title: A Werewolf Boy

text: After director Jo Sung-hee revealed during one of the film's Q&A sessions that they had shot an alternate ending, due to popular demand, the movie was re-released on December 6, 2012 with that ending. The alternate finale involves Park Bo-young's Sun-yi, and among the deleted scenes are moments from Ji-tae's (Yoo Yeon-seok) childhood as well as more focus on the neighborhood in which the plot unfolds.


Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) is a partially state-owned publicly-listed Chinese pure-play semiconductor foundry company. It is the largest contract chip maker in mainland China.


title: Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation

text: SMIC is headquartered in Shanghai and incorporated in the Cayman Islands. It has wafer fabrication sites throughout mainland China, offices in the United States, Italy, Japan, and Taiwan, and a representative office in Hong Kong. It provides integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing services from 350 nm to 7 nm process technologies. State-owned civilian and military telecommunications equipment provider Datang Telecom Group as well as the China National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund are major shareholders of SMIC.


text: SMIC was founded on April 3, 2000, and is headquartered in Shanghai. It was incorporated in the Cayman Islands as a limited liability company. It quickly built a fully-owned plant in Shanghai, acquired a Motorola plant in Tianjin, and then began to build a fully-owned plant in Beijing. SMIC also became involved in two projects in Chengdu and Wuhan, which reversed a common pattern in Chinese development of government building, operating, then transferring industrial projects, such that SMIC operated the company, but the capital costs were borne by municipal government, relieving SMIC of the major cost of its fab plants. SMIC however, exited the relationship with these two 'Reverse BOT' projects in favor of fully-owned and majority-owned manufacturing sites. In 2013, SMIC established a joint venture in Beijing to fabricate using 40 nm and below technologies.


text: On December 22, 2014, SilTech Shanghai, one of SMIC's indirectly wholly owned subsidiaries; JCET; and China IC Fund entered into a co-investment agreement to form a consortium regarding the proposed acquisition of STATS ChipPAC, a provider of advanced semiconductor packaging and test services incorporated in Singapore, shares of which were listed on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited before the acquisition. On June 18, 2015, according to the co-investment agreement, SilTech Shanghai invested US$102 million as a capital contribution for 19.6% ownership interest in Changjiang Xinke, a company incorporated in Jiangsu province, China, which is accounted as an associate of the Group.


text: On June 23, 2015, Huawei, Qualcomm Global Trading Pte. Ltd., IMEC International, and SMIC announced the formation of the SMIC Advanced Technology Research & Development (Shanghai) Corporation, an equity joint venture company. The joint venture company's focus was to be the R&D for the next generation CMOS logic technology and was designed to build China's most advanced integrated circuit (IC) development R&D platform. SMIC Advanced Technology R&D (Shanghai) Corporation is majority owned by SMIC, while Huawei, IMEC, and Qualcomm are minority shareholders. The focus of the joint venture company is on developing 14 nm logic technology.


text: On June 24, 2016, SMIC. LFoundry Europe and Marsica entered into a sale and purchase agreement pursuant to which LFoundry Europe and Marsica agreed to sell and SMIC agreed to purchase 70% of the corporate capital of LFoundry S.r.l. for an aggregate cash consideration of EUR49 million subject to adjustment. The acquisition was completed as of July 29, 2016.


text: On October 14, 2016, Ningbo Semiconductor International Corporation was jointly established by China IC Capital (the wholly owned investment fund of SMIC), Ningbo Senson Electronics Technology Co., Ltd, and Beijing Integrated Circuit Design and Testing Fund with a registered capital of RMB355 million, equal to US$52.8 million. SMIC holds 66.76% of the ownership interest. NSI will develop analog and specialty semiconductor process technology platforms in the areas of high-voltage analog, radio frequency, and optoelectronics. These developments will support customers in IC design and product development for applications in smart home, industrial, and automotive electronics, new generations of radio communications, augmented reality, virtual reality, mixed reality, and other specialty systems.


text: In 2018, SMIC had gross profits of $747 million and net profits of $149, with $3.6 billion in revenues. It apparently spend around $550 million on research and development, or about 16 percent of sales. On May 18, 2018, ground was broken on the manufacturing base for SMIC in Shaoxing. SMIC was building a plant that would be the first in China to use 14-nanometer production technology. The company said it would increase its investment capacity by 20% in February 2019.


text: Current co-CEOs are Zhao Haijun and Mong Song Liang. Zixue Zhou serves as chairman of the board. In May 2019, it was said that SMIC's co-chiefs, Zhao Haijun and Liang Mong-song were at odds over how to focus the company.


text: On May 24, 2019, SMIC announced it would voluntarily delist from the Nasdaq, citing low trade volumes. Along with low US trading volumes, the company named the high administrative cost of maintaining the NYSE listing.; it joined the exchange 14 years before. On May 25, 2019, it announced it would also delist from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) following Huawei blacklisting by the United States government amid the China–United States Trade War.


text: As of June 2019, SMIC instead became available for over-the-counter trading by American investors via the OTC Markets Group OTCQX Best Market under the stock symbol "SMICY".


text: In May 2020, in support of the country's Made in China 2025 program; the China National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund and the Shanghai Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund invested a combined US$2 billion, gaining, respectively, 23.08% and 11.54% ownership of SMIC. In July 2020 SMIC issued 1,685,620,000 shares at 27.46 yuan per share on the STAR Market of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, raising 46.28 billion yuan ($6.62 billion).


text: The company was the target of a lawsuit brought by TSMC, accusing SMIC of misappropriating TSMC intellectual property. The first round of litigation ended in 2005 with a $175 million settlement. A second round was opened in 2006. The liability phase of the lawsuit began on September 9, 2009, in Oakland, California, and the jury found SMIC liable on 61 out of 65 claims.


text: SMIC entered into a settlement agreement with TSMC to resolve all pending lawsuits between the parties, including the legal action filed by TSMC in California for which a verdict was returned by the jury against SMIC on November 4, 2009, and the legal action filed by SMIC in Beijing. SMIC and TSMC have entered into a settlement agreement on November 9, 2009, to settle and dismiss the California case, including all claims and defenses of SMIC yet to be decided in that case and SMIC's appeal in the Beijing case, thus concluding all pending court litigation between the parties.


text: Key provisions of the settlement include a mutual release of all claims that were or could have been brought in the pending lawsuits; termination of SMIC's obligation to make remaining payments under the prior settlement agreement between the parties (approximately US$40 million); payment to TSMC of an aggregate of US$200 million; and a grant to TSMC of approximately 8% of SMIC's issued share capital and a warrant which would allow TSMC to obtain total ownership of approximately 10% of SMIC's issued share capital.


text: In September 2020, the United States Department of Commerce declared SMIC a military end-user and required that American technology companies dealing with it obtain a license. The action elicited a rebuke from China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian.


text: On 4 October 2020, SMIC stated that the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security had informed some of SMIC's suppliers that according to U.S. export control regulations they must apply for an export license in advance before supplying SMIC with some American equipment, accessories and original products. In December 2020, the United States Department of Defense named SMIC as a company "owned or controlled" by the People's Liberation Army and thereby prohibited any American company or individual from investing in it.


text: In December 2020, the United States Department of Commerce added SMIC to the Bureau of Industry and Security's Entity List.


text: N+1 is the follow-on to SMIC's 14 nm process, and is targeted for inexpensive chips. The modest improvements put N+1 capabilities between 14 nm and 7 nm. According to analysts, N+1 is equivalent to Samsung's 8 nm, which is slightly better than TSMC's 10 nm. Risk production is planned to begin in the fourth quarter of 2020.


text: SMIC ordered an EUV step-and-scan system from ASML Holding for $120 million in 2018. The order was blocked after the US government lobbied ASML and the government of the Netherlands.


text: In 2022, TechInsights founds SMIC has started shipping 7nm chips silently since a year before, and the U.S. wants to stop selling the rest sub-14nm fabrication tools and advanced EUV technology to China. Lam Research, KLA said they had been notified, but Applied Materials, ASML and Tokyo Electron has not received any request yet. They also expressed concern about the newest tech curbs on China, only from COVID-related Shanghai lockdown, Tokyo Electron recording a 17% drop, at 117.5 billion yen.


title: Pit latrine

text: A pit latrine, also known as pit toilet, is a type of toilet that collects human feces in a hole in the ground. Urine and feces enter the pit through a drop hole in the floor, which might be connected to a toilet seat or squatting pan for user comfort. Pit latrines can be built to function without water (dry toilet) or they can have a water seal (pour-flush pit latrine). When properly built and maintained, pit latrines can decrease the spread of disease by reducing the amount of human feces in the environment from open defecation. This decreases the transfer of pathogens between feces and food by flies. These pathogens are major causes of infectious diarrhea and intestinal worm infections. Infectious diarrhea resulted in about 700,000 deaths in children under five years old in 2011 and 250 million lost school days. Pit latrines are a low-cost method of separating feces from people.


title: Pit latrine

text: A pit latrine generally consists of three major parts: a hole in the ground, a concrete slab or floor with a small hole, and a shelter. The shelter is also called an outhouse. The pit is typically at least deep and across. The hole in the slab should not be larger than to prevent children falling in. Light should be prevented from entering the pit to reduce access by flies. This may require the use of a lid to cover the hole in the floor when not in use. The World Health Organization recommends the pits are built a reasonable distance from the house, balancing issues of easy access versus that of smell. The distance from water wells and surface water should be at least to decrease the risk of groundwater pollution. When the pit fills to within of the top, it should be either emptied or a new pit constructed and the shelter moved or re-built at the new location. Fecal sludge management involves emptying pits as well as transporting, treating and using the collected fecal sludge. If this is not carried out properly, water pollution and public health risks can occur.


