text:
It's still under work but please let me know what you think.

The first stone was cast from a tattooed hand in the crowd. The thrower was a fairly average person. He was average height, white complexion totally non-descript outside of the tattoos on his throwing arm. Like most of the crowd, his face was covered with a bandana while his hair was controlled beneath a baseball cap. His action proved catalytic in what would change the world. This average, masked man broke the floodgates of the world. The rest of the mob saw his action as one of leadership and followed suit. Before long stones, bottles and anything else within reach was flung. These objects battered their targets like a hailstorm. The already broken SWAT and police force crumbled under this barrage. The few men who had chosen to remain in uniform began to route in the presence of this violent and seemingly innumerable crowd.
 A few of D.C.’s finest attempted to hold their ground by any means necessary. At first they used pepper spray and tear gas; as the crowd continued to advance they used their riot shields and clubs; still the crowd advanced and the remaining forces opened fire with their weapons. However, for every person they gunned down ten more swept up into their place. The bullets may as well have been fired into a rushing tide. Those men and women who chose to stay were quickly overwhelmed. They would not be left alive. Any who challenged the crowd were killed by the enraged beast it had become. Before long people swarmed into the capitol. Seats, long evacuated by elected officials were torn apart. Offices desecrated. Flags burned.
A lone official remained in his office. Congressman Pace. He had been elected to his fourth term in the last election. He was a Representative from Georgia who had one of the highest approval ratings in the House. He sat in his chair, turned towards the growing dusk. His window was open a crack. It was a lovely evening for March. He closed his eyes, shut out the screams of pain and sounds of destruction.  His mind wandered to his ranch in Georgia. The ranch he would never again see. The grass he would never again feel. The sun he would never again bask in. He almost smiled as these happy thoughts flooded him. He was shut from the world and could only think about the dark that gleamed around him. The Congressman was awoken from his trance as he heard what must have been air force one fleeing the nation’s capitol. He closed his eyes once more and returned to his meditation.
A gunshot sounded from out the Congressman’s office and still he did not flinch. His door burst down suddenly as three rioters pushed a Secret Service agent through it. They beat him with pipes until his cries ceased. The rioters stopped for a moment in the office. All the former Congressman could think of was how they had been too late to see the view. Darkness had now descended.
“Tyrant!” one of the rioters screamed through his bandana. He leaped over a table seeking his prey. Congressman Pace lay as
His death was not quick. He did not die painlessly. This often is the case when a government falls. He died with his hand over his American flag lapel pin.

The riot did not solely occur at the capitol. All of D.C. was under attack. After the riot at the capitol turned into a warzone the other riots quickly broke out into violence. The White House was besieged as the President was flown out to an undisclosed location somewhere in the Midwest. The portrait of George Washington that had hung for centuries, was protected from fire and war, would not see it through the night. This painting of the stoic founding father who wanted nothing more than equality for citizens would burn, as would all of the other relics stored in the President’s residence. A mob cheered as they watched flames engulf the White House for a second time in the nation’s history.
The destruction of the National Archives was made into a spectacle. Documents including the Constitution and Declaration of Independence were read before the crowd. Each word, originally crafted to provide for natural rights, chosen so specifically so that people of this once proud nation would know that they were entitled to freedom, was now being twisted to reveal ironic and biting meanings. The reader sneered at the end of every sentence but did not add his own interjections. The crowed jeered and booed the words. The speaker did not make it through the first page before he gave up on turning its meaning and threw it into the crowd where these once revered words were torn apart near instantly.
Crowds formed all over the mall. People looted businesses, robbed others and destroyed the landscape and property. Just as Nero with Rome, the people cheered as their city burned.

title: Anarchy (800 Words)

question: What caused the riots?

question: What made the rioters sneer at the reading of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence?

answer: According to the passage, it seems the people no longer believe in the sincerity of those words. They probably felt let down by successive governments in making their lives livable. More importantly, the rioters felt oppressed and are lashing out.


split: train

text:
“Remember how Mom told us we would grow up into men who would change the world. I believed her. I still do.” I looked out the window, ignoring Hugo. Everything was grey outside. Ya, it was winter alright. This place is too damn cold. Turn up the fucking heater Nurse.
“Mario.” God his voice is so annoying. Sounds like the spoiled pomeranian bitch that old geezer neighbor owns.
“Mario!”
“Shut the fuck up!” The doctor down the hall snapped his head up. Thought I said that in my head. Hugo’s upper lip shriveled a bit. There were no words for minutes. Why is it that every single time I retort back to the cunt in a “non-suitable” way, he starts crying. Pussy.
“I’m going to the cafeteria.” He was looking down at the tile, which, honest to God, looks like a mirror. If it’s one thing I could talk good about this joint, it’s that they make sure this place is spotless. I was making my way down the hall, looking down, admiring the tile when the nurse and I exchanged shoulders.
“Oops! I’m sorry.” she said in a shallow voice. She seemed out of breathe.
“Ya...my bad.”
Her smile was very subtle, but promising. Her lips were pale. They stood out against her red hair. She needs to put a comb through that mess.
“Your mom’s glucose levels are returning to normal.”
I gave her a cold stare. Why? I don’t know. I was toxic.
“That’s... good?”
She nodded, only to catch her head halfway.
“It’s an improvement Mario, the coma hasn’t improved though.”
I turned and walked down the hall without saying another word. Fuck that nurse anyway. I looked out the windows of the corridor leading to the commons. Still grey outside. Another night of rain it seemed like. Great.
Chatter rose, the intercom continued to echo, and the busy hall of the hospital was filled with doctors, patients, family, and everyone in between. Same old shit. Doctor talk and prayers.
“Change the world my ass” I said under my breathe.
Then out of the corner of my eye, I heard wheels screeching. A high speed chase in a hospital? This I got to see. When I turned my head, I saw an older woman being wheeled down the hall on a stretcher.
“Move! Move! Out of the way! Out of the way!” yelled the nurse wheeling her. I shimmied over to the wall. I peered over to the woman on the stretcher as she passed by a hundred miles an hour. Her skin was lifeless, her eyes looking toward the ceiling, absent of blinking. My heart dropped. I looked down the hall back where I ran into the nurse, I saw a boy, twelve or thirteen, gasping for air, crying uncontrollably. He was all alone. No parents, no adults. Maybe that was his...Mom. He followed the stretcher into the room, only to be blocked by the doctor. That was his mom. She has his eyes.
“This way champ. Don’t worry your mom...will...” a pearl streamed down the doctors cheek. The boy noticed, and his face instantly filled with grief. The doctor grabbed the boys wrist, and wiped the tear with the other, trying to hide it. He took the boy through a door just a few doors down where the woman went in. “
Is she go..going...to...”
He started bawling like a loose fire hydrant. He sounded like he was being tortured. The door shut. I lost my appetite.
“Code red, room 13B, repeat code red!” the intercom belted. An army of doctors ran into the room where the woman was held. Yells erupted in the room, but the door slammed shut, leaving the hall in an eerie silence.
 I looked at Hugo down the hall. He was still looking down at the mirrored floor, his jet black hair obvious amongst the grey clouds through the window.
“Hugo! Hugo!” He looked my way. I beckoned. He got up, and came running. He smiled instantly when he caught up. My heart warmed. “Let’s get some food man, you’ve been here for days.”
“Fuck cafeteria food Mario.” We chuckled.
“Let’s get some dogs. I know a place.” We both smiled. God it’s been years since that’s happened.
“It’s on you bro, after all you are the lawyer.” I punched him, he flinched, and I wrapped my arm around him, and put him in a headlock.
“I love you man.” I said.  We walked down the hall, leaving the chaos of this hell-ridden institution behind. Mom would have loved to see us together like this.

title: "Grey" [778 words, critique welcomed]

question: Who is the narrator?

answer: The narrator is named Mario.

question: Where does the story take place?

answer: In a hospital

question: Why are the nurses in a hurry?

answer: They are transporting a patient on a stretcher.

question: Who is Hugo?

answer: The narrator's brother

question: What is wrong with the narrator's mother

answer: She's in a coma, but that's all that's given.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator is a lawyer with a bad attitude, visiting his sick mother in the hospital with his brother. The narrator picks a fight with a nurse and makes rude comments. While they're there, they see a woman being brought in on a stretcher, while her crying son is comforted by a doctor. The two brothers are hungry so they leave to get hotdogs.


text:
Edit Story

|Sep 15, 2017,12:25pm EDT

[Kavin Senapathy]

This article is more than 3 years old.

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-    This week, the biohacking community fell solidly on the side of evidence against hype.
-    The steady criticism of Wolfe’s brand over the past few years has activated vocal science enthusiasts

Proponents of biohacking—a broad and sometimes disputed term for do-it-yourself biology—haven’t always been known for scientifically rigorous beliefs. Claiming to harness real scientific phenomena to hand the biological reins to the people, biohackers often end up using unsubstantiated over-interpretations of science. One recent fad, “Bulletproof” coffee with grass-fed butter and “Brain Octane” oil, touted as a high performance breakfast alternative that eliminates hunger pangs and increases focus, has been widely panned as “hot buttered hype.”  But biohackers also boast several recent notable, and perhaps disconcerting, achievements, from taking genome editing out of the hands of industry and academia to making significant strides into encoding malware into DNA. This week, the biohacking community fell solidly on the side of evidence against hype. Following an online backlash for hosting alternative health guru David “Avocado” Wolfe as a speaker at the annual Biohacker Summit in October, held this year in Finland, organisers announced that Wolfe has been removed from the conference lineup.

I often criticize Wolfe, who has over 11 million Facebook followers and is best known as the spokesperson for NutriBullet:

  Wolfe’s website and social media pages are a veritable misinformation trove, promoting myths ranging from the idea that genetic engineering is inherently dangerous, to chocolate “lining up planetarily with the sun.” Perhaps Wolfe's most eyebrow raising claim is his proprietary “longevity zapper” electrical “square wave healing device,” which purportedly fights infections and cancer cells alike while leaving "negatively-charged healthy cells intact" for a low low price of $297.

