City of Darkness

It was a very complex place, difficult to generalise about, a place that seemed frightening but where most people continued to lead normal lives. A place just like the rest of Hong Kong. Kowloon Walled City was a densely populated, largely ungoverned settlement in New Kowloon, Hong Kong. The City also underwent massive construction during the 1960s and 1970s. Eight municipal pipes provided water to the entire structure (although more could have come from wells). A few of the streets were illuminated by fluorescent lights, as sunlight rarely reached the lower levels. Originally a Chinese military fort, the Walled City became an enclave after the New Territories were leased to Britain in 1898. Its population increased dramatically following the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong during World War II. By 1987, the Walled City contained 33,000 residents within its 2.6-hectare (6.4-acre) borders. From the 1950s to the 1970s, it was controlled by Triads and had high rates of prostitution, gambling, and drug use. In January 1987, the Hong Kong government announced plans to demolish the Walled City. 

Current status as park

The area where the Walled City once stood is now Kowloon Walled City Park, adjacent to Carpenter Road Park. The 31,000 m2 (330,000 sq ft) park was completed in August 1995 and handed over to the Urban Council. It was opened officially by Governor Chris Patten a few months later on 22 December. Construction of the park cost a total of HK$76 million. After an arduous eviction process, demolition began in March 1993 and was completed in April 1994. Kowloon Walled City Park opened in December 1995 and occupies the area of the former Walled City. Some historical artefacts from the Walled City, including its yamen building and remnants of its South Gate, have been preserved there.

Address: Kowloon City, Hong Kong

Hours: Open today · 6:30 am – 11:00 pm

Neverland

Though the property has been renamed, a floral clock  on the grounds still spells out Neverland. World famous pop king Michael Jackson lived there from 1988 to 2005. He paid $19.5 million for the property in 1987. It was one of the oddest celebrity compounds in history: A mansion and an amusement park, petting zoo, a railroad and a train station all spread over 2,800 acres in California’s Santa Barbara County, dotted with more typical star comforts like a tennis court, swimming pool and basketball court. He turned it into a personal fantasy land that encompassed 22 buildings, including a 12,000-square-foot French Normandy-style main house, two guest houses, and a movie theater that had trap doors for magic shows. In addition to the main house, there are two guest houses, one with four bed rooms and one with two bed rooms. There is also a movie theater. Jackson had a train with a steam engine called Katherine, named after his mother. The train to get you around the property. It was about a quarter mile from the main house to the 50-seat movie theater and a station house modeled after the one at Disney World. The topiary Neverland clock in front of it remains. Neverland was once home to orangutans, baboons, an elephant, giraffes and Jackson`s pet chimpanzee, Bubbles. But those animals are all gone. But even wiped of its amusement park rides and zoo animals, to many of Jackson`s fans, it will always be Neverland.

Face Off

Plastic surgery now a days has become more and more popular. Some people believe that it is a technique to raise the beauty of a person. The basic intention of this surgery is to enhance the appearance of the individual by changing the parts of the body. Plastic surgery, the practice of reshaping body tissues for reconstructive or aesthetic purposes dates back to antiquity. Derived from the Greek plastikos, meaning `to mold,` plastic surgery holds a critical place in cultures all over the world. For centuries, tribes would disc their lips, stretch their earlobes, bind their feet, file their teeth, and tattoo and scar their skin. If contemporary popular series such as Extreme Makeover and Nip/Tuck are any indication, plastic surgery has not lost any of its cultural power. While filed teeth may not appeal to everyone, men and women of today still have a wide range of surgical procedures from which to choose, including liposuction, nose jobs, eyelid surgery, tummy tucks, and breast augmentation and reduction. The term `plastic surgery` also includes nonsurgical options such as Botox, microdermabrasion, collagen injections, laser hair removal, and chemical peels. Plastic surgery, however, was not always so readily available or varied and was even shrouded in mystery, magic, and eroticism.
If someone was severely injured in a car accident or any horrible accident, he/she might reconstruct their outward appearance by means of plastic surgery and then get an opportunity to be reborn. Richard Lee Norris a 39-year-old Virginia man severely disfigured by a 1997 gun accident has received the most extensive full-face transplant in medical history, according to University of Maryland Medical Center surgeons. Based on these cases, Norris’ appearance is likely to gradually transform over time to look like a combination of his new and original face, and he may regain at least partial sensation.
In 1997, he accidentally shot himself in the face during an argument with his mother. But, in 2012, he underwent the most extensive face transplant ever - a 36-hour operation involving 150 medical staff at the University of Maryland Medical Center. Norris underwent a complex reconstruction which involved receiving his teeth, jaw and part of his tongue from a donor.The transplant, which came after dozens of other operations had failed to rebuild his face, also included tissue running from the neck to the scalp. Mr Norris, from Hillsville, Virginia, spent years living as a recluse after the accident, which took place when he was 22. Dr. Rodriquez is hopeful that Norris, who is unemployed and has lived with his parents since the accident, will now be able to have a full life.
Norris said - `My friends have moved on with their lives, starting families and careers. I can now start working on the life given back to me.`
The first person to receive a partial face transplant was Frenchwoman Isabelle Dinoire, whose face was mauled by her dog after she took an overdose of sleeping pills.The operation was carried out in 2005.