title: Pit latrine

text: A basic pit latrine can be improved in a number of ways. One includes adding a ventilation pipe from the pit to above the structure. This improves airflow and decreases the smell of the toilet. It also can reduce flies when the top of the pipe is covered with mesh (usually made out of fiberglass). In these types of toilets a lid need not be used to cover the hole in the floor. Other possible improvements include a floor constructed so fluid drains into the hole and a reinforcement of the upper part of the pit with bricks, blocks, or cement rings to improve stability. In developing countries the cost of a simple pit toilet is typically between US$25 and $60. Recurring expenditure costs are between US$1.5 and $4 per person per year for a traditional pit latrine, and up to three times higher for a pour flush pit latrine (without the costs of emptying).


title: Pit latrine

text: As of 2013 pit latrines are used by an estimated 1.77 billion people, mostly in developing countries. About 892 million people (12 percent of the global population) practiced open defecation in 2016, mostly because they have no toilets. Southern Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa have the lowest access to toilets. The Indian government has been running a campaign called "Swachh Bharat Abhiyan" (Clean India Mission in English) since 2014 in order to eliminate open defecation by convincing people in rural areas to purchase, construct and use toilets, mainly pit latrines. As a result, sanitation coverage in India has increased from just 39% in October 2014 to almost 98% in 2019. It is estimated that 85 million pit latrines have been built due to that campaign as of 2018. Another example from India is the "No Toilet, No Bride" campaign which promotes toilet uptake by encouraging women to refuse to marry men who do not own a toilet.


title: Pit latrine

text: Depending on the region, the term "pit latrine" may be used to denote a toilet that has a squatting pan with a water seal or siphon (more accurately termed a pour-flush pit latrine – very common in South East Asia for example) or simply a hole in the ground without a water seal (also called a simple pit latrine) – the common type in most countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Whilst a dry toilet can be with or without urine diversion, a pit latrine is almost always without urine diversion. The key characteristic of a pit latrine is the use of a pit, which infiltrates liquids into the ground and acts as a device for storage and very limited treatment.


title: Pit latrine

text: Pit latrines are sometimes also referred to as "dry toilets". However, some pit latrines do use water for flushing and are therefore not a "dry toilet". Dry toilets is an overarching term used for several types of toilets, and only refers to the type of user interface, not the storage or treatment part.


title: Pit latrine

text: A pit latrine may or may not count towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) target of increasing access to sanitation for the world's population, depending on the type of pit latrine: A pit latrine without a slab is regarded as unimproved sanitation and does not count towards the target. A pit latrine with a slab, a ventilated improved pit latrine and a pour flush pit latrine connected to a pit or septic tank are counted as being "improved sanitation" facilities as they are more likely to hygienically separate human excreta from human contact.


title: Pit latrine

text: The user positions themself over the small drop hole during use. The size of the feces drop hole in the floor or slab should not be larger than to prevent children falling in. Light should be prevented from entering the pit to reduce access by flies.


title: Pit latrine

text: A lid on the drop hole keeps light out of the pit and helps to stop flies and odors entering the toilet's superstructure. The lid can be made from plastic or wood and is used to cover the hole in the floor when the pit latrine is not in use. In practice, such a lid is not commonly used for squatting type pit latrines but only for sitting type pit latrines with a toilet seat.


title: Pit latrine

text: On top of the drop hole there can either be nothing (this is the simplest form of a pit latrine) or there can be a squatting pan, seat (pedestal) or bench which can be made of concrete, ceramic, plastic or wood.


title: Pit latrine

text: A shelter, shed, small building or "super-structure" houses the squatting pan or toilet seat and provides privacy and protection from the weather for the user. Ideally, the shelter or small building should have handwashing facilities available inside or on the outside (e.g. supplied with water from a rainwater harvesting tank on the roof of the shelter) although this is unfortunately rarely the case in practice. In the shelter, anal cleansing materials (e.g. toilet paper) and a solid waste bin should also be available. A more substantial structure may also be built, commonly known as an outhouse.


title: Pit latrine

text: Liquids leach from the pit and pass the unsaturated soil zone (which is not completely filled with water). Subsequently, these liquids from the pit enter the groundwater where they may lead to groundwater pollution. This is a problem if a nearby water well is used to supply groundwater for drinking water purposes. During the passage in the soil, pathogens can die off or be absorbed significantly, mostly depending on the travel time between the pit and the well. Most, but not all pathogens die within 50 days of travel through the subsurface.


title: Pit latrine

text: The degree of pathogen removal strongly varies with soil type, aquifer type, distance and other environmental factors. For this reason, it is difficult to estimate the safe distance between a pit and a water source – a problem that also applies to septic tanks. Detailed guidelines have been developed to estimate safe distances to protect groundwater sources from pollution from on-site sanitation. However, these are mostly ignored by those building pit latrines. In addition to that, household plots are of a limited size and therefore pit latrines are often built much closer to groundwater wells than what can be regarded as safe. This results in groundwater pollution and household members falling sick when using this groundwater as a source of drinking water.


title: Pit latrine

text: As a very general guideline it is recommended that the bottom of the pit should be at least 2 metres (6') above groundwater level, and a minimum horizontal distance of 30 metres (yards) between a pit and a water source is normally recommended to limit exposure to microbial contamination.However, no general statement should be made regarding the minimum lateral separation distances required to prevent contamination of a well from a pit latrine. For example, even 50 metres (yards) lateral separation distance might not be sufficient in a strongly karstified system with a downgradient supply well or spring, while 10 metres (yards) lateral separation distance is completely sufficient if there is a well developed clay cover layer and the annular space of the groundwater well is well sealed.


title: Pit latrine

text: If the local hydrogeological conditions (which can vary within a space of a few square kilometres; a square mile or two) are ignored, pit latrines can cause significant public health risks via contaminated groundwater. In addition to the issue of pathogens, there is also the issue of nitrate pollution in groundwater from pit latrines. Elevated nitrate levels in drinking water from private wells is thought to have caused cases of blue baby syndrome in children in rural areas of Romania and Bulgaria in Eastern Europe.


title: Pit latrine

text: A "partially lined" pit latrine is one where the upper part of the hole in the ground is lined. Pit lining materials can include brick, rot-resistant timber, concrete, stones, or mortar plastered onto the soil. This partial lining is recommended for those pit latrine used by a great number of people — such as a public restroom in rural areas, or in a woodland park or busy lay-by, rest stop or other similarly busy location — or where the soils are unstable in order to increase permanence and allow emptying of the pit without it collapsing easily. The bottom of the pit should remain unlined to allow for the infiltration of liquids out of the pit.


title: Pit latrine

text: A fully lined pit latrine has concrete lining also at the base so that no liquids infiltrate into the ground. One could argue that this is no longer a "pit" latrine in the stricter sense. The advantage is that no groundwater contamination can occur. The major disadvantage is that a fully lined pit latrine fills up very fast (as the urine cannot escape the pit) which results in high costs to empty and maintain the latrine. Increased odour can also be an issue as the pit content is much wetter and emits more odour. This type of pit latrine is used only in special circumstances, e.g. in denser settlements where groundwater protection is paramount.


title: Pit latrine

text: Pit latrines are often built in developing countries even in situations where they are not recommended. These include (adapted from):


title: Pit latrine

text: In conditions where pit latrines are not suitable for the above-mentioned reasons, the installations of other types of toilets should be considered, e.g. the urine-diverting dry toilet (UDDT).


title: Pit latrine

text: Pit latrines collect human feces in a hole in the ground. The principle of a pit latrine is that all liquids that enter the pitin particular urine and water used for anal cleansingseep into the ground (the only exception are fully lined pit latrines, see below).


title: Pit latrine

text: The ventilated improved pit latrine (VIP) is a pit latrine with a black pipe (vent pipe) fitted to the pit and a screen (flyscreen) at the top outlet of the pipe. VIP latrines are an improvement to overcome the disadvantages of simple pit latrines, e.g. fly and mosquito nuisance and unpleasant odors. The smell is carried upwards by the chimney effect and flies are prevented from leaving the pit and spreading disease. Despite their simplicity, well-designed single VIPs can be completely smell free, and more pleasant to use than some other water-based technologies. Flies that hatch in the pit are attracted to the light at the top of the ventilation pipe. When they fly towards the light and try to escape, they are trapped by the flyscreen and die. The ventilation also allows odours to escape and minimizes the attraction for flies.


title: Pit latrine

text: The principal mechanism of ventilation in VIP latrines is the action of wind blowing across the top of the vent pipe. The wind creates a strong circulation of air through the superstructure, down through the squat hole, across the pit and up and out of the vent pipe. Unpleasant fecal odors from the pit contents are thus sucked up and exhausted out of vent pipe, leaving the superstructure odor-free. In some cases solar-powered fans are added giving a constant outwards flow from the vent pipe.


title: Pit latrine

text: Flies searching for an egg-laying site are attracted by fecal odors coming from the vent pipe, but they are prevented from entering by the flyscreen at the outlet of the vent pipe. Some flies may enter into the pit via the squat hole and lay their eggs there. When new adult flies emerge, they instinctively fly towards light. However, if the latrine is dark inside, the only light they can see is at the top of the vent pipe. Since the vent pipe is covered by a fly screen at the top, flies will not be able to escape and eventually will die and fall back into the pit.


title: Pit latrine

text: To ensure that there is a flow of air through the latrine, there must be adequate ventilation of the superstructure. This is usually achieved by leaving openings above and below the door, or by constructing a spiral wall without a door.


title: Pit latrine

text: Covering the feces with an absorbent decreases smell and discourages flies. These may include soil, sawdust, ash, or lime, among others. In developing countries, the use of absorbents in pit toilets is not commonly practiced.


