survive another minute of the throbbing, your guest realizes you're a hard sell. They pack up their belongings, gather their coat and their shoes and they are off, they're gone.
As quickly as the guest arrived, they have departed. Leaving nothing but a sour taste from the cocktails and a throbbing headache from the radio. You're ready though, the food has been waiting, it hasn't spoiled the wait has made the flavours stronger.
The food goes onto the barbecue and it cooks. While it does, you laugh and share stories of your odd guest with your loved ones. Your resilience has made you stronger, the experience has brought you closer, you are ready for an even more intimate evening  with your family after the intrusion of the unwanted guest.
The timer goes off, the propane is shut down. The meat is cut, the veggies are spread, and the food is ready to be plated. The family has sat down and they are ready for the meal and what lies ahead.
The first bite is glorious, everything you expected it to be and more. The long wait makes you appreciate everything more. You learn to savour every bite.
It's time for dessert, as you get up to retrieve it, the doorbell rings, you walk to the door, open it with a smile, basking in the light of the time you have spent with your loved ones. As the door opens, you see the familiar shadow. The guest has returned, they forgot something. It doesn't matter what, they are already in your home. The smells that fill the house have intrigued them, they want a taste of what you have. Demand that you share your spoils with them. You give, and you give, and you give, but nothing seems to appease your guest's appetite. They will take everything you have. Exhausted, you take a nap, you promise yourself it won't be long but you know when you wake the guest will be gone and all will be right. As you sleep, your loved ones thank you for trying your best to oust that unwelcome guest. They tuck you in, tell you they love you. Promise they will see you in the morning.
Your morning doesn't come though. But their's does, the morning comes, it is darker than usual, there is a mess to clean up. But it's ok, the meal was worth it, they are happy to wash every dish, clean up every crumb. They will spend the following days talking about that ungrateful guest, talk about the struggle of getting the guest to leave. But, those conversations will end. As the days fade into weeks, and weeks into months, then into years, the conversation will change. It will no longer be about the guest, but rather the meal, the meal they were so happy to eat, they will talk about its preparation and what it meant. They will remember the chef, the time, the care, and the patience that went into that evening and many more before it. They will be thankful for that night, they know they were part of something special and lucky to know such a chef, who even at their worst, was a gracious host.

title: Cancer, an unwelcome houseguest.

question: Who is the houseguest?

answer: A personification of cancerous cells in the human body.

question: From what perspective is the story written?

answer: A second-person point of view describing a cancer patient as a gracious host.

question: Is the story a direct narrative?

answer: No, it's an analogy.

question: What does the family's dark morning represent?

answer: The death of the cancer patient.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: In an analogy for the experience of cancer - a patient first overcoming and then succumbing to it - the protagonist is described in second-person as a gracious host whose carefully prepared meal is interrupted by an unwelcome houseguest. Only after making the home such an unpleasant environment that even the protagonist wants to leave does the guest take a hint and exit. However, when the food is ready and the family is sitting down to eat, the guest returns, having left something behind, and demands more and more of the host's spoils until the host has given everything and can only rest and wait for the guest to leave. The host doesn't wake up, and the family must clean up the mess from dinner and remember the host, their loved one.


text:
Asia-Pacific, Climate Change, Conferences, Environment, Featured, Global, Headlines, Natural Resources, TerraViva United Nations, Water & Sanitation

[]

A Flooded Street in Dhaka

DHAKA, BANGLADESH, Nov 25 2015 (IPS) - With multiplying impacts of climate change – increasing floods, cyclones, and drought – thousands of climate refugees are migrating to Dhaka. And the city, well beyond its carrying capacity, is bursting at the seams.

The word most often associated with Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, is perhaps, “overpopulated.” Supporting more than 14 million people on less than 325 square kilometers (125 square miles) of land, the city’s drainage, waste management and transportation infrastructure is on the brink of collapse.

Against that backdrop, it is hardly surprising to find the Bangladesh capital among the worst cities to live in on the Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2015 ranking.

To delve beneath the apparent reasons – overpopulation, waterlogging and congestion – is to reveal a major underlying cause: unsustainable levels of climate-induced displacement and migration.

And the problems are washing up along Bangladesh’s 700 kilometers of low-lying coast. Rising sea levels and cyclones heighten the risk of flooding, while riverbank erosion and seawater intrusion are set to have a devastating impact on the nation’s population.

“Over the next two to three decades millions of people will no longer be able to live and earn their livelihoods from farming and fishing as they are now,” said Saleemul Huq, a senior fellow with the Climate Change Group of the International Institute for Environment and Development.

Conversely, prolonged droughts are affecting arable land by causing soil erosion and damaging crops that depend on predictable monsoon patterns.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates 20 million people will be displaced in Bangladesh in the coming five years. That is more than the cumulative populations of Los Angeles, Chicago and New York City. And this should be very worrying.

Even now, many of the half-a-million-plus people who move their families – along with their hopes – to Dhaka, are driven there by the effects of climate change.

NO STREETS PAVED WITH GOLD

But the Bangladeshi capital, which teeters on less than 1 percent of the country’s overall landmass, is far from being the promised land.

The combination of explosive population growth and land scarcity has sent its property and rental prices through the roof.

And given that most climate refugees come from humble financial backgrounds, they are left with little alternative but to join the estimated 3.4 million people who already live without gas or electricity in cramped and substandard squatter settlements, known as bosti.

Even in their new homes, they cannot escape the environmental disasters that drove them to seek shelter in the flimsy shack-like houses in this low-lying city on the banks of the Buriganga river.

The incidence of flooding in Dhaka is increasing, and the lack of water and sanitation facilities means waterborne diseases such as diarrhea and typhoid are widespread.

But health and pollution are not the only problems bosti-dwelling climate migrants face. Rahmat Ali, a resident of Dhaka’s biggest slum Korail, moved to the city when saltwater logged his farmland. Once an agricultural worker, he now scrapes out a living as a rickshaw puller.

“It is very hard work for little money. But there are few options for the likes of us, who have lost our lands and homes, and now have nothing left to go back to.”

SLOW RESPONSE TO AN URGENT PROBLEM

With ubiquitous bostis and climate refugees dominating the cityscape, more affluent Dhaka residents are becoming increasingly desensitized and apathetic to their plight, and are coming to accept it as the norm.

This apathy is reflected in the country’s policy sphere. “People are migrating to cities because the nation is not responding to their risks,” says Aminul Islam, a member of the National Displacement Strategy Working Group under the Ministry of Disaster Management.

While Bangladesh has developed a solid strategic framework for tackling climate change – including its National Action Plan for Adaptation and the Bangladesh Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan – it has not yet prescribed any adaptation programs specifically addressing climate-induced internal displacement.

And that, thinks Islam, is a failing.

“The country needs a long-term vision and adaptation plan for reducing displacement,” Islam said. “The provision of climate resilient habitat, livelihood opportunities and civil facilities for the vulnerable will reduce incentives to migrate to cities.”

DHAKA, PRECURSOR FOR CATASTROPHE?

Even if Bangladesh were to increase its adaptation efforts 100-fold, it can only go so far in protecting its people. From a Bangladeshi point of view, what it desperately needs are mitigation efforts by major carbon-emitting nations.

At the end of November, the world’s leaders will congregate in Paris to try and achieve a universal, binding agreement for combating climate change. And for the millions of people living in vulnerable countries such as Bangladesh, their success at the negotiating table is crucial.

The situation in Dhaka illustrates how climate change is neither something that affects only polar bears, nor a problem only for future generations. Many fear that failure to act now will render the Bangladeshi capital a precursor for wholesale climate catastrophe.

_This story was sourced through the Voices2Paris UNDP storytelling contest on climate change and developed thanks to Tamsin Walker and @DeutscheWelle._

question: What is the main subject of the article?

answer: The effects of climate change on the capitol of Bangladesh

question: Approximately when was the article written?

answer: November 2015

question: How many people live in Dhaka?

answer: 14 million

question: How does the author believe climate change is affecting Dhaka?

answer: It is causing a huge influx of climate refugees, as well as flooding in the city itself

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: The author discusses the impact of climate change on Dhaka, the capitol of Bangladesh. It is causing an unmanageable influx of climate refugees from rural areas and is causing flooding in the city itself. The author argues that more action is needed both by the Bangladeshi government and the international community to mitigate the problem.


text:
[]

At Cornell University, Bill Lazor was a three-year starting quarterback and graduated with 26 passing and total offensive program records. He then entered the coaching ranks immediately upon graduation and spent seven years as an assistant at Cornell. The next 12 years were spent between the NCAA as an offensive coordinator and the NFL as a positions coach. Last season, while serving as the Philadelphia Eagles' quarterbacks coach, Lazor had the privilege of being an understudy to Chip Kelly and also oversaw the record breaking season of Nick Foles, who threw 27 touchdowns compared to just two interceptions.

Up to this point in his career, Lazor has not yet called plays at the NFL level, but served as an offensive coordinator in a total of five seasons. Those terms were 2001 through 2002 at the University of Buffalo and then 2010 through 2012 at the University of Virginia. The offensive tendencies from those years were compiled below and compared to those of the recent Miami Dolphins' offenses, as well as the recent NFL averages:

Offensive Tendencies; Lazor vs. 12-13 Miami

  Statistic                Lazor   12-13 MIA   12-13 NFL
  ------------------------ ------- ----------- -----------
  Total Offensive Plays    71.6    59.0        62.2
  Pass Attempts Per Game   36.7    34.3        35.1
  Rush Attempts Per Game   34.9    24.7        27.2
  Pass %                   51.2%   58.2%       56.4%
  Rush %                   48.8%   41.8%       43.6%

Over the past three seasons, the average NCAA team has run 70.0 offensive plays per game. Even Lazor's offenses dating back to 2001, which are outlined above, have eclipsed that average, which has steadily risen over the years. Furthermore, Lazor's offensive plays per game rises to 72.8 when considering only his past three seasons as an offensive coordinator. While Lazor's offenses have helped to set the pace, the recent offenses of the Dolphins have not; Miami has finished below the NFL average in each of the past two seasons.

