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Sunday November 27, 2016

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The ‘Abandoned Guyana series’ Pg 2 Hobbyist photographer hopes to inspire preservation of Guyana’s old buildings

The Association for Women Entrepreneurs

Empowering women’s lives Pg 5

The wild and remote Kusad Mountain Pg 8

Violence and alcohol: A deadly combination Pg 9

A ‘stand out’ collection Pg 10

Star of the Week: Kenny Pg 15 Hercules Suchitra Mattai

Part of the worldwide art Pg 16 conversation

Meet ACE the ‘sniffer dog’ Page 3

2 Sunday Times Magazine

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NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Times Feature

Hobbyist photographer hopes to inspire preservation of Guyana’s old buildings

U

Kenny Harrinaraine

sing photography to prompt preservation of Guyana’s architectural heritage, Kenny Harrinaraine demonstrates that the camera is indeed a powerful tool.

In an interview with Sunday Times Magazine, the photographer talks about his most reflective photographic collection, ‘Abandoned Guyana series’, and his motivation to “preserve Guyanese craftsmanship and skills”.

Sunday Times Magazine: What sparked your interest in photography?

By profession, I am a suspension mechanic, someone who specializes in the undercarriage work on vehicles. Photography is what I do for a hobby and it’s how I express my passion for art.

Sunday Times Magazine: What do you enjoy photographing?

Kenny Harrinaraine: I photograph any and every thing, but landmarks, landscapes and flowers are the things I love capturing through my lens.

When I capture a subject, my focus is trying to preserve it. That is why I try to look at the subject from my point of view. I try to bring out what I think is beautiful or ugly about what I am photographing.

Sunday Times Magazine: What inspired you to do the ‘Abandoned Guyana series’?

Kenny Harrinaraine: The ‘Abandoned Guyana series’ was inspired by photographers in the U.S.A. who posted on their Facebook, Abandoned America.

I thought someone should do the same for Guyana.

Unknowingly, I was already taking pictures of our beautiful colonial buildings around Guyana, many

who had lived there, what were their lives like, if they had just left everything and moved. The mystery and unanswered questions inspire me.

Sunday Times Magazine: Any photography projects you are currently working on?

Kenny Harrinaraine: I am very passionate of taking photos of the moon, so it’s one thing I’ll venture into. I have also developed an interest in photographing our kokers and the fishing boats alongside.

For now I am a hobbyist and enthusiast. However, if there’s an opportunity for me to have a part-time photography job, that would be really nice. I am always willing to tour my amazing county and sharing our way of life through my pictures.

Early this year I participated in the “VISIONS” exhibition, which exhibited works from the “Capture Guyana” competition, which was sadly cancelled.

“VISIONS” was the first time my work and passion was showcased on such a large scale with media coverage. I would love to be part of such exhibitions in the future. I would like to thank

Another abandoned house highlighting Guyana's rich architectural heritage

Decrepit colonial house at Windsor Forest

Kenny hopes his photography would prompt preservation, of our architectural heritage

Kenny Harrinaraine: I always had the urge to take photos even when I didn’t own a camera. The landscapes of the beautiful Guyanese countryside and coastline will inspire anyone who has an appreciation for beauty to stop and take a picture. My first camera was a Samsung digital camera, one of those pocket size ones. I later had both a super zoom point-and-shoot, which I still use most of the time, although I now own two DSLR cameras.

Sunday Times Magazine: Is photography a hobby, a passion or career?

Kenny Harrinaraine:

of which are in a deplorable condition, abandoned and demolished. These are treasures that make us unique from the rest of the Caribbean. Through photography, I aim to preserve these masterpieces of Guyanese craftsmanship and skills. It’s impressive to note that most of these buildings were built without the use of power tools that we have today. The ‘Abandoned Guyana series’ is about anything forgotten, old and rusted; it fills that longing and satisfies the dark creepy side of my personality. Most of these houses look haunted in some way to me. I also often wonder

the organizers of “VISIONS” and every one who played a part in getting the exhibition together. It provided a platform for the many talented photographers in Guyana to showcase their passion.

As a photographer, my biggest challenge is to learn how to deal with the attention I receive when people see me with the camera, as they are concerned and timid when they see a camera regardless of its size.

Also, the ongoing crime situation in our county makes me think twice when bringing a camera to Georgetown.

However, despite challenges, I will continue to follow my passion for photography.

Abandoned old house in Canal#1

guyanatimesgy.com

NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Sunday Times Magazine

3

Times Feature

T

he Guyana Police Force (GPF) has been using dogs to aid in searches, sniffing out explosives and ammunition. One such dog is ACE, a threeyear-old Labrador from Scotland. He was just over one year when he came to Guyana in 2013 – already known as ACE. Dogs were the first domesticated animal, and have been the most widely kept working, hunting, and pet animal in history. Notably, dogs have been used by law enforcement agencies for over 100 years.

Why dogs? Well, among other instinctive capabilities, dogs possess up to 300 million olfactory (sense of smell) receptors in their noses, compared to about six million in humans. And the part of a dog’s brain that is devoted to analyzing smells is, proportionally speaking, 40 times greater than ours.

With this impressive

ACE and his handler, Dwayne McPherson

The ball is his favourite toy Ace follows the command to sit, given to him in Dutch by McPherson

olfactory ability, a welltrained canine can deter criminal activity and assist police departments in “sniffing out” illegal drugs and explosives, in tracking fugitives, and with finding missing persons.

In an interview with Sunday Times Magazine, Dwayne McPherson, ACE’s handler who has been in the Force for six years, said dogs in GPF are used to aid police search. ACE is not the only dog in the Force; there is Ben (senior dog) and Brenda. They all have different handlers and have been part of the Force for years Recently, ACE became a media sensation for uncovering a gun concealed in a car.

A GPF press release had stated then: “Based on intensive intelligence gathering, ranks of the Guyana Police Force conducted a search on a taxi driver of Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo, and his motor vehicle at the Brickdam Police Station. In the initial search, the ranks came up empty handed and decided to utilize one of its sniffer dogs trained in the detection of firearms and explosive devices. The canine which goes by the name ACE arrived with its handler and in the presence of the driver and other ranks, led them to the left front door panel, which when opened revealed an unlicensed .38 Smith and Wesson revolver with five live matching rounds. The driver has since been taken into custody.”

McPherson, who, throughout his years on the Force, has worked as a finger print technician, police photographer and bomb disposal ordnance officer trained by the army to diffuse bombs, said he instructed ACE to carry out a search on the said vehicle.

ACE sat at a particu-

lar spot, an indication to his handler that something was there. McPherson took him around the vehicle for a second time and ACE sat at the exact spot. That prompted McPherson to conduct an extensive search of the spot and the firearm was discovered. This was ACE’s first major find.

ACE and McPherson received training at the Global Dog Handler Training School in Somerset, Texas, US. “I received dog handlers’ training at the Global Dog Handler Training School in Texas. I spent about one month. For ACE, he was trained to sniff out explosives such as RDX [a white solid widely used as an explosive] and TNT, among others. He was trained to search planes, vehicles, sites, houses and so on.

When I first met ACE, he snapped at me twice. But after training together, we developed a big brother, little brother relationship,” McPherson recalled.

According to McPherson, the dogs are assigned to one handler because they “react differently to different persons”. During the training, the handler and canine bond and build a relationship.

This is to ensure he follows the commands of his handler and no one else.

ACE knows to sit, lie, jump, and stay. McPherson would shout out these commands in Dutch because of ACE’s origins. (Scotland has some history of Dutch migration). However, after working along with McPherson for a few years now, ACE is responding/ learning these commands in English. He is trained to

Ace and his handler playing

follow these commands only from McPherson.

A typical day for ACE starts with training in the morning, being fed at a specified time in the afternoon, and then groomed while being checked thoroughly for scars around his body. His handler would take him for walks, and before he is fed, they play with ACE’s favourite and only ball. In keeping with his training, ACE is not allowed to have toys, only his ball, so as to “avoid him from becoming familiar with many items”.

“ACE is fed ‘puppy chow’ and gets protein and vitamins. His discipline is taking his ball away and put-

ting him on a leash. When ACE is 12 years old, he’ll retire. After retirement, the GPF would decide how he would still be incorporated in the force,” McPherson pointed out.

McPherson, who has two dogs of his own, hopes to one day be part of training programmes for more dogs like ACE. When this publication visited ACE at his kennel, housed at the CDI headquarters, he was just being a dog: playing with his favourite ball and showing off the different commands he knows. (Cover photo credit: Guyana Police Force)

4

Sunday Times Magazine

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NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Times Feature

Aerial view of New Amsterdam circa 1800s

T

Lord Gormanston

he idea to hold an exhibition in New Amsterdam began with a letter dated April 12, 1890 in which the Committee of Correspondence of the Royal Agricultural Society offered $800 to the New Amsterdam town council for the purpose of holding an exhibition for the county’s artisans and farmers to present and sell their products.

After a series of meetings, January 28 and 29, 1891 were fixed for the date of the exhibition, and a committee selected for the planning and preparation of the exhibition. A subscription list was opened and almost $1,000 was collected towards the event that soon included participants from all over the colony.

The event was then widely advertised through-

out the country, and the various villages apprised of the event and what it entailed. During the course of the year, some 2,000 applications arrived for partaking in the exhibition.

Because of this wide appeal, the Town Hall, which was the largest building in the town, was offered free of cost by what was then the Board of Superintendence of the town.

The exhibition, with a band in attendance, was opened January 28, 1891

by His Excellency Lord Gormanston, and featured

exhibits from all over the colony: from Mazaruni in the west to Orealla in the east. More than 3,000 persons were estimated to have attended the event, which lasted on average some 24 hours over the two days, with some of the opinion that it should have lasted longer.