title: Pit latrine

text: The vent pipe should have an internal diameter of at least 110 mm (4¼") and reach more than 300 mm (12") above the highest point of the toilet superstructure. Wind passing over the top creates a suction pressure within the vent pipe and induces an air circulation. Air is drawn through the User Interface into the pit, moves up inside the vent pipe and escapes into the atmosphere. Care should be taken that objects, such as trees or houses, do not interfere with the air stream. The vent works best in windy areas, but where there is little wind, its effectiveness can be improved by painting the pipe black. The heat difference between the pit (cool) and the vent (warm) creates an updraft that pulls the air and odours up and out of the pit. To test the efficacy of the ventilation, a lit cigarette can be held over the User Interface; the smoke should be pulled down into the pit and up into the vent and not remain in the superstructure. The mesh size of the fly screen must be large enough to prevent clogging with dust and allow air to circulate freely. Aluminium screens, with a hole-size of 1.2 to 1.5 mm (approx. 1/20"), have proven to be the most effective. Typically, the pit is at least 3 metres (10') deep and 1 to 1.5 metres (3' to 5') in diameter, depending on the number of users. Deep pits can last up to 20 or more years.


title: Pit latrine

text: As liquid leaches from the pit and migrates through the unsaturated soil matrix, pathogenic germs are sorbed to the soil surface. In this way, pathogens can be removed prior to contact with groundwater. The degree of removal varies with soil type, distance travelled, moisture and other environmental factors and, thus, it is difficult to estimate the distance necessary between a pit and a water source. A minimum horizontal distance of 30 metres (100') between a pit and a water source and 2 metres (6') between the bottom of the pit and the groundwater table is normally recommended to limit exposure to microbial contamination.


title: Pit latrine

text: A further improvement is the use of a second pit which is used in alternation with the first pit. It means that the first pit can rest for the duration of time it takes to fill up the second pit. When the second pit is also full, then the first pit is emptied. The fecal sludge collected in that first pit has in the meantime undergone some degree of pathogen reduction although this is unlikely to be complete. This is a common design for so-called twin-pit pour flush toilets and increases the safety for those having to enter the pit. Also VIP latrines are sometimes built with two pits, although for VIP toilets one problem can be that the users may not stick to this alternation method and fill up both pits at the same time.


title: Pit latrine

text: The pits are of an adequate size to accommodate a volume of waste generated over one or two years. This allows the contents of the full pit enough time to transform into a partially sanitized, soil-like material that can be manually excavated. Twin pits are constructed 1 metre (3') apart from each other to minimize cross-contamination between the maturing pit and the one in use. Also pits are constructed over 1 metre (3') from any structural foundation as leachate can negatively impact structural supports. Water within the pit can impact its stability. Therefore, the full depth of the pit walls are lined to prevent collapse and the top 30 cm (12") are fully mortared to prevent direct infiltration and to support the superstructure.


title: Pit latrine

text: There is a risk of groundwater pollution when pits are located in areas with a high or variable water table, and/or fissures or cracks in the bedrock. As soil and groundwater properties are often unknown, it is difficult to estimate the distance necessary between a pit and a water source. It is normally recommended to have a minimum horizontal distance of 30 metres (yards) between them to limit exposing the water source to microbial contamination. To ensure that only one of the two pits is used at any time, the idle pipe of the junction connecting to the out -of- use pit is closed (e.g. with cement or bricks).


title: Pit latrine

text: Twin Pit Toilets are commonly used in rural India. the Government's Swachh bharat Mission primarily used Twin pit toilets since they were easier and safer to remove and clean. Once removed the waste is used as manure to grow crops


title: Pit latrine

text: In a pour-flush pit latrine, a squatting or pedestal toilet with a water seal (U-trap or siphon) is used over one or two offset pits. Therefore, these types of toilets do require water for flushing but otherwise have many of the same characteristics as simple pit latrines. About one to three liters (quarts) of water is used per flush in that case, and they often have two pits that are used one after the other ("twin pit pour flush pit latrine"). For this reason they are subsumed under the term "pit latrine". The fecal sludge that is removed from the full pits of twin-pit pour-flush pit latrines is somewhat safer to handle and reuse than the fecal sludge from single pit pour-flush latrines. However, significant health risks for the workers who are emptying the pits remain in either case.


title: Pit latrine

text: An alternative to U-trap or siphon designs is to incorporate a counter-weighted trap door mechanism that provides an air-tight water seal in the closed position. Addition of a small amount of water (generally less than 500 ml; 1 pint) overcomes the counterweight and allows the fecal matter to enter the pit. The devices are sold under the name of "SaTo pan" for as little as US$1.85, and more than 800,000 of them have been installed worldwide since introduction in 2013.


title: Pit latrine

text: A cat hole is a one-time-use pit toilet often utilized by campers, hikers and other outdoor recreationalists. Also referred to as the "cat method," it is formed by simply digging a hole in the ground just large enough to hold the feces from one defecation event. After use, the hole is refilled with the soil that was dug out.


title: Pit latrine

text: The requirements for safe pit emptying and fecal sludge management are often forgotten by those building pit latrines, as the pit will only fill up in a few years time. However, in many developing countries safe fecal sludge management practices are lacking and causing public health risks as well as environmental pollution.


title: Pit latrine

text: When the pit is full, the toilet is no longer usable. The time it takes to fill the pit depends on its volume, the number of users, the soil permeability and groundwater level. It can typically take between one and ten years or even longer in some exceptional cases. At that point, the pit can be covered and abandoned, and a new pit latrine built if space on the property permits this. The new pit latrine may reuse the shelter (superstructure) if the shelter can be moved without collapsing.


title: Pit latrine

text: In peri-urban or urban areas, full pits are not abandoned but rather emptied by sanitation workers or the household members themselves so that the toilets can continue to be used at the same location after the emptying has taken place. The emptying can be done manually with shovels and buckets, with manually powered pumps or with motorized pumps mounted on a vacuum truck which carries a tank for storage. For the fecal sludge to be pumpable, water usually needs to be added to the pit and the content stirred up, which is messy and smelly.


title: Pit latrine

text: Procedures for safe emptying of fecal sludge from pit latrines is a priority for many developing countries where many new pit latrines have been built in rural areas in recent years, such as in Bangladesh.


title: Pit latrine

text: Fecal sludge that has been removed from pits manually or with vacuum tankers is often dumped into the environment indiscriminately, leading to what has been called "institutionalized open defecation".


title: Pit latrine

text: The fecal sludge may be transported by road to a sewage treatment facility, or to be composted elsewhere. There are numerous licensed waste hauling companies providing such service in areas where it is needed in developed countries, although in developing countries such services are not well regulated and are often carried out by untrained, unskilled and unprotected informal workers.


title: Pit latrine

text: When managed and treated correctly to achieve a high degree of pathogen kill, fecal sludge from pit latrines could be used as a fertilizer due to its high nitrogen, phosphorus and organic matter content. However, it is hard to ensure that this is done in a safe manner. The number of viable helminth eggs is commonly used as an indicator organism to make a statement about the pathogen load in a fecal sludge sample. Helminth eggs are very persistent to most treatment methods and are therefore a good indicator.


title: Pit latrine

text: A range of commercial products are available which claim to help reduce the volume of feces in the pit and reduce odor and fly problems. They are collectively described as a pit additive and many of them are based on the concept of effective microorganisms. The intention is to add specific strains of microbes to aid the decomposition process – but their effectiveness is disputed and recent research found no effect in scientific test conditions.


title: Pit latrine

text: Wood ash, leaves, soil, compost, or sawdust can be sprinkled on top of the feces to decrease the smell in the case of pit latrines without a water seal. This is however not common practice for users in developing countries. Users often do not expect a pit latrine to be odour free, and endure the smell.


title: Pit latrine

text: Measures to improve access to safe water, sanitation and better hygiene, which includes the use of pit latrines instead of open defecation, is believed to be able to prevent nearly 90% of deaths due to infectious diarrhea.


title: Pit latrine

text: In developing countries the construction cost for a simple pit toilet is between about . This cost figure has a wide range because the costs vary a lot depending on the type of soil, the depth and reinforcement of the pit, the superstructure that the user is willing to pay for, the type of toilet squatting pan or toilet seat chosen, the cost of labour, construction materials (in particular the cost of cement can differ a lot from one country to the next), the ventilation system and so forth.


title: Pit latrine

text: Rather than looking only at the construction cost, the whole of life cost (or life-cycle cost) should be considered, as the regular emptying or re-building of pit latrines may add a significant expense to the households in the longer term.


title: Pit latrine

text: In India, Japan's LIXIL Group has supplied tens of thousands of twin pit toilet systems that costs $10 or less apiece (in 2018).


title: Pit latrine

text: Recurring expenditure costs are between US$1.5 and $4 per person per year for a traditional pit latrine. This includes operational and minor expenditure, capital maintenance expenditure and expenditure on direct support but does not include pit emptying costs. The total recurrent expenditure for more "upmarket" pit latrines has been estimated to be $2.5–8.5 for a VIP-type pit latrine and $3.5–11.5 for a pour-flush pit latrine.


title: Pit latrine

text: Pit latrines may or may not be an enjoyable experience to use. Problems may occur when the pit latrine is shared by too many people, is not cleaned daily and not emptied when the pit is full. In such cases, flies and odour can be a major nuisance. Also, pit latrines are usually dark places which are difficult to keep clean. Often, handwashing facilities are missing. For these reasons, shared pit latrines can be very uncomfortable to use in developing countries.


title: Pit latrine

text: About 892 million people, or 12 percent of the global population, practiced open defecation in 2016, mostly because they have no toilets. Southern Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa have the lowest access to toilets. Pit latrines are a low-cost toilet option that do not require expensive infrastructure. As such, many government agencies and NGOs promote the construction of pit latrines in rural areas (groundwater pollution can be an issue).


