Editorial's note
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TABLE OF
Poetry
4
Non - fiction
10
CONTENT Fiction Team LitMag
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Editorial Note
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MFU LITERARY MAGAZINE
MFU LITERARY MAGAZINE
Who are you to the world? It is one of the most frequently asked questions since the time when we were just a soul-searching junior high schooler. On the surface, it is a simple question that requires no effort to answer. 'I am a student'. 'I am a man.' 'I am a father.' But to take it more seriously and look at it in a more philosophical way, you are all of those things, and the list could go on and on forever. The answers are varied from one questioner to another. For a mother to a son, you are a son. For a teacher to a student, you are a learner. But for your long-parted loved one, the answer starts to get more complicated. Who are you to them? In the world that is more hurried than ever, to have a good look inside yourselves and to discover your own meanings of life is a necessary introspection. For each status you hold, there are different stories to tell, and each of the stories are crafted to be your own identity. All of them are valuable, not only for yourselves to learn, but also for others. The stories in this magazine are the collection of memories and emotions of the normal humans whose letters are forged to tell their own stories. They are either woven enticingly in forms of prose or poetry, but all of them have their own beauty and scars. That is why they are remarkable like the sky that is ever changing for different viewpoints but never loses its beauty.
“Follow your own star!” – Dante Alighieri
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According to the concrete poem, the main idea of our poem is not giving up and do not lose your hope even if you fail in something, so you can succeed in your goal. In the poem, we use three stylistic devices which are personification, simile, and tricolon. For the effects of the used devices on the poem, the reader can understand clearly the purpose of this poem
By Chanisara Yodkaew, Nattapong Phaimueang, Primprapa Lukdee, Wongsatorn Wongpaiboonsuk
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POETRY A WOMAN SURVIVED FROM MAD WAR SWE'RE NOT THE SAME ONCE I HAVE LOVE HE NEVER LOVES YOU, FREAK; THESE LAMBS JUST SHOUT
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A woman survived from mad war By Napatsorn Treesap
Took the train without knowing where it ends Wondering, what would they think about me. An actress, a madness or a true friend? Why are all these things difficult to see? Am I the star that’s falling from the sky when my hope had died and no signs were shown? Am I the wounded bird trying to find a place to hide in this cold winter snow? It takes some time to recover my pain Couldn’t explain the emotion right now But found myself stronger after the rain I’m not insane but survived safe and sound Now, I don’t care what they’d think anymore ‘Cause I’m the one survived from this mad war
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We're not the same
I know your eyes and words are full of hate. When you see me walked and how I dressed. How could you think I would be afraid Of your burning flame?
By Napatsorn Treesap
I live my own way But it’s you who started the endless pain Why won’t you accept the way I’m gay? How could you think we're all the same
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Once I Have Love By Napatsorn Treesap
Once I have love, I whisper to the wind and tell how much I love him I keep doing these impossible things possible I write poems about him hoping one day he would know Without knowing love will fade with time Once I have love, I stand in the rain and hope he’ll be my shelter Sometimes I even feel like a lonely desert Waiting for the little rain touching on the surface With awareness, love fades with time Once I have pain, Even his visible shadow I still couldn’t reach Even a thousand love poems couldn’t stop him to leave Even a million excuses he’s still wouldn't stay with me With the knowing love fades with time Once I have pain, The thing I definitely get is growing up The scars will remind me of who I have become The strong spirited woman who writes this rhyme With the knowing pain will fade with time
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While yearning shines, the hate performs the twinge. Could blood redeem my sin, please leave my soul? They view it as stones, but my soul is viewed as bones. If they don’t want me to be lambs, I’m foal. I find a night to sing; I stop the moan. No need to mend this cloth, old but unique, And let the soul just shows its pleasing peak.
By Thanawut Sreejak
He never loves you, freak; these lambs just shout “He never loves you, freak”; these lambs just shout. They throw me skirts, and order me to weep. They hold the shovels proud to show me clout.
“Oh crime, now you just breathe your last” While silence owns the nights, I find a night. Oh, while the deluge sings, I try to cringe. Oh, while I pray as Jay, the crows still slight.
