title: Sévérine

text: A fan of "James Bond" films, Marlohe said that "you can feel a lot of freedom in creation [of a character] because it is a world between reality and imagination". She was more intrigued by the "Bond" villains, particularly Grace Jones' performance as May Day in the 1985 film "A View to a Kill". Marlohe also cited Xenia Onatopp in the 1995 film "GoldenEye" as her favorite Bond girl, and said she was inspired by Famke Janssen for her approach to Sévérine. When asked about her preference for antagonists, Marlohe responded that she preferred parts that have "elements of whimsy and madness to them". Outside of the "James Bond" series, she found inspiration for her portrayal of the character's psychological instability from Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker in the 2008 film "The Dark Knight".


title: Sévérine

text: Marlohe based her performance as Sévérine around the mythological chimera, choosing to emphasize a sense of "dangerousness spreading through [the character]". When asked to define the traits of a Bond girl, she described the role as "a powerful woman with a kind of male charisma and male power" and a "bit of animality". During promotional interviews, Marlohe advocated for the removal of the title of Bond girl, explaining that she aimed to imagine the character as more modern and realistic; she described the Bond girl as "a beautiful concept but it's a concept, and I wanted to create a real human being".


title: Sévérine

text: While creating Sévérine's wardrobe, costume designer Jany Temime aimed to maintain a sense of mystery around the character. She combined film noir designs with contemporary fashion, such as selecting a shift dress from one of L'Wren Scott's 2012 collections for its 1940s silhouette. The designer identified Sévérine through her sexuality, and wanted to showcase the character as "sexy and exceptional and dark" by having her appear as naked as possible.


title: Sévérine

text: The backless evening gown that Sévérine wears when she first meets Bond was created from black satin and decorated with 60,000 Swarovski crystals. The crystals were applied to tulle in a tattoo design that was inspired by prints from Swarovski's Paris atelier; they appear on the neckline, arms, back, and the sides of the garment. The dress took six months to complete. Temime designed it based on Rita Hayworth's black dress from the 1946 film "Gilda". Designer Stephen Webster created the jewelry for the outfit by looking to modern Gothic style for inspiration. Marlohe said that she also had an influence on the final design of the dress.


title: Sévérine

text: It took a long time for Marlohe to get into the outfit with help from the film's crew; she was sewn into one part of it. Despite this, she said she felt comfortable in it. Six different versions of the body of the dress were created to accommodate the filming schedule; Marlohe changed twice a day during the production, and had to be sewn back into the dress each time. She felt that her character's wardrobe allowed her to better situate her performance, referencing the dress as her way of transforming into Sévérine. She interpreted it as resonating with a "feeling of power and the quality of being salvaged" and the long resin nails as showing "part of a dragon in [her character]". Since she had to wear the nails both on and off the set, she felt they helped her stay in character and explained that they "would feed [her] all the time with that feeling of being dangerous". Along with the evening gown, Sévérine also wore a red dress created by designer Donna Karan.


title: Sévérine

text: Sévérine was featured in the first preview video for "Skyfall", which showed her initial encounter with Bond in the Macau casino. "Screen Crush"'s Mike Sampson described the preview as reminiscent of those of earlier "James Bond" films, where Bond introduces himself to an attractive woman. Sampson said the scene's conventional "James Bond" elements as well as Sévérine's character marked the promotion of "Skyfall" as a "return to old school Bond [...] with a slightly modern feel". The character and the black dress featured in one of the film's posters. In response to the character's absence from the trailer, Marlohe attributed the decision to keeping her character's storyline a surprise for viewers.


title: Sévérine

text: Some critics believed Sévérine fit the general characteristics of a Bond girl. In Moviepilot, Jack Carr cited the character as the franchise's representation of women as sex objects, writing that she will "inevitably wind up dead herself the morning after [...] in a cruel demonstration of instant karma". While reviewing the evolution of the Bond girl, Rothman identified Sévérine as following the trope of the damsel in distress, and Ian Dunt of Politics.co.uk found Bond's seduction of the character adhered to expectations for the franchise. However, "Vanity Fair"'s Jim Windolf noted that unlike previous Bond girls, Sévérine's name was not constructed from a double entendre. John Boone of "Entertainment Tonight" wrote that she was not as fully realized as Vesper Lynd's role in the 2006 film "Casino Royale", but felt she was a more promising character than Mary Goodnight from "The Man with the Golden Gun" (1974) and Octopussy from the 1983 film of the same name. In contrast, "The New Daily"s Susannah Guthrie dismissed Sévérine, along with Strawberry Fields and Camille Montes from "Quantum of Solace" (2008), as less memorable than previous Bond girls such as "Goldfinger"s Pussy Galore and "Dr. No"s Honey Ryder.


title: Sévérine

text: The story arc involving Bond's treatment of Sévérine has been criticized by media commentators. Bond's seduction of Sévérine after learning about her past sexual abuse as a child was cited by "Bustle"'s Casey Cipriani as an example of the sexism prevalent throughout the franchise. Echoing Cipriani's sentiment, Jeff Bercovici of "Forbes" found the sequence of Bond having sex with Sévérine and the character's death to be irresponsible portrayals of sex trafficking and violence, noting it is consistent with the "[s]exual hyper-aggressiveness and putting women in harm's way" often seen in Bond films. "Skyfall" was criticized for contributing to the false idea of "victims of sexual violence [being] sexually available" by National Sexual Violence Resource Center director Tracy Cox. Cox cited Bond as "abusing his power and authority" through his interactions with Sévérine. "The Frisky"s Julie Gerstein argued that Bond's expectation that Sévérine would have sex with him in return for freeing her is a form of "transaction" that places her as a prisoner of both Bond and Silva. Psychoanalyst Heather Genoves also responded negatively to the sex scene, writing that it was "rather tacky to then put that into a sex-trafficking narrative". On the other hand, "The Atlantic"s Noah Berlatsky found the conversation between Sévérine and Bond about her past as a sex slave to be the film's most successful scene, and praised the performances of both actors. However, Berlatsky was critical of Bond's subsequent seduction of the character.


title: Sévérine

text: Critical response to Sévérine's death sequence was also negative, specifically to Bond's comment following Sévérine's death—"Waste of good scotch". Jade Budowski of The Tribeca Film Institute described the scene as "unpalatable", and wrote that she "sense[d] it in the shifting of some of my neighbors in the theater," specifically after the delivery of Bond's line. She argued that the sequence returned to the franchise's earlier treatment of women as "expendable figures" viewing them only as "sex objects, eye candy, and plot devices". Berlatsky argued that Sévérine existed for the sole purpose of "lend[ing] weight to Craig's perspicuity, sexiness, and imperviousness". "Paste"'s Kenneth Lowe found Bond's behavior toward women to be negative, citing Sévérine's death as a prominent example.


title: Sévérine

text: Some critics defended the scene as appropriate for Bond's character development. While "HuffPost"'s Daniel Wood felt that the Sévérine was killed too early in the film, he associated her death with the removal of the "harmless chauvinism" starting from "Casino Royale", and better represented Bond as an emotionally deficient character. Wood acknowledged that the portrayal of female characters as "commodities" was negative, but argued it suited Bond's characterization. James Peaty of "Den of Geek!" interpreted the moment as purposefully unexpected in order to show the audience "how out of sorts Bond has become and that perhaps the greatest threat he faces this time out is his own inertia and ineptitude" and shift the film's focus to M (Judi Dench).


title: Sévérine

text: Gender studies scholar Lisa Funnell was critical of Sévérine as a character, arguing she was marked as the Asian other. Due to the film's focus on her black evening gown, make-up, and nails, Funnell said "Skyfall" represents Sévérine as a Dragon Lady to establish an expectation she would be a larger part of the story. While addressing this set-up, she likened Sévérine to Aki and Kissy Suzuki, both from "You Only Live Twice" (1967) since they all adhere to the racial stereotype of the "tragic Lotus Blossom", a term that she defined as a "submissive and industrious figure who is eager to please the white male hero". To support this assessment, she pointed to Sévérine's lack of agency or impact on "Skyfall"'s main narrative, and summed up Sévérine as "one of the most disempowered, pitiful, and tragic women in the Bond film franchise". In comparison to her positive perception of Wai Lin in the 1997 film "Tomorrow Never Dies", Lisa Funnell dismissed Sévérine as based on outdated ideas.


title: Battle of Galicia

text: The Battle of Galicia, also known as the Battle of Lemberg, was a major battle between Russia and Austria-Hungary during the early stages of World War I in 1914. In the course of the battle, the Austro-Hungarian armies were severely defeated and forced out of Galicia, while the Russians captured Lemberg and, for approximately nine months, ruled Eastern Galicia until their defeat at Gorlice and Tarnów.


title: Battle of Galicia

text: When war came the Austro-Hungarian Chief-of-Staff Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf planned to launch an offensive into Russian Poland with his northern armies (the 1st and 4th). The Russians would far outnumber the Central Powers in the east (especially the Austro-Hungarian armies, which were Russia's primary target), Conrad believed that their best option was an early advance into southern Poland where the Russians would be concentrating their newly mobilized units.


title: Battle of Galicia

text: Conrad knew that his German allies were committed to an offensive in the West to defeat the French in the first ten weeks of the war. Only the German 8th army would be in the East, where they would stand on the defensive in East Prussia. However, their alliance with the French obliged the Russians to attack the Germans promptly, so substantial Russian forces would be sent to invade East Prussia. The 1st and 4th Austro-Hungarian Armies would advance into Poland without direct German support. By 23 August 1914 Conrad's 1st, 3rd, and 4th Armies were concentrated in Galicia along a front of .