title: Pit latrine

text: The community-led total sanitation approach results in the spontaneous construction and sustained use of pit latrines rather than open defecation.


title: Pit latrine

text: The Indian government has been running the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission) since 2014 in order to eliminate open defecation and to convince people in rural areas to purchase, construct and use toilets, mainly pit latrines. This campaign is a combination of building new toilets and encouraging behavior change. It is estimated that 50 million additional pit latrines have been built due to that campaign between 2014 and 2017.


title: Pit latrine

text: Another example is the campaign that took place in Haryana with slogans such as "No Toilet, No Bride" or "No loo, no "I do"". This campaign promotes the construction of toilets (usually pour flush pit latrine toilets). In rural India, there are sometimes cultural preferences for open defecation and these may be difficult to overcome with unattractive toilet designs, such as pit latrines.


title: Cape

text: A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck.


title: Cape

text: Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. They have had periodic returns to fashion - for example, in nineteenth-century Europe. Roman Catholic clergy wear a type of cape known as a ferraiolo, which is worn for formal events outside a ritualistic context. The cope is a liturgical vestment in the form of a cape. Capes are often highly decorated with elaborate embroidery. Capes remain in regular use as rainwear in various military units and police forces, in France for example. A gas cape was a voluminous military garment designed to give rain protection to someone wearing the bulky gas masks used in twentieth-century wars.


title: Cape

text: Rich noblemen and elite warriors of the Aztec Empire would wear a tilmàtli; a Mesoamerican cloak/cape used as a symbol of their upper status. Cloth and clothing was of utmost importance to the Aztecs. The more elaborate and colorful tilmàtlis were strictly reserved for elite high priests, emperors; and the Eagle warriors as well as Jaguar knights.


title: Cape

text: In fashion, the word “cape” usually refers to a shorter garment and “cloak” to a full-length version of the different types of garment, though the two terms are sometimes used synonymously for full-length coverings. A shoulder cape is thus sometimes called a "capelet". The fashion cape does not cover the front to any appreciable degree. In raingear, a cape is usually a long and roomy protective garment worn to keep one dry in the rain.


title: Cape

text: In full evening dress, ladies frequently use the cape as a fashion statement, or to protect the wearer or the fine fabrics of their evening-wear from the elements, especially where a coat would crush—or hide—the garment. These capes may be short (over the shoulders or to the waist) or a full-length cloak. Short capes were usually made of, or trimmed in, fur; however, because fur is less accepted as a fashion accessory in modern times, other expensive materials are substituted for it, with an opulent lining and trim. Typical fabrics used are velvet, silk, and satin. Capes are still authorized as an alternative to the more utilitarian trench coat for U.S. Army officers in mess dress, formal evening uniform.


title: Cape

text: Caped overcoats were popular for men during the Victorian era, with some caped Ulsters featuring multiple layered capes, and the Inverness coat (both formal evening and working day variants) had a cape. The Inverness coat is no longer commonly worn (though it has begun to be revived, on a limited scale, in steampunk fashion), and the Ulster lost its cape in the 1920s.


title: Cape

text: In modern times, capes are commonly used by hair and beauty salons for the purpose of hair styling services, in which usage they protect clothing from loose strands of hair being cut from the head and/or from the chemicals often used in such styling.