Some of the exhibits included provisions, fruits and vegetables, sewing and decorative craftwork, including basket work and shoe making, and prepared food items such as jellies, preserved goods and cocoa.

There were also crab oils, glues and honey on exhibit; carpentry and woodwork, cabinet making, jewellery, leather work and coopering.

A major disappointment for the organisers however, was the lack of participation from the rice-growing East Indian immigrants of Berbice and participation of few Georgetown artisans.

Prizes were also presented to numerous exhibitors by judges, some of whom came from as far as Georgetown to judge the products and produce, which were divided into classes. Fruits and vegetables were categorised as Class I, and, despite what was described as some poorly presented selections, the displays were considered generally good.

Class II was prepared food stuffs and included jams, jellies, preserves and coca. Rice was also offered a prize in the class but had few exhibitors, none of which were from East Indian planters. However, the Class III group, which included needlework, tailoring, basket work and shoemaking among others, featured numerous exhibitors

and was considered the best class of the exhibition with its high standard of work.

Class IV exhibits were of oils, glues and honey, with the crab oil prepared by the Orealla indigenous Indians described as being of exceptional quality.

Class V and VI were the general arts and manufacturing: cabinet making, coopering, carpentry, carving, jewellery etc. The few Georgetown exhibitors in this class were lauded along

with some New Amsterdam participants for their exhibits. The final category was Class VII which featured sugar, rum, molasses and others, but had very few exhibitors.

As a result of the first exhibition’s popularity, the New Amsterdam council tentatively planned another Berbice Industrial exhibition for August or September the following year.

Municipal Market below the Town Hall, New Amsterdam, British Guiana n.d

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NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Sunday Times Magazine 5

Times Women

The Association for Women Entrepreneurs

W

omen-owned businesses are mostly formed out of necessity: the necessity to meet the needs of their families, to establish who they are, to cater to a need in their communities and sometimes in their own lives.

Founded in September 2016, the Association for Women Entrepreneurs was formed by four phenomenal and enterprising women: Evie Kanhai Gurchuran, Java Coffee Bar, EMTEC, Kanhai’s Centre; Ruth Johnson, Simple Solutions Dream Weddings and Events; Debbie Houston, Glitzy Glamour Cakes, Catering & Events; and Niketa Hussain, Le Cosmetiques

munities and countries well.

The objectives of the Association for Women Entrepreneurs include strengthening womenowned businesses through collaboration, training, funding and initiatives for creating income generating opportunities; create opportunities for women owned businesses to thrive, survive and excel in their respective industries; develop a culture of purposeful buying that benefits women’s lives, their families and their communities; and to connect women entrepreneurs with local and global networking and training initiatives that can develop markets and export their The phenomenal women of the Association of Women Entrepreneurs

and fuel the economy,” CEO of the Association of Women Entrepreneur Evie Gurchuran said in an interview with Sunday Times Magazine.

By building a database of suppliers and buyers, the Association will see a change in the struggle for women-owned businesses to survive. The Association also stresses the need for funds where women can access money to complete projects, funds with low collateral and interest rates, in order to change the culture of how women do business.

A round table discussion for women in business

Beauty Supplies.

From supporting each other in various ventures, the need was revealed for an organization that believes in sisterhood and a constructive approach to seeing other women succeed. Further discussions led the Association’s founders to want to help other business women in a structured and recognized approach. Pulling from their own experiences and years of exposure in their respective industries, they wanted the burdens and challenges of doing business as women to be eradicated.

Evie, Ruth, Debbie and Niketa formed the Association for Women Entrepreneurs because they felt that women were underserved and underrepresented. They believe there is a real need to propel the efforts of women in business, to help them become established, flourishing and viable entities that can serve their com-

products and services.

The Association aims to embolden more women entrepreneurs to seek out opportunities, to bring their businesses in line with the systems outlined by governments and other stakeholders; also to be at the top of their fields, to access resources and training and to create opportunities for others in their communities.

Additionally, it hopes to become a world leader at connecting women entrepreneurs with opportunities for growth and achieving their fullest potentia;, creating knowledgeable and empowered women leaders that shape and create economic opportunities for their communities.

For the Christmas season, the Association is happy to give back to women entrepreneurs in Guyana. The Association of Women Entrepreneurs wraps the best Christmas opportunity for women en-

trepreneurs by presenting its inaugural “Women’s Christmas Market”.

Through this event, the Association presents opportunities for women to promote their businesses, generate new clients and boost their Christmas sales. It will also provide exclusive special packages to drive its Christmas opportunities.

“These business women will enjoy two days, December 3-4, 2016, at the ground floor of Giftland Mall of executive training from our team, which aims to help teach passionate business women how to maximize and generate business opportunities and vital match making and networking opportunities.

Women-owned businesses comprise more than 50 per cent of the business population, and Association of Women Entrepreneurs is proud to bring together our powerful women's business enterprises to continue to grow their companies

“As a body, we need the support of various stakeholders and institutions, especially the government. We need corporations to especially recognize the importance of women entrepreneurs and the contribution they make, and how they in turn can make a difference through purposeful purchasing,” Evie declared.

For more information, visit Association of Women Entrepreneurs on Facebook or call Grace on 592-673-6222.

6 Sunday Times Magazine

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NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Times Book World The Shaping of Guyanese Literature

by

P etamber P ersaud

E

xtract of interview with Carmen Barclay Subryan in Georgetown, 2016.

Subryan is an educator, novelist and poet. Her publications include “Black Water People”,“Black Water Children” and“Black Water Women”.

PP Guyana has produced its fair share of historical fiction writing - family dramas and family sagas – going back to the 60s with Edgar Mittelholzer’s “Kaywana Trilogy”.

Other family sagas that come to mind include Roy Heath’s “Armstrong Trilogy” and Churaumani Bissondyal who is working on a pentalogy in the Kassaku series of five books…Guyana, also, has loads of resources for writers found in our history of sugar, slavery, indentureship, colonialism, independence etc…

Writers are also exploring the history of our bauxite - another resource of the country and for the writer. In this genre of writing, we must bear in mind the biographies and

autobiographies because contemporary writers are feeling more inclined to write their stories especially the writers overseas….

CBS Oh yes. And then when you write what you know, everything flows, coming up like a well, a great outpouring, a catharsis. I find that I do very well when I write what I know…

PP And you know a lot about Guyana’s bauxite - this is where you come in and this is where the Black Water People trilogy comes into the picture…

Carmen, why have you taken on this challenge?

CBS It was indeed a challenge – it was a journey because I was really catapulted into this situation because one of our family members – Sammy Allicock – decided to get as many family members together for a reunion…

PP The Allicock family.

CBS Yes. PP Which area are we talking about?

CBS I’m talking about Linden which is Christianburg and Wismar…

PP …the whole mining area…

CBS Sammy was in Maryland saying we must have this reunion, and I had always wondered when I was at school with so many people named Allicock – I was a Barclay but my mother, Sybil Allicock, and my grandfather was George Garvan Allicock – and I [saw] some Allicocks who were light, white and some were really bright while others were the in-between like me and others were dark…

And I said how did all this happen? And once Sammy started the process of the reunion, the real interesting thing was Sammy had access to a will of the first Allicock who was Robert Frederick Allicock and he made copies for everybody – Sammy was very inclusive despite the fact that some of the whiter Allicocks were not having much to do with the darker ones – some people didn’t even know they were related to each other.

I sat in classrooms – elemental school in Christianburg as well as in Mackenzie High – and played on the netball Cover of “Black Water Women” (Publisher: iUniverse, Inc. February 1, 2008)

team with two of my cousins and didn’t know we were cousins; we were related. That was the situation and when that will came about, it was a fantastic document which really propelled me into going on this search, on this 10 -year search.

PP Wow, 10 years! So it was a real challenge …

CBS You see I was living in Maryland, teaching at Howard University and wondering where was I going to get the documents from.

But Howard had some of the things I needed, like Zahra Freeth’s “Run Softly Demerara”, the Kaywana trilogy.

Howard had all that stuff in there because Howard is an international university so they had all those documents; I didn’t even have to come home to look for anything.The will was a fantastic document Allicock’s PP RF will…

CBS Yes. That will was probated in 1822. He came to the colony in the mid1700s and he had eight children with a coloured woman and one child with an indigenous woman. Our line came down from the coloured woman and the b… line came down from

the indigenous woman; but in the long run they were all mixed in; the families were even intermarrying; there weren’t many others to choose from.

RF Allicock owned Plantation Nooitgedacht – that was the Dutch name for Retrieve – he retrieved it from the Dutch. And when he died, he left that plantation to the coloured woman, Ann Mansfield, and her eight children.

I have an excerpt of the will in that book [“Black Water People”] where he actually gave them slaves – would you believe that one of the first Allicocks, a coloured woman, owned slaves! [Reading extract of the will….] And he had so much money that he left to each child an inheritance on attaining the age of 25.

Then there was Patterson, another Scotsman, who came later, in about 1805, he probated the will and the only way we were able to get the will eventually was because he was a white man – black people at that time had no will and no will to probate.

Patterson was an interesting man because when he came he started a woodcutting establishment and

he had one of the biggest woodcutting establishments in Guyana.

He was friendly with Bookers and he sent a lot of his logs to Georgetown…

This was [the] Patterson great house [showing picture] …with two cannons and a long pier running down to the seaside….

PP All of this is leading to George Bain Mackenzie?

CBS Yes, he comes into the picture about here.