In his introductory press conference, Lazor spoke on the Eagles' offense in 2013:

  "When you come off of a season like we did where we were the leading rushing team in the NFL. We had the leading rusher. We had the highest rated passer. We were able to be an explosive offense. Certainly a lot of things that led to that are going to have a great impact on what I believe works going forward."

Considering Lazor's history, it's safe to say that the Dolphins' offense will exhibit a higher sense of urgency, which should result in an uptick in total offensive plays. While the Eagles ran plays more quickly on offense than any other NFL team in 2013, their 1054 total offensive plays ranked only 13th in the NFL - although Kelly hopes to improve that mark this season. Even so, a return to the NFL average would still result in an extra 50+ plays over the course of a full season, which is nearly the equivalent of a full game.

Additionally, we can expect to see a higher emphasis placed on the running game. The Dolphins only ran the ball on 41.8% of their offensive plays over the past two years - that number dropped even further to 37.0% in 2013. The Eagles ran the ball on 49.6% of their offensive plays last season and as an offensive coordinator in college, Lazor ran the ball 48.8% of the time. Here's a look at the running back production under Lazor as an offensive coordinator:

Running Back Production with Lazor as HC or OC

Year
Depth
G
Carries
Yards
YPC
TDs
Rec.
Yards
YPR
TDs
Avg
RB1
11.6
176
772
4.38
8.0
25
208
8.20
1.2
RB2
11.6
120
533
4.44
3.4
21
158
7.66
0.4
Per Gm
RB1
1.0
15.2
67
4.38
0.69
2.2
18
8.20
0.10
RB2
1.0
10.3
46
4.44
0.29
1.8
14
7.66
0.03
x 16
RB1
16.0
243
1065
4.38
11.0
35
287
8.20
1.7
RB2
16.0
166
735
4.44
4.7
28
218
7.66
0.6

By looking at the table above, it's clear that Lazor has preferred a two-back system for his run-based offense. During those seasons, the lead backs have averaged 17.4 touches per game, while the second backs have averaged 12.1 touches per game themselves. Although LeSean McCoy totaled 314 carries and 52 receptions last season for the Eagles, with no workhorse back on the Dolphins, another two-back system is in store for Lazor.

Lamar Miller has been dominating first team reps throughout the offseason and is easily the most talented back on their roster, earning himself pole position for the lead role. In his first two seasons, Miller has averaged 4.21 yards-per-carry on his 228 career carries. That YPC is made all the more impressive when considering the state of Miami's offensive line, which unfortunately won't be much better this season. Footballguys' own Matt Bitonti ranks the Dolphins' offensive line 29th in the NFL.

The sixteen-game averages for lead backs of 243 carries and 35 receptions would plant Miller in RB2 territory. However, his lack of workhorse potential along with an expected touchdown deficiency leave him better suited as an RB3/Flex for redraft fantasy football leagues in 2014. According to the most recent ADP, Miller is currently being drafted as the 37th running back off of the board.

Prior to the news surfacing about Knowshon Moreno's health, he looked to be the reliable compliment to Miller. If Moreno is not ready to start the season, then Dolphins fans may get to see a familiar sight with a Daniel Thomas joining Miller in the attack. Irregardless, there should be enough touches along on a week-to-week basis with potential goal-line duties for the second back to be considered as a desperation play RB4.

A casualty of Lazor's run-based offense is the passing volume. As noted in the first table, Lazor's playcalling resulted in pass attempts on just 51.2% of the offensive snaps, which is a steep drop-off from Miami's 58.2% over the past two seasons. Here's a look at the team passing during Lazor's time as an offensive coordinator:

Team Passing Per Game with Lazor as HC or OC

  Year       Team       Comp     Att      Pct       Yds       TDs
  ---------- ---------- -------- -------- --------- --------- -------
  2001       Buffalo    18.4     37.0     49.7%     202.7     0.9
  2002       Buffalo    17.4     36.0     48.3%     177.8     1.1
  2010       Virginia   21.8     36.9     59.1%     265.5     1.7
  2011       Virginia   19.6     34.1     57.5%     237.7     1.3
  2012       Virginia   23.0     39.5     58.2%     268.0     1.9
  _Avg_      _---_      _20.0_   _36.7_   _54.6%_   _230.3_   _1.4_
  _Per 16_   _---_      _321_    _587_    _54.6%_   _3685_    _22_

It is notable that Lazor did not have the most talented pieces to work with in his passing game during his tenure as a college offensive coordinator - the poor completion percentage is a direct reflection of that. By comparison, Tannehill completed 62.5% of his passes in college and is at 59.4% so far in his NFL career. Nevertheless, reviewing the past may still provide some indicators of what to expect in the future.

When normalizing the statistics of Lazor's college offenses for the transition to the NFL, the 587 passing attempts would drop to around 516. Last season, the Eagles attempted a similar 508 passes. Tannehill saw his pass attempts rise from 484 as a rookie to 588 as a sophomore quarterback. The transition to a more run-focused offense should lead to Tannehill finding a happy medium between the total attempts in his first two seasons. With that being said, Foles still managed to rank second among quarterbacks in fantasy points per start even with a volume disadvantage compared to his peers.

It's well noted that Tannehill was a former wide receiver at Texas A&M and exhibits plus-athleticism. That athleticism has contributed to his career 5.14 yards-per-carry on 88 career rushes. Last year, Foles averaged 5.3 rushes in his starts, which was a crucial aspect of his fantasy value and would translate to 85 rushes over a full, sixteen-game season. Health permitting, career-highs across the rushing categories is a near lock for Tannehill in his third year.

Heading into 2014, the depth of the quarterback position leaves Tannehill as a mid-range QB2, but his dynasty value shines bright as he posesses the potential to grow into a QB1 alongside Lazor.

Lastly, let's look into how the receiving corps may project under their new offensive coordinator:

Average Passing Distribution under Lazor as HC or OC

Depth*
Span
GP
Rec
Yards
YPR
TD
Tgt
WR1
Avg Season
11.6
52
705
13.51
4.4
0.0
Per 16
16.0
72
973
13.51
6.1
0.0
WR2
Avg Season
11.4
35
493
14.25
2.0
0.0
Per 16
16.0
49
692
14.25
2.8
0.0
WR3
Avg Season
11.2
23
412
17.62
1.2
0.0
Per 16
16.0
33
589
17.62
1.7
0.0
TE1
Avg Season
12.0
29
286
9.94
2.4
0.0
Per 16
16.0
38
382
9.94
3.2
0.0

*WR1, WR2, and WR3 were defined as the leading, second leading and third leading wide receivers in each season respectively. TE1 was defined as the leading tight end in each season respectively

The difference in usage between the WR1 and WR2, combined with the usage of DeSean Jackson last season, does bode well for Mike Wallace becoming more of a focal point. In his first season with Miami, Wallace experienced some turbulance, ending with a final line of 73-930-5 - the 12.7 yards-per-reception (YPR) was a far cry from his career 16.2 YPR. By comparison, Jackson's career YPR is 17.2 and he recorded a 16.2 YPR last season en route to a career best, 82-1332-9 line. Lazor has already hinted at manufacturing more opportunities for Wallace, who is optimistic about the upcoming season for himself. An improvement from last season is on the horizon for Wallace, who ranks as a high-end WR3 with WR2 upside.

After back-to-back seasons of at least 74 receptions and 1016 receiving yards for Brian Hartline, a decrease in passing volume and the arrival of Lazor will make it difficult for him to match his recent success. The number two receiver for the Eagles last season, Riley Cooper, only recorded 47 catches, which falls in line with the sixteen-game averages for WR2s under Lazor. On top of an expected drop-off in opportunity, Hartline is also returning from a torn PCL that he suffered in Week 17 and is best considered as nothing more than a fill-in WR4.

Last season wasn't a complete wash for Miami WR3s; Brandon Gibson and Rishard Matthews tallied a 63-681-5 line in games when either of them occupied that role. Those two, along with Jarvis Landry, will all be jockeying for position this season. Unfortunately for them, WR3s have not fared well in the past under Lazor and with the Dolphins toning down the passing volume, that's not expected to change, which leaves all three out of consideration in standard fantasy football leagues.

Charles Clay was perhaps the most consistent and usable player on Miami last year, recording 12 games of at least four catches and notching a 69-759-6 line. He added seven carries for 15 yards and a touchdown on the ground. While the passing distribution table above does not look favorable, Lazor has stated the following:

  "The number one factor in how we do it and specifically how it looks is going to be the ability of the players we have."

With that in mind, Lazor did feature a tight end during his two years at Buffalo; the sixteen-game averages in those years would have led to 61 receptions and 550 receiving yards. Even so, Clay is in line for some regression, but maintains some value as a borderline TE1 with low-upside.

All in all, the Miami Dolphins' hiring of Bill Lazor is a breath of fresh air for the organization and does provide optimism for the offense's future. While the offensive line must be improved going forward, the change in philosophy still leads to improved fantasy football outlooks in year one for their key playmakers: Ryan Tannehill, Mike Wallace, and Lamar Miller.