title: Cape

text: The cape is a popular clothing item for superheroes (like Superman) in the American comic book genre. They are often used by comic book artists to create the illusion of motion in a still image. Most often, they are worn merely as a costume adornment. Other times, as in the case of Batman, The Shroud, Cloak of Cloak & Dagger and cloak of Doctor Strange the cape serves a functional purpose, such as gliding (Batman), transporting one to the Darkforce dimension (The Shroud), or initiating teleportation (Cloak). The supernatural character Spawn has a cape (actually a part of his living symbiotic costume) that obeys Spawn's mental commands, changing shape to scare, confuse or even kill would-be attackers, while Meta Knight of the "Kirby" franchise disguises his wings as a cape. Some media, such as "Watchmen" or "The Incredibles", comment on the potentially lethal hazards of a cape.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: The East German uprising of 1953 ( ) was an uprising that occurred in East Germany from 16 to 17 June 1953. It began with a strike action by construction workers in East Berlin on 16 June against work quotas during the Sovietization process in East Germany. Demonstrations in East Berlin turned into a widespread uprising against the Government of East Germany and the Socialist Unity Party the next day, involving over one million people in about 700 localities across the country. Protests against declining living standards and unpopular Sovietization policies led to a wave of strikes and protests that were not easily brought under control and threatened to overthrow the East German government. The uprising in East Berlin was violently suppressed by tanks of the Soviet forces in Germany and the "Kasernierte Volkspolizei", while demonstrations continued in over 500 towns and villages for several more days before dying out.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: The 1953 uprising was celebrated in West Germany as a public holiday on 17 June until German reunification in 1990, after which it was replaced by German Unity Day, celebrated annually on 3 October.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: In May 1952, the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany or FRG) rejected the "Stalin Note", a proposal sent by Soviet leader Joseph Stalin offering reunification with the Soviet-backed German Democratic Republic (East Germany or GDR) as an independent and politically neutral Germany. With the heightened anxiety of the Cold War, Stalin's proposal was met with intense suspicion in the FRG, which instead signed the European Defence Community Treaty that month. After these developments, it became clear to both the Soviet Union and the GDR that Germany would remain divided indefinitely. In East Berlin, General Secretary Walter Ulbricht of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), the ruling party of the GDR, interpreted Stalin's failed attempt at German reunification as a "green light'" to proceed with the "accelerated construction of socialism in the GDR", which the party announced at its Second Party Conference in July 1952. This move to Sovietize the GDR consisted of a drastic increase in investment allocated to heavy industry, discriminatory taxation against the last private industrial enterprises, forced collectivization of agriculture and a concerted campaign against religious activity in East Germany.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: The result of this change in the GDR's economic direction was the rapid deterioration of workers' living standards, which continued until the first half of 1953, and represented the first clear downward trend in the living standard of East Germans since the 1947 hunger crisis. Travel costs rose as generous state subsidies were cut, while many consumer goods began to disappear from store shelves. Factories were forced to clamp down on overtime: with restricted budgets, the wage bill was deemed excessively high. Meanwhile, food prices rose as a result of both the state's collectivization policy – 40% of the wealthier farmers in the GDR fled to the West, leaving over of otherwise productive land lying fallow – and a poor harvest in 1952. Workers' cost of living therefore rose, while the take-home pay of large numbers of workers – many of whom depended on overtime pay to make ends meet – diminished. In the winter of 1952–53, there were also serious interruptions to the supply of heat and electricity to East Germany's cities. By November 1952, sporadic food riots and industrial unrest occurred in several major GDR industrial centres: Leipzig, Dresden, Halle and Suhl. Industrial unrest continued throughout the following spring, ranging from inflammatory speeches and anti-SED graffiti to alleged sabotage. To ease economic strain on the state caused by the "construction of socialism", the Politburo decided to increase work quotas on a compulsory basis by 10% across all state-owned factories: that is, workers now had to produce 10% more for the same wage. Additionally, there were increases in prices for food, health care, and public transportation. Taken together, the work quota and price increases amounted to a 33 per cent monthly wage cut. The work quota increase would take effect on 30 June, Ulbricht's 60th birthday.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: While Ulbricht's response to the consequences of crash Sovietization was to tighten East Germans' belts, many East Germans' response was to simply leave the GDR, a phenomenon known as "Republikflucht". In 1951, 160,000 people left; in 1952, 182,000; in the first four months of 1953, a further 122,000 East Germans left for the West, despite the now-mostly sealed border.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: The new collective leadership in the Soviet Union, established following Stalin's death in March 1953, was shocked by these disconcerting statistics when it received in early April a report from the Soviet Control Commission in Germany which provided a detailed, devastating account of the East German economic situation. By 2 June, the Soviet Union leadership issued an order "On Measures to Improve the Health of the Political Situation in the GDR", in which the SED's policy of accelerated construction of socialism was roundly criticised. The huge flight of all professions and backgrounds from East Germany to the West had created "a serious threat to the political stability of the German Democratic Republic." To salvage the situation, it was now necessary to end forced collectivisation and the war on private enterprise. The Five-Year Plan now needed to be changed at the expense of heavy industry and in favour of consumer goods. Political-judicial controls and regimentation had to be relaxed, and coercive measures against the Protestant Church had to cease. In addition, Ulbricht's "cold exercise of power" was denounced. However, there was no explicit demand to reverse the highly unpopular increased work quotas. The Soviet decree was given to SED leaders Walter Ulbricht and Otto Grotewohl on 2 June, the day they landed in Moscow. Soviet Premier Georgy Malenkov warned them that changes were essential to avoid a catastrophe in East Germany.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: On 9 June, the SED's Politburo met and determined how to respond to the Soviet leadership's instructions. Although most Politburo members felt the announcement of the "New Course" required careful preparation within the party and the population at large, Soviet High Commissioner for Germany Vladimir Semyonov insisted it be implemented right away. Thus, the SED fatefully published the New Course programme in "Neues Deutschland", the official party newspaper of the SED, on 11 June. The communiqué dutifully criticised the mistakes made by the SED and announced that most of Ulbricht's Sovietization campaign would now be reversed, as instructed by Moscow. There was now going to be a shift towards investment in consumer goods; the pressures on small private enterprise would end; forced collectivisation would cease; and policies against religious activity would be discontinued. But, crucially, the work quota increase was not revoked, representing a threat to the legitimacy of a Marxist-Leninist state that claimed to represent its workers: the bourgeoisie and farmers stood to benefit far more from the New Course than the proletariat. The communiqué and its forthright admission of past mistakes shocked and confused many East Germans, both SED members and the wider populace. Disappointment, disbelief and confusion pervaded local party organisations, whose members felt panicked and betrayed. The wider populace viewed the New Course as a sign of weakness on the part of the East German regime.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: On 12 June, the next day, 5,000 people participated in a demonstration in front of Brandenburg-Görden Prison in Brandenburg an der Havel.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: On 14 June, more confusion followed as an editorial in "Neues Deutschland" condemned the new work quotas, yet news articles in the same issue praised workers who had exceeded them.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: On 15 June, workers at the Stalinallee "Block 40" site in East Berlin, now with higher hopes about the cancellation of increased work quotas, dispatched a delegation to East German Prime Minister Otto Grotewohl to deliver a petition calling for their revocation. Grotewohl ignored the workers' demands.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: An article in the trade union paper "Tribune" restated the necessity of the 10% work quota increases; evidently, the government was unwilling to retreat on the issue, despite the new quotas' widespread unpopularity.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: At 9:00 AM on the morning of 16 June, 300 workers from the construction sites at "Hospital Friedrichshain" and "Stalinallee Block 40" in East Berlin went on strike and marched on the Free German Trade Union Federation (FDGB) headquarters on Wallstrasse, then to the city centre, hoisting banners and demanding a reinstatement of the old work quotas. Demands from the striking workers broadened to encompass political matters beyond the quotas. Via Alexanderplatz and Unter den Linden, most of the demonstrators moved to the government seat on Leipziger Straße; others went to SED headquarters on Wilhelm-Pieck-Straße. En route, they took over two sound trucks and used them to spread their calls for a general strike and a demonstration, set for the Strausberger Platz at 7:00 AM the next day. In front of the GDR House of Ministries, the rapidly growing crowd demanded to speak to Ulbricht and Grotewohl. Only Heavy Industry Minister Fritz Selbmann and Professor Robert Havemann, president of the GDR Peace Council, emerged from the building. Their attempts to calm the workers were drowned out by the clamour of the crowd, which shouted the pair down.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Meanwhile, the Politburo deliberated, unable to decide what to do. Despite the urgency of the situation, it was only after hours of discussion – under the pressure of the demonstrators, and probably also from Semyonov – that the leadership decided to revoke the work quota increase. The Politburo members decreed that increases in productivity would now be voluntary, and blamed the strikes and demonstrations on how the increases had been implemented, but also on foreign provocateurs. However, by the time an SED functionary reached the House of Ministries to give the workers the news, the protestors' agenda had expanded well beyond the issue of work increases. Later that afternoon, the crowd dispersed and workers returned to their sites. Save for isolated clashes between the "Volkspolizei" and groups of demonstrators, the rest of the day was calm. The SED leadership was surprised by the depth of resentment and the extent of anti-regime actions. Indeed, the SED leadership was so out of touch that it expected a massive propaganda drive would be sufficient to cope with the emerging crisis. It would clearly not be enough, and Ulbricht probably realised this only a few hours after the suggestion was made. The Soviet authorities were likewise completely taken aback by the widespread protests that followed the demonstrations in East Berlin. Their response was improvised and uncoordinated. Later that evening, Semyonov met with the SED leadership and informed them of his decision to send Soviet troops to Berlin.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Throughout the night of 16 June and early morning of 17 June, news of events in East Berlin spread quickly throughout the GDR via word of mouth and Western radio broadcasts, particularly Radio in the American Sector (RIAS), which had been broadcasting throughout the day about the strikes staged against increased work quotas. In the afternoon, there were broadcasts about the change in demonstrator demands from the repeal of the higher work quotas and price cuts to shouts of "We want free elections". RIAS was later approached by East Berlin workers seeking its assistance in disseminating their call for a general strike the next day. RIAS's political director, Gordon Ewing, decided that the station could not directly lend itself to being a mouthpiece to the workers; in his view, such a move could start a war. The station would not actively incite rebellion but simply broadcast information about the demonstrations, factually and comprehensively. Nonetheless, at 7.30 PM, RIAS reported that a delegation of construction workers had submitted a resolution for publication, stating that the strikers, having proved by their actions that "they were able to force the government to accept their justified demands", would "make use of their power at any time" if their demands for lower work quotas, price cuts, free elections and amnesty for all demonstrators were not fulfilled. Later that night, the station all but provided active encouragement to demonstrate against the regime. RIAS Programme Director Eberhard Schutz called the regime's reversal on the work quotas question "a victory, which our Ostberliners share with the entire working population of the Soviet Zone." Schutz attributed the government's U-turn to the workers' actions. He said that listeners' demands – i.e., the resignation of the government, Western-style liberties, etc. – were justified, and encouraged them to support the demonstrators. Schutz said that RIAS and the East German people expected these demands to be met: it was the East German people's task to show the SED and the Soviet Communist Party that this was true.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Following West Germany's Federal Minister for All-German Questions Jakob Kaiser's admonition in a late night broadcast to East Germans to shy away from provocations, RIAS, starting with its 11 PM news broadcast, and from then on in hourly broadcasts, repeated the workers' demand to continue the strike the next day, calling specifically for all East Berliners to participate in a demonstration at 7:00 AM on the 17th at Strausberger Platz.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Following Semyonov's decision, Soviet troops entered the environs of East Berlin in the early morning of 17 June. Meanwhile, crowds of workers began to gather at Strausberger Platz and other public places, and began marching towards the city centre. En route, they encountered GDR security forces – regular and ('Barracked People's Police', KVP) units – who, apparently lacking instructions, did not initially intervene. Along with SED and FDJ functionaries, police officials tried – and mostly failed – to convince the marchers to return to their homes and workplaces. Where police attempted to halt or disperse the crowds, they rapidly ended up on the defensive. As the demonstrators drew in ever-greater numbers, a feeling of solidarity swept over them. Loudspeaker cars and bicycles provided communications between the different columns of marchers from the outer districts as, all morning, they converged on the city centre. On improvised banners and posters, the demonstrators again demanded the reinstatement of the old work quotas, but also price decreases, the release of fellow protestors arrested the day before, even free and fair all-German elections. Slogans like "down with the government!" and "butter, not arms" were also visible. Party posters and statues – especially those depicting SED and Soviet leaders – were burned or defaced.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: By 9:00 AM, 25,000 people had gathered in front of the House of Ministries, and tens of thousands more were en route to Leipziger Strasse or in Potsdamer Platz. Between 10:00 and 11:00 AM, 80 to 100 demonstrators apparently stormed the government seat, visibly demonstrating that the 500 "Volkspolizei" and Stasi members had been overpowered. Then, suddenly, Soviet military vehicles appeared, followed by tanks, to repel what appeared to be an immiment takeover. Within an hour, Soviet troops had cleared and isolated the area around the government headquarters. At noon, Soviet authorities terminated all tram and metro traffic into the Eastern sector and all but closed the sector borders to West Berlin to prevent more demonstrators from reaching the city centre. An hour later, they declared martial law in East Berlin. Outside East Berlin police headquarters, Soviet tanks opened fire on "the insurgents". Fighting between the Soviet Army (and later GDR police) and the demonstrators persisted into the afternoon and night – with, in some cases, tanks and troops firing directly into the crowds. Executions, most prominently of West Berlin worker Willi Gottling, and mass arrests followed.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Overnight, the Soviets and the Stasi started to arrest hundreds of people. Ultimately, up to 10,000 people were detained and at least 32, probably as many as 40, were executed, including Soviet Army soldiers who refused to obey orders. With the SED leadership effectively paralysed at the Soviet headquarters in Karlshorst, control of East Berlin passed to the Soviets there.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Each of East Germany's 24 cities with a population greater than 50,000 experienced upheavals, as did approximately 80% of the towns with populations between 10,000 and 50,000. Approximately 339,000 people participated in the 129 demonstrations that took place outside of Berlin; over 225,000 launched strikes in 332 factories. The main centres of protest included the industrial region around Halle, Merseburg, and Bitterfeld, as well as middle-size towns like Jena, Görlitz, and Brandenburg. No more than 25,000 people participated in strikes and demonstrations in Leipzig, but there were 32,000 in Magdeburg, 43,000 in Dresden, 53,000 in Potsdam – and in Halle, close to 100,000.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: At first, such demonstrations were relatively peaceful, but as increasing numbers began to participate, they became more violent. Looting, particularly of SED-owned shops, became a regular occurrence; there was some arson, and many SED functionaries were beaten up later in the day. In some towns, the jails were seized by demonstrators, who demanded the release of certain political prisoners. In Görlitz a group of 30,000 people destroyed the communist party headquarters, the offices of the secret police and the prison, while in Magdeburg the party headquarters and prison were set on fire. When the Soviet Army intervened in these places outside of East Berlin, they seemed more restrained and more passive; some Soviet soldiers even displayed friendly attitudes towards demonstrators.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: In the countryside, meanwhile, protests took place in over 200 villages. However, many East German farmers did not take collective action against the regime: the most common expression of protest in rural areas was for farmers to leave and/or dissolve recently formed collective farms and resume farming on their own.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Although the demands made by protesters could be political – e.g. the dissolution of the East German government and organisation of free elections – they were often simply of a local and economic character. They were about issues like bread shortages, unpopular night shifts, even the number of toilets in the workplace and the fact that tea was being served in rusty urns. Also expressed were widely held grievances against the intelligentsia, who were perceived to enjoy 'unfair privileges', such as special deliveries of basic foodstuffs and other commodities.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Others, particularly workers, demanded the restoration of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) in East Germany. Among former social democrats, there existed enormous bitterness against Prime Minister Otto Grotewohl, ex-leader of the East German SPD, whom they believed had "betrayed the SPD" by leading its merger with the rival German Communist Party to form the ruling SED in 1946. The Soviet Military Administration (SVAG) had pressured Grotewohl into the merger to protect communist rule in East Germany after the surprisingly poor performance of communist parties in elections in Hungary and Austria in November 1945. Grotewohl was "rewarded" with the post of Prime Minister, but within a few years the SED had significantly reduced his powers and turned the office into a mostly ceremonial role. Many East German social democrats viewed Grotewohl as a traitor who should now "have his neck wrung."


