Food supplements | Food Standards Agency

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What a food supplement is

A food supplement is defined as 'any food the purpose of which is to supplement the normal diet and which is a concentrated source of a vitamin or mineral or other substance with a nutritional or physiological effect, alone or in combination and is sold in dose form'.

A wide range of nutrients and other ingredients might be present in food supplements.These can include

Food supplements are intended to correct nutritional deficiencies, maintain an adequate intake of certain nutrients, or to support specific physiological functions. They are not medicinal products and as such cannot exert a pharmacological, immunological or metabolic action. Therefore, their use is not intended to treat or prevent diseases in humans or to modify physiological functions.

In the UK, food supplements are required to be regulated as foods and are subject to the provisions of general food law.In Northern Ireland, EU food law relating to food supplements will continue to apply, as listed in the Northern Ireland Protocol.

To sell food supplements you must register as a Food Business Operator (FBO) with your local authority.

It is your responsibility to ensure that food supplements you sell are safe for consumption. There are certain things you should do to make sure they are safe.

Your supplier should be registered as a business with their local authority and provide fully referenced invoices and receipts.

Dont buy supplements over the internet unless you are confident the supplier is reputable.

Beware of counterfeit products, particularly if you are buying products on the internet and the product price is cheaper than other suppliers.

It is illegal to sell 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) for human consumption in the UK. It has been sold as a diet pill for weight loss however, it is a highly toxic industrial chemical and is not fit for human consumption.

You should report anyone selling DNP immediately to the local police, the local authority, Crimestoppers or through the National Food Crime Unit. Our page on DNP has further information on the dangers of this chemical.

Keep records so you can identify the business you bought food supplements from and who you sold them to. You must also keep documents like invoices and delivery notes and produce these documents if they are requested by enforcement authorities.

Make sure the food supplements you sell are labelled correctly. If they are not, contact you supplier and arrange for return of the products or do not accept them in the first place.

The product must be labelled as 'food supplement'and not 'dietary supplement'.

The product label must include:

(a) the name of the business whose name the food is marketed under; or

(b) the address of the business that has imported the food

Food supplements sold in NI must include a NI or EU address for the food business. If the food business is not in NI or EU, they must include the address of the importer, based in NI or the EU. Food businesses can continue to use an EU, GB or NI address for the FBO on food supplements sold in GB until 30 September 2022. From 1 October 2022, food supplements sold in GB must include a UK, Channel Islands or the Isle of Man address for the food business. If the food business is not in GB, they must include the address of the importer, based in the UK, Channel Islands or the Isle of Man.

This information must be either on:

If you import supplements into the UK, you are legally responsible for all aspects of those goods, including composition, safety and labelling of the products.

In addition to these requirements, you must comply with specific food labelling and supplements legislation.

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Food supplements | Food Standards Agency

Guidance & Regulation (Food and Dietary Supplements) | FDA

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This section contains FDA guidance and regulatory information with links to Federal Register documents. You can also access information about food safety programs, manufacturing processes, industry systems, and import/export activities.

For more information, see

FSMA is the most sweeping reform of FDA's food safety authority in more than 70 years. This act gives FDA new and enhanced mandates and authorities to protect consumers and promote public health.

Information on the requirement that owners, operators, or agents in charge of domestic or foreign facilities that manufacture, process, pack, or hold food for consumption in the United States must register with FDA.

Descriptions of the methods, equipment, facilities, and controls for producing processed food and dietary supplements. Following CGMPs ensures the quality of processed foods and dietary supplements. It also ensures that processed food or dietary supplements are packaged and labeled as specified in the master manufacturing record.

HACCP is a management system in which food safety is addressed through the analysis and control of biological, chemical, and physical hazards. This includes raw material production, procurement and handling, manufacturing, distribution, and consumption of the finished product.

More than 3,000 state, local, and tribal agencies have primary responsibility to regulate the retail food and foodservice industries in the United States. FDA assists regulatory agencies and the industries they regulate by providing a model Food Code, guidance, training, program evaluation, and technical assistance.

Information on:

Information about milk and seafood safety cooperative programs with FDA and state and local health and regulatory agencies.

FDA developed the Food Protection Plan to address the changes in food sources, production, and consumption. The plan presents a robust strategy to protect the nation's food supply from both unintentional contamination and deliberate attack.

Information about the Federal Register, the Code of Federal Regulations, and how to submit public comments.

06/29/2021

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Guidance & Regulation (Food and Dietary Supplements) | FDA

Food insecurity amid the COVID-19 pandemic | Hub – The Hub at Johns Hopkins

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ByGrace Fernandez

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted food supplies, health systems, and global nutrition programs, 800 million around the world were undernourished (supplied with less than the minimum amount of the nutrients or foods essential for sound health and growth). Children were especially vulnerable: 144 million children under five were stunted (low height-for-age). 47 million children were affected by wasting, a life-threatening form of malnutrition.

As nutrition policy expert Rebecca Heidkamp and co-authors wrote in a Nature study, "the world was already not on track to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 2to eliminate hunger and all forms of malnutrition by 2030."

The goal of their study was to model the potential short- and long-term impacts the pandemic would have on nutrition and recommend policies to mitigate damage.

With modeling tools, they were able to determine potential impacts under optimistic, moderate, and pessimistic scenarios from 2020 to 2022. One big challenge was that the pandemic itself interfered with capturing critical datain this case, an exact count of wasted and stunted children.

"We've been struggling to know what the actual impacts have been," says Heidkamp, an associate scientist in International Health who specializes in developing nutrition policy in low- and middle-income countries. At the start of the pandemic, UN agencies, including WHO and UNICEF, were dependent on phone surveys to collect data. This meant researchers "couldn't go out and actually measure women and children," she says, and "that's what we care about in nutrition."

The study points to evidence from phone surveys in Asia and Africa revealing disruptions in food supply chains and a spike in food prices resulted in dramatic increases in poverty and food insecurity in 2020, forcing families to shift to poorer diets.

Since the start of the pandemic, countries like India and Brazil have adapted and scaled up government assistance programs and social safety net programs, such as social protection and cash and food transfers, but public health experts predict these efforts will be insufficient to return to living standards seen prior to the pandemic.

Standing Together for Nutrition: A Trusted, Unified Voice

Early in the pandemic, lockdowns especially posed a threat to global nutrition efforts, including the disbursement of iron supplements through prenatal care for pregnant people at high risk of anemia; food assistance for families, such as staples like flour, cereal, beans, and lentils; and routine interventions to prevent and treat acute malnutrition. In addition, school closures halted school feeding programs.

The crisis led to the creation of a research and advocacy consortium involving several Bloomberg School faculty including Heidkamp, called Standing Together for Nutrition, or ST4N.

The group includes nutrition, economics, and food and health systems experts. Their goal: to identify the potential impacts of COVID-19and now the war in Ukraineon food security and nutrition in low- and middle-income countries, and ultimately recommend nutrition interventions to mitigate excess stunting and child mortality.

"Now rising costs of products used to treat malnutrition are threatening to interrupt those programs as they cannot reach as many, even as the need goes up," says Heidkamp.

The study reports that in 2019, the UN World Food Programme estimated that 150 million people in 81 different countries needed food assistance. In February of 2022, it rose to 276 million people. The agency predicts that number to increase to 323 million this year alone.

Heidkamp anticipates that 2022 will be a big advocacy year for nutrition. "There are many challenges as we look ahead, but we need to keep shining the light on these issues and figure out who the right global players will be," she says.

In the Nature piece, Heidkamp and co-authors urge "governments, donors, and the UN to help prevent a major exacerbation of malnutrition." They recommend succinct steps these players must take to build more sustainable food systems that can help support affordable and nutritious diets for all:

Heidkamp says donors and affluent groups like the World Bank have the power to strongly influence other countries toward ending trade restrictions, implementing social protection programs, and activating humanitarian assistance in order to end food insecurity and malnutrition.

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Food insecurity amid the COVID-19 pandemic | Hub - The Hub at Johns Hopkins

The #1 Worst Eating Habit Speeding Up Bone Loss, Says Dietitian Eat This Not That – Eat This, Not That

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Life may start shaping up in your late twenties and early thirties, but unfortunately, this is when bone growth comes to a halt. Even though your bone mass may have reached its peak by age 30, there's still plenty you can do to prevent bone lossor speed it up if you're not careful.

Most people aren't aware of low bone mass until they end up with a broken bone. While many drinking and eating habits can speed up bone loss, there's one sneaky habit that can be causing damage without you even knowing: skimping on your calcium and vitamin D.

Some ways you can be doing this is by replacing all dairy products, which are good sources of both calcium and vitamin D, with plant-based alternatives that are not fortified with these two nutrients. You may also be making red meat the center of your plate regularly rather than incorporating vitamin D-rich fish, which experts recommend you to eat 2-3 servings per week.

However, if you're too focused on what you shouldn't be eating for optimal bone health, you'll miss out on the foods you should be eating more of. Calcium and vitamin D are two nutrients that work together for strong, healthy bones.

Almost all of the calcium in your body is found in your bones. Sixty-six percent of bone is made up of a mineral known as calcium hydroxyapatite. Your bones will pay the price if you're not eating enough calcium.

