Tag Archives: Social

IBM and Oracle eye Technopark as next destination – SiliconIndia

IBM and Oracle eye Technopark as next destination – Thiruvananthapuram: Global IT majors IBM and Oracle are planning to set up units at the Technopark, official sources said.An official of the state

via IBM and Oracle eye Technopark as next destination – SiliconIndia.


Social Disaster:Two-year-old who smokes 40 cigarettes




His mother, Diana, 26, wept: ‘He’s totally addicted. If he doesn’t get cigarettes, he gets angry and screams and batters his head against the wall. He tells me he feels dizzy and sick.’
Ardi will smoke only one brand and his habit costs his parents £3.78 a day in Musi Banyuasin, in Indonesia’s South Sumatra province.
But in spite of this, his fishmonger father Mohammed, 30, said: ‘He looks pretty healthy to me. I don’t see the problem.’
Ardi’s youth is the extreme of a disturbing trend. Data from the Central Statistics Agency showed 25 per cent of Indonesian children aged three to 15 have tried cigarettes, with 3.2 per cent of those active smokers.

Gun smoke: Four-stone Ardi puffs one of 40 cigarettes he smokes a day while toting a water pistol


Child advocates are speaking out about the health damage to children from second-hand smoke, and the growing pressure on them to smoke in a country where one-third of the population uses tobacco and single cigarettes can be bought for a few cents.
Seto Mulyadi, chairman of Indonesia’s child protection commission, blames the increase on aggressive advertising and parents who are smokers.
‘A law to protect children and passive smokers should be introduced immediately in this country,’ he said.
A health law passed in 2009 formally recognizes that smoking is addictive, and an anti-smoking coalition is pushing for tighter restrictions on smoking in public places, advertising bans and bigger health warnings on cigarette packages.

Puff baby: Ardi blows smoke while trundling around on his truck

Puff baby: Ardi blows smoke while trundling around on his truck

Benny Wahyudi, a senior official at the Industry Ministry, said the government had initiated a plan to try to limit the number of smokers, including dropping production to 240 billion cigarettes this year, from 245 billion in 2009.
‘The government is aware of the impact of smoking on health and has taken efforts, including lowering cigarette production, increasing its tax and limiting smoking areas,’ he said.
Mr Mulyadi said a ban on advertising is key to putting the brakes on child and teen smoking.
‘If cigarette advertising is not banned, there will be more kids whose lives are threatened because of smoking,’ he said.
Ubiquitous advertising hit a bump last month when a cigarette company was forced to withdraw its sponsorship of pop star Kelly Clarkson’s concert following protests from fans and anti-tobacco groups.

Always having a break: Ardi, who is rarely seen without a cigarette, insists on the same brand, costing £78 a day


However, imposing a non-smoking message will be difficult in Indonesia, the world’s third-largest tobacco consumer.
Tubagus Haryo Karbyanto, a member of the National Commission of Tobacco Control, said Indonesia must also address the social conditions that lead to smoking, such as family influence and peer pressure.
‘The promotion of health has to be integrated down to the smallest units in our society, from public health centres and local health care centres to the family,’ he was quoted as saying by the Jakarta Globe on Friday.
Health Minister Endang Sedyaningsih conceded turning young people off smoking will be difficult in a country where it is perceived as positive because cigarette companies sponsor everything from scholarships to sporting events.
‘This is the challenge we face in protecting youth from the dangers of smoking,’ she said in a statement on the ministry’s website.

The Smoking Jacket : Playboy customized for Office

Odds are, even if you really enjoy looking at naked ladies on the Internet, you don’t spend much time thinking about Playboy. So what about a Playboy site that doesn’t feature naked ladies?

That appears to be what the publisher has in mind with TheSmokingJacket.com, a “safe-for-work” site it has in the works (don’t bother trying out the URL–nothing to see there now).

Drugs and their Effects – PCP

PCP (Phencyclidine) is a dissociative drug formerly used as an anesthetic agent, exhibiting hallucinogenic and neurotoxic effects. It is commonly known as Angel Dust, but is also known as Wet, Sherm, Sherman Hemsley, Rocket Fuel, Ashy Larry, Shermans Tank, Wack, Halk Hogan, Ozone, HannaH, Hog, Manitoba Shlimbo, and Embalming Fluid, among other names. Although the primary psychoactive effects of the drug only last hours, total elimination from the body is prolonged, typically extending over weeks. PCP is consumed in a recreational manner by drug users, mainly in the United States, where the demand is met by illegal production. It comes in both powder and liquid forms (PCP base dissolved most often in ether), but typically it is sprayed onto leafy material such as marijuana, mint, oregano, parsley or Ginger Leaves, and smoked. PCP has potent effects on the nervous system altering perceptual functions (hallucinations, delusional ideas, delirium or confused thinking), motor functions (unsteady gait, loss of coordination, and disrupted eye movement or nystagmus), and autonomic nervous system regulation (rapid heart rate, altered temperature regulation). The drug has been known to alter mood states in an unpredictable fashion causing some individuals to become detached and others to become animated.


When I was taking the drug, I used very small amounts. The effect was incredibly pleasant and social, so much so that me and my friends all used it instead of booze for almost a year. I couldn’t dance for shit on the stuff (I’d get stumbly and actually fell on my ass on the dancefloor once) but the physical sensations and mental pictures were really fun. It is quite different from any psychedelic visuals or even Ketamine visuals…more like rolling through old film footage. To be honest, I liked it more than my experiences on Ketamine. PCP can make one nearly impervious to pain at high doses. Because of this, PCP can make things seem like a good idea that otherwise wouldn’t (leading to the stories of people leaping out of windows, etc.) I experienced very confusing physical reality when really high on it, like being unable to discern the difference between walking up stairs and down them, or standing still and walking. This could lead to very unusual behaviour.