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: There were Nazi elements involved in the protests, though seldom as ringleaders. Walls, bridges and school blackboards were defaced with Nazi slogans and swastikas, and in some places, Nazi songs were sung at demonstrations. A significant minority of Germans still clung to ideas of Nazism.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Protests and demonstrations continued for days after 17 June and, according to the GDR security service, the situation had only calmed down 24 June. Around 39 people were killed during the uprising, the vast majority of them demonstrators. The events were always significantly downplayed in the Soviet Union and other Eastern Bloc states.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Many workers lost faith in East Germany's socialist state following the uprising, disgusted by the violent suppression of the strikes. The fact that the Volkspolizei had shot at workers – that workers had shot their own kind – led to the loss of large numbers of SED members. Throughout the "bezirke" of Leipzig and Karl-Marx-Stadt, hundreds of SED members, many of whom had spent decades in the labour movement, left the party. At the Textima plant in Altenberg, 450 SED members had left the party by 7 July – most of them workers, many of whom had much experience in the labour movement. There was also a widespread refusal by workers to pay their trade union dues: they ceased to financially support and confer legitimacy upon the party.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: After the uprising, Ulbricht's position as party leader became tenuous, and his position was only saved by the leadership turmoil in Moscow following Joseph Stalin's death. Ulbricht was tainted by his association with the disastrous Second Party Conference, the policies of which had led East Germany to the crisis.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: By the time the Politburo met on 8 July, it seemed that Ulbricht's time as party leader was coming to an end. Minister of State Security Wilhelm Zaisser conceded that the entire Politburo was responsible for the 'accelerated construction of socialism' and its disastrous fallout, but added that leaving Ulbricht as leader "would be opposed [as] catastrophic for the New Course." By the end of the meeting, just two Politburo members supported Ulbricht's continued leadership: Free German Youth League chief Erich Honecker and Party Control Commission Chairman Hermann Matern. Ulbricht only managed to forestall a decision with a promise to make a statement at the forthcoming 15th SED CC Plenum, scheduled later that month.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: The leading Soviet officials in East Berlin – Semyonov, Pavel Yudin and Vasily Sokolovsky – had reached the same conclusions in a report describing and analysing the events of 17–19 June, submitted to Moscow two weeks earlier on 24 June. In a self-serving report which sought to play down the culpability of the Soviet Commission in East Berlin and emphasise the responsibility of Ulbricht for the uprising, they concluded – "inter alia" – that Ulbricht's position as General Secretary of the SED should be terminated, and that the party would move towards collective leadership, in addition to other far-reaching structural political changes in East Berlin. However, the situation in Moscow dramatically changed just two days later, on 26 June, when Soviet Security Chief Lavrentiy Beria was arrested. On 2 July, when a commission met there to discuss proposals for reform in East Germany, the decision was made to shelve the far-reaching and political sensitive changes. The Soviet leadership, preoccupied with the Beria affair and its internal implications, became disinclined to rock the East German boat and more inclined to the "status quo": maintaining power in East Germany by supporting an experienced, reliable, albeit Stalinist and unpopular, ruler.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: In late July, Ulbricht, ever more certain of his continued backing in Moscow, expelled his main opponents, Zaisser, Hernstadt and Ackermann, from the Politburo, further strengthening his position.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: By late August, Moscow had committed to shoring up the existing East German regime with Ulbricht in charge. By then, the situation in East Germany had stabilised thanks to new economic measures implemented by Moscow and East Berlin, and the dropping of major political changes in the GDR from the agenda. Substantial economic and financial aid was to flow into East Germany and reparation payments were to cease by the end of the year. Additional prisoners of war would be freed and Moscow's mission in East Berlin was elevated to the status of embassy. Ultimately, Ulbricht's position was firmly secured once more.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: The first was its increased concern over shop floor discontent and greater determination to preclude it from escalating into broader conflict. Factory surveillance was raised to better monitor the mood of the workforce, the Combat Groups of the Working Class was established as an on-the-spot force to prevent or quell any signs of unrest, and the Stasi was expanded and improved upon to swiftly deal with any signs of organised protest in the future.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: The second was that a heavy-handed venture such as the "accelerated construction of socialism" could never again be embarked upon. Ulbricht was haunted throughout the 1950s by the specter of another uprising, and the government never again attempted to introduce arbitrary, blanket work quota increases like those of May and June 1953. The "New Course" policies – increased investment in consumer goods, housing and price and travel subventions – led to an improvement in living standards overall but failed to achieve an immediate end to the discontent that had been growing over the past year.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: Protestors, meanwhile, learned that little could be gained from open confrontation – to act openly against the SED regime in large numbers was to be left to their own devices by the West against repression from the East German police and Soviet military.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: In memory of the 1953 East German uprising, West Germany established the Day of German Unity as an annual national holiday on 17 June. Upon German reunification in October 1990, the holiday was moved to 3 October, the date of formal reunification. The extension of the "Unter den Linden" boulevard to the west of the Brandenburg Gate, called "Charlottenburger Chaussee", was renamed "Straße des 17. Juni" ("17 June Street") following the 1953 rebellion.


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: The uprising is commemorated in ""Die Lösung"", a poem by Bertolt Brecht. Other prominent GDR authors who dealt with the uprising include Stefan Heym ("Fünf Tage im Juni" / "Five Days in June", Munich 1974) and Heiner Müller ("Wolokolamsker Chaussee III: Das Duell" / "Volokolamsk Highway III: The Duel", 1985/86).


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: West German band Alphaville mention "the seventeenth of June", without referencing the year, in their 1984 song "Summer in Berlin", from their "Forever Young" album. When the compilation album "Alphaville Amiga Compilation" was assembled for release in East Germany in 1988, the song "Summer in Berlin" was submitted for inclusion, but rejected "for political reasons."