Part of the pier and other things were lost to erosion … caused, I think, by the bauxite company dredging the river because in 1914 when George Bain Mackenzie came here looking for bauxite, he actually went to the Allicock family – all the Allicocks were living along the river and you could go from one house to the other to the other…everybody along the river were related because they were all part of Plantation Nooitgedacht which they inherited. So in 1914, when Mackenzie sailed up the river looking for land to plant oranges – that’s what I’ve been told, I don’t know the truth of the matter. But the man was a geologist and there were rumours of bauxite before – this great calcined bauxite – and the next thing you know he had bought up X-number of acres or roods, whatever they were called at the time, from some of the Allicock families; all did not sell. And he went back and died and it was said that they put a curse on him. But he was an old man of seventy-something and in those days that was an advanced age. Anyway, Mackenzie was able to acquire the land in 1916; that was when the bauxite mining started at Three Friends.

PP And now in 2016, we’re celebrating its centenary and this is the background, the setting for your three novels in the Blackwater People Trilogy…. (to be continued) Responses to this author telephone (592) 2260065 or email: oraltradition2002@yahoo.com

guyanatimesgy.com

NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Sunday Times Magazine 7

Times Heritage

By the Very Revd.

Ignatius Scoles S.J.

O

f all our public buildings of less modern date, we have no one building in the town claiming for itself a greater share of architectural merit, than that large solid block of structure known as the Public Buildings: a building constructed evidently before the revival of mediaeval art in the mother-country, and consequently without a touch of gothic art to mar its beauty or interfere with its integrity.

It is strictly classic, as in contradistinction to mediaeval; though not of the sublime Grecian stamp, or an-

cient Roman school, but of the Italian development of the latter form of art.

Judging from the style of the building, some worthy pupil or admirer of Sir William Chambers, or some one of his school, must have spent his thought and worked his pencil on its design, but whoever it was he knew his profession well, as plinth, column, cap, entablature, pediment, dome and all do amply testify; but the greater test of his architectural knowledge, is seen in some of the lesser details, and especially in his mouldings.

They say in England that the true gentleman is known by his extremities; that is, by his gloves and boots — mere

details though they be; so the true architect is known or distinguished by his mouldings mere details, but true telltales!

The mouldings then in the Public Buildings prove at once that the design of the building fell not into builder’s hands, — or copying clerks', but to the care of one of whom Vetruvius might be proud.

The structure as a whole, is plain and simple; nay severe. The plan is good and no doubt was convenient enough before it was made to do double duty, and became like, so many sheltered within its walls, — acting.

If fault it has, it is perhaps too low, considering its length,

Public Buildings, Georgetown, British Guiana (no date)

'Court House', British Guiana n.d.

Spectators at a cricket match at Parade Ground, Georgetown, British Guiana n.d.

and consequently wanting in simple grandeur and general effectiveness; a fault however, the low level of our land must be made in part to pay for. The building has an unfortunate ailment; it suffers from two excrescences in the back, of quite modern growth.

So much then for its architectural merits to which such scanty justice has been done.

From a constructional point of view, considering its mighty weight and massive walls, the building has stood well, and kept its head fairly above the ground, and we are tempted to add, fairly above the water too; considering how soon we come upon that element out here. For on our Georgetown soil, as many to their cost well know, our difficulty consists not so much in raising our buildings, as in preventing them from sinking down.

Our public building has had its trials, and its failings too, in spite of much money sunk, or the many timbers driven down, in forming its foundation: however, in spite of its expensive piling we may learn a lesson and be taught perhaps to trust more to vertical wood than horizontal sand.

Let us consider just one more matter connected with the Public Buildings; and that is, the material of which it is constructed. It is not built of marble! or solid stone; nor is it ashlered, or fronted with the best of bricks well faced, nor have the hardwoods of the colony found favour there, but it is built of good stock bricks well stuccoed over. Now stuc-

Revd. Ignatius Scoles SJ (Dec. 1, 1834 –July 15, 1896)

co is an unwholesome sounding word in the ears of many good English architects, though salvation to the builders; but in our Georgetown public buildings, may we not fairly make allowance for its use, all things and many circumstances being well considered; and no doubt the architect with a well-balanced mind considered them one by one, and thus he might have argued to himself: “Stone I cannot get, wood I want not, while bricks well faced with surface rubbed, will ever show and make visible to all, ugly splits and cracks, rents and open joints; for settlements, like scandals, are sure to come where weakness abounds below; and my building is built, in spite of piles deep driven in, on soft wet mud, much deeper still; I will then fashion a front of stucco, for like kind charity it will cover many a venial fault, and

may prevent some more serious ones; and what is mostly to be considered, it will readily allow itself to be speedily repaired. Frost, the dire enemy of all plastic work at home, shall not, cannot touch it here; and other advantages I fail not to procure. Then, stucco I will use, for it will befriend me much, nor shall it belie or exalt itself like unto stone or marble, or humble itself to wood or wattling. Stucco shall be its name at birth, and cement and plaster shall stand proxy for it.”

The Public Buildings, or Parliament Buildings, were designed by Joseph Hadfield and completed in 1834. Revd. Ignatius Scoles SJ was a Roman Catholic Jesuit priest, writer and architect who designed City Hall in Georgetown, which opened in 1889. His writings on the Public Buildings appeared in the Timehri Journal (1885)

8 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Times Travel & Tourism

Panoramic view of Kusad’s moist highlands (Photo from marinetomyrmecologist. blogspot.com)

K

usad Mountain is a small isolated mountain near Guyana’s border with Brazil. The expansive Rupununi Savannah, “a sprawling tropical grassland peppered with rock outcroppings and forested mountains”, surrounds the mountain’s rocky peaks.

To get to the mountain, the trip begins at Lethem with packing trucks and

pickups to travel through dense savannah and muddy trails.

The Takatu River, which forms the border between southern Guyana and Brazil, is located within the vicinity of Kusad mountain.

It is said that “immense biodiversity occurs in this poorly known region [Kusad]”. (Information excerpted from wilderness-explorers.com)

Kusad Mountain (Andrew Snyder photo)

Grassy path to Kusad Mountain (Photo from marinetomyrmecologist. blogspot.com)

Storm clouds hover over Kusad (Photo from marinetomyrmecologist.blogspot.com)

Arriving at the foot of Kusad Mountain (Photo by Andrew Short)

guyanatimesgy.com

NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Sunday Times Magazine 9

Times Healthy Living

A

ccording to the World Health Organization (WHO), interpersonal violence and harmful and hazardous alcohol use are major challenges to global public health. Both place large burdens on the health of populations, the cohesion of communities and the provision of public services including health care and criminal justice.

Globally, alcohol is responsible for 4 per cent of all years of health lost through premature death or disability (DALYs, disability-adjusted life years ), ranging from 1.3 per cent in countries in the Middle East and Indian subcontinent to 12.1 per cent in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

Through homicide, interpersonal violence results in around 520 000 deaths per year (a rate of 8.8 per 100 000 population, ranging from 3.4 in the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region to 27.5 in the WHO Region of the Americas).

For every death resulting from interpersonal violence, scores of further victims require hospital treatment and many more remain untreated and unrecorded by either health or criminal justice agencies.

Although levels of alcohol consumption, patterns of drinking and rates of interpersonal violence vary widely between countries, across all cultures there are strong links between the two.

Each exacerbates the effects of the other with a strong association between alcohol consumption and an individual’s risk of being either a perpetrator or a victim of violence.

Defining interpersonal violence

The WHO states that interpersonal violence is the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against another person, which either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting in injury, death, psychological harm, maldevelopment or deprivation.

Types of interpersonal violence

Youth violence: Violence committed by young people.

Child maltreatment: Violence and neglect towards children by parents and caregivers.

Intimate partner violence: Violence occurring within an intimate relationship.

Elder abuse: Violence and neglect towards older people by family, carers or others where there is an expectation of trust.

Sexual violence: Sexual assault, unwanted sexual attention, sexual coercion and sexual trafficking.

Links between alcohol use and

interpersonal violence

The mechanisms linking alcohol and interpersonal violence are diverse.

Harmful alcohol use directly affects physical and cognitive function. Reduced self-control and ability to process incoming information makes drinkers more likely to resort to violence in confrontations, while reduced ability to recognise warning signs in potentially violent situations makes them appear easy targets for perpetrators.

Individual and societal beliefs that alcohol causes aggressive behaviour can lead to the use of alcohol as preparation for involvement in violence, or as a way of excusing violent acts.

Dependence on alcohol can mean individuals fail to fulfil care responsibilities or coerce relatives into giving them money to purchase alcohol or cover associated costs.

Experiencing or witnessing violence can lead to the harmful use of alcohol as a way of coping or self-medicating.

Uncomfortable, crowded and poorly managed drinking settings contribute to increased violence among drinkers.

Alcohol and violence may be related through common risk factors (e.g. antisocial personality disorder that contribute to the risk of both heavy drinking and violent behaviour.

Prenatal alcohol exposure resulting in foetal alcohol syndrome or foetal alcohol effects are associated in infants with increased risk of their maltreatment, and with delinquent and sometimes violent behaviour in later life, including delinquent behaviour, sexual violence and suicide.

A global dilemma

Few countries routinely measure the involvement of alcohol in violence. Further, most recording systems and research examining alcohol use by victims and perpetrators of violence derive from high-income countries.

Even where estimates of alcohol’s role in violence are available, methodological differences between studies complicate direct comparisons between countries.

However, across countries, harmful alcohol use is estimated to be responsible for 26 per cent of male and 16 per cent of female DALYs lost through homicide.

Furthermore, the role of harmful alcohol consumption as a risk factor for violent victimization and perpetration, and the impact of violent experiences on future drinking behaviours, are increasingly being identified throughout the world.

A review of global scientific literature

Findings from a review of

The proportions of violent incidents that were alcohol-related increased as the evening progressed (From: Examining violent incidents where the victim perceived the offender to be under the influence of alcohol – from the Crime Survey for England and Wales, 2013/14: Five Facts about alcohol-related violence)

global scientific literature include the following: Harmful alcohol consumption by perpetrators of violence In the USA, among victims that were able to report whether their attacker had been using alcohol, 35 per cent believed the offender had been drinking. In England and Wales, 50 per cent of victims of interpersonal violence reported the perpetrator to be under the influence of alcohol at the time of assault.

