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blehbet · 8 months ago

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Firefly and Sam / the Past and the Present

Hi. Let's take ibuprofen together. And by 'let's take ibuprofen together', I mean that I have a theory and I am tying you down so that I can rant to you about it.

(Unless you don't want to see spoilers so MAJOR SPOILERS FOR HSR 2.1 AHEAD, YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!)

Okay, so. Firefly. It's revealed that Firefly is Sam at the end of the quest.

This theory posits that that is very much the case HOWEVER, it is not Firefly wearing a mech suit like some have speculated. Instead, Sam -- *Sam's body* -- his entire mechanical make, IS Firefly.

From story implications, it's alleged that Sam is a "remnant of Glamoth's Iron Calvary". According to Firmament Frontline: Glamoth's relic set, Glamoth's Iron Cavalry are "genetically engineered warriors that possess superhuman abilities" who fought against the Swarm.

"In their short lives..." No wonder her name is Firefly...

That aside, this leads me to believe that these so-called warriors did not start out as robots, but were instead manufactured by way of the disease that Firefly suffers from.

Entropy Loss Syndrome.

I want to emphasise the use of *reality* and *dreams* in this context for my next point. The distinction (or lack thereof) between reality and dreams is fundamental to how the Iron Calvary works. The cavalry was telepathically connected to "Titania", their empress. And according to the Relic Set, these warriors are "woven into dreams." This leads me further on to believe that in order to be woven into dreams, their physical forms have to slowly fade to then occupy and be turned into a mechanical suit that was ultimately built to serve its ruler, and protect its people from the Swarm.

So how does Firefly appear as she does in the Dreamscape?

I think it's Sam simply dreaming and wishing for the form that they once had. In reality, Firefly has either disappeared entirely OR her body's consciousness has completely detached itself to then occupy the mech.

This is further supported by her leaked lightcone image. It doesn't depict her occupying Sam, instead, she's in some kind of shattered vat (the 'icy medical cabin', if you will). A visual metaphor for the shattering of dreams and reality, perhaps?

So, TLDR so far: Firefly is Sam. Firefly was a citizen of Glamoth that was turned into a member of the Iron Calvary by way of Entropy Loss Syndrome in an effort to fight back against the Swarm. In the current reality, there's only Sam; Firefly as we see her in the Dreamscape no longer exists. Sam is dreaming of their old 'human' body whenever they enter the Dreamscape.

Now, at this point, you're probably thinking that I'm contradicting myself here by brushing over the 'icy medical cabin' possibility. Right now with what we know so far, it's only feasible either Firefly no longer physically exists OR she does, but she's trapped. But, stick with me, I'm going to explain how it's possible that both outcomes can 'co-exist'.

In Act 1 of the quest, it seemed like Sam and Firefly were in conflict with each other at one point. At first, I thought this was also evidence that goes against this theory. However -- this opens up an interesting possibility as to how these two interact in the Dreamscape. Firefly acts as the younger and possibly more idealistic version of Sam who brashly charges forth to achieve her goals, meanwhile Sam is Sam, the Stellaron Hunter and seasoned warrior with more experience under his belt.

Now, who runs in parallel to this possible narrative? Who have we, as players, *directly seen* go through an eerily similar Dreamscape experience?

From Aventurine's POV, we actively got to see this process of a person's Past and Present interacting in the Dreamscape.

Meanwhile with Firefly, we only saw glimpses of the process in Act 1 and the results of it in Act 2. It's possible that at the end of Act 2, the Past and Present of Firefly / Sam had come to accept each other and were now ready to confront the Trailblazer, much like how Aventurine had to accept his Past and Future in order to go through with his big gamble at the end of his arc.

So, back to the 'icy medical cabin' contradiction. The Firefly that has manifested in the Dreamscape is a Past version of Sam that was in the process of being turned into a Iron Calvary soldier.

Kakavasha's behaviour supports this notion too, given how he reacts to the Dreamscape in ways that would make sense to him in his current state of mind at the time of being a child.

This possibility also has the potential to explain a lot of what Sam was talking about here...

Is it also possible that these "11 times" he's referring to was Sam's attempts to save his Past self from 'dying' in the Dreamscape? Living vicariously through her, only to find out she was fated to be destroyed from the very beginning?

Another fun bonus! Doesn't help either that both Aventurine and Firefly have experienced 'Death' in the Dreamscape. It's as if the Dreamscape is allowing those who die in its grasp a final glimpse of their life.

"Life is flashing before their eyes" when they "Die" in the Dreamscape.

Anyways. Firefly transmasc canon is also what I'm trying to say YIPPEEE THANKS FOR READING IF YOU'VE COME THIS FAR, MWAH

#hsr #honkai star rail #hsr theory #theory hsr #theory crafting #fan theory #firefly hsr #firefly #sam hsr #sam #aventurine hsr #aventurine #kakavasha #kakavasha hsr #hsr 2.1 #hsr 2.1 spoilers #hsr spoilers #hsr leaks

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earth-64 · 2 months ago

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My Journey in Understanding Comics - Part 2

Part 1 is not required reading. In fact, I will refrain from even linking it here. Every blog post is someone’s first.

It shouldn’t be embarrassing to admit that I needed to have “comic books” explained to me. Yet I feel ashamed that I allowed the entire medium to exist within a hair’s breadth of my cultural understanding for so long. I’ve already gone over my select few childhood run-ins with comics, as well as the false-start that nearly was my first paper-comic obsession* (*See “My Journey in Understanding Comics” #1! - Ed.), so my story this time will start in November of 2023.

I was working a mundane job at a manufacturing facility. Full-time hours of applying stickers to pieces of foam, or punching out holes in paper, or assembling little devices of god-knows-what, praying that for every life-saving defibrillator adhesive pad I quality-checked that the insulation padding I was shape-forming wasn’t destined for a war machine. It was a place of room-sized printing presses, massive machines that shaped and cut materials with the power of water-jets, and dark laboratory backrooms with more nausea-inducing chemicals filling the air than oxygen. While I didn’t end up falling into vats of any of the horrifically powerful bleaches we used to clean the printing screens (although I did retire home early on a number of occasions from dizziness caused by breathing in acetone), it was here that I had way too much time on my hands and binged podcasts.

I was devouring 10 hours of audio content a day, from audio dramas to history lessons to comedy sketches. The hardest part of the job became satiating my hunger for endless content. After exhausting “Midnight Burger” and Penumbra’s “Juno Steel”, I listened through all of Tim Roger’s “Action Button” reviews in audio-form. On recommendation from my girlfriend, that made a natural transition into gulping down hundreds of episodes of “Insert Credit”. Among other branching paths (I recommend “They Create Worlds” and “Video Game History Hour”), I was led through Alex Jaffe to “52 Pick Up”.

“52 Pick Up”, hosted by Alex Jaffe and Gita Jackson, discusses DC’s 2006-2007 weekly comic book “52” issue by issue. I dipped my toe into it with hardly any context: it had been many years since I read comics, very little of that had been DC. Certainly none from around the time “52” was published, and certainly not any that would provide any helpful context to “52”. I cannonballed into the the deep end, albeit without risk of drowning: if the podcast hosts helped me stick the landing then I would be opened to a whole new world of possibilities, if I was just utterly lost by the interwoven plot threads and greater context of the comic then I would just shrug it off and go back to the comforting familiarity of learning about unreleased Nintendo knitting machines* (* “VGHH” #117! - Frank ( - not Frank)). This isn’t the iTunes review section so I’ll spare you from me simply pasting in the glowing review I left for them, but rest assured that “52 Pick Up” does its job of introducing someone to the context of comic books tremendously well. I was hooked, and have not missed a bi-weekly wednesday since.

However, it wasn’t enough to break the floodwall I had erected after the comic-related disaster I had beared the full brunt of so many years ago. I followed “52” and kept saying to myself “I think I’ll subscribe to that DC mobile app, and read some of the surrounding context”, but I never pulled the trigger on that purchase. My interest was piqued, I was given the on-ramps, taught all the techniques from a master of comics knowledge, and yet I could not begin the simple act of reading.

I hold the act of consumption on a higher pedestal than it deserves. I regularly find myself hesitating to consume. Is this the right time? How will this work affect me? “Are you ready?” I ask myself, fighting back my natural instinct to presume anything unknown to me is not “for me”.