Follow @KyleWachtel

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question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: This is a sports article highlighting Bill Lazor's NFL career when he started as a quarterback as a student at Cornell University and later on as an assistant coach at the university. He, later on, took the job as a Philadelphia Eagles coach, being an understudy to Chip Kelly, and witnessed Nick Foles' 27 touchdowns. The article also lists his other achievements and impacts throughout his NFL career.


text:
The bloody sun was nearing its highest point when the man reached the outskirts of the ruined city. It was a breezy day, and the shifting grass seemed to shy away from him as he made his slow voyage across the plain. He was a tall man, well tanned from being in the sun for long hours, and his face had crinkled into an expression of age and rugged wisdom. His body was strapped in torn leather, and his facial hair suggested a few days of no shaving. In his right hand he bore a walking stick, sharpened at the end to a point, like a spear. A holster hung about his waste, and in it, a 10 millimeter Bren Ten, with a single clip left to use.

Hoping to find some much needed supplies, the man continued his trek, glancing between the skyline of ruined towers, and the great mountains beyond them. A sign, eroded by age, read in large white letters “Welcome to Denver.” He heard of the place before. They used to call it the “mile high city,” but that was long ago. Back when he had friends.

He had been the first male born to his tribe, he recalled, and he was called "blessing" by many. They told him the stories of how the great tribes fell, and the towers became empty. They told him of sky people, who had come down to the earth and snatched its inhabitants. But in defiance, they fought back and were swiftly annihilated. Seeing their potential slaves mostly dead, the sky people fled, and left them to their ruined home.

His tribe were his friends. But his friends had sent him out here, out West. He was to find civilization, and return to save his people. But more and more he feared that there was no civilization to be found.

So now there were no friends. It had been a long time since he had heard the sound of another voice. His own often provided that helpful second opinion. He liked his voice, but he often remembered his friends’.

 Thinking of these things made the trip seem shorter, and he soon found himself amongst the great tombs of skyscrapers, monuments to a greater time. The man saw nothing but rubble and trash, nothing worth collecting. He kept on, his spear held tightly in his hand. Who knew what monster may inhabit these crypts? The place was deathly quiet; the only sound was the slight rustle of the wind upon the grass. But his ears perked up as a piece of rubble fell out of place.

Stopping, the man looked around, until he saw a figure reveal itself in the shadow. A friend…finally? No. A bullet whizzed past his head. He dropped the spear, and quickly whipped out his pistol. Taking aim as the figure approached, he discharged a bullet. But in the mere sliver of time before he pulled the trigger, he saw the figure’s face. It was a woman, a beautiful woman, not scarred by the brutal reality of this hostile wasteland. He could not cut down such beauty; his heart would not allow him, even for survival. His hand moved the slightest inch out of line as he fired, and the bullet sailed off, striking nothing.

She fired back, this time not missing. He felt the hot lead hit his chest, and the pain seared him. Dropping his gun, the man slowly bent down on one knee, and then another. He grasped at his chest, and began to breathe raggedly. He could feel his heart hurting. As he fell backwards to the ground, tears began to form in his eyes. As the darkness began to surround him, he felt not fear, but joy. He wished the woman a farewell in his mind, and hoped she lived to escape this harsh place. With his last breath of life, the man looked up at the great towering tombstones, and to the clouds beyond.

“It is fitting,” thought he, “to die in a graveyard.”

title: The Graveyard

question: Why did all the people die?

answer: Earth was invaded by aliens.

question: Why is the man journeying through the wasteland?

answer: To find civilization and save his tribe.

question: Where is his tribe located?

answer: In the East.

question: What is the reason that the man gets killed?

answer: He does not want to shoot the beautiful woman, and instead lets her shoot him.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: The story is of a man wandering in Denver Colorado after an attack by aliens has rendered the Earth a barren wasteland. He believes he is all alone, and he is searching for civilization to save his tribe. Then, he encounters a woman who shoots him first because he does not want to hurt her.


text:
ROBERT STEWART (14 April 1924 - February 1995)[1] was a Scottish designer. He worked in many media but was primarily known for his textile designs. He was a contemporary of Lucienne Day and together they pioneered modern British textile design after the war. He taught at the Glasgow School of Art for 35 years. [2] [3] [4]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

title: Robert Stewart (designer)

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: This is a short biography of Scottish designer, Robert Stewart who passed away in February 1995.


text:
Sorry in advance, my new year's resolution was to try my hand at writing at least once a week, so this is my sloppy first attempt at a pointless short story. Bear with me, it really is pretty short.

	I looked down and saw the little pock marks on the long bruises I called arms, and rolled down my sleeves. There was a whistling sound in my head driving me bad shit mad.

...

	So he looked at me with his sad face, with his petty remorse and his puppy dog eyes. “I have to do this, and I’m offering you a place in my committee because I want you to be here with me, making more money than you already do and hopefully living a better life.”

	I was fuming but something was gnawing at me in the back of my head. What if he was saying this kindly, not sarcastically? It took me a second to register that he wasn’t faking any emotions.

	I realized that the entire life I had known him he was a real, authentic individual. I guess the past several years had taken its toll on me, and I may have become slightly cynical. I looked up and into his eyes and saw no dark spots of mal-intent. He was a businessman, yes, and a wealthy and calculated one at that. But he had a core, sensible and clean, that he had always held within him since before he was picking my sorry ass off the floor after fights in junior high. He legitimately cared for me, but as I usually did, I dug deeper. I thought about his goals. He had a family, and however poorly he treated his kids, the real kindness you can find in a man isn’t reflected by how often he treats his children, but simply how he treats them. Molding them to have traits for success isn’t a poor thing of him to do at all, and when he was kind and loving to them it was golden with no itemistic parts. He never treated them to ice cream or toys as rewards, they had birthdays and christmas, but even then maybe a surprise toy wasn’t the worst thing in the world for them. It was more the principle that a reward system was right for his kids, he would rather them be content with what they had. It was important to him, contentedness, the rich, bussiness-expanding, effluent douchebag.

	He just gave them his holy words and that was more than enough to have them happy for that day and give them a lingering dad-high for the rest of the week.

But in the end, he valued his family over me. He knew that in the end, he would have to do something about me, and bringing me in was the best he could do. No, he just wanted to do it, the difference being that I could tell he wanted this all along, for me to with him.

I selfishly said no.

I told him I had more important things to do than to be in his heartless rich-boy 401k club and told him my family relied on me and it was all lies, every word. I wanted to tear up and give him the hug I had held in since junior high, but my head was somewhere else. It was as if somebody else had taken over my body and was headstrong, pessimistic, and a complete and utter liar. I told him to fuck off, and I told him to kill himself. I wanted to be dead. My family hated me and I was going down the rabbit hole. I was going to be homeless in a week and a day if by tomorrow he decided to go through with his plan.

	I walked up, sarcastically thanked him, feinted him a handshake and then punched him in his jaw. As hard as I possibly could. Who did he think he was? Toying with my emotions as he did.
	 He took another blow to the face. Somebody other than me was doing it, I swear. I was next to the man doing it, looking at HIM over his shoulder, but he was getting bloodier and bloodier. I got up and saw blood on my knuckles. That’s weird, I thought. There was no blood from my first hit on him. His lip split on the third blow. I shrugged, confused, and left the room. I could hear him crying. Maybe it was me. My world was bending, swirling into a hole, and I wasn’t even fighting the current dragging me into it. I laughed and fell into the rabbit hole, cursing love and intentions, where they could never hurt me again. I looked up, saw the sky and broken glass, which was falling, increasing in velocity, but never passing me. It was a curious sight, I wonder why it wa-

title: Out of place and into the dark (Cheesy as fuck title)

question: What committee was the person referring to?

answer: This information can't be found.

question: Who was the narrator communicating with?

answer: The narrator is speaking to someone he knew since junior high.

question: Were the two school friends?

answer: Yes.

question: Does the narrator join the committee?

answer: No, he does not.

question: Write a ~6 sentence summary.

answer:
The narrator's friend offers him a place on a committee so that he makes more money. His friend was a rich businessman. The narrator takes a moment to realize that his friend wasn't showing off but was actually concerned about him.
He selfishly denies his friend's offer saying he had more important things to do. He wanted to hug his friend but instead punched him.
The man lay on the floor with his nose bleeding while the narrator leaves the room.


text:
TL;DR – Not what it seems, which is good, because it is better than it seems

SCORE – 4.5 out of 5 stars

[The Dressmaker. Image Credit: Universal.]
REVIEW –

Wow, what a fascinating film. To be perfectly honest I was not going to go see _The Dressmaker_, but a colleague of mine challenged me to see a film I would not normally see, and boy did I end up picking a good one. _The Dressmaker_ tells the story of Myrtle ‘Tilly’ Dunnage (Kate Winslet) who at the start of the film is arriving back in her hometown of Dungatar after leaving as a child under the cloud of scandal. She is back to see her mother Molly (Judy Davis) who has in the preceding years suffered from dementia and become a recluse in her house, garnering the nickname Mad Molly. But for Tilly, time away from Dungatar has meant learning fashion design from the greatest minds of London, Paris and Milan and maybe, just maybe she can use her talents as a dressmaker to win over the town. And in a normal film that would be that, stick a couple of scenes of a shirtless Liam Hemsworth and call it a day, but The Dressmaker is more than that, and it is so much better for it.

In some respects it is very difficult to talk about the film without spoiling it in some way, I’m going to try my best, but I would recommend on the safe side to go see the film first and then read the rest of the review if you are at all interested. Ok so everyone at this point has already seen the film or doesn’t care if something gets spoiled. Ok, let’s go.

[Juxtaposition is an art-form here in The Dressmaker]
Juxtaposition is an art-form here in The Dressmaker. Image Credit: Universal/ Screen Australia

The first really surprising thing about this film is the really dark themes it engages with, murder, rape, abuse, domestic violence, class, depression, just to name a few. It deals with the issues of a small town in the 1950s, the things that we hush up, the way we treated people, and the knowledge that we are not all that different today. But also I must stress this is not just a dark film, there are emotional highs and lows throughout the film and some of the most downright amusing scenes I have seen in a long time.

