okay but something about knowing there are rules for when the eggs can die makes it that much scarier

HOMES OF THE RFA (+V AND SAERAN) HEADCANONS

alright we’ve got zen’s bachelor pad first - generally zen tends to be a pretty minimalist guy with his house. part of it is honestly because he couldn’t really afford to completely deck out his house for a while, and now he’s just grown used to the look of it so he really likes having spaces that are a little less cluttered. the one exception to this, unfortunately, is his kitchen. he doesn’t use his kitchen often, and as a result, he often forgets to do his dishes until the end of the week. monday? that shit is spotless. his kitchen is cleaner than anything has ever been and the dishes are neatly put away. do not even look at that kitchen on wednesday. it’s become a disaster zone and he’s embarrassed. but once the mc starts to come by more, i think he ends up cooking for himself a lot more because he starts to realize that he actually really enjoys it. he loves being healthy, and now that he has the motivation to cook for himself (and her, of course), he starts to realize how much he likes control over what he eats. so now his kitchen is a lot cleaner bc it just has to be.

two different places for yoosung !! - the one on the left is yoosung’s dorm :) it’s actually really cool in there. he spends a lot of time in that little room, so he decides to invest a little bit and make sure that he’s happy with the place he lives. he likes alternative lighting (mainly because it helps his eyes a bit when he’s playing lolol) but also because overhead lights can be a little harsh for him, especially after a long day of school. when the mc’s there, he always makes sure that the lights are just right. it’s very common for both of them to fall asleep while the LEDS are still on, a movie playing on the projector he bought a while back. when he moves out of college, though, his house is a bit of a different story. he still keeps some LEDS and neon signs in a little gamer/office space, and for the most part he’s actually pretty neat, but his house can definitely get messy. surprisingly enough, the mattress on the floor is not for him. in fact, it’s for zen. he comes over so often that yoosung ends up setting up a little mattress for him so that he can stay over whenever he has drinks with him. the mess honestly isn’t terrible though, and he and the mc are both good about making it an organized disaster.

jaehee’s cozy little apartment - rather than art posters, jaehee actually has a lot of framed broadway and other musical posters on her walls. she branches out a bit from zen’s musicals over time, and she actually really loves decorating her home with something that she loves so much. she likes her small apartment, and it means that she and the mc are never really that far away from each other. she places her hand on the mc’s back whenever she squeezes past her in the kitchen, and when they have their coffee in the morning she can lean over and grab her hand during conversation. she always has candles lit, and she prefers really earthy and woody scents. tobacco is a common scent, but as is sandalwood. even with the candles, their apartment constantly smells like fresh coffee beans and sourdough bread. it is a very rare day if there isn’t dough rising in the window somewhere, and even rarer if there isn’t a baked loaf hidden away in the kitchen.

two homes for jumin as well !! - the first picture is of his penthouse when the mc moves in with him. she adds little throw pillows, some rugs, and some plants to his stupid penthouse and makes it feel much more like a home. he gets rid of that stupid circular bed the second he realizes that she feels a little cramped in it and upgrades to a beautiful king sized mattress. there’s about a million and one windows, and that’s actually something he really loves about the penthouse. so it’s really no surprise when he and the mc move a bit out of the city and they keep the big windows and the big open spaces, but make it feel like something that’s meant to be lived in. jumin discovers his love of wood and tall bookshelves with a mix of occult novels and old classics, and the mc convinces him to add a little more color into his interior. their new house has a big garden out back so he can still visit the roses (though they aren’t the same ones from his old rooftop garden, but he’d argue that he planted them with her, so they’re so much better). they built the house themselves so it’s perfect for them, and elizabeth the third has her own little space for playing.

hmmmm. saeyoung choi’s new home <3 - saeyoung eventually leaves the bunker. it’s a hard move, and it’s definitely not one he takes lightly (he’s used to moving, but not away from a place with so many good memories). but, he builds this new home from the ground up with the mc. he makes the plans and hires architects to help him, and he starts to fall in love with this new home even while it’s still a blueprint. he never gives up his complicated security system (the arabic dictionary really starts to feel heavy sometimes), but he does start to realize how much he loves windows. he still ends up getting them reinforced, but he loves the natural light and he actually really likes being able to see outside so easily. it’s a stupid thing, but sometimes the mc will catch him sitting on their couch and just looking out at the secluded little forest they ended up moving to, and he seems really happy. similar to yoosung, saeyoung cannot stand overhead lighting. at first, his solution was to just have no lighting at all, but one day he came into his office and there were these little lamps everywhere and they actually made his office feel a lot less daunting. ever since then, he’s started using lamps more often than the lights installed into his ceiling. he also says they help to reduce any sensory issues he might have from the light, which also means a lot less headaches for him. he starts to really love thunderstorms while he lives there, and so he and the mc always curl up whenever it starts to rain and they sit on the couch, watching as lightning cracks across the sky and counting the seconds until the thunder together. whenever it rains, saeyoung knows he can take a break from everything for a while.

jihyun kim’s beautiful little apartment - his apartment is tiny except for his studio. similarly to jaehee, he likes the small spaces because one, he loves how cozy is feels, but two, because it means he can reach out to his mc a lot more often. his studio, however, is the biggest and brightest space imaginable. all of his apartment is big on natural light, but he loves having a huge window in his studio because it means he’s able to see actual life even when he’s wrapped up in his work. it’s also big enough that the mc can sit in and watch him work without ever feeling like she’s in the way, which he absolutely loves. it’s really common for her to be sitting on one of his extra stools, flipping through some of the drawing drafts he’s made with delicate fingers. he’ll turn then, half-dried paint on his fingertips and go to kiss her. she’ll laugh when she feels the coolness of the wet paint on her cheek, and he’ll feel terrible about it, but there’s not many worries that can be had when you’re standing in the shine of the afternoon sun, surrounded by art that you’re proud of and standing in front of the girl who brought you back to artistry. as far as the rest of his apartment goes, jihyun is very particular about color. he likes things to look nice and he appreciates things to be very calming in nature. the green kitchen is perfect for him because of this, and everything is always spotless. the only part of his home that’s ever a mess is his studio, but he knows where everything is.

