VOICES - April - 2023

VCS Director

Nikola Stankoski

Coordinators

Andrej Naumovski

Goran Adamovski

Goran Galabov

Selina Niemi

Ewelina Chańska

Jolanta Ciopcińska

David Stoilkovski

As we welcome the arrival of April, we're reminded of the many wonders of spring. From the blooming of flowers to the return of migrating birds, this season is a time of renewal and growth.

In this issue, we dive into some fascinating subjects, from the controversial trend of cancel culture to the mysteries of the Giza pyramids. You can learn what it means to get affection and the ways it can shape our lives. Or maybe get to know a legendary singer from Macedonia, who affected generations with his music. Read about different perspectives of earthquakes or prepare for rainy days with binge watching. And In case these times bring you stress, we got you! Go ahead and read some tips on stress management.

As always, we hope this issue of Voices magazine will inspire, inform, and entertain you. Happy reading!

Taika Soihtu

Едиторијал

Додека го чекаме доаѓањето на април, се потсетуваме на чудесиите на пролетта. Од расцутувањето на цвеќињата до враќањето на птиците - преселници, оваа сезона е време на обновување и раст.

Во ова издание, се нурнуваме во некои фасцинантни теми, од контроверзниот тренд на култура на откажување до мистериите на пирамидите во Гиза. Можете да дознаете што значи да се добие наклонетост и начините на кои таа може да ги обликува нашите животи. Или можеби овдешниот млади да се потсетат, а странците да го запознаат легендарниот Тоше Проески, кој со својата музика влијаеше врз генерациите. Прочитајте за различните перспективи на земјотресите или подгответе се за . И во случај овие времиња да ви донесат стресве добивме! Прочитајте неколку совети за управување со стресот. Како и секогаш, се надеваме дека ова издание на магазинот „Воисес“ ќе ве инспирира, информира и забавува. Уживајте во читањето! Таика Соихту

Volunteers

Angelina Berndt

Marie Kiel

Hugo Lhomedet

Camelia Sghayare

Katariina Weijo

Taika Soihtu

Hakan Yagci

Resit Efe Bayram

Hamit Durak

Chloé Le Cair

Translators

Goran Adamovski

Dora Arifi

Martina Danilovska

External writers

Lucile Guéguen

Proofreaders

Elen Wright-Stead Edward Stead

Designers

Angelina Berndt

Marie Kiel

Hugo Lhomedet

Camelia Sghayare

Katariina Weijo

Selina Niemi

Taika Soihtu

Chloé Le Cair

Hakan Yagci

Resit Efe Bayram

Hamit Durak

Cover Marc Zimmer, Unsplash

Contact Volunteers Centre Skopje

Emil Zola 3/3-1, 1000, Skopje

+389 22 772 095

vcs_contact@yahoo.com

www.vcs.org.mk

topic of the month

4 The future is in the rain

Hamit Durak

30 Иднината е во дождот

Hamit Durak

reportage

6 FabLabs - A small step for a man, a giant leap for accessibility of innovation

Camélia Sghayare

8 The rise of binge - watching: A cultural revolution or a fading trend?

Chloé Le Cair

12 Stress Management 101: How to Deal with Stress?

Hakan Yagci

20 Music to your ears

Marie Kiel

22 Slow down: fast food

Reşit Efe Bayram

26 Ngadalësoni: Ushqimin e shpejtë

Reşit Efe Bayram

28 Earthquakes don't kill, buildings do!

Hakan Yagci, Reşit Efe Bayram

32 Forgive like a Rwandan

Lucile Guéguen

science

10 The power of touch

Taika Soihtu

16 Uncovering the Giza's pyramids secrets with cosmic particles

Hugo Lhomedet

24

Future of natural selection

Taika Soihtu

opinion

14 Cancel Culture: A necessary tool for accountability or a threat to open discourse?

Angelina Berndt

culture

18 The legacy of Toše Proeski

Katariina Weijo

THE FUTURE IS IN THE RAIN

Europe's water supply may seem limitless but the effects of population growth, urbanization, pollution, and climate change, such as persistent droughts, are putting enormous pressure on water resources and water quality. We need to stop and think at this point. In this modern world, which we have looked at from a single angle until today, it is time to see the other side of the coin.

Uncontrolled population growth is a big problem for water resources. For this reason, the need for water is increasing every day. Water consumption per person in the world is around 800 m3 on average per year. 1.4 billion people, which is about 20% of the world's population, do not have sufficient drinking water, and 2.3 billion people do not have access to healthy water. In addition, by 2050, the number of countries suffering from water shortages will rise to 54, and the number of people forced to live in bad conditions will rise to 3.76 billion. This will mean that 40% of the world's population, which is expected to be 9.4 billion in 2050, will suffer from water shortages. Every year, 2 million people, mostly children, die from intestinal infections caused by improper water use and poor hygienic conditions. Hepatitis A and malaria are serious health problems in many parts of our world. Also, chronic fluoride deficiency and many similar conditions become very serious problems. The continuation of life really depends on the availability of sufficient and highquality water.

Let's do some math now. If the water in the world was as big as an aquarium, the amount of fresh water available to humans would only be as much as the spoon you use to mix your coffee. In other words, the amount of fresh water is less than 1 percent of the total amount.

Clean water is not only used for drinking and bathing but there are billions of cubic meters of pure water used in plastic production, refrigeration systems, pharmaceutical production, vehicle batteries, irons, and many other areas every day. We use water at every point we can think of in our daily lives and we do not always do it consciously. We may not be able to prevent consumption but it doesn't mean that we can't make it renewable and to do so we can harvest rainwater.

Rainwater harvesting refers to the collection, storage, treatment, distribution, and use of rainwater. Findings in many parts of the world

have shown that since prehistoric times, people have tried to meet the water needs required for domestic use, irrigation, and animal husbandry by collecting and storing rainwater. Throughout antiquity, rainwater has been the main source of water for its drinkable and non-drinkable use. Rainwater harvesting was practised by the people of the city of Ur in the Sumerian region about 4500 years ago, then by other people of the Middle East. Archaeological evidence in southern Jordan suggests the existence of water collection systems for agricultural

Significant reform of Canadian law since the mid-2000s has increased the agricultural, industrial, and residential use of this technology. Tamil Nadu was the first state to mandate rainwater harvesting for every building to prevent groundwater depletion. The project was launched in 2001 and implemented in all rural areas of Tamil Nadu. In New Zealand, although there is plenty of rainfall in the West and South, rainwater harvesting for most of the country is a normal practice for most rural dwellings. In China, Argentina, and Brazil, harvesting rainwater from the roof is a method for replenishing water and groundwater levels for livestock and small irrigations.

purposes 9,000 years ago, while similar water collection systems in Israel's Negev desert date back about 4,000 years or more. The construction and use of cisterns to store rainwater can be traced back to the Neolithic Age. Cisterns are one of the main features of welldesigned cities and one of the methods of collecting rainwater. The increasing population in the Roman period and the increase in water requirements with the growth of settlement areas led to the development of structures where water was transported together with cisterns and the merging of the two systems.

Let's take a look at the places in the world that have been successful in rainwater harvesting.

Certainly, first, the industry needs to be sensitive about rainwater harvesting as companies use the largest amount of water and when building the buildings each enterprise should prepare a plan for collecting it. On the other hand, each of us can also implement a rainwater harvesting project at home. The roofs of our houses can be a good start for this harvest field but before installing your rain collection systems, you should calculate your water footprint. What you will see with the water footprint is not just the consumption of water, you will encounter the realities of all the water spent on the continuation of your life.

Remember that WATER is LIFE and the change starts with you.

Hamit Durak

Sources:

Wıkıpedıa: Yağmur suyu hasadı

Dergıpark: Sürdürülebilir Yağmur Suyu Hasadı Üzerine Yapısal Bir İnceleme

a small step for a man, a giant leap toward accessibility of innovation

A place where there are technological machines like 3D printing or cutting laser, opening for everybody and for free; it sounds like a utopia, isn’t it? Guess what? It exists! We called these places FabLabs: Fabrication laboratory. Developed firstly in the USA, these spaces are more and more developing in Europe and should further increase in the years to come.

Fabrication laboratory was born during the 20’s at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States. The basic idea was to have an accessible and affordable make space with all the necessary technological materials for students. Then with this first FabLab, students realized that this kind of space can finally be beneficial for a lot of people: entrepreneurs, people who just want to DIY, students, and even teenagers who have a taste for the technology field. These spaces are designed to enable individuals and communities to design, prototype, and manufacture their own products. In Fablabs, the key term is learning and innovation. In these spaces, people can

make any idea turn into reality with the help of technological materials. Usually, the main materials that you can find in FabLabs are a 3D printer, a laser cutter that makes 2D and 3D, computers with many software to prototype and program, a highresolution CNC; a machine that permits to make precisions pieces with wood, metal or plastics materials and a lot of others machines which depends of every FabLabs. They can be set up in cultural structures, universities, libraries, or have their own structure. Today, there are around 1 600 FabLabs spread in around 100 countries in the world – in the United States and Europe, but also in a lot in of developing countries like India, Peru, or South Africa, for example.

