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PGB Photographer & Creative - © 2022 Philip Romeyn - Phillostar Gone Ballistic 2021 - Photo may not be edited from its original form. Commercial use is prohibited without contacting me.
Another pic of the High speed line-up but without the Deltic this time. From left is Eurostar (class 373) No.3999, HST 43004, Pendolino 390119 & 91105 renumbered as 91150. Seen at the Greatest Gathering, Derby Litchurch lane 2/8/25.
space force
©MadDreamer ©2👽22/All rights reserved. Do not use without written permission from photographer/artist.
Crossing the street on the way to the beach... taken by my lovely wife on the way home from Top Sail Beach in Wilmington to Kernernersville, North Carolina.
Copyright© 2008 Kamoteus/RonMiguel RN
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(Foto de hace más de una semana.. Vale muchísimo más la pena verla en grande. En la segunda foto del tríptico del comentario, el hombre vio que le haciamos una foto y se digno a saludar ^^)
*Se acabaron los exámenes por esta semana, ahora solo queda preparar la exposición oral de inglés! Mañana a Barcelona al teatro.
Some one commented on one of my other photo's that they wanted to know what I looked like without the photo-shop makeup, eyelashes, eyebrows and lipstick.
So here you see me and the mask without any photo-shoped enhancements.
I hope no one barfs
Hugs,
Kathy Leigh
The Douglas C-47 Dakota is without doubt one of the most successful aircraft designs in history. It became one of the world's most famous military transport aircraft and saw widespread use by the Allies during World War Two and subsequently by Air Forces and civilian operators worldwide.
DAKOTA ZA947
The aircraft was adopted by Strike Command and issued to the BBMF in March 1993. In 2004, an original and authentic floor and interior was re-fitted to the Dakota, returning the cabin to the original, wartime specification. As there are now no other multi-engine tail wheel aircraft in RAF service outside the BBMF, the Dakota is an important training asset used for initial training of aircrew for the BBMF multi-engine aircraft and for renewing the currency of the Flight’s Lancaster pilots each year. In addition to this role though, the Dakota is a sought-after display aircraft in her own right and, as such, she appears regularly on the air show circuit either on her own or as part of a BBMF formation. She continues to be capable of para-dropping and is used in that role for special commemorative events.
ZA947 is now painted to represent Dakota FZ692 of No 233 Squadron, around the D-Day period in 1944. This aircraft, which was named ‘Kwicherbichen’ by her crews, was involved in Para-dropping operations on the eve of D-Day and subsequently in re-supply and casualty evacuation missions into and out of forward airfields in the combat areas.
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Francisco Aragão © 2017. All Rights Reserved.
Use without permission is illegal.
Attention please !
If you are interested in my photos, they are available for sale. Please contact me by email: aragaofrancisco@gmail.com. Do not use without permission.
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Portuguese
O Lago Negro é um lago artificial situado em Gramado, no Bairro Planalto, na Rua A. J. Renner. Aberto diariamente durante 24h, oferece passeio de pedalinhos (de 8:30h às 19h), bar, restaurante e loja de conveniências.
Informações
Área do Parque Lago Negro - 89.336m²
Área do Lago Negro - 17.470m²
Extensão da Trilha de Caminhada - 740m Lineares
Profundidade máxima do Lago - 14m
Extensão Longitudinal do Lago - 287m
Extensão Transversal do Lago - Máx. 110m / Min. 33m
História
Inicialmente chamava-se Vale do Bom Retiro. O local em que o lago se encontra atualmente foi destruído por um incêndio em 1942, e Leopoldo Rosenfeld iniciou seu reflorestamento e a construção da barragem do lago em 1953, procurando semelhança com os lagos da Europa. As mudas de pinheiros que o margeiam foram trazidas da Floresta Negra, em alemão Der Schwarzwald, localizada no sudoeste da Alemanha, no estado do Baden-Württemberg.
Spanish
El lago negro es un espejo de agua artificial localizado en la ciudad brasileña de Gramado, en el Estado de Río Grande del Sur, constituyendo uno de los más importantes atractivos turísticos de dicha localidad. Se encuentra ubicado en el barrio Planalto, una zona residencial de la ciudad muy tranquila y arbolada, donde predominan los chalets en estilo bávaro y suizo. El lago fue construido por Leopoldo Rosenfeldt, uno de los vecinos ilustres de Gramado, en 1953, luego que un incendio destruyera el antiguo bosque original. El nombre del lago se debe a la vegetación que lo rodea, pues Rosenfeldt plantó especies traídas de la Selva Negra, en Alemania. Para agregar más color al paisaje, fueron plantadas hortensias y azaleas en sus márgenes. Las primeras florecen en verano y las segundas en invierno, por lo que el ambiente es muy colorido en cualquier estación.
De forma alargada y no muy profundo, el lago es ideal para que las personas puedan andar en pequeños botes a pedal. También existe una senda peatonal que lo rodea por completo, permitiendo buenas caminatas. El sector de servicios ofrece confitería, donde se degusta un exquisito Apfelstrudel, y tienda de artesanías. El lago es un espacio verde público, por lo que no es preciso pagar para visitarlo. A su alrededor se encuentra un lujoso hotel y un afamado restaurante de cocina alemana.