and lastly we have saeran’s little getaway :) - of course, saeran stays close to saeyoung. they both end up moving to a really nice, secluded area where they feel safe. even after the issue with their father has been resolved, both of them feel safer if they’re away from the public. this actually ends up being great for saeran though, because it means that he has access to so many plants. so many. he can walk though his pretty summer garden outside to get to his greenhouse, and he loves being able to tend to all of the flowers there. it really is something that’s calming for him. plus, whenever he walks outside he can see saeyoung’s house and he can be reminded that he’s only a few steps away, so he’d make the trip often even without the flowers. his house is pretty small, but he can’t imagine wanting anything too big. it always smells really fresh in his house, like clean linens and citrus, but not the artificial kind. he just always has oranges somewhere in his house so fresh citrus is always there in the kitchen. he and the mc enjoy a really quiet life together in their house, and it’s honestly at this point that he feels the happiest. he likes being able to wake up in the morning and sit at their kitchen island together, a homemade breakfast in front of them and her head leaning on his shoulder.

• Siegfried Line

The Siegfried Line, known in German as the Westwall, was a German defensive line built during the 1930s opposite the French Maginot Line.

The official name for German defensive line construction program before and during the Second World War that collectively came to be known as the "Westwall" (and "Siegfried Line" in English) changed several times during the late 1930s reflecting areas in progress. Border Watch program (pioneering program) for the most advanced positions, Limes Program, Aachen-Saar Program, Western Air Defense Zone, Geldern Emplacement between Brüggen and Kleve. These programs were all pushed forward with the highest priority, putting a concentrated demand on available resources. The origin of the name "Westwall" is unknown, but it appeared in popular use from the middle of 1939; there is a record of Hitler sending an Order of the Day to the soldiers and the workers at the "Westwall" on May 20th, 1939.

The Border Watch program was a series of small bunkers with 50 cm (20 in) thick walls were set up with three embrasures towards the front. Sleeping accommodations were hammocks. In exposed positions, similar small bunkers were erected with small round armoured "lookout" sections on the roofs. The programme was carried out by the Border Watch (Grenzwacht), a small military troop activated in the Rhineland immediately after the region was re-militarised by Germany after having been de-militarised following the First World War. The Limes Program began in 1938 following an order by Hitler to strengthen fortifications on the western German border. Limes refers to the former borders of the Roman Empire; the cover story for the programme was that it was an archaeological study. Its Type 10 bunkers were more strongly constructed than the earlier border fortifications. These had 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) thick ceilings and walls. A total of 3,471 were built along the entire length of the Siegfried Line. They featured a central room or shelter for 10-12 men with a stepped embrasure facing backwards and a combat section 50 cm (20 in) higher. This elevated section had embrasures at the front and sides for machine guns. The Aachen-Saar program bunkers were similar to those of the Limes programme: Type 107 double MG casemates with concrete walls up to 3.5 m (11 ft) thick. One difference was that there were no embrasures at the front, only at the sides of the bunkers. Embrasures were only built at the front in special cases and were then protected with heavy metal doors. This construction phase included the towns of Aachen and Saarbrücken. The Western Air Defence Zone continued parallel to the two other lines toward the east, and consisted mainly of concrete Flak foundations. Scattered MG42 and MG34 emplacements added additional defence against both air and land targets. Flak turrets were designed to force enemy planes to fly higher, thus decreasing the accuracy of their bombing. The Geldern Emplacement lengthened the Siegfried Line northwards as far as Kleve on the Rhine, and was built after the start of the Second World War. The Siegfried Line originally ended in the north near Brüggen in the Viersen district. The primary constructions were unarmed dugouts, but their extremely strong concrete design afforded excellent protection to the occupants. For camouflage they were often built near farms.

Standard construction elements such as large Regelbau bunkers, smaller concrete "pillboxes", and "dragon's teeth" anti-tank obstacles were built as part of each construction phase, sometimes by the thousands. Frequently vertical steel rods would be interspersed between the teeth. This standardisation was the most effective use of scarce raw materials, transport and workers, but proved an ineffective tank barrier as US bulldozer tanks simply pushed dirt bridges over these devices. "Dragon's teeth" were blocks of reinforced concrete stand in several rows on a single foundation. There are two typical sorts of barrier: Type 1938 with four rows of teeth getting higher toward the back, and Type 1939 with five rows of such teeth. Many other irregular lines of teeth were also built. Another design of tank obstacle, known as the Czech hedgehog, was made by welding together several bars of steel in such a way that any tank rolling over it would get stuck and possibly damaged. If the contour of the land allowed it, water-filled ditches were dug instead of tank traps. Examples of this kind of defence are those north of Aachen near Geilenkirchen. The early fortifications were mostly built by private firms, but the private sector was unable to provide the number of workers needed for the programs that followed; this gap was filled by the Todt Organisation. With this organisation's help, huge numbers of forced labourers up to 500,000 at a time worked on the Siegfried Line. Transport of materials and workers from all across Germany was managed by the Deutsche Reichsbahn railway company, which took advantage of the well-developed strategic railway lines built on Germany's western border in World War I. Working conditions were highly dangerous. For example, the most primitive means had to be used to handle and assemble extremely heavy armour plating, weighing up to 66 short tons.