FabLabs are not just to create and make projects according to

digital fabrication. One of the main goals of these spaces is also to «democratize access to the tools for personal expression and invention». So, free access and the opening of these spaces for everybody is very important. FabLabs are also places where people from a variety of backgrounds can meet and help each other with different projects. The notion of community is essential, they consider that in FabLabs teamwork a strength. FabLabs are more and more developed in developing countries as well because these countries are

becoming aware that it can be a real way to allow people to start entrepreneurship. Firstly, it allows individuals to experiment and create without the need for expensive equipment or

specialized training. Moreover, it’s allowing them to develop and manufacture their own products and bring them to market without the need for significant capital investment which is an advantage to develop even more those countries that are still in the stage of development. Finally, FabLabs are valuable resources that can enable individuals and communities to create, learn, innovate, and build together.

All FabLabs in the world are gathered in one organization: the Fab Foundation. It is a non-profit organization that aims to promote and support the development of FabLabs around the world. It was created in 2009 as a spinoff from the Center for Bits and Atoms at MIT, which was one of the pioneers of the FabLabs movement. The Fab Foundation provides a range of resources and support to help communities establish and operate their own FabLabs, including training, technical assistance, and access to a global network of FabLabs operators and experts. Their website is also very useful to have any information about FabLabs. (Look in sources). It also works

to build awareness and promote the value of digital fabrication and technology machines to a broader audience. One of the key initiatives of the Fab Foundation is the Fab Academy, which is a distributed educational program that provides hands-on training in digital fabrication and related technologies. The program is offered at FabLabs around the world and covers topics such as computer-aided design, electronics, and programming. This organization is very important to permit every FabLabs in the world to have a base of work, to have a common agreement, and the same spirit. It is also a great help for people who want to make new FabLabs and expand this innovative community.

Recently, in the United States, they started to develop FabLabs Mobile. It’s a kind of laboratory mobile, like a food truck, which moves from city to city. Inside, there is the same technologic equipment as in stationary FabLabs for the same experience. It permits to expand the spirit of FabLabs to a lot of different cities and allows people from rural areas to experiment with some work

according to digital machining. It’s continuing the approach of democratization of innovation that the Fab Foundation wants to improve. Furthermore, the brand of « do it yourself » is increasing and a lot of people want to improve their skills and learn how to make daily objects by themselves. FabLabs can also be useful for these people. For example, some FabLabs are making make « Repair coffee », which is a moment when people can gather together in FabLabs for a friendly moment and bring some broken stuff that they have (electronic or not electronic) and then try to find solutions together to repair with the help of FabLabs materials. This kind of event is representative of all values of FabLabs: accessibility of knowledge, tools, and technologies for everybody to make innovations together.

Camélia Sghayare

Sources: Fabfoundation.org

Usinenouvelle - Les fablabs une Excellence francaise Fablabs.io

The rise of binge - watching: a cultural revolution or a fading trend?

After a long day at work, you come back at 6 pm, slip into your pajamas, put on Netflix, and watch our series with our favorite plaid. Enjoying this moment, you are starting a second episode and a third and suddenly you cannot stop anymore, you look at the time and it is already 11 pm. This might have happened to you before and it has a name: binge-watching.

This expression comes from another phenomenon, binge drinking, the excessive consumption of alcohol. For binge-watching, it’s the same thing. The excessive consumption of episodes, when you can’t stop watching, and you binge a season in one week; the average is around 2 to 6 following episodes. This televisual marathon touches more series with a lot of suspense, with big cliffhangers, which will completely immerse the viewer in a fictional world. Moreover, with the rise of a lot of streaming platforms this last decade (Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, OCS…) binge-watching has increased. Their accessibility on all supports, TV, phone,

and computer makes binge-watching easier at every moment of the day, wherever you want. The consumer will pay to subscribe to their platforms, to have access to a hundred shows, often with the complete seasons (instead of having to wait one week to watch the remaining episodes). Covid 19 intensified binge-watching: Netflix had 190 million subscribers in 2020.

However, binge-watching can develop into an addiction. Several researchers in sociology and psychology did studies on the subject to understand why people started binge-watching and what kind of impact (negative or positive) it had on their mental and

physical health. Binge-watching can cause different symptoms, that share similarities with a depressive episode or even lead to it; negligence in work and social relationships; a lack of sleep; procrastination; weight gain and bad alimentation; and even stress and anxiety. The binge-watching addiction resembles addictions to video games or social media, it concerns the young majority between 18-35 years.

During their investigation, researchers discovered some positive effects. The platform’s users will binge-watch their series to a point of dissociating from reality: forgetting their work’s problems and escaping their loneliness.

They will identify themselves as the series’ characters. People are also binge-watching their favorite series because they’re scared of spoilers. Furthermore, consumers also stated in the study that they’re watching series in an attempt to just relax and chill; it’s in this case that the expression “Netflix and chill” will appear in our discussions and become the best way to bingewatch. The article “Let’s stay home and watch TV: The benefits of shared media use for close relationships” evokes all the advantages of binge-watching as a couple. For relationships that don’t have a common social network or a long-distance relationship, bingewatching could be a possibility to share a social experience between them, even if it’s fictional. But be careful to not lose yourself in a fictional world like Game of Thrones, you will be surprised to not see dragons in reality…

Binge-watching does not only impact the subscribers of streaming platforms but also big media industries like television or cinema. For a decade, television has competed with Netflix and other platforms, thanks to the broad variety of programs. Especially because the seasons are suddenly coming out all at once. In addition to that, the absence of ads and no scheduled hours are also beneficial to the users.

The cinema industry seems to be affected by this increase in bingewatching, many people working in the field of cinema, like producers or

directors, are protesting the streaming platforms’ influence; and Covid19 didn’t help as well. We can observe a decrease in attendance at movie theaters, for some people the social effect of going to the cinema and watching a movie is not worth it anymore. The idea is to share a cinematographic experience with perfect strangers and feel some emotions and sensations in front of a film that is constantly

industrialization. The streaming platforms also understood the rising enthusiasm behind this new way of consuming series very well; a lot of series are produced at once, and quantity is prioritized over quality.

To conclude, these last years there has been hard competition between all the streaming platforms, new ones appeared on the market, fighting for their establishment while older ones are trying to refresh their image. Prices are changing, and subscribers have become more occasional (particularly for Netflix). Are we starting to see the end of the binge-watching era or the beginning of cinema’s revenge? I personally will continue my abonnement for Netflix to watch “Vikings” and “Stranger Things” with my plaid at 6 pm on a rainy Monday.

Chloé Le Cair

Sources:

losing popularity. In that way, bingewatching, in my opinion, can lead to social isolation.

So, when I talk about binge-watching, I must talk about the circumstances while producing series nowadays. Employees are forced to keep a tight schedule and work at an intense pace, which causes stress and anxiety for the people who work in professions in the media industry and even leads to burnout. In this new numeric era, we can see the appearance of writing

Passeportsante: Binge Watching: décryptage de cette tendance de consommation

Mdpi: Understanding the Phenomenon of BingeWatching - A Systematic Review

University of Aberdeen: Let’s stay home and watch TV: The benefits of shared media use for close relationships

Cairn.info: Netflix, l’usine à séries que le cinéma déteste adorer

The Power of Touch

Babies who get physical affection seem to have better chances of being happy adults. This responds to the oxytocin they’ve released when feeling love and connection.

Did you know hugging your baby can make them succeed?

Many studies highlight the relationship between parental affection and children’s happiness, health, and success in the future. The brain starts developing in the womb, but the skills to use it come after birth. During the child’s development, the child learns the patterns repeatedly shown to them and slowly develops their way to showing emotions independently.

Places that show a primary role

in developing memory, decisionmaking, and emotional responses. It’s been studied that if specific experiences don’t happen during the crucial stages in development, it’ll decrease brain development in places called the amygdala, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex. Also, serotonin, cortisol, and dopamine hormones are a huge part of our behavior, mental health, stress levels, learning, motivation, and cognitive development.

