text:
The Prisoner of Benda
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"The Prisoner of Benda" is the ninety-eighth episode of Futurama, the tenth of the sixth production season and the tenth of the seventh broadcast season. It aired on 19 August, 2010, on Comedy Central. The Professor and Amy are cleaning up a mind-switching machine that switches the crew members' minds, but everything goes haywire and they can't change back.
The story
Act I: "We're just the people this Mind-Switcher was made for by us!"
Bender is watching the news, and finds out that Emperor Nikolai of the Robo-Hungarian Empire is visiting New New York in his yacht, the RMS Overkill. He plans on stealing the Emperor's crown, but he cannot get his co-workers to help him by doing specific jobs (Amy seducing the guards, Zoidberg cutting the alarm wire, and Fry taking the fall). Meanwhile, Amy and the Professor put the finishing touches on the Mind-Switcher. The Professor reveals that he had always wanted to live life to the extreme while he was young, and Amy reveals that she still has that demonic food lust from way back, despite having obtained an elegant figure since 2997. They decide to switch minds, so that the Professor could use Amy's young body to do extreme sports, and Amy could eat all she wants in the Professor's old body, since he was so thin. However, when they try to switch back into their normal bodies, they find out that the Mind-Switcher only works once with the same pair of people. They try to solve this problem by putting Farnsworth's mind in Bender's body, and Bender's mind in Amy's body. However, the Professor realizes that it wouldn't work, and Bender runs off with Amy's body to pull of the heist. Amy finds out that it is difficult to eat with an elderly digestive system, and she convinces Leela to switch bodies with her, so that Leela could get the Professor's senior discount at the movies. Fry is disgusted that Leela is in the Professor, and she claims that Fry is shallow, and had only loved her for her body. Meanwhile, Bender in Amy's body swims to Nikolai's yacht, where he ties up his guard and cousin Basil. However, he is then caught by Nikolai.
Act II: "A man could give her a toke of her own medicine."
Bender in Amy's body proves that he is a Bending robot to Nikolai and Basil. Nikolai reveals to Bender that he had always wanted to live the life of a normal person, without all the fame and fortune of an Emperor. Bender decides to use this to his advantage, by telling him that he could put his mind into his real Bending Unit body, and in exchange, Bender will live the life of an Emperor in Nikolai's body. The two of them go back to Planet Express where Bender finds out that the Professor, who was in Bender's body, ran off to join Circus Roboticus as a daredevil named "Nonchalanto". Needing a robot body for the Emperor to reside in, Bender switches minds with Wash Bucket, and then switches minds with Emperor Nikolai, so that Nikolai had Wash Bucket's body, and Bender had Nikolai's body. Meanwhile, Fry decides to get revenge on Leela by putting himself in a hideous body and prove that she is shallow too. He switches minds with Zoidberg so that now Fry has Zoidberg's body and Zoidberg has Fry's body. Nikolai in Wash Bucket's body thinks that Zoidberg in Fry's body is his human friend as Bender said, and Zoidberg pretends to be Fry so that he could have a companion. Fry in Zoidberg's body confronts Leela in the Professor's body. In order to prove that neither of them are shallow, they both decide to go on a date at Elzar's Fine Cuisine. Leela finds out that her body is getting ruined by Amy, who is making it obese by eating butter. Hermes Conrad agrees to switch bodies with her, so that Hermes would be in Leela's body. Meanwhile, Bender is enjoying life as an Emperor, but is shocked when Nikolai's fiancée Princess Flavia and Basil pull out guns and swords to assassinate him.
Act III: "This is for Big Bertha."
Fry in Zoidberg, and Leela in the Professor go for a meal at Elzar's, both trying to repulse the other as much as possible with their new bodies. They both try to prove to each other that they are not shallow by making out on the table at the restaurant, as Amy in Hermes' body, and many others, watch. Meanwhile, Fry's real body, occupied by Zoidberg, takes Nikolai in Wash Bucket's body to Fry and Bender's apartment, despite the fact that neither of them had ever been there. Zoidberg's unfamiliarity with normal living conditions leads him to pull out a stove, creating a gas leak. Nikolai asks Zoidberg to light his cigar and they blow up the apartment. As this is happening, Bender in Nikolai's body manages to get back to the mainland of New New York, with Basil and Flavia shooting at him from behind. He is chased into the United Nations building where Nikolai was supposed to give a speech. However, Basil runs in after him with a sword and attacks him on live television. Meanwhile, Wash Bucket in Amy's body finds Scruffy in his quarters and confesses her love to him. She wants the two of them to move to another city and live together, but Scruffy says no, because in the back of their minds they would know that it wouldn't be right. Professor Farnsworth, still in Bender at the Circus Roboticus, watches the fight at the UN on the TV Robot. He wants to help Bender, but cannot get there in time. A howitzer named Big Bertha volunteers to shoot him there, but is badly injured because of the size of Bender's body. The Professor lands on the United Nations building roof. With his own sword, he starts a swordfight with Basil before he could do any harm to Bender in Nikolai. Meanwhile, the making out of Fry and Leela, in Zoidberg and the Professor, had moved back to Leela's place. After having sex, the two of them are surprised to see Bender's body fighting with Basil on TV. The Professor in Bender's body wins by opening his door and revealing twenty Robot Clowns, all wielding swords of their own, and they kill Basil. Later, at Planet Express, Bubblegum Tate and Sweet Clyde use math to find out a way to get everyone in their original bodies, as shown below. They use it and the episode ends with everyone back to normal and Bender realizing that he left the real crown in Nikolai's compartment.
According to David X. Cohen, writer Ken Keeler penned a theorem (and proof thereof) based on group theory, then used it to explain a plot twist in this episode.[1]
Writer Eric Rogers calls "The Prisoner of Benda" his favorite Futurama episode alongside "Jurassic Bark", "because it may be the epitome of what this series attempts to do every week: the perfect blend of science fiction and bust-a-gut humor".[2]
The Futurama theorem
- Main article: Futurama theorem
The Futurama theorem is a real-life theorem invented purely for use in this episode. It proves that regardless of how many mind switches have been made, they can still all be restored to their original bodies using only two extra people, provided these two people have not had any mind switches prior.
The theorem was proven by writer Ken Keeler, who holds a PhD in applied mathematics, and he claims they included it to popularize math among young people. The Futurama theorem is also the first known theorem to be created for the sole purpose of entertainment in a TV show.
In its original American broadcast, "The Prisoner of Benda" was viewed by an estimated 1.774 million households, down 150,000 viewers since "A Clockwork Origin" [3].
This episode was named #13 on IGN's list of top 25 Futurama episodes.
Additional Info
- The title of the episode and Bender's plot of posing as an emperor is a reference to the 1894 novel The Prisoner of Zenda (as well as its numerous adaptions).
- The title caption refers to:
- The slogan "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas", which itself refers to the saying "What happens on tour, stays on tour".
- Cygnus X-1, which is a black hole. If nothing can escape from a black hole, then clearly anything that happens in Cygnus X-1 will stay in Cygnus X-1.
- Leela makes several mentions of Nicolas Cage movies, possibly the National Treasure series and the Astro Boy movie.
- The shape of Emperor Nikolai's crown is loosely based on an actual Hungarian crown jewel, the Holy Crown of Hungary.
- Bender in Amy's body convinces Emperor Nikolai that he is a robot by dancing Michael Jackson's famous Moonwalk.
- In order to show that he is a robot, Bender, in Amy's body, tells Emperor Nikolai to ask him something only a robot would know. This is referred to as a Reverse Turing Test and is a reference to the Turing Test, in which person tries to distinguish between a machine and a human by asking questions.
- Hermes says that Amy (in the body of Leela) "makes Fat Albert look like normal Albert". This may also be a callback to Fry's line, "He makes Speedy Gonzales look like regular Gonzales" from the episode "War Is the H-Word".
- Big Bertha, a robot with a cannon stomach, is a reference to the German Big Bertha howitzer.
- The idea of one-way-mind-swapping-machine is very similar to the one in the Stargate SG-1 Season Two episode "Holiday". However, in that instance, the limitation was a feature of the machine's design rather than the bodies' development of a resistance.
- The concept of a member of royalty temporarily switching lives with an ordinary person is similar to the story The Prince and the Pauper.
- The UN Conference is portrayed as nightclub act in Vegas with the opening act delivered by "Peaches and Herzegovina" which is a play on both the name of Eastern European nation Bosnia and Herzegovina and American disco/soul duo "Peaches & Herb".
- An occurrence of mind switching was seen in the original Star Trek series in a third season episode called "Turnabout Intruder". James T. Kirk's body is forcefully taken by Dr. Janice Lester (a former lover of Kirk's) and Kirk is forced to use Lester's body to convince the crew members of the mind change. Among other issues, Lester's and Kirk's voices remain in their respective bodies, so swaying crew members' beliefs of the switch proves difficult.
- Leela parodies the lyrics of the spoken intro of Sir Mix-a-Lot's "Baby got back" when she talks about her eye.
- This is the third episode of Season 6 to use a cold opening (alongside "Rebirth" and "That Darn Katz!"). Cold openings were previously used most prominently in Seasons 1 and 2.
- When Amy (in the Professor's body) is eating ribs, she says "I have died" in Cantonese.
- When Bender (in Nikolai's body) says "Hello Baby," he's imitating the beginning line of Chantilly Lace by The Big Bopper.
- The sign outside Elzar's says "rack of lamprey". Lampreys have a cartilagenous skeleton, therefore lacking a proper "rack".
[Amy and the Professor have just learned that they are stuck in their borrowed bodies.]
Amy: [In Farnsworth's body.] Oh no! Is it possible to get everyone back to normal using four or more bodies?