Wikipedia
This image is protected by copyright, no use of this image shall be granted without the written permission from Yaman Ibrahim.
Red kite
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My (only) BRATZ Doll repainted by the talented Michelle of Jasmar Dolls. She has been transplanted onto a Made to Move Barbie body. I need to have her lips repainted. Even without the painted lips I still ❤️ her!
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La zona, posta a metà strada tra la montagna e la pianura e punto di passaggio per raggiungere il Friuli, fu da sempre un sito strategico. Attorno al X secolo fu eretta una fortezza controllata dai vescovi di Belluno, ma di probabili origini romane. Lo stesso toponimo sembra derivare dal latino cuniculus indicante i passaggi sotterranei del castello[6].
Conegliano "nacque" però nel XII secolo, quando un gruppo di famiglie nobili si organizzò creando un governo di tipo comunale attorno alla bastia, con la conseguente formazione di un borgo. Il Castello di Conegliano rimase sempre il centro del potere, sia civile (con la sede della podesteria) che religioso (con la collegiata di San Leonardo). Le attività artigianali ed agricole furono incentivate dalla fondazione di numerosi monasteri: Santa Maria in Mater Domini (1231), il convento dei Padri Umiliati di San Polo (1316), Sant'Antonio, San Francesco dei Frati Minori (1231), per non parlare degli ospizi e delle congregazioni di laici.
Con il sanguinoso assalto del 1153, Conegliano fu però subito sottomessa al comune di Treviso che ne potenziò le difese, ricostruendo il castello, vista la posizione chiave verso il Friuli con i domini del Patriarcato di Aquileia. La cittadina seguì le sorti della Marca e passò agli Ezzelini e agli Scaligeri, che la munirono di nuove fortificazioni. Anche con la Repubblica di Venezia, a cui Treviso passò nel 1337, e la breve parentesi dei Carraresi (1384-1388) l'opera fu continuata e venne innalzata una cinta muraria che racchiudesse il borgo. I lavori di fortificazione e di ampliamento si protrassero anche nei secoli successivi, nonostante il rovinoso attacco degli Ungari del 1411. Il paese si abbellì anche di palazzi signorili e istituzionali ma la decadenza si fece sentire già dopo la guerra della Lega di Cambrai.
Nel Settecento il castello, già da tempo in rovina, fu in gran parte demolito per fornire materiale di recupero utile alle nuove costruzioni, tra cui il Palazzo Comunale (1744).
Come tutto il Veneto, la città passò a Napoleone e infine agli Austriaci che ne svilupparono l'economia e le infrastrutture. Con la costruzione della Strada Maestra d'Italia e della ferrovia (1858) il centro vitale del paese si spostò più a sud, attorno alla stazione. Nel 1866 passò con tutto il Veneto al Regno d'Italia. Nel 1917, dopo la Disfatta di Caporetto, Conegliano fu occupata dagli Imperi Centrali e subì notevoli danni. La città riuscì successivamente a risollevarsi grazie alle ferventi attività economiche (prodotti caseari, vinicoli, officine meccaniche ecc.).
it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conegliano
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Bryant Park CitiPond ice rink, Manhattan, New York.
Explore #360, March 6, 2013
Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM
©2013 Patrick J Bayens
Created for We're here visiting Photos without a Rabbit
“If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense.”
― Lewis Carroll, Alice Adventures in Wonderland
White Rabbit
Jefferson Airplane
One pill makes you larger, and one pill makes you small
And the ones that mother gives you, don't do anything at all
Go ask Alice, when she's ten feet tall
And if you go chasing rabbits, and you know you're going to fall
Tell 'em a hookah-smoking caterpillar has given you the call
And call Alice, when she was just small
When the men on the chessboard get up and tell you where to go
And you've just had some kind of mushroom, and your mind is moving low
Go ask Alice, I think she'll know
When logic and proportion have fallen sloppy dead
And the white knight is talking backwards
And the red queen's off with her head
Remember what the dormouse said
Feed your head, feed your head
© All Rights Reserved - No Usage Allowed in Any Form Without the Written Consent of Connie Lemperle/ lemperleconnie
5 week old English Bulldog puppy!
Mossy arms.
All my photographs are © Copyrighted and All Rights Reserved. None of these photos may be reproduced and/or used in any form of publication, print or the Internet without my written permission.
I love the blurriness of this photo, it keeps drawing me in.
Edit: My first photo in Explore, on January 8 - and it got to #14!!!! Thank you everyone SO MUCH for all your comments, favorites, and visits!!! This absolutely made my day!!!!!
PGB Photographer & Creative - © 2022 Philip Romeyn - Phillostar Gone Ballistic 2021 - Photo may not be edited from its original form. Commercial use is prohibited without contacting me.