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This poem is about the uniqueness of every person presented by a unique character of a fingerprint. The stylistic devices using in this poem include rhyme, simile, and repetition. First, the end rhymes that appear in this poem are “hint” and “fingerprint,” “story” and “individuality,” and “recognized” and “pride”, which give musicality and deepen meanings in the poem. Next, the similes, such as “…like a labyrinth” create images of the design of the fingerprint for readers. Lastly, the repetitions, such as “Some swirl…” or “I’ll leave my...” help create a rhythmic pattern and highlight the main point in the poem.
By Thittiya Sommana
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NONFICTION MY GENE, MY CHOICE
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My Gene, My Choice By Tammarat Singkarn
Normally, our physical traits have been inevitably similar to our family members. For example, I have double eyelids like my mother and black wavy hair like my father. It is because our genome is made of 2 sets of DNA given by our father and mother (Liu, 2019).1 However, some people usually want to change that for specific purposes. Some people, for instance, dye their hair with some chemicals to express the inner self(Porter, 2018).2 Conventionally, the color is not permanent. They have to dye their hair repeatedly to fix the color. Of course, the chemical can “irreversible damage” their hair. It seems that to express one’s inner, there must be a risk.
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Apart from that, some people do not even have a chance to express the actual self. They have to live with genetic disorders or diseases inherited from their parents’ genes. Their appearances have to be distorted because of these disorders or diseases. For example, some facial deformations from thalassemia are irregular enlargement of cheekbone and a depressed nasal bridge (Karakas et al, 2016). With these vivid indicators of the diseases, the patients, especially children, have to encounter mental disorders such as negative body image and depression (Tomaj, 2016, as cited in Messina, 2008). Conversely, there is a spectacular technology to reduce the risks and give these patients a chance to express themselves. It is called CRISPR/Cas9 which allows us to edit genes in living beings. In this article, I will explain its overall characteristics and how it works. Moreover, I will cover its applications and potential. CRISPR is a family of DNA sequences which are in any bacteria. In these sequences, there has been a protein called Cas9. This protein allows bacteria to edit themselves to prevent the infection of any virus. It could be programmed to cut a particular gene. To illustrate how it works, Cas9 is normally a DNA pencil which erases one DNA base pair and writes another base instead (Douna, 2016; Liu, 2019). Basically, this technology allows us to choose which kinds of DNA lead to the changes that we need, and those changes are permanent. Currently, CRISPR has been used to edit genes in agriculture. For example, CRISPR can be used in plants to reduce or increase the mutation in their cells, so this allowed also the agriculturalists and farmers to modify their products and increase its number (Song et al, 2016). Moreover, there was also the experiment in animal husbandry. A geneticist had used this technology to insert the SRY gene of a male cattle onto the non-sexual chromosome of female cattle, and the result is that the male characteristics are developed even though the Y chromosome of male is not inherited (NOVA PBS Official, 2020). Additionally, this technology can also correct the mutated cells leading to genetic diseases. Xie et al (2014) indicated that this technology and piggyBac, which is another technology used for genetic transposition, were able to correct human hemoglobin beta genes of patients with thalassemia. With this result, these patients probably have a chance to express themselves and free from mental disorders. To point out the potential of this technology, it seems that the permanent change of hair is possible because human hair color and texture will be associated with the amount of many genes (Morgan et al, 2018). This means that we can change our hair color permanently to express ourselves without any damage. All in all, this technology provides us the opportunity to edit our genes and to express the self identity. Furthermore, it can create many possibilities of human evolution in the future because changes in genetic levels will be inherited to our next generations. Before we get too deep into this technology. Let's call it a day. If you are interested in this technology involving clinical traits, you may be interested in “germline editing.” To leave a final thought, genes are our identities. They should not be predetermined by others but us.
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The concrete of the poem is a woman symbol. The main idea of the poem is all about the women in Thai society that they are supposed to be seen and be as the society expected such as they have to have white skin, a nice curve, good at housekeeping, cooking, or even preserve one's purity. This poem uses two stylistic devices: simile ('treat men like a king'), and metaphor ('their lives are played in the chess'). The used devices in the poem show how women have been expected and how women feel.