So, how much do you need? The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for calcium for adults is 1,000 milligrams each day. This amount increases to 1,200 milligrams daily for women after age 51. Up to 40% of the US population doesn't meet the recommended requirements for calcium with diet alone.

RELATED:Eating Habits to Avoid That Speed Up Bone Loss, Says Dietitian6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

Include foods high in calcium like milk, tofu, sardines, yogurt, or foods fortified with calcium in your diet each day. If you can't meet your needs with food alone, ask your doctor about taking a supplement to support your bone health.

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But, it's not just calcium you need to be worried about. Without vitamin D, your body can't use the calcium you're eating to strengthen your bones. Vitamin D is unique since your body can make it through sun exposure, but because of time indoors, living north of the equator, and the decreased ability to produce vitamin D as we age, food and supplements can help you get enough.

RELATED:Surprising Side Effects of Not Taking Vitamin D Supplements, Says Dietitian

Naturally, vitamin D is only found in fatty fish and wild-grown or UV-treated mushrooms. Fortified foods and supplements can help you reach the recommended 15 micrograms of vitamin D daily.

Skipping foods high in calcium and vitamin D can speed up bone loss, increasing your risk for osteoporosis and fractures as you age. If you need ideas on incorporating these foods into your daily diet, try some of these top foods for healthy bones.

Kelsey Lorencz, RDN

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The #1 Worst Eating Habit Speeding Up Bone Loss, Says Dietitian Eat This Not That - Eat This, Not That

Yemen: As global food insecurity crisis escalates, hope shrinks for millions already suffering from extreme hunger – International Federation of Red…

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Beirut / Sanaa / Aden, 8 July 2022 As we face an unprecedented global hunger crisis, concerns for the 16.2 million people who have long been food insecure in Yemen are at an all-time high. While the crisis in Yemen is one of the most dire, brought on by protracted conflict, droughts, and floods intensified by the climate crisis, COVID-19, and other diseases, it has failed to attract adequate support from donors for years. Now it risks slipping further into oblivion.

IFRC Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Dr. Hossam Elsharkawi, made a field visit to Sanaa, Aden, Amran, and Lahj this week, where he witnessed first-hand the immense unmet needs for nutritional supplements and medicine, and the many cases of children suffering from severe acute malnutrition.

Im extremely heartbroken at the devastating level of hunger and severe malnutrition of babies, children, and women in Yemen, he said. As I looked in the eyes of those suffering mothers and children, I was at a loss for words This is plain wrong and unnecessary suffering for innocent civilians.

There are already massive gaps in funding the humanitarian response for the 20.7 million people in need of assistance in Yemen, including clean water and healthcare as well as food and nutrition. Now, as the conflict in Ukraine pushes up the prices of food, fertilizer and fuel, the situation is likely to worsen. Meanwhile, the rapidly increasing needs of people around the world will also spread humanitarian resources even thinner.

IFRC Regional Director for MENA, Hossam Elsharkawi, visits a newly opened solar water pumping station in Amran, Sanaa in July 2022 operated by Yemen Red Crescent with the support of the IFRC

Photo: Yemen Red Crescent /Jamal Altwaity

Currently, the IFRC delegation in Yemen provides financial, material, and technical support to the Yemen Red Crescent (YRCS) in Disaster Preparedness and Management, Water Sanitation and Hygiene, Health, and National Society Development.

Dr. Elsharkawi met with YRCS leadership and volunteers as well as Yemeni officials around Sanaa, Aden, and Lahj to discuss the humanitarian response gaps as well as the programmes supported by the IFRC.

He saluted the extraordinary efforts of the thousands of dedicated staff and volunteers of the Yemen Red Crescent:

These men and women are working tirelessly on the front lines to support the people in need and to preserve their dignity despite the complex situation. But our moral responsibility demands more urgent action to save lives now. The international community and donors must immediately scale up support to address the widespread hunger and malnutrition.

Key figures on Yemen for editors: (Based on the 2022 HNO analysis)

To schedule an interview or for further information:

In Beirut, IFRC-MENA: Mey Al Sayegh, +961 03229352, [emailprotected]

In Yemen -YRCS: Nesreen Ahmed, +967 775322644, [emailprotected]

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Yemen: As global food insecurity crisis escalates, hope shrinks for millions already suffering from extreme hunger - International Federation of Red...

Low iron is a health risk made worse by COVID. How to get more without reaching for supplements – The Conversation Indonesia

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Beauty is an iron mine, once remarked the Australian mining magnate, Gina Reinhart. She was talking about a precious resource, but iron is also profoundly important to living organisms: from bacteria and fungi, to mammals like us.

Iron acts as a key to numerous metabolic functions within our bodies. But iron deficiency remains as one of the top global health risks recognised by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Iron deficiency has become the most prevalent micronutrient disorder worldwide, and COVID may be worsening the problem.

The type of iron we mine is different from the free-form iron that can be used biologically. Free-form iron has a propensity to jump between two chemical states, allowing it to bind to various molecules, and participate in all sorts of essential reactions within our bodies.

But we see a different story again during food digestion. Inside our upper small intestine where iron is most effectively absorbed, free-form iron tends to bind to oxygen, other minerals and food components. This often results in rock-like, insoluble clumps (which are like the ones we mine!). These are too big to pass through or between our cells.

This means that even when we consume enough iron, typically only ~1535% of it is absorbed. It also means iron availability can be improved, or inhibited depending on how we eat it or what we eat it with.

For example, heme iron from animal flesh has a cage-like structure, which carries the iron in a soluble form that prevents it from clumping during absorption. In many Western countries, heme iron only accounts for 10% of the iron eaten, but two thirds of the total iron absorbed.

Getting sufficient iron sounds like simple maths: we want to add enough to our dietary intake to make up for the iron being lost from the body, such as through faeces, skin shedding, menstruation (for women) and sweat. But the two sides of the equation can change depending on who and where we are throughout our lifetime.

Generally, iron deficiency occurs when our bodys stores of iron are depleted from not having consumed or absorbed enough iron to meet our needs.

This can happen when people restrict their diets, such as for religious, social or medical reasons. Some people also have a tough time keeping up when their iron needs increase, such as pregnant women and growing children.

But iron deficiency can also happen when the body has enough iron, but cant effectively transport it into cells. This is common in those with both acute and chronic infections, heart and autoimmune conditions, and cancers. In these cases, the underlying disease needs to be treated first, rather than improving iron intake.

The table below summarises some common causes of iron deficiency. Sometimes multiple causes may occur simultaneously for example, for many elite athletes (35% of women and 11% of men), iron deficiency results from reduced absorption due to inflammation, on top of increased loss through sweat and breakdown of blood cells.

The ongoing COVID epidemic has also introduced multiple risk factors for iron deficiency.

We know severe infection with SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID) may change the way some people metabolise iron, leading to lower iron levels up to two months after infection. This contributes to symptoms commonly reported after infection, such as fatigue and lethargy.

Recovery from the pandemic itself has also exacerbated food supply issues, as well as the rising global income inequality.

This means more people face barriers to food security and the nutrient-dense foods that help boost our iron intake like red meat or leafy greens may be unavailable or unaffordable for them.

Read more: Why we should take a women-centred approach to diagnosing and treating iron deficiency

It may be tempting to pick up one of the many widely available iron supplements to attempt to boost your intake. However, we have to keep in mind that conventional iron supplementation is associated with some negative side effects.

These include damage to our gut lining, nausea, diarrhoea and constipation. Iron supplementation has also been linked to changes in the gut microbiome, a critical determinant of health.

The WHO has recommended two other approaches: diet diversification and food fortification.

Diet diversification is exactly as it sounds: having a diet with a variety of wholefoods such as fruits and vegetables, grains and legumes, meat, dairy, and nuts and seeds.

This approach not only ensures sufficient levels of iron are found in the foods we eat, but also that they come with different forms or vehicles to improve absorption. This approach works even with plant-based foods.

Read more: What to drink with dinner to get the most iron from your food (and what to avoid)

Food fortification, where iron is added to processed foods, is also a fairly safe yet accessible option due to its lower dose. In Australia, iron is commonly fortified in products such as bread, cereals and ready-to-drink mixes.

It can be challenging to get the iron into our body and where its needed. But before turning to supplements, we must remind ourselves that food sources should always be first-in-line. In cases of diagnosed deficiencies, your healthcare professional will provide you with further information where supplements are necessary.

Read more: Lemon water won't detox or energise you. But it may affect your body in other ways

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Low iron is a health risk made worse by COVID. How to get more without reaching for supplements - The Conversation Indonesia

The Best Foods and Vitamins for Healthy Hair, Skin, and Nails – UrbanMatter

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Its probably safe to say that the majority of us desire strong nails, glowing skin, and shiny hair as these things have become a standard of beauty in our society. But did you know that how these features look on the outside is often a reflection of whats going on inside your body, and your hair, skin, and nails can say a lot about your health?

While a lack of proper vitamins can show up in your outward appearance resulting in dry, brittle hair, dull or dry skin, and changes in texture or appearance of your nails, eating a well-balanced diet can dramatically improve the health of your hair, skin, and nails. By incorporating the right nutrients into your diet, you can have the healthy hair, skin, and nails youve been lusting after.