In Russia, around threequarters of individuals arrested for homicide had consumed alcohol shortly before the incident. In South Africa, 44 per cent of victims of interpersonal violence believed their attacker to have been under the influence of alcohol. In Tianjin, China, a study of inmates found that 50 per cent of assault offenders had been drinking alcohol prior to the incident.

Harmful alcohol consumption by victims of violence In Australia, 26 per cent of male and 17 per cent of female homicide victims (2002– 2003) had been drinking just prior to death.

Between 1970 and 1998, 36 per cent of victims of violence presenting to a trauma department in the Netherlands had consumed alcohol. Between 1999 and 2001, between 43 per cent and 90 per cent of victims presenting to hospital trauma units in three South African cities tested positive for alcohol.

Among victims of violent injuries presenting to emergency rooms in six countries, the percentage testing positive for alcohol ranged from 24 per cent in Argentina to 43 per cent in Australia.

In São Paulo, Brazil, 42 per cent of homicide victims were shown to have used alcohol prior to death (2001); and 46 per cent of assault victims presenting to a trauma centre tested positive for alcohol (1998–1999).

Harmful alcohol use is a risk factor across all types of interpersonal violence.

Victims are less likely than

perpetrators to be under the influence of alcohol during an incident, and for many victims harmful levels of alcohol use can occur later as a consequence of violent experiences, WHO notes.

Alcohol misuse as a risk factor for and a consequence of violence

In Germany, 32 per cent of offenders of fatal child abuse (1985–90) were thought to have consumed alcohol prior to the offence. Parental alcohol or drug use was reported in 34 per cent of child welfare

investigations in Canada.

Globally, a history of child sexual abuse is estimated to cause 4–5 per cent of alcohol misuse in men and 7–8 per cent in women.

In Israel, 11–16 year olds who reported both drinking five or more drinks per occasion and having ever been drunk were twice as likely to be a perpetrator of bullying, five times as likely to be injured in a fight and six times as likely to carry a weapon.

In the USA, victims of violence during adolescence report higher levels of alcohol consumption in later life.

In Russia, 60–75 per cent of male perpetrators of intimate partner homicides had been drinking. In Iceland, 71 per cent of female victims of intimate partner violence stated partner alcohol use as the main cause of their assault.

In Iceland, 22 per cent of female intimate partner violence victims reported using alcohol following the event as a mechanism for coping.

In the USA, 44 per cent of male and 14 per cent of female abusers of elderly parents (age 60 years and over) were dependent on alcohol or drugs, along with 7 per cent of victims.

In Canada, an outreach program for seniors with alcohol or other substance misuse problems reported 15–20 per cent of clients experiencing some form of elder abuse.

For some, alcohol use was a way of coping with violent experiences.

In the United Kingdom, 58 per cent of men imprisoned for rape reported having consumed alcohol in the six hours preceding the offence and 37 per cent were considered to be alcohol dependent.

In the USA, victims of sexual assault report higher levels of psychological distress and the consumption of alcohol, in part, to self-medicate.

10 Sunday Times Magazine Times Fashion

D

esigner Sonia Noel’s casual resort men’s wear offers chic, breathable, comfortable and sophisticated shirts for a tailored look.

These fashionable bespoke pieces are made from durable fabric, and are ideal for any guy who wants to “stand out from the crowd”.

This collection was showcased at the recently concluded prestigious fashion event, Guyana Fashion Week held at the Pegasus Hotel.

For more information, call 226-3099 or visit Sonia Noel Designs on Facebook.

(Photos by Keno George)

NOVEMBER 27, 2016

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Sunday Times Magazine 11

Times Hollywood

Justin Bieber punches Mariah Carey on Nick Cannon expecting a baby: fan in the face ‘This is all news to me’

M

J

ustin Bieber isn't letting a recent incident involving one of his fans stop him from having fun in Barcelona.

A day after he punched one male Belieber in the face, the Canadian heartthrob posted on Snapchat Wednesday, November 23 a video of him lip-syncing one song by his longtime nemesis Taylor Swift.

The Biebs went shirtless and donned large glasses in the bizarre-but-entertaining short clip, which was apparently taken in his hotel room. He filmed himself dramatically mouthing the lyrics to Swift's "Red" hit "I Knew You Were Trouble".

Bieber has been in Barcelona for his ongoing "Purpose" world tour. He punched a fan and left him bleeding on Tuesday night, ahead of his show at the Palau Sant Jordi.

The fan was seen touching Bieber, who was sitting in a moving car, and running alongside the vehicle before the "Sorry" hitmaker hit him.

During his stay in the city, Bieber also hung out with some players of FC Barcelona.

The singer visited the team's training facility and hit the field with Neymar and Rafinha. He also got to take pictures with Lionel Messi. (AceShowbiz)

ariah Carey was as surprised as everyone else was when Nick Cannon confirmed that he's expecting a child with his on-and-off girlfriend Brittany Bell.

Finally addressing the baby news, the diva said in an interview with Mario Lopez of "Extra" that she just found out about it last week.

"This is all news to me, 'cause I didn't know about this til maybe last week," the 46-year-old songbird told the host. "I asked him a question and then he kinda said yes, but didn't, and I'm like, it's kinda confirmed."

However, she assured everyone that she'd remain supportive of her ex. "I'll always be supportive of him...

If he's happy that's great."

Cannon confirmed that he's the father of Bell's unborn baby during an in-

terview on "The Breakfast Club" last week. "I got a baby on the way," he said.

"God said be fruitful and multiply, I'm doing the Lord's work."

Bell, a former Miss Arizona USA, is already in her last trimester of pregnancy. The child will be her first and Cannon's third. He's already a dad to 5-year-old twins Monroe

and Moroccan whom he welcomed with Carey.

The baby news came weeks after Carey finalized her divorce from Cannon and after she broke up with her fiance James Packer. She's now focusing on her E! docu-series "Mariah's World" which is premiering on December 4.

(AceShowbiz)

Beyonce asks Jay-Z to rekindle 'Brady Bunch' star Florence friendship with Kanye West Henderson dies at 82

F

lorence Henderson, who starred on beloved '70s TV series “The Brady Bunch”, died on Thursday, November 24, at the age of 82, the Associated Press reports.

The Hollywood veteran died surrounded by family and friends after suffering heart failure, her manager said in a statement late Thursday. Henderson's publicist said that she had been hospitalized on Wednesday

and died Thursday night at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Henderson, who played effervescent mom Carol Brady on the hit TV series, was most recently seen in the audience at the finale of “Dancing With the Stars” on Monday, November 21.

"She looked great," a source tells Us Weekly. "She was with a female friend or relative and was in the front row to the left of the judges."

The actress, singer and talk show host, who was a contestant on the ABC dancing competition in 2010, "enjoyed the show so much," the source adds. "Even the audience warm-up guy pointed her out as 'America's favorite mom,' and everyone cheered for her.

She was such a wonderfully nice lady."

Her best-known role came in 1969, when she made her debut on ABC's “The Brady Bunch” as the mother of three daughters who married a man with three sons. The series ran for five years till 1974. She also appeared in “The Brady Bunch Hour” in 1977, “The Brady Brides”in 1981 and “The Bradys” in 1990.

Henderson, who was married twice and had four children, went on to host a cooking show, cohosted NBC's “Later Today” and hosted her own talk show on Retirement Living TV. (US Magazine)

B

eyonce Knowles has planned to repair Jay-Z and Kanye West's friendship for the sake of the 39-year-old rapper. Following Kanye's hospitalization earlier this week, the 35-year-old singer has been "quietly" persuading her husband to make up with Kanye so that he can get through his "mental breakdown."

"Beyonce is urging Jay to let bygones be bygones, and Jay is coming round to the idea and fast as he sees Kanye is in trouble," an insider with knowledge of the situation told The Sun. "No matter what has happened between them, Kanye has always been Jay's little bro and Jay has always called him his 'familia.' " The source also revealed that Kanye "turned to" Bey and Jay for support when

his mother Donda died, adding, "They were his number one comforters, with Beyonce even playing Connect 4 with him to take his mind off things."

The "Freedom" hitmaker and her 46-year-old husband "are now planning to reach out to Kanye quietly and in private to avoid any media storm." As revealed by the insider, the couple just wanted "to let him know they are there for him."

Kanye and Jay seem to have created distance between them after the latter and Bey didn't attend his wedding to Kim Kardashian. The "Famous" rapper recently also slammed them during his "Saint Pablo" show at Sacramento's Golden 1 Center before he left the stage early.(AceShowbiz)

Lady Gaga says women should ‘start being fighters’

A

week ago, Lady Gaga encouraged fans to vote in the presidential election by writing on Instagram, “Let’s go you modern suffragettes, go put on your hats and #GoVote. ‘Corsets Off!’” Now, in an essay for Harper’s Bazaar, the “Joanne” singer has elaborated on that last phrase by declaring that it’s time for women to revolt against the corsets that are holding them back.

“You know, I never thought I’d say this, but isn’t it time to take off the corsets?” she wrote. “As someone who loves them, I think it’s time to take them off.”

Gaga covers the magazine’s November/ December issue, and inside, she shares an essay about what it means to be a woman in today’s world.

For her, it means being strong, but also having the courage to own your emotions.

“Being a lady today means being a fighter. It means being a survivor,” she wrote. “It means letting yourself be vulnerable and acknowledging your shame or that you’re sad or you're angry. It takes great strength to do that.”

Gaga turned 30 this past March, and she says the milestone birthday gave her a clearer vision of what she wants out of life — which is not, in fact, chasing “the fame monster.”