  A purveyor of myths and miracle products, David “Avocado” Wolfe fuels the decline of critical thinking, convinces people they can prevent or cure real ailments with ineffective supplements, and demonizes life-saving vaccines and cancer treatments, all by growing his massive social media following with clever internet memes.

Finnish blogger Pauli Ohukainen took issue with the summit giving Wolfe a platform, writing that “by endorsing a guy like this, the biohacker community is essentially declaring that they’re willing to pay for any nonsense and signalling to the public that they’re no longer interested in science and evidence.”

Ohukainen’s post, which was viewed by thousands more than his usual blog traffic, helped spur action. The steady criticism of Wolfe’s brand over the past few years has activated vocal science enthusiasts , who quickly took the Biohacker Summit organisers to task for hosting the self-styled “Rock Star and Indiana Jones of the superfood universe.”

“You couldn't do a better job of destroying your credibility if you tried,” wrote one critic.

“Why would you invite this man to anything?” asked another, citing a recent in-depth exposé of Wolfe in _The Outline_.

Following the wave of online criticism, the group disinvited Wolfe, releasing a statement:

  The organiser committee of the Biohacker Summit 2017 has revisited David ‘Avocado’ Wolfe’s involvement as a speaker. The Biohacker Summit 2017 conference held on 13-14 October in Helsinki, Finland stands for critical thinking, research and data-driven improvement of human performance. To support this agenda we give stage for both scientists and pioneering practitioners and individuals conducting their own research.

  New information has surfaced in our investigation about David Wolfe’s background and has changed our stance regarding his suitability for inclusion as a speaker in this conference. In this process we have taken into account the feedback we have received from our valued biohacker community. As a result we have decided to remove David Wolfe from the list of speakers.

Ever the critical thinker, Ohukainen is modest. “[A]s much as I would love to take credit for playing a role in keeping Mr. Wolfe out of Finland, correlation doesn’t equal causation and a more likely explanation is that the organizers of the Biohacker Summit were already aware of the problem associated with him,” he wrote. “I’d like to think they were already considering replacing him and perhaps my blogpost was icing on the cake. Or maybe it didn’t even have any effect. In any case, it certainly brought this issue to a wider public.”

[Kavin Senapathy]

I am an author and public speaker covering science, health, medicine, agriculture, food, parenting and their intersection. I'm a proud Science Mom, and am featured in the…

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question: What is the proposed issue with biohacking?

answer: That it lends itself to the spread of misinformation since it is 'do-it-yourself biology.'

question: Is the NutriBullet still a product worth buying?

answer: Though the spokesperson appears to have a questionable reputation, the fact the påroduct has 11 million followers on Facebook might indicate its popularity.

question: What are the moral implications of Wolfe's misinformation?

answer: The fact that Wolfe has tried to sell a device that can 'kill cancer cells' suggests that he sells 'snake-oil products'. This practice is frowned upon and could lead to people dying. The implications would seem to be heavy.

question: What is the aim of the biohacking community?

answer: To find solutions to problems within the realms of biology, that are unconventional or easy to practice, in order to improve life.


text:
“Are you alright?” The voice seemed distant. “Are you alright?” The voice repeated, this time it seemed much closer. I slowly opened my eyes. The sun was coming up, it was blinding, and it really hurt in the eyes.

I had an awful tang of blood and puke in the back of my throat. My sight started coming back, at first it was all very dizzy and confusion. Where was I anyway and why was this man talking to me?
“You can’t sleep it out here, go home and clean yourself up. You got blood on your shirt boy”. I could finally locate the voice; it came from a man dressed all in whites. He seemed to be wearing a white coat, maybe he was a baker. I think there was flour on the coat.

My surroundings started becoming clearer; I seemed to be lying in a small backyard on a wooden bench. No wonder my back hurt so badly… And my head – my head hurt so badly that I felt it could explode any second. How much did I drink last night? How in the world did I end up in a baker’s backyard and why was my shirt covered in blood? Thousand thought went through my skull.
“Get out of here I said!” a belligerent remark, the baker started getting really grouchy. I tried sitting up, there was a sting of pain in my left ribs. Had I been in a fight last night? Why couldn’t I remember anything?

Small flashbacks containing a glimpse of last night showed themselves for my inner eye.
Noise, screams and blood. Glimpse of a skinhead punching me, why had I been fighting a skinhead? I lifted the shirt up; there were no wounds to be found. The only lesion was a huge bruise on the ribs. It had to be the skinhead’s blood then.
I finally pulled myself together, and tried standing up. My legs were unstable and I became completely disoriented, my vision started fading into black. I felt back down on the bench. My senses regained their strength. Tried one more time and got up without losing my balance completely this time. I started walking slowly out the backyard, without ever saying a word to the baker.

“Boy, you forgot your phone” He said. I looked back; he stood there holding an old Sony Ericsson, it was a phone alright, but it wasn’t mine. Where was my phone, I couldn’t feel it in my pocket, searched it quickly with my right hand. It wasn’t there. Well it was probably me who had left the black Sony Ericsson here, and maybe it could put some light on last night’s endeavours. So I went and fetched it from the baker, thanked him and walked towards the street.
A red Citroën C3 passed by, they turned their head, but who wouldn’t when you see a boy covered in blood at six in the morning, besides from that car the street was abandoned. I didn’t recognize the exact street, but I figured I had to be closed to the club we were at last night.
I felt sick, had a rising urge to vomit. I started walking down the street in direction I thought I lived. Pulled up the phone and started going through last sent messages.

[4:45] {Where are you, help? Some dude punched me, pushed him into the wall. Hit it with head. Blood everywhere}

How I had managed to write anything readable in my condition was a mystery. And more import, what had happened to that skinhead, had I killed him? I skimmed through the next text.

[4.54] {I think he's okay, could not call ambulance. His friends came after me.}
[4.55] {I hid in a yard, can you help me?}

There were no incoming messages. Who had I addressed these texts to anyway; I couldn’t have any numbers in this stolen phone. I looked at the number, I had clearly tried to dial my friend Peter, but the number was one figure too short... What a fool I’d been.
Guess I fell asleep while hiding in the yard. I started feeling dizzy again. I had to put my hand against the wall to keep myself from falling.
Oh God, I will never drink again I thought to myself, but it seemed that I had said that before and look how it turned out. Just an ordinary Saturday in my ordinary life.

title: Hangovers

question: Summarize the themes throughout this story.

answer: Some of the themes evident in this story are dissociation, as the narrator seems to view themselves as someone else with a sense of detachment when experiencing flashbacks. They were also wounded in the head, which can lead to dissociative behaviors. Another theme is blacking out from drinking. Both seem to feel similar to the narrator.

question: Summarize how the narrator's reactions change throughout the story.

answer: At first, they feel awful physically-there is pronounced disorientation. Then when they are made aware they are adorned with blood, they start to process their surroundings, and feel a little bit of a connection to their surroundings. They take note of the person stirring them. Then, as they remember the night before, they seem to feel dismay, followed by horror, to which they react by attempting to recollect more, and then they feel further horror as they realize they have gotten into a physical altercation but they have little memory as to why. When they look through their phone to assist them in recall, they feel confusion and more horror at the messages they do not remember sending or receiving. Finally they feel like a fool, having drunk so much and ended up like this, with little memory.

question: Based on the information in the story, what will the narrator's next steps be?

question: Summarize the surprises in the story.

answer: The narrator at first does not know where he is or to whom they are speaking. They gather some intel by looking at their surroundings, but the most surprising revelation to come to their mind is the fact that they had been in an intense physical altercation last night-and that it was with a "skinhead". The term typically refers to a white supremacist in American vernacular. They recover a cell that is not theirs from their pocket and discover text evidence that they got into a fight and ran last night. It seems the narrator has no idea why this fight occurred or why it became so violent.


text:
ISAIAH 32 is the thirty-second chapter of the Book of Isaiah in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. This book contains the prophecies attributed to the prophet Isaiah, and is one of the Book of the Prophets. The Jerusalem Bible groups chapters 28-35 together as a collection of “poems on Israel and Judah”.[1] Unlike the previous chapters,[2] this chapter makes no reference to “the overthrow of the Assyrians”.[3]

Text

The original text was written in Hebrew language. This chapter is divided into 20 verses.

Textual witnesses

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text tradition, which includes the Codex Cairensis (895), the Petersburg Codex of the Prophets (916), Aleppo Codex (10th century), Codex Leningradensis (1008).

Fragments containing parts of this chapter were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls (3rd century BC or later):

-   1QIsaa: complete
-   1QIsab: extant: verses 17‑18, 20

There is also a translation into Koine Greek known as the Septuagint, made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint version include Codex Vaticanus (B; 𝔊B; 4th century), Codex Sinaiticus (S; BHK: 𝔊S; 4th century), Codex Alexandrinus (A; 𝔊A; 5th century) and Codex Marchalianus (Q; 𝔊Q; 6th century).

Parashot

The _parashah_ sections listed here are based on the Aleppo Codex.[4] Isaiah 32 is a part of the _Prophecies about Judah and Israel (Isaiah 24–35)_. {P}: open _parashah_; {S}: closed _parashah_.

    {P} 32:1-8 {S} 32:9-20 {S}

Structure

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges describes verses 1 to 8 as “the ideal commonwealth of the Messianic Age” and dates this section “to the close of Isaiah’s ministry, when his mind was occupied with the hope of the ideal future”.[5]

Verse 1

    _Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness,_

        _and princes shall rule in judgment._[6]

Warning to the women of Jerusalem (32:9–14)

This “threatening oration” [7] is linked in the Jerusalem Bible to other “oracles of the return from exile”.[8] Verse 9 shows that “what roused the ire of the prophet was the careless unconcern and indifference of the women in face of the reiterated warnings he had uttered”.[9]

[1] Jerusalem Bible (1966), Isaiah section E: Poems on Israel and Judah

[2] ;

[3] Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges on Isaiah 32, accessed 1 May 2018

[4] As implemented in the Jewish Publication Society's 1917 edition of the Hebrew Bible in English.