Drugs and their Effects – Psilocybin Mushrooms

Psilocybin mushrooms (also called psilocybian mushrooms) are fungi that contain the psychedelic substances psilocybin and psilocin, and occasionally other psychoactive tryptamines. There are multiple colloquial terms for psilocybin mushrooms, the most common being magic mushrooms or ‘shrooms. When psilocybin is ingested, it is broken down to produce psilocin, which is responsible for the hallucinogenic effects. The intoxicating effects of psilocybin-containing mushrooms typically last anywhere from 3 to 7 hours depending on dosage, preparation method and personal metabolism. The experience is typically inwardly oriented, with strong visual and auditory components. Visions and revelations may be experienced, and the effect can range from exhilarating to distressing. There can be also a total absence of effects, even with large doses.


I had acquired about 8 grams of dried mushrooms and some liquid psilocybin equivalent to another 5 grams of powdered mushrooms. I swallowed the liquid first, on an empty stomach of course. I could feel a slight sensation after about 10-15 minutes. Then I added the powder to some water in a mug and swallowed that also. I then sat by the camp fire, listening to the wind in the trees while I contemplated what was about to happen. After about 45-50 minutes I heard a ‘voice’ calling to me. It wasn’t audible in the normal sense – it came from inside my own mind! Then I was gone – out of this world. I escaped into what I perceived to be the outer boundaries of my mind or my imagination. This placed presented itself as a natural forest with low light. Here I met the owner of the aforementioned voice – the Mushroom Goddess. She took the form of a white, strapless, ankle-length dress, standing side-on from me. For about the next two hours I dialoged with her, becoming totally bewitched by her charm, her wit, her intelligence, her knowledge, her unconditional affection for me and her seemingly infinite perspective. I have come to think of her as my other-worldly girlfriend.

Drugs and their Effects – Marijuana

Cannabis, known as marijuana in its herbal form, is a psychoactive product of the plant Cannabis sativa. Humans have been consuming cannabis since prehistory, although in the 20th century there was a rise in its use for recreational, religious or spiritual, and medicinal purposes. It is estimated that about four percent of the world’s adult population use cannabis annually. It has psychoactive and physiological effects when consumed, usually by smoking or ingestion. The minimum amount of THC required to have a perceptible psychoactive effect is about 10 micrograms per kilogram of body weight. The state of intoxication due to cannabis consumption is colloquially known as a “high”; it is the state where mental and physical facilities are noticeably altered due to the consumption of cannabis. Each user experiences a different high, and the nature of it may vary upon factors such as potency, dose, chemical composition, method of consumption and set and setting.



After taking that first hit, and not feeling the effects within a minute (holding it in for a minute, and then waiting a little bit after exhaling) I decided, well I better hit this again, harder if I can. I took just as large of a hit, and again held it in for longer than a minute. I let my brother know I was really starting to feel something now and I don’t think I liked it all. It snuck up on me really bad, and I still had no idea what to expect. I wanted him to be quiet. Laying down was not helping, so I got back up. I went back to the garage and tried to explain to everyone ‘I am totally fucked up. This is scary!’ I was rationalizing everything tremendously, but it was SO intense! And it was only getting more intense faster! I didn’t know what to expect, I was sinking within myself, accelerating downward like into the depths of my own oblivion. I was a novice, I had no idea what to expect, and the world had become out of synch, the talking of my brothers, his friend, all ridiculous and extremely annoying. I became amazingly irritable and wanted them to leave me alone or not talk in my presence. They did not understand or appreciate my fear, and they began to get loud again. I ran upstairs to my parents bed and laid down with some wistful hope that I could wait out this storm.

Drugs and their Effects – Opium

Opium is a resinous narcotic formed from the latex released by lacerating (or “scoring”) the immature seed pods of opium poppies (Papaver somniferum). It contains up to 16% morphine, an opiate alkaloid, which is most frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. Opium has gradually been superseded by a variety of purified, semi-synthetic, and synthetic opioids with progressively stronger effect, and by other general anesthesia. This process began in 1817, when Friedrich Wilhelm Adam Sertürner reported the isolation of pure morphine from opium after at least thirteen years of research and a nearly disastrous trial on himself and three boys.



I remember that what I smoked was much easier to smoke than marijuana. There was no burning in my throat nor in my lungs. I took a very large, smooth hit. Smoking it like marijuana, I held it in for about 10 or 15 seconds and let it out. It didn’t taste like marijuana, I remember the taste being rather faint. It actually tasted and smelled like incense. I was very surprised to suddenly find myself on the floor, in the dark, with a crowd of people surrounding me. Apparently I had fainted and fallen to the ground, but I hadn’t noticed. The high itself is rather hard to describe. It was much more intense than marijuana. It felt heavy, like my whole body was being impacted… but it also felt very clear and refined at the same time. As I made my way towards the bathroom the drug began to kick in again. My steps kind of faded away and it felt like I was just floating over to the bathroom. The scary thing was though, that I was having trouble seeing. My vision was fading. Distinct figures melted into shadows and everything had a sparkle to it. All of a sudden, everything felt really good. I couldn’t stop smiling. Everything was profound in a very positive way, especially the music since it resonated everywhere. It was a very abstruse experience. I imagine that I was coming down at this point, an hour had surely past by because the band was building a climax to end their first set. I went along with the crowd and made my way outside. The fresh air was wonderful. The cool air seemed to wrap around my body. A slight breeze on the back of my neck sent chills that rapidly multiplied throughout my body.