“I turned 30 this year, and I’m a fully formed woman,” she wrote. “I have a clear perspective on what I want. That, for me, is success. I want to be somebody who is fighting for what's true — not for more attention, more fame, more accolades.”

She continued, “Health, happiness, love — these are the things that are at the heart of a great lady, I think. That's the kind of lady I want to be.” (MTV)

12 Sunday Times Magazine

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14 Sunday Times Magazine

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Times Bollywood

Priyanka Chopra talks about Sylvester Stallone impressed by Salman’s her ‘Baywatch’ character A movie ‘Sultan’ D

irector Ali Abbas Zafar says he had narrated the idea of “Sultan” to Hollywood star Sylvester Stallone, who was bowled over by it.

The Salman Khan starrer romantic-sports-drama released this year went on to become a huge blockbuster, apart from garnering critical acclaim.

Ali says he had a brief interaction with the “Rocky” star in Los Angeles, where the actor said a story like “Sultan” can also be made for the American audience.

“I met Stallone, while doing research and getting my martial arts team from LA. I met him for a brief interaction and he kind of heard the story. He said ‘Wow, what a story. This could be a story

which can easily be done in America.’ Because it’s about an underdog who has lost everything and is trying to get his self-esteem back,” Ali told PTI. The film focuses on

Sultan Ali Khan, a wrestling champion from Haryana whose successful career creates a rift in his personal life. The movie also starred Anushka Sharma. (PTI)

ctor Priyanka Chopra, who will be making her Hollywood debut with “Baywatch”, is excited to play a negative role on screen.

“Oh how I love being bad!! Victoria Leeds (her character) is a different kind of villain…she’s evil but she makes being bad look so good! I had so much fun playing the character,” she says.

Priyanka played an antagonist in “Aitraaz” (2004), however, she feels that the two characters are poles apart so she had to approach the character and prepare for it differently.

“I just gave myself up to the character. I understood her and then began to enjoy each moment as she would,” she says, adding that she had a lot of fun shooting for the film with her co- stars.

“I also had a great director

in Seth (Gordon) and amazing co-stars like DJ (Dwayne Johnson), Zac (Efron), Alexandria (Daddario) and Kelly (Rohrbach), who helped me bring out all the evil,” she laughs.

The 34-year-old actor doesn’t think she has changed as an actor. “As an actor, I believe I have grown and evolved over the years.

My choices of films are a re-

flection of that. I like to do different things, play difficult characters, pick unusual roles and interesting stories. That hasn’t changed and it never will,” she adds.

Apart from “Baywatch”, Priyanka is also shooting for the second season of American TV series “Quantico”.

(Hindustan Times)

Shah Rukh: ‘I make films Abhishek Bachchan ‘loves Aaradhya, Aishwarya equally’ for myself, not critics’

W

ith a career graph spanning two and a half decades, actor Shah Rukh Khan is unstoppable. Whether it’s the highest grosser at the box office or a flop film that died without noise, he has been there and done it all.

At this stage, ask him if he makes films for critics or fans, and the 51-year-

A

old said: “Without trying to sound arrogant or selfish, I feel that an actor has to do a film for himself or herself.

I’ve never tried to please anyone. You can’t please all the people all the time. A film does that. Try to please a set of people, and you end up pleasing nobody, including yourself.”

Calling himself a film-

maker’s actor, Shah Rukh added that actors needn’t think too much before signing a film. “I don’t think actors should decide what films to do. The director should decide the film they want to make. It’s not like an actor always has to do hatke (unique) films. But I think the directors and the writers have to decide, and an actor has to do what the filmmaker wants him or her to do.”

Another reason for that, SRK said, is that an actor may not be fortunate enough at that point to get the kind of film he or she wants to do.

“If you feel like doing a particular thing, you just hope that it comes along. But if it doesn’t, you cannot sit back home and a workaholic like me will do the second best of third best that I am given.”

(Hindustan Times)

A

ctor Abhishek Bachchan says he would be happy with whatever career option his daughter Aaradhya will choose in the future.

Abhishek treated his fans and followers to a question and answer session on Twitter, where a user asked the actor if his daughter would contribute in Bollywood to continue the “Bachchan trend”.

He replied via a video message: “I would like my daughter to do whatever she chooses to do and whatever she loves to do. As a kid I was told to do what made me happy

Sunny Leone makes it to BBC’s ‘100 Most Influential Women of 2016’ list

ctor Sunny Leone has made it to the BBC’s list of 100 most influential women.

BBC has included a mixture of high-profile and influential women including entrepreneurs, engineers, sportswomen, business women, fashion icons and artistes.

Sunny, who is celebrating her fifth year anniversary in Bollywood, debuted on Indian screens by participating in the controversial reality TV show “Bigg Boss” in 2011.

She went on to star in Bollywood films like “Jism 2”, “Jackpot” and “Ek Paheli Leela”.

Apart from the actor, the list also includes four Indian names -

Gouri Chindarkar (Sangli), Mallika Srinivasan (Chennai), Neha Singh (Mumbai) and Saalumarada Thimmakka (Karnataka), read a statement.

Chindarkar is a 20-year-old computer engineering student from Sangli, Maharashtra. She is one of the first children in India to experience a unique learning experience now known as ‘School in the Cloud’.

Srinivasan, 57, is the CEO of Tractors and Farm Equipment Ltd. She is known as the ‘Tractor Queen’ of India and has grown her family company into the third largest tractor manufacturer in the world.

Singh is a 34-year-old actor-

writer who founded a movement to encourage women to walk the streets in Mumbai to defy harassment.

Thimmakka is a 105-year-old environmentalist from Karnataka who has planted more than 8,000 trees in 80 years, a project which first started in response to social ridicule at not being able to have children. She is the oldest woman on the BBC 100 women list.

Some of this year’s high profile women include singer-songwriter Alicia Keys; US gold medal winning gymnast Simone Biles and French politician Rachida Dati. (Hindustan Times)

and I want her to do what makes her happy.

Whatever it is I will be happy.”

The actor also told a user that he loves his daughter Aaradhya and his wife and actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan equally.

“I love both equally. You can’t choose between your wife and your daughter. So I love both equally,” said the “Yuva” actor.

Abhishek also shared that he would love to work with actor Saif Ali Khan.“I think Saif and I would make a very cool buddy kind of a film,” he added. (IANS)

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15

Times Trends

Trending NOW

Choker necklaces C

hoker necklaces rose from the ashes of the '90s, gripping fashionistas everywhere with flashbacks to the good old days of mood rings, chain wallets, and ripped jeans.

Whereas the chokers of days’ past were typically stretchy and plastic (and thus not considered "high fashion"), 2016's resurgence gave

Star of the week

the “neck-cessory” a much-needed makeover.

The comeback started slowly with simple versions, mostly in black. But the trend quickly picked up steam as more and more fashionistas wanted in on the '90s nostalgia.

Get inspiration from these celebrity looks featured today.

Kim Kardashian's choker necklace variations

Beyonce stuns in layered necklaces with choker Selena Gomez rocks a strap leather wrap choker

Jennifer Lopez's white lace choker completes her ensemble

Rihanna dons a gothic styled choker with layered necklaces

K

enny Hercules is a 22-year-old who aims to remove the preconceptions attached to male models locally.

He attended the New Campbellville Secondary School and is currently employed as an optician at Modern Optical Service. Kenny only recently began his modellingcareer when he participated in Guyana Fashion Week in March 2016. He has modelled for many award-winning Guyanese designers, including Nelsion Nurse and Sonia Noel. Recently, Kenny was the male winner of the Guyana Fashion Week ModelImage competition, which was held at the Pegasus Hotel. “It was an amazing feeling being the male winner of the Guyana Fashion Week ModelImage competition knowing it was my first competition I ever entered. My self-confidence has improved a great lot being a part of this competition,”he said.

Endure stigma and discrimination attached to males being on the runway by being focused and disciplined,” isKenny’s advice to males who want to pursue a modelling career. Other than modelling, Kenny enjoys singing and playing sports.

The aspiring optometrist hopes to one day open his own optical practice. As for modelling, Kenny noted: “Modelling is something I enjoy doing, so I'm just going as far as it takes me.”

16 Sunday Times Magazine

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Times Art

Suchitra Mattai

U

S-based Guyanese artist Suchitra Mattai’s artwork examines the general themes of identity and globalization through landscape.

Mattai was born in Guyana and also grew up here but now she lives and works in Denver, Colorado, USA. She received an MFA in painting and drawing, and an MA in South Asian art, both from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.

She has exhibited her work in Philadelphia, New York, Washington, DC, Minneapolis, Denver, Austin, Berlin, Germany, and Wales, United Kingdom. Her paintings have appeared in the publication “New American Paintings”. Additionally, she just completed a residency at RedLine Contemporary Art Centre, Denver.

Suchitra often appropriates found objects to create mixed-media drawings, paintings, sculpture and installations. Her disconnected landscapes are created from history, memory, travel and pop-culture, and invert the familiar in order to complicate assumptions about race and gender.

Her newest project, entitled “Revisionist”, explores and dissects the process of “coloni-

zation”. She considers the colonial gaze, the gaze of the “Other”, the vague memory of a past “home”, and a family legacy of ocean voyages to foreign lands by contracts of bondage. By appropriating and transforming historically contextual objects, she invests them with new and oblique meanings.

“Art has always been a way of living for me. My father wrote in my baby journal that I only wanted to draw since I could pick up a pencil. I have always made art. Painting and drawing have always been close to my heart.

I spent a lot of time by myself, as my sisters are much younger than me. This time led me to internalize experiences in a peculiar way and art has proven to be the best path for me to express my thoughts and attitudes. I also had one artist role model as a child – our family friend and a fellow Guyanese, Suresh Hanuman, was a source of inspiration,” Suchitra said in an interview with Sunday Times Magazine.