[5]

[6]  KJV

[7]

[8] Jerusalem Bible (1966), footnote at Isaiah 32:9

[9]

title: Isaiah 32

question: What is the article about?

answer: The article is about Isaiah 32. The thirty-second chapter of the Book of Isaiah in the Hebrew Bible.

question: The Hebrew Bible is the same as what?

answer: The Hebrew Bible is the same as the Old Testament of the Christian Bible.

question: What does the Book of Isaiah contain?

answer: The Book of Isaiah contains the prophecies attributed to the prophet Isaiah.

question: What language was the original text written in?

answer: The original text was written in Hebrew.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: The article is about Isaiah 32. The thirty-second chapter of the Book of Isaiah in the Hebrew Bible. The Book of Isaiah contains the prophecies attributed to the prophet Isaiah.


text:
A shocking situation unfolded in Louisiana over the weekend, after a glitch in the Electronic Benefits Transfer system allowed government food stamp recipients to make purchases sans any spending limits.

According to TheBlaze:

For two hours Saturday night, customers rang up overflowing cartloads of food at stores in Springhill and Mansfield, La., after cashiers allowed them to use their EBT cards anyway despite not showing limits, KSLA-TV reported.

…

Police were called in to help manage the chaos, but no arrests were made and no one was unruly, Lynd said. Mansfield police confirmed officers were called in for crowd control but no arrests were made there, either.

After the system came back online, customers abandoned their carts and left the store, leaving a huge mess behind.

“At the same time, the press is not willing to show you another story… Nobody was talking about the glitch that happened in Louisiana… It's one of the most amazing things I've ever seen. Nobody wants to talk about it because it's theft. And we know exactly who took it because they had to use their food stamp card,” Glenn said on radio this morning. “But here was the glitch. There was no limit. So, what did people do… They emptied the entire store… It was free food. It was free everything. Come and get it. Take your cars. Pack them up. Bring your friends… People had cart after cart after cart. When people came with actual cash, there was no food left. There was nothing left in the Wal-Mart. Animals. Theft. And I can guarantee you no one will prosecute them because they are not the forgotten men.”

“They are the one that takes from the forgotten man,” he continued. “They are the one that the government has gone to them and said, it's not fair the way you have to live. And so, I'm going to solve it for you. And so, politician A looks at suffering person B and says, for your vote, I will take it from person C and give it to you. That's the forgotten man. So, they stole from you. But politician A certainly won't tell you that because that will hurt his constituent B because A and B don't really give a flying crap about you at C.”

To truly understand the scope of the theft, you have to watch a local KSLA report of the incident:

KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana News Weather

“That’s your natural human reaction? No, that's the natural animal reaction. Are you a man or an animal? That's the way animals behave. We're citizens. Humans show some responsibility,” Glenn said exasperatedly. “I'm disgusted by the people that we happen to live with, the people that we're turning into. The people quite honestly we're supposedly helping. How are we helping? They knew they were doing wrong. They knew they were doing wrong. Will anybody prosecute them? Nope. Anybody who did it should lose their card.”

In the aftermath of such an incomprehensible incident, there is a larger cultural conversation to be had. The culture of dependency that has grown exponentially under this Administration has eliminated the need for accountability. ‘Free’ phones. ‘Free’ healthcare. ‘Free’ food. People fail to realize nothing in life is free. Someone, somewhere is paying for your fraud.

“It was a glitch. No, I paid for it. And he paid for it. And she paid for it. And the people that are checking you out that are working, they paid for it. We all paid for it. And you, you have grown so accustomed to just taking it. There's no shame. Quite honestly, I don't want people who are on welfare and need to be on welfare to be ashamed. But I would like you to feel a little gratitude. I would like you to feel a little like, gosh, you know what? I'm going to get off this as soon as I can,” Glenn said. “Why isn't this story going to be everywhere? Why isn't this story told all over CNN? You want to talk about corruption? You want to talk about a glitch? You want to talk about a society in a death spiral, there it is. Go ahead, MSNBC, go ahead and show the world what you are creating. Why don't you show what this President is doing to people. And if that's not putting people back into chains, I don't know what is.”

“I know you have been kept down, but what have you done about it? What have you done to better yourself,” Glenn asked. “What are you doing with your life? For all those whites, blacks, Hispanics, purple, white, I don't care what color they are. For all those people, if there were any that went with their food stamp card and said, ‘No, this is all I'm supposed to get.’ And they just bought what they were supposed to buy. As a citizen, thank you. If they did exist. I doubt they did. But one would like to still hope that we have not all turned into thieves and animals.”

question: How did  food stamp recipients take advantage of the glitch?

answer: Since there was no limit on what could be bought with the EBT cards, customers overloaded their carts with food at certain stores in Louisiana. It seems that they were trying to buy as much food as they could before the glitch was discovered.

question: How do the food stamp recipients feel about this mix up?

answer: It seems they were excited to have this opportunity.

question: Why would arrests have been made regarding this situation?

answer: They may have been arrested for stealing.

question: What might have happened if the glitch hadn't been noticed?

answer: More people may have come and continued overflowing their carts, probably still fearing that the glitch could be noticed at any moment and their opportunities would cease.

question: Explain what is meant by "the culture of dependency"?

answer: It's described as the government giving free things to people in need, and those people continually relying on this.

question: Summarize Glenn's thoughts.

answer: Glenn believes that the food stamp recipients who took advantage of the glitch are animals and are actually stealing from other citizens. He believes that it signifies a wider issue of government corruption, and allowing people to be on government assistance is creating people who feel entitled to the assistance.


text:
All traders – whether sole traders, partnerships, or limited companies – are obliged to register to charge and pay VAT once annual sales reach a pre-set annual threshold. This threshold remains at £85,000 for the year commencing 1 April 2019.

The annual VAT threshold is determined by total sales and is not the same as total profits (which is generally sales minus expenses). A business can make a loss and still need to register for VAT!

In summary, a business must register if:

-   its taxable outputs, including zero-rates sales (but not exempt, non-business, or ‘outside the scope’ supplies),have exceeded the registration threshold in the previous 12 calendar months – unless the business can satisfy HMRC that its taxable supplies in the next 12 months will not exceed a figure £2,000 below the registration threshold (so currently £83,000); or
-   there are reasonable grounds for believing that the business’s taxable outputs in the next 30 days will exceed the registration threshold; or
-   the business takes over another business as a going concern, to which the two bullet points above apply.

The threshold operates on a month-by-month basis, so a check should be made at the end of each month to make sure the business hasn’t gone over the limit in the previous twelve months.

The month-by-month basis also works by looking forward, so it is equally important at the end of each month to consider whether the limit will be exceeded in the following twelve months. If it is anticipated that total sales may exceed the VAT threshold, the business needs to register.

Where registration is required, HMRC must be notified:

-   within 30 days of the end of the relevant month (past sales condition); or
-   by the end of the 30-day period (expected sales condition).

If the business does not register with HMRC within the specified time limit, a penalty will be charged, which can eventually be up to 15% of the VAT owed – in addition to the actual VAT due.

VOLUNTARILY REGISTRATION

A business can register for VAT even if its turnover (total sales) is below the threshold and it may actually save tax by doing so, particularly if its main clients or customers are organisations that can reclaim VAT themselves.

EXAMPLE

A non-VAT registered sole-trader buys a new office photocopier for the business. The copier costs £100 plus VAT, so a total of £120 is paid (£100 plus VAT at 20%). £120 is set against business profits for income tax purposes. If the trader is a basic rate (20%) taxpayer, there will be a tax saving of £24 (20% of £120), so the copier actually costs the trader £96. However, if the business is VAT-registered, the £20 VAT paid on the item (the input tax) can be reclaimed and £100 is set against business profits for income tax. The tax reduction is therefore £20 (20% of £100) and the copier costs the business just £80 – £16 is saved by being registered for VAT.

The business must not charge or show VAT on its invoices until the VAT number is received from HMRC. However, the VAT for this period must still be paid to HMRC. Therefore the business will need to increase its prices to allow for this and tell its customers why. Once the VAT number is received, the business can reissue the invoices showing the VAT separately.

Once registration has taken effect, there are a series of administrative obligations which must be complied with, and, importantly, a severe penalty regime exists for getting it wrong.

PARTNER NOTE: VATA 1994, Sch 1; HMRC VAT Notice 700/1

For more information please go to:

HTTP://WWW.KEYACCOUNTANCYSERVICES.CO.UK

or

Contact Us:  01782 405442

question: What is the threshold set to pay VAT?

answer: £85,000

question: How is the VAT threshold determined?

answer: The threshold is determined by total sales.

question: What is the 'month-by-month basis'?

answer: The month-on-month basis means that a check is made at the end of the month to make sure the business hasn't exceeded the limit in the previous twelve months.

question: What will be the penalty charged for not registering with HRMC?

answer: The penalty charged can be 15% of the VAT owed in addition to the actual VAT due.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer:
All companies are required to register and pay VAT once annual sales reach £85,000 for the year starting 1 April 2019. The VAT threshold is determined by total sales which means a business making loss would still have to pay VAT.

The threshold operates on a month=by-month basis, making sure the business hasn't exceeded the limit in the past twelve months.

If a business does not register with HMRC within the time limit, a penalty of up to 15% of the VAT owed will be charged, in addition to the VAT due.

