It is every librarian’s nightmare: library users NOT returning books on time. In school libraries, penalties are laid down left and right because students tend to forget that the book they borrowed is due on a certain date. Many students even forget to return the book forever – resulting in huge fines at the end of the school year.
In public libraries, it is harder to lay down measures and actually “get” the person who does not return books. After all, you can’t go after each and every person that does this. Sooner or later, they remember that they need to return the book and they do so. Of course, they have to face the consequences, don’t they?
But, have you ever heard of someone returning a book that has been overdue for 45 years? Yup, that’s exactly what happened at a British library recently. Dinnington Library is located near Sheffield in northern England. According to its principal assistant, Alison Lawrie, they received a Penguin first edition copy of “Quartermass and the Pit” by Nigel Kneale in the mail. It is not everyday that a library receives an overdue book through the post, and it is even rarer that this overdue book should have been returned in October 15, 1965! I was not even born yet!
As can be expected, the book was mailed with no return address. I do not blame the person – he or she is probably scared of the hefty fine that comes with the book! Lucky for him or her, the library’s records do not go as far back as 1965. Still, Lawrie says that they would love to know the story behind the book’s return and that the person will NOT be fined. Come forward, whoever you are!
Early Saturday morning was just a normal time for most people in the world, but for those in Chile, it could very well have been the worst day of their lives. Not many months have passed since the killer earthquake hit Haiti, and a lot of people the world over still live in anxiety. You can just imagine what our fellowmen from Chile were thinking when they awakened to a rocking world.
The quake that hit Chile was way stronger than the one that hit Haiti – it measured in at 8.8 on the Richter scale. Seismologists classify this as “great” earthquake, capable of incurring tremendous damages. To date, hundreds have been reported dead in Chile, with the numbers expected to rise.
The extent of the effects of this earthquake is supposed to reach far and wide, though. As a matter of fact, a tsunami was triggered by the tremor. AP reports that waves have already reached as far as Russia and Japan on Sunday – a day after the quake hit Chile. The good thing is that the waves were not as huge as was expected. People were already told to evacuate as early as Saturday, and evacuate they did. Perhaps due to the distance, the waves were a “mere” 4-feet high, which, while causing some flooding, did not really cause much damage. The Japanese government has already lifted the tsunami warning.
Most other countries who are in the path of the tsunami have also lifted their warnings.
Would you pay that much for any dish? I suppose that if you were dining at a 3-star Michelin restaurant, a hundred bucks is not that expensive for a single dish. Then again, it really depends on what you’re eating.
In a Japanese restaurant, you can taste a one of a kind soup – ramen – for $110. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that this price tag is more than hefty for a bowl of soup! Indeed, if you ever go to Japan, you will be able to find bowls of ramen for as low as $10. This is especially true in areas where they sell food on the streets.
So what makes this ramen soup worth the price tag? According to restaurateur Shoichi Fujimaki, his soup is “not really ramen. This is my cuisine, it’s my 25 years of experience distilled into one bowl. This is the only place in the world that people have this kind of soup.” Twenty-five years of cooking experience, more than 20 ingredients, and three days of preparation – all these add up to $110 per bowl.
And what do customers have to say about the Five-taste Blend Imperial Noodles, which is the highlight at Tokyo’s Fujimaki Gekijyo? It looks like they’re loving it despite the price and the not-so-good Japanese economy! By the way, not just anyone can have a taste of this soup. In fact, customers are required to dine at another restaurant (Fujimaki owns it too) and sample “lesser” fare before they can be qualified to have even a glimpse of THE other soup. Nice business tactic, huh?
Eating the meat of dogs is a tradition in certain parts of the world. In China, dog meat is a tradition ingredient in hot pots. With the changes that have occurred over the decades, however, this tradition is in danger.
The government has proposed jail time for people who are caught eating dog meat. The bill has been proposed in alignment with animal rights. Included in the bill’s coverage is cat meat. People who are charged and found guilty can go to jail for up to 15 days. A fine of around $700 is also part of the penalty. Businesses that are found guilty of serving dishes with dog meat or cat meat in them can also be charged under the provisions of the bill. The fine for businesses ranges from 14,000 USD to 73,000 USD.
As expected, this move has stirred up controversy. Pet lovers have taken up for the cause, while others say that the ban is quite unrealistic. On the one hand, some people see the cruelty in certain practices. One such practice is beating the animal (dogs in particular) to death. This is done to force the blood into the meat, making it tastier and richer. On the other hand, some people value the tradition of consuming the meat of cats and dogs. They think that the move to ban such meat is akin to throwing away part of the people’s history and culture.
It’s definitely a delicate situation, and I am glad I do not have to make the decision about it.
How is this possible? According to a recently concluded study, denims just might help save your life in case you get bitten by a rattlesnake. Dr. Shelton S. Herbert and Dr. William K. Hayes from Loma Linda University in California did research on the effect of denim on rattlesnake bites. What they did was to use latex gloves in lieu of human legs (or arms). The gloves were filled with saline solution. They then covered some parts with denim.
The results were quite interesting. The parts that were covered with denim received less of the rattlesnake venom. In case you’re wondering just how much less, they received as much as two thirds less venom than those which were not protected with denim!
The implications are exciting, to say the least. If you decide to go out into the desert – or wherever there may be rattlesnakes lurking around – then you should throw away your nice shorts and put on some nice comfy denims instead. I can think of other reasons why denims are better – they will protect you from the sun and they will protect you from getting your legs scratched! Of course, in case you do get bitten by a rattlesnake or two, your jeans will absorb most of the venom and perhaps save your life.
Of course, the smarter course of action would be to avoid getting bitten by a rattlesnake, but if that cannot be avoided for some reason, then the jeans will be there to help out, even if just a little bit.
It is every librarian’s nightmare: library users NOT returning books on time. In school libraries, penalties are laid down left and right because students tend to forget that the book they borrowed is due on a certain date. Many students even forget to return the book forever – resulting in huge fines at the end of the school year.