title: East German uprising of 1953

text: The 1966 Günter Grass play "The Plebeians Rehearse the Uprising" depicts Brecht preparing a production of Shakespeare's "Coriolanus" against the background of the events of 1953.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Dental amalgam is a liquid mercury and metal alloy mixture used in dentistry to fill cavities caused by tooth decay. Low-copper amalgam commonly consists of mercury (50%), silver (~22–32%), tin (~14%), zinc (~8%) and other trace metals.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Dental amalgams were first documented in a Tang Dynasty medical text written by Su Gong (苏恭) in 659, and appeared in Germany in 1528. In the 1800s, amalgam became the dental restorative material of choice due to its low cost, ease of application, strength, and durability.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: In July 2018 the EU prohibited amalgam for dental treatment of children under 15 years and of pregnant or breastfeeding women.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: There are, according to Geir Bjørklund, indications that dental amalgam was used in the first part of the Tang Dynasty in China (AD 618–907), and in Germany by Strockerus in about 1528. Evidence of a dental amalgam first appears in the Tang Dynasty medical text "Xinxiu bencao"《新修本草》 written by Su Gong (苏恭) in 659, manufactured from tin and silver. Historical records hint that the use of amalgams may date to even earlier in the Tang Dynasty. It was during the Ming Dynasty that the composition of an early dental amalgam was first published, and a text written by Liu Wentai in 1505 states that it consists of "100 shares of mercury, 45 shares of silver and 900 shares of tin." Ever since its introduction in the Western world in the 1830s, amalgam has been the subject of recurrent controversies because of its mercury content. Early amalgam was made by mixing mercury with the filings of silver coins. In 1833 Englishmen, Edward Crawcour and his nephew Moses Crawcour (incorrectly referred to as "the Crawcour brothers"), brought amalgam to the United States, and in 1844 it was reported that fifty percent of all dental restorations placed in upstate New York consisted of amalgam. However, at that point the use of dental amalgam was declared to be malpractice, and the American Society of Dental Surgeons (ASDS), the only US dental association at the time, forced all of its members to sign a pledge to abstain from using the mercury fillings. This was the beginning of what is known as the first dental amalgam war. The dispute ended in 1856 with the disbanding of the old association. The American Dental Association (ADA) was founded in its place in 1859, which has since then strongly defended dental amalgam from allegations of being too risky from the health standpoint.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Amalgam has been used for many years for restorations, commonly known as fillings. Prior to 1900 many compositions were tried but few were successful when placed in the oral environment. Around 1900, small amounts of copper and occasionally zinc were added. Zinc acts as a scavenger because it prevents oxidation of the other metals in the alloy during the manufacturing process. Zinc accomplishes this by combining readily with oxygen to form zinc oxide. Amalgam restorations made from this balanced formula were reasonably successful and its longevity increased. However, one disadvantage that remained was fracture at the tooth-amalgam interface commonly called marginal fracture. SnHg (γ phase) was considered to be responsible for this problem. This phase has been shown to be the weakest phase in the set amalgam and is subject to corrosion, particularly at the tooth-amalgam interface.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: In 1962 a new amalgam alloy, called Dispersalloy, was introduced with the addition of a spherical silver-copper eutectic particle to the traditional lathe-cut AgSn particle in a ratio of 1:2. The mixture of these two types of particles is known as admix alloy. This alloy strengthened the set amalgam and reduced the γ phase (SnHg). The increased copper in the silver-copper eutectic reacted preferentially with tin so that SnHg could not form. Early results from the clinical use of this new amalgam showed an improvement in marginal integrity. About 10 years later, another alloy, called Tytin, was introduced by adding significant amount of CuSn together with AgSn, in the form of a unicompositional spherical particle to eliminate the γ phase. Both of these relatively new alloys raised the copper content from 5%, present in the older balanced composition alloy, to about 13% for the newer alloys.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Dental amalgam is produced by mixing liquid mercury with an alloy made of silver, tin, and copper solid particles. Small quantities of zinc, mercury and other metals may be present in some alloys. This combination of solid particles is known as amalgam alloy. The composition of the alloy particles are controlled by the ISO Standard (ISO 1559) for dental amalgam alloy in order to control properties of set amalgam such as corrosion and setting expansion. It is important to differentiate between dental amalgam and the amalgam alloy that is commercially produced and marketed as small filings, spheroid particles, or a combination of these, suitable for mixing with liquid mercury to produce the dental amalgam. Amalgam is used most commonly for direct, permanent, posterior restorations and for large foundation restorations, or cores, which are precursors to placing crowns.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: The reaction between mercury and alloy when mixed together is termed an amalgamation reaction. It will result in the formation of a silver-grey workable mass which can be condensed into cavities. After condensing, the dental amalgam is carved to generate the required anatomical features and then hardens with time. The standard composition of alloy prior to 1986 is referred to as conventional amalgam alloy. More recently (post-1986), there has been a change in the compositional standard of the alloy due to better understanding of structure-property relationships for the materials. Conventional amalgam alloy commonly consists of silver (~65% ), tin (~29%), copper (~8%) and other trace metals; current amalgam alloy consists of silver (40%), tin (32%), copper (30%) and other metals.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: To fabricate an amalgam filling, the dentist uses a mixing device to blend roughly equal parts (by mass) of shavings of a silver-base alloy with mercury until the shavings are thoroughly wetted. The silver alloy is typically 40–70% Ag, 25-29% Sn, 2–40% Cu and 0–2% Zn (when the alloy is formulated Zn is a scavenger and is mostly consumed during melting and lost as oxide). The dentist packs the plastic mass, before it sets, into the cavity. The amalgam expands ≈0.1% over 6–8 hours on setting.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: The final structure is a metal matrix composite, where γ, η and γ phases, are a matrix for unreacted original alloy, minus the fast-reacting β-phase and excess Sn.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Amalgam is a mixture of two or more metals (alloy) with mercury which has been purified first by distillation to remove impurities. Currently, major components of the alloy are silver, tin, and copper. The composition of the alloy powder is controlled by ISO standard for dental amalgam alloy (ISO 1559) to control the properties of amalgam.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Creep or plastic deformation happens when subjected to intra-oral stresses such as chewing or grinding. Creep causes the amalgam to flow and protrudes from the margin of the cavity forming unsupported edges. "Ditch" is formed around the margins of the amalgam restoration after fracture due to amalgam creep at the occlusal margins. The γ2 phase of amalgam is primarily responsible for high values of creep.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Corrosion occurs when an anode and cathode are set up in the presence of electrolytes, creating an electrolytic cell. The multiphase structure of dental amalgam can contribute as an anode or cathode with saliva as electrolytes. Corrosion may significantly affect the structure and mechanical properties of set dental amalgam. In conventional amalgam, γ2 phase is the most reactive and readily forms an anode. It will break down releasing corrosion products and mercury. Some of the mercury will combine rapidly with unreacted alloy and some will be ingested. The chances of ditching are further increased. Copper-enriched amalgams contain little or no γ2 phase. The copper–tin phase, which replaces γ2 in these materials, is still the most corrosion-prone phase in the amalgam. The corrosion however is still much lower than conventional amalgam.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: In spite of that, it is thought that corrosion actually offers a clinical advantage. The corrosion products will gather at the tooth-amalgam interface and fill the microgap (marginal gap) which helps to decrease microleakage. Even so, there are no reports of increased marginal leakage for the copper-enriched amalgams indicating that sufficient quantities of corrosion product are produced to seal the margins.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Microleakage is the leakage of minute amounts of fluids, debris, and microorganisms through the microscopic space between a dental restoration and the adjacent surface of the cavity preparation. Microleakage can risk recurrent caries.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: An amalgam restoration develops its strength slowly and may take up to 24 hours or longer to reach a reasonably high value. At the time when the patient is dismissed from the surgery, typically some 15–20 minutes after placing the filling, the amalgam is relatively weak. Therefore, dentists need to instruct patients not to apply undue stress to their freshly placed amalgam fillings.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: The alloys are broadly classified as low-copper (5% or less copper) and high-copper alloys (13% to 30% copper). The solid particles of the alloy are either spherical or irregularly shaped microspheres of various sizes or a combination of the two. The low-copper alloys have either irregular or spherical particles. High-copper alloys contain either spherical particles of the same composition (unicompositional) or a mixture of irregular and spherical particles of different or the same composition (admixed). The properties of set amalgam depends upon the alloy composition—particle size, shape and distribution—and heat treatment controls the characteristic properties of the amalgam.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: During trituration, mercury diffuses into the silver-tin particles. Then, silver and tin dissolve, to a very limited extent, into the mercury. As this occurs, the particles become smaller. Because the solubility of both silver and tin in mercury is limited and because silver is much less soluble in mercury than is tin, silver precipitates out first as silver-mercury (γ) followed by tin in the form of tin-mercury (γ). The set amalgam consists of unreacted gamma particles surrounded by a matrix of gamma 1 and gamma 2. The amalgamation is summarised as follows:


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: In high copper alloy, copper is added to improve mechanical properties, resistance to corrosion and marginal integrity. The higher copper is supplied by either the silver-copper eutectic or the CuSn (ε) phase. The fact that tin had a greater affinity for copper than for mercury meant that the gamma-2 phase was reduced or eliminated. This resulted in the dramatic improvement in physical properties. The higher copper content is supplied as two types:


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: During trituration, the dissolved silver from the silver-tin particles reacts, as in low copper alloys, to form the γ1 phase. The dissolved tin migrates to the outside of the silver-copper particles to form CuSn, the eta prime (η′) phase of the copper-tin system. Thus, copper reacts with sufficient tin to prevent the formation of γ2. The amalgamation reaction may be simplified as follows (notice the absence of γ phase):


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: γ(AgSn) + Ag-Cu (eutectic) + Hg → γ1 (AgHg)+ η ′ (CuSn)+ unreacted γ (AgSn) + unreacted Ag-Cu (eutectic)


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Here, the alloy particles contain both AgSn(γ) and CuSn(ε), similar to the low-copper lathe-cut alloys, but with much greater amount of the CuSn(ε) phase. These alloys are usually spherical. When liquid mercury is mixed with these alloys, it diffuses into the surface of these particles forming AgHg as well as CuSn