The Siegfried Line at the start of the Second World War had serious weaknesses. German General Alfred Jodl said after the war that it was "little better than a building site in 1939", and when Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt inspected the line, the weak construction and insufficient weapons caused him to laugh. Despite France's declaration of war on Germany at the beginning of the Second World War, there was no major combat at the Siegfried Line at the start of the campaign in the west, except for a minor offensive by the French. Instead, both sides remained stuck in the so-called Phoney War, where neither side attacked the other and both stayed in their safe positions. The Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda drew foreign attention to the unfinished Westwall, in several instances showcasing incomplete or test positions to portray the project finished and ready for action. During the Battle of France, French forces made minor attacks against some parts of the line, but the majority was left untested. When the campaign finished, transportable weapons and materials were removed from the Siegfried Line and used in other places such as the Atlantic Wall defences. The concrete sections were left in place in the countryside and soon became completely unfit for defense.

With the D-Day landings in Normandy on June 6th, 1944, war in the west broke out once more. On August 24th, 1944, Hitler gave a directive for renewed construction on the Siegfried Line. 20,000 forced labourers and members of the Reichsarbeitsdienst (Reich Labour Service), most of whom were 14–16-year-old boys, attempted to re-equip the line for defence purposes. Local people were also called in to carry out this kind of work, mostly building anti-tank ditches. Even during construction, it was becoming clear that the bunkers could not withstand the newly developed armour-piercing weapons. In August 1944, the first clashes took place on the Siegfried Line; the section of the line where most fighting took place was the Hürtgenwald (Hürtgen Forest) area in the Eifel, 20 km (12 mi) southeast of Aachen. The Aachen Gap was the logical route into Germany's Rhineland and a main industrial area, and was therefore where the Germans concentrated their defence. The Americans committed an estimated 120,000 troops plus reinforcements to the Battle of Hürtgen Forest. After the Battle of Hürtgen Forest, the Battle of the Bulge began, starting in the area south of the Hürtgenwald, between Monschau and the Luxembourgish town of Echternach. This offensive was a last-ditch attempt by the Germans to reverse the course of the war in the West. German loss of life and material was severe and the effort failed. There were serious clashes along other parts of the Siegfried Line and soldiers in many bunkers refused to surrender, often fighting to the death. By early 1945 the last Siegfried Line bunkers had fallen at the Saar and Hunsrück. The British 21st Army Group also attacked the Siegfried Line. This Army Group included American formations and the resulting fighting brought total American losses to approximately 68,000. In addition, the First Army incurred over 50,000 non-battle casualties and the Ninth Army over 20,000. This brings the overall cost of the Siegfried Line Campaign, in American personnel, close to 140,000.

German propaganda, both at home and abroad, repeatedly portrayed the Westwall during its construction as an unbreachable bulwark. At the start of the war, the opposing troops remained behind their own defence lines. As a morale booster for British troops marching off to France, the Siegfried Line was the subject of a popular song: "We're Going to Hang out the Washing on the Siegfried Line". When asked about the Siegfried Line, General George S. Patton reportedly said "Fixed fortifications are monuments to man's stupidity." During the postwar period, many sections of the Siegfried Line were removed using explosives. In North Rhine Westphalia, about thirty bunkers still remain; most of the rest were either destroyed with explosives or covered with earth. Tank traps still exist in many areas; in the Eifel, they run over several kilometres. Since 1997, with the motto "The value of the unpleasant as a memorial" , an effort has been made to preserve the remains of the Siegfried Line as a historical monument. This was intended to stop reactionary fascist groups from using the Siegfried Line for propaganda purposes. Nature conservationists consider the remains of the Siegfried Line valuable as a chain of biotopes where, thanks to its size, rare animals and plants can take refuge and reproduce. This effect is magnified because the concrete ruins cannot be used for agricultural or forestry purposes.

83. Knuckles the Echidna #6

Lost Paradise (Part Three of Three): Zero Hour… and Counting

Writer: Ken Penders Pencils: Manny Galan Colors: Barry Grossman

The intro page of this issue talks quite a bit about how the love between a parent and child is the strongest love there is, and how no matter how estranged he's been from his parents in the past, Knuckles loves his mother and father more than anything else in the world. That's a nice sentiment and all, but can we consider that so far, his father has abandoned him at a young age, and let him believe his mother was dead all along, to the point of him not even truly remembering her? Sure, we know that his father has been watching over him from a distance this whole time, but Knuckles sure doesn't, and thus far no good reason has been given for this apparent abandonment. I feel like, in combination with every other person I met telling me that I'm not ready to know any real information yet and to just shut up and follow what they tell me to do, I'd have every right to be a little angry. But let's not get into that quite yet. For now, Knuckles has a mother to save!

The Chaotix are still stuck waiting for Knuckles to get back, riding out shockwaves in the meantime. Within the echidna "pocket zone," if you will, Archimedes has just poofed Knuckles and himself into the building where the dingoes are keeping some of their hostages. With a well-timed tackle and some help from one of the hostages, Wynmacher (take your own guesses on how that's pronounced, cause I certainly have no clue), Knuckles and Archimedes are quickly able to teleport everyone out safely before reinforcements arrive to check on the situation.