title: Battle of Galicia

text: On 2 August Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich, a second cousin of Emperor Nicholas II who had made his career in the army, was made Commander-in-Chief. He had an excellent reputation for training troops, but had never commanded a field army and was staggered by his unexpected elevation. The Russian 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 8th Armies were assigned to Galicia. The Russian war plan called for Nikolai Ivanov, the Russian commander of the Southwest Front, to counter an anticipated Austro-Hungarian offensive thrusting eastward from Lemberg. The 3rd and 8th Armies would mount an offensive into eastern Galicia. The Russians could bring 260 trains a day to their front, compared to the Austro-Hungarian's 152.


title: Battle of Galicia

text: The Austro-Hungarian 1st Army under Viktor Dankl was moving in the north towards Lublin. Dankl struck and drove back Baron Zaltsa's Russian Fourth Army in what would be known as the Battle of Kraśnik. Dankl's army was able to capture 6,000 prisoners.


title: Battle of Galicia

text: To the right of Dankl the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army, aiming at Cholm, drove back the Russian Fifth Army under Pavel Plehve in the Battle of Komarów, capturing 20,000 prisoners and inflicting heavy casualties. However, a planned Austrian enveloping movement around the Russian army failed.


title: Battle of Galicia

text: As the Russians were being driven back along the northern front, the Austrian 3rd Army and Army Group Kovess made a simultaneous advance against Ivanov's left wing. Along the southern front, Ivanov had the Russian Third Army under Nikolai Ruzsky and the Russian Eighth Army under Aleksei Brusilov. Brusilov and Ruzsky routed the Austro-Hungarians so thoroughly that even though poor roads necessitated that the Russians halt for two days, the Austrians could not regroup to halt the Russian drive. This attack became known as the Battle of Gnila Lipa.


title: Battle of Galicia

text: With the entire 3rd Army and Kovess Group in full retreat, Conrad pulled forces away from the northern front which he believed had been sufficiently defeated. In fact, the Russians north of Lemberg were still a potential threat. Ivanov ordered Plehve's Fifth Army to attack and drove the Austrians back as they began to shift forces to the south in an engagement known as the Battle of Rava Ruska. The Austrian Second Army was quickly recalled from Serbia, but it was too late and the entire Austrian front collapsed in Galicia, and the Russians took control of Lemberg.


title: Battle of Galicia

text: Holger Herwig estimates Austro-Hungarian losses of 100,000 dead, 220,000 wounded and 100,000 captured. According to Prit Buttar, the Austro-Hungarian army lost 324,000 men in Galicia, including 130,000 as prisoners, while the Russians lost 225,000 men, of which 40,000 were captured. Other authors estimate 400,000 Austro-Hungarian losses, or "one-third of the Austro-Hungarian Army's combat effectives", and 250,000 for the Russians.


title: Battle of Galicia

text: The Russians had pushed the front 100 miles (160 kilometers) into the Carpathian Mountains, completely surrounded the Austrian fortress of Przemyśl and started a Siege of Przemyśl which lasted for over a hundred days. The battle severely damaged the Austro-Hungarian Army, killed a large portion of its trained officers, and crippled Austria-Hungary. Though the Russians had been utterly crushed at the Battle of Tannenberg, their victory at Lemberg prevented that defeat from fully taking its toll on Russian public opinion.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: Blue Sky is a 1994 American drama film directed by Tony Richardson and starring Jessica Lange, Tommy Lee Jones, Powers Boothe, Carrie Snodgress, Amy Locane, Galynn Duggan, and Chris O'Donnell. It tells the story of a nuclear coverup. It was adapted by Rama Stagner, Arlene Sarner and Jerry Leichtling. The original music score was composed by Jack Nitzsche.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: Filmed from May 14 to July 16, 1990, the film was completed in 1991, but because of the bankruptcy of Orion Pictures, it sat on the shelf until 1994, three years after Richardson's death on November 14, 1991, making this his final film. Despite this, it won critical praise and Lange won the 1994 Academy Award for Best Actress, along with the Golden Globe Award and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association award.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: The film is based on Rama Stagner-Blum's real life and the relationship between her parents, Clyde and Gloria Lee Moore-Stagner, during the 1960s while her father was in the army. They later divorced and Gloria remarried before dying in 1982.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: In 1962, Major Hank Marshall (Jones) and his wife, Carly (Lange), are having marital problems because of the pressures of his job and her mental illness. Hank is a nuclear engineer who favors underground nuclear testing, an initiative code-named "Blue Sky", as opposed to above-ground, open-air detonations. Carly is a free spirit who appears to be mentally unbalanced and who is slowly being suffocated by domestic torpor and encroaching age. Her behavior embarrasses him, especially given the restrictions that prevail within a military base. Their move from Hawaii to an isolated base in Alabama alarms their oldest daughter, Alex (Locane), and sends Carly into a violent tantrum.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: The following day, Hank has his first meeting with base commander Colonel Vince Johnson (Boothe), who rebuffs his underground testing initiative despite strong scientific support. Meanwhile, Vince's wife Vera (Snodgress) welcomes Carly and invites her to a party organized by the base officers' wives. Carly gets drunk at the party and demonstrates exotic dancing skills. Vera begs her husband to do something about her, to which Vince agrees but says he'll have to get Hank out of the way first.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: Alex starts dating Vince's son Glenn (O'Donnell) and on their first date finds what she takes to be a dud grenade. It explodes, alerting the whole base to their relationship and giving Vince more reason to get rid of Hank. Carly is invited by the other officers' wives to join them for a dance recital, and fills her time rehearsing for it. Hank is sent to the Nevada Test Site to supervise the first underground test under Lieutenant Colonel Robert Jennings (McClendon).


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: During the first test, Hank notices two cowboys in the test area and attempts to have Robert abort the test, but Robert refuses, explicitly telling Hank that he is not concerned with the cowboys' health or their lives, and sends Hank back to Alabama. While Hank is away, Alex and Glen discover Vince sent Hank away just so he could have an affair with Carly.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: Hank learns of the affair at the dance recital and reacts violently, which results in Carly being pushed out a window and requiring hospitalization. Hank is arrested, and Vince offers Carly a choice: Hank can be court-martialed or she can have him committed to a psychiatric hospital. When Hank learns what his wife did, he explains to her that he wanted to be court martialed in order to bring the incident with the cowboys out in public. He quickly realizes that Vince set him up, but MPs take him to the hospital before he can do anything about it.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: The hospital keeps him so heavily sedated he is unable to leave. Carly, suspecting there is a reason for this, digs through Hank's papers and finds the report about the two cowboys. She drives across the country with her daughters and finds the cowboys with visible radiation sickness. She begs them to bring their story to the press, but the cowboys refuse, so she steals one of their horses and rides into the test site, intent on repeating their experience to get the attention of the press. She is arrested, which gets the attention of the press, and Robert is forced to let her, and Hank, go.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: She returns home to find Hank waiting for her, having quit that morning, and that Vince has been relieved of his duties. Hank tells her he found a new engineering job in the private sector in California, and the family happily moves.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: The film received generally positive reviews. It holds an 80% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 25 reviews, with an average rating of 6.4/10.


title: Blue Sky (1994 film)

text: Jessica Lange received critical acclaim for her performance. "Entertainment Weekly" raved about Lange, calling her turn "a fierce, brave, sexually charged performance, one of the most convincing portrayals I've seen of someone whose behavior flirts with craziness without quite crossing into it," while the "New York Daily News" noted, "Lange smolders, storms, rages and whimpers through "Blue Sky", acting with every muscle in her body." "Variety" also noted, "Jessica Lange makes the most of an opportunity at a full-blown star turn as Carly Marshall. In fact, Brigitte Bardot and Marilyn Monroe are about the only other actresses one can imagine pulling off such a role as well as Lange has. [She] has the showy role, with almost unlimited opportunities to emote and strut her stuff, which she does magnificently and with total abandon." "The New York Times" noted, "It is a lavish role for Ms. Lange, and she brings to it fierce emotions and tact. [It] echoes [her] dazzling role in "Frances". The "Los Angeles Times" also praised her performance, calling it "striking" and noting, "Lange's acting in "Blue Sky" leaves you awestruck. It's a great performance — probably her best." "The Washington Post" noted, "Lange [offers] a plush, platinum star turn. She is what Carly imagines she might have become if only she hadn't been a military wife: mostly Monroe with a soupcon of Bardot." "The New Yorker" raved, calling her turn "a stunning performance—perhaps the best of [her] remarkable career."


title: Karla (film)

text: Karla is a 2006 American psychological thriller film written and directed by Joel Bender, and co-written by Manette Rosen and Michael D. Sellers. It is based on the crimes of Canadian serial killers Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka and stars Misha Collins and Laura Prepon as Bernardo and Homolka.


title: Karla (film)

text: On 11 May 2000, a psychologist, Dr. Arnold, is conducting a session with Karla Homolka at Canada's Regional Psychiatric Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Dr. Arnold's evaluation will determine Karla's eligibility for parole. During the session, Dr. Arnold shows Karla a photo album of herself, and her husband, Paul Bernardo, in happier times. Karla has a memory of how they first met. However, when Dr. Arnold introduces the subject of Karla's sister, Tammy Homolka, Karla becomes uncooperative.


title: Karla (film)

text: Over the following weeks, Dr. Arnold probes Karla about her knowledge of Paul's secret life as a serial rapist. It is revealed that shortly before their marriage, Paul began to rape women. Paul convinced Karla to help him rape Tammy on camera. At first Karla disagrees, but eventually steals Halcion from the veterinary clinic where she works.


title: Karla (film)

text: Tammy gets drunk at a Christmas party and becomes unresponsive after the two drug her. Tammy is raped, and ends up getting sick while drugged, choking on her own vomit. Karla calls 911, and the two hide the assault evidence so her death would appear accidental. Afterwards, Paul beats Karla. Karla learns never to ruin Paul's "movies."