In February of 2024 I finally made a concession: I would start with something I felt I was closer to. Something that wouldn’t be “out of character” for me to consume. I had already been into “Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure” for some years, so I turned to manga, and read “Dragon Ball”. This isn’t the place for me to put all my thoughts on “Dragon Ball”. Know simply that it was a prime example of works of fiction finding me at exactly the right moment in my life, affecting me tremendously, with Toriyama’s passing happening right in the nearly exact middle of my readthrough. My dad had treated “Dragon Ball” with the same disdain as Wrestling or Football as I was growing up, something that wasn’t “for me”, something dumber, barbaric.

Comic books were his thing, and manga was not my thing. Before I moved out I had to find ways to justify things as being “my thing”. Webcomics were a natural extension of an interest in video games, manga was an eventual gap bridged by years of anime expos and the absurdity of “Jojo’s”, but “Dragon Ball”, among many other things, remained unreachable.

Now that I live on my own there are no gaps between works of fiction that need filling. My brain still often tricks me into thinking I cannot leap over the vast chasms that separate genres and mediums, but it is only the residual fear of being perceived as not being myself. There is no longer anyone in my daily life that has known me for a great amount of time, no one to police me to stay true to my platonic self. I have to remind myself that I can choose to wake up and be a whole new person if I so wish. Any day could be the day I decide to start being a person who reads comic books.

In late July 2024 I found the catalyst: a copy of Scott McCloud’s “Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art”. It was a book always on my radar as being something that I would get a kick out of, but I never wanted to just read a scan of it. I knew it deserved to be read physically, but I never had the drive to order a copy. In the end it needed to appear before me, on the shelf of the thrift store I regular, as a spur of the moment purchase. I’ll again spare you from a full overzealous review, but it was exactly what I needed. “This is what a comic book is. This is why it’s important. This is why it’s for everyone.” That’s what I needed to hear. I needed someone to lay it all out, label all the pieces, explain the history, and tell me that comics can be for me.

In August my friends decided to marathon some of the X-Men movies. All the stars aligned: I had the knowledge, the motivation, the relief from social permission. No, not a relief. A triumph. I had triumphed over a lifetime of social pressure, of expectations and preconceived notions. I didn’t need to hide my mood-swing dips into unfamiliar media. I didn’t need to be ashamed of stepping outside my comfort zone. The version of myself in others’ heads are their own flawed snapshots of pieces of my true self, not a script they write for me to follow and fear. I could be anything I wanted.

I could be someone subscribed to Marvel Unlimited.

The conclusion to our thrilling three-part epic is up next in our amazing tale of self-reflection and ceaseless inner-discovery awaits! You don’t wanna miss it true believers!

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sullustangin · 2 years ago

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Fluffy February Day 12: Shell

Fandom: SWTOR

Time: probably within the first three months since Eva was defrosted (3632/31 BBY -- 21 ATC)

Pairing: Theron Shan/Smuggler

Words: 1250

A/N: Yes, I could not resist mentioning how Bioware has shamelessly recycled Koth’s face for Galactic Seasons...

“You’ve got this,” Theron reassured her in a low voice as Eva took misstep – another misstep – in their waltz. “Just follow my lead.” One warm hand flexed against her cool, exposed upper back, while the other squeezed her right hand.

She felt the pressure, not the hand.

Silently, she shook her head.

She wasn’t ready yet. “I’m not --”

He didn’t need to hear the rest: he could see it in her face. Theron pulled her in close to him and spun them out of the range of their mark. They’d practiced that throughout the evening, making sure they could extricate themselves as elegantly as they had entered the Zeltronian pleasure palace. The night was still young, so they would have ample opportunity to complete the mission.

One way or another…

Theron’s hand was on her chin, demanding her attention even as their feet continued to move in time at the edge of the dance floor.

Her right was still raised; she hadn’t noticed his hand’s departure. She dropped it to his shoulder, immediately.

“Eva, look at me.” His olive-gold eyes burned into her. “You are the best person to pull this off.”

“Theron, I’m not –”

“You are. You’ve got the fastest hands on Odessen, even if it’s only your left. In all the sims, you consistently beat Koth by well over a second, even with Lana making a mind-trick distraction. That second will make the difference -- ”

“That, and Koth looks more the sort to rob a casino.”

“Thanks, Lana.”

The tension between Theron and Eva broke as they heard Lana and Koth bicker in the getaway speeder.

It was Eva’s first op since she’d been defrosted. An opportunity had come up unexpectedly to “acquire” a particularly exquisite Corusca gem bracelet. It would be traded onward for credits as well as intel regarding Zakuulan supply depots. The bracelet … just had to be acquired without anyone noticing. Hot merchandise couldn’t be moved on the market; the current owner of the bracelet couldn’t notice it was missing.

Eva had pawed through old VATs with Risha and Akaavi, finding a solution.

Lana had mustered the very rational objection.

Theron had absorbed the data and input, then disappeared into Oggurobb’s lab to see what miracle the good doctor could manufacture.

Now they were here, him in a classic, timeless suit, and Eva in some big-sleeved yet backless confection of the week.

Theron leaned in closer to Eva, his breath ghosting over the shell of her ear. “We’ve practiced for weeks. You and me, waltzing past Koth and Lana. We just need to execute.”

She just needed to execute, in truth.

Eva shook her head. “You were right, I’m out in the field too soon –”

“We’re here now. You’re right. We’re ready. It’s happening,” Theron cut her off, grasping her numb right hand. His other palm now stroked her back, a sign of comfort between lovers.

“You know, there is the other option,” Lana offered over their earpieces.

“And I’m sort of not excited about that option,” Theron muttered.

Koth’s pilot’s chair creaked. “You need to have a little faith, before you send Theron off to stage a mugging gone fatally wrong-- ” and then the argument started again between Lana and Koth.

…it wasn’t Lana who had suggested that backup plan. It was Eva. Old habits and criminal tendencies died hard. Now she regretted it, even as she watched Theron roll his eyes at Lana defending the plan as a brutally efficient solution to their problem.

Theron had already told her he didn’t want to live in the grey areas they had prior to the Eternal Fleet. That went for not just deciding what they were, but what he did in the name of a faction.

Eva knew he’d do it for her. And the mission. Maybe even mostly the mission. But still, a little piece of him would do it for her…

And she didn’t want him to do that.

Eva adjusted her left sleeve.

“Let’s get back to the main floor,” Eva said to Theron, loud enough for the people around them to hear, as well as Lana and Koth.

Theron drew so close that his lips did brush the shell of her ear this time. “You sure?”

“Yeah.”

A well-executed op was a beautiful thing.

As they had practiced for weeks with Lana and Koth, in spare hours in the empty executive suite, Theron and Eva had waltzed in perfectly timed circles toward their mark: woman of indeterminate age, leisure class. She was consistent, doing the same things Theron had observed when watching her and her partner dance over the last few weeks.

She would slide her bracelet up her forearm to keep it off her wrist. Her partner had the tendency to drop his right arm as he led a turn. Those had been the last pieces of intel they’d needed.

After revolving about them for ten minutes, like planets revolving about the sun, Eva signalled to Theron that this was it, three finger taps to the shoulder.

Theron spun them in a rather grand big top flourish, joining the rest of waltzing crowd in the finale of the dance. The music swelled, and the people spun faster than a roulette wheel.

But Eva had been a quick draw champion, drawing, shooting, and hitting her target in less than a third of a second.

Eva’s left arm reached out from its perch on Theron’s shoulder, and Eva’s modified hold-out knife shot out. Rather than something in a weapons shop, the blade had been substituted for one of Dr. Oggurobb’s obsidian scalpels, modified to have more of a hook than a straight blade. Effortlessly on the first turn, Eva rotated her wrist so that the scalpel cleanly sliced through the jewelry wire, then with a smooth pull back, its magnetic properties hooked the Corusca stones right into the compartment on Eva’s sleeve, right through the gap between the woman’s left arm and her partner’s lowered right arm.

Her hand was back on Theron’s shoulder in a split second. The voluminous fabric hid the motions of her wrist.

On the synchronized counter turn, swinging back the other way, Eva let her hand slide down Theron’s arm just enough to get an angle, then activated the release on what once had been a zipline launcher. Instead of line spinning out, the replica bracelet leapt out toward its target.

A second launch command signaled the replica bracelet to activate its self-closing mechanism.

And then, to avoid the obvious landing of the jewelry on the former owner’s wrist, Dr. Oggurobb had installed single-use, biodegradeable micro-repulsor lifts to gradually lower the bracelet down to the skin. The Hutt had been excessively pleased with himself.