One of the strengths of this film is in its casting, everybody works, from the leads to all the players in the town. Kate Winslet shows her amazing acting range and her ability to own nearly every scene she is in. I think this is the best I have ever seen Judy Davis, she owns the character of Mad Molly but also has a nuanced performance between all the bluster. Liam Hemsworth (Teddy McSwiney) is not just there for a bit of eye candy but shows someone who just wants to belong, even though they know they can’t. Hugo Weaving plays the local police Sergeant Horatio Farrat, and if ever a role was made for him it is this one. The rest of the town is a who’s who of Australian actors and they all work well to complement or hinder the main cast.

[Kate Winslet and Liam Hemsworth have a greatKate Winslet and Liam Hemsworth have a great rapport rapoort]
Kate Winslet and Liam Hemsworth have a great rapport. Image Credit: Universal/ Screen Australia

There must also be a special mention to not only to the set design but also to designs of the clothes worn by the cast, those dresses were stunning.

There are a couple of weaknesses, a couple of the scenes don’t work as well as they could have, I’m looking at you Hugo Weaving and that fabric scene. Also, it does start to feel a little long in the last third of the film, but then the ending happens and wow, just wow.

[Hugo Weaving also recommends you go see The Dressmaker]
Hugo Weaving also recommends you go see The Dressmaker. Image Credit: Universal/ Screen Australia

So to sum it up, during this film I laughed, I cried, I gasped, I got angry, I jumped (metaphorically) for joy, it was an emotional roller-coaster, but it was also a thought provoking look into small towns and how we treat people we think are different, I highly recommend this film.

_By Brian MacNamara: You can follow Brian on Twitter_ _Here__, when he’s not chatting about Movies and TV, he’ll be talking about International Relations, or the Solar System._

_Have you watched The Dressmaker?, let us know what you thought in the comments below, feel free to share this review on any of the social medias and you can follow us Here. Check out all our past reviews and articles_ _Here__, and have a happy day._

DIRECTED BY – Jocelyn Moorhouse
SCREENPLAY BY – Jocelyn Moorhouse & P. J. Hogan
BASED ON – ‘_The Dressmaker_’ by Rosalie Ham
STARRING – Kate Winslet, Judy Davis, Liam Hemsworth, Sarah Snook, Rebecca Gibney, Shane Bourne, Alison Whyte, Barry Otto, Shane Jacobson, Gyton Grantley & Hugo Weaving
RATING – Australia: M; NZ: M

question: What does the text say about Kate Winslet?

answer: Kate Winslet stars in the film The Dressmaker. The author praises her performance as Myrtle 'Tilly' Dunnage, and notes that she has rapport with fellow actor Liam Hemsworth.

question: What does the text say about spoilers?

answer: Before fully reviewing the film, the author warns that it is too difficult to talk about without spoiling some plot elements. Readers should be aware that potential spoilers follow in the article. Subsequent discussion of the film's themes seem to constitute the aforementioned spoilers.

question: What does the text say about Hugo Weaving?

answer: Hugo Weaving is listed as a starring actor in the film, and the author describes his character as being made for him. He plays police Sergeant Horatio Farrat and features in the main scene the author disparages in the review. Weaving recommends you go see the film.

question: What does the text say about the film's producers?

question: How is The Dressmaker rated?

answer: The Dressmaker is rated M in Australia and New Zealand. This is presumably based on the serious themes in the film, including violent content.


text:
[Diva Spotlight: Author Emma Scott]

I haven’t been reading like I usually do. Between the kids going back to school, soccer, softball, gymnastics, homework, editing, and my husband starting his own company I had little time for myself. So I’m going to go back in my archives and tell you about a book I fell in love with this year: _Rush: New York City (City Lights #3)_by Emma Scott. By the way, ROMANCE ALERT. (It’s all I read)

I was scrolling through Facebook one day—okay, it’s an everyday occurrence—when I stumbled on a sale of _Rush_. Being the frugal lady I am, I snatched it up. The summary hooked me right away. It was a modern day take on Beauty and the Beast. A win/win in my book. But see for yourself what you think of the summary.  [Rush]

_To be blind is not miserable; not to be able to bear blindness, that is miserable. –John Milton_

_Charlotte Conroy, Juilliard-trained violinist, was on the cusp of greatness when tragedy swooped down on dark wings, crushing her hopes and breaking her heart. The music that used to sing in her soul has grown quiet, and she feels on the verge of setting down her violin for good. To pay the bills, she accepts a job as a personal assistant to a bitter, angry young man who’s been disabled by a horrific accident …_

_Noah Lake was an extreme sport athlete, journalist and photographer. He roamed the world in search of his next adrenaline high, until a cliff-dive left him in a coma. He awakes to find his career gone, his dreams shattered to pieces, his world an endless blackness that will never lift._

_Charlotte begins to see that beneath Noah’s angry, brittle exterior is a young man in a pain. She is determined to show him that his life isn’t over, that he has so much to live for, never dreaming that she would become the only light in his darkness, or that he would help her find the music in hers._

_The life he knew is over. The life she wants is just out of reach._
_Together, they must face their fears and rediscover what it means to really live._

Do you hear that? It’s my loins quivering with anticipation of unrequited love and lust. Just kidding—maybe. Emma Scott has it all here: strong female protag who is hell-bent on making it on her own. A broken male protag who wants to be left alone but yearns for more even as he is faced with his failure. And a burning romance between that is not only smart and well played, but mature and unshaken. I think Charlotte and Noah are a pair who won’t give up when it really seems like that’s all they have ever done. Scott’s writing is beautifully poetic as it is structured in a classic romance. It’s a standalone book which means that we aren’t left hanging at the end. Score! I really felt for the characters as well as wanted to shake them. That to me is an impression, if conveyed correctly, can carry the book with the reader for a long time. And I read this book a good four months ago. Sometimes I get my romances mixed up and can’t remember one from the other, but with _Rush_ I had no trouble recalling the wonderful story between Charlotte and Noah.

There are three books in the City Lights series and a novella coming out in October along with another full length novel in December. I plan on reading every one and you should, too. Make sure to let Emma and Write Diva know what you think of her books!

CITY LIGHTS SERIES

[love beyond words]

[unbreakable]

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I write romances with flawed characters (not just the heroes, but flawed, real women too), in as real a setting as I can make, but with big smooshy, over-the-top HEAs. I believe in diversity, open-mindedness, and inclusion. I like sweetness mixed with steam, love conquering all, and above all, hope.

I live and work in the Bay Area, California with my (patient) husband and two sweet little girls.

Goodreads || Amazon || Facebook || Twitter

[] Lauren Schmelz (127 Posts)

Lauren Schmelz has been in the publishing and broadcasting field for over twelve years. She got her start editing and producing traffic news for local news affiliates in St. Louis, Missouri (NBC, CBS, and FOX). For the last four years, Lauren has worked as a freelance editor/manuscript advisor. Lauren was Managing Editor of Manuscript Development for the last year and a half at a small independent publisher. Currently, Lauren is a founding Diva with Write Divas and specializes in manuscript development, content editing, copy editing, marketing, and publicity. As COO of Write Divas LLC, Lauren oversees the daily operations of staff and client projects to optimize efficiency and serve authors with the highest quality of work whether it is the edit of their manuscript or the promotion of their marketing campaign and blog tour. She is married and has two young daughters. When Lauren isn’t editing or reading manuscripts, she is busy playing with her kids and exploring her hometown of St. Louis with her family. She is an avid reader, writer, movie enthusiast, and generally a smartass. Lauren hopes to publish her first book within the year. Lauren has worked with such authors as: M.A. Stacie, C.L Parker, Brian Sweany, Suzy Duffy, Jennifer Schmidt, Alexandra Richland, Alexandra Allred, Michele Richard, Liv Morris, and Joey Mills.

question: Describe why the narrator loves the book she read this year.

answer: The narrator loves the book she read this year because the book creates anticipation of unrequited love and lust. There are strong female protagonists and a broken male protagonist, which is so unique as most books have the roles reversed. The writing is beautifully poetic and the book is structured as a classic romance.

question: What target audience would also enjoy the book that is described in the text?


text: Though the showers predicted by the forecast were worse than mentioned, Sir Kingston still expected Allen to show up on time. The  "Franklin Temple," where Kingston planned to meet Allen, was a hell hole and the last place to plan a meeting at. Kingston, however, was no new-comer and was well aware of its rowdiness and danger. A fight near the poker table was the main attraction at the present moment, but Kingston and a couple of other people kept to their own well being. The front door swung open, but it was the coming in rain and cold air that brought the peoples attention to it. It was only a person to the people, but for Kingston it was Allen. " Here boy," Kingston exclaimed to the bright-eyed teen, and Allen made his way quickly to the table. Allen sat and drew in some air, " I almost drowned out in that weather," he said. Before Kingston could get in a word, three hefty men in grey and blue rammed their way through the doors, it was the authority. People took to the exits in hoping they won't be caught as the authorities made their way towards the brawlers near the pool table. Kingston motioned towards Allen to head for the doors and got up. As they made way for the exit a pair of arms grabbed the two men and stopped them in their tracks. " Strangers," exclaimed the authority "You are to remain silent and resist any temptations to struggle." Allen exchanged a worried glance at Kingston, but he seemed to not be troubled. " You are arrested for engaging in illegal conduct," said the man. The two of them were quickly escorted outside the pub and into the open doors of an authority vehicle. Inside it they were greeted by the two brawlers, now bloody and bruised, and sat down facing each other. Their hands were tied and they were strapped to their seats. As expected the young, worried Allen struggled in his present state, but not Kingston." There is no use in struggling, just sit and do as instructed," commanded Kingston. With that Allen sat still, not saying a word as the doors on the vehicle closed. Allen looked out the little window next to his head and saw the pub grow shorter and shorter in the distance. Kingston sat with his quiet manner like he did in the pub.

title: A lone man's game.

question: Why did Kingston invite Allen to the "Franklin Temple"?

answer: Unknown.

question: Why are the policemen at the Franklin Temple to arrest Kingston and Allen?

answer: They claim the two men were engaged in illegal conduct but do not specify exactly what conduct it was.


text:
"I bought this gun last year. I disnt want to make a quick review until i actually used it and abused it. This is my first aursoft gun since switching from paintball. I have the gbb and let me tell you, best $300 i ever spent!!...although gbb are pricey to keep up. This gun has not failed me at all, has not jammed, broken etc. Even after rolling around in dirt and sand all i can say is this gun is worth every penny in my opinion! Its super heavy!! Realistic all metal and it has a nice recoil to it. Overall best!!! Dont hesitate to buy!!