Here are all the best foods and vitamins you should be eating for beauty from the inside out.

Biotin

The crme de la crme of hair, skin, and nail vitamins, if you had to choose just one vitamin to take for optimal hair, skin, and nail health, biotin is it. This B-complex vitamin can strengthen brittle nails, promote hair growth, and maintain healthy, glowing skin. While there are numerous biotin supplements out there, you can also get a healthy dose of biotin from your diet. Binge on biotin by eating liver, sweet potato, egg yolks, and salmon, as well as nuts and seeds.

Vitamin A

A form of retinol and beta-carotene, vitamin A is famed as a skincare ingredient, present in many skin care products, and its equally beneficial for your hair and nails too. While its often applied topically, you can get your daily dose of vitamin A in a variety of food. When it comes to Vitamin A, think of orange fruits and veggies like carrots, sweet potato, squash, and cantaloupe. Youll also find it in tuna, liver, and broccoli,

Folate & Other B Vitamins

Folate and other B vitamins like B-12 are essential for maximum hair, skin, and nail health. These vitamins boost the development cells responsible for bringing oxygen to your hair, skin, and nails, promoting optimal health, regeneration, and growth. To get more folate in your diet, eat things like dark, leafy greens, lentils, avocado, beans, and citrus, as well as nuts and seeds. To boost B-12, eat more animal products like meat, poultry, fish, dairy, and eggs.

Protein

Because hair skin and nails are made up predominantly of keratin and protein increases keratin production in your body, ensuring you get enough protein in your diet is paramount for healthy hair, skin, and nails. For maximum protein, eat more animal products like meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy, or add a scoop of protein powder to a morning smoothie. For those who are plant-based, eat more lentils, soy, legumes, nuts, and seeds.

Omega 3s

Omega 3s are natures moisturizer and are well-known to lubricate and nourish your hair, skin, and nails. For shiny hair, smooth nails, and youthful, bouncy skin, eat more fatty fish like mackerel, salmon, and sardines or other things like eggs, spinach, walnuts, flaxseeds, and chia seeds.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E, also known as alpha-tocopherol, is an antioxidant essential to cellular function and cell turnover, which can greatly impact the overall health of your hair, skin, and nails. This antioxidant combats free radicals known to damage the cells of your hair skin and nails while also restoring previously damaged cells. Vitamin E also replenishes lost moisture and increases circulation which is key for strong nails, longer thicker hair, and smooth, glowing skin. Increase your Vitamin E intake by eating things like sunflower seeds, almonds, wheat germ oil, spinach, and avocados.

More Tips For Healthy Hair, Skin, and Nails

While eating a healthy, well-balanced diet full of vitamins and nutrients is essential, Its equally important to take care of your hair, skin, and nails from the outside as well. Routine hair treatments, manicures, and a daily skincare regime are all things you can integrate into your lifestyle to always look your best. Choosing high-quality products that contain healthy ingredients to promote the health of your hair, skin, and nails can make a huge difference in your appearance. Product lines like SNS formulate their products with nutrient-rich ingredients like Vitamin A, E, B5, D3, and Calcium that nourish the nail beds, promoting healthy growth and strong, resilient nails. Using healthy products like these along with eating a nutrient-rich diet will ensure your hair, skin, and nails always look healthy and beautiful.

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The Best Foods and Vitamins for Healthy Hair, Skin, and Nails - UrbanMatter

Officials warn of increase in E. coli infections – Food Safety News

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A rise in Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) infections has prompted a warning by health officials in the Czech Republic.

The National Institute of Public Health (SZU) reported that in the first six months of this year 25 cases have been recorded and 15 of them occurred in the past two months.

Eight were reported in May and seven in June. That is more than half of all cases so far in 2022. The majority of those sick are children under the age of five. In 2021, 46 cases were recorded.

Sick people come from across the country but mostly Prague, the South Moravian and South Bohemian regions. Twelve infections were caused by E. coli O26 and six by E. coli O157.

People can become infected by contact with animals, eating insufficiently cooked meat, drinking unpasteurized milk, or by contact with an infected person.

Summer increaseSZU said the disease is often associated with seasonal activities, such as barbecues, or visits to animal farms or zoos.The agency urged people to pay attention to hygiene and correct food preparation.

Since 2018, 165 STEC infections have been reported in the Czech Republic, and 47 people were hospitalized. Of these, 37 were children under 5 years old and one died.

Symptoms of E. coli infections vary for each person but often include severe stomach cramps and diarrhea, which is often bloody. Some patients may also have a fever. The time it takes to start having symptoms after being infected is usually three to four days and most patients recover within five to seven days.

About 5 to 10 percent of those diagnosed with E. coli infections develop a potentially life-threatening kidney failure complication, known as a hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). Symptoms of HUS include fever, abdominal pain, feeling very tired, decreased frequency of urination, small unexplained bruises or bleeding, and pallor.

This condition can occur among people of any age but is most common in children younger than five years old because of their immature immune systems, older adults because of deteriorating immune systems, and people with compromised immune systems such as cancer patients.

SZPI annual reportMeanwhile, the Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (SZPI) has disclosed almost a quarter of foodstuffs checked were non-compliant in 2021.

The annual report covers food supplements, checks of online food sales, honey, olive oil and saffron authenticity and ethylene oxide in spices and sesame seeds.

The agency found 3,202 non-compliant lots of food and other products. Almost 27 percent of foodstuffs from non-EU countries failed to comply with national or European legislation. Nearly 20 percent of lots from EU countries had violations as well as 16.2 percent of domestic products. The highest percentage ofnon-compliant batches was chocolate and confectionery; dehydrated products, liquid flavorings, dressings, salt and mustard.

The main category found tobe microbiologically unsafe were meat products, followed by milk products and bakery. The top safety violation was the growth ofvisible mold and spoiling due tomicrobial activity.

Salmonella was discovered infive batches offresh chicken and two batches ofmeat-based ready-to-cook food. Vibrio parahaemolyticus was found intwo batches ofshrimp. Listeria monocytogenes was detected inthree batches ofdelicatessen products from aproduction plant.

Shiga toxin-producing E. coli or enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) was found inthree batches ofsteak tartare on the market and also inone cold dish of steak tartare from arestaurant. EPEC was also detected insprouted radish seeds from the market. Campylobacter was detected intwo batches ofready-made hot kebab and doner meals.

In 2021, 2,407 administrative proceedings against food businesses were concluded, in which fines totaling $3.8 million were handed out. SZPI imposed 11,285 bans on the marketing of foodstuffs this past year, and the value of the banned items amounted to $2.5 million.

(To sign up for a free subscription to Food Safety News,click here.)

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Officials warn of increase in E. coli infections - Food Safety News

6 Tips for Getting Back Into the Gym When You’re Feeling Unmotivated, Says Trainer Eat This Not That – Eat This, Not That

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Whether you took a short exercise hiatus or haven't stepped foot in the gym in ages, the thought of getting back into the gym scene can be a daunting one. You may think to yourself, "How do I prepare? What exercises should I do? And how long should I do them?" You may even start to doubt yourself and ponder the question, "Do I even want to work out at all?" While it's understandable to have some anxious thoughts swirling around in your head, we're here to alleviate your worries.

To gain some insight on how to get back into the gym when you're feeling unmotivated, we consulted Matt Morris, NASM-CPT, Master Trainer and Programming Manager at Burn Boot Camp. Read on to discover the trainer's tips, and for more, check out Tips for Effectively Working With a Personal Trainer, Expert Says.

"When someone is lacking the motivation to start a new workout regimen or habit, I always say find an accountability partner," Morris tells us. "You will create your habit if you go to the gym starting with someone and holding each other accountable. Then, once it's a habit, you can go by yourself as needed."

When seeking out an accountability partner, Morris recommends finding someone who has a positive outlook and energy. This person should motivate you to "work a little bit harder" and can be a friend, coworker, family member, etc.

Additionally, Morris suggests holding yourself accountable by scheduling your workouts on your calendar to block out time for exercise.

Taking deep breaths and listening to music are not only celebrated for their ability to put your mind at ease, but they can also help boost your motivation. To encourage a strong mindset, one of Morris' go-to tips is taking deep breaths for 30 to 60 seconds either before or during a workout. And while many enjoy listening to music while they exercise, Morris also advises people to do it before they work out. "Listen to what will set you up for success. Music goes a long way to help your mental aspect," he says.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

To keep your workouts consistent without becoming monotonous, Morris emphasizes the importance of designating certain days of the week for strength training and others for conditioning.

One way you can ensure your exercise regimen stays fresh is by doing what Morris refers to as "Stack" and "Unstack" workouts. Here's how they work:

"Your six exercises can vary from things like squats, push-ups, reverse crunches, bicep curls, burpees, pull-ups, lunges, and more," Morris says.

Related: The Most Popular Exercises People Are Doing To Stay Fit, Survey Says

Another element of exercise that Morris highlights is the importance of your mental and physical health working together. One way to do this is by getting your heart rate to over 100 beats per minute.