Le cose più belle le riconosco, sono quelle che a un certo punto non capisco più se fanno bene o male.
Susanna Casciani
Copyright © Giorgia Antoni - All rights reserved - Use without permission is illegal
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Francisco Aragão© 2016. All Rights Reserved.
Use without permission is illegal.
Attention please !
If you are interested in my photos, they are available for sale. Please contact me by email: aragaofrancisco@gmail.com. Do not use without permission.
Many images are available for license on Getty Images
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Portuguese
O Parque do Retiro de Madrid ou os Jardins do Bom Retiro é um parque da cidade de Madrid, na Espanha. Foi criado entre 1630 e 1640 e tem uma área de 118 hectares.
Os jardins foram concebidos entre 1630 e 1640, quando o Conde-Duque de Olivares, vassalo atencioso do rei Filipe IV (1621 - 1665), ofereceu ao monarca alguns terrenos para o lazer da Corte em redor do Covento de San Jerónimo el Real. Quando se começou a adaptar esse complexo, conhecido Palácio do Bom Retiro, a área de 145 hectares que o envolvia foi toda ajardinada. Esses jardins foram concebidos pelo cenógrafo italiano Cosme Lotti.
Ao longo dos anos foram feitas muitas modificações, nem sempre planeadas, que alteraram os jardins, como por exemplo a Real Fábrica de Porcelana do Bom Retiro, durante o reinado de Carlos III (1759 - 1788), ou o Observatório Astronómico, durante o reinado de Carlos IV (1788 - 1808). O rei D. Carlos III foi o primeiro monarca a permitir que os cidadãos tivessem acesso ao recinto, desde que estivessem "bem vestidos e lavados".
Durante a invasão francesa, em 1808, os jardins ficaram parcialmente destruídos devido ao facto do complexo ter sido utilizado como quartel das tropas de Napoleão; o palácio foi igualmente destruído. Depois da Guerra Peninsular, Fernando VII) (1814 - 1833) iniciou a reconstrução do jardim e abriu-o ao público. O monarca reservou uma zona onde construíu uma série de edifícios para fins lúdicos característicos da época. No reinado de Isabel II (1833 - 1868) parte dos jardins foi vendido para aí se construirem habitações particulares. Após a revolução de 1868, a Gloriosa, os jardins passaram a propriedade municipal e as suas portas abriram-se para todos os cidadãos. Foram feitas as fontes das Galápagos, da Alcachofra e ainda a Fonte do Anjo Caído, obra de Ricardo Bellver. No Campo Grande foram construídos o Palácio de Cristal e o Palácio de Velázquez, obra de Ricardo Velázquez Bosco.
Spanish
El Parque del Retiro (no confundir con los Jardines del Buen Retiro), popularmente conocido como El Retiro, es un parque de 118 hectáreas (1 180 000 m²) situado en Madrid. Es uno de los lugares más significativos de la capital española.
Los jardines tienen su origen entre los años 1630 y 1640, cuando el Conde-Duque de Olivares (Gaspar de Guzmán y Pimentel), valido de Felipe IV (1621–1665), le regaló al Rey unos terrenos que le habían sido cedidos por el duque de Fernán Núñez para el recreo de la Corte en torno al Monasterio de los Jerónimos de Madrid. Así, con la reforma del Cuarto Real que había junto al monasterio, se inició la construcción del Palacio del Buen Retiro. Contaba entonces con unas 145 hectáreas. Aunque esta segunda residencia real iba a estar en lo que en aquellos tiempos eran las afueras de la villa de Madrid, no estaba excesivamente lejos del Real Alcázar y resultó ser un lugar muy agradable, por estar en una zona muy boscosa y fresca.
Bajo la dirección de los arquitectos Giovanni Battista Crescenzi y Alonso Carbonell se construyeron diversos edificios, entre ellos el Teatro del Buen Retiro, que acogió representaciones de los dramaturgos españoles del Siglo de Oro, entre ellos Calderón de la Barca y Lope de Vega. Perduran aún el Casón del Buen Retiro, antiguo Salón de Baile con frescos de Lucas Jordán, y el llamado Salón de Reinos, un ala del Palacio del Buen Retiro decorado antaño con pinturas de Velázquez y Zurbarán, entre otros; y los jardines de la posesión real.
Éstos se formaron al mismo tiempo que el palacio, trabajando en ellos, entre otros, Cosme Lotti, escenógrafo del Gran Duque de Toscana, y edificándose una leonera para la exhibición de animales salvajes y una pajarera de aves exóticas. El Estanque grande, escenario de naumaquias y espectáculos acuáticos, el Estanque ochavado o de las campanillas y la Ría chica pertenecen a este período inicial.
A lo largo de la historia, el conjunto sufrió modificaciones, no siempre planificadas, que cambiaron la fisonomía del jardín, como el Parterre, diseñado durante el reinado de Felipe V (1700–1746), la Real Fábrica de Porcelana del Buen Retiro en tiempos de Carlos III (1759–1788) o el Observatorio Astronómico, obra de Juan de Villanueva, reinando Carlos IV (1788–1808). El rey Carlos III fue el primero en permitir el acceso de los ciudadanos al recinto, siempre que cumpliesen con la condición de ir bien aseados y vestidos.