Even though it will take some time for a baby to verbalize their feelings, the studies show the importance of teaching this to infants. Babies given physical and emotional affection tend to cry less and sleep better. Studies show that these babies’ brain development is boosted, facilitated, and constructed. A newborn comes

Babies who get physical affection seem to have better chances of being happy adults. This is a response to the oxytocin they’ve released when feeling love and connection.

from a very restrictive environment. Everything that simulates their former conditions in the womb comforts them. Being hugged and hearing the heartbeat again is familiar to them because they’ve listened to it for the past nine months. High self-esteem, improved academic performance, communication skills, and selfawareness are also linked to this affection. Studies show that children who receive much physical love have more elevated hormones called oxytocin and vasopressin. These hormones affect your emotions and social bonding. The lack of these skills tends to cause aggressive behavior, depression, and suicidal tendencies in later life. People who lacked affection as children also struggled with mental health, were more upset in social situations, and were less able to relate to others.

Studies also show that infants lacking touch and affection had higher levels of cortisol stress hormone. These changes were seen in those people, even as adults. Scientists believe the lack of physical contact significantly affected those material changes. The babies who received affection as babies are less likely to feel anxiety, hostility, stress, and psychosomatic symptoms. Babies that receive so-called “harsh parenting” are promoting insecure attachment. As grown-ups, it’s likely for these adults to lack skills in emotional behavior and social relationships. As adults, instead of good behavior and independence, they are shown to be hesitant, insecure, and unable to express themselves freely. They tend to have more trouble with self-awareness and have more trust issues.

Sentiments that state that too much warmth and affection will lead to clingy and codependent adults are proven wrong by science. By showing the child that punishment does not mean a reduction of parental love, the child learns to navigate healthy boundaries better as an adult.

Taika Soihtu

Sources:

spsp: How a Parent’s Affection Shapes a Child’s Happiness

scientificamerican: How Important Is Physical Contact with Your Infant?

urbanchildinstitute: No Such Thing As Too Much Love

babysensory: The Power Of Touch

psychcentral: How Being Unloved in Childhood May Affect You as an Adult

duodecim: Tunteet, varhainen

vuorovaikutus ja aivojen toiminnallinen kehitys

Stress Management 101: How to deal with stress?

Stress can be defined as a state of worry, mental tension caused by a problematic situation, or a feeling of physical anxiety.

Scientifically, it can be defined as an alarm system in our brains. When the brain sees a threat, it signals to our body to release stress hormones, and the heart rate&blood pressure increase. This also can be defined as a fight-or-flight response which is the reaction our ancestors showed when they saw a threat, such as a wild animal who could kill them. So their comeback is either fight them or run away from the stressor.

The essential thing to manage stress is changing the way we look at stress. Because our causes are not as severe as fighting a wild animal anymore, stress is a normal reaction for our body when we try to see the good inside of it. Because it tries to improve & motivate ourselves in a better way to avoid troubles. However, uncontrolled levels of stress over long periods can dangerously affect people's health.

So here there are some helpful tips to minimize stress in our daily life.

1-First things first: To be organized and well-planned

Not knowing what to do is a significant part of our stress. In our daily lives, we need to make many decisions which can be annoying sometimes when we are close to the deadline. That is why planning our activities can help us to cope with stress. As a simple example, even planning what to wear the next day can help us to feel less in a rush in the mornings.

2-Exercising!

The human body is designed to move, but with the latest technological developments, we tend to move much less than before. Standing still for longer times, especially scrolling through social media, can significantly cause us to be stressed. Exercising releases endorphins

which work as a stress reliever. It does not only help with stress, but also it is beneficial for general health.

3-Starting a stress journal

We can see the pattern of the things we regularly stress about with this technique. By finding out the design, we can prepare ourselves to show better reactions to our stressors. In this journal, we can list: What caused us stress and how we felt, both physically and emotionally. We can give a point from 1 to 10 for the severity of the stress and how we acted in response. What can we do to make ourselves better for the next time?

4-4 A's of Stress Management

Firstly, we can avoid manageable causes of stress as people, activities, habits, etc. By learning to say no, we can limit the time we spend with someone who stresses us. We can constantly stop following the news if they are affecting us badly.

We can alter the situation by expressing our feelings instead of keeping them inside. People may not be aware of the things which cause us stress. Excellent outcomes of change can be seen by trying.

One of the best ways to cope with stress is to accept things as they are. However, we should accept the things we cannot change. Acceptance may be difficult, but it's easier than resisting to change an uncontrollable situation. It can be seen as personal growth, and we can take

some lessons if a mistake has happened. A serious mistake that we made today may prevent some vast mistakes that may occur in the future. Another important part of accepting is learning how to forgive ourselves and others, which can relax our minds.

Finally, we should learn how to adapt to the stressor: We might have specific plans, but learning how to go with the flow is important because life is imperfectly perfect. Reframing problems might help with that. If we are stuck in traffic, we can see it as an opportunity to organize our plans or create time to slow down and listen to our favorite songs because being angry with the drivers will not change when we arrive. Moreover, looking at the big picture and asking ourselves how vital the current stressor will be in the long run might help to have a different perspective. Trying not to be a perfectionist and setting reasonable standards is also essential to have a more relaxed mind.

5-Having a backyard

Spending some alone time, listening to ourselves, and doing something we enjoy daily is also essential. As we feed ourselves every day to have energy for our daily activities, we should also feed our souls as it can release happiness hormones and reduce stress levels.

6-Practicing relaxation techniques for stress relief

The body's natural relaxation response can be activated with these techniques. They help us to slow down our breathing and heart rate. One of the most popular techniques is meditation. It has different exercise methods such as mindfulness, deep breathing, body scan, gratitude, and visualization. Yoga and Tai Chi are the other techniques that include physical movements activating relaxation hormones.

7-Laugh, laugh, and laugh!

Laughter relaxes the body, boosts the immune system, releases endorphins, protects the heart, burns calories, and so much more! Laughter yoga is a unique activity where you can practice and include laughter more into your life.

8-Picking a healthy lifestyle

Eating a healthy diet plays a crucial role in our stress levels. Consuming unprocessed food should be the critical point of our diets. Unfortunately, most of us consume too much refined sugar, which causes an immediate increase and decrease in blood sugar. It gives us a fast calm initially, but it doesn't last long, and when the peace goes away, we're stressed again. This can create anxiety, depression, insomnia, lack of focus, low energy, memory issues, and inflammation. While the daily suggested consumption amount of sugar should not exceed nine teaspoons for men and six teaspoons for women, there are seven teaspoons of sugar in a coke (330 ml).

9-Avoid alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs

They might be the shortcuts for running away from stress, but their solution is only temporary. Problems should be dealt with based on clear minds.

10-Getting enough sleep

7-9 hours of sleep is essential for all adults. Unhealthy daytime habits like not limiting napping to 15-20 minutes may lead to insomnia at night. Tips to sleep better: Expose yourself to sunlight in the morning. (Note: Avoid sunlight between 12-3 pm in the summer season and use sunscreen.) Stop using technological devices 1 hour before sleep. Keep your room cool. Avoid big meals at night. Best foods&drinks before sleep: yogurt, banana, almonds, milk, chamomile tea, lavender tea, and passionflower (passiflora) tea.

Disclaimer: These techniques are for creating stress management awareness and are general suggestions for healthy people. Please talk to your doctor if you feel down or anxious for more than several weeks or if it interferes with your home or work life. Therapy, medication, and other strategies can help.

Hakan Yağcı

Sources:

Mayoclinic: "Stress Basics"

HelpGuide: "Stress Management"

HelpGuide: "Relaxation Techniques for Stress Relief"

HelpGuide: "Laughter is the Best Medicine"

Weightandwelness: "Is Sugar Making You Stressed?"

Heart: "How Much Sugar is Too Much?"

Coca-Cola: "How Much Sugar is in CocaCola Original Taste?"

Sleep Foundation: "How Much Sleep Do We Really Need?"

HelpGuide: "How to Sleep Better"

Healthline: "The 9 Best Foods and Drinks to Have Before Bed"

A Necessary Tool for Accountability or a Threat to open Discourse?

Cance Cu ture

The term “Cancel Culture” has been around for several years but became particularly popular in the United States in 2019 and 2020. The phrase was used to describe a growing trend of individuals and groups calling for boycotts or other forms of punishment against public figures who have said or done something controversial or offensive. This can include demands for individuals to be fired from their jobs, losing sponsorships or public platforms, or facing public humiliation and condemnation.

episode of the reality TV show Love and Hip Hop. Since then, the term has been frequently used on social media platforms, particularly on Black Twitter, both seriously and humorously.

The term “cancel culture” gained renewed attention during the #MeToo movement, as several high-profile individuals, including Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Louis C.K, and R. Kelly, were “cancelled” following allegations of sexual abuse. Since then, “cancel culture” and the act of “cancelling” have become more commonly used in everyday language. The phrase “to cancel” was added to the official MerriamWebster dictionary in January 2021.

community after she posted transphobic comments on Twitter.

