issue #3
July 15, 2019
amine let positivity engulf you
Illustrated by Khushboo Agarwal
Bouquet Canyon
04 06
Self Love: The Key To a Happy Life Srinidhi
Drink More Water & Other Ways to Say I Love You Brandon Duong
08
10
Working Towards a Better Future
12 14
The Hidden Flower
Book Review: A Man Called Ove Indresh Paliwal
The Happy Company
Avianna Lemonier
Happiness List Coastal Fog
Riya Adlakha Bhavya Goswami Ajay Singh Peelwa Ishaan Kumar Himanshu Saini Payal Lulla Protiti Sengupta
16 Your Best Friend You Know From A Week 17 Because Self Love is All You Need 18 Art For Wildlife 20 Music Reviews 22 Whenever You Feel Down 24 Live Life in Colors 26 Awaken Acrylic Paintings by David Stowe
Easter Bloom
Artwork by Manvi Khandelwal
Self Love: The Key To A Happy Life Srinidhi
How many times has the thought of you feeling worthless popped up in your minds? Do you remember how many times you have dozed off feeling like a failure, a sense of burden and being unproductive engulfing you? Have you gone through the feeling of rejection by the person you love the most? Getting up from your beds seems a task uphill , impossible to be tackled off for a moment, ever happened?
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You are depressed but not actually depressed. You smile, but not from your heart, you are alive but not living, you are acting to be ecstatic but honestly, your soul is shackled in invisible barriers. You pass your days as if it’s a duty, and you have been so used to your sufferings that it doesn’t bother you anymore, you are tuned to live with all that pressure in your head.
Stop for a moment, pause, take a look, inhale, is that what you were born for? No darling, you were born for some great missions. You were born to be happy , not to master sufferings. And happiness is not an external thing that will be bestowed upon you by somebody else. You have to create that happiness. Joy starts within you. Its got nothing to do with outside, the materialistic world. It starts from you. Pain is inevitable, that’s a part and parcel of life but suffering, its optional. You can have pain, but you don’t have to suffer necessarily. So often, you align your happiness with other persons that you lose yourself in the process of making them happy in order to be happy yourself. Honestly, it’s a hard pill to swallow but everybody doesn’t have the same heart as you. No matter what you do, something will not be upto the mark, so STOP looking for happiness outside of you, stop seeking love, validation and happiness from others. First love yourself, love yourself to an extent that giving love to others wouldn’t empty your box of self love, it isn’t vanity, it’s pure sanity. Be grateful for your existence because you, you have a mission, which is yours and yours alone and you may not know it at this present moment, but it will eventually unfold to you in the best ways. Loving your own self, accepting even the darkest secrets and crevices about you which no one else has the right to know and embracing that with all your heart, that’s the first step towards a happy life.
The more love you give to yourself, the better you will attract in return. Try validating yourself without any opinion clouding you, try not to seek love outside and see, how empowering that is. Believe in yourself, work on yourself, work for yourself, believe in magic and miracles and see how magic blooms in your lives. Wake up every day, feeling grateful that you have been bestowed with an opportunity to live this day. Try your utmost and give your 200 percent wholeheartedly in everything you do, even the smallest act you take up. Its okay to not succeed, every winner starts out as a learner, be proud of yourself for trying, pat your shoulders and say well done, and work hard the next day and repeat this till you climb that ladder of success. Believe that you deserve all that you wish and give so unselfishly to others. Have faith that you matter and affirmatively tell yourself, today is my day every morning. But most importantly, love yourself everyday. Only you know your battle and how hard you are fighting it, so embrace yourself and you will achieve the milestones bit by bit. Cultivate the art of self-love and see, how mystically happiness will be nurtured and developed in your life’s garden. So are we all ready to love ourselves in the most amazing ways and take a step towards a happy, positive and a blissful and beautiful life?