"When elevating your heart rate, there's a physical response. Endorphins release in your brainwhat many call a 'runner's high,'" he explains. "It's the same with high-intensity workoutsyou elevate your heart rate, and you're a different person after the 45-minute workout." To increase your heart rate, Morris suggests doing exercises such as running, jogging, rowing, or biking.

"Pre-workouts" are supplements designed to improve energy levels and better your overall performance. Although they're typically taken as a powder mixed into water, they can also come in the form of capsules and energy chews. Ingredients vary depending on the product, but many of them contain caffeine, creatine, amino acids, and beta-alanine.

One product Morris favors is Burn Boot Camp's Ignite Pre-Workout, which he says is chock-full of BCAAs (branched-chain amino acids). According to Medical News Today, these amino acids, which can be obtained through food or supplements, can help enhance exercise performance and muscle growth, in addition to reducing body fat. If you have any health conditions, it's always the right move to consult with your doctor before taking a pre-workout supplement.

It's no secret that the social media content we consume can affect how we feel about ourselves. Therefore, Morris stresses the importance of filtering out sources of negativity. "In terms of social media, my number one tip is to unfollow anyone that makes you feel [down]," he says. "Only follow people who motivate you and are positive in their message."

Brianna Ruback

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6 Tips for Getting Back Into the Gym When You're Feeling Unmotivated, Says Trainer Eat This Not That - Eat This, Not That

Back of the Yards Algae Sciences to scale biobased microalgae and mycelia ingredients – Food Ingredients First

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05 Jul 2022 --- Alt-protein start-up Back of the Yards Algae Sciences Inc. (BYAS) has received a new investment from Japanese fine chemicals company DIC Corporation. BYAS owns proprietary zero-waste technology for extracting biobased food ingredients from microalgae and mycelia.

Financial terms of the new investment have not been disclosed.

BYAS currently produces products such as food colorants, food additives and biostimulants for improving vertical farming yields. The companys spirulina (cyanobacteria) microalgae-based Heme Analog (BYAS-AHA) is receiving intense interest for its ability to enhance the alternative meat taste and aroma, without using genetically modified organisms.

Through this alliance, DIC and BYAS will share algae mass-culture technology and functional component extraction technology that DIC has long-cultivated in the spirulina business to develop new products, further improve production efficiency, reduce waste and improve sustainability through the more-effective use of natural resources, DIC states.

Burger patties made with spirulina-based heme (Credit: BYAS).Opportunities in plant-based arenaThe best known plant-based heme analog on the market is leghemoglobin, produced by Impossible Foods through an insertion of DNA from soy plants into genetically engineered yeast. This yeast is fermented in a similar way beer is made to produce heme.

As Impossible Foods heme is not on the market as a standalone ingredient, BYAS has targets to become a large-scale supplier to other producers seeking to branch out selections along the dynamic plant-based aisle.

The BYAS heme analog is produced from organic spirulina and is non-GMO. The heme analog was discovered during the companys food colorant research, where one of its extracts was observed to have a strong meaty odor.

Besides conferring a natural umami and meaty taste, the BYAS algal heme analog browns when heated and can be used to give plant-based meat a gradation of color when grilled similar to animal-based meat.

Of particular interest from a sustainability perspective is the fact that the BYAS heme analog can be combined with other BYAS extracts such as the companys F602 spirulina, chlorella, wheatgrass and mushroom extract to improve the organoleptic properties of plant-based meat.

Furthering the spirulina ingredient pipelineThe microalgae market is expected to be worth US$1.8 billion by 2028 and record a compound growth rate (CAGR) of 10.3% for the same timeframe, according to forecasts.

Driving this growth is the microalgae trend in food supplements, natural food colors,vegetarian products and nutraceuticals.

Since becoming the first company in the world to successfully commercialize spirulina production in the 1970s, the DIC Group has been scaling its research in finding safe ways to use spirulina powders.

The manufacturer produces spirulina-derived edible pigment and natural blue food colorant Lina Blue.

In collaboration with US-based Sun Chemical Corporation a DIC Group member company operating in the US and Europe DIC plans to expand product sales globally while developing new applications.

This progress builds on developments across the sector over the past year. In one instance, researchers have developed high-protein microalgae strains with improved taste, upscaled as part of the EU-funded project ProFuture. In other moves, Israeli marine ingredient start-up Yemoja unveiled its red microalgae Ounje to infuse bloody juiciness to plant-based burgers and steaks for an authentic medium-rare experience.

By Benjamin Ferrer

To contact our editorial team please email us at editorial@cnsmedia.com

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Back of the Yards Algae Sciences to scale biobased microalgae and mycelia ingredients - Food Ingredients First

Required Documents – School and Student Services by Community Brands

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Understandably, many families have questions on how to best submit the documentation that many schools require as part of the financial aid process. Our goal is to make the process of submitting documents as easy as possible so weve put together some tips to help you in the process.

As a first step, we suggest you view the documents required by the schools you are applying to. They can be found in the Family Portal, under the My Documents tab. Please keep the following in mind as you go through the process:

If you know the school(s) you are applying to requires documents but they are not listed on the My Documents page, please contact us at sss@communitybrands.com. This indicates SSS needs to alert the school(s) where youre applying so they can enter their document requirements into the system.

Your documents will be marked as received much quicker if you upload them through the Family Portal.

If you upload documents online, they will be available on the My Documents page within 5 minutes of your upload. You may need to refresh the My Documents page or log back into the application in order to see the upload. Its important to note, however, a distinction between uploading your documents and fulfilling your requirements. SSS is required to review the docs, verify their authenticity, and label them for our use. This process typically takes up to 3 business days.

Please be careful not to upload your documents more than once. Good news! If you are submitting a 1040 bundle (like Turbo Tax and other tax preparation services provide) and it includes images of your W-2(s) along with your supporting tax schedules, you do not have to upload your W-2 document(s) separately. Our system will find the W-2s with all your other tax documents and process them accordingly. If you are concerned that your upload was not successful, refresh the My Documents page or log back into the application to verify whether or not your document label appears in the correct Required Documents section.

While there is a time lag between when you upload your documents and when the system recognizes them as received, the good news is that will not adversely affect your applications timeliness. All documents will be stamped with the date they were received for processing whether mailed or uploaded. As an example if you upload your documents the day before your application deadline, they will be time stamped on that day. The system will not show them as received for up to another 72 hours, but that does not mean that they will be considered late. Its the date you upload them, not the date the system recognizes them, that will determine if your application was completed on time.

Our document upload wizard uses pop-up functionality. Families should always turn their Pop-Up Blocker off when working in our system.

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Required Documents - School and Student Services by Community Brands

Delving Into the Theological Power of Money – Dartmouth News

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Money is on the mind these days. Inflationary gas prices, a rocky stock market, and fears of recession may have shaken some consumers faith in the economy.

That faith is of particular interest to Associate Professor of ReligionDevin Singh, who studies the connections between economics and Christianity. Singh acknowledges that spiritual and money matters dont traditionally go together. While most people understand that churches give money to charitable causes, what does religious doctrine have to do with debt and student loans?

Singhs research explores how the language of economics and Christianity have historically intertwined.

Part of my effort is to raise awareness of this genealogy, to shed light on where these things come from, Singh says. Both to give us a better understanding of them, but also then to say, if we want to change things to address inequality or exploitation, for example we need to know a bit about where they came from.

Still, that connection isnt always obvious. When Singh teaches his God and Money class, it can take time for his students to see the light.

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If youre a crypto-evangelist, youre a firm believer, you have faith in crypto and you want to persuade others to believe.

Attribution

Devin Singh, associate professor of religion

The act of salvation, of being redeemed, is an economic term, Singh explains, and God is described by some early Christian thinkers as managing the cosmos the way a money manager oversees finances. We have faith in our currencies. Though these are metaphors, Singh argues that they have implications about peoples attitudes toward money, work, and theology.

And at the end of the course students are like, Wow, professor, youve ruined me in the best way, Singh says. I cant not see these connections everywhere now, like religion and economics, religion and money. Singh adds some students have emailed him years later with a faith-and-economics connection they saw in the news, and a follow-up like that means the world to him.

His 2018 book,Divine Currency: The Theological Power of Money in the West, was well-received and explored how economic thinking influenced early Christian doctrine. More recently, Singh has been looking at cryptocurrencies, especially the quasi-religious language surrounding them.

People call themselves crypto-evangelists, right? Singh says. Theyre drawing on the language of evangelism, which is a religious term for spreading of faith. If youre a crypto-evangelist, youre a firm believer, you have faith in crypto and you want to persuade others to believe.

Singh thinks crypto and other digital currencies are here to stay, despite the recent market crashes that have sent shares tumbling. Looking to the past to consider the future, Singh notes that people have operated in cashless societies before, using an accounting system to keep track of exchanges. Its not unlike cryptos cloud-based ledger for currency holders.

And this comes down to, again, fundamentally, money is about a kind of belief, a kind of faith, Singh says. This is why credit and credo and faith are all etymologically related.

Hes also interested in artificial intelligence and the ways Silicon Valley denizens invoke religious ideas, such as uploading ourselves to the cloud as if we were preserving our souls, in their push for digitization.