Durante la invasión francesa, en 1808, los jardines quedaron parcialmente destruidos al ser utilizados como fortificación por las tropas de Napoleón. El palacio fue casi totalmente destruido.
Tras la contienda, Fernando VII (1814–1833) inició su reconstrucción y abrió una parte del jardín al pueblo, como ya hiciera Carlos III. El monarca se reservó una zona, entre las calles de O'Donnell y Menéndez Pelayo, donde construyó una serie de edificios de recreo, siguiendo la moda paisajística de la época, que aún se conservan, como la Casita del Pescador, la Casa del Contrabandista y la Montaña artificial.
Reinando Isabel II (1833–1868) se abrió la calle de Granada, que más tarde se llamaría de Alfonso XII, vendiéndose al estado los terrenos comprendidos entre ésta y el Paseo del Prado que fueron urbanizados por particulares.
Tras la revolución de 1868, (la Gloriosa), los jardines pasan a ser propiedad municipal y sus puertas se abrieron a todos los ciudadanos, comenzando una época en la cual, la Ría grande y el Estanque de san Antonio de los Portugueses se transformaron en Paseo de Coches. Se colocaron las fuentes de los Galápagos y de la Alcachofa, erigiéndose también la fuente del Ángel Caído en lo que fueron terrenos de la Fábrica de Porcelanas, obra de Ricardo Bellver. En el Campo Grande se edificaron el Palacio de Cristal y el Palacio de Velázquez, obra de Ricardo Velázquez Bosco. En esta época, concretamente a finales del siglo XIX, transcurre la novela que Pío Baroja tituló Los Jardines del Buen Retiro, en la que se narra la vida de la capital en torno a este enclave.
Las últimas obras de ajardinamiento fueron las ejecutadas por el jardinero mayor Cecilio Rodríguez, que diseñó la rosaleda y los jardines que llevan su nombre.
El maestro Manuel Lillo compuso el pasodoble «Quiosco del Retiro» dedicado al lugar de conciertos matutinos en el que la Banda Sinfónica Municipal de Madrid actúa durante el verano.
El alcalde Enrique Tierno Galván designó a Antonio Mingote como Alcalde Honorario del Parque de El Retiro.
English
The Buen Retiro Park (Spanish: Parque del Buen Retiro, literally "Park of the Pleasant Retreat", or simply El Retiro) is the one of the largest parks of the city of Madrid, Spain. The park belonged to the Spanish Monarchy until the late 19th century, when it became a public park.
The Buen Retiro Park is a large and popular 1.4 km2 (350 acres) park at the edge of the city center, very close to the Puerta de Alcalá and not far from the Prado Museum. A magnificent park, filled with beautiful sculpture and monuments, galleries, a peaceful lake and host to a variety of events, it is one of Madrid's premier attractions. The park is entirely surrounded by the present-day city.
Wikipedia
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Can face masks help slow the spread of the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19? Yes. Face masks combined with other preventive measures, such as getting vaccinated, frequent hand-washing and physical distancing, can help slow the spread of the virus. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends fabric masks for the general public. People who haven’t been fully vaccinated should continue to wear face masks in indoor public places and outdoors where there is a high risk of COVID-19 transmission, such as crowded events or large gatherings. The CDC says that N95 masks should be reserved for health care providers. How do the different types of masks work? Medical masks Also called surgical masks, these are loosefitting disposable masks. They're meant to protect the wearer from contact with droplets and sprays that may contain germs. A medical mask also filters out large particles in the air when the wearer breathes in. To make medical masks more form-fitting, knot the ear loops where they attach to the mask. Then fold and tuck the unneeded material under the edges.
An N95 mask is a type of respirator. It offers more protection than a medical mask does because it filters out both large and small particles when the wearer inhales. Because N95 masks have been in short supply, the CDC has said they should be reserved for health care providers. Health care providers must be trained and pass a fit test before using an N95 mask. Like surgical masks, N95 masks are intended to be disposable. However, researchers are testing ways to disinfect and reuse them. Some N95 masks, and even some cloth masks, have valves that make them easier to breathe through. Unfortunately, these masks don't filter the air the wearer breathes out. For this reason, they've been banned in some places. A cloth mask is intended to trap respiratory droplets that are released when the wearer talks, coughs or sneezes. It also acts as a barrier to protect the wearer from inhaling droplets released by others.