Outside, Constable Remington finds himself receiving orders to return to base, only to be shocked by Knuckles and his entourage showing up. At the same time, Hawking is in his sanctum speaking to his "old friend" Deo Volente the fire ant, presumably his own ancient mentor from his time as guardian seeing as Deo has an adorable little white beard. As they discuss how Hawking appears to be wrong that the dingoes were behind the zones' instability, they receive a call from Locke confirming this. As it turns out, the "omega wave" from Robotnik's Ultimate Annihilator is the culprit, causing the barriers between the zones to begin to break down.

Locke's giant infodump up there can be summed up as: Echidnaopolis and the dingoes' city are on a collision course between zones, and only one of the cities can survive once the zones' barriers break down completely. Oh, joy!

Back at base, Knuckles sends Archimedes away to scope out what Remington is up to while he has a catching-up chat with his mother. And oh boy, there's some seriously messed up stuff in that chat…

It's incredibly sad to think of a young Lara-Le, newly married and happy with her husband and newborn (err… new-hatched?) child, thinking she's going to get to raise her child and have a happy family, only for Locke to start being all mysterious and essentially take the child from her forever to do with as he pleases, leaving her bereft and distraught. To be clear, I don't think Locke was just using her as guardian breeding stock or something, but he definitely was more concerned with continuing his bloodline's duties than thinking of the happiness of his wife and child…

Remington returns with news that Hawking may have a viable plan to save the city, but they're interrupted by yet another tremor. The dingoes decide to play a little game called "fake execution with unloaded guns" with their remaining hostages in their city square, which like, damn dude, that's something real-world terrorist organizations do to keep their prisoners compliant. Before the game can go any further than a single round of gun clicks, Knuckles and Julie-Su leap in to the rescue and take out the dingo guards, and the freed hostages begin to lead the two to the head honcho.

However, en route to Stryker's office, Hawking begins to put his plan into action now that the zones are well and truly collapsing, and gets Deo to signal Archimedes.

Knuckles' plan changes from beating Stryker into the ground, to trying to convince him to get his people into bunkers beneath the city to wait out the zone collapse. Stryker decides that he hates Knuckles, however, and starts swinging.

The hostages lead a few dingo soldiers out to find the rest of the captured echidnas while Knuckles and Julie-Su battle it out with Stryker. They manage to bring him down long enough to impress upon him just how super dead his entire race is going to be if he doesn't work with them for the moment, and thus everyone gets to the bunkers in their respective zones, as Hawking uses his own powers along with his invention to bring the barriers down between zones completely.

The rumbling finally dies down, and masses of echidnas suddenly find themselves next to the crowds of dingoes in the same bunker. Knuckles gets between Remington and Stryker before they can start throwing hands, and they exit the bunker to find Echidnaopolis still standing, and evidence that they've landed back on the Floating Island - back in the "real" world.

The dingo city appears to be gone, but the dingoes are now safe within Echidnaopolis along with the city's native inhabitants. Furthermore, Hawking's fate appears to be uncertain after his use of the Hyper Zone Projector to send everyone back. Hawking has left Knuckles with a gift - a cowboy hat, the same one Hawking was seen wearing in the old logs, which Knuckles dons. Guess we'll have to wait till the next arc to find out what will become of the city and all its new inhabitants, cause now we're diving into more adventures on Sonic's side of the story!

A Cozy and Safe Home That Pays Attention to Healthy Body and Spirit: Project by Sergey Makhno Architects