While I don’t think that cancelling someone should be your first choice of action when confronted with opinions, actions, or values –open dialogue and discussions, an attempt to understand each other and find some common ground is always preferable – there are simply some situations when you are not left with any other choice. The concept of boycotting to raise awareness for an issue, and to make your voice heard is not new and it is very necessary.

The concept of “cancel culture” or the act of “cancelling” someone is a relatively new phenomenon. It originated from the song “Your Love is Cancelled” by Nile Rogers in 1981 and was later used in the 1991 film New Jack City. In the 90s and early 2000s, the phrase continued to be used in music and YouTube videos. However, it gained more widespread attention when it was mentioned in a 2014

Cancel Culture has become a controversial and often polarizing topic. While on the one hand proponents argue that it is a necessary tool for holding powerful individuals and institutions accountable for their actions and promoting social justice, on the other hand, critics claim the effect on free speech and open discourse, as individuals may self-censor out of fear of being targeted and silenced.

“The problem with cancel culture is that it doesn’t teach people anything. Instead, it leaves them afraid to speak, afraid to question, and afraid to learn” states J.K. Rowling, author of Harry Potter She herself has been “cancelled” since 2020, facing criticism and boycotts from a part of her fan

Cancel Culture can be a catalyst for change. When companies or individuals face public backlash for their actions or statements, it can serve as a wake-up call and spur them to make changes. It allows marginalized groups to hold those in power accountable for their actions. Historically, many marginalized groups have been excluded from traditional power structures and have had few avenues for recourse when they face discrimination or oppression.

Cancel Culture can provide a way for these groups to have a voice

The concept of boycotting to raise awareness for an issue, and to make your voice heard is not new and it is very necessary.

Open dialogue and discussions, an attempt to understand each other and find some common ground is always preferable.

and pressure those in power to listen and make changes. For example, the #MeToo movement has used Cancel Culture to call out powerful men in Hollywood and other industries who have engaged in sexual harassment or assault. In these cases, Cancel Culture has been instrumental in bringing about accountability and justice.

controversial or sensitive topics. Freedom of speech is an essential human right that should be protected. However, it should not be used as a shield to protect hate speech and discrimination. There should be limits on speech that promotes violence, hatred, and discrimination towards others.

At the same time, it is important to protect legitimate speech, which allows for open dialogue and debate. By striking a balance between freedom of speech and discrimination and hate speech, we can create a more tolerant and respectful society for all.

to make voices heard that are not listened to otherwise.

The first step to solving this problem is taking a step back, reflecting on our own communication behaviour and trying to listen more.

Angelina Berndt

Sources:

Aja Romano ,“Why we can’t stop fighting about cancel culture”

Merriam-Webster, “What It Means to Get ‘Canceled”

Graham Bowley, “Bill Cosby Assault Case: A Timeline from Accusation to Sentencing”

However, critics of Cancel Culture argue that it can have a negative impact on free speech and discourse. When individuals face the threat of being “cancelled” for expressing their views, it can create a climate of fear and selfcensorship. This can lead to a narrowing of public discourse and a reluctance to engage with

If there would be such a safe space for discussion in our society and people would were more open to constructive criticism instead of seeing it as a personal attack, I think the need for such drastic measures as boycotting would be reduced immensely.

The Cancel Culture is not the root of the problem, it is the lack of a safe and sustainable debate culture. Cancel Culture in my eyes is merely a last resort for coping with the lack of constructive communication and the attempt

Spencer Kornhaber, “It’s Not Callout Culture. It’s Accountability”

Adrienne Matei, “Call-Out Culture: How to Get it Right (and Wrong)”

Brandon Tensley, “Cancel Culture Is about Power - Who Has It and Who Wants to Be Heard”

By striking a balance between freedom of speech and discrimination and hate speech, we can create a more tolerant and respectful society for all.

Created, designed, and coordinated by the Faculty of Engineering of Cairo and the French HIP Institute (Heritage, Innovation, and Preservation), this project uses the most innovative nondestructive technologies. It will be used by three major universities and researchers of international renown. And guess what? They achieved something, something big. A hidden corridor of 9m inside the Khufu’s pyramid was revealed to the public on the 2nd of March 2023, the first significant inner discovery since the 19th Century.

The Great Pyramid of Giza is, without a doubt, the most mysterious monument on Earth. To this day, we still can’t precisely describe how the ancient Egyptian civilization built the last standing wonder of the Ancient world.

This site is the epicenter of all kinds of theories, from slaves to aliens, everybody has their idea, but we will not discuss this subject today. In 2017, the Scan Pyramid team announced they discovered a potential 30 m-long corridor over the King’s chamber on the pyramid’s Northside. However, no further research has been done yet as it is challenging to confirm this hypothesis without damaging the monument.

So how did they manage to find this nine-meter-long corridor?

By using the stars! Muon radiography is a technique that uses cosmic muons to create images of the internal structure of objects. Cosmic muons are high-energy particles constantly raining down on the Earth’s surface from outer space. When

these muons encounter matter, they are slowed down and can be deflected or absorbed, depending on the material they pass through. The principle behind muon radiography is that denser materials, such as metals or rocks, will absorb more muons than less dense materials, such as air or water. By measuring the number of muons that pass through an object from different angles, it is possible to create an image of the object’s internal density structure. It is (mainly) because of this technique that the Scan Pyramid team was able to detect the void in the pyramid.

This March, a 9m long, 2m wide, and 2m high tunnel was filmed and projected to the public. Some believe this corridor was used to

Just because a mystery is 4500 years old doesn’t mean it can’t be solved…”

redistribute the weight of the stones above it, while others believe it is a hidden tomb. This reminds us that we are far from knowing the whole story about those giant monuments, and if this kind of discovery keeps happening, we will be even closer to the final answer on how they built it! For now, archaeologists are still conducting research on this beautiful discovery.

The Scan Pyramids

teams still have research going on to see if the 30m void detected is indeed real. For now, they are on a onefor-one finding, and this news shakes the whole field of Egyptology. Their work empathizes with the use of nondestructive techniques in the uncovering of hidden mysteries in old monuments. This technique could be used around the world’s

most mysterious constructions and (why not?) reveal some secrets!

Hugo Lhomedet

www.scanpyramids.org

Hidden Tunnel Discovered Inside Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt –NBC New York

Incredible discovery made inside Great Pyramid of Giza nypost.com

Estimated 30m void 9m tunnel discovery

If there is one singer in Macedonia that everyone knows, it’s Toše Proeski. Whether it is a grandmother or under twenty years old, it seems like they all have something to say. Toše Proeski was usually represented with glowing adjectives and it can be said that he was the pride of this country.

Toše Proeski, born in 1981 in Prilep, was famous not only because of his music but also for meaningful work with children. After eight albums, several music competitions and a lot of concerts in many countries, Proeski died in a car accident when he was only 26 years old. Despite his young age, he is still a very respected and meaningful person for many people all around the Balkans. But is it only people who are older or is it possible that Proeski, a person who has been called ‘Elvis Presley of the Balkans’, has a place in nowadays young generation’s hearts as well? Now three young students from Skopje tell their thoughts about Toše and what he means to them.

Toše Proeski is in memories of the older generation especially. Many parents want to respect Proeski’s career and his humility by telling their kids stories about him. Dorotea Grkovikj is one of those young people who doesn’t have a lot of memories of Toše because of her age, but the memories that she has are related to her parents. “I just remember how they cried every time they heard his music”. Proeski’s death deeply affected the

entire nation. Dorotea actually thinks that after his death he became more respected. The official state funeral, which was held in Krusevo (the city that he grew up in), was attended by many people, as well as Dorotea’s family. “We were at his funeral at Kruševo because we felt the need to show some respect”.

songs at different events all around Macedonia, or overall even in the Balkans. Maybe it is because of nostalgia, but even though it would not be people’s favorite type of music, people would still respect him.

For young people, Proeski’s death is one of the first things that comes to their minds. Because it was a car accident, it shocked everyone. Filip Stepanovski is one of those people who were young when this happened.

“One particular thing that I remember was how sudden it was and that a year later we bought a parrot as a pet and named it Toše”, Filip told.

Therefore, Proeski affected people’s lives in many different ways. However, music is the thing that he was famous for. The songs were part of the young generation’s childhood and nowadays you can still hear his

Jana Oltovska, who also heard a lot of stories about Toše and his music from her parents, pointed out his impact on music here in Macedonia. “Young people know him because he had a big influence here”. The influence wasn’t only about music. Toše was the regional UNICEF ambassador because he put in a lot of effort to demand better education for kids. He also held a concert in Skopje and the money collected from the tickets was used to renovate schools.