The artist mentioned that she is the happiest when using her hands to create.

Creating not only brings her joy, but also allows her to communicate the ideas she wants to voice. Suchitra disclosed that “as a wom-

an and minority in the United States”, it is of particular importance for her “to express those ideas in our current political climate”.

For 13 years Suchitra has taught art to university students, but recently chose to resign from teaching “in order to focus on making art”. She plans to continue to pursue exhibiting her work across the globe so that she can continue to be part of “this worldwide art conversation”.

Her advice to young artists is to “Follow your dreams in any way that you can, but realize that every life experience contributes to your success as an artist. Develop your technical skills, but really think about what it is that you need to say through your art.

It is the marriage of form and content that produces the most amazing artwork. It took me many years to be a ‘professional artist’, but I always created art. Initially, I studied statistics and mathematics in an effort to be practical, and then art history, but in the end I have pursued my passions. Being an artist comes with struggles and sacrifice, but the path is entirely worth it!” (Cover photo: 'Fragments' (2016). Mixed-media installation)

Artist Suchitra Mattai "Imagine that" (2015).

Thread on vintage needlepoint

"Echo" (2016).

Mixed-media installation

"Anecdotal" (2016). Mixed-media installation

"Her earthly gains" (2016).

Mixed-media installation

"Generally, I don't think that way" (2016). Mixed-media installation

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Times Tech

U

.S. president-elect Donald Trump is pushing Apple to make its products in the United States instead of other countries.

In an interview with The New York Times, Trump said that in a telephone conversation withApple CEO Tim Cook, who called him after winning the election, he explained to Cook that he would consider it a "real achievement" if he could convince Apple to make devices in the United States instead of other countries.

Cook reportedly acknowledged the suggestion by saying that he understands.

Trump told Apple CEO Tim Cook that Apple could build a big plant in the

Tech BYTE

Unites States, or several big plants, and make its devices right there, and that could be doable with the right incentives.

According to Tech Times, the recently-elected president further noted that he's optimistic that Apple will take him up on his offer based on the incentives he has in mind, which would include "substantial regulation cuts" and a "very large tax cut."

"I said: 'I think we'll create the incentives for you,

and

I think you're going to do it.

We're going for a very large tax cut f o r corporations, w h i c h you'll be h a p p y about,'" Trump told t h e NYT, recalling his talk with

Cook.

Big tax cuts, however, are currently impossible due to regulations, therefore those regulations have

to go. He added that regulations have become "ridiculous" and companies find it hard to start things up and expand.

Just recently, a report revealed that Apple has already asked Foxconn, one of its manufacturing partners, to look into the possibility of shifting iPhone production to the United States.

However, Foxconn chairman Terry Gou was reportedly not so excited with this idea, as it would lead to arguably higher production costs.

Getting Apple to move its production to the United

States has been important in Trump's agenda for a while now. Earlier this year, as MacRumors points out, Trump said Apple will be persuaded to build its "damn computers and things" in the United States instead of other countries. At that point, Trump also threatened to slap a 45 percent tax on products imported from China.

Cook, for his part, has previously argued that Apple makes iPhones in China because the country placed a huge focus on manufacturing, whereas the United States has a small-

er workforce vocationally skilled for what it needs.

At the same time, Apple is also paying lower wages in China compared to what it would have to pay in the United States. The company also collaborates with partners in Asia, Japan and South Korea for device manufacturing.

Most of Apple's current manufacturing partners operate in countries such as China and Vietnam, but Trump wants to incentivize the company to build at least one plant in the United States and make its products locally.

Self-balancing motorbike coming soon?

The GyroCycle stays upright via internal flywheels that create a gyroscopic effect when spinning (Credit: Thrustcycle Enterprises via New Atlas)

A

re you one of those people who like the idea of a motorcycle, but aren't comfortable with the whole "keeping your balance" thing? If you are, then Thrustcycle Enterprises' GyroCycle may be for you.

Already existent in working prototype form, the self-balancing electric motorbike may be commercially available as soon as next year.

Like other self-balancing bikes, the GyroCycle stays upright via internal fly-

wheels that create a gyroscopic effect when spinning. This means that not only will it automatically pull itself back up after leaning into turns, but it will even stay up on its own when it isn't moving – as long as it's still powered up.

With this in mind, Thrustcycle previously created two enclosed-body prototype bikes that don't require riders to put their feet down when stopped (not unlike the Lit Motors C1). The company is still interested in pursuing that design, but sees the GyroCycle as a quicker way of initially breaking into the market. The balancing technology used in the cycle is reportedly fully transferrable to a larger, enclosed vehicle.

Thrustcycle co-founder Clyde Igarashi says that the final version of the GyroCycle will utilize an oil-cooled and -lubricated motor from production partner Zev, along with components from that company's 8,500watt lithium battery system. The bike will have a range of about 80 miles (129 km) and a top speed of 75 mph (121 km/h).

"We're working with a custom builder for the first limited production run and anticipate being on market in 2017," Igarashi tells New Atlas. "Price has not been finalized for the limited run but it should be less than[USD] $20K. The price for full production runs in the future should be significantly lower." (New Atlas)

"World's first" formation flight

Jetmen Yves Rossy, Fred Fugen and Vince Reffet join the French Air Force aerobatic team for formation flight. The three Jetmen flew in close formation with the French Air Force display team, followed by Eric Magnan (plane at top right of photo) shooting the movie for Airborne Films. View the video at http://newatlas.com/jetmen-patrouille-de-france-formation-flight/46621/

Tech news

Facebook 'made China censorship tool'

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks during a panel discussion at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, Beijing, China in March 2016

F

acebook worked on special software so it could potentially accommodate censorship demands in China, according to a report in the New York Times.

The social network refused to confirm or deny the software's existence, but said in a statement it was "spending time understanding and learning more" about China.

No decisions about the company's approach in the country had yet been made, a spokeswoman said.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a group which campaigns for better privacy online, told the BBC the project sounded "extremely disturbing".

"Kudos to the Facebook employees who brought this to the attention of the New York Times," said the EFF's global policy analyst Eva Galperin.

"It's very nice to know there are some principled people still working there."

The sources quoted by the New York Times - both current and former employees - stressed that like many pieces of software worked on internally, it may never be implemented.

Facebook, which has 1.8 billion active users, is aggressively looking to expand in parts of the world beyond its existing markets.

In the developing world, that means experimenting with new technology to connect

rural areas.

In China, it appears the site is at the very least considering making concessions to China’s notoriously tightly-monitored internet.

According to employees quoted anonymously by the New York Times’ reporter Mike Isaac, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg was questioned about the plans in an all-staff meeting earlier this summer.

"It’s better for Facebook to be a part of enabling conversation, even if it’s not yet the full conversation,” he is reported to have said while stressing it was early days.

Facebook’s spokeswoman would not confirm or deny the quote was accurate.

Mr Zuckerberg recently spent time with China's leader, Xi Jinping, as well as taking time to learn Mandarin.

Facebook regularly removes content from the network at the request of governments.

It makes this process relatively public with a yearly report detailing the quantity and nature of take-down requests.

Where this software would differ is in that it would enable a third-party, likely a Chinese company working with Facebook, to prevent messages from appearing in the first place.

Facebook isn’t the first Silicon Valley giant to grapple with the moral maze of doing business in China.

Google famously pulled out of mainland China after a backlash surrounding the censorship of search results. It now routes all traffic to Google Hong Kong.

LinkedIn, the network for professionals, does censor some content - although as the firm isn't typically seen as a host of public debate, the move is not seen as being nearly as contentious.

If Facebook follows LinkedIn’s lead, the EFF’s Ms Galperin said "Facebook would be trading in their principles in exchange for access to the market. It would have tremendous implications for human rights." (BBC)

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Times Home & Cooking

guyanatimesgy.com

Recipe of the Week Ingredients

Y

our sofa is one of the hardest working furniture in your home. It does much more than double-duty –sleeping, watching TV, working from your laptop or

tablet, and of course sitting with guests – so when it’s time for a new sofa, it’s important to get value and comfort for your money and lifestyle...

Sofas that come with slip covers or can accommodate slip covers are best for homes with families or those who like to change decor throughout the year, as slip covers can be washed and switched as often as you want (or need to)

2 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons paprika

Method Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

Rub salt, pepper, and paprika into the skin of the duck. Place in a roasting pan.

Roast duck in preheated oven for 1 hour. Spoon 1/4 cup melted butter

1 teaspoon black pepper 1 (5 pound) whole duck 1/2 cup melted butter

over bird, and continue cooking for 45 more minutes.

Spoon remaining 1/4 cup melted butter over duck, and cook for 15 more minutes, or until golden brown.

Makes 4 servings * Aluminium foil can be used to keep food moist, cook it evenly, and make clean-up easier.

T For watching TV in the living room, a TV sofa (especially a reclining sofa with cup holder that can be placed out of sight if certain guests arrive) is ideal

he number one thing that makes your eggs easy to peel is the starting temperature of the water. That is, the hotter the water is when you start boiling your eggs, the easier they are to peel.

Traditionally, people say to use a lot of water, because you want it at a rolling boil so that the water can come back up to boil as quickly as possible after you add the pasta in. While that sort of makes sense, it's not actually true. If you do a very simple test at home, and get a pot with a quart of water, and another with a gallon of water, and put them side-by-side, the one in the smaller pot will return to a boil faster. Why? Because no matter how much water you have, both pots need to regain the same amount of energy to return to a boil, but the bigger pot of water is losing energy faster to the environment than the smaller pot.

U

If you are challenged for space or frequently have overnight guests, a sleeper sofa can make life easier as it can be converted to a bed but look effortlessly elegant as a sofa in your living room

se empty ketchup bottles to store pancake batter for your pancakes and to have a less messy cooking experience.