"if you don't listen to the world with an open heart and mind, if you don't pay attention to what's going on around you, what the air smells like, what people say, the world starts dictating its cruel, cruel rules" - the founder and creative leader of ukrainian design, architecture, and ceramics studio, serhii makhno.underground house plan b project's task was to create a cozy and safe home in the depths of the earth. the architectural studio, sergey makhno architects, offer you a short trip to a depth of 15 metres and below. there is an autonomous house, which competes with ground residences in terms of comfort and equipment. from the outside, plan b resembles the entrance to a museum of modern art, or even to a military base. we tried to create a simple and concise form, which in all its perspective would speak of reliability, but also be aesthetically attractive, it would not intimidate and lets you in from both the ground and from the air.the massive concrete structure is equipped with three entrances and a helipad on the roof. it occupies only 172 square meters and can be placed either near the main house or, in our case, somewhere in the woods. the plan b bunker has three exits, and the fire-resistant evacuation "ring" can be reached from almost anywhere. this is done in case of the event of danger inside the bunker, its inhabitants do not spend time getting out (especially given the floor area), but can immediately get to the evacuation route, for example, from the bathroom or gym. of course, all systems in the plan b underground building are autonomous. water supply, sewerage, closed ventilation system with recuperation, intake, and air purification. whatever happens on the earth's surface, life in plan b will continue. the systems will be developed in detail at the project stage together with specialized contractors. at present, we have developed a design proposal for the bunker, our own vision.the main building mass is reinforced concrete, the strongest duo, and the optimal cost. the doors are automatic but have the option of manual control. directly next to the entrance to the bunker, there is a disinfection shield, behind it — a quartz zone. the main spiral staircase and elevator lead to the underground building, as well as two flights of spiral staircases for staff and loading stocks — so the flows are distributed and do not interfere with each other. technological "pie"according to international recommendations, the upper floor is at a depth of 15 metres. penetrating deeper our "pie" has the following layers: a living space, a floor with a water treatment system and generator, a layer of electrical equipment, and at the very bottom — a well. resourcelet's start with the fact that we have arranged a fish pool. in a separate room, there is a garden with phyto-equipment, where you can grow vegetables and some fruits. also on the living floor, there is a large warehouse of food. staff rooms are grouped in a separate area. in the underground building plan b, there is a separate room for medical care, with an isolator and a closed area for storing stocks of medicines. "security comes first. my priority was ensuring comfortable sleep, temperature, quality food, water, and air. the rest is just for comfort," says the studio's chief engineer olha sobchyshyna. apartment with a viewthe project proposal provides comfortable living for two or three families with children and staff with their families. if necessary, the project can be redesigned for a much larger number of people, but at this stage, we are interested in experimenting with the underground space in such a way as to create the illusion of being above the surface — as if you could look out the window and see the blue sky. plan b has two master bedrooms, which consist of a sleeping area, an enclosed storage area for things, and a bathroom. the main task in designing both was to change the awareness of space and its boundaries. master bedroom "mickey"at first glance, these apartments are no different from the terrestrial. a minimalistic and calm space, where a kaws guards your dreams, and above the bed, are the author's khmara clouds from serhii makhno, which never rain. but if you pay attention to the architecture of the design, you will notice the lack of sharp angles — the shape of the room is almost cylindrical. this technique is not often used in terrestrial architecture, but here it immediately helps us to create the illusion of infinity, as if the walls do not exist. opposite the bed, there is a stone garden, which ends with a highly sensitive screen-window, the view of which can be changed at a touch of a button on the control panel of the smart home system — for example, snow-capped mountains or a sleepy morning street in kyiv. moreover, you can "open" the window and feel a light breeze or a smell of freshly cut grass. master bedroom "ivy"again, we do not divide the space by walls in the usual way. between the thematic areas — only weightless partitions, which are as part of a maze that begins far beyond the horizon and ends somewhere on the other side of the world. on a physical level, it feels like there is something behind them, leading into infinity. in this room, for the first time in our project, stainless steel appears. when we thought about which of the materials we would like to take with us underground, this was one of the first. concise, practical, suitable for different types of premises. here it simultaneously divides and connects the wardrobe and the shower room. the second trick we used in this room was a game with several levels of light. the design of the ceiling provides an allusion to a light lantern: in the ceiling, there is a dome with a led-system, which gives the impression that above us there is the floor with windows and in these windows, there is the sky.the space is as empty as possible, it is a place of peace, where there is nothing to be bored with during a long stay in these walls. of the decorations, there is only quiet ivy, which does not need the sun for happiness. "modern people are too accustomed to freedom and lack of restrictions. life in a bunker, even a very comfortable one, is life within frames. we tried to design the space so that people could feel them minimally, ” says a co-author of the project, architect ihor havrylenko. family valuesplaces of common use are as close as possible to how we used to live on earth. here is a large dining table where all inhabitants can gather together. a library where you can stay alone, but where you will not be alone. a cinema with comfortable chairs, powerful acoustics, a 5d system, and a collection of the best films of all time. "we decided to make the kitchen professional — cooking can become a great new hobby. in any case, residents will be here quite often. and in general, i think that stainless steel for kitchen surfaces is a great solution not only for restaurants but also for living spaces," says a co-author of the project, designer oleksandr makhno. the decor here is again a green wall, author's khmara clouds, and chrome tetrapods around the perimeter. "for us, the task was extremely simple and difficult at the same time — to make the bunker a modern, cozy house," says architect oleksandr bokhan. a living room with a large sofa is like a cozy metropolitan apartment. and outside the window, there is a real picture of daylight as it should be on the surface. it is created so that biorhythms do not get lost and there was no substitution of the feeling of day and night. healthy body, healthy spirit, and future the architect's paid a lot of attention to the areas for sports, recreation, and recovery. the physical and spiritual bodies are an integral unit, and when one feels bad, the other cannot feel good. let's start with the pool area. it is separated from the general sports zone by a screen and due to lighting it strongly differs in the mood. there is no daylight in the pool, the main source of light here is greenish lighting at the bottom of the pool. bluish walls, islands of "earth" — it seems like you are swimming in the night sea, not in a soulless sports pool. the area of exercise bikes is filled with the same drive of disco halls: lighting and acoustics are appropriate here. the zone of multifunctional simulators is already a classic gym with daylight and concentration on achieving the set goals.thanks to such solutions, the team created different scenarios, anticipating different moods: from meditatively drifting by in an imaginary sea to a hardcore workout on the back muscles. and once more they meet the rounding of the space, it doubles in the mirrors, the flow of walls into the ceiling — all in order to create a feeling of lightness, infinity. "we sought to create a space in which we would like to live, even when there is no apocalypse. natural materials, the most preserved smells, textures, fibers," comments an architect maryna hrechko. in the center of the cylindrical meditation room, there is a powerful beam of light, which allows you to change the light schemes on the ceiling. it can be a starry sky, rainy sky, or even sunbeams. "for comfort": bike path and walks with a petplan b did not forget about possible pets, equipping a special area for walking dogs. here everything is at a maximum as on the street: wood, stones, grass. the evacuation circle can also serve as a place for long walks and for cycling. sergey makhno's team tried to convey the physical world as much as possible at the expense of materials and simplicity of decisions. and the intangible world — at the expense of architectural techniques, technologies, and human imagination. "this project is a release from emotions, a reflection on the continuation of human life under any circumstances, and an attempt to find an answer to the question of whether architecture can create the impression of life at the surface while being in its depths," sums up serhii makhno. courtesy of: sergey makhno architects | visual design: ihor havrylenko https://bit.ly/3h72WH9

(SF) The Noise

Gilbert continued to try to keep his temper from boiling over. It’s not like he stood much of a chance though without his gear. When the reverberations began he knew that it was only a few moments before he lost his peace. The way that it managed to catch his attention and set off his lizard brain was not lost on his peers. Not much was lost on them these days considering they were mostly forced underground. It seemed to them that it was the only way to avoid losing one’s mind. The ghastly creatures that were once their mentors served as useful reminders to be prepared.