Dorotea, Jana, Filip, or someone else, it seems very clear that people have something to say about this person. “We talk about him around foreigners because he truly is our country’s sweetheart”, Dorotea summarized. However, not all people of the younger generations are big fans of Toše’s music. Depending on the person, some people think that nobody should forget him and even suggest making a movie about his life, while other people don’t see it as important to idolize Toše if music is not their type. And every opinion is valuable. Still, we can notice that people in Macedonia understand the significance and have many good things to say about him.

Katariina Weijo

Sources:

BalkanInsight - Macedonia bids farewell to Toše Proeski

Last.fm - Toše Proeski

MUSIC TO YOUR E ARS

Have you ever been to a party and your ears were blasting minutes after you have left the venue? Or have you ever experienced hearing significantly fewer hours or days after? I hate to break the obvious to you. It probably comes from the way too loud music, that caused your temporary noise-related hearing loss. But can noiserelated hearing loss even be temporary?

as sound.

During noise related trauma not only the hair cells but also the whole corti may be disrupted. If you assume that this only happens when firecrackers are exploding close to you or you standing right next to the speakers at a rock concert, you are absolutely correct, but acoustic trauma doesn’t start there. While firework shows may be at 140-160 dBA and concerts roughly at 94-110/120 dBA hearing loss can occur way way before that.

adds the human’s ear response to the intensity. dB and dBA sounds are relatively similar in measuring sounds in the human hearing range. Sounds that the human ear doesn’t respond to such as above and below the human hearing range can be measured in dB. The US Department of Health and Human Services visualises why measuring in dBA is necessary: “(…) a lower frequency sound that isn’t processed as effectively through the ear will have a lower output level. For instance, the lowest note on a tuba (16Hz) will have a much lower dBA reading than a dB reading.“. However, the by far most important thing to understand about those two scales is that they work logarithmically. This means that if you add 10 dBA to a sound of 80 dBA, the sound will become 10x more intense and twice as loud to our ears, it grows in a steep curve.

Our ear works in notso-mysterious ways, it consists roughly of the inner, middle and outer ear. Sounds enter through the outer ear and get to the eardrum which leads vibration to bones (malleus, incus, stapes) located in the middle ear. Those send vibrations to the fluids in the cochlea finally moving hair cells along the membrane. The movement opens the sensory cells on top of the hair cells which creates an electrical signal, that is being carried by the auditory nerves to the brain. The brain converts the signals and recognizes what we know

To understand what this means it is important to recognize the meaning of dBA and how it works. Many factors define your experience of sound, this may be endurance, intensity, volume, frequency or the surroundings you’re experiencing it in. There are two very important scales to measure sound which are called “dB” and “dBA”, translated to decibels and A-measured decibels. While dB is solely used to measure sound intensity, dBA also

To be able to put noise into relation, we must outline at what noise level things are happening; a normal conversation is held at 60 dBA, the maximum volume level for personal listening devices is between 105-110 dBA, standing beside or near sirens equals roughly 120 dBA. That’s quite a range – remember the curve is logarithmical - but what gives another insight into what sound does to you is when you put the exposure time into consideration; A rule of thumb is that you are likely to damage your hearing at 85 dBA when you’re exposed to it for minimum 8 hours, at 100 dBA for minimum 14 minutes and at 110 dBA for at least 2 minutes. Clubs and Bars in Macedonia play music at over 110 dBA. We measured the dBA levels in Kotur and Stanica with an app, both were above a 100 dBA at almost every given time during the evening. Considering your hearing can get damaged after roughly 14 minutes of exposure, this is shocking.

ARS

There is more than one cause of permanent and non-permanent hearing loss. A very common damage type is for example damage affecting the hair cells. Generally, almost everyone is born with roughly 16000 hair cells. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention states that “Up to 30% to 50% of hair cells can be damaged or destroyed before changes in your hearing can be measured by a hearing test. By the time you notice hearing loss, many hair cells have been destroyed and cannot be repaired.“. This may put you into a stage of alarm but even when you hear less after a concert, it doesn’t necessarily mean your hearing will never go back to its normal state again. You can visualize the hair cells as grass blades bending to sound. While many of those hair cells may recover, continuous exposure to loud noises will over time destroy more and more of those cells. Every single time you listen to overly loud sounds you’re basically putting yourself into a situation of risk.

The best intervention is prevention for this case. There is not much you can do when your hair cells have been destroyed. EPA and WHO recommend keeping environmental noises below 70 dBA in time periods over 24 hours, and below 75 dBA in periods over 8 hours to prevent hearing loss. You could – during your workday for example – take breaks from your headphones or reduce the volume of your music or if you work in a loud

working environment make sure to take regular breaks and not strain your ears after a work time. When going to noisy areas there are also options to protect your ear; this can be for example ear muffs, - plugs,- protection and more.

More than 600 million people of the global population (=12%) are at risk for hearing loss of which 1/3 are connected to noise exposure. Noise-related hearing loss is irreversible. Everybody who has the means should try to protect their

ears. Your life will simply change when one of your five senses works less. Take responsibility for your health and start to protect your ears, nobody else can be responsible for them.

External auditory canal Auricle

Tympanic membrane

Stapes

Semicircular canals Incus

Vestibular nerve

Cochlea nerve

Cochlea

Tympanic cavity

Eustachian Tube Round window

Sources:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – How does loud noise cause hearing loss?

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services – How is Sound Measuered?

National Library of Medicine – Current insights in noise-induced hearing loss: a literature review of the underlying mechanisms, pathophysiology, aasymmetry, and management options

Healthy Hearing – Smartphone decibel meter apps to measure noise levels

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – What Noises Cause Hearing Loss?

National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders – Noise-Induced Hearing Loss

Colonial Center for Hearing – Is Noise-Induced Hearing Loss Irreversible?

The national campaign for better hearing - How loud is too loud?

Marie Kiel

Slow down: Fast food

Thefact is, that following a healthy diet doesn’t go in line with eating regularly in fast food restaurants. Fast food is typically loaded with calories, sodium, and unhealthy fat. This is very harmful to human health. It also tends to be low in nutrients and almost totally lacking in fruit, vegetables, and fiber.

That doesn’t mean you have to avoid fast food entirely. When you’re hungry and on the run, fast food can really hit the spot. It’s cheap, tasty, and, best of all, convenient. But while it’s okay to indulge in cravings every now and then, to stay healthy you can’t make it a regular habit. How often do you eat fast food? If your answer is “too often”, you need to change this habit.

The preparation and cooking methods are as important as the foods we consume. While grilling, the fire on the surface should not be too high and there should be a distance of 10-15 cm between the meat and the fire while cooking. Also, the deep frying method can have a bad influence on health as it increases the fat content of the fastfood menu. Since the same oil is used for 10-12 hours for frying, it is very harmful to the body. Oils used for frying become carcinogenic when used repeatedly. Used oil should never be kept waiting and

used again. The peroxide value of the waiting oil increases and oxidizes and can damage the immune system. Frequent and continuous consumption of fried foods significantly increases the risk of cardiovascular and digestive system diseases and cancer.

Effects of Fast Food:

First things first, unhealthy food increases your risk of premature heart disease. You should be making an active effort to eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, not only for your heart health but for your overall well-being. Research has found links to an increased rate of heart attacks in geographical areas that have more fast-food restaurants. Fast food can also increase your risk of diabetes, blood clots, and stroke.

The next question on your mind may be “Well…why?”. Keep reading. Fast food is full of saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium. Add a large soda to your order and that brings an unnecessary amount of added sugar. Is the convenience worth the artery-clogging calories? Consuming unhealthy foods at fast food restaurants can increase your chance of obesity and, in turn, increase your risk of diseases associated with excess weight, such as heart disease and diabetes. High sodium intake can even increase your blood pressure

and dehydrate you. High fat and saturated fat intake increases your bad cholesterol and risk of heart attack and stroke.

Decreasing Your Risk:

Now that you know, quit worrying: you are in control. There are different options to fill your stomach quickly, and you can always find healthier options. Snacks, grilled meat, skipping the milkshake – always you can drop some of the extra calories and unhealthy additives. `Be aware of what you put in your mouth and make healthy choices as often as possible. Remember that small changes do pay off over time. Try to make the time in your schedule for healthy meals at home and avoid frequent visits to your local drivethrough.

Reşit Efe Bayram

Sources:

Hearthousej - The effects of fast food on the heart

Helpguide-healthy eating

Wikipedia-Fast food

Gidabilgi-Fast food beslenme

Pictures: Adobe Stock Unplash

Future of selection

It is not the strongest of the species that survives, not the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.