title: Karla (film)

text: Karla tells Dr. Arnold that Paul became obsessed with Tammy, and kept watching the video after her death, even showing it to friends. Paul also threatened to reveal Karla's role in her sister's murder, if he should get into any more trouble, but Karla finally leaves him anyway. Paul is open with Karla about his crimes, yet Karla does not object to them, even when Paul begins to bring his victims home. Although disturbed at that part of Paul's life, Karla learns to accept it, knowing that she too will be killed if she does not. At Paul's request, Karla hesitantly participates in these assaults.


title: Karla (film)

text: Paul kidnaps a young girl named Tina and forces her to undress on camera. Karla witnesses this, but is too afraid to tell anyone. Tina is held for 3 days, and is raped repeatedly while Karla is "forced" to videotape it all. During one such assault, Paul strangles Tina after she sees his face. Karla tries to convince him not to kill her, but he insists, telling her that Tina can identify them both.


title: Karla (film)

text: He cuts the body into pieces and seals them in cement blocks, which he then dumps into a lake. On the day of Paul and Karla's wedding, the girl's body is discovered, and identified by dental records. Paul stops raping and abducting for a time, but his anxiety and pent-up frustration cause him to become violent toward Karla. Paul's friends see the change in his personality and break off from him. Meanwhile Karla, suffering from the abuse and desperate to reclaim his affections, helps Paul abduct and rape another young girl named Kaitlyn.


title: Karla (film)

text: Kaitlyn is brutally raped by Paul. Karla watches the assault and begins to cry. Paul beats Karla and tells her that she is ruining his movie again. After Paul leaves, Karla is put in charge of Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn tells Karla that she is a victim too, and that this is not her fault. When asked why she stays, Karla simply says, "You don't understand." Karla claims to Dr. Arnold that she wanted to free Kaitlyn, but was afraid Paul would kill her if she did.


title: Karla (film)

text: Kaitlyn's disappearance immediately attracts a storm of media and police attention, so Paul kills her, to be rid of her. As part of the investigation, the police arrive at Paul's house. Paul is very cooperative so the police leave satisfied, but, afterwards, he beats Karla mercilessly. Karla takes refuge with friends before reporting the assault. Paul is then booked under domestic violence but is released after only one night in jail.


title: Karla (film)

text: Back at the Regional Psychiatric Centre, Dr. Arnold asks Karla about her relationship with her younger sister, Tammy, and her jealousy towards her, because of Paul's attraction to her. Karla confesses that Paul wanted to take Tammy's virginity and that he wanted Karla to "give" Tammy to him. Karla agreed to help him rape her sister.


title: Karla (film)

text: Shortly thereafter, the DNA samples Paul provided as part of the Scarborough rape investigation, are matched to the evidence found on one of the murder victims. Both Paul and Karla are subsequently arrested. During the trial, Paul testifies that Karla killed Kaitlyn Ross with a mallet. Karla denies all the killings. Paul is convicted on two counts of murder without any possibility of parole. Karla is given a sentence of twelve years in exchange for a guilty plea for manslaughter.


title: Karla (film)

text: A note explains that Karla's parole was denied, as the psychologist found her artificial, manipulative, and without remorse.


title: Karla (film)

text: The film was originally titled "Deadly" but was renamed "Karla" before its release. The script is based on court transcriptions, interviews and video shot by Homolka and Bernardo.


title: Karla (film)

text: The film caused significant controversy in Canada, where the families of victims Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy initially said that the film exploited the memory of their daughters. Politicians in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, including Attorney General Michael Bryant, called for a boycott of the film, and one Canadian theatre chain, Cineplex Odeon, stated that it would show the film only in its major urban markets in Toronto, Ontario, Montreal, Quebec and Ottawa, Ontario. The film was booked to debut at the 2005 Montreal World Film Festival, until a protest by Air Canada, a corporate sponsor of the festival, shelved the idea.


title: Karla (film)

text: Lawyer Tim Danson, who represented the French and Mahaffy families, watched a private screening of the film in September with the families in attendance. The following month, he announced that the families would not oppose the film's Canadian release. Actor Misha Collins, who played Bernardo, regretted being involved with the film after meeting a victim who escaped and has routinely told fans not to see the film or bring DVD copies to be signed.


title: Karla (film)

text: "Karla" was deemed "a creepy but botched work" by Robert Koehler of "Variety", who felt that the film was marred by its "choppy" direction, its sub-par production values, and its "confused" and "morally precarious" depiction of Homolka, which Koehler felt undermined her complicity in Bernardo's actions, writing, "There's a certain darkly suffocating quality to the chamber drama played out by these two sick souls, but the fact that the film is more willing to explicitly show Paul's constant beatings of Karla than the worst aspects of the killings underlines who is to be seen as the victim here." "The Globe and Mail's" Rick Groen was similarly critical of the film emphasizing Homolka's suffering over that of her and Bernardo's victims, and further opined that the picture was both "inexcusably mundane" and lacking in substance before awarding it a final score of one-and-a-half out of a possible four. Ken Eisner of "The Georgia Straight" condemned the film, deriding it as nothing more than a dull, clichéd, and "slapdash portrait of serial killers" that was completely devoid of "depth, tension, or psychological insight."


title: Karla (film)

text: While Louis B. Hobson (who called the film "disturbing" and "nauseating") of the "Calgary Sun" praised Misha Collins and Laura Prepon's acting and the restraint that "Karla" showed by not depicting or exaggerating "the worst excesses" of the crimes that it was dramatizing, he went on to write, "You don't recommend a movie such as "Karla", even if you can appreciate the performances that make it unnerving." The "Winnipeg Sun's" Pat St. Germaine lauded the film's acting, but also felt that it was a failure as a psychoanalytical character study, and concluded his review of it with, "Those who choose to see "Karla" will exit the theatre with much food for thought, but it's hard to imagine anyone will be enriched by it." The film's inadequate exploration of Homolka's psyche was also a point of contention for "Vue Weekly's" Brian Gibson, who wrote, "There is little ambiguity or tension at the core of this basically hollow karaoke version of the Bernardo-Homolka murders. Joel Bender's movie never resorts to gore-porn or sleaze-sationalism, avoiding any shots of Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy (given different names here) being beaten or raped, and the simulations of Bernardo's horrific films offer no flashes of nudity that would make us feel complicit with the sexual predator. But "Karla" seldom probes its title character's own complicity." Bruce Kirkland of the "Toronto Sun" expressed annoyance over "Karla's" "awkward" and "clumsy" narrative, gave mild praise to both its stars' performances and its restrained portrayal of its subject matter, and ended his review of the film with, "This film is not for the families of the victims, nor is it watchable by anyone with strong feelings about the case. For others less impassioned, however, it is a flawed yet largely accurate portrait of rapist-killer Bernardo and the psychotic woman who became his partner in crime."


title: Wood preservation

text: Wood easily degrades without sufficient preservation. Apart from structural wood preservation measures, there are a number of different chemical preservatives and processes (also known as "timber treatment", "lumber treatment" or "pressure treatment") that can extend the life of wood, timber, and their associated products, including engineered wood. These generally increase the durability and resistance from being destroyed by insects or fungi.


title: Wood preservation

text: As proposed by Richardson, treatment of wood has been practiced for almost as long as the use of wood itself. There are records of wood preservation reaching back to ancient Greece during Alexander the Great's rule, where bridge wood was soaked in olive oil. The Romans protected their ship hulls by brushing the wood with tar. During the Industrial Revolution, wood preservation became a cornerstone of the wood processing industry. Inventors and scientists such as Bethell, Boucherie, Burnett and Kyan made historic developments in wood preservation, with the preservative solutions and processes. Commercial pressure treatment began in the latter half of the 19th century with the protection of railroad cross-ties using creosote. Treated wood was used primarily for industrial, agricultural, and utility applications, where it is still used, until its use grew considerably (at least in the United States) in the 1970s, as homeowners began building decks and backyard projects. Innovation in treated timber products continues to this day, with consumers becoming more interested in less toxic materials.


title: Wood preservation

text: Wood that has been industrially pressure-treated with approved preservative products poses a limited risk to the public and should be disposed of properly. On December 31, 2003, the U.S. wood treatment industry stopped treating residential lumber with arsenic and chromium (chromated copper arsenate, or CCA). This was a voluntary agreement with the United States Environmental Protection Agency. CCA was replaced by copper-based pesticides, with exceptions for certain industrial uses. CCA may still be used for outdoor products like utility trailer beds and non-residential construction like piers, docks, and agricultural buildings. Industrial wood preservation chemicals are generally not available directly to the public and may require special approval to import or purchase, depending on the product and the jurisdiction where being used. In most countries, industrial wood preservation operations are notifiable industrial activities that require licensing from relevant regulatory authorities such as EPA or equivalent. Reporting and licensing conditions vary widely, depending on the particular chemicals used and the country of use.


title: Wood preservation

text: Although pesticides are used to treat lumber, preserving lumber protects natural resources (in the short term) by enabling wood products to last longer. Previous poor practices in industry have left legacies of contaminated ground and water around wood treatment sites in some cases. However, under currently approved industry practices and regulatory controls, such as implemented in Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and elsewhere, environmental impact of these operations should be minimal.


title: Wood preservation

text: Wood treated with modern preservatives is generally safe to handle, given appropriate handling precautions and personal protection measures. However, treated wood may present certain hazards in some circumstances, such as during combustion or where loose wood dust particles or other fine toxic residues are generated, or where treated wood comes into direct contact with food and agriculture.


title: Wood preservation

text: Preservatives containing copper in the form of microscopic particles have recently been introduced to the market, usually with "micronized" or "micro" trade names and designations such as MCQ or MCA. The manufacturers represent that these products are safe and EPA has registered these products.


title: Wood preservation

text: The American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) recommends that all treated wood be accompanied by a Consumer Information Sheet (CIS), to communicate safe handling and disposal instructions, as well as potential health and environmental hazards of treated wood. Many producers have opted to provide Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) instead. Although the practice of distributing MSDS instead of CIS is widespread, there is an ongoing debate regarding the practice and how to best communicate potential hazards and hazard mitigation to the end-user. Neither MSDS nor the newly adopted International Safety Data Sheets (SDS) are required for treated lumber under current U.S. Federal law.