And then Eva was spun away in a spin of lights reflected off of the glitz and glamor of the Zeltronian pleasure palace.

Theron led them through two more shorter waltzes, Eva following his lead as he maneuvered them around the floor; he kept their mark in his line of sight all while gliding across the dance floor, making artificial small talk with Eva. Talked about a pet dog that didn’t exist. Mentioned a fantasy Huttball pool that he was not a part of. Referred to a friend she didn’t have.

After two dances, Theron seemed to be satisfied that the pair hadn’t noticed anything amiss. “I heard there’s a pazaak tournament starting after the late seating for supper,” Theron said off-handedly, as if this wasn’t at all planned.

“You heard right. I was thinking of entering.”

As they stepped off the dance floor, Theron pressed a kiss to the side of her head. “Welcome back, EC.”

…that was a beautiful thing, too.

@fluffyfebruary @ayresis @starlightcleric @ermingarden @bluephoenix1347 @sarpndo -- heist fic!

#fluffy february #swtor #theron shan #theron shan/smuggler #lana beniko #koth vortena #heist fic #oc: eva corolastor

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pizzazz-party · 1 year ago

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About the Dragaux Pin

First off, I would like to thank everyone who ordered a pin this past week—we actually sold out of A grade shinies, if you can believe it! Thank you all so much for your faith and patience and the incredibly kind messages you left in the notes of your orders. I hope you all love your pins.

Okay, now onto business.

So, about the Dragaux pin—I’m still waiting for sample pictures from my manufacturer, to make sure the enamel colors will come out just right before production officially begins. It’s taking longer than I thought it would, so I’m hesitant to give out an official release date. But a standard shipment takes the manufacturer about three weeks to complete (plus shipping), and the backing cards (that I’m ordering from elsewhere) also take about a week or so to make (plus shipping). That last part’s kind of important; I haven’t released the design yet, but the backing card IS Dragaux’s upper body. And he can potentially look very silly/bad if his head and body are two wildly different skin tones.

Give or take a couple of weeks, it’s looking like the Dragaux preorders may go live next month in early October, and ship by around the end of that month. If something changes, I will post about it in the pin news tag.

Which brings me to my next point.

Once I did the math, I didn’t think anyone from the EU would still be interested in these pins. Don’t get me wrong! Plenty of people asked. But the shipping is a lot, the VAT is a lot, and the specifics tend to take people by surprise. But then EU people continued to ask about both pins anyway, even after I put those numbers out. So for all my international customers out there, who want to buy both Ring AND Dragaux pins, I’m willing to cut you a deal. If you don’t mind the wait (and you promise to check your email on time), I’m willing to hold onto your Ring pin until your Dragaux pin ships, so that you don’t end up having to pay a total of roughly eighty-odd something USD for two pins. But you have to request it yourself, either here in my DMs or through the site’s contact page. And past the Dragaux preorder period, I will not continue to keep any more Ring pins in reserve, no matter who asks.

———

That’s all for this Sunday. Until next time, everyone. (Which will probably only be in a few days, but I’ll collect a recap for next Sunday as well.)

———

Pin new and updates tag.

#pizzazz contemplates pins #enamel pins #this deal is not just for EU customers its for all international folk #dragaux #ring fit adventure #rfa #Nintendo

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mirilich · 9 months ago

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I am angry and it's late, time to write a strongly worded post to the editor.

What went wrong? - chapter 1

aka "The Graveyard of Dreams"

It's blue.

It's always the blue one that screw things.

This never happens when its white or grey, it's always blue that is the cursed color.

The European masters of the past had to use lapis lazuli powder to create blue pigment for their paintings, it was an expensive color so it was mostly used to paint the robes of virgin Mary.

Mesoamericans came up with their own formula to achieve the blessed color, their technical mastery were such that the so called 'Maya blue' had remarkable durability, withstanding for centuries. It is said that this pigment was used to paint the bodies of human sacrifices for the gods.

Society forgot it's origins, manufacturing blue commodities with absolute disregard for the past but the Blue never forgets.

I had a PLA printer. I knew it was a very cheap brand, it constantly had problems but I persisted until a blue filament produced so many failures I gave up.

Years later I get a resin printer, everything is doing great until we bought a blue resin on sale. I usually go for white and grey but hey, it was on sale. It was working fine for a while until suddenly all prints started failing, my usual maintenance was not proving fruitful at solving anything, I was not even getting misprints, nothing, absolutely nothing was happening.

I decide to go deeper and remove the vat, I check under it and discover the resin was leaking. I clean it and try again, still nothing. Time to go deeper, I slowly start disassembling it, to my horror I find blue resin leaking inside the printer, atop the electronic components plus the print screen had cured resin all over it explaining why nothing was being printed.

I check the price of a new print screen, its almost the price of an entire new printer.

It's the Blue once again taking its toll. It did not forget it was once the color of the gods.

#plot twist: I am the editor

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news365times · 22 hours ago

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New Delhi, 28th Nov. President Smt Droupadi Murmu visited the Defence Services Staff College (DSSC), Wellington in The Nilgiris District, Tamil Nadu on November 28, 2024. Addressing the student officers and faculty, the President said the DSSC has made commendable contribution to training & educating the potential leaders of the Armed Forces of India and friendly countries & selected civilian officers. Over the past seven decades, it has played a major role in professionally grooming the middle level officers. It has the unique distinction of having a composite multi-service and multi-national group of student officers and a professionally enriched faculty. The President was happy to note that women officers are now commanding various units in all the three services. She said that the increasing strength and role of women in all spheres is encouraging and inspiring for all, especially young girls. She expressed hope for witnessing more and more women joining the Armed Forces, where they can demonstrate exceptional capabilities and break new ground in uncharted territories. The President said that India is rising and the world is acknowledging the growth in various sectors, including defence. India is moving towards indigenisation and self-reliance to keep the Armed Forces ready to meet the future challenges. The country is being developed as a major defence manufacturing hub, and is moving towards becoming a reliable defence partner & big defence exporter. The President said: “In the fast-changing geopolitical environment, we need to be well-prepared to tackle any situation. We not only have to secure our national interests, but also prepare for new national security challenges like cyber warfare and terrorism. Updated knowledge and cutting-edge technologies based on intensive research are required to be applied.” She expressed confidence that this course will prepare student officers all for higher responsibilities and as strategists who can deal with complex situations in an effective manner. The President appreciated the unique role of the institution in nurturing the future senior leadership of the Armed Forces. She appreciated the creativity, dedication and the focus with which training is being conducted at the College. She also complimented the student officers for having being selected for the prestigious Staff Course at DSSC, and their rigourous efforts while undertaking this course. The President also interacted with the Student Officers, including 38 from friendly countries, attending the course at the DSSC. She hailed the role of the International Student Officers in strengthening the mutual cooperation and relationship of their countries with India, and wished them a fruitful and successful stay at DSSC. The President also laid a wreath at the War Memorial, and interacted with Ex-servicemen & Veer Naris. The President felicitated the Veer Naris acknowledging the supreme sacrifice of their loved ones in the service to the Nation. She was accompanied by Minister of Backward Classes (Minister-in-Waiting) of Tamil Nadu Government Shri Siva V Meyyanathan and Commandant DSSC Lt Gen Virendra Vats. Established in 1948, DSSC is a premier Tri-services institute with a mandate to train and hone their skills of selected middle-level officers of the Armed Forces of India and friendly countries. Since its inception, the College has trained more than 2,000 International Officers, and 24,000 Indian Officers have passed through its portals. The College alumni, over the years, have risen to become heads of States and Militaries across the world. The President appreciated the training activities being conducted at the College with special emphasis on initiatives undertaken on enhancing jointmanship amongst the officers of the Indian Armed Forces.

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whitepolaris · 22 days ago

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A Grave and a Ghost in a Soap-Store Basement

Christiane Strommen was forty-three when she died in May 1878, probably somewhere near the town of Sparta. Her grief-stricken husband commissioned a beautiful white marble headstone and had it inscribed in Norwegian: HERE LIES THE DUST OF CHRISTIANE, WIFE OF OLE O. STROMMEN. Little did he know that over a century later, his wife's tombstone, if not necessarily her dust, would be cemented into the basement wall of a soapmaker's store called Natural Scentsations and that the store's owners would feel they had more than a nodding acquaintance with the long-dead Christiane!