Farnsworth: [In Bender's body.] I'm not sure. I'm afraid we need to use... MATH.
Scruffy: Miss Wong?
Wash bucket: [In Amy's body.] No, Scruffy, I am wash bucket. I love you. Wash bucket has always loved you. [They kiss but Scruffy pulls away.]
Scruffy: It's wrong, wash bucket. Oh, it would be sweet for a while, but in the back of our minds, we'd know that I'm a man and you're janitorial equipment.
Wash bucket: [In Amy's body.] In another city, we could be anyone we want!
Scruffy: Go. Go now, before I beg you to stay.
[She leaves. Scruffy lays down on his bed, sobbing for a second.]
Scruffy: Yep.
Farnsworth: There. This time I'm sure I've fixed the mind-switcher.
Amy: Good, I'm sick of cleaning up those heaps of dead monkeys.
Amy: I wasted my youth porking out.
Farnsworth: Yes, I remember. [He points to a picture of a fat Amy, captioned "2997 employee of the year".]
Amy: Would you please take that down? It's making me hungry.
Farnsworth: [In Amy's body.] Dude, I bid you a fond cowabunga!
Fry: So now Leela's all crotchety because she thinks I'm not attracted to her in the Professor's body.
Hermes: You aren't, are you?
Fry: Of course not! But I was willing to lie about it.
Leela: [In Farnsworth's body.] Admit it! You don't care about the inner me at all!
Fry: [In Zoidberg's body.] No, you admit it! You'd be ashamed to be seen in public with someone as hideous as me!
Leela: [In Farnsworth's body.] Would not!
Fry: [In Zoidberg's body.] Oh, yeah? Then I challenge you to a romantic date at Elzar's tonight.
Hermes: Sweet orca of Majorca! You make Fat Albert look like Normal Albert!
Leela: [In Farnsworth's body.] Oh, did my bodily infirmity embarrass you?
Fry: [In Zoidberg's body.] Not at all. It's just another thing that makes you a very special lady.
Leela: [In Farnsworth's body.] You mean, like my penis?
Zoidberg: [In Fry's body.] A floor? We live like kings?
Nixon: Please welcome an insane dictator, and one heck of a bowler, Emperor Nikolai!
Amy: [In Hermes' body.] Well, there I was at Elzar's, eating a nice pork sundae and suddenly, I just lost my appetite. [Leela strokes Fry's mouth flaps.] Forever.
Farnsworth: [in Bender's body] This is for Big Bertha! (lunges forward only to end up getting his sword stuck in a wall) That is not what I meant to give you for Big Bertha.
- This is the third time Leela has shown concern about her eye, the previous being "The Cyber House Rules" and "Bender's Big Score".
- Yet again Amy's childhood obesity is a theme, previously mentioned in episodes such as "Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles" and "Into the Wild Green Yonder".
- Bender claims he is sixty percent storage space. A recurring joke is that someone claims Bender is a certain percent of something, with the total by now adding up to much more than 100%.
- Fry seems to be excited by the idea of Leela's mind in Amy's body, a revisiting to the Fry-Amy relationship.
- The Professor calls Bender's body invincible, though only a few episodes earlier ("Lethal Inspection") we found out that it wasn't.
- Of course, in comparison to the Professor's old and decrepit body, he may be feeling like he is invincible in Bender's (as it can certainly stand up to much more punishment than his own 170+ -years-old body). It could simply be a matter of perception, not actual "invincibility".
- If you remember, in "Rebirth", Bender was blown up by one of the Professor's doomsday devices. He also had 2 bombs detonate inside his compartment in "War Is the H-Word". Another display of the bending units durability is in "Bendless Love", Flexo was crushed under an unbendable girder and later stated that if he had remained crushed he would have died in hundreds of years, proving that the bending units are very near invincible. The only known way being via his self-destruct button which is located on his body as revealed in "A Head in the Polls" or the destruct code revealed in "Where No Fan Has Gone Before".
- The episode brings a big step in the Fry-Leela relationship, as they have sex for the first time known, though it should be noted that neither is in their own body at the time.
- This is the first time the two have had intercourse in canon, but in "Anthology of Interest I", during the simulation "Dial L For Leela", Leela was forced to keep Fry silent about the recent murders she committed by having sex with Fry, while in their own bodies. However, "Anthology Of Interest I" can't be regarded as canon as it was during a "what-if" scenario.
- In "Time Keeps on Slippin'" Fry and Leela married and divorced. It is possible they consummated their union prior to the wedding, though the time-slips prevented them from remembering.
- The Professor is shown using a mind-switching device back in Bender's Game, but since he is seen here as having just completed it, he must have still been testing it (and subsequently killing monkeys) back then. Though this device remained attached to the monkey and the Professor the whole time. This may not have been actual mind transference, or this may have been a prototype device.
- In "Bendless Love" Bender claims to remember his own birth, having been built "four years ago" in 2998. Later in "Lethal Inspection"; a very different construction of Bender is remembered by Hermes. Although no year is given, Hermes looks like he did at the 2980 Olympics. This episode shows that Hermes, having gained weight and cut his hair, was employed at Planet Express and was employee of the year in 2993, 2994, 2996 and 2998. Bender also confirmed not remembering seeing Hermes as Inspector #5. Therefore we can conclude that the events of "Lethal Inspection" occurred prior to 2993 or early in that year, Bender does not remember his real birth and Bending Units of his model were, for reasons unknown, built in two or more phases with core components, such as the backup unit, being retained during an upgrade to a larger and possibly more specialised body.
- Amy is shown as Planet Express Employee of The Year in 2992 and 2997, but she has only been the Professor's intern since 2998.
- Amy could have been working as a different employee for him before becoming his intern.
- Someone in the crowd shouts, "I LOVE YOU, YOUR MAJESTY!!!" Bender, in the Emperor's body, replies, "Shut up, Madame Ambassador, I know it." This is a callback to a similar gag in "Put Your Head on My Shoulders".
- Bender says that he has always dreamed of becoming an Emperor. This may explain why he dressed up himself as Napoleon in "Insane in the Mainframe".
- Apartment 00100100, Fry and Bender's place, looks much different from earlier appearances (as in "The Late Philip J. Fry"). While previously being a small apartment (Bender's room) with a giant sideroom (Fry's), it now does not have the small apartment and it includes a kitchen. (The kitchen had been seen previously, such as in Bender's Game.)
- It is possible that it was among the buildings destroyed to create the panda preserve in Bender's Big Score, then rebuilt to different specifications.
- When Dr. Zoidberg (in Fry's body) and Emperor Nikolai (in the wash bucket's body) are back in Apartment 00100100, they ignite gas and blow it up. Both of the bodies would be incinerated in the ensuing explosion, but both are seen later in the episode uninjured and unaffected.
- When Bertha is wheeling away after the first time the Professor, in Bender's body, propositions switching to a younger body, only one of her wheels are actually turning. The one furthest from the viewer is stationary, while the other is not.
- It was established in the episode "Why Must I Be a Crustacean in Love" that, once a male Decapodian releases his male jelly, he dies. However, in this episode, Fry, who was in Zoidberg's body, wound up having intercourse with Leela, who was in the Professor's body, and did not die.
- It could be that, to die, a Decapodian needs to mate with another Decapodian.
- It could be that, Leela was keen to use her new appendage, therefore it would be Farnsworth's male jelly, not Zoidberg's, that was released.
- Mating and having sex are not necessarily the same thing for all species. The releasing of male jelly might be voluntary.
- Zoidberg's male jelly may only be produced during his mating season. Making it so that there was nothing to release. As for the male jelly in "Why Must I Be a Crustacean in Love", his body probably broke it down and reabsorbed it as in nature.
- Zoidberg claims to have fertilized the caviar in "Where the Buggalo Roam".
- When finishing the proof, Sweet Clyde is shown to wear glasses however in the remaining shots of the episodes these glasses never appear again.
- So they're reading glasses.
- After everyone swaps back into their original bodies, Hermes is as fat as usual.
- Given how abnormally fast he lost the weight originally, he could have gained it back just as fast.
- The proof contains a minor typo: instead of "For any i=1 ... k" it should read "For any i=1 ... k-1". The algorithm fails for i=k, but this does not affect the validity of the proof.
- When Zoidberg (in Fry's body) rips the oven out of the wall, the pipe that leaks gas is blue, yet when Nikolai (in Washbucket's body) goes to the cupboard for a cigar, the pipe is silver and seems much smaller. The pipe is blue yet again when it cuts back to the full shot of the kitchen.
- When Bender is shot out of Big Bertha, 3 of the Robot Clowns are shown next to Bertha, but the same 3 Clowns pop out from Bender, when he's fighting Basil
- 21st Century Girl
- Amy
- Debut: Basil
- Debut: Big Bertha
- Debut: Chainsaw-Eating Robot
- Debut: Chinese ambassador
- Bender
- 'Sweet' Clyde Dixon
- Ethan 'Bubblegum' Tate
- Fry
- Hermes
- "Fishy" Joseph Gilman
- Leela
- Linda
- Morbo
- Debut: Emperor Nikolai
- Debut: Flavia
- Professor Farnsworth
- Richard Nixon's head
- Debut: Robot Acrobat
- Debut: Robot Clowns
- Scruffy
- Debut: TV Robot
- Debut: Wash Bucket
- Zoidberg
Episode Credits
- Writer
- Director
- Voice Actors
- DVD Commentary
- ^ "In an APS News exclusive, Cohen reveals for the first time that in the 10th episode of the upcoming season, tentatively entitled "The Prisoner of Benda", a theorem based on group theory was specifically written (and proven!) by staffer/PhD mathematician Ken Keeler to explain a plot twist."
Levine, Alaina G.. "Profiles in Versatility:". American Physics Society. Retrieved on 15 May 2010. - ^ [http://www.gotfuturama.com/Information/Articles/Eric_Rogers_Interview.dhtml CGEF Interview with Eric Rogers]
- ^ [1]
- Episodes written by Ken Keeler
- Episodes directed by Stephen Sandoval
- Nominated episodes or films
- Media
- Episodes
- Season 6 Episodes
- Articles in need of a cleanup
- A plots focusing on Bender
- A plots focusing on Fry
- A plots focusing on Leela
- B plots focusing on Amy
- B plots focusing on Hermes
- B plots focusing on Professor Farnsworth
- B plots focusing on Scruffy
- B plots focusing on Zoidberg