Gilbert strapped on his helmet and earmuffs and began gearing up for his next operation. He knew he only had about 10 minutes to insert his team in the mission zone. That wasn’t much time for him, but he’s managed to cut it closer. He began setting up the explosives he would need to breach the entryway. If this raid was to go off without a hitch, they would have the copper alloy they would need to repair the anti-seize generators that kept his home-bunker safe for him and his team.

Gilbert, by far the youngest at 26, was also the hardiest and managed to make use of the state that he was put into by the Noise. When exposed, he would find himself losing control of his frontal lobe and moving to a much more primal state that made him extremely dangerous, not only to the enemy, but to anybody standing in his way. As such, his team produced him with a special set of earmuffs that couldn’t be taken off without the express wishes of his team. It would also filter out the effects of the Noise such so that he could take advantage of the primal state it put his body in without the mental side effects that twisted so many.

“We’re at the door commander, you ready to be unleashed?”

“Affirmative, please step back once you’ve set the explosive” responded Gilbert whilst tuning his headset to allow in some of the Noise

“Let that bitch loose fam” the demolitions expert

The loud explosion shook the ground and sent dust flying up everywhere. More than enough to shock, confuse, and send the average person flying; it didn’t stop the Commander for a single moment. Flipping up his night vision goggles, he ran in without a care and began taking out anybody who looked like a threat. The first man behind the door mercifully received a .223 round to the head, leaving the rest of the infantrymen for the commander. No matter how much they attempted to fire upon him, the savage state he was in allowed him to work the multiple blindspots left by the inexperienced army men. Winding through the openings, he managed to maul each one worse than the last, leaving every single one of them more damaged and bloody than the last.

“Honestly, I thought they’d provide a little bit more resistance, that was just sad. Are these guys all recruits or something?” The commander spit out as he tore the head off the last member of their squad.

“Looks like they’re all just enlisted men, no officers in the ranks here” piped up John, the demolitions expert

“Yeah, their patches indicate they’re mostly privates and corporals, they’re something wrong about the chatter, we were supposed to face much heavier-” The Intel agent was cut off as his head exploded into a thousand pieces.

“MACHINE GUN, GET DOWN” screamed John as he dove for cover.

The remains of the young men cut down in the Commander’s fervor began melting while releasing fumes. The bodies were infected with the Second Work. A sort of genetic bomb tied to end of their telomerase that would release a biochemical cocktail designed to destroy anybody foolish enough to take on one of their own. It was a defacto suicide vest, guaranteeing the aggressor would die along with the fallen.

“We’re pinned Gillie, and they’ve fucking secc’d themselves. Admit it, we’re focked” screamed John.

“Not for fucking long! Put your masks on” responded Gilbert as he ripped off his headset, exposing himself to the full depth of the Noise. It began to twist his mind further than he was knew was possible, causing him to go into a blind rage. The rage was only a part of the side effects the Commander knew of, as well as the fact that he would never again be the same. His personal experience was always different, never letting him become the man he believed he was truly destined to become.

JOHN

John looked over in horror as his Commander ripped off his headset. Within moments, he started bleeding from every orifice, and he began to recognize that look coming over his face. He couldn’t tell if it was that of a caged animal or beast in heat. Either way, he knew that whatever was coming this time, he didn’t want to be around. The last thing he remembered was the commander throwing a grenade into the M.G. nest, providing him with just enough time to make it to the next room.

In that moment, John remembered his first time watching the Commander transform into the beast he was looking at. John was in the parking lot of the local super store with Gillie when the first towers fell. He couldn’t believe his eyes until the news reports started coming in. He had been checking out his, new to him, noise cancelling headphones in the car; waiting for his yet to be Commander to come out. Gilbert hadn’t been so lucky. He had been held by loss prevention regarding the merchandise him and his associate had stolen from the big box store. When the news reports started rolling in of unfathomable creatures and the Noise that was creating them, it was already too late for the plain-clothes security guard. Gilbert had fully transformed into the creature that would end them.

John still didn’t believe the reports. Regardless, he had to let Gillie know so that they could prepare. He made sure to keep his headphones on just in case the crazy lady on the news network was right. But soon, he would find all the evidence he needed when he walked back in. What he saw he considered the next step in humanity’s devolution. Gilbert had turned into a ghoul like creature, gripping the security guard tightly around the throat and lifting him while stabbing his other hand, which at this point resembled claws and daggers rather than a human hand, through the security guard who was questioning him.

John immediately remembered that the lady recommended noise cancelling headphones to anybody caught outside. He threw the other pair he’d snuck onto his partner’s head, immediately quelling the violent creature. The damage had already been done, as the security guard’s body ceased convulsing.

BACK TO PRESENT

Gilbert’s rampages have always been unpredictable, but even that wouldn’t prepare John for the unceasing destruction that Gillie would release on the machine gunner, literally shredding him with his razor sharp claws. Remembering his instructions, John immediately pulled on his mask, angry with the privates for allowing their superiors to insert the Second Work into their bodies. He knew that only the truly evil and desperate would do this. He began to wonder what they were truly protecting behind their vaults. Copper was valuable in the new world, but it was not anywhere near valuable enough to put two dozen troops and a machine gun nest there to protect. There was something nefarious in the air, and it wasn’t just the noxious gas being let off by the corpses. There was a much bigger score to walk away with…if they made it.

Finding a new way in wasn’t possible at this point. Their intelligence officer was dead and the team was separated. Not knowing if they’d survive, their only option was to push forward and hopefully see this mission to the end.