The most effective cloths masks are made of multiple layers of tightly woven fabric like cotton. A mask with layers will stop more droplets from getting through your mask or escaping from it. How to get the most from your mask; The effectiveness of cloth and medical masks can be improved by ensuring that the masks are well fitted to the contours of your face to prevent leakage of air around the masks' edges. Masks should be snug over the nose, mouth and chin, with no gaps. You should feel warm air coming through the front of the mask when you breathe out. You shouldn't feel air coming out under the edges of the mask. Masks that have a bendable nose strip help prevent air from leaking out of the top of the mask. Some people choose to wear a disposable mask under their cloth mask. In that case, the cloth mask should press the edges of the disposable mask against the face. Don't add layers if they make it hard to breathe or obstruct your vision. Proper use, storage and cleaning of masks also affects how well they protect you. Follow these steps for putting on and taking off your mask: Wash or sanitize your hands before and after putting on your mask. Place your mask over your mouth and nose and chin. Tie it behind your head or use ear loops. Make sure it's snug.,Don't touch your mask while wearing it. If you accidentally touch your mask, wash or sanitize your hands. If your mask becomes wet or dirty, switch to a clean one. Put the used mask in a sealable bag until you can get rid of it or wash it. Remove the mask by untying it or lifting off the ear loops without touching the front of the mask or your face.
Wash your hands immediately after removing your mask.
Regularly wash cloth masks in the washing machine or by hand. (They can be washed along with other laundry.)
And don't forget these precautions: Don't put masks on anyone who has trouble breathing or is unconscious or otherwise unable to remove the mask without help. Don't put masks on children under 2 years of age. Don't use face masks as a substitute for physical distancing. What about face shields? The CDC doesn't recommend using face shields instead of masks because it's unclear how much protection shields provide. However, wearing a face mask may not be possible in every situation. If you must use a face shield instead of a mask, choose one that wraps around the sides of your face and extends below your chin.
Do you still need to wear a facemask after you’re fully vaccinated? After you're fully vaccinated, the CDC recommends that it's ok not to wear a mask except where required by a rule or law. However, if you are in an area with a high number of new COVID-19 cases in the last week, the CDC recommends wearing a mask indoors in public and outdoors in crowded areas or when you are in close contact with unvaccinated people. If you are fully vaccinated and have a condition or are taking medications that weaken your immune system, you may need to keep wearing a mask. You're considered fully vaccinated 2 weeks after you get a second dose of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine or 2 weeks after you get a single dose of the Janssen/Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. In the U.S., everyone also needs to wear a mask while on planes, buses, trains and other forms of public transportation. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends medical masks for health care workers as well as for anyone who has or may have COVID-19 or who is caring for someone who has or may have COVID-19.``
www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/in-dep...
The Covid-19 pandemic seems to have sorted us into three types based on our attitudes toward masking: Call them nervous maskers, never-maskers and uncertain maskers. The first feel guilty or nervous about unmasking, so they tend to default to wearing masks; the second feel angry and resentful about being told to mask, so they often refuse entirely. And the third group is just trying to do the right thing without a lot of certainty one way or another. Winter is coming, with its continued battles against delta or mu or another variant. We have better protections now (vaccinations, natural antibodies) but also are returning to higher-risk environments (nightclubs, offices, schools). To complicate matters, there are additional factors to consider such as waning immunity from vaccines and the potential of a bad flu season.
Fortunately, there have been a number of important studies on the efficacy of masking over the past 18 months. The good news is that the research suggests most of us can actually de-mask without guilt or worry in many instances — and not just outdoors. It tells us, for example, that plexiglass dividers are in most cases useless or worse. But relaxed refuseniks need a rethink, too — we shouldn’t be ditching masks entirely. On the contrary, the more people adopt a policy of tactical masking, taking situational factors into account, the lower the infection risk and the more freedoms we can enjoy again. As the probability of infection increases, mask wearers lower the risk of catching the virus compared with no masking. For N95 or FFP2 masks, the protection is far greater. Note: Relative reduction in risk-of-infection figures are for an infection probability of 4%.
It’s no wonder we’re either nervous, angry or confused about masks when you consider how masking guidance and conventions have been all over the map. It seems amazing now that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization and various governments had warned against using masks in the early days of the pandemic. When Thomas Nitzsche, mayor of Jena, Germany, made the decision to require masks in public in early April 2020, his city became one of the first to do so. Infections dropped by up to 75% over the next few weeks. In May, the CDC said fully vaccinated people no longer needed to wear masks in most public settings. Two months later, as delta variant cases rose, the CDC revised that guidance. Now seven U.S. states — Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington — require most people to wear masks indoors in public places. Some states, including Texas and Florida, bar local authorities from imposing Covid-19 restrictions, including mask-wearing. In places that view masking as an affront to liberty, university professors can’t even ask students to wear masks during office hours without putting their jobs at risk. In England, there was a general lifting of restrictions in July, though U.K. Health Secretary Sajid Javid said last week that masking may become mandatory again in some indoor settings this winter, depending mainly on whether hospitalizations from Covid spike. While masks are required on public transport, I’d say about half or fewer comply during my journeys. Many offices require workers to mask while walking around, but few Tory lawmakers are wearing them in the House of Commons. Scotland still requires masks to be worn in shops and restaurants while not seated, as well as on public transport. Berlin requires the medical-grade FFP2 masks on public transport. Certain regions of France also have masking requirements in place. But if you care about what the evidence says (and some people don’t), the jury is in: Masks help a lot. Take, for example, the study that shows most U.S. states that had high mask usage in one month avoided high Covid rates in the subsequent month, even after adjusting for masking policy, social-distancing policy and demographic factors. The majority of states with low mask usage ended up with high Covid case rates. Note: Low mask adherence means states that fall below the 25th percentile; high adherence are those states above the 75th percentile. Study analyzed data from April to October 2020.