text:
NEWELL, MARK - Iowa State University | |
ASORO, FRANCO - Iowa State University | |
Scott, Marvin | |
WHITE, PAMELA - Iowa State University | |
BEAVIS, WILLIAM - Iowa State University | |
Jannink, Jean-Luc |
Submitted to: Theoretical and Applied Genetics
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal Publication Acceptance Date: 7/15/2012 Publication Date: 8/7/2012 Citation: Newell, M., Franco, A., Scott, M.P., White, P., Beavis, W., Jannink, J. 2012. Genome-wide association study for oat (Avena sativa L.) beta-glucan concentration using germplasm of worldwide origin. Theoretical and Applied Genetics. 125:1687-1696. Interpretive Summary: Beta glucans have been shown to promote cardio vascular health when eaten in sufficient quantity. One of the best sources of beta glucans is oats. It would be desirable to increase the level of beta glucans in oats and other foods. In order to do this, it is important to understand what genes are responsible for deposition of beta glucans. We therefore set out to identify genes that control beta glucan content in oat using a method called GWAS. Traditional methods of gene identification are difficult to apply in oats, but GWAS proved to be well-suited to this species. We identified three genes that control beta-glucan levels in oat. These genes can be used by breeders to increase the level of beta glucans in oats and other species, resulting in food products that support cardio vascular health. Technical Abstract: Detection of quantitative trait loci (QTL) controlling complex traits followed by selection has become a common approach for selection in crop plants. The QTL are most often identified by linkage mapping using experimental F2, backcross, advanced inbred, or doubled haploid families. An alternative approach for QTL detection are genome-wide association studies (GWAS) that use pre-existing lines such as those found in breeding programs. We explored the implementation of GWAS in oat (Avena sativa L.) to identify QTL affecting b-glucan concentration, a soluble dietary fiber with several human health benefits when consumed as a whole grain. A total of 431 lines of worldwide origin were tested over two years and genotyped using Diversity Array Technology (DArT) markers. A mixed model approach was used where both population structure fixed effects and pair-wise kinship random effects were included. Various mixed models that differed with respect to population structure and kinship were tested for their ability to control for false positives. As expected, given the level of population structure previously described in oat, population structure did not play a large role in controlling for false positives. Three independent markers were significantly associated with b-glucan concentration. Significant marker sequences were compared with rice and one of the three showed sequence homology to genes localized on rice chromosome seven adjacent to the CslF gene family, known to have b-glucan synthase function. Results indicate that GWAS in oat can be a successful option for QTL detection, more so with future development of higher-density markers. |