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July’19 • Dopamine July’19 • Dopamine | |
Drink More Water & Other Ways to Say I Love You
my parents didn’t start telling me that they Loved me until I left for college a foreign place where the scent of pho could not kiss my senses and where the steam of my mother’s fried rice could not embrace me, they figured these three words could keep me warm until reunion in third grade, a picture book told me Love is ‘I Love you’. It is hugs kisses flowers crafting gifts It told me that my family must not be loving enough. my parents did not hug me much as a child. they just worked until their hands went numb. they just woke up earlier than the sun to prepare the day’s meals…every day,
Artwork by Alisha Poonawala
6| Dopamine • July’19
arms too stiff to wrap around their son from polishing the floors every week, folding the laundry every Saturday hands aching from kneading the dough and tenderizing chicken at 4 am each day. how they played soldier 24/7, constantly on watch because Death had an affection for their sick son and tried too many times to adopt him Love in my family is like Asian people in American media, never really broadcasted but have always been there. Always existed. Always thrived. Love was going away at night to work overtime. going weeks without seeing their children so that they could feed them. Love was every, “Did you eat your vitamins?”
every, “Don’t run around with chopsticks or you’ll impale yourself!” every, “You’re gonna get kidnapped if you don’t hold my hand!” so Ba, Mẹ, how do I show you Love back? what can a tree do to thank the Earth for the nutrients it gave? our people speak through actions, so I want to raise mountains under your feet so that the world can know who you are. Mẹ, I want to take pages from the Vietnamese book you gave me years ago and plant them in my ears so I can hear every beautiful syllable your artist's tongue creates and understand. I want to take the letters and cook them into a bowl of ban canh so that I can taste every accent mark. the metal of every dấu sắc, and feel the Riverbend in every dấu hỏi so let me thank you in your native tongue: drink more water is your pee clear? eat more apples I’ll be home soon.
Brandon Duong July’19 • Dopamine |
7
A Man Called Ove
by Fredrik Backman
A man called Ove is a book about a lot of things, none of which looks superficial in the context in which it is presented in the book. The book revolves around Ove, a person of 59, just out of a proper job, who finds it difficult to deal with people around him because they don’t seem to live life ideally, according to him. He finds himself at constant disagreement with people about their choices, their incompetence in doing things which according to Ove every man should be able to do.
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It’s a story about how constant interaction, a bit of empathy and care, and the power of sheer parlance, can move a person. Imagine a strict old aged man hell-bent on committing suicide and failing at it, due to hilarious hurdles posed by his neighbours. to being a loving grandparent who tries buying an iPad for his neighbour’s little girl who calls him granddad. It’s a very loving story of the protagonist, which gives us a glimpse of the thought process, and just the observably strict nature and the struggles or conviction which shaped them into what they are, of curmudgeons around us, and how they come off to be as they are. Moreover, this book gives us a reason to understand such people in our own lives.
R Be ov oi ke w
The story moves in flashback with a kind of anecdotal account of his life from his birth to his teenage and beyond. That’s just a fraction of the literary genius of this book. The author juggles between a variety of emotions he wants to convey in a single chapter, and he does that by constantly moving to and fro from one incident in his life to another, where on one hand he names one of his neighbours Blonde Weed and on other admires his father for the man he was and how he wanted to be very less unlike his father. I have never come across a book which is able to move from emotion to another with such lucidity.
In a unique yet subtle way, the author throws light on the topic of love. And time. How it blooms, and ages. How badly it is missed when lost. How even grumpy men can soften when the right hands hold theirs. To quote Fredrik Backman, “She laughed and laughed and laughed until the vowels were rolling across the walls and floors as if they meant to do away with the laws of time and space.” A lot seems to be working for this book and all of its credit goes to the incredibly talented author we have here. It’s undeniably relatable. Most of us either have encountered someone like this around us and sometimes even in our own families. This book is one among those which excel at giving you a glimpse of a long era, of a person or a situation or a life, in some 300 pages. It’s a fantastic read, this book. One should definitely try reading this one because first of all it is hilarious, and secondly, it’s very warm when thought about in retrospect.
Indresh Paliwal
July’19 • Dopamine |
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Life is much busier now, people are more stressed, and be it the schools or the workplace, the amount of mental work has increased exponentially.