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: The difference in eta prime phase of admixed alloy and unicomposition alloy is that in unicomposition alloy, CuSn crystals are much larger and rod-shaped than those in admixed alloy. Copper added in unicomposition causes removal of the gamma2 phase.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Amalgam is tolerant to a wide range of clinical placement conditions and moderately tolerant to the presence of moisture during placement. In contrast, the techniques for composite resin placement are more sensitive to many factors.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Mercury has properties of a bacteriostatic agent whereas certain methacrylate polymers (for example TEGMA, triethylene glycol methacrylate) composing the matrix of resin composites "encourages the growth of microorganisms". In the Casa Pia study in Portugal (1986–1989), 1,748 posterior restorations were placed and 177 (10.1%) of them failed during the course of the study. Recurrent marginal decay was the main reason for failure in both amalgam and composite restorations, accounting for 66% (32/48) and 88% (113/129), respectively. Polymerization shrinkage, the shrinkage that occurs during the composite curing process, has been implicated as the primary reason for postoperative marginal leakage.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: However, there is low-quality evidence to suggest that resin composites lead to higher failure rates and risk of secondary caries than amalgam restorations. Several reviews have been made by using database in the Cochrane Library where randomized controlled trials of few studies comparing dental resin composite with dental amalgams in permanent posterior teeth were compared. This review supports the fact that amalgam restorations are particularly useful and successful in parts of the world where amalgam is still the material of choice to restore posterior teeth with proximal caries. Though, there is insufficient evidence to support or refute any adverse effects amalgam may have on patients, new research is unlikely to change opinion on its safety and due to the decision for a global phase-down of amalgam (Minamata Convention on Mercury) general opinion on its safety is unlikely to change.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: These are some of the reasons why amalgam has remained a superior restorative material over resin-base composites. The New England Children's Amalgam Trial (NECAT), a randomized controlled trial, yielded results "consistent with previous reports suggesting that the longevity of amalgam is higher than that of resin-based compomer in primary teeth and composites in permanent teeth. Compomers were seven times as likely to require replacement and composites were seven times as likely to require repair. There are circumstances in which composite serves better than amalgam. For example, when a more conservative preparation would be beneficial, composite is the recommended restorative material. These situations would include small occlusal restorations, in which amalgam would require the removal of more sound tooth structure, as well as in "enamel sites beyond the height of contour". For cosmetic purposes, composite is preferred when a restoration is required on an immediately visible portion of a tooth.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Dental amalgam does not by itself bond to tooth structure. This was recognized as a shortcoming by early practitioners such as Baldwin. He recommended that the prepared cavity be coated with zinc phosphate cement just prior to filling with amalgam, in order to improve the seal and retention. The practice did not become universally accepted and eventually fell into disuse. Until the 1980s, most amalgam restorations placed worldwide were done without adhesives, although in the 1970s a polycarboxylate-based adhesive liner was formulated specifically for this purpose In the mid-1980s the first reports of the use of resins to bond amalgam to etched tooth structure, much like is done for composite resins, appeared in the literature. Since then, a number of papers have been published on laboratory as well as clinical studies of the technique. For large cavity restorations, features such as pins, slots, holes and grooves can be used for the retention of large amalgam restorations, but they do not reinforce the amalgam or increase its strength.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: There is no current scientific evidence to justify the extra cost and effort associated with the use of adhesively bonded amalgam restorations in comparison with nonbonded amalgam restorations. In view of the lack of evidence on the additional benefit of adhesively bonding amalgam compared with nonbonded amalgam, it is important that clinicians are mindful of the additional costs that may be incurred.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: The placement of amalgam restorations can potentially cause sensitivity post-operatively. According to R. Weiner, a protective layer or liner should be placed prior to the placement of amalgam to act as a buffer, helping to reduce sensitivity to the tooth. There are different liners that can be used in dental practices today, many of which contain zinc. Examples of lining materials include zinc oxide eugenol, zinc phosphate, glass ionomer cement, zinc poly-carboxylate and resin.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: A varnish can be applied to the cavity wall to provide a good marginal seal. The varnish should be insoluble in water and is usually composed of a resin in a volatile solvent. When applied to the cavity, the solvent evaporates, leaving the resin behind to seal the dentinal tubules. The amalgam can then be packed into the cavity.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Concerns have been raised about the potential for mercury poisoning with dental amalgam when used in a dental filling. Major health and professional organizations regard amalgam as safe but questions have been raised and acute but rare allergic reactions have been reported.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Critics argue that it has toxic effects that make it unsafe, both for the patient and perhaps even more so for the dental professional manipulating it during a restoration. A study by the Life Sciences Research Office found that studies on mercury vapor and dental amalgam "provided insufficient information to enable definitive conclusions." They identified several "research gaps", including: "well-controlled studies using standardized measures that evaluate whether low level [mercury vapor exposures] produce neurotoxic and/or neuropsychological effect", studies on "co-exposure to HgO and methylmercury", studies on "in utero exposure to HgO", "occupational studies on [pregnant workers] with well-defined HgO exposure", studies on the absorption of Hg by the "human neonatal gut from breast milk", studies on "whether dental professionals have increased incidences of kidney disease, emotional instability, erethrism, pulmonary dysfunction, or other characteristics of occupational HgO exposure", studies on whether there exist "potential gender differences" or "genetic basis for sensitivity to mercury exposure." The removal of amalgam fillings is not recommended for reasons other than a true hypersensitivity to mercury. Mercury levels in blood and urine have been shown to rise for a short period of time following the removal of amalgam restorations and no studies have demonstrated any health gain from restoration removal. Removal involves exposure to mercury vapor released during the removal process. Amalgams also contribute to mercury toxicity in the environment. With regard to amalgam placement and removal in pregnancy, research has not shown any adverse effects for the mother or fetus. However, research is inadequate to determine the chance of harm occurring and therefore placement and removal should be avoided during pregnancy if possible.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: In response to The Minamata Convention on Mercury, the European Commission has confirmed its position that individual nations should work to gradually scale down the use of dental amalgam.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Dental amalgam is thought to be relatively safe to be used as a restorative material as it is used in low doses. Amalgam vapour can be released through chewing but this is minimal. However, there is an increased release of mercury following the exposure of electromagnetic fields generated by MRI machines. Some patients may develop allergic reactions to it. Resin composite, glass ionomer cements and ceramic or gold inlays can be used as alternatives to amalgam.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: In the United States, dental offices have typically disposed of amalgam waste down the drain. The wastewater is sent to the local sewage treatment plant, which is not designed to treat or recycle mercury or other heavy metals. The mercury contaminates the sludge processed at the treatment plant, and thereby can spread the mercury in surrounding communities, if the sludge is land-applied for disposal. Dental amalgam is the largest source of mercury received by U.S. treatment plants.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) promulgated an effluent guidelines regulation in 2017 which prohibits most dental practices from disposing dental amalgam waste down the drain. Most dental offices in the U.S. are required to use an amalgam separator in their drain system. The separator captures the waste material, which is then recycled.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: The European Commission has issued a Waste Directive that classifies amalgam waste as a hazardous waste. The waste should be separated from other waste by fitting amalgam separators in all dental practices.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Mercury can cross the placenta leading to stillbirths and birth defects. Although there is no evidence linking amalgam use and pregnancy damage, it is advisable to delay or avoid dealing with amalgam fillings in pregnant patients.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: The dental operating team should deal with amalgam with proper use of personal protective equipment to protect themselves. A popular methodology for removal and replacement is the Safe Mercury Amalgam Removal Technique or S.M.A.R.T. protocol.


title: Amalgam (dentistry)

text: Some individuals have a sensitivity to amalgam and may develop oral lesions in which case a change of filling type is recommended.


title: Lucas Pope

text: Lucas Pope (born ) is an American video game designer. He is best known for experimental indie games, notably "Papers, Please" and "Return of the Obra Dinn", both of which won the Seumas McNally Grand Prize alongside other awards. Pope currently resides in Saitama, Japan.


title: Lucas Pope

text: Pope grew up in Virginia. His father was a handyman, which gave Pope access to a well-stocked array of parts and tools that led to an interest in mechanical engineering. When he got to high school, he met a friend who was interested in robotics, and the two of them would take retail robot kits, take them apart, and reconnect them to their own computers to see how they could control them. Inspired to continue into the mechanical and robotics field, Pope attended Virginia Tech to study mechanical engineering. He found that the reality of what constituted the field was less desirable than what he wanted, but did take strong interest in the computer programming side of his coursework. During this period, he got involved with the "Quake" community and helped to develop mods for "Quake" and other games, principally working on the art used for the characters in the mods.


title: Lucas Pope

text: Pope collaborated with other video game modders, including working on an officially-sanctioned mod by Sony Pictures to promote "Anaconda". Pope and another set of modders decided to form their own studio, Ratloop, releasing the total "Quake" conversion mod "Malice" in 1997. Ratloop struggled with distribution through retail channels. While Walmart would help distribute their game, the chain required Ratloop to have 5,000 copies ready to ship within 24 hours at any time, requiring Ratloop to secure a publisher to help. After a first failed 3D game, Ratloop decided to develop a car repair game, "Gearhead Garage". It was successful enough to be picked up by Activision for retail distribution, and gave Ratloop sufficient funds to try a number of experimental games, something which had interested Pope. However, none of these were published, and facing competition from other studios, particularly from Eastern Europe, that could make games at substantially lower prices, Ratloop became dormant.


title: Lucas Pope

text: Pope left Ratloop and joined Realtime Associates in 2003. While at Realtime, he was part of the team that developed the game "Re-mission", a 2006 shooter whose goal was to encourage children with cancer to take their chemotherapy medication. Pope moved to Santa Monica and got a job with Naughty Dog in 2007. While Pope did not have a strong programming background, he felt that Naughty Dog had hired him because of his interest in developing the tools and interfaces needed to help in programming their games. Pope's strength in developing GUI tools augmented Naughty Dog's weakness at that time, with Pope stating that at the time of his hiring, "there was no full-time GUI tools guy at all...Just command-line, back-end tools people." Pope had been hired about halfway through the development of "", and continued to work on the sequel "". He credited the director of the sequel Bruce Straley for teaching him how to focus a game's design around core concepts to make the game fun, even if this meant sacrificing work that had already been completed. Former Naughty Dog President Christophe Balestra said of Pope's work on their design tools: "We were desperate to find a good tools programmer. He was part of the people who saved the day." Specifically, Pope developed GUI tools for the games' menus systems, save systems, level layout to assist level designers, and a system to organize sound and text files for various languages.


title: Lucas Pope

text: After "Uncharted 2" had shipped in 2009, Naughty Dog was set to continue onto the next sequel, "", but Pope wanted to spend more time on his love of experimental games. In the interim between games, he and his wife Keiko Ishizaka spent two weeks to develop "Mightier", a small game based around creating 3D levels from camera scans of a 2D drawing, and its title a play on the phrase "The pen is mightier than the sword". They submitted "Mightier" to the Independent Games Festival (IGF) where it was nominated for one of the awards, and which led to Valve contacting Pope about putting "Mightier" up on Steam as a free game. Both Pope and Ishizaka decided to quit their current jobs in 2010 and moved to Saitama, Japan, in close proximity to Ishizaka's family, and continue to pursue small independent game development.


title: Lucas Pope

text: Over the next few years, Pope and Ishizaka worked on a number of experimental games. One of their first was a mobile game called "Helsing's Fire", which won the 2011 IGF for Best Mobile Game. Another title was "The Republia Times" in 2012 which he had come up with originally as part of a Ludum Dare game jam. He helped to port "", a game developed by members of Ratloop, to the PlayStation 3. This work required him and Ishizaka to temporarily live in Singapore for about a year with frequent trips to the United States. During these travels, Pope came upon an idea for a game involving a passport inspector, which served as the inspiration for Pope's breakout game, "Papers, Please", released first in 2013. "Papers, Please" was critically praised, winning several awards including several Game Developers Choice and IGF awards (including the Seumas McNally Grand Prize for best indie game), as well as a British Academy (BAFTA) Games Award for Best Simulation Game. For Pope and his wife, "Papers, Please" was financially successful; the game had sold about 1.8 million copies by August 2016, and through 2018, still sold enough that Pope was not worried about his financial security as he was developing his next game, "Return of the Obra Dinn".


title: Lucas Pope

text: "Obra Dinn" development had started shortly after Pope had completed all the work on "Papers, Please", and took about four and a half years, principally due to Pope's expanded narrative. On its release in 2018, it received similar high praise as "Papers, Please", and has been nominated for and won several awards from the Game Developers Choice, IGF, Peabody, and D.I.C.E. Awards (including a second Seumas McNally Grand Prize), as well as being named one of the top games of 2018.


title: Lucas Pope

text: Pope states he plans to still develop games but wants to keep these at a small size; "Obra Dinn" was meant to be a small-scale game but ballooned out larger than he anticipated.