subset: commoncrawl


text:
From the Hans Christian Andersen biography "The Life of Hans Christian Andersen. Day By Day", written by DPhil Johan de Mylius:
The Workers' Association of 1860Trip to Germany and Switzerland
Jules Jürgensen fils
A Heart Filled with Spite and Loathing
1860: The Workers' Association of 1860
4 January
Return to Copenhagen.
14 January
Is invited to dine with King Frederik VII. HCA stays till 11 pm and reads aloud.
16 January
Once again, HCA reads aloud for the Workers' Association [presumably the new one of 1860]; "there were crushing crowds outside but I was able to remain completely calm and read well and was greatly applauded", writes HCA in the almanac. In a letter dated 21st January to Mrs Scavenius at Basnæs Estate (not printed), he writes:
On Monday I read aloud for the Workers' Association, which I am sure Your Grace has read about in [the newspaper] Berlings Tidende; It is surely of immeasurable benefit that several professors and poly-technicians have joined forces to arrange lectures for the working class, 3 times a week. It was then decided to also try giving these people a little poetry, and it turned out to be extremely popular. The hall was completely full, 700 people I think, and many more stood out on the street and certainly were noisy, as they could not get in. They demanded the windows be opened so they could hear me. They understood perfectly what I read aloud and in the end there was such quietness, such attention, that one could have heard a pin dropping on the floor; I do hope and believe that I have achieved something good with this reading of a couple of fairy-tales. Everything is now calm again in here, thank God, and I do not think it was quite as bad as some say. I was not actually out late in the evening and thus did not perceive anything at all".
24 January
Start of publication in the newspaper Berlingske Tidende of the series "A Visit to Charles Dickens in the Summer of 1857" (continued on 25th, 26th, 27th, 28th and 31st January as well as on 1st & 2nd February).
8 February
Reads once more for the Workers' Association. In an unpublished letter to Mrs Scavenius at Basnæs Estate, HCA states: "for a fairly over-filled house and a very grateful audience, I read: "The Girl Who Trod on the Loaf"; "The Ugly Duckling" and "She Was Good for Nothing"; this last one brought tears to peoples' eyes".
9 February
HCA is one of the hosts of a gala evening held at the Casino theatre on the evening of this day. The profit was to go to the Childrens' Hospital.
18 February
HCA has his will certified by the notary public and gives it to Edvard Collin.
17 March
Reads aloud once more for the Workers' Association.
18 March
The poem "Jylland" (Jutland) is published (with music by Peter Heise) in the magazine Illustreret Tidende.
30 March
Reads aloud for the Students' Association.
2 April
HCA is a member of the committee for the establishment of a monument for H.C. Ørsted. It is significant for HCA that work on this matter is commenced on his own birthday.
This date also marks the earliest registration in the almanac of the connection with the Melchior family (although the relationship does stem from the mid or late 1850's).
12 April
Receives a visit from the German poet Klaus Groth from Kiel.
10 May
Receives written confirmation of the increase in his yearly appanage (grant/civil list annuity).
1860: Trip to Germany and Switzerland
21 May
Prince Frederik (the later Frederik VIII) seeks out HCA after 9 in the evening, so as to bid him farewell, before his trip abroad.
26 May
Travels first to Sorø, where he takes part in a birthday celebration for Ingemann on 28th and remains till 30th.
30 May
Travels via Korsør to Flensborg and on to Rendsborg, where he remains from 1st - 8th June. Here a party is given for him by the officers, he reads aloud for the soldiers and is serenaded on the morning of his departure, as well as being cheered by the soldiers. HCA describes these events to Mrs Scavenius of Basnæs in an unpublished letter dated 27th June:
"In Rendsborg I stayed with Captain Lønborg, son-in-law of titular Councillor of State Thiele. One evening I was asked to read, just as I had last winter at the Workers' Association in Copenhagen, for our "soldier boys" here in Rendsborg too; I was pleased to do so. "Tonhalle", which is larger than the small hall at Casino, was hastily decorated with Dannebrog [the Danish flag]; Officers and their wives, non-commissioned officers and their wives and many soldiers, probably 1500 people all together, welcomed me with flowers and cheers! I was deeply moved, did however read well; national songs were played and when I was about to depart on the next morning, the garrison band played in front of the house I was staying in; the train station was decorated with Danish flags, friends escorted me there, the soldiers sang and cheered me. I was so overwhelmed by all this that I, as you probably well understand, broke into tears when I finally departed".
8 June
Via Altona to Harburg. Further on through Hildesheim to Göttingen and from there to Eisenach, Meiningen, Bamberg, Nuremberg, Regensburg (outing from here on 18th to King Ludwig's marble temple Walhalla). Spends time in Regensburg with the painter Wilhelm von Kaulbach, who is also visiting the town. At a social gathering, where Kaulbach is present, HCA reads aloud "Noget" (Something) and "Hjertesorg" (Heartache), and Kaulbach exclaims:
"What a poet you are, always new and greater, and what a lecture! He asked me to read "Englen" [The Angel], which he had painted and would soon be released in print. I was to receive a copy then" (the diary, 16th June).
19 June
Arrival in Munich, where he obtains copies of his latest German release, Aus Herz und Welt (From The Heart and The World). Is received in audience by the Queen of Bavaria. Socialises with Kaulbach, amongst others.
30th June - 3rd July
Outing to Oberammergau to the passion plays.
"The whole drama was like a church service, where the sermon is not only heard but also seen as it is brought to life. Most likely, everyone left feeling replenished, filled by that loving soul who sacrificed himself for future generations" (from the continuation of Mit Livs Eventyr (The Fairy Tale of My Life)).
In Oberammergau, the actor Lauritz Eckardt and the ballet-dancer Harald Scharff (both from the Royal Theatre) join the party. HCA also sees them in Munich.
3rd - 11th July
In Munich once again. Here he sees the opera Tannhäuser. Comments on this in the diary on 8th: "the superb music filled me".
11 July
Continues to Switzerland (via Lindau and Richterschwyl to Brunnen).
1860: Jules Jürgensen fils
14th - 28th July
In Brunnen.
28 July
From Brunnen via Luzern and Biel to Le Locle, where he stays until 13th August with the watchmaker Jules Jürgensen (son of the Danish watchmaker Urban Jürgensen). At this time Jules Jürgensen is still living in the same house which his uncle, J. Fr. Houriet and his family, had lived in, and where HCA had been a guest for the first time in 1833.
The oldest son of Jürgensen, Jules, a watchmaker like his father, translates some of HCA's fairy-tales into French and during his stay there, HCA helps with the translation:
"The few French translations of my work which had been made at that time were not considered very good, and my young friend therefore wanted to try doing a better job. And indeed work on a French translation was commenced during my stay at Locle. To my surprise I saw and learned how rich in expressions of feelings and moods the Danish language is, compared to the French; the latter has often only a single word where we have a whole spectre. I would call the French language plastic in nature, it resembles the art of sculpture, where everything is defined, clear and rounded, while our mother-tongue has a richness of colour, a diversity of expression, to depict the various moods. I was pleased with the richness of my mother-tongue; how soft and sonorous it is, when spoken how it ought to be!" (In the continuation of Mit Livs Eventyr (The Fairy Tale of My Life).
13 August
By stagecoach to Yverdon and from there by train from Neufchatel to Lausanne and by wagon from here to Ouchy. Continues on 17th by steamship to Vevay and Montreux (arriving 18th). Lodges a little below Montreux in Vernex. Outings on foot in the surrounding area. Returns to Lausanne on 25th and carries on to Geneva on 26th.
25 August
The death of Johan Ludvig Heiberg.
26th August - 15th September
In Geneva. At this time, HCA vacillates between feeling elated and depressed and is sometimes afflicted with anxiety and thoughts of suicide. Fears becoming insane. The mood does however lighten, so the last week of the stay in Geneva turns out well ("Basically I am perfectly well, the pleasure is disturbed only by myself", the diary, 7th). During the stay here he receives the first texts translated by Jules Jürgensen fils and socialises with Henri Blanvallet, who wishes to translate Kun en Spillemand (Only a Fiddler) and De to Baronesser (The Two Baronesses) into French.
28 August
Meets M.A. Goldschmidt, who is on his way from London to Florence.
1 September
Is introduced to Hungarian literature when he meets K.M. Kertbeny, translator of Petöfi. Has mixed feelings about Kertbeny. His suspicions are later confirmed.
5 September
People wish to pay tribute to HCA, as they have read in Das Märchen meines Lebens ohne Dichtung (The True Story of My Life) that today is the anniversary of his arrival in Copenhagen. He does note in the almanac, however, that the anniversary is in fact the 6th.
16th - 21st September
Is in Basel, where he socialises especially with the painter G.A. Amberger and his family. Is sought out here by Charlotte Kestner junior, daughter of the Lotte Kestner on whom Werther's Lotte is based.
22 September
Amberger travels with HCA to Karlsruhe and is the guest of HCA here. Both continue on 24th to Stuttgart, where they stay with a publisher-bookseller by the name of Hoffmann.
2 October
Via Augsburg to Munich, where he stays until 9th. Whilst here he is summoned to King Max, also dining here, (before the dinner there is a meeting for German historians. HCA thus meets Leopold v. Ranke of Berlin, who reads aloud from his latest work on English history).
1860: A Heart Filled with Spite and Loathing
9 October
Via Nuremberg to Leipzig (arrival on 11th). Here he visits the publishers Wiedemann and Lorck. Hears about strong German feelings of hostility towards Denmark. Continues to Dresden on 13th.
13th October - 4th November
In Dresden. Some unpleasantness is experienced due to a letter from Lorck to Kertbeny. HCA is once again in a deep personal crisis. Socialises once more with Serres, amongst other of his old friends. Visits Clara Schumann. Through her he also gets to know the violinist Joseph Joachim, and sees him and Clara together at concerts. Also meets the Norwegian poet Andreas Munch and socialises quite a bit with him. Is informed that his fairy-tales are read in the schools in Saxony. Upon invitation he visits King Johann of Saxony on 3rd and reads fairy-tales aloud.
24 October
Edvard Collin suggests in a letter to HCA of this date that he [EC] place 1.000 rdl. of his money at 5% (1% more than the bank rate), "on loan to a mutual acquaintance who is reliable enough". HCA accepts. Later, it transpires that this mutual acquaintance is Henrik Stampe.
25 October
Clara Heinke tries to persuade HCA to visit her in Breslau, but HCA is not at all inclined to do so.
5 November
To Berlin (only 1 day is spent here, during which he visits Meyerbeer the composer and sees Verdi's Rigoletto, which he finds very interesting). Continues via Hamburg, Neumünster, Rendsborg, Haderslev, then by ship to Assens, arriving in Odense on 9th.
"The town spruced up, but not as interesting as in the old days. The church stands detached but Beldenak's building is gone. The pharmacy is neatly drab, many drab new boxes... In solitude I sat at Postgaarden [a restaurant], alone in my childhood town, while abroad I am surrounded by friends and admirers",
(the diary, 9th).
Amongst others, he spends time with Julius Gerson ("A Little Pixie Left"), who is the editor of the newspaper Fyens Stiftstidende. Sees that the house of his parents has been rebuilt, with an extra floor on top, and that many changes have occurred. Continues by stagecoach to Nyborg on 10th and from there by steamship to Korsør.
10th - 17th November
At Basnæs Estate. Recognises himself in a book by E.M. Oettinger about the courts. Feels he is "maliciously" described and sees in the paper that W.I. Karup, a man of letters, delivers a lecture for the people regarding HCA's life. In this lecture he is "treated spitefully and slandered".
"On this journey I have thrown myself to sea, so to speak, and let myself be swept along by the waves. They sweep me back to my own shore once again. Why! To be ridiculed there or to crush the head against a rock. Even if it were burning, one must walk the earth... My heart is filled with spite and loathing." (The diary, 12th).
17th - 20th November
At Holsteinborg Castle. Is given a room facing the castle chapel, from which he can hear the psalms being sung and snippets from the words spoken by the priest. Notes in the diary on 20th: "Dear God, let my mind too be lightened in Christianity and God!"
20 November
Goes to Sorø, where he stays with the Ingemanns. Visits the composer Peter Heise and meets the sculptor H.V. Bissen at his home. Ingemann reads the start of his memoirs for HCA.
23 November
Back in Copenhagen, where he decides to stay at Hotel d'Angleterre. Ida Koch (nèe Wulff, daughter of P.F. Wulff and the sister of Jette) invites him to dine with her on Fridays (formerly his regular day with the Ørsted family). Looks at new rooms but receives two on the ground floor of the hotel,
"where I now live, like in a lamp on the wall, as I have two rooms on the ground floor here on the corner of Kongens Nytorv and Østergade. But it's far too busy here, with a constant drone and a rushing along, also driving in the night. Unbearable in the long run" (in unpublished letter dated 10th December to Mrs Scavenius of Basnæs Estate).
15 December
Reads aloud for the Students' Association.
18 December
Travels from Copenhagen to Sorø and continues on 20th to Basnæs Estate:
"I spent Christmas Eve at Basnæs, where the Christmas tree was lit, not just one for the house guests, but also one for the poor children of the estate; their tree stood just as richly decorated and shining bright as ours. Mrs Scavenius had decorated it herself and lit every candle, and I had cut and glued the figures which hung on the branches. The tables around it were set and laden with Christmas presents which the poor mothers were especially looking forward to; linsey-woolsey for skirts, linen for shifts and many other useful items. The poor were treated to a good meal and had a pleasant evening. We had several. The snow drifted up, the sleigh bells rang, the wild swans sang out on the beach. It was wonderful outdoors, it was pleasant indoors; the young people danced until the early hours. From neighbouring houses and from far away relatives and friends had been invited".
Amongst the guests on Christmas Eve was also Carl Bernhard, who arrives with the family from Borreby Estate, where he is spending Christmas:
"His fresh, lively depictions and the lifelike, characteristically Danish lends him significance as a writer. Moreover, he was amiable, helpful and dedicated; it was hard to believe he was in his sixties, so youthful were his looks. He was amongst those dancing, he was amongst those conversing, and towards me he was open, sincere, laughing at the pettiness of the world, rejoicing in all the blessed which is also to be found" (from the continuation of Mit Livs Eventyr (The Fairy Tale of My Life)).