stunning Stars

The sun is the most important star in our galaxy. It is the source of life on earth. Most of all ancient civilizations worshiped the sun as a god. In the same way there are also about 300 billion different stars in our galaxy. All of which contain different history, characteristics and general information. They each contain their own story of how they came about. Many of these stars are a part of a certain constellation and have been around for billions of years.

Polaris is one the best known stars. Polaris is not hard to miss in the sky; it is the 50th brightest star and does not disappear. The reason this star will not disappear is due to the fact that the Earth’s axis is aligned pointing towards Polaris in the same direction North faces but will eventually shift over time. In comparison to the sun, this star is 10,000 times brighter, 100 times larger and has 10 times more mass to our sun. Polaris has about the same temperature as the sun. 

Sirius also known as The Dog Star or Canicula was discovered in 1915. Sirius gets its name from the use in the Greek calendar. “The time of year when this star rose and set with the Sun was the hottest part of the summer, and was given the name Seirios, 'scorching', a name that was acquired by the star itself”.Sirius is the fifth closest star to the solar system”. It is only 8.6 light years from our solar system which makes this star the brightest star known. Sirius has a binary system which means that there are two stars revolving around each other. “Sirius A is a blue-white star 25.4 times bigger than the sun. Its surface temperature is twice as hot as the sun, over 20 times brighter, and it’s mass 2.32 times more.” Sirius B revolves around Sirius A. This star is the first white dwarf to be discovered. Its diameter is almost equal to that of the earths. “It has a mass is 98% that of the sun, making it extremely dense.”

Another famous star is Betelgeuse. This star gets its name from the Arabic meaning “Armpit of the Central one”. It is the tenth brightest star in our galaxy and the brightest star in Orion which is the constellation in which it lies in. This star shines an orange-red color, 7,500 times brighter than the sun. Its surface temperature is 6000F. Betelgeuse is one of the largest stars known with a diameter of 700 million miles. This star is 520 light years away and also has about five companion stars in its orbit which is rare for a Red Super Giant. “Red super giants are stars that are close to the end of their life”.  Betelgeuse has about ten years left till it ends in a supernova explosion.

VY Canis Majoris also known as VY CMa was discovered roughly around March 7, 1801, by a French astronomer Jerome Lalande. (universetoday) Throughout the 19th century it was believed that VY Canis Majoris was a single star until 1917, Guerin noticed a three nuclei (Robinson, IBVS 599) the red hypergiant is the largest star known in The Milky Way but also in the entire universe. “It has a diameter of about 3 billion kilometres. Its radius is about 1,800 to 2,100 times the radius of the Sun.”  VY Canis Majoris is about 40 times the mass of our sun. ” It has an average density of about 0.000005 to 0.000010 kg/cu.m. This is very less when compared to the density of water (1000 kg/cu.m).” This star is about 4,900 light years from the Earth.  This star is found in the constellation of Canis Major which lies in the southern part of the sky. The name in Latin means “the greater dog”. This star is one of the most luminous stars. “Its luminosity is about 450,000 times the luminosity of the sun.” It is believed that this star is extremely unstable, as huge amounts of it’s mass it being thrown off into the closest nebulae.