Business can also register for VAT if the turnover is below the threshold and it may save tax.


text:
[trump-tech-meeting1]

Yesterday, Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), leader of the conservative House Freedom Caucus in the House of Representative, met with President-elect Donald Trump to push his group agenda with a list of 232 regulations that they are asking the president to repeal immediately after he takes office next month.

The full list is embedded below and it includes some significant cuts in virtually all federal departments, but there’s one that stands out to us in the Department of Energy. Not as much because of the program itself, the Alternative Fuel Transportation Program, which would be expected to be on the hit list of the House Freedom Caucus, but because of the justification for getting rid of the program.

For each of the 232 regulations, Meadows added a quick note explaining why the House Freedom Caucus thinks it should be repealed. They are very simplistic and don’t go into much detail, which is highlighted perfectly in this note about the Alternative Fuel Transportation Program:

  “Billions of dollars have been sunk into this program for years. In fact, Elon Musk, THE TESLA GUY, has been subsidized by taxpayers to the tune of $4.6 billion.”

The figure appears to be a misquote from the debunked “$4.9 billion in government support” that some media reported last year.

The justification makes no sense since the Department of Energy and its Alternative Fuel Transportation Program had little to nothing to do with that figure. Out of the $4.9 billion, only for $2.4 billion allegedly went to Tesla, and as we reported in our breakdown of the number at the time, it’s a stretch since Tesla has received only a fraction of that amount.

The only money that came from the DOE in the amount listed by Meadows was a $465 million loan from the department through its Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing program. Through the program, which aims to increase vehicle manufacturing in the US, Ford was awarded $5.9 billion and Nissan $1.4 billion, among others.

Furthermore, Tesla paid back the loan in full and with interest in 2013 – 9 years in advance.

While the justification certainly makes no sense, it is interesting to see the conservative caucus of the House of Representative trying to paint Tesla, or rather Elon Musk, “the Tesla guy,” as the main recipient of subsidies in the eyes of Trump – especially after Trump appointed Musk to his Strategic and Policy Team.

Here’s the full list of regulations that they are asking the president to repeal immediately after he takes office next month.:

_FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links._ More.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

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question: Why does the House of Representatives ask President Trump to shut down the DOE program?

answer: Because billions of dollars have been spent on this program. Meadows from the House of Representatives claims that Elon Musk from Tesla received $4.6 billion in taxpayer-backed aid.

question: How much money did Elon Musk actually receive from the DOE?

answer: He received a $465 million loan from the Doe.

question: Did Musk pay back the loan?

answer: Yes, he paid it back in full and with interest 9 years in advance.

question: What was the DOE program's aim?

answer: The DOE program's aim is to increase vehicle manufacturing in the US.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: The House of Representatives asks President Trump to shut down the Department of Energy (DOE) program. Meadows, leader of the conservative House Freedom Caucus in the House of Representative, says that Elon Musk from Tesla received $4.6 billion in taxpayer-backed aid. It turns that the truth is that Tesla received took a $465 million loan from the DOE and paid it back in full and with interest.


text:
KIM SWOO GEUN (February 20, 1931 – June 14, 1986) was a prominent South Korean architect,[1] educator, publisher and patron of artists.[2] Along with architect Kim Joong Up (김중업), he is recognised as a significant contributor in the history of Korean architecture.[3] With his support for diverse art genres of Korean culture, he was referred to as Lorenzo de Medici of Seoul by _TIME_ in 1977.[4]

Biography

Kim Swoo Geun was born the first son of Kim Yong-hwan (김용환) and Kim Usudal (김우수달) in Sinap-dong (신압동), Chongjin, North Hamgyong province.[5] While Kim was in second year at Kyunggi Public Middle School (경기공립중학교), he began to take an interest in architecture, introduced by his English tutor and a US soldier.[6]

After his graduation from the school in 1950 and Kim entered Seoul National University, majoring in architecture. In 1952, during the Korean War, he withdrew from the school and went abroad to Japan where he studied modern architecture at Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. During his study at this school, he interned at Hirada Matsuda (松田平田)'s architectural firm.[7] In 1960 he received a master's degree in architecture from Tokyo University where he finished his doctoral course as well.

In 1959, he won the competition for the National Assembly Building of South Korea, but his proposal was not realized due to the political situation at that time. In 1960, he returned to his country with his Japanese wife Michiko Yajima (矢島道子). He would eventually father three children with her. In 1961 he founded his architectural firm, “Kim Swoo Geun Planning and Design” (김수근 건축사무소), the predecessor of the current SPACE group. At the same time, he also began to teach at the architecture department of Hongik University.[8]

Kim designed over 200 projects inside and outside of South Korea during his lifetime. His representative works include “SPACE Group building” (공간 사옥, 1978), “Masan Yangdeok Catholic Church” (마산양덕성당 1979), “Jinju National Museum” (진주국립박물관 1986) and “Olympic Main Stadium” (올림픽 경기장 1987), which feature his characteristic view of architecture as well as Korean traditional elements.[9]

Kim commenced publishing the monthly _SPACE_ (월간 공간) in 1966, the first general art journal of South Korea which contributes to recording and distributing Korean culture. Kim also established SPACE Love (공간사랑) in 1978, a small theater inside of the Space group building and built the SPACE Gallery in 1972, all of which has played an important role for numerous South Korean cultural campaigns. With his contributions crossing over into many diverse genres, Kim is regarded a seminal cultural activist, trying to integrate architecture and other genres of artistic expression.[10]

After Kim Swoo Geun died in 1986, a victim of liver cancer at the age of 55, the Kim Swoo Geun Foundation (김수근문화재단) was established in his memory.[11]

Recognition

According to Park Gil-ryong, a professor of Kukmin University, Kim was the first in South Korea to proclaim that architecture has to have its own concept and philosophy. The architect Min Hyun Sik said Kim Swoo Geun lived with the consciousness of how to effectively convey and adapt Korean tradition into contemporary architecture. It was his grand obsession. His achievement as an educator was in mentoring Kim Won, Ryu Chun-su, Min Hyun Sik, Lee Jong-ho, Seung Hyo-sang into being prominent architects, regarded as significant as well.[12]

Selective works

-   1963 Freedom Center (자유센터) in Jangchung-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul
-   1967 Buyeo National Museum in Buyeo, South Chungcheong Province
-   1969 Tower Hotel (타워호텔) in Jangchung-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul
-   1970 Korea Exhibition Pavilion at Expo '70 (오사카 엑스포 한국관) in Osaka, Japan
-   1971 SPACE Group Building (공간 사옥) in Wonseo-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul
-   1977 Seoul Olympic Stadium, in Jamsil, Songpa-gu, Seoul
-   1979 Cheongju National Museum, in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province
-   1979 Munye Center and Fine Arts Center (종합문예회관, currently Arko Arts Museum) in Marronnier Park, Jongno-gu
-   1979 Yangdeok Catholic Church (마산양덕성당) in Masan, South Gyeongsang Province
-   1980 Kyungdong Presbyterian Church (경동교회) in Jangchung-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul
-   1983 Embassy building of the United States in Seoul on Sejongno in Jongno-gu, Seoul
-   1984 National Science Museum, South Korea in Yuseong-gu, Daejeon
-   1985 Bulgwang-dong Catholic Church (불광동성당) in Bulgwang-dong, Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul

Honors

-   1970 Civil Merit Medal, South Korea (국민포장 國民褒章)[13]
-   1971 Pan Pacific Citation from the American Institute of Architects (AIA)[14][15]
-   1979 Commendatore dell’ Ordine della Stella della Solidariet’ Italiana[16]
-   1982 Honorary Fellow from the American Institute of Architects (AIA)[17]
-   1984 Iron Tower, Order of Industrial Service Merit, South Korea (철탑산업훈장 鐵塔産業勳章)[18]
-   1986 Silver Tower, Order of Industrial Service Merit, South Korea (은탑산업훈장 銀塔産業勳章)[19]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

title: Kim Swoo-geun

question: What is regarded as the centerpiece of Kim Swoo Geun's contribution to South Korean architecture?

answer:
Kim Swoo Geun was one of the most famous South Korean architects and educators. Kim was introduced to architecture by his English tutor and a US soldier. After his graduation, Kim moved to Japan to study architecture in 1952. He returned to South Korea in 1960 and set up his own firm, Kim Swoo Planning and Design, which later became SPACE Group.

According to critics, Kim was the first South Korean to establish a coherent architectural philosophy and exhorted others to do the same. He also led the move to adapt modern architecture to South Korean sensibilities.


text:
[film-color-schemes]

BEING ABLE TO USE COLOR TO CREATE HARMONY, OR TENSION WITHIN A SCENE, OR TO BRING ATTENTION TO A KEY VISUAL THEME CAN BE USED TO SPECTACULAR EFFECT. IN THIS ARTICLE WE LOOK AT 5 COMMON FILM COLOR SCHEMES THAT CAN HELP YOU UNDERSTAND HOW CINEMATIC COLOR DESIGN WORKS.

This industry of ours is great. I truly love it, the people, the gear, the creativity and energy. At the same time, as your experience grows and your expanding network of connections allows you to move up the ranks, you also find the expected, assumed level of knowledge increases. This is logical, but I have found the assumed knowledge is often rarely discussed, because, well, it’s assumed that you already have it.

[IMG_9335_square]I want to share a few of my “ah ha!” moments that I assume some (most) of you already know, because of course it’s “assumed” knowledge, but the truth is maybe it will help more than a few of you to connect some dots of your own.

If you’ve never really come to grips with why certain colors or combinations of color evoke or induce a emotional response, or simply just look pleasing, this explanation of basic practical color theory may suddenly cause the puzzle pieces to fall together or spark some interest in researching it further.

Planning the look

In post of course, a colorist can only work with what he (or she) is given, and so it can be argued that the overall look and feel of the image is the responsibility of the production designer. This is carefully planned by art department as a whole in consultation with the director and cinematographer long before cameras roll. While this is true, how many of us regularly work with a professional production designer?