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The cold hard truth
Well that last post was a bit of a doozy wasn't it. Sorry about that, I think we can call that "the breaking pointâ€. I guess the rather obvious subtext of it is that this shit is hard. Then we move into a holding pattern for a while until the next drama unfolds.
Life with a child with special needs – be they physical, medical, intellectual or all of the above – is bloody hard.
Everyone nod sagely at that. Offer a ripple of how amazing we are to rise to each day, an empathetic "I don't know how you do itâ€, the occasional "God only gives you what you can handle†from which you should be grateful you walk away without multiple stab wounds from a splintery stick lined with rusty nails.
The most unrelenting part of it is the cold hard brutal truth that it never goes away. Every day this is what, for me, having a disabled child entails:
- are you going to wake to a wet bed,
- a random epic melt-down triggered by who knows what,
- the daily battle to put clothes on,
- discovering yet another dawn raid of the cupboard for inappropriate breakfast items which totally decimates the weekly shop you did to.the.dollar. for school lunches, afternoon teas and so on,
- waking up at 3am when they're trying to sneak in some Xbox,
- realising they've padded next door, outside, in their pyjamas, at 6am and are just loitering around on the corner,
- the ongoing issue of wiping and I'm not talking benches,
- the complete incapacity and/or unwillingness to dry themselves after a shower. I now have a child with a man penis who still needs help (but doesn't want it but can't do it himself) getting dry after his shower,
- navigating puberty with a moderate intellectual disability,
- is that left foot rolling in again, no not really, oh yes it is, will it need a splint, do we need to have surgery again, we need to see the specialist again,
- anxiety with a moderate intellectual disability,
- how to occupy them beyond the realm of Xbox and stalking the neighbours,
and on it goes.
Then there are the big picture worries you basically ban yourself from thinking about – work placement, housing, relationships, a happy and fulfilling life.
Stuff just goes wrong with these kids. Their systems are compromised, they get sick, they get inexplicable ailments, they need surgeries and ongoing interventions and regular reviews. It is tiresome, exhausting and emotional (not to even mention the costs involved) to do this with different groups of people over and over again.
You find that you stop seeing their character and start focusing on the mechanics of it all – toileting, anxiety, boredom. It takes you by surprise when doctors, nurses, friends, neighbours all talk about your son so positively. About his sense of humour and gorgeous nature. Sometimes all I see is the fifty million questions asked over and over, the refusal to dry himself after his shower (now probably the cause of the cellulitis. I KNOW), the constant falling asleep on the lounge and then agro lashing out when I try to move him on to bed and so on and so forth.
It takes other people getting upset at seeing your child have bloods done to remind you it's OK to feel about all this.
This is what it's like to have a child with special needs.
The way our society works though does not make any allowance for this reality. We need me to be working to be able to feed, clothe and educate our children. We need two incomes to be able to give them experiences and to be able to cope when and if something goes wrong.
There's no way you can have two adults working when you have a child with special needs. If you do then, well, RESPEK.
So then the self-flagellation begins – he was your first so why did you have any more, you knew it'd be expensive having lots of kids so why'd you have so many. THIS IS YOUR BED.
But then I think we did not choose for Oscar to have a dodgy chromosome, cerebral palsy, a moderate intellectual disability or a penchant for foods high in saturated fats to be consumed before dawn. So why then are we, why is HE, punished for it?
Services and support for the child AND the parents is imperative. I have it because I have a coherent voice, I tend to like being shouty, a clanging symbol. But for every one of me there are 1,000 others without a voice and it's just not good enough.
This post wasn't meant to be about the importance of the National Disability Insurance Scheme but it seems important to mention it here. We, as a nation, are at a point where we can truly ensure no one gets left behind. Where for something as simple as splints for Oscar's legs do not involve me having to go to multiple agencies with my hands out saying, "please sir, can I have some moreâ€.
I escaped the hospital earlier this week with Chef to go to the Sydney rally to support the NDIS. Our Prime Minister was there, I saw her and her remarkably cute security protocol (well played Julia, well played) for the first time ever.
I don't care what your political leanings are, but this woman, despite every spike laid on the road before her, has put the NDIS on the table, she has made it happen (from next year in fact). It was flagged by Menzies as a necessity FORTY years ago and she, SHE, has been the one to make it happen. I can't help thinking, 'trust it to take a woman to make this happen.'
So yeah, my life is quite a stressful one. I am feeling it keenly at the moment and it does not shine a light on the best parts of my character. Don't hold it against me.
I know many of you want to help us out, please be assured that being here, reading this, getting it, holding it in your hearts, standing up for someone or fighting for what is right for people whose voice is small or broken is enough. It is enough.


text: Vixen Optics is committed to helping others develop a passion for the wonders of the night sky and the joys of terrestrial observation. Our Telescopes, Mounts, Binoculars, Spotting Scopes and Optical Accessories are of the highest quality designed to enhance your viewing experience. Whether you are tracking a comet with your telescope or following a bird with your binoculars, you can be sure that Vixen Optics has the right product for you.


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This mount has a very low chance to drop from the Heart-Shaped Box which is rewarded a maximum of once a day for defeating the Crown Chemical Co. Apothecaries boss during the Love is in the Air holiday.
Anecdotally, this seems to be the rarest of all the holiday mounts. Having killed this boss every day during the holiday for several years on a handful of alts, I have never received one myself nor seen it drop for anyone else. In fact, I know of only two players on my [medium population] server who have one.


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(WASHINGTON, DC) – This week U.S. mayors returned from a visit to Saudi Arabia organized by the U.S. Conference of Mayors in coordination with the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington, D.C. The visiting mayors spent nearly a week in the Kingdom where they experienced the nation's culture while conducting productive meetings with Saudi officials, business leaders and educators on issues of mutual interest.
"This visit allowed the participating mayors to experience Saudi Arabia first hand," said Saudi Ambassador to the U.S. Adel A. Al-Jubeir. "We look forward to working with the U.S. Conference of Mayors in improving economic relations and cultural exchange through future visits."
The delegation met with Saudi government and business leaders, including the minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs, mayors of Riyadh and Jeddah, president of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities, assistant speaker of the Majlis Al-Shura (Consultative Council), governor of the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) and leaders of the Chambers of Commerce in Riyadh and Jeddah. During these meetings, the parties discussed enhancing Saudi-U.S. trade relations.
In addition, the group also met with educators at Effat College, the non-governmental National Society for Human Rights and members of the Saudi-U.S. Parliamentary Friendship Committee.
The five-day visit concluded on October 19 with a dinner that was attended by business and community leaders and hosted by Khalid Alireza, CEO of Xenel Group.
The delegation was comprised of Mayor Elizabeth Kautz of Burnsville, Minn.; Mayor Arlene Mulder of Arlington Heights, Ill.; Mayor John Callahan of Bethlehem, Pa.; Mayor Steve Benjamin of Columbia, S.C.; and Mayor Brenda Lawrence of South Field, Mich.


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My page in Kramers Ergot #7 was a homage to Frank King, who drew countless beautiful Sunday pages involving flying up and looking down on the landscape below. There are many examples just in the pages reprinted in the Drawn and Quarterly anthologies alone. I went to these to see how to draw the landscape gracefully from up above and was amazed at how many times King had his characters flying on Sunday.
Ganges #3 also is a kind of homage to the "daydreaming" Frank King pages (in both Bobby Make Believe and Gasoline Alley) with some Little Lulu love in the mix. That's how I thought of it, anyhow.
(crossposted to the Balloonist)


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I filled a recent craving for playing a sci-fi real time strategy game by re-discovering Bos Wars and playing every single player map.
image: Bos' level of art, many screenshots indicate a much lower quality.
The game runs on low-spec computers and can be quite fast-paced. I quite enjoyed playing it in a tower-defense/tower rush style. The last release of Bos Wars has been over two years ago, but development is not frozen, the last commit was on 2012-08-09.
The three biggest issues I personally had are:
- Some maps are aesthetically displeasing.
- For a beginner, it's hard to decide what map to play.
- Many units and buildings don't have voices/sounds.
- The interface is confusing in regards to resource quantity.
Visual style of old maps
image: most likely the first map you play in Bos (because it's selected by default)
To address issues 1 and 2, I hope that this blog post will help. The screenshots at the bottom show the game start screen at 1280x1024 for every of the "Start Game" single player maps. If you see a level that you'd like to play, right-click and "open" the link or image, to see the level name in the file name of the screenshot.
An in-game solution to issue 1. would be to create a map folder called "old" and move all levels in there, when the rendered ground texture clashes with the units, buildings and resources.
This suggestion might be seen as disrespectful insult to the original map makers, but having the current map selection structure is a barrier for new players, who need some guidance to get started without having to open random levels first. They are likely to assume that the first level they play is representative of the visual style of the entire game, which can be quite wrong, as you can see by the different-looking screenshots at the bottom.
Map selection screen
image: Bos Wars map selection screen
To solve issue 2 in-game, a preview of the mini-map, as it is seen with "non-revealed map" would help. This might be a non-trivial UI/in-game-rendering task if it has to work fully automatic.
Missing/repetitive sounds
In regards to issue 3, I started by contributing a patch with some voices and sounds. If you would like to help as a voice actor or by turning voice lines into soldier/pilot/driver voice/effect mixes, please feel free to comment in this blog post, if you would like to coordinate this with me and other potential contributors. Female voices are especially welcome (source).
Feedback on my patch is welcome too. Watch/listen to the video below, to see what kind of voices are missing and what kind of voices are being used multiple times in Bos Wars.
video: Unit sounds in Bos Wars
Resource UI
I'm not sure I have figured it out completely but here goes nothing.
image: how I interpret Bos' resource info
Without having thought this through in detail, this is what seems to be missing:
- Resource icons.
- Absolute value of resources in stock, rather than divided by ten(?).
- Color coding of income/spending.
- Display of the sum of income and spending - in a prominent position, individual display of income and spending in a non-prominent position.
- Indication of resource effect by buildings when selecting buildings and when hovering them in the build menu.
Starting screens of all Bos Wars maps
If you see a level that you'd like to play, right-click and "open" the link or image, to see the level name in the file name of the screenshot.
gallery: All Bos Wars maps