title: Wood preservation

text: Chemical preservatives can be classified into three broad categories: water-borne preservatives, oil-borne preservatives, and light organic solvent preservatives (LOSPs).


title: Wood preservation

text: Particulate (micronised or dispersed) copper preservative technology has been introduced in the US and Europe. In these systems, copper is ground into micro sized particles and suspended in water rather than dissolved, as is the case with other copper products such as ACQ and copper azole. There are two particulate copper systems in production. One system uses a quat biocide system (known as MCQ) and is a derivative of ACQ. The other uses an azole biocide (known as MCA or μCA-C) derived from copper azole.


title: Wood preservation

text: Proponents of the particulate copper systems argue that they perform as well or better than the dissolved copper systems as a wood preservative, but other industry researchers disagree. None of the particulate copper systems have been submitted to the American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) for evaluation; thus, the particulate systems should not be used in applications where AWPA standards are required. However, all of the particulate copper systems have been tested and approved for building code requirements by the International Code Council (ICC). The particulate copper systems provide a lighter color than dissolved copper systems such as ACQ or copper azole.


title: Wood preservation

text: Proponents of the micronized copper systems claim that the systems are subject to third party inspection under a quality monitor program. However, the monitoring program is not subject to oversight by the American Lumber Standard Committee (ALSC) as is required for the AWPA standard systems.


title: Wood preservation

text: Two particulate copper systems, one marketed as MicroPro and the other as Wolmanized using μCA-C formulation, have achieved Environmentally Preferable Product (EPP) certification. The "EPP" certification was issued by Scientific Certifications Systems (SCS) and is based on a comparative life-cycle impact assessments with an industry standard.


title: Wood preservation

text: The copper particle size used in the "micronized" copper beads ranges from 1 to 700 nm with an average under 300 nm. Larger particles (such as actual micron-scale particles) of copper do not adequately penetrate the wood cell walls. These micronized preservatives use nano particles of copper oxide or copper carbonate, for which there are alleged safety concerns. An environmental group petitioned EPA in 2011 to revoke the registration of the micronized copper products, citing safety issues.


title: Wood preservation

text: Alkaline copper quaternary (ACQ) is a preservative made of copper, a fungicide, and a quaternary ammonium compound (quat) like didecyl dimethyl ammonium chloride, an insecticide which also augments the fungicidal treatment. ACQ has come into wide use in the US, Europe, Japan and Australia following restrictions on CCA. Its use is governed by national and international standards, which determine the volume of preservative uptake required for a specific timber end use.


title: Wood preservation

text: Since it contains high levels of copper, ACQ-treated timber is five times more corrosive to common steel. It is necessary to use fasteners meeting or exceeding requirements for ASTM A 153 Class D, such as ceramic-coated, as mere galvanized and even common grades of stainless steel corrode. The U.S. began mandating the use of non-arsenic containing wood preservatives for virtually all residential use timber in 2004.


title: Wood preservation

text: The American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) standards for ACQ require a retention of for above ground use and for ground contact.


title: Wood preservation

text: Chemical Specialties, Inc (CSI, now Viance) received U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award in 2002 for commercial introduction of ACQ. Its widespread use has eliminated major quantities of arsenic and chromium previously contained in CCA.


title: Wood preservation

text: Copper azole preservative (denoted as CA-B and CA-C under American Wood Protection Association/AWPA standards) is a major copper based wood preservative that has come into wide use in Canada, the US, Europe, Japan and Australia following restrictions on CCA. Its use is governed by national and international standards, which determine the volume of preservative uptake required for a specific timber end use.


title: Wood preservation

text: Copper azole is similar to ACQ with the difference being that the dissolved copper preservative is augmented by an azole co-biocide like organic triazoles such as tebuconazole or propiconazole, which are also used to protect food crops, instead of the quat biocide used in ACQ. The azole co-biocide yields a copper azole product that is effective at lower retentions than required for equivalent ACQ performance. The general appearance of wood treated with copper azole preservative is similar to CCA with a green colouration.


title: Wood preservation

text: Copper azole treated wood is marketed widely under the "Preserve CA" and "Wolmanized" brands in North America, and the "Tanalith" brand across Europe and other international markets.


title: Wood preservation

text: The AWPA standard retention for CA-B is for above ground applications and for ground contact applications. Type C copper azole, denoted as CA-C, has been introduced under the Wolmanized and Preserve brands. The AWPA standard retention for CA-C is for above ground applications and for ground contact applications.


title: Wood preservation

text: Copper naphthenate, invented in Denmark in 1911, has been used effectively for many applications including: fencepost, canvas, nets, greenhouses, utility poles, railroad ties, beehives, and wooden structures in ground contact. Copper naphthenate is registered with the EPA as a non-restricted use pesticide, so there is no federal applicators licensing requirements for its use as a wood preservative. Copper Naphthenate can be applied by brush, dip, or pressure treatment.


title: Wood preservation

text: The University of Hawaii has found that copper naphthenate in wood at loadings of is resistant to Formosan termite attack. On February 19, 1981, the Federal Register outlined the EPA's position regarding the health risks associated with various wood preservatives. As a result, the National Park Service recommended the use of copper naphthenate in its facilities as an approved substitute for pentachlorophenol, creosote, and inorganic arsenicals. A 50-year study presented to AWPA in 2005 by Mike Freeman and Douglas Crawford says, "This study reassessed the condition of the treated wood posts in southern Mississippi, and statistically calculated the new expected post life span. It was determined that commercial wood preservatives, like pentachlorophenol in oil, creosote, and copper naphthenate in oil, provided excellent protection for posts, with life spans now calculated to exceed 60 years. Surprisingly, creosote and penta treated posts at 75% of the recommended AWPA retention, and copper naphthenate at 50% of the required AWPA retention, gave excellent performance in this AWPA Hazard Zone 5 site. Untreated southern pine posts lasted 2 years in this test site."


title: Wood preservation

text: The AWPA M4 Standard for the care of preservative-treated wood products, reads, "The appropriateness of the preservation system for field treatment shall be determined by the type of preservative originally used to protect the product and the availability of a field treatment preservative. Because many preservative products are not packaged and labeled for use by the general public, a system different from the original treatment may need to be utilized for field treatment. Users shall carefully read and follow the instructions and precautions listed on the product label when using these materials. Copper naphthenate preservatives containing a minimum of 2.0% copper metal are recommended for material originally treated with copper naphthenate, pentachlorophenol, creosote, creosote solution or waterborne preservatives." The M4 Standard has been adopted by the International Code Council's (ICC) 2015 International Building Code (IBC) section 2303.1.9 Preservative-treated Wood, and 2015 International Residential Code (IRC) R317.1.1 Field Treatment. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials AASHTO has also adopted the AWPA M4 Standard.


title: Wood preservation

text: A waterborne copper naphthenate is sold to consumers under the tradename QNAP 5W. Oilborne copper naphthenates with 1% copper as metal solutions are sold to consumers under the tradenames Copper Green, and Wolmanized Copper Coat, a 2% copper as metal solution is sold under the tradename Tenino.


title: Wood preservation

text: In CCA treatment, copper is the primary fungicide, arsenic is a secondary fungicide and an insecticide, and chromium is a fixative which also provides ultraviolet (UV) light resistance. Recognized for the greenish tint it imparts to timber, CCA is a preservative that was very common for many decades.


title: Wood preservation

text: In the pressure treatment process, an aqueous solution of CCA is applied using a vacuum and pressure cycle, and the treated wood is then stacked to dry. During the process, the mixture of oxides reacts to form insoluble compounds, helping with leaching problems.


title: Wood preservation

text: The process can apply varying amounts of preservative at varying levels of pressure to protect the wood against increasing levels of attack. Increasing protection can be applied (in increasing order of attack and treatment) for: exposure to the atmosphere, implantation within soil, or insertion into a marine environment.


title: Wood preservation

text: In the last decade concerns were raised that the chemicals may leach from the wood into surrounding soil, resulting in concentrations higher than naturally occurring background levels. A study cited in "Forest Products Journal" found 12–13% of the chromated copper arsenate leached from treated wood buried in compost during a 12-month period. Once these chemicals have leached from the wood, they are likely to bind to soil particles, especially in soils with clay or soils that are more alkaline than neutral. In the United States the US Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a report in 2002 stating that exposure to arsenic from direct human contact with CCA treated wood may be higher than was previously thought. On 1 January 2004, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in a voluntary agreement with industry began restricting the use of CCA in treated timber in residential and commercial construction, with the exception of shakes and shingles, permanent wood foundations, and certain commercial applications. This was in an effort to reduce the use of arsenic and improve environmental safety, although the EPA were careful to point out that they had not concluded that CCA treated wood structures in service posed an unacceptable risk to the community. The EPA did not call for the removal or dismantling of existing CCA treated wood structures.


title: Wood preservation

text: In Australia, the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) restricted the use of CCA preservative for treatment of timber used in certain applications from March 2006. CCA may no longer be used to treat wood used in 'intimate human contact' applications such as children's play equipment, furniture, residential decking and handrailing. Use for low contact residential, commercial and industrial applications remains unrestricted, as does its use in all other situations. The APVMA decision to restrict the use of CCA in Australia was a precautionary measure, even though the report found no evidence that demonstrated CCA treated timber posed unreasonable risks to humans in normal use. Similarly to the US EPA, the APVMA did not recommend dismantling or removal of existing CCA treated wood structures.


title: Wood preservation

text: In Europe, Directive 2003/2/EC restricts the marketing and use of arsenic, including CCA wood treatment. CCA treated wood is not permitted to be used in residential or domestic constructions. It is permitted for use in various industrial and public works, such as bridges, highway safety fencing, electric power transmission and telecommunications poles.