Try using spare buttons to hold small earrings that tend to go missing easily. Push them through the buttonhole and secure for no more one-side earrings.

Use a lemon and baking soda to make your brass look brand new.

If you’ve lost your earring back(s), replace with pencil eraser if you have one handy. Snip the tip of a pencil eraser, and use it to temporarily replace a lost back so that you can wear the earring until you replace the back.

Those little packets of silica you find in packaging of electronics, shoes, nutritional supplements, etc., absorb moisture. Booklice live in the damp fungus and mould that thrives in books. Put silica packets behind the books and anywhere you suspect moisture.

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Sunday Times Magazine19

Family Times

PARENTING

Chores for children based on their age

C

hores help children learn important lessons that can impact their lives as responsible adults later on.Our children can — and probably should — handle more than we think. There are tasks around the house that can be completed by children based on their age.

JOKES A

Millionaire parking

fellow walked into a bank in New York City asking for a loan for US$4000 dollars.

“Well, before we lend you the money we are going to need some kind of security” the bank teller said.

“No problem” the man responded here are the keys to my car “you’ll see it, it’s a black Porsche parked in the back of the parking lot.”

A few weeks later the man returned to pay off his loan. While he was paying it up, along with the interest of $11 dollars, the manager came over, “Sir, we are very happy to have your business, but if you don’t mind me asking, after you left we looked into you and found out that you are a millionaire, why would you need to borrow $4000 dollars?”

“Well,” the fellow responded “it’s quite simple, where else can I park my car for three weeks in New York for $11 dollars?”

H

‘Flower’ joke

arry and Barbara’s marriage has been on the rocks for a while, so when they hear about a marriage seminar being given in their neighbourhood they decide to attend.

“One of the most important things in marriage”, said the speaker, “is to get to really know your spouse well.

For example,” continued the speaker, “How many of you know what’s your wife’s favourite type of flower?”

Harry leaned over to Barbara and whispered, “it’s ‘Gold Medal All-purpose flour’ isn’t it?”

O

By habit

n the day of my big job interview I woke up late.

Frantically I threw on a suit. “Oh no!” I thought.

“Mytie!”

My Dad was out of town and wasn’t there to help me, and for the life of me I did not know how to tie a tie! I grabbed a tie and ran out the door.

“Excuse me sir,” I said to the crossing guard, “I have an important job interview, can you please help me make this tie?!”

“Sure” said the guard, “just lie down on this bench.”

Well if someone was going to help me I wasn’t going to ask any questions. After he finished and the tie looked good I just had to ask why I had to lie down.

“Well in my previous job I learned how to tie tie’s on other people when they were lying down. He replied.

“What was your previous job?” I asked incredulously.

“I ran a morgue,” was the reply.

T

Class genius

he classroom was silent. Mrs Smith was handing out to students their last homework sheet. As she did it, she wrote the word plenipotentiary on the whiteboard.

Then she turned around and said, " Attention boys and girls. This word is among the hardest English word in the world. So, your job is to put this word into a sentence. I'll give you an example for ‘flower’: "In the middle of the circle was a large teardrop-shaped ‘flower’ garden". You see? Nice and easy. Now, whoever makes a sentence for the word ‘plenipotentiary’, there will be no homework for a month for him or her. So, start now. PLENIPOTENTIARY." Nobody seemed to do it, but far in the back,a boy called Darrell (considered the stupidest kid in the classroom) raised his hand.

Everybody stared at him in surprise, even Mrs Smith.

"Oh Darrell, don't tell me you got it? I mean it is impossible for you to get the right answer for easy questions in the first place!" Mrs Smith mocked.

Nearly everyone laughed.

"No Miss, I actually got it. So here it goes: "In the classroom, the teacher shouted out the word plenipotentiary,” Darrell replied.

Later, he went home, knowing that he didn't have to do homework for a month.

Ages 2-3 When your child is this young, it's important to not do every little thing for them so that getting them to help out when they're older isn't a losing battle. Here are some things they can help you or their older siblings with: Put laundry in the hamper/washer.

Put their toys away.

Put books on the bookshelf.

Help feed the family pet.

Throw diapers into trash.

Ages 4-7 As your child gets a bit older, their ability to do a few small chores independently increases, especially if they were helping out with little things before their fourth birthday.

As they make their way through preschool and into grade school, here are a few things they can manage: Help set the table.

Make their bed.

Water plants.

Clean their room.

Set the table.

Vacuum.

Feed the family pet.

Help wash the car.

Take out the trash.

Rake leaves.

Help cook dinner or pack lunches.

Wash wares.

Put away groceries.

Bring in the mail.

Fold laundry and put it away.

H e l p put away groceries.

Put non-breakable (and not sharp) wares to wash Some help with loading/emptying the washing machine.

Help clear the dinner table.

Pack up their backpack for school.

Sort silverware.

Sweep floors.

Ages 8-10 Things they helped with before can likely be done by them independently now, and responsibilities can extend from things that affect just them to things that help the entire family (like setting the table for dinner). Here are a few things you can get on your 8- to 10-year-old doing:

Age 11 + All kids develop differently, but as your child ages from 11 and on, chores like doing laundry and packing lunches are things your tween and teen should be capable of in time. Here some other chores to consider for kids 11 and above: Clean their bathroom.

Help clean the kitchen.

Wash dishes.

Clear the table.

Mow the lawn.

Do laundry.

Pack their school lunch.

Garden.

Wash the car.

Walk the dog.

Bake/cook with limited supervision.

Watch younger siblings for short periods of time (within the law).

STORY TIME

Why cats chase rats

T

housands of years ago, the Jade Emperor of China organized a race for animals. The first 12 animals to finish were to be given a place in the Chinese Zodiac, and have a year named after them.

The cat and the rat – both laterisers – asked the ox to wake them at dawn on the day of the race.

Came the day. The ox tried to wake the cat and the rat, but without success. They would open their eyes, turn to the other side and go back to sleep.

The race was about to start. Unwilling to leave them, the ox coaxed them onto his back and started running.

The rat woke up just as the ox was crossing the last hurdle, a river. The sly rat knew that he could never beat the cat in the race. He took the chance fate offered him and pushed the cat off the ox’s back.

When the ox reached the other side, the rat jumped off and scampered to victory, just ahead of the ox. The tiger came third, but he cheated. He crossed the river by using the backs of the animals swimming across as stepping stones, leaping

from one to another.

So the 12-year cycle of the Chinese Zodiac begins with the rat. After him comes the ox who is followed by the tiger. After them come the rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig, in that order.

The cat, it must be noted, has no place in the zodiac. She wasn’t among the first twelve. In fact, she was lucky to finish, having almost drowned in the river.

So is it any wonder that cats chase rats? They can never forget the humiliation heaped on their ancestor by a tricky rodent! (A Chinese story)

By Grammar G.

Capitonyms

A

capitonym is a word that changesits meaning – sometimes its pronunciation – if the first letter is capitalised.

Capitonyms have the same spelling, but different meanings. The capitalised forms are proper nouns, and as such may not be found in your dictionary.

Examples include: Turkey (the country) and turkey (the bird) – there is also the informal meaning of“turkey”: something (especially a movie or

play) that was completely unsuccessful.

Lima (capital of Peru) and lima (the bean).

China (the country) and china (dinnerware).

But it’s not only nouns that become capitonyms,there are also verbs or adjectives: August (the month) and august (adjective meaning respected/ impressive) Conservative (a member/supporter of a Conservative Party) and conservative (a supporter of

the philosophy of conservatism).

You may note the nouns here too: Party (when used with the formal name of a political group of supporters of a philosophy who run

When I was one-and-twenty When I was one-andtwenty I heard a wise man say, ‘Give crowns and pounds and guineas But not your heart away; Give pearls away and rubies But keep your fancy free.’

But I was one-and-twenty, No use to talk to me.

When I was one-andtwenty I heard him say again, ‘The heart out of the bosom Was never given in vain; ’Tis paid with sighs a plenty And sold for endless rue.’

And I am two-and-twenty, And oh, ’tis true, ’tis true.

--- A.E. Housman for election) and party (a type of social gathering).

Not to forget the verb “party” (to enjoy oneself, celebrate) March (the month) and march (a way of walking) Lent (A religious occasion) and lent (past tense of verb ‘lend’) Some capitonyms also change their pronunciation: Polish (relating to Poland) and polish (make shine by rubbing): PO-LISH and PAW-LISH Also, Mobile (A town in Alabama, USA) and mobile (cell phone): MO-BEEL and MOBYLE. The rule of capitalisation at the beginning of a sentence still applies however so be sure to be clear with your sentence construction. (“Nice is pleasant.” could refer to a definition of “nice” or could describe the place “Nice” (pronounced NEESE) in France as pleasant).

20 Sunday Times Magazine

NOVEMBER 27, 2016

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Times Sunday Puzzle

Replace each word or words in parentheses with a one-word synonym to decipher popular sayings.

1. (Performances) (converse) (noisier) than (terms).

2. (More superior) (delayed) than (not at all).

3. (Sublime) (mental abilities) (contemplate) (similarly). see ANSWERS on page 23

see solution on page 23

see solution on page 23

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NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Sunday Times Magazine

21

Times Kids

Creature Corner

GEOZONE

Talamancan palm pit viper

T

he Talamancan palm pit viper (Bothriechis nubestris) is a recently discovered species of venomous snake found in a remote, forested region of Costa Rica in Central America – a 100 km area in the north of the Talamancan Cordillera of Costa Rica, the mountain range that sits on the border of Costa Rica and Panama.

The snake was first "discovered" in 2001 but scientists initially mistook the reptile for a different species of palm pit viper, the Black-Speckled Palm Pit viper.

However, further examination of the snake’s tissue samples against a database of natural history museum samples collected over decades of research, determined that the snake, though a close relative of the Black-Speckled Palm Pit viper, was in fact a distinct species.