"Decided to get a GBB rifle cuz why not there cool and i needed a more compact rifle for my playstyle. I researched a lot of the WE GBB series and got a maple leaf crazy jet barrel and an autobot bucking and put that in before I even used it. (My range is absolutely ridiculous and I have a P* FE with a tight bore and flat hop and I like how this shoots over the P*)
The WE 888c (aka a hk 416c) is pretty cool and has some good pros and some cons.

Pro
heavyweight (pro to me cuz im a crazy person)
amazing range (with the $40 upgrade bucking and barrel)
collapsible stock is perfect for peaking corners in CQB areas and extends easily for shouldered shots
gas consumption is acceptable (i use the $10 20oz aim green gas) and i used like half a bottle after 500 rounds or so (also use .30g bbs with it)
recoil feels great
gun is loud but not TOO loud which is great.

Con
Its seriously heavy. don't get this unless you are either strong or are crazy that the more something sucks the more fun it is.
Its a WE GBB rifle. $300... aka pot metal trigger group and bolt. lasted 500ish bbs and then it broke. (NOW i mentioned i did my research I KNEW they were gunna fail and i planned on getting RA tech steel and heat-treated bolt. oh well now its a $550 GBB airsoft gun. I still love it cuz its flipping kick @ss

"I love it. Used it at an event for my local airsoft field playing as video game characters.
I went as Jager from Rainbow 6 Siege, and used a USP-Cas my secondary

question: What kind of a gun did the author buy?

answer: An aursoft gun.

question: What kind of rifle did they buy?

answer: A GBB rifle.

question: What does the author see as both a pro and con of the rifle?

answer: It's quite heavy.

question: Over all, how does the author feel about their purchase?

answer: They are pleased with it.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: The author had bought the GBB rifle last year but wanted to wait until they had used it plenty of times to write a review. It costs around $300, and upgrades were a mere $40, which pleases the author. One aspect of this gun that is both a pro and a con is its heaviness. The author also enjoys the recoil and the volume. On the other side, the author thinks that maybe it breaks too easily.


text:
“The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door...”

Those two sentences have always haunted me, ever since I first heard the heard the short story they belonged to for the first time as a small boy. I don’t remember what happens after that, nor do I care. I would have nightmares, waking up screaming in the middle of the night without knowing why, just hearing those words echoing throughout my mind. By the time I was seven, I’d been to four different psychiatrists. None of them helped. I never had any friends, because no one wants to be friends with a pale, twitchy, wide-eyed boy who was known for flipping out in the middle of class, screaming incomprehensibly and sobbing. I didn’t care. I still don’t now. They just didn’t understand. They didn’t then and they don’t now. Let them laugh. Let them mock me. I knew the truth, even back then as a kid. I knew the truth, even though I didn’t know I knew it. I wasn’t crazy, and I’m not now. Sometimes, sometimes I felt like I really was the only person there. All the hate, war, greed, fear. Why? Why was it there? Why was it considered normal? I didn’t know. I couldn’t understand why. Of course, I do now. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

The truth.

I finally realized what I had known my whole life two days ago. I was at my job. I worked in a small store. We had food, toys, clothes. I was a gofer. Stacked boxes, took inventory, cleaned, whatever was needed of me. It was glamorous, but it paid the rent on my apartment with enough left over for bills and food. On this day, two days ago, a teenage boy, maybe 15 or 16, came into the store. His young, clear face was ugly with smug self-importance. He ignored the cashier’s polite greeting, making a beeline for the candy aisle where I was stacking Twix bars beside the rest of the chocolates. He shouldered his way past me with a contemptuous smirk, knocking a handful of chocolate bars from my grasp. I didn’t say a word. Why bother? I just bent down and picked them up and put them on the shelf. Then I noticed the kid again. He was stuffing his jacket pockets with gum and candy. He saw me looking and sneered, strolling past me again. I grabbed his shoulder, trying to get him to put them back, since he obviously had no intention of paying. In a single movement he whipped his arm up and hit me across the face. I saw stars for a second, losing my grip on him. I stared at him, the blow to my head finally revealing what had been hidden. The malevolent glitter in his eyes, masking the inhuman evil within. He wasn’t human. He was some kind of creature here for the sole purpose of causing pain and suffering. He stepped towards me, his mouth opening and releasing a challenge. I took a step back, shaking. I knew now. We weren’t alone. There were Others. He…no, IT laughed, an awful sound that grated my ears. It turned to walk out, and in that instance I realized what I had to do. I couldn’t let this evil creature continue its cruelty. I grabbed the closest thing, a small electric razor that we had been using for a demonstration. I leapt forward and slammed the thick metal end into the back of its skull. It let out a primal shriek of pain, collapsing to the floor. The cashier, his name was Danny, yelled something, obviously shocked by the creatures inhumanity.  I dropped onto its back, my knees digging into its spine. I flicked the razor on, the low buzzing barely audible over the creatures shrieking yells. I’m not a hunter, I don’t know how to kill something quickly. I shoved the head of the buzzing razor into the back of its neck. The skin broke quickly, blood flowing and coating my hands. I pressed harder, hearing wet ripping sounds as the razor shredded skin and muscle. I tossed it aside after it died, clogged by the creature’s flesh. Yet it still lived, screaming and thrashing under me. I stood and kicked it onto its back, blood puddling from its ravaged neck. It stared up at me with terrified, watering eyes, realizing its reign of evil was over. I brought my foot down into its face, over and over and over. Bone crunched and snapped under my shoe, blood and gore spurting across the floor and my legs. I smashed its head into a misshapen pulp, its brains smeared under it. Panting slightly, I turned to Danny, ready to share a celebratory moment with him. Instead, I saw him on the phone, babbling to the police. Then my second revelation came. He was one too. This time, there was no hesitation. I jumped over the counter and smashed the phone into the floor, then grabbed the second creature by the hair and neck and slammed it into the window. It shattered upon impact, and when I yanked it back, it had shards of glass embedded in its face. One had punctured his eyeball, the bloody ruin dripping fluid. There was one huge, jagged piece lodged in its throat, which it clawed at desperately, no doubt to use against me. I tore it out, then used it to slash again and again at the monstrosity’s face, heedless of the cuts I sustained to my own hand. Finally, it too was dead, if it was ever alive to begin with. Then I ran. Who knew how many more were in the area, if they could communicate telepathically. Even as this horrific thought occurred to me, I realized that I was surrounded by the creatures as soon as I stepped outside. Every person who walked by was a creature. I was the only one as far as I could see. I ran, shoving them away, ignoring their grasping, outstretched hands and stares of horror at the blood of their unholy kin drenched into my skin and clothes. There was a gun store close by. I needed to arm myself, prepare for the immanent retaliatory strike for the destruction of their brethren. But even the owner of the store was one. It garbled some unholy phrase as he pointed at me in shock, surprised that someone had realized the truth. It reached for something under the counter, but I was on top of it before it could, pulling a pistol off the wall as I did, caving its head in with the butt of the gun. Once it, too, had been exterminated, I loaded up on guns and ammunition. I had to be ready. I had to prepare. They knew that I knew. They were coming for me. I made it back to my apartment without any more problems, all of the other creatures, for I saw no more humans, just more and more of these imposters, fled as they saw the arsenal I carried.

I’ve been in my apartment since then, sitting in a chair in the kitchen, my weapons on the table before me, loaded and ready to destroy any and all of the creatures. A few have knocked, but I wont let them in. A few have even called out, mimicking the voices of my neighbors. They’ve been growing increasingly urgent. They fear me. Good. My fear is over. I understand.

I understand.
I finally understand why that phrase has taunted me.
It was as though it was written for me.

I sit alone in my apartment, the last man on Earth. I can hear them, more than ever. They yell, banging on the door. Claim to be police. Obviously they want to kill me. I won’t let them. I’m the only one left. Or was I the only one there ever was? They’re knocking. Go away. Go away! I won’t let them in!