title: Wood preservation

text: In the United Kingdom waste timber treated with CCA was classified in July 2012 as hazardous waste by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.


title: Wood preservation

text: These include copper HDO (Bis-(N-cyclohexyldiazeniumdioxy)-copper or CuHDO), copper chromate, copper citrate, acid copper chromate, and ammoniacal copper zinc arsenate (ACZA). The CuHDO treatment is an alternative to CCA, ACQ and CA used in Europe and in approval stages for United States and Canada. ACZA is generally used for marine applications.


title: Wood preservation

text: Boric acid, oxides and salts (borates) are effective wood preservatives and are supplied under numerous brand names throughout the world. One of the most common compounds used is disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (commonly abbreviated DOT). Borate treated wood is of low toxicity to humans, and does not contain copper or other heavy metals. However, unlike most other preservatives, borate compounds do not become fixed in the wood and can be partially leached out if exposed repeatedly to water that flows away rather than evaporating (evaporation leaves the borate behind so is not a problem). Even though leaching will not normally reduce boron concentrations below effective levels for preventing fungal growth, borates should not be used where they will be exposed to repeated rain, water or ground contact unless the exposed surfaces are treated to repel water. Zinc-borate compounds are less susceptible to leaching than sodium-borate compounds, but are still not recommended for below-ground use unless the timber is first sealed. Recent interest in low toxicity timber for residential use, along with new regulations restricting some wood preservation agents, has resulted in a resurgence of the use of borate treated wood for floor beams and internal structural members. Researchers at CSIRO in Australia have developed organoborates which are much more resistant to leaching, while still providing timber with good protection from termite and fungal attack. The cost of the production of these modified borates will limit their widespread take-up but they are likely to be suitable for certain niche applications, especially where low mammalian toxicity is of paramount importance.


title: Wood preservation

text: Recent concerns about the health and environmental effects of metallic wood preservatives have created a market interest in non-metallic wood preservatives such as propiconazole-tebuconazole-imidacloprid better known as PTI. The American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) standards for PTI require a retention of for above ground use and when applied in combination with a wax stabilizer. The AWPA has not developed a standard for a PTI ground contact preservative, so PTI is currently limited to above ground applications such as decks. All three of the PTI components are also used in food crop applications. The very low required amounts of PTI in pressure treated wood further limits effects and substantially decreases the freight costs and associated environmental impacts for shipping preservative components to the pressure treating plants.


title: Wood preservation

text: The PTI preservative imparts very little color to the wood. Producers generally add a color agent or a trace amount of copper solution so as to identify the wood as pressure treated and to better match the color of other pressure treated wood products. The PTI wood products are very well adapted for paint and stain applications with no bleed-through. The addition of the wax stabilizer allows a lower preservative retention plus substantially reduces the tendency of wood to warp and split as it dries. In combination with normal deck maintenance and sealer applications, the stabilizer helps maintain appearance and performance over time. PTI pressure treated wood products are no more corrosive than untreated wood and are approved for all types of metal contact, including aluminum.


title: Wood preservation

text: PTI pressure treated wood products are relatively new to the market place and are not yet widely available in building supply stores. However, there are some suppliers selling PTI products for delivery anywhere in the US on a job lot order basis.


title: Wood preservation

text: Sodium silicate is produced by fusing sodium carbonate with sand or heating both ingredients under pressure. It has been in use since the 19th century. It can be a deterrent against insect attack and possesses minor flame-resistant properties; however, it is easily washed out of wood by moisture, forming a flake-like layer on top of the wood.


title: Wood preservation

text: Timber Treatment Technology, LLC, markets TimberSIL, a sodium silicate wood preservative. The TimberSIL proprietary process surrounds the wood fibers with a protective, non-toxic, amorphous glass matrix. The result is a product the company calls "Glass Wood," which they claim is Class A fire-retardant, chemically inert, rot and decay resistant, and superior in strength to untreated wood. Timbersil is currently involved in litigation over its claims.


title: Wood preservation

text: There are a number of European natural paint fabricants that have developed potassium silicate (potassium waterglass) based preservatives. They frequently include boron compounds, cellulose, lignin and other plant extracts. They are a surface application with a minimal impregnation for internal use.


title: Wood preservation

text: In Australia, a water-based bifenthrin preservative has been developed to improve the insect resistance of timber. As this preservative is applied by spray, it only penetrates the outer 2 mm of the timber cross-section. Concerns have been raised as to whether this thin-envelope system will provide protection against insects in the longer term, particularly when exposed to sunlight for extended periods.


title: Wood preservation

text: This treated wood utilizes a fire retardant chemical that remains stable in high temperature environments. The fire retardant is applied under pressure at a wood treating plant like the preservatives described above, or applied as a surface coating.


title: Wood preservation

text: In both cases, treatment provides a physical barrier to flame spread. The treated wood chars but does not oxidize. Effectively this creates a convective layer that transfers flame heat to the wood in a uniform way which significantly slows the progress of fire to the material. There are several commercially available wood-based construction materials using pressure-treatment (such as those marketed in the United States and elsewhere under the trade names of 'FirePro', 'Burnblock' 'Wood-safe, 'Dricon', 'D-Blaze,' and 'Pyro-Guard'), as well as factory-applied coatings under the trade names of 'PinkWood' and 'NexGen'. Some site-applied coatings as well as brominated fire retardants have lost favor due to safety concerns as well as concerns surrounding the consistency of application. Specialized treatments also exist for wood used in weather-exposed applications.


title: Wood preservation

text: The only impregnation-applied fire retardant commercially available in Australia is 'NexGen'. 'Guardian', which used calcium formate as a 'powerful wood modifying agent', was removed from sale in early 2010 for unspecified reasons.


title: Wood preservation

text: These include pentachlorophenol ("penta") and creosote. They emit a strong petrochemical odor and are generally not used in consumer products. Both of these pressure treatments routinely protect wood for 40 years in most applications.


title: Wood preservation

text: Creosote was the first wood preservative to gain industrial importance more than 150 years ago and it is still widely used today for protection of industrial timber components where long service life is essential.


title: Wood preservation

text: Creosote is a tar-based preservative that is commonly used for utility poles and railroad ties (UK: railway sleepers). Creosote is one of the oldest wood preservatives, and was originally derived from a wood distillate, but now, virtually all creosote is manufactured from the distillation of coal tar. Creosote is regulated as a pesticide, and is not usually sold to the general public.


title: Wood preservation

text: In recent years in Australia and New Zealand, linseed oil has been incorporated in preservative formulations as a solvent and water repellent to "envelope treat" timber. This involves just treating the outer 5 mm of the cross-section of a timber member with preservative (e.g., permethrin 25:75), leaving the core untreated. While not as effective as CCA or LOSP methods, envelope treatments are significantly cheaper, as they use far less preservative. Major preservative manufacturers add a blue (or red) dye to envelope treatments. Blue colored timber is for use south of the Tropic of Capricorn and red for elsewhere. The colored dye also indicates that the timber is treated for resistance to termites/white ants. There is an ongoing promotional campaign in Australia for this type of treatment.


title: Wood preservation

text: This class of timber treatments use white spirit, or light oils such as kerosene, as the solvent carrier to deliver preservative compounds into timber. Synthetic pyrethroids are typically used as an insecticide, such as permethrin, bifenthrin or deltamethrin. In Australia and New Zealand, the most common formulations use permethrin as an insecticide, and propiconazole and tebuconazole as fungicides. While still using a chemical preservative, this formulation contains no heavy-metal compounds.


title: Wood preservation

text: With the introduction of strict volatile organic compound (VOC) laws in the European Union, LOSPs have disadvantages due to the high cost and long process times associated with vapour-recovery systems. LOSPs have been emulsified into water-based solvents. While this does significantly reduce VOC emissions, the timber swells during treatment, removing many of the advantages of LOSP formulations.


title: Wood preservation

text: Various epoxy resins usually thinned with a solvent like acetone or methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) can be used to both preserve and seal wood.


title: Wood preservation

text: Biological modified timber is treated with biopolymers from agricultural waste. After drying and curing, the soft timber becomes durable and strong. With this process fast growing pinewood acquires properties similar to tropical hardwood. Production facilities for this process are in The Netherlands and is known under the trade name “NobelWood”.


title: Wood preservation

text: From agricultural waste, like sugarcane bagasse, furfuryl alcohol is manufactured. Theoretically this alcohol can be from any fermented bio-mass waste and therefore can be called a green chemical. After condensation reactions pre-polymers are formed from furfuryl alcohol. Fast growing softwood is impregnated with the water-soluble bio-polymer. After impregnation the wood is dried and heated which initiates a polymerisation reaction between the bio-polymer and the wood cells. This process results in wood cells which are resistant to microorganisms. At the moment the only timber species which is being used for this process is Pinus radiata. This is the fastest growing tree species on Earth that has a porous structure which is particularly suitable for impregnation processes.


title: Wood preservation

text: The technique is applied to timber mainly for the building industry as a cladding material. The technique is being further developed in order to reach similar physical and biological properties of other polyfurfuryl impregnated wood species. Besides the impregnation with the biopolymers the timber can also be impregnated with fire retardant resins. This combination creates a timber with durability class I and a fire safety certification of Euro class B.


title: Wood preservation

text: Chemical modification of wood at the molecular level has been used to improve its performance properties. Many chemical reaction systems for the modification of wood, especially those using various types of anhydrides, have been published; however, the reaction of wood with acetic anhydride has been the most studied.


title: Wood preservation

text: The physical properties of any material are determined by its chemical structure. Wood contains an abundance of chemical groups called "free hydroxyls". Free hydroxyl groups readily absorb and release water according to changes in the climatic conditions to which they are exposed. This is the main reason why wood's dimensional stability is impacted by swelling and shrinking. It is also believed that the digestion of wood by enzymes initiates at the free hydroxyl sites, which is one of the principal reasons why wood is prone to decay.