Working Towards a Happier Future In this day and age of technology and everything new, we seem to still be stuck on the old idea of mental health. A study conducted by the World Health Organization in 2015 shows that one in five Indians may suffer from depression in their lifetime, equivalent to 200 million people. Now due to various factors like stigma, lack of awareness and limited professional help, only a fraction of these people are being helped. The majority of the populace when asked what mental health according to them is, stated terms like ‘retard’, ‘stupid’, ‘mad’. Now, it is not their fault that they think like this, the older part of the population grew up in a time where stress was low and life was slow paced.
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But our brains can work at such a pace only for so long before tiring, and rest isn’t an option. There are deadlines to reach, projects to complete and tests to study for and therefore, our lives have become so hectic that we often forget to take a break. The world changed, our mentality didn’t. Take a minute and think of the following situation: You were playing with your friends one day and ended up bruising your knee, you hid it as fast as you could, what if someone saw it? You rushed home, hiding your wound from everyone, you don’t want to be judged. You try to bandage it yourself, try to hide the pain because you know that this pain is much better than the one you’d get if the society knew of your injury. Seems weird, right? Why would anyone be so paranoid because of a simple physical injury? Well, now replace that with depression, anxiety or any other mental disorder. Get it? This is the society we live in today. One where you have to hide your pain because it’s better than being judged.
This mentality is what needs to be changed, everyone at some point in their lives feels stressed or anxious and while it is okay to feel so, what elevates these feelings is repressing them. Communicating with others is a crucial part of mental health, it is healthy to vent out from time to time as this helps in getting rid of the emotional baggage we carry around. Now as I mentioned before, not everyone is fortunate enough to have a safe space to vent out how they feel and here is where we come in, The Happy Company. What we do is simply give others a safe space where they can vent out their feelings anonymously without the fear of being judged.
A very famous argument I’ve heard is ‘show me where it hurts’, people won’t believe mental illness because they can’t see it. Here is where awareness comes into play. Once something is shared enough, people start to talk about their own experiences with it and through this mutual connection that thing or topic is normalized. A study on people’s attitudes towards those affected showed that 41% of people agreed that talking to a mentally unhealthy person could deteriorate the mental health of a healthy person.
All you need to do is send in a hi to our page (@to.a.happier.world) and the admin will assign you a volunteer. To put it in simple words, they are like your friends, always ready to lend an ear. Even after you’re done venting, they check up on you every week to make sure you are fine! It’s a cruel world out there, and we have but each other to get through it. Everyone has problems and no one should have to go through them alone. Remember that there is always someone out there who is willing to be there for you, it is only a matter of reaching out to them. Let’s all work towards a happier world!
The Happy Company July’19 • Dopamine |
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THE HIDDEN FLOWER // She is the flower that bloomed in the middle of a winter storm; Petals forming in the frigid cold, roots sprinkled with chilled water. Energized by a shy sun, Solemnly peeking through a thick, smothering fog.
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Photographed by Arya Sarbadhikari
A flower unrecognized, sitting unplucked, among a bed of roses. Beautiful but foreign to the untrained eye, Left untouched and treated with shallow indifference. She is a flower that bloomed in spite of the winter around her.
So she bends her petals upward, reaching still, Hoping that, as she reaches, the sun will be kind and shine on her. Up and up and up, she goes, Persistently pushing past the sharp, harsh surroundings she knows of.
Reaching up toward the still, blue sky, She stretches her leaves, bending and moving and shapeshifting. Forced into growth by her circumstances, She chooses to reach rather than wither and die.
And then, like magic, the fog above her shifts, Lowering beneath her, covering the shrubs and the sharpness of broken stems. Finally, she can breathe clean air and stretch her leaves in delight, As the sun bounces upon her petals, appearing as a welcome to this new world.