John’s vision was hindered by the gas mask. The filter was standard B. He made sure of it. It’s become a necessity in the world post-Incident. He ran for the next door after taking a key card from one of the Privates’ bodies. He swiped the keycard and the machine beeped and the light flashed green. He got into what looked like their armory. The room was lit by a couple fluorescent tubes. He grabbed ammo for his rifle and some grenades as the shots began to die down. He looked over through the reinforced glass at his commander. Gilbert had what looked like the enemies commanding officer by the throat. John looked away and proceeded to the next room.

The storage room was what they had come for. He grabbed the copper and began loading it into his tactical duffel. He grabbed what they had come for. The next room was tempting, but he made a note of it and left to get reinforcements. He knew they had come across the score. Backup was only a few minutes away and his Captain had eviscerated the enemy combatants.

He knew that they had plenty of time to come back for the rest. The less he considered his mind a violent action the less he had to lose. That moment John started to sense Euphoria; his eyes losing their ability to track for a moment. He knew his headphones were leaking in the noise. This is precisely why they needed the copper. It was almost more valuable than gold to the new world. Everything from bullets, pipes for drinking water, and their technology utilized copper. Steel still held everything together.

In the early turn of the century the world began to move away from conventional energy sources realizing the dangerous disadvantages. People were tired of the war and poverty. They began to revolt all over the world. As this occurred, a collective amongst the Parliament realized that this would cut short their runway to gaining political capital along with the power they’ve long lorded. The shift to more renewable energy sources created opportunities of economic justice for the downtrodden. They saw that this would see them out of the political system forever. They would lose all their bases.

The emotional and physical effects of music have been well recorded. This led them to listen to the noise that they once heard in their mind, collectively finding all of the sounds that fucked with a person to the core. Their search found a few things.

The sounds of infants and children crying.

The final sounds of a body perishing.

It didn’t take them longer than a few months before they found the recordings from a Nazi death camp. Not much longer after that they realized they couldn’t play it on any modern electronic stereo. It would literally self-destruct any stereo, microphone, or medium it was played back on. Through shear effort, they managed to make a digital recording and began to analyze what was stored on it. They heard and managed to pick out nothing but despair. The auditory feedback in initial test subjects led themselves to kill themselves using any means in their vicinity. For some that meant a pencil in the eye, for others it meant a long fall to their hopeful death, and for many more it was a swift knife across the throat. They managed to filter out some of the sounds using modern technology available and reduced the side effects to blind rage. In some instances it simply caused the intended target to lose consciousness immediately. This was going to be a successful tool of war for them.

Before long, they steadily began pumping out the vitriol soaked sound-waves across the streets. At first it was isolated incidents; one man chewing another man’s face off was written off as drugs. The next was written off due to a history of mental health episodes. It was too late for most of the public by the time they began to stockpile supplies necessary to counter the noise. The intranet made it possible for some people to get schematics for anti-noise generators. They built this within their homes and safehouses. Some preppers defended their homes from the corporate walruses using home-made radio-jamming and electromagnetic pulse grenades. The corporates countered this by becoming almost guerilla in their deployment of the Noise generators.

John had blacked out from the noise. His headset was working; again filtering out the noise. He stood up, wondering how long he had been out. He noticed that his men were filing out of the other room. They began to voice some serious objections to the brutality they had just witnessed. They hadn’t understood how serious their confrontation with the enemy had been. He wondered again how long they had been here

“How long have yall been here?” He asked

“Just a few minutes, we just got the ANGs going. We’re working on recovering our casualties sir. The commander is in rough shape, but we think he’ll pull through” Replied the fresh eyed cadet.

That explained why he had just woken up.

“has the rest of this place been cleared?” he asked

“Yes sir, and that’s the strange thing I was going to mention. It doesn’t look like anybody's been here for months at least sir. If I was a betting man, I’d say that it was probably closer to a few years.”

“The resistance we faced would make that unlikely Cadet. They had machineguns and if you can tell, they’d been secc’d. And they’re not much older than you. They were desperate.”

“Whatever they’d been protecting was probably worth it sir.”

“You can say that again” scoffed John.

John watched as Gilbert was loaded into a medical van. He didn’t have anything to say to him yet. It wasn’t as if he was in a condition to hear what he had to say.

submitted by /u/FattyDoo [link] [comments] via Blogger https://ift.tt/2QTR13Q

What Is Firefighter Turnout Gear?

Whether you use the term bunker gear, PPE or turnout gear a lot of aspiring firefighters are left wondering what is firefighter turnout gear?  It’s a good question because it is arguably the most important piece(s) of equipment you will have. 

As a firefighter, you need all the protection you can get, and your turnout gear plays a vital role in protecting you against all the dangers of fire, smoke, cancer causing agents and other harmful materials.

Turnout gear has been around for the past hundred years or so.

Of course, a lot of improvements have taken place, and there is currently a broad range of full turnout gear in the United States and across the globe. But, what are different pieces fire protective equipment that make up a firefighter’s turnout gear?

So, what is firefighter turnout gear?

Today’s turnout gear is made of fire-resistant fabrics that mainly consist of Nomex and Kevlar. Generally, turnout gear may constitute a combination of hood, gloves, suspenders, trousers, boots, helmet and jacket.

Modern sets of gear typically use the jacket/trouser/helmet combination. Nomex fiber typically carbonizes and thickens when subjected to intense heat.

This helps to increase the protective barrier between the firefighter and the source of heat, helping to minimize burn injuries.

Nomex is also flame-resistant, flexible and tough. On the other hand, Kevlar is extremely strong, thermally protective, comfortable and highly lightweight.