The largest study yet on the effectiveness of masking, posted online in pre-print earlier this month, was a randomize trial conducted in 600 villages across Bangladesh covering a population of more than 340,000 adults. It offered strong evidence that masks, and surgical masks in particular, reduce virus transmission. Researchers found that a 29 percentage-point increase in mask adoption led to an 11% reduction in symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 prevalence, where surgical masks were distributed; and a 35% reduction in people over 60. Symptom reductions using surgical masks were not statistically significant in younger age groups. While vaccines have largely broken the link between infections and hospitalizations (and death), they haven’t eliminated the need for mask-wearing. Data released last week showed that two doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine were 67% effective against delta-variant infections (compared with 80% for two doses of Pfizer/BioNTech’s). Infections can still be nasty; long Covid remains another reason for vigilance. Not only can fully vaccinated people catch and transmit the virus, but it is unvaccinated adults who are more mask-resistant. Since it’s estimated that around half of all transmissions come from asymptomatic persons, masks are still key to preventing infections. But masking shouldn’t be performative, as it often is with those uncertain maskers who just want to show they are being thoughtful. Which masks we wear, and especially how they fit, is important. Mind the Gap . While N95s offer a higher level of protection, a well-fitted surgical mask blocks most particles.
More particles get through mask; Of course, not all masks are created equal, as a recent study published in the journal Nature highlighted. The authors measured the thermal behavior of face masks in real time during inhalation and exhalation to determine the relationship between the fabric structure of the masks and their performance. Their experiment helped shed light on how aerosol-containing bacteria and coronaviruses penetrate three different kinds of masks — reusable face masks, disposable surgical masks and the N95 — and how we can evaluate air filtration performance.Reusable masks have longer, thicker fibers with a larger average pore diameter. Unsurprisingly, they have
higher levels of permeability, with the surgical mask coming second, followed by the F95 (similar to the FFP2 in Europe). Those findings should even help manufacturers create a new generation of masks that offer more breathability while also improving filtration. The CDC doesn’t recommend scarves and other headwear because they tend to be made from loosely woven fabrics. Loosely Denser fabrics such as cotton with a 600 thread count compared with cotton that is woven with 80 threads per inch, are much more effective. Mixed fabrics also tend to have better results. A study on masks with and without gaps shows that leaks can significantly reduce their effectiveness. In addition to materials, layering them can also improve efficacy. New lab evidence on different kinds of masks showed that a three-ply surgical mask blocked 42% of particles from a simulated cough; a three-ply cloth mask was pretty similar. But the protection jumped to 92% when a cloth mask was worn over a surgical mask. Comfort is important to being able to wear a mask for long periods of time. In addition to metal nose-bridge strips that can help a mask stay on better, straps that tie behind the head and mask extenders can help reduce soreness around the ears. Insertable filters can be replaced when masks get wet.
Masks will also help prevent more vaccine-resistant variants from emerging as well as higher rates of flu infections, which can also cause serious illness and even death. Even so, the research strips away some of the mask myths and can help all categories of maskers — nervous, nevers and uncertains — be more tactical and aware. To know whether a mask is a must-have, a good idea or entirely superfluous, check the risk factors the way you might a weather report in the mountains: How densely packed and how well-ventilated is the space you are entering? Will you be moving around or stationary? It’s certainly good to mask up in an elevator or on public transport where people are pretty close together. It’s probably not necessary in an open-planned, well-ventilated office, provided people observe a measure of social distancing. Then be mindful of the infection and vaccination rates where you are. If you are in Broward County, Florida, where 70% of over-18s are vaccinated, you’d be justified in having a more relaxed approach; drive next door to Glades County, where only 31% are vaccinated and infection rates are high, and you’ll want to be more vigilant. Similarly only 16% of over-65s in King County, Texas, are vaccinated compared with 70% next door in Knox County, where the CDC recommends even vaccinated people mask. By moving beyond the “hygiene theater” of practices that don’t offer much benefit while also accepting that there are many different levels of risk tolerance and factors that increase or lower situational risk, we can treat masking a little like checking the weather forecast. Some days require a little more covering up than others.
www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2021-opinion-how-to-wear-face-...
In the 25th century, the Justice League's history- their origins, their identities, are all an open book, and they're all linked by one thing. Tragedy. It's inescapable. There is no life without loss. No progress without pain. Barry Allen lost his mother when he was a boy. Bruce Wayne lost his parents. J'onn Jonzz was the last son of Mars. And in my time, they are heroes. They are better because of it. They know what they have to sacrifice to win, to be greater.