- Charles Darwin

Imagineif we were able to cure genetic diseases like cancer, heart disease, diabetes, hemophilia, and even AIDS. Technically, we have a technique to do that. But should we?

Scientists are studying a gene manipulation technique found in 2012. This technique is called CRISPR/Cas-9 (clustered regularly-interspaced short palindromic repeats). CRISPR/Cas-9 has been already used on many occasions and tests have shown its potential in the medical field. This technique allows scientists to get inside plants, animals, and even human DNA and remove or replace a small piece of their genetic code. This interesting, yet scary technique works by injections. The Cas-9 stands for an enzyme that’s injected into the body and replaces the malfunctioning part of a genome. It can modify, delete or correct precise parts of our DNA.

Besides the good opportunities this technique brings, it faces a lot of social controversies since it also makes manipulating already functioning genes possible. In 2018, A Chinese scientist and a doctor called He Jiankui shocked everyone by creating the first genetically edited babies. He claimed to have made a pair of twins HIV-resistant by using CRISPR. This caused a lot of questioning of morality, and since it was illegal he got a three-year sentence in prison. There were a lot of debates about potential consequences that might occur later. The twin girls are currently healthy but facts about their situation with HIV are unclear as he was never transparent about his work. His manuscript is also unpublished. He Jiankui was released from prison in 2022 and claims he’s going to do a comeback.

A fda-approved, gene manipulation technique that’s similar to crispr/

cas9 has been used on a boy called Jackson Kennedy. He’s missing both copies (1 from his mother, 1 from his father) of a gene called RPE-65. This gene is important to the visual cycle. Jackson was predicted to become completely blind because of the lack of this gene. Doctors and scientists were able to fix this problem by using a gene manipulation technique called Luxturna.

Other CRISPR tests have been done on rats and dogs. Researchers in the Waymouth lab assembled a certain protein from a firefly and delivered it to mice. Those mice now have the ability to glow, just like fireflies. Scientists have also been able to prove in mice that they were able to slow down the aging process. David Ishee also did this in his basement to a dog’s sperm cell. He did this along with his other experiments on his dogs with an aim to give them wanted characteristics and as he claims, to fix flaws that have occurred during 40, 000 years of dog breeding. Another self-experiment with CRISPR has been done by Tristan Roberts. He injected himself live on Facebook, trying to cure himself of HIV. The experiment failed and got a lot of negative feedback due to the technique being unfinished and potentially dangerous. In 2019 a research consortium called Target Malaria released 15,384 genetically manipulated mosquitoes in the village of Bana in Western Burkina Faso to reduce the spread of malaria.

If we can make rats glow and make mosquitos not so dangerous, can we also make humans with supernatural abilities? People have been designing themselves for ages: plastic surgery, makeup, and gym. Technically it could be possible, but surely illegal in most countries. The Internet is full of tutorials for experimenting with crispr. There are packages you can order

at home that include everything you need to explore this technique. Also illegal in many countries. Some clinics that provide IVF treatment already offer the opportunity to the parents to choose an embryo that has the best genetic characteristics like certain eye color, sex, etc. In the future, they aim to be able to make so-called “designer babies’’ hoping it becomes legal to use crispr to make the embryos even more advanced.

So, CRISPR/cas9 allows us to change the DNA and cure diseases that have a genetic base. In the near future, it has the potential to change our whole way of seeing life and evolution. The controversial questions about CRISPR remain, what are the effects on our environment, should it be in the hands of the public and lastly, can our future be defined by engineering and designing instead of natural selection, and who’s profiting from it?

Taika Soihtu

Sources:

crisprtx: gene-editing/crispr-cas9

technologyreview: The creator of the CRISPR babies has been released from a Chinese prison

Stanford: In a possible step forward for gene therapy, Stanford researchers made mice glow like fireflies

new hope fertility: designer babies

Netflix: Unnatural selection

Target Malaria:Entomological results from the first release of non gene drive genetically modified sterile male mosquitoes in Africa

luxturna:How luxturna works

reportage

- VOICES

Fakti është se ndjekja e një diete të shëndetshme nuk shkon në përputhje me të ngrënit rregullisht në restorantet e ushqimit të shpejtë. Ushqimi i shpejtë zakonisht është i ngarkuar me kalori, natrium dhe yndyra të pashëndetshme. Kjo është shumë e dëmshme për shëndetin e njeriut. Ai gjithashtu ka tendencë të jetë i ulët në lëndë ushqyese dhe pothuajse plotësisht nw mungesw të frutave, perimeve dhe fibrave.

Kjo nuk do të thotë që ju duhet të shmangni tërësisht ushqimin e shpejtë. Kur jeni të uritur dhe duke shpejtuar ushqimi i shpejtë mund të ju shijoj me të vërtetë. Është i lirë, i shijshëm dhe, më i miri nga të gjitha, i përshtatshëm. Por, ndërsa është në rregull të kënaqesh me një dëshirë herë pas here, për të qëndruar të shëndetshëm nuk mund ta bëjmw një zakon të rregullt. Sa shpesh hani ushqim të shpejtë? Nëse përgjigja juaj është “shumë shpesh”, ju duhet ta ndryshoni këtë zakon.

Metodat e përgatitjes dhe gatimit janë po aq të rëndësishme sa edhe ushqimet që konsumojmë. Gjatë pjekjes, zjarri në sipërfaqe nuk duhet të jetë shumë i lartë dhe duhet të ketë një distancë prej 10-15 cm mes mishit dhe zjarrit gjatë gatimit. Gjithashtu, metoda e skuqjes së thellë mund të ketë një ndikim të keq në shëndet pasi rrit përmbajtjen e yndyrës në menunë e ushqimit të shpejtë. Duke qenë se i njëjti vaj përdoret për 10-12 orë për skuqje, është shumë i dëmshëm për organizmin. Vajrat e përdorur për tiganisje bëhen kancerogjene kur

përdoren në mënyrë të përsëritur. Vaji i përdorur nuk duhet të mbahet kurrë në pritje dhe të përdoret përsëri. Vlera e peroksidit të vajit në pritje rritet dhe oksidohet dhe mund të dëmtojë sistemin imunitar. Konsumimi i shpeshtë dhe i vazhdueshëm i ushqimeve të skuqura rrit ndjeshëm rrezikun e sëmundjeve kardiovaskulare dhe të sistemit tretës dhe kancerit.

Efektet e ushqimit të shpejtë:

Së pari, ushqimi i pashëndetshëm rrit rrezikun e sëmundjeve të parakohshme të zemrës. Ju duhet të bëni një përpjekje aktive për të ngrënë një dietë të shëndetshme dhe të ekuilibruar, jo vetëm për shëndetin e zemrës por për mirëqenien tuaj të përgjithshme. Hulumtimet kanë gjetur lidhje me një rritje të shkallës së sulmeve në zemër në zonat gjeografike që kanë më shumë restorante të ushqimit të shpejtë. Ushqimi i shpejtë mund të rrisë gjithashtu rrezikun e diabetit, mpiksjes së gjakut dhe goditjes në tru.

Pyetja tjetër në mendjen tuaj mund të jetë “Epo ... pse?”. Vazhdoni të lexoni. Ushqimi i shpejtë është plot me yndyra të ngopura, kolesterol dhe natrium. Shtoni një sode të madhe në porosinë tuaj dhe kjo sjell një sasi të panevojshme sheqeri të shtuar. A ia vlen komoditeti për kaloritë që bllokojnë arteriet? Konsumimi i ushqimeve të pashëndetshme në restorantet e ushqimit të shpejtë mund të rrisë mundësinë tuaj për obezitet dhe, nga ana tjetër, të rrisë rrezikun

e sëmundjeve që lidhen me peshën e tepërt, si sëmundjet e zemrës dhe diabeti. Marrja e lartë e natriumit madje mund të rrisë presionin e gjakut dhe t’ju dehidratojë. Marrja e lartë e yndyrave dhe yndyrave të ngopura rrit kolesterolin tuaj të keq dhe rrezikun e sulmit në zemër dhe goditjes në tru.