The Talamancan Palm Pit viper is a small to medium-sized pit viper that may grow to 30 inches in length but most are less than 24 inches; it lives in trees where its green and black pattern provides excellent camouflage.

S

alar de Uyuni (Uyuni Salt Flat/ Desert) in southwest Bolivia, South America, is considered the largest salt desert in the world. Uyuni is the name of a town that serves as a gateway for tourists visiting the Salar, while Salar is said to mean “salt flat” in Spanish.

This immense desert rises some 11,985 feet (3,653 meters) above sea level. The 4,633-square mile (12,000 sq. km) salt flat was once a prehistoric salt lake called Lago Minchín, which covered most of southwest Bolivia. When it dried up, its remains created the desert seen

Colouring Fun

Please see solution on page 23

The objective of the game is to fill all the blank squares in a game with the correct numbers. Every row of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order. Every column of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order. Every 3 by 3 subsection of the 9 by 9 square must include all digits 1 through 9.

today.

Its constant bright sunshine helps produce reflections that can play tricks on the eye. In addition, it is a rich source of lithium – containing 50 to 70 percent of the world's lithium reserves – used for many electric batteries.

The Salar is mostly empty of any permanent wildlife or vegetation, except for giant cacti and a few shrubs used locally to cure catarrh or burn for fuel.

Flamingos and other birds, along with a few mammals, inhabit the area seasonally.

22 Sunday Times Magazine

NOVEMBER 27, 2016

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Sunday Times Magazine 23

NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Times World

Tokyo jeweller displays New Zealand earthquake lifts seabed pure gold Christmas tree T okyo, Japan jeweller Ginza Tanaka has revealed a two-metre (6.6-foot) Christmas tree made of pure gold wire described as being thin as angel hair pasta.

The 19 kilogramme (42 lb.) tree is made up of more than 1,200 metres (3,950 feet) of the gold wire.

"The wire is made of the finest gold which has a 99.999 per cent purity level," Ginza Tanaka store manager Takahiro Ito told AFP Tuesday.

Ginza Tanaka lies in Tokyo’s glitzy Ginza district, where the tree was made by the jewellery retailer’s in- house artisans.

The gold tree is said to cost 200 million yen (USD $1.8million).

Ito said he hoped the display would show off Japan's world-famous craftsmanship.“We want them to see our great technique and craftsmanship, and the glittering beauty of gold,” he said.

He described the creation as having been “crafted with a technique called line-art.”

The (dark-coloured) areas of the sea bed show where it was forced up to the surface along the coast Photograph showing how New Zealand 's 7.8 magnitude earthquake lifted the seabed two metres through the sand

A

Brain Teaser Answer Answer 1. Actions speak louder than words.

2. Better late than never.

3. Great minds think alike.

SUDOKU

KID SUDOKU

CROSSWORD

7.8 magnitude earthquake that shook New Zealanders just over a week ago was so powerful that it lifted the sea floor one to six feet above its previous position.

"The earthquake involved slip on at least four to six distinct faults…," USGS Earthquake Hazards Program associate coordinator Dr. Michael Blanpied explained to CNN."There also appears to have been vertical slip on a newly revealed fault in Waipapa Bay. The effect of these motions was to lift portions of the coast by one half to as much as two meters,” he said.

It took less than three minutes for the earthquake to reshape the landscape, including creating the beach feature.The new elevation is covered with seaweed and marine animals like crayfish and sea snails.

GNS Science, a New Zealand research institute, writes that it is unlikely that the coastline will return to normal in the future. The sea snails and other marine creatures that are currently stranded above the tides are most likely out of luck, researchers say.

Researchers say too that the earthquake will transform the marine life of the affected coast, as well as the coastline itself.

“There will be a major shift in the community of marine species. Many seaweeds and animals that would normally be permanently covered by water will now be struggling to exist in a zone of transition between air and sea,” GNS Science researchers wrote in their initial report. “As the animals not suited to this environment die from the reef, they will be replaced by seaweed and animals appropriate for the new tidal level.”

The gold tree

‘Sapphire rush’ spells disaster for protected Madagascar forests

A

recent “sapphire rush” has sent 45,000 miners into Madagascar's protected rainforests, and conservationists there say that much of the harm already caused by this sudden sapphire rush may well be irreversible.

Thousands of illegal miners have flooded these forests since sapphires were discovered in late September, where the rush began in October in the Corridor Ankeniheny Zahamena, a protected area of Bemainty, in the west of Didy.

The mine is considered to be growing by 1,500 to 2,000 people a day, perhaps even more. Workers must walk for 12 hours to reach the mine in the remote corner of Madagascar's eastern forests.

The mining involves removing the trees

A blue sapphire found at the “rush” site in October 2016 while the mining activity continues (in background) (Photo by Rosey Perkins via UPI)

so that the gem-rich gravel can be dug up and sieved to find the precious stones.

There are also concerns that the miners will increase bush meat harvesting, which is already a growing threat to lemurs and other wildlife in much of Madagascar.

However, the impact of a sudden influx of thousands of people is not simply a conservation issue.

“Insecurity increases, the cost of living rises, and the education of a generation of kids may be damaged as schools close. Water becomes polluted as there are suddenly thousands of new people living in an area with no sanitation facilities,” Tokihenintsoa Andrianjohaninarivo from Conservation International Madagascar, the NGO responsible for managing the protected area, explained.

As the latest mine continues to grow, conditions appear to be getting worse. UPI reports that there have been anecdotal stories of deaths from disease and violent conflict, and also reports of rapes, including one case which allegedly resulted in a girl's death.

The rush going on right now is only the last of a series which have occurred in protected areas in Madagascar in recent years.

In 2012, thousands of miners invaded another part of the Didy forest but were eventually moved on by government agents. In 2015, a similar rush occurred in Zahamena National Park, slightly to the north.

New study finds Africans, African-Caribbean immigrants healthier than African-Americans

A

s reported by the New York Daily News: “A new study from the city’s Health Department examining health discrepancies among black New Yorkers found that Caribbean and African immigrants tend to have fewer health problems like asthma and obesity than American-born blacks.

American-born blacks are also more apt to smoke and drink than blacks who are originally from other countries, the study says.

Some 53 per cent of American blacks labelled themselves as drinkers, compared with 44 per cent of Caribbean blacks and 34 per cent of Africans.

No black group drinks as much as white New Yorkers, 70 per cent of whom reported being drinkers, the study found.”

The health distinction between diaspora and native Africans does not stop there. As the article notes, African-Americans have a greater percentages of obesity, asthma and high-blood pressure than our West Indian and African counterparts.

In fact, the only illness category in which all blacks rated the same was diabetes (between 13 and 14 percent).

Although this particular health department study doesn’t spell out other factors that might

contribute to the health gap (outside of smoking and drinking), its findings underscore previous research, which contrasts the health benefits between African-Americans and traditional South African diets.

In that study, which was published in April of 2015, colon cancer researchers at the University of Pittsburgh switched the diets of 20 African-Americans and 20 South Africans in a two-week period span.

According to Think Progress: In this time, the Africans consumed traditional American food — meat and cheese high in fat content — while African Americans took on a traditional African diet — high in fibre and low in fat, with plenty of vegetables, beans, and cornmeal, with little meat.

After the exchange, researchers performed colonoscopies on both groups and found that those in the African diet group increased the production of butyrate, a fatty acid proven to protect against colon cancer. Members of the American diet group, on the other hand, developed changes in their gut that scientists say precede the development of cancerous cells.” (Excerpted from “Look to The Yams: New Study Finds Africans, Caribbean Immigrants Healthier than AfricanAmericans” by Charing Bell on madamenoire. com website)

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Sunday Times Magazine

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NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Fun Times

Archie

ARIES Don’t let anger get the (March 21- better of you when you should April 19) be channeling your energy into personal improvements.

Financial gains look promising, and networking will lead to positive change.

It’s a good day to plan TAURUS something special for you (April 20- and your loved ones. Taking May 20) a day trip or expanding your entertainment selection will encourage sharing memories with others as well as making new ones.

You need to focus on takGEMINI ing care of your physical and (May 21- emotional health. It’s imporJune 20) tant to look and feel your best before you present your intentions. Pamper yourself, rejuvenate and spend time with a loved one.

Do something you’ve CANCER never done before. Personal (June 21- growth through a creative July 22) pursuit or a venture you share with a loved one will bring about positive changes in your life.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Dilbert

Peanuts

A personal issue will spark controversy. Be careful how you handle delicate situations. Don’t let anger take control when a positive approach will bring better results. Give a little and take a little.

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

Socialize, challenge yourself physically and get in the game of life. Interacting with people who offer unique alternatives will spark your interest and imagination.

Romance is featured.

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Explore new interests and delve into something that motivates you. Learn as you go and travel to destinations that will help you make decisions about your future goals.

A creative pursuit will SCORPIO prompt you to make a physi(Oct. 24- cal change. Offer to do someNov. 22) thing nice for someone you care about in order to avoid suspicion and an untimely dispute.

Explore the unusual and SAGITTARIUS unfamiliar.

The ideas that (Nov. 23develop will send you on a Dec. 21) journey that is sure to be a learning experience and to change your way of thinking.

Calvin and Hobbes

Make special plans to CAPRICORN share something memora(Dec. 22- ble with a loved one. You Jan. 19) don’t have to overspend to get someone’s attention.

Moderation, affection, kindness and consideration will suffice.

Work behind the scenes AQUARIUS to accomplish your goals.

(Jan. 20- An important relationship Feb. 19) should be given the attention it needs to stay on level ground. Aim for unity and equality.

A donation or gift will PISCES surprise you. Don’t rule (Feb. 20out someone who is quietMar. 20) ly observing from the background. The most unlikely source will be the one who comes through for you.