"It's always mischievous, nothing evil," says Natural Scentsations owner Jean Kempfer. "I'm not afraid, because nothing evil has happened. Just weird stuff." Try weird, audible, visible, and tactile.

Jean and her husband, Dave, bought the former auto livery building in downtown Sparta in 2002, thinking that the brick edifice on historic Water Street, next to the bridge over the La Crosse River, would be a perfect place to make and sell their line of natural soaps. In the past decade, Sparta, which bills itself as the Bicycling Capital of the World, has become a tourist magnet because of its scenic bike path and the mile-long stone tunnel that wends its way to neighboring Elroy.

The Kempfers were completely unaware that anything might be amiss until they started remodeling the old building. "I didn't know the tombstone was here," said Jean. "The basement was spooky, with no lights."

The couple subsequently learned that their store's site was originally the location of a mill that had been in operation in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, until the wooden structure burned to the ground in the early 1920s. The brick structure that stands today was built in 1925 to house "newfangled" horseless carriages, and it was at that time Christiane's headstone somehow became cemented into the stone basement wall. No one knows if this was because her grave was discovered by workmen and left in place or if the headstone was simply commandeered as a surplus item to provide reinforcement for the wall. Using old headstones in such a way was not unheard of, says Monroe County historian Jarrod Roll. It's also interesting to note that there are no extant records indicating that the Strommens ever lived or near Sparta, leading Roll to conjecture that perhaps they were passing through town when Christiane died. Her husband may have ordered a maker and never paid for it, which would explain why the stone appears unweathered despite its age. But no one really knows, since the soil behind the tombstone wall has not been excavated.

Although the Kempfers were astonished when they discovered that their new place of business might also be a cemetery, they weren't about to remove the headstone. So when they drywalled the basement to provide a cleaner environment for manufacturing their soap, they carefully framed the graceful monument and left it in place. Then odd things began to happen. It started with the Kempfers' employee Kristine Peterson, who, coincidentally, bears the English version of the name Christiane. When the Kempfers hired her she was forty-three, the same age Christiane had been at the time of her death. As Kristine worked in the basement mixing and pouring vats of soap, she began feeling she was not alone. Soon she would not only get the eerie feeling that someone was watching her, but several times she actually felt someone's finger gently stroking her earlobe! The first time it happened, she thought Jean or Dave had sneaked up behind her, but when she whirled around to check, no one was there.

Kristine wasn't too disturbed, though, saying, "I would always just say, 'Hi, Christiane.'" But one day, when Kristine was downstairs alone, a plastic hamper began "jumping by itself," until finally the lid flew off and landed across the room. It seemed Christiane was beginning to make her presence known in a more aggressive way.

Then Dave began seeing a milky-white form in the hallway leading from the basement stairs to the store. "He'd see it in his peripheral vision," said Jean. And late one day, after Jean walked upstairs from the basement, she suddenly heard a woman's voice singing below. "There weren't any words. It was more like chanting," Jean said. She listened for about five minutes. "Then I got kind of spooked. It was the dead of winter, so I just went home."

That day, Jean had also heard noises in the basement wall that sounded like something like pounding pipes, but she was perplexed, since she knew there was no pipes in that wall. The next night, she and Dave were watching a movie when she heard on the soundtrack the exact same sound she'd heard in her basement. In an eerie coincidence, the sound in the movie was made by water rushing through pipes in the mill that had once stood on the property in Christiane's lifetime.

The most spectacular ghostly manifestation occurred on March 16, the day of the store's grand opening. The previous day, Joe Cook, a local high school teacher interested in paranormal, had asked to tour the building after hearing about the ghostly goings-on. Cook, who later published a book called The Haunting of Sparta, asked to see the building's attic, because the louvers of the tree attic windows kept opening by themselves. When he managed to get through the small trapdoor in the back room's ceiling, he saw an antique oak kitchen chair near the window, covered in dust and positioned so that someone could sit and look out over the street.

Cook asked Kempfer if she would like the chair brought downstairs to display in her store. She was delighted with the idea, and the chair was carefully pulled down through the opening and cleaned. Later that day, Cook and several friends elected to stay overnight in the store's basement. They reported hearing a variety of odd, unexplained noises, including one very distinct set of three sharp knocks. The group cleared out by eight the next morning, everyone feeling slightly unsettled.

That same morning, Kempfer prepared a small feast for the opening-day party. She set out bowls of punch and a variety of sandwiches, cookies, and other munchables on two sturdy eight-foot-long tables. The store had begun to full with people and Kempfer went to fetch something from the back room.

Suddenly, she heard a tremendous crash, so she hurried back to investigate. To her shock, the entire contents of a small refreshment table lay in a broken, messy heap on the floor next to the larger table. The guests stared, unable to believe what they had just witnessed. Sharon Folcey, director of the Sparta Chamber of Commerce, was one of them. "I'm not one of those people that believes in such things," she said in a phone interview with Weird Wisconsin. "But I was standing on one side with some folks, and on the other side were the Little Mermaid and Junior Miss Sparta. It did not fall like a normal thing would fall; it was like in slow motion. . . . At first, I assumed the kids had pushed it, but then I realized it fell toward them, and they were too far away from it. They were standing there looking at it like everyone else."

It didn't take the Kempfers long to finger their suspect. "I said later, 'Oh-oh, I guess Christiane wants her chair back,'" explained Jean. The chair was eventually restored to the attic, and the intensity of the spectral disturbances decreased.

Christiane's presence is still occasionally seen and heard, but nothing as mischievous as before. Jean commented, "Our store smells like oils and incense, the things people burn at séances. Maybe Christiane likes that."

#type read #weird wisconsin #long ass read

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donhlg · 26 days ago

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Is 100% Company Ownership Possible for Expats in Saudi Arabia?

Introduction

Saudi Arabia has introduced significant reforms under the Vision 2030 initiative, transforming the business environment and attracting foreign investors. A key concern for expatriates looking to start a business in the Kingdom is whether they can have 100% ownership of their company. This article explores Saudi Arabia's foreign ownership laws, the industries that allow full expat ownership, and the steps expats must take to register and set up a fully-owned business in KSA.

Understanding Foreign Ownership Laws in Saudi Arabia: Is 100% Ownership Allowed?

In the past, Saudi Arabia's business ownership laws mandated that expatriates could not own more than 49% of a company, with a Saudi national required to hold the majority stake. This restriction created hurdles for foreign investors who wanted complete control of their enterprises. However, under Vision 2030, this has changed significantly, particularly for industries critical to the nation's diversification strategy.

Today, it is possible for expats to own 100% of a company in Saudi Arabia, but this is subject to several conditions and sector limitations. The Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA), now known as the Ministry of Investment (MISA), plays a pivotal role in granting licenses that allow full foreign Ownership. Certain vital sectors, such as technology, manufacturing, healthcare, education, and tourism, have been opened up for full foreign Ownership.

However, some sectors, particularly those linked to national security or strategic industries, still do not allow 100% foreign ownership. In such sectors, joint ventures with Saudi nationals are still required. Before starting the business setup process, expats should confirm if their intended business activity falls under the approved categories for full foreign Ownership.

Steps to Achieve 100% Ownership of a Company in Saudi Arabia

If you're an expat planning to set up a business and achieve 100% ownership in Saudi Arabia, the process can be straightforward if you follow the proper steps:

Choose Your Business Activity and Sector: The first step is determining whether your business activity falls under the sectors that allow 100% foreign ownership. IT, e-commerce, healthcare, and consultancy services are popular choices for expat-owned companies.

Obtain an Investment License: To proceed with the setup, you must apply for an investment license through MISA. This license allows you to register your business and obtain full Ownership, provided your business activity is approved.

Company Registration: After securing your investment license, you must register your business with the Ministry of Commerce. You must submit the required documentation for the registration process, such as your business plan, company bylaws, and proof of identity. You will also need to choose your company structure, such as a limited liability company (LLC), which is common for expats.

Open a Bank Account and Secure Capital: You'll need to open a corporate bank account in Saudi Arabia to deposit the minimum capital required for your business type. The minimum capital varies depending on the business sector but can range from SAR 500,000 to SAR 2 million for wholly foreign-owned companies.

Obtain a Commercial Registration (CR): The Commercial Registration (CR) is your company's official license to operate in Saudi Arabia. This is one of the final steps in the registration process and allows you to conduct business legally in the Kingdom.