This vibrant flower grows in gardens within us all; Hidden away behind unforgiving shrubs and overgrown branches. This flower sits lonely, hoping for a chance to survive, Setting her intentions toward life and not death. Hoping that the heart that she lives in will choose her, Wishing to be acknowledged and brought out into clear daylight. This flower knows her worth, knows that she is worth more than what she is given. But she struggles to obtain what she knowingly deserves.
As she continues to rise, the sounds of her old world fade, And the fresh feelings of a new life cover her petals with dew. Finally feeling content, she stands upright, Solid in her petals and her leaves and her height. This flower has overcome a cold winter, Risen above an unforgiving fog and conquered suffocating surroundings. This flower is content with where she has brought herself to be. This flower is not going anywhere as she is free to bloom within me.
Avianna Lemonier
July’19 • Dopamine |
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Violet Akagra Gupta
Letters Arya Sarbadhikari
Guitar Atul Gupta
Street Lights Arya Sarbadhikari
Window Seats Arya Sarbadhikari
Weaving Kaavya Sahu
By the Sea Harshita Nagpal
Flight Saumya Nagpal
Droplets Prerak Mathur
Rivers Atul Gupta July’19 • Dopamine |
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Do we need people to survive at a new place? Probably not. For once you part, you won't remember their faces after two years And so won't they And you'll talk twice a year To wish them on their birthday And they will reciprocate, maybe. Or to ask them for a favour If you ever visit their city. Your best friend you know from a week, With whom you have been exploring new places, You will never mention their name again in your conversations You won't call them at 4 in the morning the way you do now All of this will fade away Once you part.
your best friend you know from a week
But maybe, You'll make a friend for life Who might cross cities to see you. With whom you'll still talk twice a year But for three long hours You'll tell them stories from all round the year And sure they'll hear Maybe, Your best friend you know for a week, You'll meet them once again, Stuck in the same place You won't need no more people to survive then. So maybe, It would be better to go have cupcakes With your best friend next door Than to have them on your own For you don't know if they'll remember you after a year or not But they sure do now.
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Riya Adlakha
Because self Love Is All You Need Sometimes being quietude is all you need, sit, relax and make yourself impeccable. Embrace your pristine and stop chasing the pleasures that are immeasurable, Coz you might miss the fun of being in the stillness of the process, So just revere the joy, peacefulness and frivolity of your unexpected voyage. Stop all the grappling and exemplification and make time for your very own implementation. Do things that make you laugh, love and live more. Keep up the audacity to explore the unexplored venture and go on new adventures. Pour yourself with selflessness, serenity and cheerfulness. Because at the end of the day what all you need is your own self.
Bhavya Goswami
A
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by S aksh i Jain
Art For Wildlife
Ajay Singh Peelwa
Mr. Ajay Singh Peelwa has a secret superpower – the ability to create art that connects people with nature. He started painting at the tender age of three, taking inspiration from wildlife. His determination to paint only animals which he has observed in their natural habitats has lead him into a remarkable and unique series of journeys. This close contact with the creatures is reflected in the realism and vitality of his work. He says, “ It's experiences like these that inspire me to show that the eyes of an animal are no different to ours; that they feel emotions, are a part of loving families and are sentient beings just like us. ” Here’s his story in his own words: I pursued this interest as my hobby and took this professionally only to raise awareness for the cause of saving the magnificent national animal, the tiger. I feel so blessed to express myself through my wildlife art, with an opportunity to reach others through the beauty and innocence that shines from an animal’s eyes. Before I start a piece the eyes are what I notice first, they completely mesmerise me. These beautiful creatures are calling me to express that they are not just mere commodities; to be exploited, used or forgotten.
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Time and again, I’ve found peace and solace in nature, like so many artists who came before me. Nature has the power to heal and a simple walk in nature can help us feel rejuvenated. The more I have observed of the natural world, the more I have wondered at the beauty of it.