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Conditions for admission to university studies are stipulated in the Higher Education Act (Act 111/1998), Section 48 (1) and (2) and Section 49 (1) – (3). For further information please see also the Study and Examination Code of the Silesian University in Opava.
Basic admission requirements are:
Admission requirements for degree study programmes, as well as the deadline for applications, together with the date, form and overall content of the admission exam are established by the dean of the faculty and are published on the faculty or university official notice board and on the internet by each faculty. Applications have to be submitted within the deadline and must be completed with all the supporting documents specified by the faculty. Depending on the requirements of the faculty or the certain degree programme, applicants need to go through the admission procedure which may include written tests, exams or an oral examination that are relevant to the applicant's field of study


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Improve Code by Removing It
Less is more. It's a quite trite little maxim, but sometimes it really is true.
One of the improvements I've made to our codebase over the last few weeks is to remove chunks of it.
We'd written the software following XP tenets, including YAGNI (that is, You Aren't Gonna Need It). Human nature being what it is, we inevitably fell short in a few places.
I observed that the product was taking too long to execute certain tasks — simple tasks that should have been near instantaneous. This was because they were overimplemented; festooned with extra bells and whistles that were not required, but at the time had seemed like a good idea.
So I've simplified the code, improved the product performance, and reduced the level of global code entropy simply by removing the offending features from the codebase. Helpfully, my unit tests tell me that I haven't broken anything else during the operation.
A simple and thoroughly satisfying experience.
So why did the unnecessary code end up there in the first place? Why did one programmer feel the need to write extra code, and how did it get past review or the pairing process? Almost certainly something like:
- It was a fun bit of extra stuff, and the programmer wanted to write it. (Hint: Write code because it adds value, not because it amuses you.)
- Someone thought that it might be needed in the future, so felt it was best to code it now. (Hint: That isn't YAGNI. If you don't need it right now, don't write it right now.)
- It didn't appear to be that big an "extra," so it was easier to implement it rather than go back to the customer to see whether it was really required. (Hint: It always takes longer to write and to maintain extra code. And the customer is actually quite approachable. A small extra bit of code snowballs over time into a large piece of work that needs maintenance.)
- The programmer invented extra requirements that were neither documented nor discussed that justified the extra feature. The requirement was actually bogus. (Hint: Programmers do not set system requirements; the customer does.)
What are you working on right now? Is it all needed?


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Exopolitics, NASA Bombing of the Moon, Outer Space Treaty & E. T.
Alfred Lambremont Webre is an author and a lawyer. His book, Exopolitics: Politics, Government and Law In the Universe first defined the formal field of Exopolitics (the science of relations between intelligent civilizations in the Universe). Alfred is also a peace activist, environmental activist, and a space activist who promotes the ban of space weapons. He was a co-architect of the Space Preservation Treaty and the Space Preservation Act that was introduced to the U.S. Congress by Congressman Dennis Kucinich and is endorsed by more than 270 NGO's worldwide. He helped draft the Citizen Hearing in 2000 with Stephen Bassett and serves as a member of the Board of Advisors. Webre is also on the Board of Advisers at the Exopolitics Institute, is the congressional coordinator for The Disclosure Project, is a judge on the Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Tribunal and is the International Director of the Institute for Cooperation in Space. He joins Red Ice Radio to discuss exopolitics. We begin talking about the October NASA bombing of the Moon, E.T. presence on the Moon and Mars and black ops programs. Then, we discuss secret space programs, outer space treaties, time travel, teleportation technology and more. Topics Discussed: beginning of exopolitics, futurist at SRI, cosmic cycles, Whitehouse UFO study with Jimmy Carter, government disclosure, the violation of international law, space preservation treaty, war, depleted uranium, mineral rights, bases on the Moon and Mars, Henry Deacon, teleportation corridor, Carl Wolf, NASA is a military program, Buzz Aldrin UFO testimony, NASA as a civilian agency, CIA, NSA, Andrew D. Basiago, Mars Anomaly Research Society, deep impact mission, Comet Tempel 1, Apollo 11, LCROSS kinetic weapon, maritime law and what can be done. During our second hour for members, Alfred Webre talks about the current conditions on Earth, the war between dark controlling forces and benevolent higher dimensional beings with humanity lodged in the middle. Topics Discussed: the secret space program, human and alien activity on the Moon, the south pole of the Moon, shadow government on the Moon, Gary McKinnon, black budget, antigravity space craft, off world officers, bases on Mars, Mars mineral rights are owned by "ROC", humans on Mars, solar system catastrophe of 9500 BC, Mars rover spirit, we are a "Post Collapse" or "Post Catastrophe" civilization, Barbra Hand Clow, "Catastrophobia", secretly reconstructing the communication between Mars and Earth, time space program, Basiago, the discovery of life on Mars, ultimate secret, travel technology, "Chronovision", Andrew D. Basiago, "break away civilization", depopulation of the "surface societies", Bilderberg meeting, Rothschilds wealth of 100 trillion, MILABS, negative reptilians, abductions, genetic experimentation, grey clones, new human beings, are humans being changed?, DNA change in humans, the center of the galaxy, emanations from the galactic center, solar maximum in 2012, psychic abilities, Spottiswood, greys as biological robots, the weaponization of space, HAARP as a weapon, a battle going on between Earth forces and another race, abduction agreement, positive human transformation forces, calendars, universal era and human evolution.Relevant Links
The discovery of life on Mars with Andrew D. Basiago
The High Strangeness of Dimensions, and the Process of Alien Abduction
Books or Other Material
Exopolitics: Politics, Government, and Law in the Universe
The THREAT: Revealing the Secret Alien Agenda