title: Wood preservation

text: Acetylation effectively changes the compounds with free hydroxyls within wood into acetate esters. This is done by reacting the wood with acetic anhydride, which comes from acetic acid. When free hydroxyl groups are transformed to acetoxy groups, the ability of the wood to absorb water is greatly reduced, rendering the wood more dimensionally stable and, because it is no longer digestible, extremely durable. In general, softwoods naturally have an acetyl content from 0.5 to 1.5% and more durable hardwoods from 2 to 4.5%. Acetylation takes wood well beyond these levels with corresponding benefits. These include an extended coatings life due to acetylated wood acting as a more stable substrate for paints and translucent coatings. acetylated wood is non-toxic and does not have the environmental issues associated with traditional preservation techniques.


title: Wood preservation

text: The acetylation of wood was first done in Germany in 1928 by Fuchs. In 1946, Tarkow, Stamm and Erickson first described the use of wood acetylation to stabilize wood from swelling in water. Since the 1940s, many laboratories around the world have looked at acetylation of many different types of woods and agricultural resources.


title: Wood preservation

text: In spite of the vast amount of research on chemical modification of wood, and, more specifically, on the acetylation of wood, commercialization did not come easily. The first patent on the acetylation of wood was filed by Suida in Austria in 1930. Later, in 1947, Stamm and Tarkow filed a patent on the acetylation of wood and boards using pyridine as a catalyst. In 1961, the Koppers Company published a technical bulletin on the acetylation of wood using no catalysis, but with an organic cosolvent In 1977, in Russia, Otlesnov and Nikitina came close to commercialization, but the process was discontinued, presumably because cost-effectiveness could not be achieved. In 2007, Titan Wood, a London-based company, with production facilities in The Netherlands, achieved cost-effective commercialization and began large-scale production of acetylated wood under the trade name "Accoya".


title: Wood preservation

text: Copper plating or copper sheathing is the practice of covering wood, most commonly wooden hulls of ships, with copper metal. As metallic copper is both repellent and toxic to fungus, insects such as termites, and marine bi-valves this would preserve the wood and also act as an anti-fouling measure to prevent aquatic life from attaching to the ship's hull and reducing a ship's speed and maneuverability. Modern marine bottom paints often incorporate a significant amount of copper in their formulations for the same reason, although they are not recommended for aluminum hulls because of the possibilities for galvanic corrosion.


title: Wood preservation

text: These species are resistant to decay in their natural state, due to high levels of organic chemicals called "extractives", mainly polyphenols, providing them antimicrobial properties. Extractives are chemicals that are deposited in the heartwood of certain tree species as they convert sapwood to heartwood; they are present in both parts though. Huon pine ("Lagarostrobos franklinii"), merbau ("Intsia bijuga"), ironbark ("Eucalyptus" spp.), totara ("Podocarpus totara"), puriri ("Vitex lucens"), kauri ("Agathis australis"), and many cypresses, such as coast redwood ("Sequoia sempervirens") and western red cedar ("Thuja plicata"), fall in this category. However, many of these species tend to be prohibitively expensive for general construction applications.


title: Wood preservation

text: Huon pine was used for ship hulls in the 19th century, but over-harvesting and Huon pine's extremely slow growth rate makes this now a specialty timber. Huon pine is so rot resistant that fallen trees from many years ago are still commercially valuable. Merbau is still a popular decking timber and has a long life in above ground applications, but it is logged in an unsustainable manner and is too hard and brittle for general use. Ironbark is a good choice where available. It is harvested from both old-growth and plantation in Australia and is highly resistant to rot and termites. It is most commonly used for fence posts and house stumps. Eastern red cedar ("Juniperus virginiana") and black locust ("Robinia pseudoacacia") have long been used for rot-resistant fence posts and rails in eastern United States, with the black locust also planted in modern times in Europe. Coast redwood is commonly used for similar applications in the western United States. Tōtara and pūriri were used extensively in New Zealand during the European colonial era when native forests were "mined", even as fence posts of which many are still operating. Tōtara was used by the Māori to build large "waka" (canoes). Today, they are specialty timbers as a result of their scarcity, although lower grade stocks are sold for landscaping use. Kauri is a superb timber for building the hulls and decks of boats. It too is now a specialty timber and ancient logs (in excess of 3 000 years) that have been mined from swamps are used by wood turners and furniture makers.


title: Wood preservation

text: The natural durability or rot and insect resistance of wood species is always based on the heartwood (or "truewood"). The sapwood of all timber species should be considered to be non-durable without preservative treatment.


title: Wood preservation

text: Natural substances, purified from naturally rot-resistant trees and responsible for natural durability, also known as natural "extractives", are another promising wood preservatives. Several compounds have been described to be responsible for natural durability, including different polyphenols, lignins lignans, such as gmelinol, plicatic acid), hinokitiol, α-cadinol and other sesquiterpenoids, flavonoids, such as mesquitol, and other substances. These compounds are mostly identified in the heartwood, although they are also present in minimal concentrations in the sapwood. Tannins, which have also shown to act as protectants, are present in the bark of trees. Treatment of timber with natural extractives, such as hinokitiol, tannins, and different tree extracts, has been studied and proposed to be another environmentally-friendly wood preservation method.


title: Wood preservation

text: Tung oil has been used for hundreds of years in China, where it was used as a preservative for wood ships. The oil penetrates the wood, and then hardens to form an impermeable hydrophobic layer up to 5 mm into the wood. As a preservative it is effective for exterior work above and below ground, but the thin layer makes it less useful in practice. It is not available as a pressure treatment.


title: Wood preservation

text: By going beyond kiln drying wood, heat treatment may make timber more durable. By heating timber to a certain temperature, it may be possible to make the wood fibre less appetizing to insects.


title: Wood preservation

text: Heat treatment can also improve the properties of the wood with respect to water, with lower equilibrium moisture, less moisture deformation, and weather resistance. It is weather-resistant enough to be used unprotected, in facades or in kitchen tables, where wetting is expected. However, heating can reduce the amount of volatile organic compounds, which generally have antimicrobial properties.


title: Wood preservation

text: There are four similar heat treatments — Westwood, developed in the United States; Retiwood, developed in France; Thermowood, developed in Finland by VTT; and Platowood, developed in The Netherlands. These processes autoclave the treated wood, subjecting it to pressure and heat, along with nitrogen or water vapour to control drying in a staged treatment process ranging from 24 to 48 hours at temperatures of 180 °C to 230 °C depending on timber species. These processes increase the durability, dimensional stability and hardness of the treated wood by at least one class; however, the treated wood is darkened in colour, and there are changes in certain mechanical characteristics: Specifically, the modulus of elasticity is increased to 10%, and the modulus of rupture is diminished by 5% to 20%; thus, the treated wood requires drilling for nailing to avoid splitting the wood. Certain of these processes cause less impact than others in their mechanical effects upon the treated wood. Wood treated with this process is often used for cladding or siding, flooring, furniture and windows.


title: Wood preservation

text: For the control of pests that may be harbored in wood packaging material (i.e. crates and pallets), the ISPM 15 requires heat treatment of wood to 56 °C for 30 minutes to receive the HT stamp. This is typically required to ensure the killing of the pine wilt nematode and other kinds of wood pests that could be transported internationally.


title: Wood preservation

text: Wood and bamboo can be buried in mud to help protect them from insects and decay. This practice is used widely in Vietnam to build farm houses consisting of a wooden structural frame, a bamboo roof frame and bamboo with mud mixed with rice hay for the walls. While wood in contact with soil will generally decompose more quickly than wood not in contact with it, it is possible that the predominantly clay soils prevalent in Vietnam provide a degree of mechanical protection against insect attack, which compensates for the accelerated rate of decay.


title: Wood preservation

text: Also, since wood is subject to bacterial decay only under specific temperature and moisture content ranges, submerging it in water-saturated mud can retard decay, by saturating the wood's internal cells beyond their moisture decay range.


title: Wood preservation

text: Probably the first attempts made to protect wood from decay and insect attack consisted of brushing or rubbing preservatives onto the surfaces of the treated wood. Through trial and error the most effective preservatives and application processes were slowly determined. In the Industrial Revolution, demands for such things as telegraph poles and railroad ties (UK: railway sleepers) helped to fuel an explosion of new techniques that emerged in the early 19th century. The sharpest rise in inventions took place between 1830 and 1840, when Bethell, Boucherie, Burnett and Kyan were making wood-preserving history. Since then, numerous processes have been introduced or existing processes improved. The goal of modern-day wood preservation is to ensure a deep, uniform penetration with reasonable cost, without endangering the environment. The most widespread application processes today are those using artificial pressure through which many woods are being effectively treated, but several species (such as spruce, Douglas-fir, larch, hemlock and fir) are very resistant to impregnation. With the use of incising, the treatment of these woods has been somewhat successful but with a higher cost and not always satisfactory results. One can divide the wood-preserving methods roughly into either non-pressure processes or pressure processes.


title: Wood preservation

text: There are numerous non-pressure processes of treating wood which vary primarily in their procedure. The most common of these treatments involve the application of the preservative by means of brushing or spraying, dipping, soaking, steeping or by means of hot and cold bath. There is also a variety of additional methods involving charring, applying preservatives in bored holes, diffusion processes and sap displacement.


title: Wood preservation

text: Brushing preservatives is a long-practised method and often used in today's carpentry workshops. Technological developments mean it is also possible to spray preservative over the surface of the timber. Some of the liquid is drawn into the wood as the result of capillary action before the spray runs off or evaporates, but unless puddling occurs penetration is limited and may not be suitable for long-term weathering. By using the spray method, coal-tar creosote, oil-borne solutions and water-borne salts (to some extent) can also be applied. A thorough brush or spray treatment with coal-tar creosote can add 1 to 3 years to the lifespan of poles or posts. Two or more coats provide better protection than one, but the successive coats should not be applied until the prior coat has dried or soaked into the wood. The wood should be seasoned before treatment.