By Jie Chen
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FICTION THE RUNAWAY BEWARE YOUR WISH
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THE RUNAWAY
MICHELLE (2015)
MARCH 09, 1995
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I wrote to you because I don’t think I could bear the storm of emotion that will happen. Do you remember that quote we used to hang above the fireplace in the living room when dad was still around? The one we insisted on hanging it in the restroom instead because his handwriting was so unbearable to let the guest see. The sound of laughter when he frowned and told us to dine without him still echoes in my head. I wish there was some possible way to record it from memory. “We are our choices” was what he wrote. To be honest, I think of it as just another cliche phrase he probably picked up from some book. I didn’t understand and I didn’t even try to until he was gone. As far as I could remember dad was full of passion and possibility. I recalled once when he taught me how to play “I’ll Be Your Mirror1” that I almost gave up.
I was ten and couldn’t even hold a guitar’s neck properly. But that was dad, he urged me and told me that there might be hundreds of things we cannot do, but we will never know until we try. As I have grown up and thought it over I realized it wasn’t dad that was full of possibility but life itself. In the end, it was us to choose to die trying and see the possibilities of life or sit at ease and let everything zoom by. All above everything I want in this world was for you to be happy and I had been trying my best to be the son that you could be proud of, but as the end of the school year is coming I couldn’t bear the thought of me going to study Law anymore. I know it was your dream, but I see no possible ways to fit myself in it so I’m going to chase mine.”
Jamie D.
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It was getting on toward quarter to nine when the boy finished the letter. It took him longer than he’d expected. He had just realized that writing a letter for someone you’ve been with your whole life required a lot of conviction. With a worn-out guitar case over his shoulder, he climbed out through the window onto Cheshire’s lonesome street.
That's Nile Anderson, the mastermind who urged him on running away from this thought-out life and giving themselves a try to be someone they can be. They were mates - has been since before any of them could learn each other's names. As babies, they would wear matching tees, have matching bowl haircuts, and even matching black-eyes sometimes. They were ‘the odd twins’, as everybody else called it, with everything and almost nothing in common.
There was no need to hurry, he told himself. So he stood there on the sidewalk and waited until the last light was out. Though he had his mind made up long ago, he couldn’t help himself picturing unnecessary scenarios of how his mom would react once she found the letter tomorrow morning - realizing that her dearest son got away just a day before the graduation. The thought of her being disappointed made his hands twitch. That’s the cue for him to stop thinking, so he put the headphone over his head and drowned his mind in the comfort of the song “Let it be2” as he took off into the dark.
Nile was the typical one from American culture diffused films - the tall blond good-looking guy who is good at everything. While his sidekick was this wallpaper boy - a typical boy who spent too much time in his head, tried pale eyes, messy hair dragging along the golden boy in his lanky frame, and a pale complexion like a bad omen. There was no doubt that anyone in the town could easily point out who Nile Anderson is and would shake their head off if it was possible when it comes to him - Jamie Delan.
When he got to the station, Nile was already there standing on the other side of the platform smoking with his treeish frame that only a blind man would miss. The blond-headed boy reciprocates his arrival with a wild smile before waving at him with both hands like a mad man.
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We were sitting on the balcony of a rundown Victorian house under the tarred sky. Three months went unnoticed since “The Black Treacle” kicked off with another three likeminded mates. They befriended quickly by swapping cassettes, sessions of practice, and rounds of drinks. At first, they would play almost everything, even some pops, anything that would book them times in pubs. Then they would go for something more of their preference and if the crowd enjoyed the gig they would add on some of their originals.
‘Oi! Earth to Major Tom! Mate, we have been talking to you this whole time!’ Nile laughed it off at his friend’s portal mind. Jamie being absent from the conversation wasn’t new for him. ‘If you don’t mind recycling your lines, what were you talking about?’ To this, the taller boy sighed but still went over his plan again with his slurred voice that sounded like he has been drinking and sneezing for hours. It was hilarious.
It started off as playing just for ‘fun’ and a bit of money, but somehow the result turned out to be shockingly brilliant that every pub in London West End with the sign ‘The Black Treacle is Showing Tonight’ is most likely to be packed. They were recognized for their new sounds that were different from the embraced pop scheme and soon were book to play at one of the 12 Bar Club, one of the most appreciated bars by the record companies.