I won’t let them in.
I won’t let them in.
I won’t let them in I won’t let them in I won’t let them in i wont let them iniwontlettheminwontwontwontwontwontwont

Won’t

title: Knock: my first short story.

question: Who is the last man on Earth?

answer: The narrator claims to be the last man on Earth in the end of the story. He read about the last man on Earth in a short story as a small boy. The words always resonated with him.

question: What had the narrator known their whole life?

answer: It seems that the narrator knew he wasn't crazy his whole life. This is confirmed when he discovers what seems to be a teenage boy is actually an evil creature.

question: Who wasn't human?

answer: The narrator refers to a teenage boy in his store as not human. The narrator slowly realizes that all he interacts with aren't human, like the boy.

question: What is the main event of this story?

answer: The main event of the story is when the narrator realizes that all the humans he interacts with are evil creatures disguised as humans.

question: Where does this story take place?

answer: It's not clear specifically, but the narrator lives in a town. He works at a small store and lives in an apartment.

question: Since when has the narrator been in their apartment?

answer: The narrator has been in his apartment since he loaded up on guns and ammunition to face the evil creatures.

question: Write a ~6 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator has always resonated with a story he read as a small boy about the last man on Earth. The narrator would have fits as a child, but always believed he wasn't crazy. This truth is confirmed for the narrator when one day, he discovers a teenage boy is not actually human, but an evil creature. He kills him. He begins to realize that all the humans he interacts with are these evil creatures. He stocks up on weapons and prepares for confrontation, realizing he is the last man on Earth.


text:
_' Alto Cauale_' (Portuguese spelling) or _' Alto Kawale_' (Bantu spelling) is a town and municipality in Uíge Province in Angola.[1]

The municipality covers an area of 3 064 km ² and as of 2006 had an estimated population of 104,000. It is border to the north by Sanz Pombo, the east by the municipality of Massango, the south by the municipality of Calandula, and west by the municipalities of Camabatela, Negage and Puri. It consists of the communes of Cangola, Bengo and Caiongo.

[1]

title: Alto Cauale

question: What is Alto Cauale?

answer: a town and municipality in the Uíge Province in Angola

question: How big is Alto Cauale?

answer: 3,064 square km

question: What is the population of Alto Cauale?

answer: In 2006 the estimated population of Alto Cauale was 104,000

question: What is the Bantu spelling of Alto Cauale?

answer: Alto Kawale

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: Alto Cauale is a town and municipality in the Uíge Province in Angola.


text:
[DLR inaugurated the world's largest solar hydrogen reactor in 2017.]

Outdoor solar reactor testing at Spanish CIEMAT-PSA research center

What part will solar thermochemistry play in building a future hydrogen economy?

FOR AN OVERVIEW, WE CHECKED WITH A TOP SOLAR HYDROGEN EXPERT, CHRISTIAN SATTLER, WHO HOLDS 18 PATENTS AND HAS AUTHORED 158 PEER-REVIEWED PAPERS.

Sattler heads the Department of Solar Chemical Engineering at the Institute of Solar Research at Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt, the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

Thermochemical solar leverages heat from concentrated solar power (CSP) for chemical reactions. Research into thermochemical solar reactors to split water to hydrogen is a priority in top national laboratories internationally. (See SolarPACES Research Task II: Solar Chemistry Research).

_SK: Why will today’s method of producing hydrogen change?_

CS: Hydrogen is produced presently from natural gas in a chemical process at about 800°C to 900°C. You burn natural gas for heat for a steam reforming reaction, to react natural gas with water and get a syngas. This gets reacted a second time and produces hydrogen and carbon dioxide.

But the policy all over the world is to reduce emissions, to keep the temperature increase below 2°C. So it is no longer an option to use a carbonaceous fuel without getting rid of the carbon afterwards, which becomes very expensive.

In densely populated areas, there will be social and political resistance to CO2 storage. People will just say that we don’t want this in our backyard.

_SK: Is there any efficiency advantage of solar thermochemistry over solar electrolysis?_

CS: Our colleagues have calculated that probably the most efficient way to produce solar hydrogen leverages solar heat for a thermochemical reaction. There are overall efficiency advantages. When electrolysis is powered by solar photovoltaic an efficiency of only 12 percent to 14 percent is reported.

For the thermochemical water-splitting reaction, some solar reactor systems have efficiencies of over 60 percent. The two-step solar thermochemical conversion is still subject to research, but shows a long-term efficiency potential of up to 25 percent.

However, there are also market-driven, industry-driven reasons to use electrolysis. In Germany we have wind power at a time we can’t use. Big utilities operating these wind plants lose billions of euros every year, so we need to store that fluctuating energy.

Even if you have a less than efficient electrolyzer, and you can keep half of the electricity stored in your hydrogen to reuse for power when it is necessary, that is still cheaper than wasting it.

_[]Tip:- Find all international SolarPACES
solar hydrogen research at this site by
keyword searches: ‘reactor’ or ‘hydrogen’_

_SK: How is solar thermal energy used to split water to make hydrogen?_

CS: Heat drives many chemical reactions. Hydrogen is produced now by combustion of natural gas, to chemically pull hydrogen out of a hydrocarbon at a temperature of 800°C to 900°C. Both steps create carbon dioxide emissions.

But in solar thermal (_heat_) energy, thousands of “suns” can be concentrated by mirrors and focused into a solar reactor to produce temperatures up to 1,500°C. There are no carbon emissions when hydrogen is made by a thermochemical reaction splitting water using the heat of a solar reactor.

When hydrogen is made with solar energy instead of natural gas, the feedstock is water, not a fossil fuel. Solar heat at about 800 C makes the water (H2O) split into hydrogen (H2) and oxygen (O).

_SK: Could today’s natural gas plants be converted in the future, to hydrogen?_

CS: Yes. Converting from natural gas to hydrogen power stations is actually the major part of the 40-year Japanese hydrogen energy economy plan. The turbines are developed by the major companies in Japan, the USA and Germany. Mitsui’s Ayako Matsumoto has an excellent presentation on the Business Potential of Solar Hydrogen.

Because hydrogen has some special behaviors with metals, you need to pick a turbine that would withstand the hydrogen. So hub parts in the turbine where the hydrogen is fed in need to be coated with ceramic film or an oxide that is a protection layer so that no hydrates are formed, so the hydrogen is not degrading the metal.

Siemens and General Electric have a joint venture on that and their turbines will be about 100 MW. So it is not science fiction. The turbines are ready; the technology is about to be ready.

_SK: Could hydrogen power big ships and commercial planes?_

CS: Definitely. There is a first ship in Norway, a ferryboat with a 1,000 horsepower engine running on hydrogen due in 2020. Viking Cruises announced its first hydrogen ship in September. There’s also a joint venture between Shell and Kawasaki, they have already built several hydrogen tankers, different from LNG tankers, for transporting hydrogen. Japan is implementing a 40-year plan to get to a hydrogen economy, supporting Kawasaki in building the infrastructure, from ships to deliver it to power station turbines to run on hydrogen.

Hydrogen planes flew already in the 1980s, in Russia in the Soviet Union. There were other smaller test planes also operating and there was a design for a big Airbus with a large hydrogen tank on top of the cabin so it is possible.

From a safety point of view, people in the airline industry say hydrogen would be safer than liquid fuel that can ignite when something happens, while hydrogen is gone instantly. However, hydrogen is difficult over the next 20 or 30 years because of existing airport infrastructure and regulations. Carbon-based fuels for airplanes are difficult to replace in the next several decades.

Alternatively, we can make solar jet fuel, by splitting both H2O and CO2 in a solar reactor. In the SOLAR-JET project, Luftfahrt’s assessment confirmed that for any reasonable aviation fuel demand a small fraction of the world’s desert area would provide sufficient sunlight.

  Desert Solar to Fuel Centuries of Air Travel

_SK: What might commercial hydrogen solar reactors look like?_

CS: Experimentally, solar reactors range from 1 meter to 5 meters to demonstrate the concept or as pilot projects, depending a little on the technology.  For large-scale fuel production we foresee that a solar hydrogen plant will be much bigger, like a 100 MW solar tower. And like today, these large chemical plants will be a bit further away. They need to be protected. Like a refinery it will not be in your backyard.

At commercial scale most likely you would not build one big reaction chamber but have several smaller chambers close together, at about that size that we have today, at the top of the tower.

Probably you would have a steam generator. There is not much water that you need. You’d pump water through and evaporate it and get the steam into the reaction chamber and hydrogen comes out. You’d have a pretty good conversion, but some water left that would be recycled.

_SK: How does hydrogen compare to batteries for storing renewable energy?_

CS: Hydrogen is like other fuels, it doesn’t degrade like a battery. It stays hydrogen and does not change its energy content. Batteries have a limited lifetime: they degrade and lose their capacities over time.

  Researcher Pioneers Solar to Heat Crucial Steel Component

____________________________
SOME RECENT PAPERS:

SOLAR FUELS AND ELECTRICITY BY USING SUNLIGHT CONCENTRATING SYSTEMS
C SATTLER – 2017 – elib.dlr.de
The production of electricity and fuels by concentrated solar radiation is an
option for efficient large scale processes. The radiation can either be used to replace fossil
fuels for heating established processes like steam or dry reforming of methane. Or at higher

CONCENTRATED SOLAR RADIATION–AN OPTION FOR LARGE SCALE RENEWABLE HYDROGEN PRODUCTION
C SATTLER – 2017 – elib.dlr.de
Converting solar energy efficiently into hydrogen is a key element to develop a
sustainable and affordable hydrogen economy. The presentation will give an insight in how
concentrated solar radiation can be coupled into hydrogen production processes. It will

SOLAR HYDROGEN PRODUCTION VIA SULPHUR BASED THERMOCHEMICAL WATER-SPLITTING
C SATTLER, M Roeb, C Agrafiotis, D Thomey – Solar Energy, 2017 – Elsevier
The first technical developments on thermochemical cycles for
hydrogen production are based on the use of sulphur as a redox material. After the oil crises
of the 1970s, high temperature (over 1200 K) heat from nuclear very high temperature

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question: Why does an Aerospace research center, DLR, have a Solar Chemical Engineering department?

answer: Unclear, they may have a wide range of loosely related science fields housed under one roof.

question: What's faulty about current methods for producing hydrogen?

answer: It requires burning of natural gas for a steam reforming reaction, which causes carbon dioxide emissions. Also, people won't want CO2 storage near them.

question: How is solar hydrogen better?

answer: It leverages solar heat for a thermochemical reaction with no emissions. It boasts 60% efficiency for the water-splitting reaction.

question: What potential does solar hydrogen have for reinventing our current energy useage?

answer: It can power everything from tankers to planes.

question: Write a ~7 sentence summary.

answer: An interview with solar hydrogen expert Christian Sattler, who holds 18 patents and has authored 158 peer-reviewed papers currently working at the Institute of Solar Research at Zentrum fur Luft-und Raumfahrt, the German Aerospace Center (DLR). Current methods for producing hydrogen require burning of natural gas for a steam reforming reaction, which causes carbon dioxide emissions. Solar hydrogen is better because it leverages solar heat for a thermochemical reaction with no emissions. Moreover, it boasts 60% efficiency for the water-splitting reaction compared to 12-14% currently. Solar hydrogen has the potential to revolutionize the energy sector powering everything including tankers and planes. The Japanese government has instituted a 40 year plan to switch to hydrogen power. It is the future.


text:
Rider

Rider

My mom has always been supportive of my career as a musician. My dad never got around to it. The only bands he’d ever listen to were the Beatles and Rolling Stones. He wanted the Beatles played at his funeral, which he got. My mom never talks about the music that she listens to  except for her uncle Alan who toured the Midwest in the 50’s as a troubadour;  he’s still famous in our town.