It is my dream to inspire people to re-engage with the natural world, to discover the spiritual enrichment this brings to our modern lifestyles, and to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. I hope to help make others aware of the importance of conserving wildlife and natural habitats and to remind us that as custodians of this planet it is our birthright to protect it. India is blessed with plentiful biodiversity, but we must all work hard to preserve it. July’19 • Dopamine |
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by Ishaan Kumar
Dancing Away with my Heart LADY ANTEBELLUM Are you an old school romantic? Do words like ‘love’ and ‘romance’ still brings a smile on your face? If yes, then this beautiful song by Lady Antebellum is for you. ‘Dancing Away With My Heart’ is a song which will always have a spot on my playlist. Lady Antebellum is a country trio, and one of my favourites. Their surreal music surely finds a place in your heart somewhere, and no matter what, you always turn back to these songs. As for me, I am an old school romantic and I have a special kind of attachment to songs like this. The song describes college love; the proms and ball dances one; the one where it ends in some years after life happens. This song is very overwhelming, and might bring you a few happy tears.
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Cant Stop the Feeling JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE Justin Timberlake is a gem in the music industry and ‘Can’t Stop the Feeling’ is yet another song that proves it! Another upbeat song that makes up to our Happy Playlist, and might find a place in your playlist too. The song beautifully shows that being happy and dancing till your feet gives away is the best way to live life. The song gets better with its video. The video is filled with positive vibes; you can see people dancing around with wide smiles on their faces! It will surely bring a smile on your face too. Whenever your mood is a bit down, make sure you can’t stop the feeling of happiness with this song!
FixCOLDPLAY You If you are a Coldplay fan, you have probably heard this masterpiece. If you have not, you probably should and add it up to your playlist! Coldplay never disappoints us with their pieces and ‘Fix You’ is one such piece you will find yourself humming often. Coldplay gives a very serene touch to this song, and end it with a very energetic feel. And the lyrics you ask? Every line in this song will warm every inch of your heart. You might even cry if you are high. Chris Martin’s soothing voice fits well over those lines and you might find yourself staring into oblivion. A few words can not describe Coldplay’s Magnum Opus, that is Fix You.
July’19 • Dopamine |
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Whenever You Feel DoWN
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Hey, look up and listen to me, darling. I know what it feels like to be shattered enough to think that all the art and beauty in the world is not going to save you. But I want you to know, it’s Okay. It's entirely okay to be feeling anything like this or even just nothing at all. It is human to be that way, and it doesn't make you any weak. I know that you spread your heart bare naked in front of him and he walked all over it.
But both, you and I know that weaving a person into words is not easy. Walking over them is. So, tell me who is more powerful now? You or him? Writer or the muse? He exists because your pen does and not the other way round. He was a soul you loved and adored with all your heart. He was so beautiful to you that you just couldn't let him go. I do not deny his beauty, But wait, Take a look at yourself and look into those eyes, They hold the hurricanes that he's afraid. You are made up of stars and galaxies which he won't ever be able to fathom into constellations. We are all broken, and we have all felt as if it is the end of our worlds. But it isn't. It never really is. A pain so deep, just demands to be felt. Don't hide, don't run away. Pain has no escape.
Nothing exists which can't be healed. Be it you or me or even that drunk girl you saw crying last night at the club. We will all heal someday. Remember, that self-love heals the deepest of pains. You are a museum where his eyes could only see empty hallways. You possess all the magic in the universe, lying right on your fingertips. The world needs you to complete itself, and you're irreplaceable. Let no one ever make you believe otherwise. Even after everything, happy endings still exist. You just got a step closer to finding yours. Relax, breathe and let it go. You'll be okay, I promise! Yours truly, Someone who's exactly been there where you are right now.
Himanshu Saini
You need to feel it and let every inch of it go right through your heart. Fall, and break, Because once you scrape your knee and probably even crack open your skull, that's only when you'll ultimately heal yourself and stand up once again.
July’19 • Dopamine |
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Live Life in
As a young adult, making my transition into the real world, I set my sights on architecture. It seemed to be the perfect blend of art and science and quickly became an obsession for me. For me, it’s simply art on a much larger, more technical scale. After the busy schedules at the office, I got this idea to start painting. I loved gliding long brush strokes on my canvas to keep my mind fresh and relaxed. During that time, I maintained a collection of my artwork which eventually came under the spotlight when I had my first individual art exhibition.