These technological changes are like a tsunami, Singh says. Theyre pretty much inevitable. And so the issue is not whether we should make them, but how can we make them more humane and more equitable.

Associate Professor of Religion Devin Singh outside Thornton Hall on June 29, 2022. (Photo by Julia Levine 23)

Although Singh was born in northern California, his mothers work with the foreign service took them to Cameroon and Morocco, where Singh spent his elementary-school years. He grew up among Christian, Muslim, and indigenous African religions, and his father comes from a Sikh family. Back in the U.S., his mother had a born-again conversion experience.

Its all a bunch of stuff in the mix that I think shaped my interests, Singh says.

Still, Singh started out as a biology major at Pomona College, with an eye on medical school until organic chemistry weeded him out. He came to religion classes having always been interested in the big questions, and Singh had good experiences with a professor in the department.

I picked the major based on what was sort of happening in my life at the time, which was wrestling with these deep existential issues, Singh says, adding: I didnt have a grand plan to become a religion professor.

Singh earned a divinity degree, but his wide-ranging interests drew him toward academia. In graduate school, he layered sociology and anthropology courses onto his study of religion. Singh joined the Dartmouth faculty in 2015 after earning a PhD in religious studies from Yale and doing some postdoctoral work there.

I think that I, in some ways, gravitated towards this profession because I tend toward the contemplative, introverted side, Singh says. I love to sit and think about ideas and read. And writing is my best form of communication, where I feel like my voice is most clear.

Currently, Singh is finishing a book on debt, including the problems with excessive indebtedness and how debt has moral and religious aspects to it. Hes also planning a book on anger, examining it as a virtue and a positive energy for change.

While Singh enjoys the solitary research life, he also loves teaching, though as a self-professed people-oriented introvert, it can take him a while to decompress after a class.

I love the interaction, Singh says. I can be very animated and talk plenty and have these very dynamic conversations. But its a draining experience.

Department of Religion ChairReiko Ohnumacalls Singh impressive, citing his wide-ranging scholarship, his national reputation as a public intellectual who makes his research accessible and meaningful for a wider audience, and his innovative course offerings.

He is consistently one of the most popular professors in the department, Ohnuma says.

Caris White 23 calls Singh a phenomenal teacher and one of the most engaging lecturers on campus. She has recommended to her friends that they scroll through the course catalog to find Singhs name, and just take whatever he is teaching.

I think hes doing really cutting-edge stuff with religion and culture, White says.

Singh, who is Whites thesis adviser, has inspired her to consider a career in academia and religious studies. Hes been both really approachable and really knowledgeable, White says.

Despite the occasional energy drain after class, Singh enjoys teaching at a liberal arts institution like Dartmouth, where he gets to work with students from a range of majors, backgrounds, and interests.

If I were teaching at a graduate school in a religion department, I would just be influencing a handful of future scholars, which is also great and super-important for the profession, he says. But its great to be influencing people who are going to be leaders of corporations, leaders in medicine and government policy.

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Delving Into the Theological Power of Money - Dartmouth News

Mind-bending optical illusion tricks you into only seeing three people can you spot fourth?… – The Scottish Sun

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PEOPLE have been left stumped by an optical illusion showing 'three friends' in the wood - because a FOURTH is in the picture.

The mind-boggling snap left social media users stumped after emerging on Twitter.

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At first it looks like one man in a kilt and hat is clinking miniature whisky bottles with two friends, whose arms are outstretched.

But there are four drinks - suggesting there is a fourth person in the picture. So can you see them?

Uploading the Reddit snap to Twitter, a social media user said: "My brain refuses to believe there are 4 people in this photo."

And internet users were left stumped trying to find the fourth person, with some wrongly believing the bag behind Mr Kilt is a person.

One pleaded: "I'm confused... why are there only "3" arms, yet "4" bottles?"

Another wrote: "Me looking at this photo asking myself if im blind or if theres something more going on here."

Meanwhile, a third simply gave up and said: "Nope, canny see it."

It's only on a much closer inspection that you can spot the camouflaged sleeve attached to a blue gloved hand at the left-hand side of the picture.

After a close examination, one Twitter user said: "I zoomed in, stared at those blue fingers for a good 30 seconds trying to figure it out.

"Multiple solutions went through my head. Maybe it's a child underneath the cluster of hands.

"Maybe somebody is standing behind the guy in orange. Then I saw it."

Another joked: "This is literally the first time I've seen camouflage work."

It's not the first optical illusion to have the internet completely stumped.

If you can spot the real owl hidden in this optical illusion within two seconds then you're a genius.

Elsewhere, a shopper shared something VERY unusual on a supermarket shelf so can YOU spot the cake hidden in plain sight?

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Mind-bending optical illusion tricks you into only seeing three people can you spot fourth?... - The Scottish Sun

Parents wowed by mum’s "brilliant" DIY Lunchables she claims is cheaper than the real thing – Leicestershire Live

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A creative mum has been celebrated online after sharing the "brilliant" DIY Lunchables she makes for her kids to take to school - which she claims is "much cheaper" to put together, compared to purchasing the actual Dairylea snack from stores. Fellow parents have been left impressed by her lunchbox hack, with many keen to try them out on their own kids.

Others have also commented on how much tastier the mum's version looks over the real thing. On popular Facebook group, Extreme Couponing and Bargains UK, Selina uploaded an photo of a plastic container she filled with crackers, cheese and ham she bought separately that she says was more cost-effective than buying a pack of Dairylea Lunchables - which average 1.55 at most UK supermarkets.

Since uploading the image earlier this week, the post has been liked more than 5,000 times. In the caption, the mum described her homemade combination as "DIY Lunchables" and said her handcrafted alternative is "much cheaper".

READ MORE: Teachers say they see three-quarters of pupils come to school hungry, study reveals

Hundreds of people flocked to the comments section to praise the mum, with many thanking her for sharing the "great" idea. Cherrill wrote: "What a great idea! a lot of kiddies just dont eat all their sandwiches."

Debbie stated: "Great idea, I love it." Nina praised: "My son hates the cheese in these so what a fab idea doing yourself like that! Will give it a go!"

Clarissa added: "[I] adore a Lunchable and am in no way paying the price they've been recently. So thank you for this cause my little head didn't think of it!"

Lucy asked: "How have I never thought of this before?" Browneyes typed: "What a great idea," as Karen added: "And I bet they taste nicer too!"

Caysey responded with: "Thank you for sharing this is a great idea and saving money too will do do this at the weekend." Carrie commented: "I always do this, we call ours Homemade Lunchables I use cookie cutters so they stack like originals."

Jessica replied: "I do this all the time for the kids they dont mind at all! Add in a few tomatoes and cucumber sticks too. Much much cheaper and less waste." Sharing some more money-saving tips, Rachel said: "I do this every day, get the crackers in bulk from Costco."

To enhance Selina's idea further, Catherine suggested: "I do this and save the Lunchables box to use so feels even more real. Just add cellophane over the top."

In response to parents saying they will be giving the idea a go, Christine added: "Just a little heads up people. The crackers/cheddars will go soggy if not wrapped separately.. They take on moisture from the ham and cheese," while Courtney echoed: "Put the crackers into a separate bag as they can get soggy touching the cheese and ham xx."

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Parents wowed by mum's "brilliant" DIY Lunchables she claims is cheaper than the real thing - Leicestershire Live

Dr. Strange: Can the Multiverse Really Work as a Plot Device? – Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence

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Before reviewing the movie in detail, I wound up writing this little prelude regarding the problem with the multiverse plot device in general. It spilled onto the page before I could stop it but then other viewers might be asking some of these same questions.

Disney, or as I like to refer to this hell-spawn of a company, the Mouse, is at it again. Where is the Pied Piper when you need him? There are many bad movies in the world, but very rarely does one deserve the term, cinematic abomination. The last time I used that loathsome title, I was watching Luke Skywalker suck green milk from an alien walrus. What is the common factor between The Last Jedi and Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness? You guessed it! The Mouse a pestilence destroying our cultures modern myths one by one.

There are certain types of plots (or tropes, if you prefer) I dislike more than others. These include The Liar Revealed, Time Travel, MacGuffin Chases, and yes, Dear Reader, Multiverse Stories.

As Ive said many times before, certain rules must be followed in good story telling: consistency in plot and character and the balance between tension and pacing, for example. A good story must also establish stakes using story elements like hard and soft magic systems. If one must, one may resort albeit sparingly to gimmicks/tropes such as the Ticking Clock. I discuss these and other story-telling devices in my previous reviews. but you can find YouTube videos that discuss them too, particularly science fiction writer Brandon Sandersons lectures. Getting started, heres the trailer for Dr. Strange:

The problem with the multiverse storyline in general is that it ultimately kills the stakes. Most people are not going to spend a great deal of time pondering whether Jim A and Jim B are different people because, frankly, the reason for their difference is self-evident: Of course, theyre different people. They made different choices. Thats the natural intuition of most thinking individuals but often, the writers of these contrived plots insist that it isnt so. They seem to want to scream, If these bad things had happened to you, then you. would be bad!