The rest of them wanted to go out. Jamie loved the idea, but he could use some rest. His body lost its ability to function after practicing the new setlist for hours on end. He was numb - intoxicated, but he wasn’t sure whether it was from the drink or those brown orbs.
The entire thing happened for what seemed like a blink of an eye. So fast that Jamie couldn’t wrap his head around any of it and it seemed to him that if he didn't properly appreciate this - it will be taken for granted. Lost in his own space and time contemplating what to do with himself, the boy startled at the jingling from Nile’s rings decorated hand that was waving in front of his face.
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Leah. That’s the name of the girl who laid back in Nile’s arm. She was laughing at some random jokes when her eyes caught the paler ones with an awkward smile and she hasn’t stopped yet. She was drunk, she stated and insisted on staying as everyone left for the night.
There was something mysterious about Leah Moore that fascinated him ever since he first lay eyes on her. Apart from a really good piece of music, never before had he felt such strong hypnosis toward anything like the moment he saw her there, standing among the crowd cladding in a simple black tee and jeans. There, he could feel his heart sink as it was free-falling in love with her.
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The silence was broken by the velvet voice asking him to sing her a song, any song that would soothe her to sleep, to escape the head throbs she was having. She padded the empty space beside her signaling him to come over. Without knowing how to react, the boy took an awkward sip from the bottle he was holding and joined her on the other side. He picked up Nile’s guitar and slowly struck the strings into the melody of the song ‘I’ll be your mirror”. He was struggling at the first couple of notes before he found his own voice - a tune he was comfortable with as the words felt heavier with the new-found meanings. When the song came to its end Leah’s delicate face marked with uneasiness before leaning toward and paste her soft lips onto his.
‘WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING AFTER ALL THIS TIME, JAMIE?’ She broke off, her voi ce coxed wi th anxi ety and doubts. He tri ed to reach for my l ogi cal sel f, but al l he coul d hear was her words repeati ng themsel ves i n hi s head agai n and agai n. Wi thout gi vi ng hi msel f a second to doubt hi msel f, Jami e pul l ed the gi rl cl oser for another ki ss forgetti ng the fact that he was ki ssi ng hi s best fri end’ s gi rl fri end. Al l he cared about was that she’ s Leah Moore and she l i ked hi m, too.
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The uproar of quarrel and glass breaking from the living room caught the boy up in a fright. He set himself upright feeling his stomach burning and his head pounding. He couldn’t recall what had happened after the kiss as if it was some distorted and distant dream. The noise was getting more intense now. With his regained consciousness, Jamie tried to pay attention, and his heart seemed to forget its ways to beat.
It was Nile and Leah. The house sank into a frustrated silence after the sound of the door slam shut aggressively. A few moments after that Jamie found himself in the dim living room with his hands shaking terribly. He found Nile there collapsing in the corner of the room where the lifeless moonlight couldn’t reach him with hands over his head.
He was crying, realized Jamie.
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A SHARP SLASH OF PAIN SUDDENLY JOLTED THROUGH HIM AS HE SAT SILENTLY BESIDE HIS FRIEND. There were questions he wanted to ask questions like what had he seen? How much did he know? but he couldn’t find his voice. ‘She’s gone, mate. I saw her leaving, she was crying. I asked her what was wrong. She told me she was sorry for messing everything up. She told me she loved someone else all along. What did I do to deserve this, Jamie?’ his voice scattered, his words slurred together, Jamie’s vision was blurred. As silence slowly pressed its weight on his shoulder, Nile’s eyes caught his reading them like a kid’s picture book. There, he was caught. HE KNEW THAT HE KNEW. ‘You- uh- you shouldn’t blame yourself. Though people make up their minds regardless of right or wrong, you don’t deserve this.” Jamie concluded resolutely in some kind of effort to terminate any further questions as he fiddled with a cigarette and looked down at its ashes to avoid the glance. ‘I do wish for an explanation though, instead of leaving me doubting myself and fumbling my way out’ said Nile. They sat there acknowledging each other's company without further conversation until the morning light crept into the room. Like a well leveling up after heavy rain, guilt slowly drowns Jamie from the inside. What kind of a person would he be acting as if nothing happened? ‘…I was the one to blame, not you or Leah’ the word snapped back as Nile’s expression changed from bewildered to the mark of realization before covered with a mix of rage and disappointment. He wondered what he could say after that if he wasn’t dragged up by the taller boy.