Sometimes perhaps, but certainly not for every project. Many times I’ve brought on someone in a junior role, or simply used a stylist to quickly set dress a location with found existing objects, or to bring some selected items in with them if needed. The basic knowledge I am about to share helped immensely in those situations.

The Effect of Color

Color can affect us psychologically and physically, often without us being aware, and can be used as a strong device within a story. Knowledge gives you control, and control means you can manipulate and use color to give your work a powerful and beautiful edge.

Being able to use color to create harmony, or tension within a scene, or to bring attention to a key visual theme can be used to spectacular effect.

In the sense of the work of the world’s greatest cinematographers we admire so much nothing is accidental. A strong red color has been shown to raise blood pressure, while a blue color has a calming effect. Some colors are distinctly associated with a particular location or place, while others give a sense of time or period.

The Color Wheel

First of all we’ll look at some fundamentals that will apply equally to both design, and post.

It all starts with the color wheel. This should look familiar to anyone with experience of a 3 way color corrector.

[color-wheel-300]

The color wheel is the common tool you will see when it comes to color control, and it is standard in color theory in defining a number of combinations that are considered especially pleasing.

In a simplified form the color wheel comprises 12 colors based on the RYB (or subtractive) color model.

In the RYB color model, the primary colors are red, yellow and blue. The three secondary colors are green, orange and purple, and can be made by mixing two primary colors. A further six tertiary colors can be made by mixing the primary and secondary colors.

Let’s make some sense of this. Firstly you’ll notice warmer colors on the right side, and cooler colors on the left. Warm colors are bright and energetic. Cool colors give a soothing and calm impression.

We will quickly define the common color harmonies or color chords, each consists of two or more colors within a specific pattern or relationship on the color wheel.

All of the frame grabs used to illustrate the 5 most common schemes were created by graphic designer Roxy Radulescu from her site www.moviesincolor.com. It’s worth taking some time to look through all the work she has done.

5 Common Film Color Schemes

1. COMPLEMENTARY COLOR SCHEME

[Complementary]Two colors on opposite sides of the color wheel make a complimentary pair. This is by far the most commonly used pairing. A common example is orange and blue, or teal. This pairs a warm color with a cool color and produces a high contrast and vibrant result. Saturation must be managed but a complimentary pair are often quite naturally pleasing to the eye.

Orange and blue colors can often be associated with conflict in action, internally or externally. Often a internal conflict within a character can be reflected in the color choice in his or her external environment.

[Complementary_Amelie_2]

[Complementary_Amelie]

The color palette of Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s “Amelie” is a great example of a complementary pairing of red and green.

[Complementary_Fight_Club]

Orange and Teal are readily apparent in this scene from “Fight Club.” Teal is often pushed into the shadows, and oranges into highlights.

[Complementary_Drive]

A similar look in this scene from “Drive.”

[Complementary_Fight_Club_2]

A complementary pairing isn’t always so obvious and the contrast between the two colors used is often relative. Another shot from “Fight Club” which at first appears just to have a strong overall teal tint to the entire image, but a closer look reveals there is still a orange touch to the skin tones relative to the deep blue green.

2. ANALOGOUS COLOR SCHEME

Analogous colors sit next to each other on the color wheel. They match well and can create a overall harmony in color palette. It’s either warmer colors, or cooler colors so doesn’t have the contrast and tension of the complementary colors.

[Analogous]

Analogous colors are easy to take advantage of in landscapes and exteriors as they are often found in nature. Often one color can be chosen to dominate, a second to support, and a third along with blacks, whites and grey tones to accent.

[Analogous_American_Hustle]

Reds, Oranges, Browns and Yellows in this scene from “American Hustle” fall next to each other on the color wheel forming a warm overall feel with very little tension in the image.

3. TRIADIC COLOR SCHEME

[Triad]Triadic colors are three colors arranged evenly spaced around the color wheel. One should be dominant, the others for accent. They will give a vibrant feel even if the hues are quite unsaturated.

Triadic is one of the least common color schemes in film and although difficult, can be quite striking.

[Pierre_Le_Feut]

Jean-Luc Goddard’s 1964 “Pierrot Le Fou” makes use of a triadic color scheme of red, blue and green.

4. SPLIT-COMPLEMENTARY COLOR SCHEME

[SplitComplementary]A split-complimentary color scheme is really very similar to complimentary colors but instead of using the direct opposite color of the base color, it uses the two colors next to the opposite. It has the same high contrast but less tension than a complimentary pair.

[Split_Complementary_Burn_After_Reading]

A split complimentary color scheme in this scene of the Coen Brother’s “Burn After Reading” of red, green and teal.

5. TETRADIC COLOR SCHEME

[Tetrad]Tetradic colors consist of four colors arranged into two complementary pairs. The result is a full palette with many possible variations. As with most of these color harmonies, one color is usually dominant.

[Tetradic_Mama_Mia]

“Mama Mia’s” colorful party scene falls into the example of a tetradic choice of colors creating a well balanced and harmonious palette in a scene that could otherwise have looked like a bad disco.

Some common general looks that can be created in post pretty much regardless of what colors are in the image are the orange/teal look where orange is pushed into the highlights and upper-mids of the skin tones and teal (or blue green) is pushed into the shadows.

[Complementary_Magnolia]

A scene from “Magnolia” showing another example of Hollywood’s love affair with orange and teal. Blue/green has been pushed into the shadows, and orange in the midtones and highlights specifically in skin tones.

I hope that this basic breakdown can help give you control in making planned and purposeful color choices either on set when working with a designer, or purely in post in order to set your work apart. Studiobinder have a free e-book called “How to Use Color in Film” if you’re interested in finding out more.

Of course I assume you all knew this already… but this was just in case you didn’t ;)

question: What is the use of color in a scene?

answer: To have an emotional effect.

question: Are we always aware of color affecting us?

answer: No.

question: What does a strong red color do?

answer: Raise a blood pressure.

question: What does a strong blue color do?

answer: Have a calming effect.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The article discusses the use of color in cinema to create an emotional effect. It discusses complementary, triadic, analogous, split complementary and tetradic color schemes.


text:
Wasteland. That's all this part of the country is.
After the bombs were tested half a century ago, this place never recovered.
There was nothing here but holes in the ground.

So when I got a call from dispatch that a vehicle was seen entering the area, my curiosity was peaked as to why anyone would drive out there.
I turned off my TV, locked my guard shack, and stepped outside into the cold night.
I started driving down the only paved road for miles, then turned off the street onto a dirt path, leaving the glare of street lights.
As my jeep headlights peered over the hill onto the barren plains, a small black vehicle came into view.
I slowly approached, and I started to see the outline of someone on top of the car.
I parked my jeep close to him, turning on my brights to get a better view.

He just kept lying there on the roof of his car.

I stepped out onto the dry sand and shout at him to identify himself.
He quietly replied, "There's no one to yell over, so why shout?"
A little taken back by his calm manner, I asked him something out of both duty and personal curiosity, "What are you doing out here?"

"Until you came here I was enjoying the view," he said with a slight annoyance.
I looked around us at the wide area.
There was nothing except a few mounds that could barely be called hills.

My mind baffled, I asked him: "What view?"
His reply: "Turn off your headlights, they're distracting."

His attitude was starting to get annoying,
so I told him that as a government officer I wanted to know why he was out here.

Silence.

I walked towards him, then something stopped me.
I had to know something.
I went back to my jeep, and I switched off the headlights, and looked around.
Still nothing.

Agitated, I went up to his car and demanded he come down and face me.
All I could hear was, "How can anyone be so agitated with a view like this?"
I finally shouted at the top of my voice, "WHAT VIEW!!"

He said in a voice that seemed both patronizing, yet fatherly, "Look up."

I looked up, and my mind slipped the bonds of Earth to touch the heavens.
I sat there with the mysterious man until dawn, when he finally climbed down from his roof.
As he got into his car he looked back and me and said something that, at the time, I didn't quite understand.

The next night I was back in my little shack for my shift, and as I was reaching for my TV remote I stopped.
I put the remote down, and turned off the lights, and looked up through the window and watched the Night sky.
I understood what he told me.

"Once you've learned to look up, you'll never again want to look down."

title: [The View]

question: What is the story's settings?

answer: The story's setting is in a wasteland that has never recovered after bombs were tested in it half a century ago.

question: What is the narrator's job?

answer: The narrator is a government officer who seems to be guarding a restricted area.

question: Who kept lying on the roof of his car?

answer: The man who the narrator was sent to investigate

question: What stopped the narrator when he walked towards "him"?

answer: The narrator decided to turn off his jeep's headlights to see what the man was looking at.

question: Who are the main characters in this story?

answer: The narrator (a government officer) and the man who is watching the sky

question: What is this story's resolution?

answer: The narrator takes the man's advice and looks up into the sky. The next day, the narrator turns off his lights and looks out into the sky again, recalling that the man told him that once you have learned to look up, you'll never want to look down again.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator is a government officer who guards a seemingly restricted wasteland. The narrator investigates a dispatch call about a vehicle entering the area, and sees a man laying on the hood of a car. After some back and forth, the man tells him to look up into the sky. The narrator stays with the man looking at the sky until dawn. Later, the narrator understands what the man meant by saying that once you have learned to look up, you'll never want to look down again.


text:
1.  politics

THE IOWA CONGRESSMAN SAID SATURDAY ON FOX NEWS A ANONYMOUS BORDER PATROL AGENT SAID HIS CONTROVERSIAL COMMENTS WERE MAYBE OFF BY TEN POUNDS. King also said privately many of his Republican colleagues said he was correct.