Zvogëloni rrezikun tuaj: Tani që e dini, hiqni dorë nga shqetësimi: ju jeni në kontroll. Ka mundësi të ndryshme për të mbushur stomakun tuaj shpejt dhe gjithmonë mund të gjeni opsione më të shëndetshme. Ushqimet si “snacks”, mish i pjekur në skarë, duke anashkaluar milkshake - gjithmonë mund të hiqni disa nga kaloritë shtesë dhe aditivët jo të shëndetshëm. Jini të vetëdijshëm për atë që vendosni në gojë dhe bëni zgjedhje të shëndetshme sa më shpesh të jetë e mundur. Mos harroni se ndryshimet e vogla shpërblehen me kalimin e kohës. Përpiquni të gjeni kohën në orarin tuaj për vakte të shëndetshme në shtëpi dhe shmangni vizitat e shpeshta në restoranet e afwrta

Reşit Efe Bayram

Përktheu: Dora Arifi

Burimet:

Hearthousej - The effects of fast food on the heart

Helpguide-healthy eating Wikipedia-Fast food Gidabilgi-Fast food beslenme

Fotografitë: Adobe Stock Unplash

Earthquakes are a natural phenomenon that takes place in the lithosphere layer of the earth. Ones have occurred in many parts of the planet so far, and thousands of people have lost their lives due to negligence. One of the major earthquakes that happened closest to today is the Kahramanmaras earthquakes, with 7.9 and 7.8 magnitudes that occurred on February 6, 2023, in Türkiye, affecting 11 cities. In these earthquakes, nearly 50,000 deaths have been officially recorded so far.

Due to its earthquake history, Japan is known as the most earthquake-prepared country in the world compared to other countries. Tokyo Metropolitan Municipality announced that it would take measures against a very severe earthquake, with a magnitude of 9.0, which may occur in Tokyo until 2030. This plan aims to reduce life and property damage by 30% by reinforcing buildings.

Skopje too is in the earthquake zone. It has been severely damaged by earthquakes many times throughout history. The last devastating earthquake was on July 26, 1963, with a magnitude of 6.1, but it was 6.9 on the Richter scale that we use today. It was 6 meters deep and killed 1070 people by demolishing around 80% of the city.

Despite being in the Cold War years, more than 80 countries mobilized with the call of the Socialist Republic of Macedonia, and Skopje was rebuilt again. As an appreciation, Skopje named its streets and buildings

after the states that built them. The urban plan for a modern Skopje was designed in 1965 by Japanese architect Kenzo Tange, who won the international competition to rebuild the city center. In 1969, the world’s first rubber seismic isolation structure was implemented by Swiss engineers in the Elementary School “Johan Heinrich Pestalozzi” building in Skopje, Macedonia.

On the 60th anniversary of the earthquake, a question remains in mind: How ready is Skopje, where the majority of the city is dominated by old buildings built years ago according to the technology of that time, against possible new earthquakes? And which type of prevention can we take to reduce the risk to a minimum level?

First of all, experts say that the lifespan of a building can vary between 30-50 years up to 100 years, depending on the material quality. A 30-yearold building can be even more potent than newer buildings if it’s built with quality. The lack of necessary precautions as insulation shortens this life. For example, the average age of facilities that need to be demolished in Istanbul is 26.3 years.

The factors affecting the earthquake risk factor of buildings are as follows:

Soil survey: Instead of doing a soil survey according to the building, the building should be done according to the soil survey. It is also essential that there is no groundwater on the floor of the building. Due to the risk of liquefaction, soft soil such as stream beds and fill areas is risky to build on. Because such floors increase the intensity of the earthquake wave much more than rocky floors, creating a security weakness for the building. Therefore, the new settlements to be reconstructed should be decided by carrying out the necessary soil survey studies.

EARTHQUAKES DON’T KILL,

BUILDINGS DO!

If possible, rocky ground areas should be preferred.

Quality of building materials and inspection: Inspection should be done thoroughly and correctly, and the company that made the construction should not be able to choose the company that will carry out the inspection. The structure should be in accordance with the project, and arrangements such as column cutting, wall removal, and illegal story adding should be avoided. Concrete and steel must be produced under the required quality standards. In past examples, it has been observed that the sea gravel and sea sand in the concrete content used in some earthquake zones reduce the concrete quality.

Column and beam condition: Cracks on columns and beams can give information about the durability of the building. But even if there are no cracks in these areas, this does not mean that the durability of the building is high. An earthquake resistance test can only obtain the most accurate result.

Experts recommend that an earthquake resistance test be carried out in the event of dampness in the basement as this may damage the structural systems, cracks in columns or beams, or if buildings have shops on the ground floor. Facilities that do not have sufficient durability are reinforced by different techniques or rebuilt with urban transformation and made more suitable and robust for today’s conditions.

In the tests, first, the plan of the building is drawn, and its static conformity is examined. While testing the durability, experts first look at the building’s floor and carrier systems. The ground condition of the building, its distance from the fault line, and the earthquakes it has experienced are examined. With the X-ray technique, it is learned how often iron and beam columns are used. When

necessary, a core sample is taken from the concrete, and various pressure tests measure the durability of the concrete.

Reinforcement is the first option as it costs less than rebuilding. Different reinforcement techniques are used, such as steel and column sheathing, adding wings, epoxy injection, and cladding with carbon fiber material. As a result of the tests, if it is understood that the reinforcing will not be enough, however costly, the buildings should be demolished and rebuilt under the scientific light of today’s engineering, such as inspection, ground survey, and material quality. Because life is more valuable than the cost of any building, and an earthquake is always with us like a bomb that may explode at any time. Let’s hope to reach the day when earthquakes are no longer considered natural disasters that take lives.

Hakan Yağcı

Reşit Efe Bayram

Sources:

Bbc: “Japonya’da Büyük Depremler Nasıl Az Hasarla Atlatılıyor? (How Major Earthquakes Survive with Little Damage in Japan)”

ResearchGate: “Damaging Effects of July 26, 1963, Skopje Earthquake”

Discovering Macedonia: “The Skopje Earthquake – a devastating catastrophe.”

Indigo Dergisi: “Deprem dayanıklılık testi nedir? Nasıl yapılır? (What is an earthquake endurance test? How to do it?)”

BCI Construction: “Which Factors Determine the Lifespan of a Building?”

Dergipark: “Türkiye’deki Depremlerde Alınan ve Alınabilecek Önlemler (Taken and Need to Take Precautions in Turkey’s Earthquakes)”

Mapfre: “Binanın Depreme Dayanıklı Olduğu Nasıl Anlaşılır? (How to Tell if the Building is Earthquake Resistant)”

Intac Insaat: “Reinforcement of Buildings”

ИДНИНАТА Е ВО ДОЖДОТ

Снабдувањето со вода во Европа може да изгледа неограничено, но ефектите од растот на населението, урбанизацијата, загадувањето и климатските промени, како што се постојаните суши, вршат огромен притисок врз водните ресурси и квалитетот на водата. Треба да застанеме и да размислиме во овој момент. Во овој модерен свет, на кој до денес гледавме од еден агол, време е да ја видиме и другата страна на паричката.

Неконтролираното

зголемување

на населението е голем проблем за водните ресурси. Поради оваа причина, потребата за вода се зголемува секој ден. Потрошувачката

на вода по лице во светот е околу 800 m3 во просек годишно. 1,4 милијарди луѓе, што е околу 20% од светската популација, немаат доволно вода за пиење, а 2,3 милијарди луѓе немаат пристап до здрава вода. Дополнително, до 2050 година, бројот

на земји кои страдаат од недостиг на вода ќе се искачи на 54, а бројот на луѓе принудени да живеат во лоши услови ќе се искачи на 3,76 милијарди.

Тоа ќе значи дека 40% од светското население, кое се очекува да биде 9,4 милијарди во 2050 година, ќе страда од недостиг на вода. Секоја година 2 милиони луѓе, претежно деца, умираат од цревни инфекции предизвикани од неправилна употреба на

вода и лоши хигиенски услови. Хепатитисот А и маларијата се сериозни здравствени проблеми во многу делови од нашиот свет. Исто така, хроничниот дефицит на флуор и многу слични состојби стануваат многу сериозни проблеми. Продолжувањето

на животот навистина зависи од достапноста на доволна и квалитетна вода.

Ајде да направиме малку математика сега. Ако водата во светот е голема колку аквариум, количината на свежа вода достапна за луѓето би била само колку лажицата што ја користите за мешање на кафето. Со други зборови, количината на свежа вода е помала од 1 процент од вкупната количина.

Чистата вода не се користи само за пиење и капење, туку има милијарди кубни метри чиста вода што се користат во производството на пластика, системи за ладење, фармацевтско производство, батерии за возила, пегли и многу други области секој ден. Ние користиме вода во секој момент на кој мислиме во секојдневниот живот и не секогаш го правиме тоа свесно.

Можеби не можеме да ја спречиме потрошувачката, но тоа не значи дека не можеме да ја направиме обновлива

и да го сториме тоа, можеме да собираме дождовница.