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Kentucky Basketball
Tayshaun Prince has started 838 regular-season games since the beginning of the 2003-04 season
Tayshaun Prince clearly expects his future in the league to be just as relevant as his past.
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Tuesday 1 January 2008
That's No' How You Make Haggis (NYE pt 3)
When I lived in Edinburgh, I learnt that we had our Scottish friends to thank for New Year's Eve which in Scotland is called Hogmanay. E (a true Scotman) still thinks it is uncivilised not to get a holiday on 2 January in Melbourne like he would at home – there'll be no lump of coal for his employer! So to mark a Scottish celebration, it seems only right that we eat a Scottish dish.
I'd never eaten haggis before I went to Scotland. The closest I had come to it in Melbourne was at the wedding of my friends Jane and Andrew, where Rabbie Burns 'Address to a Haggis' was recited in a fine Scottish brogue before the haggis was ceremonially served with a lovely home made atholl brose (but I was vegetarian by then and can't remember what I had instead of haggis). In Scotland I found that the haggis still roams the hills (or so the tourguides would have you believe). Well maybe the wild haggis herds are a myth but it was certainly easy to find both meat and vegetarian haggis in pubs and delicatessens.
So I can't compare vegetarian haggis to meat haggis but I can tell you the former is absolutely delicious. It is a bit like a nutloaf with finely chopped and lightly fried oats, nuts, vegetables and beans - just as tasty but more crumbly and chunky. A great way to use up leftover scraps. The oaty nutty aromas makes me think of of home-cooking around a dark fireplace in a crofter's cottage. Apparently it was originally humble peasant fare. The peasants would have laughed at the vegetarian version – but I don't envy anyone eating sheep's stomach and offal. The vegetarian haggis is substantial, wholesome and unpretentious. Perfect for a wintery meal. Perfect for a celebration dinner.
After leaving Scotland I couldn't find haggis for love or money in Melbourne, and then I came across a recipe on the internet. It wasn't that hard to make, and tasted like just McSween's vegetarian haggis (here's proof how good the vegetarian version is - originally intended as a PR stunt and now their vegetarian haggis accounts for 20-25% of their business). The recipe even amused me with instructions to add "1 tbsp whisky or more". I have found a few different recipes on the net so next year I might try a few other flavours next year which feature in other recipes – such as barley or nutmeg.
Now, much as I love haggis, I have found it a challenge to present it. Traditionally, haggis is served with bashet neeps and mashet tatties (mashed swedes and mashed potatoes). But haggis isn't an attractive dish – it looks like a loaf as it comes out of the loaf tin and then collapsed into mince-like crumbs at the touch of a fork. Mashed tatties and neeps don't really don't excite me and they just look so dull and colourless. I have dug out a photo (above) of 2006 New Year's Eve to demonstrate how it looks.
This year I decided to serve it with potato and swede rosti – felt like a good compromise – after all, surely if the Scots had thought of frying their mashed vegies they would leap at the idea. However, luck was not with me as the rosti kept sticking to the frypan as I followed the recipe rather than my instinct. Unfortunately, the internet was on slow go so I couldn't check my notes on the similar mock fish I made earlier in the year. Finally I had some almost presentable pieces of rosti to serve, and a pile of rosti crumbs (see photo) that we will eat with leftover haggis tonight. I also steamed some broccolini to give the dish some colour and freshness which worked well.
I decided it needed a sauce. My inclination was gravy or a sauce of onions, cream and whiskey. E wanted tomato sauce. When I thought of how he always drowns his haggis in tomato sauce, I thought it was a fair request. I found a Cinnamon Tomato Sauce recipe in the Café Flora Cookbook. It was one of the highlights of the meal. The cinnamon was subtle and fragrant but added a festive intensity. I know they say haggis should also be served with copious whiskey but we don't go through much whiskey in our place - our current bottle which is almost finished is almost 2 years old!
I also did a starter because I found one that seemed light and interesting – tomatoes stuffed with guacamole. I liked the festive green and red and it was a pleasing wee taster before the main event. I'd recommend this as a Christmas day starter for vegetarians. My avocado was not so good so the guacamole had a lot more green capsicum than avocado but was still good, maybe better for it. At first E described it uncertainly as interesting and different but he came around to finding it quite palatable.
Here is the menu:
Starter: Tomatoes stuffed with Guacamole
Main Course: Vegetarian Haggis with Cinnamon Tomato Sauce, accompanied by Tatties and Neeps Rosti and Steamed Broccolini
Dessert: Fresh Fruit Platter with Condensed Milk Fudge Sauce
To Drink: Apricot and Strawberry Punch
That's six recipes which is a lot of work! One of the major challenges was cooking in 42 C heat. Youch! This is the sort of heat that makes concrete too hot to walk on barefoot, that burns the leaves of plants and saps you of any energy. Our poor pussy cat spent the day lying stretched out on the floor like she'd melted into a little puddle.
When I saw the forecast I decided there was no way I was going to turn the oven on in that weather. Luckily the weather was cooler (30 C) the previous day so I baked the haggis that night, and reheated it in the microwave. I also made the chocolate sauce the night before and the tomato sauce during the day. Everything else was fairly straightforward – apart from the recalcitrant rosti – and it was just a matter of finding enough workspace amid all the dishes and dirty saucepans (see photo in previous post). Today it is 40 C and I am delighted to have lots of lovely fruit to graze on and leftovers that I can easily heat for dinner.
Update: January 2009 - I have now found the best way to serve it is haggis nachos and used the leftovers for haggis neeps and tatties pasties, and haggis neeps and tatties crepe stack. I highly recommend any of these ways of serving haggis and you can find what I did at this post.
Further update: January 2014 - I have written a post called how to serve haggis to showcase some of the ways I have served it.
Tomatoes stuffed with Guacamole
(adapted from Cooking with Cranks)
Serves 2
- 2 medium tomatoes
- ½ avocado*, mashed
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- squeeze of lemon juice, to taste (I did a tbsp I think but could have done with less)
- ⅓ green pepper*, finely chopped, plus extra for garnish
- ¼ tsp pepper
- pinch salt
- few drops Tabasco sauce
(* the recipe instructs to add 1 avocado and 1 tbsp capsicum, but I used what I had and it was good - so you can be fairly flexible with these amounts)
Cut the tops off the tomato and scoop out the flesh and seeds (the recipe says you can do this using a teaspoon but I needed a sharp knife!) Turn the tomatoes upside down to drain while you prepare the guacamole.
To make the guacamole, mix all the ingredients. You can make any guacamole recipe here – I just made one with what I had to hand but the recipe suggests using finely chopped celery, yoghurt and parsley.
Fill tomatoes with guacamole and garnish with chopped green pepper. The recipe also suggests garnishing with reserved avocado slices and watercress.
Vegetarian Haggis
Serves 4-6
⅔ cup (65g) rolled oats
⅔ cup (65g) oatmeal
generous ½ cup (65g) mixed nuts, finely chopped (I used almonds, pecans, cashews)
65g margarine or butter
1 large carrot (I used two medium)
1 large onion
125g mushrooms
½ x 400g can kidney beans (a generous ½ cup)
65g vegetarian suet or butter (optional – I used 20g butter)
½ tsp yeast extract
1 tbsp whisky or more
1 tsp freshly ground pepper (or more)
Juice of ½ lemon (or 1 lime)
3 tsp dried herbs
Melt half the margarine and cook oats, oatmeal and nuts for about 3 minutes over medium heat in a large frypan. Transfer to a large bowl
Finely chop carrot, onion, mushroom, and beans. It is easiest to use a food processor so the mixture is very fine. Melt remaining margarine in the frypan and fry the vegetables and beans for about 2 minutes. Return oats and nut mixture to the frypan with the vegetable mixture. Mix in the remaining ingredients and cook another 5 minutes.
Place in a greased and lined loaf tin – I used my 13 x 22cm silicone loaf pan (and found my mum was right in advising I didn't need to grease it). Press down and smooth with the back of a spoon. Cook 40 minutes in a moderate oven. I cooked mine 30 minutes and cooled in the pan. I reheated it in the pan in the microwave the next night – it is quite fragile and this was the best way of keeping it together.
You can leave out the suet, but the recipe warns it might get dry and need some vegetable stock – but I found that it was moist enough with only 20g extra butter.
Update 2013: more idea on how to serve haggis or check out these New Year's menu suggestions (mostly haggis)
Cinnamon Tomato Sauce
(from Café Flora Cookbook)
Makes 3½ cups
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 large brown onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp crushed garlic (about 5 medium cloves of garlic)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
⅛ tsp ground cloves (about 4-5 cloves)
½ cup red wine (I used 3 tbsp port)*
2 x 400g tins of diced tomatoes
2 x cups water
½ cup fresh parsley, chopped (I only had 1 tbsp)
1 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped (I only had 1 tsp dried oregano)
*I wonder if pomegranate molasses would be a nice substitute here?
Heat oil in a medium to large saucepan and fry onion over low heat til soft and translucent (I found that I only did it about 5 minutes because the onion started to stick to the bottom of the pan). Add garlic, cinnamon and cloves. Stir over low heat about 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Add wine and stir a few minutes til most of wine is evaporated. (The recipe says to deglaze pan which I think means to clean the pan of all the cooked bits which have started to stick to the bottom.)
Add remaining ingredients. Bring to the boil and then reduce heat. Cover and simmer gently about 30 minutes.
Tatties and Neeps Rosti
(adapted from Vegie Food)
Serves 4
500g potatoes (about 4 medium/fist sized potatoes)
300g turnip* (1 medium)
½ red onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh parley, chopped (or more)
½ tsp salt
½ tsp ground pepper
40g butter
2 tsp oil
* I got to know and love these turnips in Scotland so they are always turnips to me but in Australia they are known as swedes and in USA they are known as rutabagas.
Peel potatoes and turnip. Cut turnip into a few small chunks the size of potatoes. Place in saucepan with a few inches of boiling water. Cover and bring to boil. Simmer about 15 minutes til just soft. Run under cold water. If you have time, it will help if they can sit for 30 minutes.
Coarsely grate potatoes and turnip into a large bowl. Add onion, parsley, salt and pepper. Mix well.
Heat half the oil and butter in a large frypan. Tip the mixture in – the recipe says don't press down but I disagree. It also advises to cover and leave 10 minutes. Foolishly I followed these instructions. Number one mistake was having too much mixture (once I had scraped out half the mixture it was much easier to manage) and the other mistake was that I didn't constantly shake the pan and push an eggflip or spatula under it to make sure it was not sticking. It did not help me to cover it. And when I tried to flip it onto a plate and slide it back onto the frypan it was a disaster. Finally when I had less mixture, I cut the round flat rosti into four corners and found it much more manageable. Needless to say I took a lot longer than the 10 minutes they suggested. But I hope to try it again with more success as it is potentially a good side dish.
On the stereo:The Best of Jethro Tull: Jethro Tull
20 comments:
Lovely posts! I needed to catch up on your adventures and now I feel the need to try my hand at haggis. I traveled all over Europe last summer but Scotland was, by far, one of my favorite destinations. I thought I had a brilliant bit of a brogue before visiting Glasgow and then it just seemed awfully puny. Ah well, the people were great and the curry unbelievable. Happy Hogmany!
ReplyDeletethanks kristy - it really fills you up with lots of good stuff - hope you'll enjoy it
thanks Wendy - happy new year to you too - will look forward to seeing how you do your veg haggis - hope you will compare the taste with meat haggis as I am curious (but not curious enough to eat it). Glad you are enjoying all my posts - has been nice to have some time to get so much up!
Me too Katie - I don't fancy anything that tastes too much like meat - and I just don't imagine that meat haggis could taste this good - not to me anyway!- Anonymous17 November 2009 at 12:12
WHATS NEXT NON ALCOHOLIC SCOTCH :p :) - Anonymous13 December 2009 at 09:25
What were the "mixed herbs" that you used? My wife and I loved Macsween's vegetarian haggis when we visited Scotland, and I thought I would try to make an approximation of it. Since you said that this recipe tastes pretty close, I think I'll try this recipe!
ReplyDelete - Anonymous9 January 2012 at 07:33
Wow! Just made that up and it was REAL tasty! We used a mix of rosemary, thyme, cayenne, clove. Many thanks for the recipe!
ReplyDelete - Anonymous20 January 2013 at 04:15
Anon from 9 Jan '12 reporting back. This is our go-to recipe for veg haggis. We've found it is even better when baked in a pudding-cloth! We just wrap the whole mess in cotton and spray it down with water a few times while baking.
Thanks for dropping by. I love hearing from you. Please share your thoughts and questions. Annoyingly the spammers are bombarding me so I have turned on the pesky captcha code (refresh to find an easy one if you don't like the first one)


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Friction Folding Knives
Friction folding knives are the original folding pocket knife. Before the invention of slipjoint and locking knives, all folding knives used the friction of the blade tang against the handle and the pressure of your hand to stay open. The absence of a lock means that these knives are best for light cutting tasks. Friction folding knives are known for their clean, minimalist lines and elegant designs. They are an excellent choice in areas where knife laws prohibit the use of locking knives, such as the UK.