Register for Tax and Other Obligations: Saudi Arabia has introduced VAT recently, and all businesses, including expat-owned ones, must register for VAT if they exceed the annual revenue threshold. Additionally, you may need to comply with other regulations depending on your industry, such as obtaining specific permits or hiring Saudi nationals as part of the Nitaqat Saudization program.

Hire Employees and Launch: Once all registration steps are completed, you can begin hiring employees, setting up your office, and launching your business in the Saudi market.

Conclusion

Owning 100% of a company as an expat in Saudi Arabia is possible, thanks to the country's progressive reforms under Vision 2030. With sectors like technology, healthcare, and manufacturing now open for full foreign Ownership, expats can play a significant role in Saudi Arabia's economic transformation. However, it is essential to thoroughly understand the legal framework, register your business correctly, and follow the required procedures to ensure compliance.

For expert assistance in setting up a business in Saudi Arabia and achieving full Ownership, rely on Saudi Helpline Group, your trusted business partner with 25 years of experience. Their dedicated team can guide you through every step, from acquiring investment licenses to ensuring full compliance with local regulations.

#companyformation #saudivision2030 #llcregistration #businessgrowth

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ashwini24 · 2 months ago

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Ashwini Industries: A Trusted Leader in Specialty Chemicals and Dyes

Ashwini Industries has carved a niche for itself in the global market, offering high-quality chemical solutions and dyes across various industries. As renowned Acid Black 2 Exporters, Antifoaming Agent AI-010 Manufacturers, Solvent Black 5 Manufacturers, Vat Paste Manufacturers, and Fluorescent Pigment Paste Manufacturers, We are committed to delivering innovative products that meet the highest industry standards.

Acid Black 2 Exporters

Ashwini Industries is a leading name among Acid Black 2 Exporters, providing premium-grade dyes for textiles, leather, and ink applications. Known for its deep black shade and excellent solubility, Acid Black 2 is widely used across various sectors. We ensures that the product is manufactured under strict quality control, offering consistency and reliability to its clients globally.

Antifoaming Agent AI-010 Manufacturers

Foam control is a critical factor in many industrial processes, and We excels as Antifoaming Agent AI-010 Manufacturers. Their AI-010 formulation, available in silicone and non-silicone variants, is designed to efficiently reduce and prevent foam in industries such as water treatment, textiles, and food processing. The environmentally friendly and non-toxic composition ensures that the product meets industry requirements while maintaining operational efficiency.

Solvent Black 5 Manufacturers

As leading Solvent Black 5 Manufacturers, We offers a versatile dye widely used in inks, coatings, and plastics. Solvent Black 5 is prized for its excellent solubility in organic solvents, making it a top choice for industries such as printing, leather, and synthetic materials. Ashwini's production processes ensure high-quality color consistency, meeting the specific demands of various industrial applications.

Vat Paste Manufacturers

Specializing as Vat Paste Manufacturers, Ashwini Industries produces concentrated dye pastes used in textile printing and dyeing. Known for their vibrant, long-lasting colors, vat pastes are commonly applied to natural fibers like cotton and wool. The paste undergoes a reduction process, allowing for deep, rich shades that offer excellent wash and light fastness, making it a popular choice in the textile industry.

Fluorescent Pigment Paste Manufacturers

Innovation in color technology is one of Ashwini’s strengths, especially as Fluorescent Pigment Paste Manufacturers. These pigment pastes are used to produce bright, eye-catching colors in industries such as printing, paints, and coatings. Ashwini’s fluorescent pigment pastes provide superior color strength and durability, making them an ideal choice for applications that demand vivid, high-visibility hues.

Why Choose Ashwini Industries?

With a focus on quality, sustainability, and innovation, We continues to lead the way in the specialty chemicals and dyes sector. Their expertise across a wide range of products ensures that industries worldwide can rely on them for high-performance solutions tailored to their specific needs.

Hence, whether you're looking for Acid Black 2, Antifoaming Agents, Solvent Black 5, Vat Pastes, or Fluorescent Pigment Pastes, We are your trusted partner for top-quality, reliable chemical solutions. Their commitment to excellence guarantees that your business benefits from the best products in the industry.

#Acid Black 2 Exporters #Antifoaming Agent AI-010 Manufacturers #Solvent Black 5 Manufacturers #Vat Paste Manufacturers #Fluorescent Pigment Paste Manufacturers

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rkindustriesbarodaseostuff-blog · 4 months ago

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RK Industries | Quality Vat Paste Dyes Supplier | India

Discover reliable vat paste dyes for your textile needs at RK Industries Baroda. Our high-quality products ensure excellent dyeing results. visit our website.

#vat paste manufactur or supplier industry in india #best vat paste supplier in India #top manufactur of vat paste in India

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clonemediaarchive · 3 months ago

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Carbon Copy Consumables by Deborah Sheldon

https://www.sciencewritenow.com/read/science-humour-and-the-absurd/carbon-copy-consumables

Look, what you’ve got to understand about industry – and I’m talking about the food industry in particular – is that the pursuit of money always trumps common sense. It’s been this way since Year Dot. For instance, there’s only one type of banana across the whole planet, the Cavendish, but here’s the kicker: each piece of fruit is a clone. I’m not bullshitting you. They’re grown from suckers. So, every banana is genetically identical. If a pathogen comes along that can wipe out just one banana, it’ll wipe out the crop worldwide.

And this isn’t a theory, mind you. It happened already.

Prior to the Cavendish, the only commercial banana was another cloned variety, the Gros Michel, and that crop got destroyed by a kind of soil fungus in the 1960s. The Cavendish was its replacement. But did the food industry learn anything from putting all its eggs – or Gros Michel bananas – into the one basket? No, except to do it all over again because of economics. Even when the smallest possible risk is complete and utter catastrophe. You see where I’m coming from? Money trumps common sense. Every. Single. Time.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against food cloning. That’s my trade, after all. Cloning is a great idea. Finding a way to computerise, mechanise and standardise the process solved a lot of problems like overfishing, deforestation, famines, and suchlike and et cetera, but hey, I don’t need to make a speech. Anybody with half a brain knows that food cloning factories are a boon to mankind. I’m only stating my point of view for the record.

Also, for the record, my name is Charles Pomeroy but everyone calls me Charlie. I’m thirty-four years old, single, no kids, Aussie by birth, and a factory runner for Carbon Copy Consumables. For the past eight years, I’ve worked at their Antarctica plant servicing the research stations, hotels, resorts, casinos, theme park, restaurants, private homes and what have you. The busiest time of year is summer when the tourist ships come by the dozen and every business is running at full capacity. With about nine thousand mouths to feed, I have to run the factory twenty-four seven. Yeah, all by my lonesome.

The company website explains their setup if you’re interested, but in a nutshell, the Antarctica factory is about a kilometre long, three storeys high, covered in gantries and stuffed to the gills with machines. Carbon Copy Consumables is ‘lights-out’ manufacturing with everything controlled by a bunch of computers. Even the trucks that pick up the supplies are automated and self-driven, and each truck is packed by robot arms.

So, the four reasons I’m needed there…

One: feed the machines. Our base material looks like bouillon powder. It’s actually a combination of elements including carbon, nitrogen, sulphur – I forget the others – but ninety-seven percent of every living thing on Earth is made up of just six elements. Amazing, right? At full storage capacity, I’ve got six vats and each one’s about the size of a wheat silo.

Two: keep the joint hygienic. The machines have self-cleaning cycles; I top up detergents.

Three: equipment maintenance. Our machines are so smart they’re almost self-sufficient, the emphasis on ‘almost’. Nothing beats the human mind. Training to be a factory runner takes four years because you need to learn how to service every part of every machine. Yeah, there’s manuals to jog your memory, but it’s a specialised field with lifelong job security. Why would Carbon Copy Consumables sack a factory runner after investing four years into them? And you get paid top dollar while you train. Sweet gig. If you ever want a career change, look into it. Just be aware the competition is stiff. For every opening, there’s a thousand applications. You’ve got to be the best of the best.

And four: stock control. The machines can’t make informed decisions about which foods need to be cloned. I take orders from all over Antarctica. You’ve got no idea of the vast amounts of produce I churn out to allow three meals and snacks for nine thousand people in peak season. Hold onto your little cotton socks because I’m about to blow your mind. Ready?