...I know tragedy too. I lost *my* mother when I was eight, my father was gunned down by police. I lost my marriage, my mentor, my ability to walk, to tragedy. It's what brought me to the Reverse-Flash, and it's what finally gave me a new purpose.
My name is Hunter Zolomon, and for years I was best friends with Wally West. Ever since I met him, I wanted nothing more than to be his teacher, to show him that tragedy is not something to be avoided, it is *necessary.* Time and time again, he rejected my gift. He didn't understand that you can't save the world with a smile on your face. You can't save the world without dirtying your hands. Some consider him a lost cause, that he can't be helped, and that? That hurts me more than anything.
===Arkham Asylum===
Since the inmates were transferred to Arkham City the year before, the Asylum had been quiet. Peaceful, one might even say. No more desperate screaming through padded cells. No more deranged cackling from the basement.
As far as most people knew, it had been abandoned. The acting mayor even had plans to demolish it come spring.
But it wasn't abandoned.
The low trundle of a wheelchair squeaked against the wet ground. A greyish hand grasped the wheel, and propelled himself forward. The last of Arkham's patients. He'd been told he wouldn't survive the trip to Slabside. That his body was too broken. And so they sent him here, discarded him like a broken toy. He looked down to the grounds below- Maybe... Yes, from this height, the fall would kill him, he thought.
And yet, he'd thought the same thing last time, during the quake, and all that had left him with was a broken body. Jonathan Crane sat there, in silence, the faint outline of his city just visible through the trees- Wayne Enterprise's latest steel monstrosity towered above the rest, as though it were mocking him...
"Ooga Wooga Booga!"
Crane turned his head slowly, unimpressed. "I knew you'd come, sooner or later. Don't presume that your little... jaunts across the island have gone unnoticed."
Knelt beside him, dressed in a bright purple suit and grinning like a hyena, was The Joker. "It's true!" he giggled. "You can't be spooked!"
Crane's tone shifted as he whispered bitterly. "I don't want to talk about it."
"Sure, you do... That's all you ever did. Lecture on top of lecture, speech on top of speech. Sure, *occasionally* you'd unleash some horrible doomsday weapon, create a new virus, but if there's one thing you loved more than fear, it was the sound of your voice when you talked about it."
"Eno-" Crane begins, but Joker's already raising a finger to silence him.
"Heh... It's funny, Straw Man," he smiles, rising to his feet, his hands on the wheelchair. "One push and... game over. "
"Joker, enough! I won't play your game."
"But it's fu-un," he sings, as he trundles the chair closer to the edge.
"In case you've forgotten, *I* can't be scared, so these cheap theatrics of yours are meaningless"
"No, but you *can* be killed," Joker continues, rocking the chair back and forth. Back and forth.
"I would welcome it!" Scarecrow hisses back.
...
"Now isn't that interesting..." Joker chuckles, his hands sliding off the handlebars.
"Let me tell you a secret Jonathan," he whispers. "There's a reason why they dumped you out here. A reason why they'd rather drop you here, than roll you out to Slabside with the big boys. They're not scared anymore. Why would they be... most evil lairs don't have disabled access after all! But I have a solution, a nasty, vile, undoubtedly bloody solution, and for that... I need your latest plague."
Crane paused. "Then, I suggest you check the bottom of the Gotham river. *Kite-Man* destroyed my factory."
"Please, don't lie, not after all we've been through- The good times! Drury's trial, the Cloudburst, others, that ellude me..."
Crane's ear's pricked up. "What do you want with that... idiot?" he asked, a note of disgust in his voice.
"Play nice, and I'll tell you... Hell, maybe I'll keep you around. Heh. You might even enjoy yourself," Joker laughs, as he pats Crane on the back, and lifts his cane up off from the ground.
"Joker, wait," Crane called out. "There's a rumour, that the pup has her father back..."
Joker smiles.
"So it's true?" Crane sighed. "There used to be a saying, do you remember? "Only the good villains come back." Though, I suppose that once Ted Carson was resurrected, that all went out the window."
"Heh. Rumours... Nasty, those. I think I killed him, you know. Maybe. Bullet to the skull really ought to have done it, but, heh, this is Gotham."
Crane nods. "Rumours, yes. I *may* have heard that the snowman took two gallons of my toxin..."
...
"Johnny, I love you, but you have to be more specific. Do you mean Freeze, or the literal hairy, yeti Kelsey Grammar bloke?"
...
"Yes, I meant Freeze."
~
It's 1991. I come home to find my parents dead. My father, gunned down by police. My mother, his final victim.
2003. The Flash, Barry Allen, encounters his first villain: Leonard Snart- Captain Cold, a self titled rogue armed with a cold gun. My fascination with these... Rogues is piqued.
2004. During my first year of college, I fall in love with my classmate, Ashley. I strike up a friendship with her father, the criminology professor at our school.
It's 2008. My wedding day. Ashley's father is my best man.