Most of the time, the writers take the notion of a multiverse and try to twist it into an argument against free will. In most multiverse plots, fatalism and nihilism are the orders of the day. Ill leave it to you, Dear Reader, to answer the question of whether or not a multiverse renders free will irrelevant. My point is, fatalism and nihilism make for lousy storytelling. If a character cannot ultimately make his own choices, then why should I care about him? If there is a good Thanos and a bad Thanos, and a good Dr. Strange and a bad Dr. Strange, and their respective positions were ultimately determined by external circumstances, then why should I root for either of them?

Furthermore, if you can convince a nave audience that all these characters are interchangeable from one universe to the next, then death means nothing the stakes mean nothing. And this is the norm in these types of stories. But the reason for this isnt just so the writers can satiate their petulant desire to scream Everything is meaningless! into the empty night sky. No. It makes the narrative a permanent cash cow.

Typically, what happens in a multiverse story is that when a character is killed as in Time Travel stories an alternative version of the character is brought back, and the viewer is expected to regard this doppelganger as the original character. This insults every viewers intelligence. No one is going to accept the doppelganger as the original. For one thing, he or she did not die, like the original character. That by itself makes the doppelganger completely different. For another, the relationship of the doppelganger to the rest of the cast must be different by virtue of their memories of the original character. That also demonstrates that the characters are in fact two different individuals and both the other characters and the audience will see them as such.

But you see, Dear Reader, the Mouse thinks youre stupid. He thinks you will treat Hawkeye, a character youve followed for years, the same way youd treat a new phone, or a toy, because Hawkeye is not a fictional character who has lived a life of his own in your imagination. (He has a little multiverse inside your mind, if you will.) NO! To the Mouse, Hawkeye is as interchangeable as a car, so a multiverse is the ultimate opportunity to tell the viewer to discard their old products and make way for new products. But most viewers will not do this because, multiverse or not, every character is unique and alive. Not just because they have a life of their own, but because they have a life with you.

If youre a fan of the Marvel Universe , particularly, if you are a fan of Wanda Maximoff, you rooted for her when she listened to Hawkeye and, for the first time, chose to be the good guy. You wept with her when she was forced to kill Vision. You shared in her horror when you realized that her kids were not real and that shed enslaved an entire town after Visions death. Youve wanted her to find closure. Whether she lived or died in the story, whether she was given justice or mercy, you wanted her arc to end. You wanted to see her accept Visions death and move on or self-implode because she could not face the truth.

But none of that matters. All those years you spent wondering what was going to happen to her, meant nothing. Because the events of her life happened differently somewhere else. Dont you see? The Mouse can torture poor Wanda forever, now. Shell die horribly in one universe, live marginally better in the next, only to be brought to the 616 universe our universe and be subjected to other tortures, only to perhaps die all over again. Shell live and die perpetually, and her story arc will become an endless loop to infinity and beyond as The Mouse would say.

I hate multiverse stories because they cannot end and the reason they cannot end is because by definition a multiverse is infinite. And there is no better way to kill the stakes than to have a story that can never finish.

Because the Mouse knows it can resurrect and kill Wanda forever, it was unafraid to turn her into one of the most idiotic and malicious villains in the Marvel Comics Universe. The many who rooted for Wanda Maximoff ever since she watched her brother die have longed to see her and Vision together again somehow. They have hoped she would find a way to make her children real and become the hero she was always meant to be. But she has been given the good old Luke Skywalker treatment. But hey! Who cares! If you dont like it, it doesnt matter, because you liked it in another universe.

Well review the story in more detail next time.

You may also wish to see my two-part review of Transcendence (2014):

Transcendence Part 1 The Soul Meets the Singularity. In Part 1 of my review of the 2014 classic, we start with the question: Can a human mind be completely transferred to a computer? When an anti-tech group shoots a researcher, his wife, ignoring warnings, saves him by uploading him but is the powerful new Singularity really him?

and

Transcendence, Part 2: Spoonful of Water with the Nanotech When Will now an AI possesses a tradesman so that he can touch his wife Evelyn again, Evelyn begins to have second thoughts Transcendence (2014) remains good viewing even though it too often sacrifices tension to pacing: We dont mind seeing characters worry a bit sometimes.

Also, my reviews of Firefly, the TV series and the subsequent film Serenity: Firefly: Can science fiction reimagined as the Wild West work? I strongly recommend the original 20022003 series for its careful development of the culture that grows up around world-building (terraforming). Firefly is an impressive blend of the future and the past and, if Disney+ carries through with its threat of a remake, be sure to see the original. All parts linked at here.

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Dr. Strange: Can the Multiverse Really Work as a Plot Device? - Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence

Daughters accuse Sophia Mirza of ruining their peace of mind for media publicity – Baaghi TV

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LAHORE/DUBAI (Our Reporter): Actress and model Sophia Mirzas twin daughters have revealed their mother told them to steal their passports, take money from their father and run away from their Dubai home.

15-years-old twin sisters Zainab Umar and Zunairah Umar have spoken for the first time about their mother Sophia Miraz, 42, during an interview with a Pakistani TV channel and in a written affidavit submitted before the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

Sisters Zainab Umar and Zunairah Umar said they were living in Dubai with their father Umar Farooq Zahoor happily and of their free will and allegations by their mother are false and fabricated that they are being held against their wishes.

15-years-old twin sisters Zainab Umar and Zunairah Umar spoke out after Sophia Mirza held a press conference demanding the recovery of her two daughters from Dubai-based Norwegian Pakistani Farooq Zahoor, who is Liberias Ambassador at Large for Pakistan and South East Asia.

Sophia Mirza, 42, held a press conference after a major investigation published in The News and Geo revealed that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on instructions of Shehzad Akbar, former Accountability and Interior Minister of Imran Khan, targeted Umar Farooq Zahoor on a complaint by Sophia Mirza who filed a complaint against her former husband under the name of Khushbakht Mirza without revealing at any stage that she was actually the former wife of Umar Zahoor. The FIA went on to investigate and issue Interpol Red Arrest Warrants against Mr. Zahoor in three cases that were already closed due to lack of evidence including a case in which NAB had cleared him.

The twin teenagers have negated claims made by their mother Khushbakht Mirza (known in the showbiz industry as Sophia Mirza and Sofia Mirza) at the press conference, stressing that the model was holding media talks to gain publicity and win media sympathy.

Sofia Mirzas daughters said their mother came to Dubai multiple times in the last few years and despite being in constant contact with her daughters refused to meet them and ignored their requests to meet. We requested our mother to see us when in Dubai but she ignored us, did her modeling shoot, and went back. She appears on TV to level allegations that she is seeking to recover to run a campaign against our father. She doesnt care about us. She cares only about her image and her media publicity.

Zainab Umar and Zunairah Umar said they had chosen to live with their father in Dubai and were living with him happily and of their free will. Our mother is after money. She encouraged us to try open the safe, take passports and money and run away from home. Its selfish of her.

This publication also has a copy of a previously written affidavit provided by both sisters to the court, making serious allegations against their mother.

In the written affidavit, signed separately by both sisters but carrying the same statement, the twin sisters said they have been living happily with their father for over 12 years in Dubai.

They said their mother, rather than visiting them, resorted to social media platforms and for several years, she has been publicly uploading materials and making statements to indicate that her two daughters have been forcibly removed and kept by Umar Zahoor against their will.They said their mothers actions have ruined their peace of mind and had adversely affected our mental and psychological health since the media-related material is accessible to everyone.

Zainab Umar wrote: Me and my sister have faced extreme embarrassment and bullying at our schools and we were so distraught that our father has arranged for us to change our schools thrice to protect us from the effects of our mothers statements.

Zainab Umars affidavit reads: I wish to negate all the baseless allegations of my mother. We are leading a healthy, happy, peaceful and productive life here and our all needs including lodging, study, food, and entertainment are sufficiently met. Our father spends frequent time with us and we have and are residing with our father happily and wilfully.

One of the affidavits continued: Recently we have faced another wave of public humiliation by our mother (Ms. Khushbakat Mirza) when she has managed to get yellow warrants issued. Our father has tried to assure us of or well-being but me and my sister have withdrawn from our friends who inquire if we are kept hidden by our friend from our mother, I am tired of the humiliation and the backlash that I and my father have to encounter, I am tired of the humiliation and the backlash that we have to encounter. I am heartbroken after realising that our mother, despite being aware of our exact whereabouts since she sent us a couple of presents through mail, decided to use us as a pawn and told everyone that we need to be located. Me and my sister, when tormented by our mother, have confronted her and asked her why she would continue to shake our lives and peace. She has our contact numbers and address but yet lied and declared us missing without any regard of the torture it would inflict on both of us.

The affidavit added: I and my sister are scared of what we shall face if we are physically exposed to the real abuse that our mother has portrayed in her public statements. I hereby state that I wish to continue living with my father and do not wish to either meet or live with my mother since I dont wish any further disturbance and trauma inflicted upon me or my sister.

Both sisters offered in their affidavits that they were prepared to record their statements through Skype or any other electronic mode in order to ensure that they were making the statements without any coercion.