I haven’t been home in a while, not that I miss it much. I moved to LA when I was 23. I was bored by the people at home. I was bored by my job at the grocery store and tired of not seeing anything. When I moved I had most of my” LA-experiences” during the first six months, right drugs- wrong people, that sort of thing. I thought the substances would inspire me as it seemed to inspire others but that never happened. I also played some gigs with local small-timers but it didn't amount to much.

My fourth summer in LA came around and thats when I met Terrie outside a used-car shop. I’d been looking to replace dad’s station-wagon that I’d driven to the coast. As  I was standing there looking over some of my options I saw the glint of peroxide-blonde hair and sweaty fishnet stockings out of the corner of my eye. I remember the coral lipstick, which I later learned was her favorite, so shiny on those lips. She walked up to me to bum a cigarette. As I’d recently quit smoking I apologized and told her I didn’t have any on me. Disappointed, she asked me for a lighter to borrow if she could bum a smoke from a man that was standing by a newsstand across the street. I didn’t have a lighter either but I reached into my vest pocket for the book of matches I always kept there. As I handed it to her she thanked me and smiled in the most heartbreaking way. I knew that I had to make her mine. Although I was more of what you might call the singer-songwriter type than a rocker, this girl with her glam rock look was something else. Underneath that make up I could see that she was pretty in an old-fashioned way. Later, when we were married, I used to tell her that she was like a burning wheat field blowing in the summer wind; she never understood what I meant and said I was a sucker. Our courtship was quick because her parents were very religious. Terrie was only 21 when we married but they consented and gave us their blessing because I was “a good God-fearing Midwestern boy.”

	Through Terrie I got more involved in the scene and discovered I had a knack for writing catchy riffs. I joined some of the locals who were in need of a guitarist and not long after that we played as support band for a famous band on their US tour. Months of touring and debauchery followed but after rising tensions in the band and disagreements with our management we decided to call it quits.

         Then Terrie got pregnant. She was excited but seeing as her job at the record store didn’t pay much and my being unemployed, I was worried to say the least. Fortunately I lucked out in joining as a touring and studio session guitarist with a band that had just signed  deal with a big label. Unfortunately this meant being on the road for long stretches at a time. Things quickly went downhill in our relationship and it was while touring in Japan that I got the terrible news that Terrie had suffered a miscarriage. She was inconsolable and quit her job. I tried to be home as much as I could to care for her but my obligations took me out of town again. Things between us never recovered after that and I blame myself. Two months after the loss of our child I got a call from Roy, a sergeant in the Marines who tells me he’s in love with my wife and she is in love with him and they are going to Germany. While this news hurt at first I can’t say I was surprised; I kept my nose to the grind to give me something else to think about. One tour lead to another and after 5 years the band went through a lineup change and I was thrust into the role of frontman. Evidently I did something right as we quickly started selling out the largest arenas and stadiums. We got through 3 good tours before ticket sales started to dwindle. These days we play to fairly large clubs and such, I don’t complain, seeing as it brings in good money. I live a private and enjoyable life.
	I’ve never met Terrie since our marriage ended but last I heard Roy was killed in a combat exercise and she had gotten remarried to a journalist. Even though our relationship went to pieces I still cherish terrie and our times together.
	At the venues we play the band usually has extensive requirements to ensure their comfort. My only requests on the rider are one ham sandwich and two fingers of bourbon. I usually go out into whichever city we’re playing that night and walk around while eating my sandwich. Even though the band is still fairly popular people seldom recognize me off the stage. I also try to find a bookstore to buy something by a local author for those long flights and bus rides. Just before showtime I’ll find a quiet spot in the venue and raise a glass for my Terrie.

title: Fisrt Post: "Rider"

question: What would have happened if the narrator hadn't moved to LA?

answer: He would not have become a successful musician, selling out large arenas and stadiums.


text:
[Facebook is Listening to Users’ Conversations, Here’s How to Stop it]

_FACEBOOK ACCUSED OF EAVESDROPPING ON MOBILE PHONE CONVERSATIONS TO TARGET POTENTIAL CONSUMERS WITH ADS — BUT DON’T FRET, THERE’S AN EASY SOLUTION!_

FACEBOOK seems to have decided to cross the privacy line in making its advertising campaigns wide-ranging and almost surgical in its targeting. Previously we reported on the lawsuit filed against the social network for taking a sneak peek into private communications of its users in order to target ads and generate the maximum number of Likes.

Now an academic, PROFESSOR KELLI BURNS, has accused the social networking giant of listening to mobile phone  conversations of users through one of its features. Prof. Burns teaches Mass Communications at the University of South Florida and she has potentially opened up a Pandora’s Box by suggesting that official Facebook apps may have been eavesdropping on unsuspecting users.

[professor-accuses-facebook-of-spying-and-listening-to-users-conversation]

_Professor Kelli Burns / Source: Usf.edu_

Ms. Burns told NBC that: “I don’t think that people realize how much Facebook is tracking every move we’re making online. Anything that you’re doing on your phone, Facebook is watching.”

The professor claimed that Facebook’s app is actually spying on the users by gathering their audio data. The app tries to find out what the users are talking about so it may target them with relevant advertising based on data collected.

Prof. Burns also proved this by enabling the microphone feature on the ‘permissions’ of the app. In a conversation she said she would like to go on a safari: “I’m really interested in going on an African safari. I think it’d be wonderful to ride in one of those jeeps.”

Within 60 seconds a post appeared on her Facebook feed – this post was a story about safaris! This was not a coincidental story which happened to appear on  her feed as having checked, she found that the story was some three hours old. Facebook acknowledged that the app does indeed have this feature but insisted that it just analyses people’s preferences so that suggestions may be made in the future. However, according to Prof. Burns, the app also gathers audio to listen to conversations for the purpose of making advertising via Facebook. She revealed that this didn’t come as a surprise to her at all.

Facebook maintains that it never listens to actual private conversations of mobile phone users, rather it listens for background sounds. According to the social network’s spokesperson: “Facebook does not use microphone audio to inform advertising or News Feed stories in any way. Businesses are able to serve relevant ads based on people’s interests and other demographic information, but not through the audio collection.”

This feature was INTRODUCED IN 2014 and it is being suggested by Facebook that it doesn’t “always” listen to audio and neither does it store “raw audio” – but it does listen. Facebook has also clearly stated on its Help pages that it never records audio but uses it to identify ‘happenings’ and uses the information as a convenient way of identifying what users want to see as ads and suggestions.

[fullsquaread][/fullsquaread]

The FACEBOOK HELP PAGE STATES: “If your phone’s microphone has trouble matching what you’re listening to or watching, the room you’re in may be loud or a commercial may be on. If this happens, tap, drag and release your screen to try a new match.”

SOLUTION:

You can easily turn off the microphone on your mobile phone and if you do, Facebook will not be able to turn it on even if it wanted to. Follow the steps below to turn off the:

SETTINGS> PRIVACY> MICROPHONE. ANDROID USERS NEED TO DO THIS: SETTINGS> PRIVACY> FACEBOOK> PERMISSIONS.

[iphone-facebook-privacy-4-side]

_Photo / Ryan De Souza_

[src src=”Top, Featured Image Via” url=”https://www.flickr.com/photos/137529549@N05/23835570372/”]Flickr[/src]

[Ryan De Souza]

Ryan De Souza

Ryan is a London-based member of the HackRead's Editorial team. A graduate of Maths and physics with a passion for geopolitics and human rights. Ryan places integrity at the pinnacle of successful journalism and believes this is somewhat lacking in traditional media. Ryan is an educator who balances his time between family, social activism and humanitarian causes and his vice is Football and cars.

question: What is Facebook being accused of?

answer: Eavesdropping on mobile phone conversations to target potential consumers with advertisements.

question: Who is the accusing professor?

answer: Kelli Burns.

question: How did Professor Burns back up this claim?

answer: She showed how by enabling the Facebook app's microphone feature in the "permissions" section, it picked up a specific conversation she had about wanting to go on a safari. Within 60 seconds of her having stated this, targeted ads cropped up on her Facebook.

question: What has Facebook's response been?

answer: They say they only pick up background noise, and that businesses are only made privy to demographic information and interests.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: Professor Kelli Burns has called out Facebook for listening in on users' private audio conversations, and capitalizing on that information by selling it to businesses so that they may promote and display targeted advertisements to individual users. Professor Burns demonstrated this capability by turning on the microphone in the "permissions" section of her private Facebook account, and then talking about wanting to go on an African safari. Within 60 seconds, these targeted ads cropped up for Burns. Facebook, for their part, has responded by stating that they only pick up background noise, and that businesses are only made privy to demographic information and interests. Whatever the case, a use can ensure their microphone is totally disabled through the "permissions" section accessible via their personal account.


text:
Don JOSÉ DE GUZMÁN Y MELÉNDEZ, 1ST VISCOUNT OF SAN RAFAEL DE LA ANGOSTURA, 1ST BARON OF SAN MIGUEL DE LA ATALAYA (c. 1740 in Hincha – 1792, in San Miguel de la Atalaya), was a Dominican cattle rancher, colonizer, and a peer of the Indies.