Five tonnes of vegetables. That’s metric tonnes, mind you, per day. Two tonnes of beef, every cut from chuck to eye fillet. One tonne of chicken. Ten thousand eggs. All. Per. Day. And so on, and so forth. Can you grasp the scale of this operation? Can you imagine trying to fly this amount of naturally-sourced food into Antarctica? Well, that’s how they used to do it in the old days. That’s why the population was capped at about one thousand; the logistics of supply were too difficult.

Oh yeah, and another reason: a bunch of Antarctic Treaties about keeping the continent pristine. Those treaties were overturned for the sake of money. Capitalism is great, don’t get me wrong – it’s dragged most of the world out of poverty – but there’s a few drawbacks here. Did you know that one-third of Antarctica is now a giant tip covered in garbage? Anyhow, that’s progress. Two steps forward, one step back. Don’t worry, a company will come up with a way to turn rubbish into something useful, like gold, if there’s money in it.

Sure, I’m on good terms with the freight runners, ship captains, pilots, et cetera. You know what? Cards on the table? I’ll come straight out and tell you that my partner in the botany scheme was a pilot named Jenny. I’m guessing you’re interrogating her anyway, so there’s no point me trying to be discreet. The whole sideline about the plants was her idea, with a forty-sixty split. She promised me bucketloads of cash, and boy, was she right on the money.

There are two flowering plants native to Antarctica: the hair grass and the pearlwort. You find them mainly on the western peninsula and on a couple of islands. One time Jenny told me, while she was waiting on her plane to be refuelled and loaded, that some knob-ends from Sydney’s North Shore were scouting for unusual plants for their daughter’s bridal bouquet and table arrangements, and would I be interested in some quick dough?

Now, these Antarctic plants look pretty dull, but that’s not the point. Rarity symbolises wealth. Even if the plants happened to look like busted arseholes covered in fly-blown crap, it wouldn’t matter. Do you know what happened in the seventeenth century when the pineapple was first brought over to Britain from Barbados? Well, the pineapple was such a rare fruit, and so expensive, that super-rich people would bung one in the middle of their ballroom and host a party to flex on their high-society friends. The not-so-rich rented pineapples for the sole purpose of bragging. Even a rotting pineapple had prestige.

And hundreds of years later, rich people are exactly the same.

Long story short, yeah, I cloned the plants, and Jenny sold them to this family. Within months, Jenny and me had an enterprise. Strictly under the table, of course. It’s not like we took out ads. Word of mouth only. Just like the trade in stolen art works, right? Inner circle stuff. People want to show off to their mates, not get arrested by Interpol.

Oh, we made money for jam. And we never worried about us double-crossing each other. Jenny couldn’t run the plants through the machines herself because cloning is locked down tighter than the diamond industry. I couldn’t get plants out of Antarctica without a pilot’s licence, and besides that, didn’t have any contacts with buyers. Jenny and I were partners in crime. Both of us faced jail. We had reasons to be faithful to our handshake.

But word gets around in the upper echelons of the filthy rich.

And soon, Jenny came to me with another request, this time from Asia. Some billionaire wanted to throw a dinner party with penguin on the menu.

Look, I’m not going to debate which animals are okay to eat and which ones aren’t. As far as I’m concerned, once you’ve eaten meat, you’ve crossed a line and can’t wag the finger at anybody for their choices. Still, I had to think about this offer for a long, long while. Could I really offer up cloned penguins knowing they were destined for someone’s cooking pot?

Jenny had convincing arguments, namely… I provided beef, lamb, pork and chicken as food, didn’t I, so what’s the difference? The penguin destined for the table wouldn’t be the original or ‘real’ penguin, just a clone, while the real penguin would be released back into the wild, unharmed, free to live its life, swim and raise babies. Penguins get eaten by seals and orcas every day, so why not by people? Et cetera. Bottom line: the money was jaw-dropping.

Antarctica has lots of different penguins like king, adelie, chinstrap, gentoo. Penguins are fast in water; on land they’re bumbling idiots. My first penguin was a chinstrap, so-called because it has this little banding of black feathers under its beak. It’s an aggro species but small and real clumsy on the ice. It took five minutes to stuff one in my backpack. Hey, there’s about eight million of the buggers; it wasn’t like taking one for a couple of hours would upset the balance of anything important.

Right?

And yet…I’d never put a live animal through the machines. For some reason, I imagined the cloned penguin would be turned inside-out. Crazy, huh? I had to keep reminding myself that fruits and vegetables are alive when they’re cloned. Oh yes, of course they are – if they were dead, they’d be withered and black.

Even so, I had a big problem. The machines can’t read anything that’s moving because they work on similar principles to 3D food printers. I had to find a way to keep the penguin as still as possible. I chose sleeping pills. My working hours are all over the place. Naturally, I’ve got stashes. I figured the medication would stay in the bird’s guts and blood, and not migrate into its muscles. Therefore, anyone who ate its meat wouldn’t get dosed.

I cloned the drugged bird.

The process takes seventeen minutes for the first replication. After that, once the sequencing is worked out, the replication rate is lightning fast: pow, pow, pow. The cloned penguins were asleep, which made packaging and transportation much easier. Since we use automated systems to load trucks and planes, only me and Jenny knew what was going on.

Good God, over the next year…

Money, money, money.

So much money…

Occasionally, there were ‘exposés’ on blogs and threads about illegal penguin meat, but the mainstream media figured it was an urban myth. Hah! I supplied every kind of penguin that exists in Antarctica. Yet each specimen I kidnapped was returned, unharmed, to the ice shelf where I found it. I never penned any of them to save time. That would’ve been cruel. And remember, the clones exported for eating purposes weren’t ‘real’ in the same way the original penguins were real. Manufactured clones don’t count. That’s law, right?

Soon we got other requests. Antarctic seabirds became popular: blue-eyed shag, giant petrel, snowy sheathbill, cape pigeon. But these birds can fly! Trapping them required ingenuity on my part; luckily, I’m very intelligent. The price per kilo had to be higher than for penguins. Astronomically higher. That said, Antarctic seabirds are stringy. You’ve got to braise them low and slow. Even if you’re a pro chef who does everything perfectly, the meat still comes out dry, chaffy, tasteless. Look, it’s not about flavour. Remember the pineapple? If dog shit was rare, the one-percenters would serve it at dinner parties with silver spoons.

Did I eat any of these meats? No. Beef, chicken, lamb, pork: that’ll do fine. Occasionally I eat fish and seafood but don’t come at me with weird shit like eel, oysters or sea urchin. Novelty doesn’t interest me. I won’t try a food just for the ‘experience’. Not that I’m shaming anyone who’s into that kind of thing. Live and let live, I always say.

So, dealing in cloned plants, penguins, seabirds…as you can imagine, I was busy.

Busy enough that I swapped sleeping pills for amphetamines. The factory ran twenty-four seven and I had a side business that was essentially a full-time job in itself – when could I sleep? And the money was another time-sink. Do you know how difficult it is to launder and hide cash? You can’t use bank accounts without explaining why, how, when, and the tax department always sticks in its beak. From necessity, I stayed awake for three, sometimes four days at a stretch. Ah, crazy times... But after a few years, I was going to retire and cruise the world on a five-hundred-foot yacht.

It was exhaustion, I guess. Desperation. Amphetamines don’t create energy; they stop you from sleeping, and the sleep debt adds up. Then you start making dumb decisions. That’s the only way I can explain it. One day, when I was popping another pill and staring in the mirror at the black bags under my eyes, I thought, “Why the hell am I killing myself, burning the candle at both ends – and in the middle too – when there’s such an easy solution?”

Sure, the idea gave me pause. Each of us likes to think of ourselves as unique. But I got to pondering about identical twins, triplets, quadruplets, quintuplets. I’m an only child. Would it be so bad to have a ‘brother’? We could split the chores. Perhaps share some of my money. I was the mastermind, so any divvying of funds would be at my discretion since the clone would be my employee, right? I know how it sounds, but it made perfect sense at the time.

Putting myself into the machine was like taking a seat in an untested rollercoaster. You’re doing something that should be perfectly safe, at least in theory, but feels terrifying. The machine clicked, hummed, buzzed, whirred, knocked, whistled, tapped, and each sound scared the absolute shit out of me as I lay on the table, motionless, because I’d never heard those sounds before and I began to panic, wondering if something had gone wrong, if I would die. Get turned inside-out.

Let me tell you, that was an excruciating seventeen-minute wait.