Court papers also reveal that Umar Farooq Zahoor has repeatedly offered to the court that he was willing to arrange the meeting of Ms. Khushbakht Mirza with daughters Zainab Umar and Zunairah Umar including bearing the cost of traveling and lodging of Ms. Khushbkaht Mirza during her visit and stay in the UAE.

In response to a court order of March 2013 by Pakistans Supreme Court, Umar Zahoor paid a hefty amount of Rs.10,00,000 to Ms. Khushbakht Mirza in order to financially assist her to travel to UAE and meet with her daughters.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on the directions of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, also paid her a sum of 15000 AED as financial assistance for hiring a counsel of her own choice in UAE to contest the matter of custody of her daughters before the Courts in UAE but Sofia Mirza launched no case.

Sophia Mirza was contacted for a response but she didnt respond to the statements and allegations made by her twin daughters. However, she has previously maintained that her daughters were kidnapped from Pakistan by their father and that they are being held against their will in Dubai, and that they should be brought back to Pakistan.

Stay tuned to Baaghi TV for more. Download our app for the latest news, updates & interesting content!

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Daughters accuse Sophia Mirza of ruining their peace of mind for media publicity - Baaghi TV

Cardi B’s Son Could Win ANY Staring Contest With These Gorgeous Eyes! – The Blast

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When rapper Cardi B had her second child Wave, she refrained from sharing his pictures and other personal details for the longest of times, and for good reason.

Thankfully, the WAP singer is over that now; shes taken to posting pictures of her son and showing him off at any given opportunity.

Cardi B has also been posting adorable pictures of her son on Instagram for every milestone he attains, and it was no exception for his tenth month birthday.

The rapper spent the 4th of July holiday uploading cute pictures of her son to celebrate him turning ten months old.

Read on for more details of the information.

On July 4, 2022, the 29-year-old rapper took to her Instagram to share pictures of her son, Wave Set, who recently turned ten months.

The snapshots featured Wave posing for the camera while donning a cute blue and white knit hat and a white onesie. CardiB also included pictures where he crawled and played up to the camera, but this time, it was in a pair of denim jeans.

Happy 10-month BIG WAVE, she captioned the pictures.

The Up singer also posted a short video on her Instagram story of her holding Wave as they both stepped out for some fresh air. She wore simple make-up and donned a white top as she held her son in the video.

Although she didnt add any caption to the reel, it was obvious that the pair were enjoying mother-son bonding time.

Last month, the singer posted several images of her son, marveling at how rapidly he had developed.

My baby is growing too fast on me, she wrote on June 4.

He donned an all-blue ensemble with a chain on his neck in the pictures. He was also featured lying down and sucking his thumb.

The rapper delighted fans when she announced the arrival of her son in September 2021. But she left them confused as she refused to reveal the name and other personal details.

However, she has since confirmed that she and her husband Offset had a good reason for keeping their son out of the spotlight.

CardiB mentioned in an interview that she decided to keep her sons identity private to protect him from internet trolls.

She shared that her family received a lot of cyber attacks and hate after they announced Kultures details publicly. As a result, they kept Waves identity from the public as long as possible to prevent giving the trolls anything to use.

We went through a lot of sad things when it comes to Kultureterrible behavior that not even the older kids have ever been through, Cardi shared withEssence, referencing Offsets three other children.

So many people will post mean, disgusting things just to get a reaction from us, and we get very angry and upset.

In the same interview, the rapper spoke about her relationship with Offsets other children, claiming she loves them like her own children.

I feel like sometimes people go into a relationship with a man or a woman who has kids with negativityand I feel like people should embrace it and love it. I love our family and wouldnt want it any other way.

Offset also confirmed her sentiments, adding that CardiB was a great mother to all his children, including his stepkids.

Its a blessing to be able to have them all together and to have a wife whos open and treats them as if theyre her kids,

While Kulture and Wave might live in mansions and get a lot of expensive toys and clothes, their parents plan to instill humility in them. The pair intend to raise their kids to appreciate what they have and understand that nothing comes for free.

We still teach our kids like normal parents, Offset shared in the interview withEssence. Ive never told my daughter shes a celebrity. I want her to have the mind of a working person. I always tell my kids how hard I worked, how many years I put in to be in a position where everything is good.

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Metal Gear Speedrunner Reveals He Faked Live World Record, Claims Its A Puzzle – Kotaku

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In a week filled with fantastic live speedruns at Summer Games Done Quick 2022, a one-hour playthrough of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance still turned heads. Even more remarkable was the encore, unlocked through community donations: a frantic race through the games Blade Wolf DLC campaign which ended up setting a brand-new world record. Or at least it would have, had it been real. Instead, a few days later the speedrunner behind it confessed to having faked it using a pre-recorded video compiling his best times from previous runs.

Speedrunning culture is incredibly online, with players swapping strategies on forums, livestreaming their practice and world record attempts from all over the world, and later uploading the best times to record-keeping sites like Speedrun.com. One of the things that makes annual events like SGDQ special is that some of the most talented players behind all sorts of different games get to come together in person and showcase their craft live for fans and casual viewers alike. In this context breaking records is rare, and all the more special because of it. Substituting pre-recorded footage for live attempts, on the other hand, is sacrilege. But thats exactly what a speedrunner who goes by Mekarazium admits to doing last week.

The Blade Wolf DLC run incentive people paid for is a pre-recorded segmented run, the speedrunner told an SGDQ rep on Discord over the weekend. I havent mentioned it anywhere, neither during the submission process or the email that I sent to the committee. It was supposed to be a real-time run, but Ive changed my mind at the last second after switching the saves.

Mekarazium, who was streaming remotely for the event on June 30, pointed out a few of the differences between his NG+ Hard playthrough, which was live, and the bonus run which edited together multiple perfect partial runs of the DLC. For one, the Blade Wolf campaign playthrough didnt have any sounds from his keyboard and mouse. The checkpoints also didnt quite line up, and as PCGamesN reported, some viewers also noticed after the fact that the in-game camera was still moving at one point even after Mekarazium had removed his right hand from his mouse.

Ive done an actual bad thing and I shouldnt have done this on the event, he told GDQ.

But why he did it remains much harder to figure out. His SGDQ run ended with a rambling speech condemning leaderboards for monopolizing too much of the status and attention of speedrunning communities. He also seemed to want to make the case that more players should be focusing on exploring and crafting unique approaches to speedrunning rather than just chasing new world records.

I feel empty and deranged, denied one last epiphany and ushered from the stage, Mekarazium said near the end of his SGDQ appearance, quoting This Godless Endeavor from the 90s heavy metal band Nevermore.

As a result of the stunt, GDQ has removed Mekaraziums run from its YouTube channel and told Kotaku hes been banned from performing at the event in the future.

This is absolutely unacceptable and attempts to undermine the integrity of the speedrunning community that we love and support, a GDQ spokesman wrote in an email. The exact result they desired was unclear from the document, but it is clear that they believed we would not be willing to speak out about their behavior. However, we believe it is in the communitys best interests to know why this run was removed by GDQ.

In his original message to GDQ, and in a follow-up response to Kotaku, Mekarazium said he made the decision to switch to a pre-recorded segmented run in part because his NG+ speedrun of the base game had gone so well and he wanted to cap it off with an even more impressive showstopper. The following run had to be even higher in quality, which would become a grand finale, he said over Discord.

To unlock the Blade Wolf DLC run, SGDQ viewers had to collectively donate $25,000 to Doctors Without Borders during the speedrun of the base game, and so they did, with hundreds contributing. What they got in return was impressive in theorythe run came in at 6:55.7, a whopping 25 seconds below the previous world record set by Mekaraziumbut it wasnt the live performance they had paid for, unbeknownst to anyone in the audience at the time. They cheered. Mekarazium feigned surprise, saying holy shit when his time was announced.

Truth be told, that was a scummy thing to do, Mekarazium now says on the issue of tricking the people who had donated. But he doesnt seem to feel the same way about the rest of the stunt, instead claiming its deeper meaning is some sort of puzzle to solve.

This is a taunt, Mekarazium told Kotaku. [A] taunt to every single person that watches speedrunning events and havent asked yourself some questions. He criticized content makers for profiting off the work of speedrunners in exchange for free publicity, and GDC for putting its brand needs ahead of the communitys passion, saying the event will take a massive hit to their image for removing one of the highly-rated runs that was well-received by everyone.

People will focus on the fact omg he cheated, and not on the sheer amount of preparations done to ensure [the] run will go well, and the segmented run will go unnoticed.

Mekaraziums explanation only got more cryptic from there. If you want to see some things change, theres always [a] price to pay, he said. I am paying with my reputation of a marathon runner, a speedrunner, a commentator and a very passionate person to make others think about the things youre ready to do in the name of said passion. So that others might change their opinion on the speedrunning as a whole. He declined to elaborate further.

The speedrunner admitted he was also sleep-deprived at the time of his performance, due to scheduling delays. Whatever his true motivations, he seemed to know his antics would eventually come to light and get him banned back when the credits rolled last week. We wont be meeting again I think, some people just want to watch this world burn, Mekarazium said at the end of his SGDQ appearance. Good night, there will be more godless nights.