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Nile was too angry to think of any harsh words to shout at his friend. The boy’s stern lips slowly curved into a disgusting smile as he was hesitating whether he should hit the other boy or not. Jamie was desperate for the punch that he deserved. It would probably make him feel a little less ashamed, but he didn’t get it. ‘Should I thank you, Jamie? At least you stabbed me face to face’ blurted Nile with his failed voice before roughly pushed his friend on the couch and left the room. After that night, nobody had heard anything from Leah as if she disappeared into the morning’s mist. A week of difficulty crept by without a word between Nile and Jamie. The former one literally ignores the other’s existence as if he was just an object furnishing the surroundings.
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The date of the 12 Bar Club’s gig was settled down on the coming weekend which made it easier for Jamie to get through each day focusing on the practicing session. It will be the first proper stage in his life and probably be the last one. The band was doing so well that he was ashamed. He couldn’t carry on dragging everyone down because of his repulsiveness and recklessness, so he planned to go back to Cheshire right after the gig. Because he can’t claim the prize that was given to the team while he hardly did anything to achieve it. It was Nile from the start. He was the one who has always believed in him that he started to do so. He was one who urged him on dreaming big and dragging him out of his bubble-wrapped world to prove that life filled with endless possibilities.
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It was midnight when the last train to Cheshire pulled into the platform. The show finished with a blast and the others were still stuck inside the club accepting drinks and being hugged by people whose names they won’t be able to recall. So, Jamie left without telling anyone except Nile whom he wrote a letter to, thinking that at least he deserved a proper apology.
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This time, he found it surprisingly easy to step onto the train that was going to take him back to the beginning. After all these things he had done, he realized that the decisions he had made though weren’t always right or even practical but it was what he once wanted and he was brave enough to do it regardlessly. Though this one seemed like a big mistake, he was certain that this ‘London and the rock band story’ will be the best mistake he ever made - the one that he tried yet lost everything; the college, the dream, the girl, and his best friend. As the train slowly dragging off the platform, Jamie took his last chance looking out of the window to catch a glimpse of London’s light. But he couldn’t help but smile wildly seeing Nile standing on the platform obviously out of breath but still waving his hands like a mad man with his silly smile.
Well, at least something stayed the same. - 26 -
BEWARE YOUR WISH! By Kittapak Suwannasri (GUY)
In the land called Mavors, there was a ruler, King Adam who was extremely obsessed with occult power. One day, he discovered the way to summon the Ancient Lord who could grant him one wish whatever it was. With great delight, the king uttered his wish off the bat without any hesitation; it was the wish that every living thing dreamed for – immortality.
“I WISH FOR ETERNITY. NOBODY CAN KILL ME. NEITHER A MAN NOR A WOMAN CAN OVERTHROW ME!” THE KING PRONOUNCED. “YOUR WISH IS GRANTED,” THE ANCIENT LORD REPLIED.
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Then, the Ancient Lord disappeared. Realizing that he became invincible thanks to the wish, the king then began his plan to be not just the ruler of the kingdom but the world. By violence and wars, he had conquered all the kingdoms adjacent to his and made them his own; soon after, he extended his power throughout the whole continent. And, within less than a year, King Adam achieved his will and became the conqueror of the very world. His reputation of grandeur as well as of savagery surpassed every walking man that even the gods would tremble hearing his name. Despite his greatness, he was an evil-minded king. He ruled the Land tyrannically, and people were in fear and were exploited. Husbands were separated from his wives, and wives were separated from their children. Men were made slaves while women were made concubines. It was the reign of gloom.