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Charlie Sheen Rake$ It In On Tour
Charlie Sheen will make $7 million dollars on his "Charlie Sheen LIVE: My Violent Torpedo of Truth" tour ... TMZ has learned.
Sources connected with the concert tour tell us ... the deal is for Charlie to perform on 21 dates. He'll get 85% of the profits, with Live Nation getting the remaining 15%. Charlie's cut is projected to average between $250,000 - $275,000 for each show.
And there's more ... Charlie will get additional $$$ for after-parties and merchandising with 200,000 pieces of merchandise already shipped out for the show.
In all, we're told Charlie will pull in $7 million in a month.
The show will last 1 hour and 15 minutes. It's essentially Charlie doing comedy in a chair, so the overhead is minimal.
And since the shows are selling out off of Charlie's Twitter, there are no advertising costs.
"Two and a Half" what?


text:
Red Roof Redesigns, Rededicates Itself with Digital Firm
To promote its fancy new renovated destinations, the Red Roof Inn's gone digital with 360i, its Digital Agency of Record.
360i will be working on Red Roof's online media and creative. We have yet to see either.
In the meantime, we can ooh and ahh at Red Roof's new logo, which comes complete with a casual roofy slant, and a typeface probably modeled after the handwriting of a fresh-faced yachter.
Tell us if we've gone mad, but the logo rubs us wrong. Because isn't it magenta?
Big difference between red (as in Red Roof) and magenta (as in Magenta). Way to make a fresh splash in the pool, Red Roof -- total incongruity between your logo and brand name.
Anywho, the logo has been published on the redesigned and "rededicated" Red Roof website. It will also appear on inns that have recently been renovated. 360i washes its hands of it; the logo, it says, was in place before the agency was contracted.


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Remember the days when travel agencies were everywhere and before you took a trip you consulted a travel agent? Of course, that was before the advent of the Internet. Now the travel agent's job is one of the fastest disappearing jobs there are, but there is still a reason for you to become a travel agent.
Now there is a new kind of travel agent called a home-based independent travel agent.
These independent agents take advantage of one of the most effective ways of marketing products or services. It's called word-of-mouth advertising. As people are bombarded with more and more advertising messages, advertising messages are getting less and less effective.
When people use a product or service they like, they tell other people about it. That has always been true. But now this fact is much more important. If you want to grow market share these days, it's best to find a way to take advantage of word-of-mouth marketing.
That's why a new form of travel agency has sprung up. These "hosting" travel agencies still have travel agents in them, but these agents have a different role. Their role is not to find customers to sell travel to, there role is to sell travel to the people referred by the home-based independent travel agents the agency signed up.
The home-based independent agents are the ones actually "selling" the travel. But most of them aren't doing it the traditional way with standard marketing techniques. They are taking deeply discounted trips themselves and then telling their family, friends, neighbors, and business associates about these trips. Since these independent travel agents can sell travel too, this word-of-mouth advertising helps them make commissions on the trips the people they refer make.
So not only are they getting deeply discounted trips, they are making money by simply sharing their experiences! These agents even earn commissions on their personal travel too!
That's where you come in. If you want to get the same perks travel agents get, then you can now easily become a travel agent. All you have to do is to sign up with one of these travel agencies, read a training manual, receive a travel agent ID card, and you are now qualified to receive the same benefits as other travel agents.
You don't even have to quit your job and become a full time travel agent to get the same travel benefits that were previously only available to travel agents who worked in a travel agency. You can travel at up to 80% off and make some money from doing something you're going to do anyway…talk to others about the trip you just took.
In fact, everyone benefits. You benefit by receiving huge discounts. The travel agency makes money by selling more travel without expensive advertising. The hotels, cruise lines, airlines, and the rest of the travel industry make more money because they see more travelers. It all starts when you become a travel agent for one of these host travel agencies.


text:
The Antibody Services Report consists of all the basic information regarding the Antibody Services market. The all-inclusive report will aid users to understand the market trends, share, analysis, size, production, forecast trends, supply, sales, demands, and many other aspects. The market report comprises the following points, but are not limited to,
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Lynn Carlson, M.S.
Keri Chernichun, Psy.D.
Robert Colucci, D.O.
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Jeffrey Froh, Psy.D.
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Matthew Glavach, Ph.D.
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Fast-growing health software company Orion needs to hire 50 software engineering graduates this year, but probably won't be able to find them.
Auckland-based Orion, which employs 660 people in 11 countries including 330 in New Zealand, is our largest privately owned software exporter and a global leader in health technology.
"We have been growing roughly 50 per cent a year in the last two years," says its recruitment consultant, Alvin Naidu.
"Last year we hired 41 graduates. This year we would ideally like to hire 50. We are smack in the middle of graduate recruitment and we are finding it challenging to get the calibre of people we need."
Mr Naidu works closely with Canterbury, Auckland and Waikato Universities, and estimates that the country produces between 100 and 150 graduates a year with the kind of expertise Orion needs. But some don't pass the pre-interview test.
"They come skilled and equipped in certain areas and know certain things, but generally they don't do enough software development and programming," he says.
Will he get the 50 people he needs? "I don't think so," he says. "If we can't find the right people, we won't be recruiting them and they will get rolled over to next year."
At our biggest university, Auckland, computer science head Professor Gill Dobbie says student numbers were hit by the burst of the dotcom bubble a decade ago, tumbling from 1225 fulltime-equivalents in 2003 to 731 in 2008 and recovering only to 949 this year.
"We are working in a capped environment where the Government pays for a certain number of domestic undergraduate students so it's not in the university's interests to take on more," she says.
Auckland Vice-Chancellor Stuart McCutcheon says that although the Government has raised funding for each engineering and science student, the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) pays the money as a bulk fund which the university itself allocates to departments.
"TEC didn't ask for any significant shift towards engineering and science," he says. "They are, as I understand it, thinking about whether to fund additional engineering places in particular, but we have not seen major shifts in that regard."
He says the university educates students for 40 or 50 years ahead and can't be driven by "volatile" demand in areas such as computing.
But Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce says TEC will require the university to increase engineering places. "If they want us to be more directive, I'm more than willing."
The series
Today: Our mismatched skills
Tomorrow: Vocational pathways
Wednesday: Industry training
Thursday: Second-chance education
Friday: Tertiary education.


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There was a pillow challenge over at the CSI project and I got this crazy idea to make an Easter Egg pillow. I have a felt book called "Warm Fuzzies" by Betz White. There was a bag in that book that reminded me of an Easter egg for some reason (although it was called a rainbow bag). I thought the techniques she used for that bag project would be neat to try making a pillow. So here is how I made it:
Since I have this book, I have been collecting wool garments from thrift stores. I gathered my colors that I wanted to use.
I cut out strips of wool - laid the strips on the egg shaped fabric - and then made waves in the wool. There was a piece of fabric with hand sewn flowers in the collar of the blue sweater and it was a perfect shape to put on top of my egg.
I pinned all the wool pieces to the front egg shaped fabric.
Then I stitched all of them to the egg shaped fabric.
After I was done stitching all the waves to the egg, I flipped the egg piece over and trimmed the wool pieces. After this I pinned right sides together of the egg shape fabric and stitched around the egg leaving an opening at the bottom.
I turned the egg right side out, filled it with stuffing and sewed the opening closed.
And there it is. I put bunnies beside this egg for this picture, but I am going to sew a couple smaller egg pillows in solid colors. I made this pillow from wool but fleece or felt would work good too.
Thanks for stopping by!


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WARNER BROS X Aurora Italia (1g) 999.9 Aquaman II Limited Edition Gold Bar
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We provide worldwide shipping to most countries in the world with FedEx International Economy courier service. We will deliver the products ordered to the shipping address provided upon ordering. Please note that we only deliver to residential and office addresses. We DO NOT deliver to P.O. Box addresses. Delivery to any third party address is NOT permitted or else the customer has to pay any additional charges imposed by the carrier.
The standard delivery time will take 3-5 working days (upon payment confirmation), however we are unable to guarantee that all orders will be delivered within the stipulated time frame. Aurora Italia shall under no circumstances be liable for any loss, damage, expense or delay to the goods for any reason whatsoever when said goods are in custody, possession or control of third parties selected by Aurora Italia to forward, enter and clear, transport or render other services with respect to such goods.
Each consignment note is insured up to USD1,000.00 only (US Dollar One Thousand Only) with the carrier in case the parcel is lost in transit. In the event of damages of or loss of product(s) during transit, we will not be held responsible for any values exceeding the insured amount. Therefore, should the total order value exceed USD 1,000.00, it is recommended that the ordered items be placed under separate consignment notes.
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- Promotional and discounted items are excluded from Aurora Italia's exchange policy.
- Exchanged items are required to exchange at the original kiosks. Except for defective items, Buyer can exchange the items at all kiosks.
- Items purchased from Aurora Italia's website may be exchanged for the same item in a different size only, or if the original item is defective. Buyer will also need to provide a proof of original receipt. Buyer is responsible for the shipping fee sending to Plot 21, Technoplex, Medan Bayan Lepas, Taman Perindustrian Bayan Lepas Phase IV, 11900 Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia. Aurora Italia will bear the shipping fee returning the items to Buyer.
- All Gold Bar are strictly non-refundable, non-exchangeable and non-returnable.
Warranty Policy
- Six (6) months limited warranty from the date of original purchase on materials and craftmanship is only applicable for gold products and ten (10) days warranty for leather products.
- Sixty (60) days limited warranty on materials and craftmanship that contains stones and dangles parts.
- General wear and tear, misused, unauthorized modifications, or not following the care instruction are not covered under the warranty as specified by Aurora Italia.
- The warranty is void if counterfeit(s) of Aurora Italia product that damage Aurora Italia's jewelleries were worn together with our products.
- All Gold Bar not under warranty and strictly non-refundable, non-exchangeable and non-returnable.
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