title: Wood preservation

text: Dipping consists of simply immersing the wood in a bath of creosote or other preservative for a few seconds or minutes. Similar penetrations to that of brushing and spraying processes are achieved. It has the advantage of minimizing hand labor. It requires more equipment and larger quantities of preservative and is not adequate for treating small lots of timber. Usually the dipping process is useful in the treatment of window sashes and doors. Except for copper naphthenate, treatment with copper salt preservative is no longer allowed with this method.


title: Wood preservation

text: In this process the wood is submerged in a tank of water-preservative mix, and allowed to soak for a longer period of time (several days to weeks). This process was developed in the 19th century by John Kyan. The depth and retention achieved depends on factors such as species, wood moisture, preservative and soak duration. The majority of the absorption takes place during the first two or three days, but will continue at a slower pace for an indefinite period. As a result, the longer the wood can be left in the solution, the better treatment it will receive. When treating seasoned timber, both the water and the preservative salt soak into the wood, making it necessary to season the wood a second time. Posts and poles can be treated directly on endangered areas, but should be treated at least above the future ground level.


title: Wood preservation

text: The depth obtained during regular steeping periods varies from up to by sap pine. Due to the low absorption, solution strength should be somewhat stronger than that in pressure processes, around 5% for seasoned timber and 10% for green timber (because the concentration slowly decreases as the chemicals diffuse into the wood). The solution strength should be controlled continually and, if necessary, be corrected with the salt additive. After the timber is removed from the treatment tank, the chemical will continue to spread within the wood if it has sufficient moisture content. The wood should be weighed down and piled so that the solution can reach all surfaces. (Sawed materials stickers should be placed between every board layer.) This process finds minimal use despite its former popularity in continental Europe and Great Britain.


title: Wood preservation

text: Named after John Howard Kyan, who patented this process in England in 1833, Kyanizing consists of steeping wood in a 0.67% mercuric chloride preservative solution. It is no longer used.


title: Wood preservation

text: Patented by Charles A. Seely, this process achieves treatment by immersing seasoned wood in successive baths of hot and cold preservatives. During the hot baths, the air expands in the timbers. When the timbers are changed to the cold bath (the preservative can also be changed) a partial vacuum is created within the lumen of the cells, causing the preservative to be drawn into the wood. Some penetration occurs during the hot baths, but most of it takes place during the cold baths. This cycle is repeated with a significant time reduction compared to other steeping processes. Each bath may last 4 to 8 hours or in some cases longer. The temperature of the preservative in the hot bath should be between and in the cold bath (depending on preservative and tree species). The average penetration depths achieved with this process ranges from . Both preservative oils and water-soluble salts can be used with this treatment. Due to the longer treatment periods, this method finds little use in the commercial wood preservation industry today.


title: Wood preservation

text: As explained in Uhlig's Corrosion Handbook, this process involves two or more chemical baths that undergo a reaction with the cells of the wood, and result in the precipitation of preservative into the wood cells. Two chemicals commonly employed in this process are copper ethanolamine, and sodium dimethyldithiocarbamate, which reacts to precipitate copper dimetyldithiocarbamate. The precipitated preservative is very resistant to leeching. Since its use in the mid-1990s, it has been discontinued in the United States of America, but it never saw commercialization in Canada.


title: Wood preservation

text: Pressure processes are the most permanent method around today in preserving timber life. Pressure processes are those in which the treatment is carried out in closed cylinders with applied pressure or vacuum. These processes have a number of advantages over the non-pressure methods. In most cases, a deeper and more uniform penetration and a higher absorption of preservative is achieved. Another advantage is that the treating conditions can be controlled so that retention and penetration can be varied. These pressure processes can be adapted to large-scale production. The high initial costs for equipment and the energy costs are the biggest disadvantages. These treatment methods are used to protect ties, poles and structural timbers and find use throughout the world today. The various pressure processes that are used today differ in details, but the general method is in all cases the same. The treatment is carried out in cylinders. The timbers are loaded onto special tram cars, so called "buggies" or "bogies", and into the cylinder. These cylinders are then set under pressure often with the addition of higher temperature. As final treatment, a vacuum is frequently used to extract excess preservatives. These cycles can be repeated to achieve better penetration.


title: Wood preservation

text: LOSP treatments often use a vacuum impregnation process. This is possible because of the lower viscosity of the white-spirit carrier used.


title: Wood preservation

text: In the full-cell process, the intent is to keep as much of the liquid absorbed into the wood during the pressure period as possible, thus leaving the maximum concentration of preservatives in the treated area. Usually, water solutions of preservative salts are employed with this process, but it is also possible to impregnate wood with oil. The desired retention is achieved by changing the strength of the solution. William Burnett patented this development in 1838 of full-cell impregnation with water solutions. The patent covered the use of zinc chloride on water basis, also known as "Burnettizing". A full-cell process with oil was patented in 1838 by John Bethell. His patent described the injection of tar and oils into wood by applying pressure in closed cylinders. This process is still used today with some improvements.


title: Wood preservation

text: Contrary to the static full-cell and empty-cell processes, the fluctuation process is a dynamic process. By this process the pressure inside the impregnation cylinder changes between pressure and vacuum within a few seconds. There have been inconsistent claims that through this process it is possible to reverse the pit closure by spruce. However, the best results that have been achieved with this process by spruce do not exceed a penetration deeper than . Specialized equipment is necessary and therefore higher investment costs are incurred.


title: Wood preservation

text: Developed by Dr. Boucherie of France in 1838, this approach consisted of attaching a bag or container of preservative solution to a standing or a freshly cut tree with bark, branches, and leaves still attached, thereby injecting the liquid into the sap stream. Through transpiration of moisture from the leaves the preservative is drawn upward through the sapwood of the tree trunk.


title: Wood preservation

text: The modified Boucherie process consists of placing freshly cut, unpeeled timbers onto declining skids, with the stump slightly elevated, then fastening watertight covering caps or boring a number of holes into the ends, and inserting a solution of copper sulfate or other waterborne preservative into the caps or holes from an elevated container. Preservative oils tend to not penetrate satisfactorily by this method. The hydrostatic pressure of the liquid forces the preservative lengthwise into and through the sapwood, thus pushing the sap out of the other end of the timber. After a few days, the sapwood is completely impregnated; unfortunately little or no penetration takes place in the heartwood. Only green wood can be treated in this manner. This process has found considerable usage to impregnate poles and also larger trees in Europe and North America, and has experienced a revival of usage to impregnate bamboo in countries such as Costa Rica, Bangladesh, India and the state of Hawaii.


title: Wood preservation

text: Developed in the Philippines, this method (abbreviated HPSD) consists of a cylinder pressure cap made from a 3 mm thick mild steel plate secured with 8 sets of bolts, a 2-HP diesel engine, and a pressure regulator with 1.4–14 kg/m capacity. The cap is placed over the stump of a pole, tree or bamboo and the preservative is forced into the wood with pressure from the engine.


title: Wood preservation

text: First tested and patented by Kolossvary, Haltenberger, and Berdenich of Austria in 1911 and 1912 (U.S. patents. 1,012,207 and 1,018,624) with several improvements from O. P. M. Goss, D. W. Edwards and J. H. Mansfield among others, this process consists of making shallow, slit-like holes in the surfaces of material to be treated, so that deeper and more uniform penetration of preservative may be obtained. The term "incising" or perforating comes from the Latin "incidere", a compound of "in" and "caedere" (to cut). Incisions made in sawed material usually are parallel with the grain of the wood. This process is common in North America (since the 1950s), where Douglas-fir products and pole butts of various species are prepared before treatment. It is most useful for woods that are resistant to side penetration, but allow preservative transport along the grain. In the region in which it is produced, it is common practice to incise all sawed Douglas-fir or more in thickness before treatment.


title: Wood preservation

text: Unfortunately, the impregnation of spruce, the most important structural timber in large areas in Europe, has shown that unsatisfactory treatment depths have been achieved with impregnation. The maximum penetration of is not sufficient to protect wood in weathered positions. The present-day incising machines consist essentially of four revolving drums fitted with teeth or needles or with lasers that burn the incisions into the wood. Preservatives can be spread along the grain up to in radial and up to in tangential and radial direction.


title: Wood preservation

text: In North America, where smaller timber dimensions are common, incision depths of have become standard. In Europe, where larger dimensions are widespread, incision depths of are necessary. The incisions are visible and often considered to be wood error. Incisions by laser are significantly smaller than those of spokes or needles. The costs for each process type are approximately for spoke/conventional all-round incising €0.50/m, by laser incising €3.60/m and by needle incision €1.00/m. (Figures originate from the year 1998 and may vary from present day prices.)


title: Wood preservation

text: An alternative increases the permeability of timber using microwave technology. There is some concern that this method may adversely affect the structural performance of the material. Research in this area has been conducted by the Cooperative Research Centre at the University of Melbourne, Australia.


title: Wood preservation

text: Charring of timber results in surfaces which are fire-resistant, insect-resistant and proof against weathering. Wood surfaces are ignited using a hand-held burner or moved slowly across a fire. The charred surface is then cleaned using a steel brush to remove loose bits and to expose the grain. Oil or varnish may be applied if required. Charring wood with a red-hot iron is a traditional method in Japan, where it is called or (literally 'fire cypress').


title: Ulay

text: Frank Uwe Laysiepen (; 30 November 1943 – 2 March 2020), known professionally as Ulay, was a German artist based in Amsterdam and Ljubljana, who received international recognition for his Polaroid art and collaborative performance art with longtime companion Marina Abramović.


title: Ulay

text: In the early 1970s, struggling with his sense of "Germanness," Ulay moved to Amsterdam, where he began experimenting with the medium of Polaroid. "Renais sense" (1974), a series of self-reflective and autobiographical collages, depicted overt visual representations of a constructed gender that were considered scandalous at the time.