The alarm went off: the sequencing and first replication had finished. I laughed and cried in relief. I’d only keyed in one clone. Just one. I got off the table and ran to the other end of the factory, which took about five minutes. The Other Charlie was standing there in my uniform. You know what surprised me? It turns out I’m bow-legged. I had no idea. The other thing that bothered me was his posture. His shoulders were tilted one way and his hips the other, as if there was a sideways bend in his spine, but subtle, very mild. I guess I was critical because I was seeing myself in the flesh for the first time. I looked old. Maybe that was on account of how tired I was, so empty and rundown.

“Charlie?” I said. “Do you understand what’s going on?”

“Perfectly,” he said. “Let’s get started.”

“Sweet,” I said. “Run the shift while I get some shut-eye. I’ll be back later with a chinstrap penguin.”

“No worries,” he said, and went about his – our – business.

I had the most restful sleep I’ve enjoyed in ages. Then I took a snowmobile and headed to an ice shelf. Have you ever visited Antarctica? It’s beautiful. Light-blue ice mountains, clear sky, snow in all shades and textures. Anyway, I spotted a crowd of chinstrap penguins – they stick out like dog’s balls against the white landscape – and parked my snowmobile about half a kilometre distant so the engine noise wouldn’t spook them. I walked the rest of the way. And as I trudged over the last little rise, damned if I didn’t find the Other Charlie squatting there, wrestling a penguin into his backpack while a horde of angry penguins shrieked at him.

“What the hell’s going on?” I said, pissed off. “Why aren’t you at the factory?”

“What are you talking about?” he said. “You’re the one supposed to be running the shift.”

“Bullshit,” I said. “So, who’s running the shift?”

“I guess nobody is now,” he said, and looked annoyed, pouting, as if I was the one who’d done the wrong thing. “We’d better get back. I’ve got a penguin already, so let’s go.”

We rode to town on our respective snowmobiles. I was fuming the whole journey. Clearly, the Other Charlie was throwing his weight around. He wanted to be equal partners, not my employee. But as the original Charlie Pomeroy I had first dibs. As we neared civilisation, I wracked my brains, trying to figure how to rein in this cheeky bastard.

Back at the factory, we both got a surprise.

Some Other Charlie was there and he looked just as shocked to see us.

“How come there’s two of you?” he said. “What the hell’s going on?”

“You’re asking me what’s going on?” I said. “I’m the one who deserves answers.”

“Why do you deserve answers?” the Other Charlie said, hands on hips.

The three of us got to arguing. My theory: Other Charlie had the same bright idea and had cloned himself while I’d slept. However, Other Charlie and Some Other Charlie were both now insisting they were the original, which was ludicrous, considering it was me who first went through the replication process. Meanwhile, the penguin thrashed inside the backpack, squawking its head off, and I started to worry the little bugger was going to hurt himself. When the three of us headed to the backpack at the same time, we halted, stunned.

“What the hell’s going on?” said a voice, and blow me if there wasn’t a fourth Charlie walking over, his face pale and shocked. “How come there’s three of you?”

And the four of us yelled at the same time, “What the hell’s going on?”, which made the hairs stand up on the back of my neck. But it scared my clones in the exact same way and when I saw the identical expressions of fear on their faces, I started to shake. They started shaking too in perfect mimicry. I was caught in a hall of mirrors. My heart banged hard enough to explode. Meanwhile, the trapped penguin screeched over and over. We turned to the backpack as one. And then—

“What the hell’s going on?” said a voice.

Christ, it was another Charlie. I can’t explain the horror!

Then another Charlie appeared. And another...and another…

God, the way I figure it, each clone must have cloned himself, unaware.

After some fraught arguing, the bunch and I ended up cooperating to scour the kilometre of factory from one end to the other in order to flush out any other Charlies. Meanwhile, more Charlies kept arriving at intervals with kidnapped penguins. Each time, we’d have to stop and have another pow-wow.

God, if it wasn’t so terrifying, maybe it’d be funny.

We walked together in a line, shoulder to shoulder. Each of us ignored the distressed penguins without discussion. We found about a dozen more Charlies at various points, who joined our search, while others kept coming in from outside, bearing penguins. The birds wouldn’t stop calling to each other, distressed and frantic. The chinstrap sounds a lot like a seagull, did you know that? I kept closing my eyes against their cries, trying to imagine that I was on a beach somewhere and only dreaming this nightmare, until I noticed my clones doing the same thing and felt a heart-seizing panic attack coming on.

When the alarm sounded, we froze and stared at each other in terror. The alarm meant that yet another Charlie had been created, and would soon be jogging towards us from the far end of the factory, shouting, “What the hell’s going on?” I’d forgotten to turn off the machines. We all had. How many clones in total? Oh God, I don’t know. I couldn’t even guess…

Getting sprung by the authorities was my fault.

Whenever I cloned a plant, penguin or seabird, I deleted the history from the logs. For some reason – probably because I was sleep-deprived – I forgot to do that after making the Other Charlie. And because he’s me, he forgot to delete the history when he created his own clone, and so on. That tripped a red flag at Carbon Copy Consumables, and then military police came, and well…you know the rest.

Listen, I understand that clones aren’t protected under any laws or Geneva conventions. Fair enough. Unauthorised clones have to be put down. No complaint from me on that score. My only issue is that you destroy the clones and not me by mistake. I’m happy to go to jail if that’s my punishment, or pay a fine or whatever. Surely, there’s some way to tell us apart? A medical test. Isn’t there? There has to be. The clones might be telling you the exact same story, but my statement is the truth, I swear to God, because I’m the real deal. Okay? Hand on heart. I am the original Charlie Pomeroy.

#clone media #exact duplicate #clone short story

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market-insider · 7 months ago

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Photopolymers Market Outlook: Emerging Applications in Biomedical Engineering and Flexible Electronics

The global photopolymers market is anticipated to reach USD 5.78 billion by 2030, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 10.6% from 2023 to 2030. Rising demand for prototyping across the automotive industry and designs for understanding complex surgical procedures have increased the demand for photopolymer for 3D printing. Furthermore, increasing demand for artificial jewelry and prosthetics across the global population are further propelling the market growth.

Photopolymers Market Report Highlights

The European market was valued at USD 2.60 billion in 2022 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.6% from 2023 to 2030

High-performance 3D printing refers to technologies that endure exceptional capabilities in terms of high speed, precision, material options, and the highest print quality. These high-performance 3D printing technologies include selective laser melting (SLM), electron beam melting (EBM), continuous liquid interface production (CLIP), and multi-material 3D printing

Stereolithography (SLA) is the most commonly used 3D printing technology across the world. It utilizes laser light sources to carry out 3D printing of objects. The global demand for SLA-based 3D printing has rapidly increased in recent years owing to its ability to print 25–300-micron components at a high XY resolution utilizing plastic resins and photopolymers

Photopolymers in 3D printing across the dental industry have witnessed a rise in demand in the past few years on account of their benefits, such as high-quality molds, perfect & precise designs, smoother surfaces, and higher durability, in comparison to the traditional process of manufacturing molds using thermoforming

For More Details or Sample Copy please visit link @: Photopolymers Market Report

Photopolymers are imaging compositions, based on polymers, oligomers, and monomers which can be polymerized accordingly and cross-linked upon image-wise exposure to light radiation such as ultraviolet (UV) rays. Photopolymers used across VAT polymerization in the 3D printing processes are used in liquid form and when exposed to UV rays in the form of a laser (SLA 3D printing technology) or scattered light source (DLP/cDLP 3D printing technology), undergo polymerization process which hardens them into the desired shape, as per the requirement of the final 3D printed product.

Photopolymers have gained traction from VAT polymerization-based 3D printing technologies, including stereolithography (SLA), digital light processing (DLP), and continuous digital light processing (cDLP) owing to their higher conversion from the liquid state to solid state, higher aesthetic component quality, enhanced versatility, material performance, and part longevity. The manufacturing of prototypes for jewelry, dental, and automotive, among others, are the market drivers for the market across the globe.

The market space is highly competitive with the introduction of new technologies for high-quality and high-speed 3D printing by various companies. For instance, in May 2022, Merit3D set a record for printing 60,000 parts in a time period of eight hours. The record was accomplished using Magna 3D printers for high-speed polymerization technology offered by Photocentric.