Guzmán was born in Hincha, in the Spanish colony of Santo Domingo, into a rich and powerful Criollo family; he was the son of José de Guzmán, who was mayor of Hincha in the 1730s, and María Meléndez. He married to Gregoria de Luna y Andújar (daughter of Blas de Luna y Guzmán and Gregoria de Andújar y Valera), but had no children.[1][2]

Guzmán was designated mayor of Hincha in 1765; he later founded within the lands of his family the village of San Miguel de la Atalaya in 1768, near the border with the French colony of Saint-Domingue.[3] On 8 October 1778, King Charles III of Spain created Guzmán _Baron of San Miguel de la Atalaya_. In the 1780s, Guzmán made efforts to populate the Valley of Guaba with Canarian settlers and the Spanish Crown bestowed upon him the title of _Viscount of San Rafael de la Angostura_. Within the military, he had the rank of lieutenant colonel.[4][5]

He died childless in 1792, his nephew José de Guzmán, 2nd Viscount of San Rafael de la Angostura, succeeded him; shortly later, after the Haitian invasions, the 2nd Viscount moved to Santiago de Cuba, Cuba.[6][7]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

title: José de Guzmán, 1st Viscount of San Rafael de la Angostura

question: What is José de Guzmán y Meléndez' full title?

answer: Don José de Guzmán y Meléndez, 1st Viscount of San Rafael de la Angostura, 1st Baron of San Miguel de la Atalaya.

question: Where is he from?

answer: He was born in Hincha, in the Spanish colony of Santo Domingo to a rick and powerful Criollo family.

question: What official titles did Guzmán hold?

answer: He was designated mayor of Hincha in 1765. On October 8th 1778, King Charles the III of Spain made Guzmán Baron of San Miguel de la Atalaya. In the military, he had the rank of lieutenant colonel.

question: Did he have successors?

answer: He died without having born any children in 1792, and was succeeded by his nephew José de Guzmán, 2nd Viscount of San Rafael de la Angostura.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: José de Guzmán was a Dominican cattle rancher, colonizer, and peer of the indies. He was the 1st Viscount of San Rafael de la Angostura and 1st Baron of San Miguel de la Atalaya. He was designated the mayor of Hincha in 1765 and held the title of lieutenant colonel in the military. He died childless in 1792 and was succeeded by his nephew, José de Guzmán.


text:
I barely noticed them. One was kneeling on top of the other, messily swinging his fists and almost missing the boy beneath him. Rain had begun to fall, but living in Vietnam for two years made me no stranger to its presence. This time around, I welcomed it; the day had been a particularly humid one. I marched past them, trying not to get in their way. I began to wonder how I was going to deal with my English homework and had all but left the two boys behind until I began to hear sobbing. It wasn’t a sound typically heard in Vietnamese street fights, as it was a sign of weakness. I turned around and looked into the face of the beaten boy. His swollen eyes leaked tears, and he was bent over, clutching his stomach in pain. He was small. Too small to be getting himself into fights. Then I began to remember.

It was a bright, cold winter day in the middle of December. I remember walking back to my classroom after a particularly vigorous fifth grade recess. As I walked I heard the sound of a sobbing boy and punches beating skin. I burst into the scene, where a group of kids had already formed a semicircle around the sight, too engrossed in the violence to take any action. I called over two of my friends, and together we pushed our way through to the fight. We found a boy named Mark on top of another; his name was Eric. They were both on the ground, and Mark had his knees on Eric’s chest. With one hand he choked Eric and with the other he repeatedly hit him.  One of my friends restrained Mark, and the other helped me to run Eric to the nurse’s office. I remember so well Eric’s lurid face in the cold sunlight of that winter day. Bruises, blood, and mixed with tears. They flowed down his cheeks and their salt ran into his wounds, making him sob.Liquid pain ran down his face and darkened the pavement below us, but when I walked back that way after school, they had all but disappeared.

I remembered all of this as I watched, through the haze of the Vietnamese rain, the small boy with the pain slathered across his body. Uncontrollable tears surged through the small gap that was all that you could see of his eyes. Long after his assailant had left him on the ground he stayed on the pavement, and though he was almost invisible through the rain, I knew he was crying. Eventually, he struggled into a sitting position, and his eyes locked onto mine. Instantly, I realized that he knew who his silent spectator was. I wanted to go to him. I wanted to tell him that he was going to be fine, and that I would bring him home with me and we would get him food and then call his parents and then send him to the hospital, and that we would wait outside and that I was sorry that I didn’t step in to save him from his humiliation and pain and if there was anything I could do to put everything right I would do it on the spot. But I couldn’t. Though every nerve in my body burned and screamed for me to go and do what was right, I found myself rooted to the earth. I couldn’t communicate to him the depths of my sympathy. There was no point. He already knew that nothing would change the fact that I had done nothing but stand and watch him suffer. I couldn’t bear the shame of admitting to him that I was a coward. So I walked away.

title: A personal narrative I wrote for my sophomore english class. how can i improve?

question: Explain the narrator's inability to act at the end.

answer: While he wants to be a comforting presence, he feels ashamed of his previous actions. He can't move because of conflicting emotions.

question: Why don't kids on the Vietnamese streets cry much?

answer: It's a sign of weakness. Such an act would attract bullies and cause more hurt.

question: Is Eric the same kid as the one in the last scene?

answer: The narrator talks about saving Eric with his friends whereas the kid in the last scene reminds him of being a coward who refused to step in. They seem to be different people.

question: What would the narrator do if he was a braver person?

answer: He'd have stepped in to save the beaten kid, take him home, and take care of him.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator hears a rare sound in Vietnamese streets, a crying kid. He notices a boy too small to get himself into fights. He remembers saving a kid named Eric a while ago with his friends. He comes across the crying kid again, later, and he wants to say sorry for not stepping in, to take care of him. However, he can't because he feels really ashamed for not helping him earlier.


text:
Imagine a beautiful paradise somewhere, let’s say along the Caribbean coastline of Central America. You’re there, embracing the cool ocean breeze amid the tropical palm trees and cool moist breeze of the ocean wind. You enjoy a freshly liberated coconut with the little straw on top to suck away at its very essence. Your feet begin to sink into the soft golden sand, so golden in fact that when the conquistadors arrived along the shores hundreds of years ago, they mistake it for gold itself! All you hear during all this are the constantly crashing waves amid the shore by the light blue ocean. The smell of fresh salt water permeates the air while you shelter yourself under one of those tall palm trees enjoying that very final residue of coconut water. Exploited to the very end, you finish the coconut and soon, other senses begin to take over.

Where to start? Rest assure my gringo friend, you’re on a strip of land along the Caribbean shores of Central America but I cannot assure you your safety. Those beaches are looking quite nice despite the history here but your vacation might end rather soon when the local drug gangs ask for your wallet.  Hopefully you’re not murdered on that same beach since unlike our compeneros in Honduras with a murder rate of 82.1 per 100,000, we have a murder rate somewhere around 83.1 per 100,000. Then again, I personally wouldn’t mind spending my last moments on those shores, perhaps I can fool myself like those conquistadors into thinking it was gold. I would die a rich man on this golden coast!

You hear that sound in the air? Well, the sound of crashing waves along the shores is one thing but the gunshots are another. Perhaps to calm your nerves a bit, those are just fireworks, yes, just fireworks because here, we have celebrations that involve some ancient Aztec tradition in which we ceremoniously sacrifice maybe one or two people per day so that the beautiful tropical sun can rise once more! Exotic no? Well, I just recommend you don’t go anywhere near those proceedings or for that matter take pictures.

You smell the salty sea? Well, maybe you’re imagining things a bit too hard because just 100 yards away from you, there is a giant pile of burning garbage. The acrid smell of garbage from the nearby dilapidated housing of our…..lower income residence can be quite strong to the nostrils. Oh, and that coconut you’re drinking, that was imported from Costa Rica since we don’t have any coconuts here! Welcome my gringo friend, to the small country of Morazan, where your horrors and your dreams collide!

title: A Tropico Inspired writing, A bit of the Introduction

question: Who is the narrator?

answer: He's a tour guide.

question: Who is the narrator talking to?

answer: He's talking to a "gringo" guest or traveler.

question: Where does the story take place?

answer: Morazan

question: Explain why the narrator is talking about murder rates and garbage.

answer: He's trying to scare the gringo.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: A tour guide explains to his gringo guest what it is like to spend time on the Caribbean shores of Morazan, a small country in Central America. He starts by saying how a beautiful paradise the country is but soon talks about how he cannot guarantee the gringo's safety from gangs who want to take his wallet and murder him. To scare the gringo more, the tour guide talks about Aztec celebrations involving human sacrifice. He also tells his guest to pretend that the gunshots he hears are fireworks. The horror continues when the guide talks about the giant pile of burning garbage near the dilapidated housing of poor residents.