Posted on July 27, 2013, at 1:44 p.m. ET

"I got a call from them yesterday, and I said, ‘Did I need to come back down and refresh myself?’ They said, ‘No, you’re spot on with what you’re saying but maybe you got the weight ten pounds up.'"

 buzzfeed.com

King said last week that "for everyone who's a valedictorian, there's another hundred out there who weigh a hundred and thirty pounds—and they've got calves the size of cantaloupes because they're hauling seventy-five pounds of marijuana across the desert. Those people would be legalized with the same act."

-   [Picture of Andrew Kaczynski]

question: Who is this controversial Iowa Congressman?

answer: Congressman King

question: What did he say that was so controversial?

answer: King said that "for everyone who's a valedictorian, there's another hundred out there who weigh a hundred and thirty pounds—and they've got calves the size of cantaloupes because they're hauling seventy-five pounds of marijuana across the desert. Those people would be legalized with the same act."

question: According to Congressman King, what is being hauled across the desert?

answer: Seventy-five pounds of marijuana.

question: What is Congressman King trying to say based on his controversial statements?

answer: Congressman King is talking about the act that would legalize an upstanding but undocumented immigrant also legalizes people associated with the illegal drug trade.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: According to the report, Iowa Congressman King issued a controversial statement aimed at an act that would not discriminate in legalizing all illegal immigrants, regardless if they are upstanding members of society or hauling drugs across the desert. According to King, many of his Republican colleagues agree with him.


text:
ELIAS MARTELLO CURZEL (born 12 July 1995), simply known as ELIAS, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Chapecoense.

Club career

Juventude

Elias was born in Vacaria, Rio Grande do Sul, Elias mainly represented Juventude as a youth, but also with spells at other clubs in his native state.[1] He made his senior debut on 6 August 2014, starting in a 0–1 away loss against Ypiranga for the Copa FGF championship.

Promoted to the main squad ahead of the 2015 season, Elias was initially a backup to fellow youth graduate Airton during the 2015 Campeonato Gaúcho. After the latter's departure to Red Bull Salzburg, he became an undisputed starter in the Série C and contributed with 14 league appearances.[2]

Elias remained as a first-choice in the 2016 season, being one of the club's key units during their Copa do Brasil impressive run to the quarterfinals. He gained national notoriety after _Ju's_ promotion to Série B over Fortaleza, where he widely criticised the opponent's supporters due to their firework display in front of the hotel they were hosted.[3]

On 9 December 2016, Elias renewed his contract until 2018.[4]

Chapecoense

On 20 December 2016, Elias was loaned to Série A club Chapecoense for one year, mainly a replacement to deceased Danilo.[5] A backup to Jandrei, he only appeared rarely but was still bought outright by the club in January 2018.

On 10 May 2018, Elias was loaned to fellow top tier club Vitória for 18 months. The following 29 January, however, after suffering relegation, he terminated his contract and returned to his parent club.

Career statistics

[6]

  Club                 Season   League    State League   Cup     Continental   Other   Total
  -------------------- -------- --------- -------------- ------- ------------- ------- ------- ------- ------ ------- ------ ------- --- ---
  Division             Apps     Goals     Apps           Goals   Apps          Goals   Apps
  Juventude            2014     Série C   0              0       0             0       —
  2015                 14       0         0              0       —             —       —
  2016                 17       0         17             0       8             0       —
  Total                31       0         17             0       8             0       —
  Chapecoense (loan)   2017     Série A   0              0       6             0       1
  Chapecoense          2018     Série A   0              0       2             0       0
  2019                 0        0         —              0       0             —       —
  Total                0        0         8              0       1             0       0
  Vitória (loan)       2018     Série A   8              0       —             —       —
  CAREER TOTAL         39       0         25             0       9             0       0

Honours

Chapecoense

-   Campeonato Catarinense: 2017

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7] Appearance(s) in Copa FGF

[8] Appearance(s) in Primeira Liga

title: Elias (footballer, born 1995)

question: Why did Elias gain notoriety?

answer: He criticised the opponent's supporters after Ju's promotion to Série B because of their firework display in front of the hotel that was hosting them.

question: What team does Elias play for?

answer: Chapecoense

question: Summarize Elias's early life.

answer: He was born in Vacaria, Rio Grande do Sul. As a youth, he mainly represented Juventude.

question: What sport does Elias play?

answer: Football

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: Elias Martello Curzel is a Brazillian football player. He is the goalkeeper for Chapecoense. As a youth, he mainly played for Juventude. He gained national notoriety for critcizing the firework display of the supporters of an opponent team.


text:
The NATIONAL CONCRETE MASONRY ASSOCIATION (NCMA) is a United States trade association of manufactures of concrete and masonry products.[1] The association was founded in 1918.

NCMA publishes methods and specifications, which are used by the industry, and are cited within professional manuals.[2][3]

NCMA published a monthly magazine, _Concrete Masonry Designs_, from 2004 until 2010, when it became bi-monthly until 2012. The last edition of the magazine was published in 2015.[4] Beginning in 2015, NCMA began publishing _eNews_ on an almost weekly basis.[5] NCMA holds an annual convention called ICON-Xchange.[6]

NCMA offers certification programs and educational courses that are centered around the practical application of industry knowledge. These programs and courses are designed to address common issues that occur everyday in the field of Masonry.[7]

NCMA operates an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited testing laboratory.[8][9]

The association once worked with the United States Office of Civil Defense to create a video on how to build a family fallout shelter.[10]

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title: National Concrete Masonry Association

question: When was the National Concrete Masonry Association established?

answer: 1918.

question: Explain Concrete Masonry Designs.

answer: Concrete Masonry Designs is a magazine published by the NCMA that ran from 2004 to 2015.

question: What is the purpose of the programs offered by the NCMA?

answer: Their programs and courses focus on the practical application of industry knowledge.

question: What does ISO/IEC stand for?

answer: The text doesn't say.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: This text briefly introduces the National Concrete Masonry Association, a U.S. trade association of manufacturers of concrete and masonry products.


text:
This is the updated version of a short story I wrote a few years ago, and my first submission to this r/Shortstories. Tell me what you think? Also, apologies for the block of text, I have no idea how to format this shit.

**jello shot to the heart**

   In hindsight, everyone agreed that the party was well on its way to crashing and burning long before I did anything.

   Maybe that’s a good thing; if anyone had actually been enjoying themselves there, maybe the whole telenovela-get-this-shit-on-film level drama wouldn't have happened and I wouldn't be sitting on a 98 in Compositions right now. So good for me that the beer was excessively warm and light and the music was excessively Nicki and Miley. I might’ve wanted to cut off an ear at the end of the night (a la van Gogh, obviously. If you’re going to self-mutilate, at least make it classy), but at least *I* got something good out of it.

   In hindsight, everyone also agreed that Kevin and Lindsay were also well on their way to crashing and burning; honestly, more of us were surprised that their relationship had lasted the 6 months that it did. Who would've thought that the ~~entitled douche~~ confident extrovert of a senior with a fake ID and a winning smile would've cheated on her the minute she left town for a family reunion? Or that the already high-strung, already drunk girl would take it…less than well when she found out?

   It got bad.

   I’m a writer and I don’t think I could’ve come up with such colorful comparisons to barnyard animals and washed-up celebrities, or suggestions quite so anatomically improbable. The fact that there were so many shot glasses around, and that Lindsay was the star pitcher for the girls’ softball team, just made everything worse, along with the fact that Kevin’s “bros” were just as eager to see this shit go down as everyone else. So yeah. In hindsight, there was no way this could’ve ended well.

   Of course, you can’t blame me for not exactly trying to stop them. These were words that needed to be said. Maybe without the hurled shot glasses and curse words as punctuation, but hey, you can’t have it all, right? So maybe I had been the one to make sure Lindsay got sufficiently drunk, less “I looove you, man” and more “YOU WANNA FUCKING GO?!” drunk. So maybe I had been the one to dig up his incriminating status report and show it to her (and that’s his own damn fault for even posting it to Facebook, private or not). So maybe I dragged Kevin away from his beer pong and told him that Lindsay was looking for him, and no, nothing’s wrong, man, just head to the patio. I wasn’t doing anything but hastening the inevitable and making it a bit more entertaining to watch for the rest of us.

   What?

   Don’t look at me like that, all right? I was desperate – when your well-intentioned but woefully out-of-touch Comps teacher tells a group of introverted, Kafka-reading, notebook-carrying types to write about a failed relationship, don’t expect much first-hand knowledge. Of course my parents have the indecency to be in a loving, stable, relationship, and I’m not exactly beating off the ladies with a stick – for once, I had absolutely nothing to work with. So when the chance came to break a happy couple apart, I grabbed onto it as if it was my last chance at survival, and more importantly, a 4.0. That’s just how it is.

   Am I proud of what I did? Not exactly; engineering someone’s romantic downfall solely to boost my grade another 3% isn’t the highest on my life’s list of achievements (maybe 15th? 14th?)

   I mean, it *was* a damn good essay.

   And I stopped that relationship from reaching its inevitable conclusion on a Lifetime movie special.

   And really, I don’t remember regretting any part of my decision that night, the bitter taste in my mouth quickly being replaced by the even more bitter taste of cheap beer.

   …In hindsight, maybe I am just a little proud after all.

title: [RF?HM?] jello shot to the heart (afterparty remix)

question: What are the justifications given by the narrator for taking part in destroying a friend's romantic relationship?

answer:
The narrator was at a party where everyone was on edge and not enjoying themselves. The music was loud and the beer was too warm. Also, it seems an open secret to almost everyone at the party that Kevin cheated on Lindsay when she was out of town. So when Kevin and Lindsay showed up separately, it was clear the party was going to end up crashing and burning.

The narrator hurried the process along by dragging Kevin to go meet Lindsay. The inevitable finally happened when the two met and had a showdown. The narrator said he never regretted his decision, though he said he did it because he needed real-life material for his school essay. He also blamed his drinking.


text:
  *THE GREAT ADVENTURES OF MANU.*

First i'd like to say i have a idea of something medieval possibly lord of the ring style of writing. Somewhat mythological and full of medieval kittens.