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So today, I am an architect by profession and an artist by passion. I’ve lived my life drawing, painting, and creating. Colours make my imagination dance and paintings help me express oxygen to my creative lungs. Colours for me, are powerful symbols to communicate emotions & moods. Today, it is solely my unconditional love for art that encourages me to pursue my interests. Art always brings a positive vibe and energy to me. Colours have helped me to come out of the times I was tensed. They are my best companion. Without them, I can’t imagine a day. Art is the medium to know ourselves deeply. The more time you spend with art, the more it improves your focus. There's no doubt about it. Looking at art is a form of meditation and the more you perform it, the longer you can focus. I can sit for long hours without a break by simply painting and focusing on the task at hand with that, my mind clears out completely. Recently, I have come up with my studio which is a blend of design and creativity, Concept Art Studio, where art workshops and classes also take place. I’ve finally found a place where I fit in, where I belong. Art has made my life worthwhile, and now I'm helping others find meaning through art. I spend my time helping others realize how art can affect our mood in a positive way, making us feel happier, calmer and inspired.
Payal Lulla
payal_lulla_arts payal-lulla-arts
Art has a way to reach deep inside our souls and connect directly with our thoughts, feelings, and perceptions. With outer realities, our own experiences, feelings, and emotions are painted on the white canvas.
Art helps us cope with anxiety and the stress of daily life, and gives a purpose in what can, too often, feel like a nihilistic world. It is also a source of relaxation and self-expression.
July’19 • Dopamine |
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I watched her fall asleep, The book lying face down on her chest, Heaving as peace spread across her face Gentle snores departing with no rest. On other days I pray my words Will make her understand That the sun does come out, And that the mornings when the light Can't sneak till the cramped bedside table Are also mornings that won't happen everyday. On days like today, I hope she can hold the happiness Close to heart, but also Keep her other palm wide open For all the pain to fall on And feel the ecstasy of healing. I don't take the book away. In the daybreak that is yet to arrive, Its pages will be her sunshine.
A W A K E N
Protiti Sengupta
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Abstract Art by Saurav Ajmera
A word from the
Thank you for taking out the time to read our third edition! We hope this home of warm poetry and Mashu Ajmera inspiring articles fluttered fireflies of comfort in your heart. Don’t forget to share these with your friends, family,colleagues and strangers and make their day. A huge shout out to Ishaan Kumar, who put in his artistic genius to help us produce the beautiful designs in this issue! We couldn’t have pulled it off without him. We hope that the book review took you back to memories of books and stories that have made you smile, the music review found you tapping your feet in delightful rhythm, the happiness list reminded you of moments brimming with positivity and encouraged you to look forward to those in your future and lastly, we hope that you’ve gathered some lessons to take home on self love to lead a more satisfying life. Please let us know what you thought of this edition and how we can improve. Feedbacks are essential and we'd be thrilled to hear from you! Our brain is hard coded to focus on the negatives, but the next time Afra Khan you're struggling, remember that it takes patience. Turn your attention to other positive things to find peace. The most important thing though is to not give up hope. Optimism is an important skill to find opportunities and solutions, not some kind of emotional rose-tinted glasses.The ability to abandon all apathy creates space for positivity. So, compliment someone. Express your unconventional interests and you’ll find yourself making friends in the strangest places.
Harshita Nagpal
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“Happiness is like a butterfly, the more you chase it, the more it will evade you, but if you notice the other things around you, it will gently come and sit on your shoulder.� - Henry David Thoreau
The information in this magazine, including all articles, photos and illustrations, does not make any claims. The views expressed in the articles reflect the author(s)' opinions and do not necessarily are the views of the publisher and editors. Dopamine is not responsible or liable for the content of other websites linked inside the magazine. By using our magazine, you agree that Dopamine cannot guarantee and accepts no liability for any loss or damage of any kind. All rights reserved and nothing can be partially or in whole be reprinted or reproduced without written consent.
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