When these two materials are used together, the result is superb thermal protection, durability, and unmatched strength.

It is imperative to note that the United States follows the NFPA 1975, which offers standard guidelines on work uniforms for firefighters.

Following this regulation, all turnout gear should feature three components including, an outer cover or shell, a moisture barrier as well as a thermal barrier.

Between these three layers there exist pockets of air usually referred to as dead zones. Together with the three layers of protection, the dead zones help to further insulate the firefighter from the extreme dangers of fire.

You’ll always find turnout pants outfitted with leather cuffs and reinforced knees. As we previously mentioned, the materials used for the three layers in firefighter suits may vary but will usually include the Kevlar/Nomex combination of material.

Fire Helmets:

Previously, the fire helmet’s primary function was to shed water.

However, thanks to the advancements in technology, today’s fire helmets are specifically designed to offer protection to the fireman’s head against the falling debris.

The secondary job of the helmet is to offer protection against heat. Generally, it offers a hard shell, heat, electrical and steam burn protection and equally shields the eye from the various elements of fire and debris.

It should be noted that helmets are made from various types of materials including plastic and carbon fiber for a comfortable and lightweight design, non-conductive materials to offer protection against electrical currents and a Kevlar layer for protection and strength.

The helmet designs usually vary slightly by manufacturer. You’ll find that some helmets feature a faceguard to protect you from dust, heat, debris, and water, especially when you are working on an extraction call.

It’s important to note that when helmets are not able to offer built-in protection for firefighter’s neck, ears as well as part of your face, firefighters also use firefighting protective hood. These flash hoods are usually made from Nomex Knit fabric.

Bunker pants:

These are important gear and will protect you from heat and steam burns.

The latest technology has made them relatively lighter and certain fire pants feature a built-in harness system that helps to eliminate the need for extra hardware.

They feature uniquely reinforced knees and form inserts to help you crawl freely without the fear of injury and burns.

Other notable features that help make this type of protective equipment more effective and comfortable include ripcord suspenders, gusseted cargo pockets, zippered pant legs and perhaps stretch waistbands.

Firefighter boots:

These are equally essential protective gear and are usually made of leather or rubber with a steel toe insert.

Firefighter boots are intended to protect your feet against puncture wounds, fire and water damages. They are mostly made of leather, which is a fire-resistant material. The boots also feature removable washable foot beds, reflective material to enhance visibility.

We wrote a review on the best station boots for firefighters which can be found by clicking the link.

Turnout coat:

This is the largest and arguably the most important item in your safety wardrobe as a fireman.

Extra-large jackets enable firemen to carry equipment and tools, whereas the reflective safety stripes on these jackets ensure that firemen remain visible to each other even when performing their duties.

Firefighter turnout jackets usually are sewn with unique items to make them suitable for the job.

For instance, they feature special wrist guards to help protect your exposed skin between the edge of the glove and the sleeve. They are designed to prevent wrist burns, while at the same time remaining flexible and preventing bunching.

Also, the collars feature a special stitching technique to ensure that the collar remains up at all times to protect your throat and the back of the neck against potential dangers.

The back and chest parts of the jacket are fitted with a special insulation to help protect you from burns. Firefighter jackets usually are made from Kevlar and Nomex materials.

Firefighting Gloves:

As a firefighter, gloves will be an important part of your turnout gear. This is because you will be constantly using your hands to rescue people out of fires, move and lift items that have caught fire or are smoldering.

What’s more, the chances of coming into contact with potentially harmful substances are also higher and this is why you must protect your hands.

As a firefighter, you will always have to respond to other emergencies other than fire incidences. Other emergencies that you may have to contend with include car accidents, hazardous material spills, riots, and perhaps marine accidents and many more.

This means that the type of gloves you’ll need will likely depend upon the emergency at hand.

Additional fire safety gear you may need could include items such as goggles, backpacks, masks and oxygen tanks, hazmat suits and flashlights.

A brief history of firefighter turnout gear

As I’m sure you already know firefighters are professionals who risk their own lives to protect citizens and property from fire.

Fires are known to destroy billions of dollars’ worth of private and public property every year. This obviously implies that firefighting, as a profession, is an incredibly dangerous occupation.

In addition to combating actual fires, firemen must also contend with water, smoke, hot embers, collapsing floors and falling objects.

Firefighters perform their tasks under stressful time constraints, considering that they only have a few minutes or perhaps seconds to safely evacuate occupants out of burning buildings.

Historically, firemen didn’t have the same level of fire gear used today. For this reason, most fires used to be fought only from the outside of structures, which were rarely ever entered.

The main purpose of these old firefighter protective equipment was to provide warmth and dryness as opposed to offering protection against fire and its components.

During the nineteenth century, felt caps were put on and were more of a decorative purpose than for protection. This type of fire gear never offered any form of protection against heat even though it did prevent water from affecting the firemen’s faces.

Over the years, the overall design, as well as the functionality of turnout gear for firefighters, has undergone a lot of positive transformations, and we now have highly effective equipment that not only offer the much-needed comfort during tough fire rescue operations, but have equally made it very feasible to enter a burning building.

The post What Is Firefighter Turnout Gear? appeared first on FirefighterNOW.

from FirefighterNOW https://firefighternow.com/what-is-firefighter-turnout-gear/

From https://catherinelee4.blogspot.com/2019/10/what-is-firefighter-turnout-gear.html

source https://catherinelee4.wordpress.com/2019/10/16/what-is-firefighter-turnout-gear/

via Blogger http://pppearlyn.blogspot.com/2019/10/what-is-firefighter-turnout-gear.html