title: Ulay

text: In 1975, Laysiepen, who went by the single name Ulay, met the Serbian performance artist Marina Abramović. They began living and performing together that year. When Abramović and Ulay began their collaboration, the main concepts they explored were the Ego and artistic identity. They created "relation works" characterized by constant movement, change, process and "art vital". The couple expressed their commitment in their "Relation Works" (1976–1988) manifesto: ‘Art Vital: No fixed living place, permanent movement, direct contact, local relation, self-selection, passing limitations, taking risks, mobile energy.’


title: Ulay

text: This was the beginning of a decade of influential collaborative work. Each performer was interested in the traditions of their cultural heritage and the individual's desire for ritual. Consequently, they decided to form a collective being called "The Other", and spoke of themselves as parts of a "two-headed body". They dressed and behaved like twins and created a relationship of complete trust. As they defined this phantom identity, their individual identities became less accessible. In an analysis of phantom artistic identities, Charles Green has noted that this allowed a deeper understanding of the artist as performer, for it revealed a way of "having the artistic self-made available for self-scrutiny".


title: Ulay

text: The work of Abramović and Ulay tested the physical limits of the body and explored male and female principles, psychic energy, transcendental meditation and nonverbal communication. While some critics have explored the idea of a hermaphroditic state of being as a feminist statement, Abramović herself denies considering this as a conscious concept. Her body studies, she insists, have always been concerned primarily with the body as the unit of an individual, a tendency she traces to her parents' military pasts. Rather than concerning themselves with gender ideologies, Abramović/Ulay explored extreme states of consciousness and their relationship to architectural space. They devised a series of works in which their bodies created additional spaces for audience interaction. In discussing this phase of her performance history, she has said: "The main problem in this relationship was what to do with the two artists' egos. I had to find out how to put my ego down, as did he, to create something like a hermaphroditic state of being that we called the death self."


title: Ulay

text: Between 1981 and 1987, the pair performed "Nightsea Crossing" in twenty-two performances. They sat silently across from each other in chairs for seven hours a day.


title: Ulay

text: In 1988, after several years of tense relations, Abramović and Ulay decided to make a spiritual journey which would end their relationship. They each walked the Great Wall of China, in a piece called "Lovers," starting from the two opposite ends and meeting in the middle. As Abramović described it: "That walk became a complete personal drama. Ulay started from the Gobi Desert and I from the Yellow Sea. After each of us walked 2500 km, we met in the middle and said good-bye." She has said that she conceived this walk in a dream, and it provided what she thought was an appropriate, romantic ending to a relationship full of mysticism, energy, and attraction. She later described the process: "We needed a certain form of ending, after this huge distance walking towards each other. It is very human. It is in a way more dramatic, more like a film ending ... Because in the end, you are really alone, whatever you do." She reported that during her walk she was reinterpreting her connection to the physical world and to nature. She felt that the metals in the ground influenced her mood and state of being; she also pondered the Chinese myths in which the Great Wall has been described as a "dragon of energy." It took the couple eight years to acquire permission from the government of the People's Republic of China to perform the work, by the time of which their relationship had completely dissolved.


title: Ulay

text: At her 2010 MoMA retrospective, Abramović performed "The Artist Is Present", in which she shared a period of silence with each stranger who sat in front of her. Although "they met and talked the morning of the opening", Abramović had a deeply emotional reaction to Ulay when he arrived at her performance, reaching out to him across the table between them; the video of the event went viral.


title: Ulay

text: In November 2015, Ulay took Abramović to court, claiming she had paid him insufficient royalties according to the terms of a 1999 contract covering sales of their joint works. In September 2016, a Dutch court ordered Abramović to pay €250,000 to Ulay as his share of sales of artistic collaborations over their joint works. In its ruling, the court in Amsterdam found that Ulay was entitled to royalties of 20% net on the sales of their works, as specified in the original 1999 contract, and ordered Abramović to backdate royalties of more than €250,000, as well as more than €23,000 in legal costs. Additionally, she was ordered to provide full accreditation to joint works listed as by "Ulay/Abramović" covering the period from 1976 to 1980, and "Abramović/Ulay" for those from 1981 to 1988.


title: Ulay

text: Ulay experimented extensively with incorporating audience participation into his performance art. His installations "Can’t Beat the Feeling: Long Playing Record" (1991–1992) and "Bread and Butter" (1993) were openly critical of European Union expansion. In the "Berlin Afterimages – EU Flags" series, he exploited the phenomenon of retinal afterimages to depict reversed images of EU member nation flags. He produced "The Delusion: An Event about Art and Psychiatry" (2002) on the grounds of the Vincent van Gogh Psychiatric Institute in Venray, the Netherlands. Other projects that incorporated audience participation include "Luxembourg" "Portraits" and "A Monument for the Future".


title: Ulay

text: Rendering reality as accurately as possible was the focus of "Cursive and Radicals" (2000), "Johnny–The Ontological in the Photographic Image" (2004), and "WE Emerge" (2004), the last realized in collaboration with AoRTa art centre in Chișinău, Republic of Moldova.


title: Ulay

text: From 1976 to 1988 Ulay was in a relationship with Marina Abramović, with whom he collaborated on a number of pieces of performance art.


title: Ulay

text: In 2013, director Damjan Kozole released the documentary "Project Cancer: Ulay's journal from November to November" about the artist's life, work and 2011 cancer diagnosis. The film follows Ulay's treatments, meetings with friends and travels, as well as his ongoing practice. He recovered from the lymphatic cancer in 2014.


title: Tropico (video game)

text: Tropico is a construction and management simulation video game developed by PopTop Software and published by Gathering of Developers in April 2001. Feral Interactive has developed and published a number of the games in the series for Mac OS X. The games see the player taking the role of "El Presidente", who rules a fictional island country in the Caribbean named Tropico during the Cold War era and beyond.


title: Tropico (video game)

text: The game is tongue-in-cheek in its presentation of semi-democratic banana republics, using a great deal of humor while still referencing such topics as totalitarianism, electoral fraud, and the interventions of powerful companies (United Fruit is implied) and the Cold War superpowers (the United States and Soviet Union). This is similar to the previous 8bit Game "Dictator" by DK'Tronics, except in Dictator the success is measured by the amount you put away in your Swiss bank account, which is an offshore bank account.


title: Tropico (video game)

text: "Tropico" features Latin-styled Caribbean music, largely performed by Daniel Indart. The game won the Original Music Composition category in the 2002 Interactive Achievement Awards.


title: Tropico (video game)

text: "Tropico" has several expansion packs and new editions, including "Tropico: Paradise Island", plus a combined copy of the original and "Paradise Island" titled "Tropico: Mucho Macho Edition" (released on June 27, 2002). A sequel, "", was released on April 8, 2003. The third game in the series "Tropico 3", was released in the autumn of 2009. A fourth game, "Tropico 4", was released on August 26, 2011, and a fifth game, "Tropico 5", was released on May 23, 2014. "Tropico 6" was released on March 29, 2019.


title: Tropico (video game)

text: The game was re-released in the three-game pack "Tropico Reloaded", packing the original game, the expansion pack "Tropico: Paradise Island", and the sequel "Tropico 2: Pirate Cove" into one release. It is available both digitally on Steam and GOG.com, and on disc.


title: Tropico (video game)

text: Regardless of any other stated victory condition, the main goal of any "Tropico" game is to stay in power. If the island's populace disapproves of the player's actions, they may vote their leader out of office. Individual factions and powers can also end or disrupt El Presidente's rule. Rebels can defeat the army and storm the Presidential palace. If the army is dissatisfied, it can stage a coup d'état.


title: Tropico (video game)

text: If "El Presidente" manages to stay in positive view of the Soviet Union and the United States they will supply him with foreign aid money. If either of the Cold War superpowers becomes unhappy with the player's regime, it may launch an invasion to overthrow it. The superpowers may build a military base on Tropico, protecting the island from the other and offering monthly payments. If an army base is established in the country, it may ask for specific tasks, and low satisfaction will lead them to overthrow "El Presidente".


title: Tropico (video game)

text: "Tropico" can be played in two gameplay modes: scenario or custom game/random map. Scenarios are predetermined game conditions with defined goals that must be accomplished in order to win. The game includes several scenarios, each with a stated level of difficulty. Custom games allow virtually all starting conditions to be controlled. The player can customize the map of the island, adjusting its size and steepness to personal preference. Many other aspects of gameplay, such as political and economic difficulty, can also be customized to make the game easier or more difficult. The custom game also allows the player to choose how many game years the simulation will run for (a minimum of 10 years, a maximum of 70), and what conditions will determine victory (if any). The game also includes a tutorial level, which teaches the player the game mechanics and controls of the game.


title: Tropico (video game)

text: The player is able to issue a number of governmental edicts, some of which require funding or the availability of particular buildings. Edicts are used to achieve various game effects, from appeasing one of the superpowers by openly praising them, to instating martial law or giving a tax break to the populace.


title: Tropico (video game)

text: Before starting a custom game, the player may either design their own "El Presidente" character or select one from a list of pre-made leaders. These include real-life figures such as Che Guevara, Fidel Castro, and Augusto Pinochet, fictional rulers such as Hernando Blanco and Sancho Baraega. Lou Bega, who is a pop musician commonly known at the time for the song "Mambo No. 5", is also available as a dictator persona. After the player has chosen a leader, the player can customize their profile by specifying the strengths and flaws of their character's personality, the means by which they came into power and their social background. These choices affect the attitudes of factions and superpowers towards the player, and can also alter the costs or consequences of in-game actions.


title: Tropico (video game)

text: The game calculates a score for the player at the end of the game. This score is based on a variety of factors, including the happiness of the island's citizens, the health of the island's economy, how much money the player has set aside for their retirement in a Swiss bank account, and the level of difficulty chosen at the start of the game.