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As the stars move across the sky each night people of the world have looked up and wondered about their place in the universe. Throughout history civilizations have developed unique systems for ordering and understanding the heavens. Babylonian and Egyptian astronomers developed systems that became the basis for Greek astronomy, while societies in the Americas, China and India developed their own.

Ancient Greek astronomers' work is richly documented in the collections of the Library of Congress largely because of the way the Greek tradition of inquiry was continued by the work of Islamic astronomers and then into early modern European astronomy. This section offers a tour of some of the astronomical ideas and models from ancient Greece as illustrated in items from the Library of Congress collections.

By the 5th century B.C., it was widely accepted that the Earth is a sphere. This is a critical point, as there is a widespread misconception that ancient peoples thought the Earth was flat. This was simply not the case.

In the 5th century B.C., Empedocles and Anaxagoras offered arguments for the spherical nature of the Earth. During a lunar eclipse, when the Earth is between the sun and the moon, they identified the shadow of the Earth on the moon. As the shadow moves across the moon it is clearly round. This would suggest that the Earth is a sphere.

Given that opportunities for observations of a lunar eclipse do not come along that often, there was also evidence of the roundness of the earth in the experiences of sailors.

When a ship appears on the horizon it's the top of the ship that is visible first. A wide range of astronomy texts over time use this as a way to illustrate the roundness of the Earth. As the image suggests this is exactly what one would expect on a spherical Earth. If the Earth were flat, it would be expected that you would be able to see the entire ship as soon as it became visible.

Lunar eclipses also allowed for another key understanding about our home here on Earth. In 3rd Century B.C., Aristarchus of Samos reasoned he could figure out the size of the Earth based on information available during a lunar eclipse. The diagram at the right illustrates a translation of his work. The large circle is the sun, the medium circle is the Earth and the smallest circle is the moon. When the Earth is in-between the sun and the moon it causes a lunar eclipse and measuring the size of the Earth's shadow on the moon provided part of the information he needed to calculate its size.

Eratosthenes estimated Earth's circumference around 240 B.C. He used a different approach, measuring the shadows cast in Alexandria and Syene to calculate their angle relative to the Sun. There is some dispute on the accuracy of his calculations as we don't know exactly how long the units of measure were. The measurement however was relatively close to the actual size of the Earth. The Greeks were applying mathematics to theorize about the nature of their world. They held a range of beliefs about nature and the world but they were, in many cases, working to ground those beliefs in an empirical exploration of what they could reason from evidence.

In the tradition of Plato and Empedocles before him, Aristotle argued that there were four fundamental elements, fire, air, water and earth. It is difficult for us to fully understand what this meant as today we think about matter in very different terms. In Aristotle's system there was no such thing as void space. All space was filled with some combination of these elements.

Aristotle asserted that you could further reduce these elements into two pairs of qualities, hot and cold and wet and dry. The combination of each of these qualities resulted in the elements. These qualities can be replaced by their opposites, which in this system become how change happens on Earth. For example, when heated, water seemingly turns steam which looks like air.

In Aristotle's Cosmology, each of these four elements (earth, water, fire and air) had a weight. Earth was the heaviest, water less so, and air and fire the lightest. According to Aristotle the lighter substances moved away from the center of the universe and the heaver elements settled into the center. While these elements attempted to sort themselves out, to achieve this order, most of experience involved mixed entities.

While we have seen earth, fire, air and water, everything else in the world in this system was understood as a mixture of these elements. In this perspective, transition and change in our world resulted from the mixing of the elements. For Aristotle the terrestrial is a place of birth and death, based in these elements. The heavens are a separate realm governed by their own rules.

In contrast to the terrestrial, the celestial region of the heavens had a fundamentally different nature. Looking at the night sky the ancient Greeks found two primary kinds of celestial objects; the fixed stars and the wandering stars. Think of the night's sky. Most of the visible objects appear to move at exactly the same speed and present themselves in exactly the same arrangement night after night. These are the fixed stars. They appear to move all together. Aside from these were a set of nine objects that behaved differently, the moon, the sun and the planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter each moved according to a different system. For the Greeks these were the wandering stars.

In this system the entire universe was part of a great sphere. This sphere was split into two sections, an outer celestial realm and an inner terrestrial one. The dividing line between the two was the orbit of the moon. While the earth was a place of transition and flux, the heavens were unchanging. Aristotle posited that there was a fifth substance, the quintessence, that was what the heavens were made of, and that the heavens were a place of perfect spherical motion.

In Aristotle's words, "In the whole range of time past, so far as our inherited records reach, no change appears to have taken place either in the whole scheme of the outermost heaven or in any of its proper parts." It's important to keep in mind that in Aristotle's time there simply were not extensive collections of observational evidence. Things that looked like they were moving in the heavens, like comets, were not problematic in this model because they could be explained as occurring in the terrestrial realm.

This model of the heavens came with an underlying explanation. The celestial spheres were governed by a set of movers responsible for the motion of the wandering stars. Each of these wandering stars was thought to have an "unmoved mover" the entity that makes it move through the heavens. For many of the Greeks this mover could be understood as the god corresponding to any given entity in the heavens.

Claudius Ptolemy (90-168) created a wealth of astronomical knowledge from his home in Alexandria, Egypt. Benefiting from hundreds of years of observation from the time of Hipparchus and Eudoxus, as well as a set of astronomical data collected by the Babylonians, Ptolemy developed a system for predicting the motion of the stars that was published in his primary astronomical work, Almagest. Ptolemy's success at synthesizing and refining ideas and improvements in astronomy helped make his Almagest so popular that earlier works fell out of circulation. Translated into Arabic and Latin the Almagest became the primary astronomy text for the next thousand years.

The Almagest is filled with tables. In this sense the book is a tool one can use to predict the locations of the stars Compared to earlier astronomy the book is much more focused on serving as a useful tool than as presenting a system for describing the nature of the heavens. Trying to accurately predict the place of the stars over time resulted in creating a much more complicated model.

By the time of Ptolemy Greek astronomers had proposed adding circles on the circular orbits of the wandering stars (the planets, the moon and the sun) to explain their motion. These circles on circles are called epicycles. In the Greek tradition, the heavens were a place of perfect circular motion, so the way to account for perfection was with the addition of circles. This resulted in disorienting illustrations.

To escape the complicated nature of this extensive number of circles, Ptolomy added a series of new concepts. To accurately describe planetary motion, he needed to use eccentric circles. With the eccentric circle the center of the planets orbit would not be Earth but would instead be some other point. Ptolemy then needed to put the epicycles on another set of circles called deferents. So the planets moved on circles that moved on circular orbits. Ptolomy also needed to introduce equants, a tool that enabled the planets to move at different speeds as they moved around these circles. The resulting model was complex, but it had extensive predictive power.

Ptolemy came to represent a mathematical tradition, one focused on developing mathematical models with predictive power. Aristotle came to be known for putting forward the physical model of the heavens. Ptolemy was also interested in deploying his model of the heavens to describe its physical reality. However, his most important work was the mathematical models and data he used for predicting the motion of heavenly bodies. For a long time his name was synonymous with the model of the heavens.

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Yazd to host astronomy tour to mark World Heritage registration anniversary – Tehran Times

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TEHRAN-The historical oasis city of Yazd is scheduled to host an astronomy tour on Saturday to mark the 5th registration anniversary of the city on the UNESCO World Heritage list, a local tourism chief has said.

The two-day tour will be held in the heart of the historical structure of the Iranian city and will be free for astronomy enthusiasts, Mehdi Mahajan explained on Friday.

Yazd's clear sky and desert environment make it an ideal destination for astronomical tourism, the official added.

Among the popular types of tourism, astronomical tourism has become more known and introduced in recent years, attracting both domestic and foreign tourists, he noted.

The economy of astronomical tourism can be very successful and attention and emphasis can be paid to its development as a way to grow and develop tourism in Yazd, he mentioned.

In July 2017, the historical structure of the city of Yazd was named a UNESCO World Heritage. Wedged between the northern Dasht-e Kavir and the southern Dasht-e Lut on a flat plain, the oasis city enjoys a very harmonious public-religious architecture that dates from different eras.

Yazd is usually referred to as a delightful place to stay, or a don't miss destination by almost all of its visitors. The city is full of mudbrick houses that are equipped with innovative badgirs (wind catchers), atmospheric alleyways, and many Islamic and Iranian monuments that shape its eye-catching city landscape.

It is a living testimony to the intelligent use of limited available resources in the desert for survival. Water is brought to the city by the qanat system. Each district of the city is built on a qanat and has a communal center.

Astronomical tourism represents a less-studied segment of sustainable tourism, where a dark night sky is an underlying resource, and this branch of tourism could lead to sustainable development in rural areas.

Illuminated only by the stars and having a clear sky, Iranian deserts are dream places for astronomy enthusiasts and sky lovers to experience dark night observatories.

The country is home to wide deserts in its central lands including UNESCO-tagged Lut Dessert as well as several historical caravanserais hosting astronomical tourists from ancient eras to the present.

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Yazd to host astronomy tour to mark World Heritage registration anniversary - Tehran Times