2010. Her father- in many ways *our* father, lies dead in my arms, a victim of my error. Ashley files for divorce.
2012. I come to Keystone City for a fresh start. Becoming the "Rogues Profiler" for KCPD, I meet a young man called Wally West. The Flash.
2013. A riot at Iron Heights renders me paralysed. In desperation, I turn to Wally, urging him to travel back in time, and fix my life. He refuses. In an attempt to use the treadmill myself, it explodes, effectively knocking me out of the timestream. I become Zoom. My new mission, to help the Flash, no matter the cost.
"The Flashes, are not worth your time Hunter."
~
Now, it is 2018, Louisiana. "They're nothing but selfish, cruel, vain individuals, not worthy of your... kindness." Beside me, Thawne tinkers with a machine. In a few hours, Lex Luthor will give the order, and the Secret Society will activate our Fear Gas Bomb in the heart of Gotham. Of the thousands affected, one in two will emerge stronger, their demons conquered.
"Idisagreeeeeeeee. You've spentyour eeeeeeentire life making BarryAllenbetter, JokerandBatman, Sineeeeestro- Haaaaal Jordan, BlckMnta- Aquaman. You aaaaall makeheroes strong."
"That's where you're wrong, Hunter. I don't want to *help* Barry Allen, I want to destroy him. Take apart all that he has. All that he *is*. You've seen my files. Do you really think Manta fights Aquaman to make him better?! Heh. Black Manta is a sociopathic maniac with an inane case of daddy issues. However, he does make an excellent tuna sandwich. He doesn't know I steal them."
~
Two years earlier, I am visited by an older Thawne. He's dying. Having just escaped an alternate timeline, the energy it took has dampened his speed. His one hope is a "Get out of Hell Free card." In the year that follows, Thawne recruits Drury Walker to infiltrate the Suicide Squad and find him that card. I'm not sure why he chose *him.* Thawne said it was a cruel irony of sorts, brought about by his time in this other timeline. Mothpoint. He uses the opportunity to punish Walker for his failings, and to tie up loose ends, by murdering the Van Cleer boy. His son. Moments later, the Signal Man issues a city wide blackout, wanting the card for himself. In the ensuing chaos, Thawne succumbs to his wounds, killed by the boy's stepmother.
Walker's grief, and role in Cobb's defeat inspires him to become more than a simple criminal. He runs for Mayor. A year later, the boy is resurrected. The tragedy, was undone. The lessons Walker learned? Unlearned.
2018. While Bane works to reshape the Society, Thawne is set on the path that will lead to his death. A confrontation with the Ratcatcher and the KGBeast ends with him retreating into the speedforce, as time changes around him. He's dumped in December, 2018. A new world, and is forced to work with Walker's boy. His disobedience and compassion makes him an unreliable ally. He plans to murder him once the timeline is restored.
2019. Thawne visits Bane one final time. I, am sent to deal with a rival Society spearheaded by Lex Luthor. The key, is the Riddler's journal.
The Joker destroys it before I can learn what he might have planned. The Society is satisfied.
2020. During an assault on the League of Assassins, Bane, Calculator, Sinestro and Zod are all apprehended. Kuttler's testimony grants him freedom. Though Faust, Ocean Master and Black Adam remain, each go their separate ways. The Society is finished. Intent on confronting the Joker, I travel to Gotham City. Instead, he imparts on me a new mission.
=Drury's Apartment, Keystone=
"Drury- Drury!" Wally called out. "Axel's been spotted with the Rogues, and I just- Drury?"
"Wah-Wah-Wah-Wah-Wah" a voice answered back, mockingly. Sat in the living room, draped in a tartan blanket, and a glass of scotch in his hand, was Drury Walker. Opposite him, playing Cooking Mama on the TV, was The Suit.
Wally sighed. "C-C'mon, man, that's just childish."
"Mi-Mi-Mi-Mi-Mi-Muh."
Wally edged into the room, and knelt beside Drury. "You don't want your kid in Iron Heights. I get it... I don't either! But he keeps going out with the Rogues, that's what's going to happen."
Drury took another sip of scotch. "Let him have his fun. He hasn't had *his* hopes and dreams stabbed yet.
Wally bowed his head. "Look, I'm not thrilled with this arrangement either. But we could at least try to get along, right? How about a pizza? Would you like a pizza."
"Gotham's are better."
"I can go to Gotham. Fastest man alive and all that."
"Lucky!" Drury called back sarcastically.
"Right. It's been a pleasure. Suit," he nodded, the empty costume putting the controller on the table and waving goodbye. The door slamming behind him, Drury rushed to the window. "Thank god he's gone," he smiled, and ripped his dressing gown off to reveal the costume underneath. "Now, where were we?"
He flipped the tablecloth over, unveiling a map of the prison on the other side.
"We really need to re-evaluate your artistic merits..." Drury murmured, as Suit rolled in a large mirror, and handed Walker a silver blaster.
"McCulloch this mirror gun better fucking work," Drury mused, as he pointed it at the mirror, and fired a white beam of light. The mirror now a dazzling portal, Drury winks back, and enters through the looking glass.