Wish me the best of luck and enjoy.

There once was a boy named Manu from a village in the outskirts of Britain.
Mended by his pure loyalty to the crown in which he would prepare the finest blades to all the soldiers. His secret knowledge of metals and ores remained hidden, he would never speak about his ingredients. But these blades were the best, Never to be broken in battle and sharp enough to break through armor. Manu would often train his sword skills by hours of practice, he soon became one of the best swordsmen's in all of the castles.
Manus state was never peaceful his castle was always being attacked by the "gridlock" another state trying to concur the lands. Gridlock had concurred 10 previous castles and was heading directly towards manus home.

Manu wakes up in the middle of the night to screaming, it seems a lookout has spotted the gridlock clan moving in on their castle. All are beginning to prepare for battle, while the women and children seek shelter. Manu instantly understands what he must do, he walks towards his bed and sits down beside his kitten Medule.

Manu: Now i need you to know something medule, battle is upon us and we must not run, I CANNOT RUN, This is my home and i will FIGHT to protect it!"
Medule: Meow purrrr Meooow
Manu: Your gonna have a good life medule, i promise you, there will be tuna every night.
Medule: Meow! Meoow!.... Meow :(
Manu: I gotta do this medule. Good bye.

As Manu prepared his things and walked out, medule shed a single tear and began grooming itself with its tongue, you know why? Cause Medule is a cat and thats what cats do. Manu had never been in battle, the streets were full of many men willing to give their lives for the crown. Everyone soon surrounded Manu, they all knew of his skills and wisdom.
As this was all happening a slow pace cheer began to happen. They chanted ^Manu^^Manu^^^Manu! Manu! MANU! MANU! MANU!, out of all the commotion he noticed someone coming through the crowd. It was Medule, he swiped his legs puring. Then all of a sudden jumped onto his shoulders said

Medule: ^Manu^^Manu^^^Manu! ^Manu! ^^MANU! MANU! ^MANU!

Menu was speechless, Medule? you speak! YOU SPEAK!!! I always knew you could understad what i was saying!

Medule then said "Menu, you can do this but my people are calling me. It is my time to go.

Menu: "What go?! i can do this..! i can save my town and i can save you!

Medule: "You can but my future has already been determined, my family needs me"

Medule then floated away.

____________________

PART 2 COMING SOON.

title: A short story prepared on the spot.

question: How does Many feel about Medule?

answer: He cares for the kitten.

question: What makes Manu loyal to the crown?

answer: It seems that he's loyal due to his work preparing the best blades for the soldiers.

question: Describe "gridlock".

answer: Gridlock seems to be when another state is trying to gain lands by capturing castles.

question: What is the main conflict presented in this story?

answer: Gridlock taking Manu's castle

question: Summarize the end of the story.

answer: Preparing for battle, people surround and support Manu. In the midst of people cheering him on, he notices Medule and realizes Medule can speak. Medule tells Manu he has to go back to his people, and floats away.

question: How does Manu feels when Medule floats away?

answer: He probably feels shocked and sad.


text:
*I'm not a writer by any means, but here's a small idea I wanted to get out of my head.*

The Decestians were an advanced intelligent race living on Earth millions of years ago. Their pioneering technologies eventually lead to interstellar travel, but not without great cost. Their exponential technological advances had taken its toll on the planet, and despite their great intellect, they couldn't reverse the damage they had caused. Earth had to go through an inhospitable cycle, and the Decestians had to leave.

Ephemerous, the closest planet with liquid water, was orbiting a dying star. The planet was cold, dark and hostile. To ensure the survival of their species, the Decestians migrated to Ephemerous, planning their return nine-million years later, when the earth had returned to a hospitable state. For only Earth had the ideal conditions for life.

The Decestians knew how fortunate they were to have a celestial system with the perfect conditions to harbour life, and with this in mind, they knew that after nine-million years, they might return to a species smart enough to defend their home. The Decestians were no strangers to war, and knew all too well of the desperate actions a primitive race will take in order to survive.

Knowing of this risk, the Decestians influenced a passing comet out of it's usual orbit, and according to their calculations, had directed it to impact Earth shortly before their return. It wouldn't cleanse Earth of life, but it would certainly throw an intelligent species off guard. And that would hopefully be enough to win their home back.

title: The Decestians (250 words)

question: Explain who the Decestians were.

answer: The Decestians were an advanced and intelligent race that used to live on Earth millions of years ago.

question: What did the Decestians do with the passing comet?

answer: The Decestians influenced the comet so that it would impact Earth and do damage to whatever intelligent species is currently living their, which would give them an edge in the battle to take back their home planet.

question: Why did the Decestians leave Earth?

answer: They left Earth because their technological advances had rendered Earth inhospitable.

question: Describe the planet where the Decestians currently live.

answer: They currently live on Ephemerous, a cold, dark, and hostile planet. It's the closest planet with liquid water and orbits a dying star.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: The Decestians are an intelligent race that lived on Earth millions of years ago. When their advances made the planet inhospitable, they were forced to move to Ephemerous, the closest planet with liquid water. After nine-million years, they plan to return to Earth. Knowing a new intelligent species may have taken their place, they influence a comet to impact with Earth and weaken the new species so that they'll have an upper hand in the battle to take back control of the planet.


text:
Four times in the last month, Toronto police officers were found to have lied in court — one “constructed” evidence; another “fabricated” his grounds for arrest; others falsified notes and committed perjury; and finally, one officer lied to a Justice of Peace and then again in court. These cases do not reflect the majority of decent and honest police officers, but they are a jolting reminder that some officers are willing to lie under oath.

Although startling, four cases of dishonesty are not revelatory. Human history and experience proves that some people are dishonest. No office, oath or profession has ever been immune from the corruptibility of human nature; priests have lied, doctors have lied; business people have lied, politicians have lied, lawyers have lied, and police officers have lied.

To protect against dishonesty and corruption, important safeguards have developed in British and Canadian criminal law over the span of several centuries.

First, the open-court principle is the presumption that criminal court proceedings are open to the public. It helps ensure that justice is both done and seen to be done. It is borne of the recognition — to borrow the words of Jeremy Bentham — that “in the darkness of secrecy, sinister interest and evil in every shape have full swing … where there is no publicity there is no justice.”

Second, the defence is given the right to cross-examine without significant constraint. The Supreme Court has referred to this right as “an indispensable ally in the search for truth.”

Third, the prosecution is required to disclose its evidence. Meaningful disclosure allows the defence to investigate the truthfulness and reliability of the prosecution’s evidence.

These three principles help protect truth, liberty and innocence against the inevitability that some witnesses will attempt to distort and corrupt the criminal trial process. The events of last month prove it. Without disclosure, cross-examination and transparent proceedings, the dishonesty likely would not have been exposed.

Four cases of deliberate deceit in a month should be a sharp reminder that safeguards against corruption are critical tools to protect the criminal process against distortion. They should also call into question a recent practice in Ontario whereby a significant measure of the right to disclosure, the right to cross-examine and the open-court principle have been surrendered to a desire for efficiency — that is, search warrant cases involving confidential informants.

Over the last several years, a body of cases has emerged where courts accepted and relied upon secret information that came from secret meetings between an informant handler and a confidential informant. Informants — assuming that they’re real people — are commonly entrenched in the criminal underworld. The handler is a police officer that “cultivates” the informant by offering money or help with criminal charges in exchange for information. After the handler makes the deal with the informant, he or she provides the resultant information to a Justice of the Peace during a private meeting to obtain a search warrant. If the police recover evidence, the warrant can then be challenged in court.

The old practice on warrant challenges was that when the police relied upon evidence from an informant, the Crown would not present that evidence to the trial judge unless the information was first disclosed to the defence. In that context, evidence was not relied upon at trial unless it was first made vulnerable to challenge and presented in open court.

Under the new practice, the judge considers and relies upon the secret information, even though the defence is only given a bald summary of the information. The summary does not allow the defence to challenge — through investigation and cross-examination — the truthfulness of the handler, the truthfulness of the informant, or the circumstances of the secret meeting between the handler and the informant.

This practice is wide open to abuse because both the handler and the informant are free to lie with impunity if they choose. The informant could frame an innocent person. The handler could fabricate a fictitious informant, lie about what the informant said, or hide matters that reflect badly on the informant’s credibility and reliability.

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It is unavoidable that some handlers and informants will attempt to mislead the court because they are human beings, and some human beings lie. As a result, it is only a matter of time before a secret deal made between two liars is allowed to distort the criminal trial process — that is, assuming it has not happened already. The wisdom of this practice should be reconsidered in the light of the four cases of deliberate dishonesty in the last month.