Собирањето на дождовница се однесува на собирање, складирање, третман, дистрибуција и употреба на дождовница. Наодите во многу делови од светот покажаа дека уште од праисторијата, луѓето се обидувале да ги задоволат потребите за вода потребни за домашна употреба, наводнување и сточарство со собирање и складирање на дождовница. Во текот на антиката, дождовницата била главен извор

на вода за нејзина употреба за пиење и неза пиење. Собирањето на дождовницата го практикувале жителите на градот Ур во

Да ги погледнеме местата во светот кои биле успешни во собирањето на дождовницата.

Значајната реформа на канадското право од средината на 2000-тите ја зголеми земјоделската, индустриската и резиденцијалната употреба на оваа технологија. Тамил Наду беше првата држава која наложи собирање на дождовница за секоја зграда за да се спречи исцрпување на подземните води. Проектот беше лансиран во 2001 година и имплементиран во сите рурални области на Тамил Наду. Во Нов Зеланд, иако има многу врнежи на запад и југ, бербата на дождовница во поголемиот дел од земјата е нормална практика за повеќето рурални живеалишта. Во Кина, Аргентина и Бразил, бербата на дождовницата од покривот е метод за надополнување на нивото на водата и подземните води за добитокот и малите наводнување.

сумерскиот регион пред околу 4500 години, а потоа и другите луѓе од Блискиот Исток. Археолошките докази во јужен Јордан укажуваат на постоење на системи за собирање вода за земјоделски цели пред 9.000 години, додека слични системи за собирање вода во пустината Негев во Израел датираат околу 4.000 или повеќе години. Изградбата и употребата на цистерни за складирање на дождовница може да се проследи уште од неолитот. Цистерните се една од главните карактеристики на добро дизајнираните градови и еден од методите за собирање на дождовницата. Зголемувањето на населението во римскиот период и зголемувањето на потребите за вода со растот на населените области доведоа до развој на структури каде што водата се транспортираше заедно со цистерни.

Секако, прво, индустријата треба да биде чувствителна за собирање на дождовницата бидејќи компаниите користат најголемо количество вода и при изградбата на зградите секое претпријатие треба да подготви план за нејзино собирање. Од друга страна, секој од нас може и дома да спроведе проект за собирање дождовница. Покривите на нашите куќи можат да бидат добар почеток за ова поле за жетва, но пред да ги инсталирате вашите системи за собирање дожд, треба да го пресметате вашиот отпечаток на вода. Она што ќе го видите со водниот отпечаток не е само потрошувачката на вода, туку ќе се сретнете со реалноста на целата вода потрошена за продолжување на вашиот живот.

Запомнете дека ВОДАТА е ЖИВОТ и промената започнува со вас.

Хамит Дурак Превод: Мартина Даниловска

Извори: Wikipedia - Yağmur suyu hasadı Dergipark - Sürdürülebilir Yağmur Suyu Hasadı Üzerine Yapısal Bir İnceleme

FORGIVE LIKE A RWANDAN

At Johannesburg airport, the airline staff lady asked me to repeat my final destination twice as if there was something wrong with traveling to Rwanda. Kigali, I replicated with confidence.

As all passengers were rushing to the plane exit, I saw a Rwandan woman struggling with her carry-on bags. After giving her a helping hand, I glanced at the baby she was tirelessly carrying on her back: “You travel with your little boy and so much luggage, you are a superwoman” “Me, superwoman?”, I could read on her lips as if she needed time to process my statement. In fact, all Rwandans are superheroes for surviving the most savage mass killing in modern history.

By many, Rwanda is only known for its genocide. On April 7th, 1994, a wellorganized campaign of slaughter against the Tutsi ethnic group began. The Hutu militias brainwashed people of their own ethnicity into fear and hatred against

the Tutsi minority and enticed them to denounce and kill their Tutsi neighbors, friends, and even family members. Hutu civilians who refused to participate in the killings were slaughtered. In around 100 days, over 500,000 people were savagely beheaded or dismembered with machetes whilst some, including newborns, were thrown alive in pit latrines. The scale of the brutality was appalling. According to Rwandan sources, the number of deaths is close to one million, 60% of the Tutsi population or one Rwandan out of seven.

Kigali airport staff did not give me a very welcoming first impression. They have plenty of reasons to resent Europeans after all, I thought. The key role played by France in the mass killing is highlighted in the genocide memorial center. Whilst the international community allegedly turned a blind eye to the genocide, the French government is accused of having provided the Hutu militias with weapons and military training. Even if it acknowledged its mistakes, France never truly apologized.

After being dropped at the bus station by a random guy I had met near Kigali airport, I recalled the statement I had

made to my South African host the previous night: ‘at least there, they will know I am not a local.’ Unsurprisingly, I was the only white person around.

Nyabugogo bus station was bustling and the crowd rapidly caught me off guard. I was feeling overwhelmed when out of nowhere, a Rwandan man dragged me out of the throng: ‘come with me, I will help you.’ After taking me to the right bus ticket counter, the man showed me the location where the bus had to depart from and introduced me to an employee of the bus company. The latter, a man in his fifties, glanced at me and expressed himself in Kinyarwanda (Rwanda’s official language). While buckling under the weight of my backpack, I was tensed and confused at the same time, worried about what he was going to do. A young woman then got closer to me: ‘you know, he said you look beautiful’. While people standing next to me were giggling, I was stunned by the outpouring of kindness from a population long traumatized by the violent conflict.

As I hopped on the bus and observed the lively bus station, Rwanda looked like an ordinary country. But mutilated beggars meandering through the stopped vehicles stood as a reminder of the past. ‘The country smelled of the stench of death. Rwanda was dead,’ these are some of the words that one can read at the Kigali Genocide Memorial next to bloodcurdling photographs displaying

“In all my travels, I've never seen a country's population more determined to forgive, and to build and succeed than in Rwanda.”

– Rick Warren

“In fact, all Rwandans are superheroes for surviving the most savage mass killing in modern history.”

lifeless bodies in schools, churches, yards, and roadways. For me, they were horrifying photographs; for many Rwandans, they are frightful flashbacks. At least one adult survivor of the genocide out of four lives with posttraumatic stress disorder. As soon as I stepped out of the memorial, my heart became softer, and I began to acknowledge random passersby with a smile.

After the end of the genocide in July 1994, ethnic identity cards – which were initially implemented by Belgian colonizers to give more power to the Tutsi – were abolished, and talking about ethnicity was banned. Survivors of the genocide returned to their life, sometimes finding themselves living alongside the murderer of their loved ones. And yet, today Rwanda is one of the safest countries and most promising economies in Africa.

In spite of being surrounded by politically unstable and overlycorrupted countries –namely the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Burundi, Tanzania, and Uganda, the land of a thousand hills shines like no other.

In the 2000s, the 13-millionpeople nation began an ambitious quest to become the Singapore of Africa.

In today’s Rwanda, order, cleanliness, and safety are the order of the day. Kigali prides itself on being Africa's cleanest city with hardly any litter in sight. Among other policies, the country issued a law banning the use of all plastic bags in 2008. Unlike other developing countries that have introduced a punitive levy on the use of plastic bags, Rwanda has zero tolerance for waste dumping.

One of the other main measures that explain Rwanda's tidiness is Umuganda. On the last Saturday morning of every month, all healthy Rwandans are compelled to gather and participate in community improvement projects that include building health centers and schools and cleaning roads. Failure to participate in Umuganda can result in a fine.

On a continent where corruption is ubiquitous, Rwanda appears like an

exception. Even if the nature of the Rwandan political system is debatable, the zero-tolerance motto of the government has been instrumental in moving the country forward.

Rwanda also enjoys a reputation for low corruption. Several multinational companies and foreign investors have been betting on the tiny country as an emerging business hub for East Africa. In 2018, Volkswagen announced the installation of a car assembly plant near Kigali. Other multinational companies willing to tap the neighboring markets have since then followed.

It was 6:00 pm and the sun was about to set over Central Africa. The receptionist opened the gate with his usual gentleness and let me enjoy my privilege to venture freely into Kigali streets. Rwanda is one of the few African countries where one, including women, can walk around after dark. For that matter, the country has for many years been a world leader in terms of gender equality and stands out globally for its efforts in advancing women's empowerment, particularly in politics. Rwanda was the first nation in the world with a female majority in parliament and ranks among the top 10 most equal-gender countries according to the World Economic Forum.

Rwanda’s accomplishments are remarkable. But what amazed me, even more, is how Rwandans have been carrying on with life. And whenever I will reminisce about Rwanda, I will recall Rwandans joyfully eating corncobs by the roadside, children laughing uproariously while playing hide and seek in Kigali’s hilly streets, and people singing gospel to celebrate life in all its fullness.

Lucile Guéguen

“All healthy Rwandans are compelled to gather and participate in community improvement projects that include building health centers and schools and cleaning roads.”

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