Time elapsed, and a thousand years of oppression, sorrow, and despair had passed. Many things had changed; in fact, almost everything changed except the one who was sitting on a throne, King Adam. In the meantime, that was the time the king heard a rumor having it that a person from a small village was trying to form a rebellion. As that one could defeat his troops stationed in several villages, it was the first time in a thousand-year that he could feel a threat. Then, one day, while the king was chilling out in his palace, one of his soldiers came in the palace abruptly and managed to gasp out something. No sooner had the soldier told his king what happened, a gate of the palace sprang open, and there stood a huge body in a mask with full make-up walking calmly into the palace. Now, there was no doubt that a rumor was not just a rumor because standing in front of the king is that one, the one who defeated all his troops and started a rebellion. Thereupon, the king grabbed his sword and went straight to the huge body.
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Time elapsed, and an hour of chaos and combat had passed. Many things had changed; in fact, everything changed. A victor was no more the king. “I am the man of all things; I have had the blessing. Beyond the mask, it is too strong to be a woman, and, as well, it is too gentle to be a man. What or who this is,” the king thought to himself. He was now overwhelmed with doubt and bewilderment, and when he was about to meet his mischance, he asked,
“WHAT ARE YOU?” “I AM JUST WHAT I AM. THERE IS NOTHING SPECIAL ABOUT WHAT I AM, BUT I DO HAVE A NAME IF YOU WANT TO.” THE KING STAYED SILENT. “MY NAME IS NOBODY.” THE HUGE BODY BEYOND THE MASK REPLIED IN A TENDERLY BREATHY VOICE. Eventually, there came the era of peace and merriness ruled by Nobody, from Nobody, for Everybody.
The concrete of the poem is a woman symbol. The main idea of the poem is all about the women in Thai society that they are supposed to be seen and be as the society expected such as they have to have white skin, a nice curve, good at housekeeping, cooking, or even preserve one's purity. This poem uses two stylistic devices: simile (‘treat men like a king’), and metaphor (‘their lives are played in the chess’). The used devices in the poem show how women have been expected and how women feel.
By Thitirat Kitkitiwiriya, Natkamol Sukthaworn, Tipayarat Rodsa, Luksanaporn Yoosuan
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Team LitMag Kunnida Chaiya Content Creator and Editor Patsakorn Taweeaperadeemanee Content Creator Jerapat Deesamer Content Creator and Editor Teerawut Kongkaoriab Content Creator Pimsiri Poonketkit Content Creator Pimpakarn Sripaoraya Content Creator Thin Tacharoenmoung Content Creator Siwakorn Limjarern Content Creator Tammarat Singkarn Editor Thanchanok Sukumcharoen Arts and Layout Arrirat Lekyim Arts and Layout Sitthichok Samachitloed Arts and Layout
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References References
Doudna, J. (2015, November 15). How CRISPR lets us edit our DNA [Video]. Youtube. Karakas, S., Tellioglu, M. A., Bilgin, M., Omurlu, I. K., Caliskan, S., & Coskun, S. (2016). Craniofacial characteristics of thalassemia major patients. The Eurasian Journal of Medicine, 48(3), 204–208. 10.5152/eurasianjmed.2016.150013 Liu, D. R. (2019, November 21). Can we cure genetic diseases by rewriting DNA? [Video]. Youtube. NOVA PBS Official. (2020, September 10). The Realities of Gene Editing with CRISPR [Video]. Youtube. Porter, G. (2018, February 12). 5 Reasons to Dye Your Hair. Hercampus. https://www.hercampus.com/school/sfa/5-reasons-dye-your-hair Song, G., Jia, M., Chen, K., Kong, X., Khattak, B., Xie, C., & Mao, L. (2016). CRISPR/Cas9: A powerful tool for crop genome editing. The crop journal, 4(2), 75-82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2015.12.002 Tomaj, O. K., Estebsari, F., Taghavi, T., Nejad, L. B., Dastoorpoor, M., & Ghasemi, A. The effects of group play therapy on self-concept among 7 to 11 year-old children suffering from thalassemia major. Iran Red Crescent Medical Journal, 18(4). 10.5812/ircmj.35412 Xie, F., Lin, Y., Chang, J. C., Beyer, A. L., Wang, J., Muench, M. O., & Kan, Y. W. (2014). Seamless gene correction of β-thalassemia mutations in patient-specific iPSCs using CRISPR/Cas9 and piggyBac. Genome Research, 24(9), 1526–1533. 10.1101/gr.173427.114
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