__

_NATHAN GORHAM is criminal trial and appeal lawyer in Toronto, Ontario as well as an LLM candidate at the University of Toronto._

question: What safeguards are present in Canadian criminal law to protect against dishonesty and corruption?

answer:
1. The open-court principle is the presumption that criminal court proceeding are open to the public.
2. The defense is given the right to cross examine without significant constraint.
3. The prosecution is required to disclose its evidence.

question: How does the open-court principle ensure justice?

answer: It ensures both that justice is done and that justice is seen to be done. It is borne of the words: "where there is no publicity there is no justice."

question: What does meaningful disclosure of evidence allow?

answer: It allows the defense to investigate the truthfulness and reliability of the prosecution's evidence.

question: Where does the secret information currently used in a certain body of cases come from?

answer: It comes from secret meetings between an informant and handler. Informants are commonly entrenched in the criminal underworld. The handler

question: What is the difference between the old and new practice that relates to informants?

answer: The old practice on warrant challenges was that when the police relied upon evidence from an informant, the Crown would not present that evidence to the trial judges unless the information was first disclosed to the defense. The new practice only gives the defense a bald summary of the information. The defense cannot challenge the summary through investigation or cross examination.

question: What is the author's conclusion in light of the four cases of dishonesty that have been uncovered?

answer: The author's recommendation is that the wisdom of the practice of keeping information secret, preventing cross examination and the partial disclosure of evidence be reconsidered to ensure that a secret deal between two liars is not allowed to distort the criminal trial process.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: Four cases of dishonesty by policemen in the past month have been found in the Toronto criminal justice system. The author ascribes this to the new practice relating to secret informants whereby the defense is not given an opportunity to challenge the information obtained from the secret informant. The suggestion is to investigate the wisdom of this practice to ensure that liars do not distort the criminal justice system.


text:
_REGGAE GOLD 2013_ is a compilation reggae album from VP Records. It was released on July 23, 2013 and Reggae Gold is an annual series from VP Records beginning in 1992.[1] The set begins with rap-star-turned-Rastafarian Snoop Lion's reggae-influenced sound on “Lighter's Up” featuring vocals from Kingston's Mavado and rising star Popcaan and then Major Lazer's “Jah No Partial” with Jamaican vocalist Johnny Osbourne. Reggae Gold 2013 features the talents of Beres Hammond & Shaggy, Gyptian, Konshens, Major Lazer featuring Johnny Osbourne and Snoop Lion featuring Mavado & Popcaan among others.[2][3]

The first disc featured the recent hits, including Shaggy featuring Beres Hammond’ “Fight This Feeling”, Major Lazer’s “Jah No Partial”, Busy Signal’s “You and Me”, Gyptian’s “Wine Slow”, Sean Paul’s “Body”, Konshens “Bad Girl”, Snoop Lion’s “Lighters Up”, I-Octane’s “Gal Gimmie Bun”, Angela Hunte’s “One Shot” and more.

The second disc is a selection of classic hits from the past years. Disc 2 featured artists are: Ini Kamoze, Half Pint, Yellowman, Shabba Ranks, Red Rat, General Degree, Barrington Levy, Desmond Dekker, Bounty Killer and more. Reggae Gold 2013 landed second place on the Billboard Reggae Album chart[4]

Track listing

Disc 1

Disc 2

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title: Reggae Gold 2013

question: What is Reggae Gold?

answer: Reggae Gold is an annual series from VP Records.

question: What is Reggae Gold 2013?

answer: Reggae Gold 2013 is a compilation reggae album from VP Records.

question: What does the first disc of the compilation contain?

answer: The first disc of the compilation contains the recent hits, including 'Fight This Feeling', 'Jah No Partial', 'Wine Slow', etc.

question: List the tracks on the second disc.

answer: They are not listed.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Reggae Gold 2013 is a compilation reggae album from VP Records. It features the talents of Beres Hammond & Shaggy, Gyptian, Konshens, Major Lazer featuring Johnny Osbourne, and Snoop Lion featuring Mavado & Popcaan, etc.


text:
SYDNEY WALTER AUSTIN (16 November 1866 – 9 September 1932) was an Australian cricketer.[1] He played eight first-class matches for New South Wales between April 1893 and February 1894.[2]

All but one match of his first-class career came on New South Wales's tour of New Zealand in 1893–94, when he took 52 wickets in seven matches with his leg-spin, including 8 for 14 against Hawke's Bay.[3][4] In the 160-run victory over New Zealand he opened the bowling and bowled unchanged throughout, taking 7 for 63 and 6 for 35, as well as top-scoring in New South Wales's first innings with 43.[5]

He worked in the New South Wales Auditor-General's Department for 43 years. He died in 1932 and was survived by his wife and a son.[6]

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title: Sydney Austin

question: Who was Sydney Austin?

answer: Sydney Austin was an Australian cricketer.

question: When was the zenith of Sydney Austin's career?

answer: Zenith of Sydney Austin's career was between April 1893 and February 1894, when he played eight first-class matches for New South Wales.

question: How long did Sydney Austin live?

answer: Sydney Austin lived for 66 years.

question: Was Sydney Austin a professional player?

answer: It seems he was not because it is known that he had been working in the New South Wales Auditor-General's Department for 43 years.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Sydney Austin was an Australian cricketer. He played eight first-class matches for New South Wales between 1893 and 1894 and took 52 wickets in seven matches with his leg-spin, including 8 for 14 against Hawke's Bay.


text:
“Given the chance, I’d have given my life for you.”

“Do you not fear death?”

“I do not fear death; I fear what it will do to those I leave behind.”

“Surely that is not the reason for such a noble offer?”

“I admit, my greatest fear is that of being the one left behind.”

“Does it not get hot under the masks you wear?”

“Just as hot as it does under yours, my dear.”

A single shot is heard, two pistols fall to the floor.

title: Masks. [<100 Words]

question: What is the relationship between the two speakers?

answer: That information can't be found

question: Where is the story set?

answer: That information can't be found

question: What are the names of the main characters?

answer: That information can't be found

question: Who shoots whom?

answer: That information can't be found

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: Two people are talking about death, and one is afraid of being the one left behind when someone dies. They ask each other about the masks they wear. A single shot is heard and two pistols fall to the ground.


text:
Standing in the Aisle

During morning hours, the number one runs west-east through the city.  It picks up students and business men from across the bridge before arriving at the stop nearest Jim’s apartment. Jim was waiting when the bus arrived.
Most prefer that Jim does not sit with them. He dresses in jeans and a T-shirt caked with dried mortar, and carries a battered backpack filled with dusty masonry tools jutting out from under the top flap.  When he walks down the aisle, passengers casually place their briefcases and purses beside them, as if remembering that they were to save a spot for someone else.

The bus hit a pothole while Jim was mid stride. He lurched forward and reached for a pole to keep from falling.  When he accidentally grabbed a woman’s shoulder instead of a pole, she recoiled and let him fall hard.  He broke her purse strap in the process, and the fall emptied his backpack, sending tools flying down the aisle.  As he struggled to right himself, a huddle formed.  The woman with the broken purse stooped down.  “You idiot!” her face was red, “You broke my purse!”

With an exaggerated limp and feigning pain, a man entered the circle. “My Leg!  You cut my leg with your damn tools!”

“Oh my God, are you ok?” said a woman.

“I don’t know,” he said. “It really hurts."

“I’m a doctor. Let me see.” the woman led the man to a seat.

“Is your purse ok?” said a man.

“No.  It’s ruined.  It was one of my favorites!”  The woman sat down and began sobbing.

As Jim stood up he felt blood running down his forehead and noticed that his arm was broken. He apologized to the group and realized that his pack was empty. He broke away from the small crowd and moved forward looking down in a double effort to avoid eye contact and to find his tools.  He spotted his trowel at the feet of a passenger a few seats away. When the passenger realized what Jim was looking at, he kicked the trowel towards him.  As Jim leaned to pick it up, blood from his forehead dripped onto the floor, spattering a woman’s shoes. “Get away from me!” She kicked the trowel further up the aisle. Jim walked over and retrieved it, passing by the man with the wounded leg.

“There, you’re all set. Just take it easy for the next hour and your leg will be fine.”  The doctor applied a Band-Aid with a big friendly smile.

Jim continued to look for his belongings, checking around the feet and briefcases of passengers, hoping that his tools could be picked up without causing anyone further inconvenience.  A loudspeaker crackled when the bus stopped, “University. Main. Last stop.”

The bus immediately emptied. Jim winced as his arm was jostled by the sudden rush of people hurrying against him, all of them clearly annoyed by his standing in the aisle.

title: Standing in the Aisle. (Fiction. 500 Words) Criticism welcomed.

question: Why do people on the bus not want Jim to sit with them?

answer: Because he's covered in mortar

question: Who is the main character?

answer: Jim

question: Why does no one on the bus help Jim?

answer: That information can't be found

question: What injuries does Jim sustain?

answer: He is bleeding from his forehead and one of his arms is broken

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: Jim, a masonry worker, gets on a bus. As he looks for a seat, he falls, breaking his arm, cutting his forehead, scattering his tools, and breaking a woman's purse strap. Another man claims one of Jim's tools cut his leg, and a doctor on the bus comes to his aid. Jim tries to gather his tools. At the next stop, everyone pushes past Jim to get off.


text:
Planet Nomads [GOG, Steam, Official Site], the Early Access singleplayer sci-fi sandbox game was updated recently with more customization options, it's also about to get a lot more interesting overall.

In the release on November 9th, the developers updated the game with planet customization enabling you to further modify the experience. This includes planet size, night length, water level and so on. On top of that, they've improved how the survival mode works to be more reactive and more responsive. Seeing how you're affected by various conditions, like poor weather will become a lot more apparent.

Later this month, they will finally add in Monuments spread across the planet for you to discover making the exploration side a lot more rewarding:

[]I have to admit, I quite like the design of the monument. This will also bring in some more of the story content too, so you can hopefully discover the meaning behind them. In addition, the next stage of their Electricity system is due around then too. This update is due to be released on November 23rd.

Finally, as a preview teaser, the developer shared with us and a few others this screenshot of something else that's rather exciting to come:

[]That's right, it's exactly how it looks. You will soon be able to take to the skies in Planet Nomads! Now that I'm looking forward to! The building system really is quite good, far more enjoyable than a lot of other sandbox survival games I've played before, so I can't wait to see what kind of aircraft I can make.

I will admit my interest wavered since they decided to go fully single-player, but these updates all sound fantastic. It certainly seems like they know exactly what they're doing to draw me back in. I'm getting excited about Planet Nomads all over again—good stuff! You can read about their recent updates and plans here.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.

question: How do you play Planet Nomads?

answer: Not answered in article.

question: What do the new updates include?

answer: Planet customization, improved survival mode, and addition of Monuments.

question: When/why did they decided to go fully single-player?

answer: Not answered in article.

question: What is a sandbox survival game?

answer: Not answered in article.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: The Planet Nomads video game is coming out with new updates that make the game more interactive and customizable.