#PhotopolymersMarket #3DPrintingMaterials #PhotopolymerResins #UVcuringTechnology #AdditiveManufacturing #DigitalPrintingTech #HolographicMaterials #FlexibleElectronics #SustainableMaterials #InnovationInPrinting #AdvancedManufacturing #FutureOfMaterials

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anlawvietnam · 1 year ago

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Starting a Business in Vietnam: A Comprehensive Guide

Introduction

Embarking on a journey to start a business in a foreign country is an exciting and potentially rewarding endeavor. With its dynamic economy and vibrant culture, Vietnam has become an increasingly attractive destination for entrepreneurs looking to establish their ventures. This comprehensive guide will delve into the intricacies of starting a business in Vietnam, providing valuable insights drawn from firsthand experience and authoritative sources.

Understanding the Vietnamese Business Landscape

Vietnam's rapid economic growth, young population, and favorable investment climate have contributed to its rise as a prominent business hub in Southeast Asia. Before delving into the practical steps of setting up a business in Vietnam, it's essential to understand its business landscape.

Economic Growth and Opportunities

Vietnam's consistent economic growth over the past decade has drawn international attention. The country's robust manufacturing sector, burgeoning technology scene, and growing consumer market offer diverse opportunities for entrepreneurs across various industries.

Investment Climate and Policies

Vietnam has made significant strides in creating an investor-friendly environment. The Vietnamese government has introduced various reforms and policies to attract foreign investment, such as tax incentives, streamlined administrative procedures, and improved infrastructure.

Practical Steps to Start a Business in Vietnam

Research and Planning

Like any business venture, starting in Vietnam begins with thorough research and meticulous planning. Understand the local market, your target audience, competitors, and regulatory requirements.

Choose the Right Business Structure

Vietnam offers different business structures for foreign investors, including Limited Liability Companies (LLC), Joint-Stock Companies (JSC), and Representative Offices. Each system has its legal implications and requirements, so choose the one that aligns with your business goals.

Registering your business is a crucial step. This involves securing a business license, noting the company name, and obtaining necessary permits from the relevant authorities. Engaging a local legal firm, such as AN Law Firm, can streamline this process and ensure compliance with local laws.

Secure Financing

Whether through personal savings, local investors, or international funding, securing financing is vital. Banks and financial institutions in Vietnam offer various financing options, but understanding the local economic landscape is essential.

Navigate Legal and Regulatory Procedures

Vietnam's legal framework can be intricate, especially for foreign investors. It's imperative to have a comprehensive understanding of labor laws, tax regulations, intellectual property rights, and other legal considerations relevant to your business.

Set Up Operational Infrastructure

Establishing a physical presence, recruiting staff, and setting up operational processes is essential for a successful business launch. Ensuring compliance with labor laws and employment regulations is paramount.

Understand Taxation

Vietnam's taxation system can be complex. Acquaint yourself with corporate income tax, value-added tax (VAT), and other relevant taxes to avoid any legal complications in the future.

Embrace Local Culture

Building relationships and understanding local customs are critical in Vietnamese business culture. Networking and fostering partnerships can significantly impact the success of your venture.

Conclusion

Starting a business in Vietnam can be a fulfilling journey filled with opportunities and challenges. As an entrepreneur, it's crucial to approach this endeavor with expertise, authoritativeness, trustworthiness, and personal experience. By adhering to the practical steps outlined in this guide and seeking advice from reputable sources like AN Law Firm, you can navigate the complexities of the Vietnamese business landscape and position your business for success in this vibrant and growing economy.

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aldiraweavetech · 1 year ago

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Textile Full Dyeing Process

The art of dyeing fabric involves imparting color onto textile materials, including yarn or finished fabric. This process dates back to at least 2600 BCE, with references found in historical texts. Initially, natural sources such as plants and animals were used to extract dyes and colors. However, from the mid-1800s, humans began developing synthetic dyes to expand the spectrum of available colors and increase the longevity of the dyeing process. There are a number of textile machinery manufacturers in India that offer best and efficient machineries to fulfil the textile manufacture needs and Weavetech is one amongst them. Weavetech is one of the best textile machinery manufacturers located in Gujarat which is a one stop solution for all your textile needs. With a quarter of a century of experience under its belt, Alidhra Weavetech is a prominent global entity that specializes in providing weaving and twisting machinery solutions. The organization has earned its reputation by offering innovative and locally developed designs that have been supplied to various parts of the world.

Textile Colorants

Dyes and pigments are colorants with distinct properties that greatly affect their application to textiles. Dyes are substances that color fabric and are typically used in a dissolved state, which then binds to the fabric. They are classified based on their chemical structure and usage, with each type of fibre requiring a specific dye. To ensure durability, dyes must possess the property of being "fast" or chemically stable, which means they should not wash away with soap and water or fade when exposed to sunlight. Dyes bind to fabrics through primary (ionic or covalent bonds) and secondary (hydrogen bonding) forces during the dyeing or printing process. Unlike dyes, pigments are insoluble and do not have an inherent attraction to textile fibres. If you are searching for textile machinery manufacturers in India, then you must get in touch with Weavetech as we have excellence and great expertise in this industry.

In the past, natural dyes sourced from various natural materials were the primary means of obtaining colors. However, with advancements in technology, synthetic dyes have gained more prominence due to their enhanced dependability, affordability, and ease of availability. Even so, certain natural dyes, including haematoxylin, carmine, and orcein, are still used today. Synthetic dyes, which are manufactured from either organic or inorganic substances, can be categorized into various types, including Direct, Acid, Basic, Reactive, Mordant, Metal complex, Vat, Sulfur, Disperse, or other types of dyes.

Dyeing Process

The techniques used for dyeing have remained relatively consistent over time and typically involve submerging textiles in a specialized solution containing dyes and other chemicals. Water is mainly used for cleaning, dyeing, applying auxiliary chemicals, and rinsing fabrics. The dyeing process comprises three primary stages, namely preparation, dyeing, and finishing, during which undesirable impurities are removed from the materials prior to the dyeing stage. To remove stains and natural color from fabrics, different cleaning methods can be employed such as using alkaline chemicals, detergents, or enzymes. Hydrogen peroxide or chlorine-based compounds are commonly used to bleach fabrics, especially when a white color is desired. Additionally, optical brightening agents may be added to enhance the whiteness of the textile before it is sold.

Textile dyeing is a process of coloring fabrics with water-based dyes, often performed under high temperatures and pressures. To ensure the dye evenly penetrates the fabric and resists fading, various chemical substances such as surfactants, acids, bases, electrolytes, carriers, leveling agents, chelating agents, emulsifying oils, and softening agents are added during the dyeing process. These chemical aids play a crucial role in achieving a uniform depth of color that is long-lasting and appropriate for the fabric's intended use.

Dyeing- The Imparting Colour

Dyeing is the art of imparting color to textiles, including fabrics, fibers, and yarns, and has been practiced by humans for millennia. Dyes are available in powder, paste, crystal, and liquid dispersion forms and dissolve readily in aqueous solutions. During dyeing, the textile material is immersed in the dye solution, and the dye molecules bond to the fibers through absorption and diffusion, which are influenced by temperature and other factors. Hand or machine dyeing can be used based on the fabric type, and it's crucial to select appropriate dyes for each fabric type. Weavetech is one of the best textile machinery manufacturers located in Gujarat and offering best quality of textile machineries.

Dyeing Methods

When it comes to dyeing textiles, the method used can either be batch or continuous. The optimal dyeing procedure depends on several factors such as the type of material being dyed (fiber, yarn, fabric, clothing), the type of fiber used, the desired quality of the dyed fabric, and the size of the dye batch. In batch dyeing, the textile material is loaded into a dyeing machine and allowed to reach equilibrium with the dye solution, whereby the dye molecules transfer from the solution into the fibers due to their affinity for the fibers. This process ensures that the textile is evenly and thoroughly dyed, resulting in high-quality dyed fabric.

If you are a textile manufacturer looking to improve the efficiency and productivity of your dyeing process, it's time to consider upgrading your dyeing machinery. Investing in Weavetech dyeing machines can significantly improve the quality of your dyed fabric, reduce dyeing time, minimize wastage, and increase your production output. Don't settle for outdated machinery that hinders your growth and profitability. Take action now and invest in advanced dyeing machinery to stay ahead of the competition and meet the ever-increasing demands of the textile industry.

This Blog Originally Posted:

https://www.weavetech.com/blog-detail/36/textile-full-dyeing-process/

#textile machine #manufacturing #best textile machinery manufacturers

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