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Month: September 2013

Fashion goes back to school

Written by Susie Coen on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Lecture theatres are calling, and despite our desire to parade around in floaty dresses and floral headpieces, we must accept that the university year has once again commenced and stop deluding over the idea of a hot September. Nevertheless, why not embrace your studious status by filling your wardrobe with some of these ‘back-to-school’ trends that will have you starting the semester in style, even in the face of rain.

Vintage Renewal Tartan Pinafore Dress, £34.00 urbanoutfitters.com

The pinafore dress is everywhere this autumn/winter. Taint your schoolgirl innocence with a dash of punk in this Vintage Renewal Tartan Pinafore Dress from Urban Outfitters, £38.00. Wear it layered over crisp white shirts for a playful look, or when the winds get colder wear on top of a black roll-neck jumper to ooze edginess.

Blazer with Button £59.00 and Cropped Trousers £29.00 Zara.com

Bring sophistication and class to your seminars this semester with a trouser suit, a look that littered the catwalks in A/W12 and seems to be just as prominent this season. Zara’s pink blazer, £59.99 and matching cropped trousers, £29.99, beautifully fuse sharp tailoring and pastel tones to bring a feminine spin on this androgynous look. Team with silver jewellery and some black brogues for a look that ticks all the boxes for A/W 13.

Vagabond Kenova Buckle Flat Shoes, £80.00, Asos.com

Start the year with a hop skip and jump in these Vagabond Kenova Buckle Flat Shoes, £80.00. These leather shoes are the perfect transitional footwear from summer sun to autumn winds before we embrace our winter boots. Wear with a pinafore dress or pleated skirt to show off your studious style.

Nylon Quilted Backpack, Topshop, £32.00 Topshop.com

Be both practical and trendy this semester by investing in a backpack. Trying to balance piles of books while searching for your bus pass does not exactly scream poise and elegance. This backpack from Topshop is simple yet quirky. The nylon padding embraces 1970s punk while its black colour ensures that there is no outfit it won’t compliment.

‘Oh, so you have a blog?’

Written by Susie Coen on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Finding a good blog these days is like rummaging through a vintage warehouse, there is so much crap to wade through before you get to the good stuff. Everyone is a blogger, which makes the search for decent people to follow a time consuming exercise. So, to help you out, here are selection of blogs I would recommend for that much needed distraction from reading and essays.

Erica Domsek is the genius behind www.psimadethis.com, an inspiring blog encouraging you to be creative and make some of the things you wear. You can spend hours navigating your way through posts that show you a range of DIY ideas, from how to make a clutch out of cork to decorating a beautiful gold cuff.

© Erica Domsek (www.psimadethis.com)

www.chloeting.com is run by 27 financial analyst, Chloe. Her outfit posts are a great example of classic fashion with a twist, and her gorgeous thick hair makes me cry with envy. I caught up with Chloe who revealed that she loves to blog, as it is ‘a great platform’ where she can ‘showcase [her] sense of style and connect with fashionistas around the world.’

© www.chloeting.com

Mexican born Andy Torres oozes sophistication in all of the looks on her blog www.stylescrapbook.com. This blog is detrimental to my bank account; I simply want to buy everything she wears. She exhibits class and elegance to a range of trends that all come effortlessly together – and she is painfully pretty.

© Andy Torres (www.stylescrapbook.com)

There isn’t a day where www.manrepeller.com ceases to make me laugh. The witty captions create a refreshing approach to fashion and avoid the pitfall of taking fashion too seriously – as many bloggers do. So, if you take fashion with a pinch of salt and want to get inspiring ideas, this blog is the one for you.

© www.manrepeller.com

Iviana Carpio’s blog www.love-aesthetics.blogspot.co.uk is a celebration of minimalist , which exemplifies how much of an impact cuts and fabrics have on clothing. The 25-year-old compliments her pale complexion, blue eyes and white blonde hair with a majority of white looks – creating an almost clinical impression that just works.

© Iviana Carpio (www.love-aesthetics.blogspot.co.uk)

Beauty: the picks of summer

Written by Halee Wells on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

The best thing about being an intern this summer was certainly the pay cheques. I couldn’t wait to have funds for the whole year; all of the swanky nights out, Taste The Difference meals, maybe even some shiny new textbooks. But did I manage to save any of my hefty balance? Of course not.

Aside from blowing a lot of it on, well, rather pointless things, I did manage to purchase plenty of new beauty products this summer which are now in my beauty holy grail staples.

So as I look for a new job, here is a list of my top 5 summer beauty picks:

 

OPI Nail Lacquer

Personally, I never understood why anyone would pay £11.50 for a nail varnish. There are plenty of good brands on the market such as Barry M who do a range of colours for as low as £2.99. However on return from Ibiza this summer, I thought and I would treat myself with my spare euros. And boy was it worth it! If you want nail varnish that dries instantly, doesn’t chip and with amazing colour payoff, go for OPI. Definitely worth the splurge girls!

 

Aussie

Believe it or not, this American based hair care brand is sold in Europe, America, and well anywhere but Australia really. However do not fret, their products will certainly give your hair the bounce of an Aussie kangaroo. Plenty of stores such as Boots seem to stock Aussie on a 3 for £10 offer, or 3 for 2, an offer not to be missed. My favourite is their 3 minute miracle conditioner, which leaves hair silky smooth and super shiny.

 

LUSH face masks

“What’s that smell?” We all love walking past a LUSH store to give our nostrils a little treat, but next time give your skin a piece of the action too! LUSH isn’t all about bath bombs and soaps, they have a wide range of face masks and scrubs too. This summer I decided to take the plunge and see what magic was inside those little black pots. Their cupcake facemask smells good enough to eat and at £5.95 for a generous pot, it is amazing for oilier skin.  Don’t forget to pop it in the fridge though, as their preservative free products don’t last forever.

 

Let’s get naked

Urban Decay’s Naked eye shadow palette has been raved about amongst many beauty gurus. I borrowed my friend Stephanie’s palette every night on holiday, and after a week’s worth of compliments about my eyes, I had to buy one for myself. Beautiful metallics and stunning matte’s, these shadows should be in every girl’s handbag. Retailing at £37 in Debenhams it isn’t cheap, but it’ll make you look like the most expensive girl in the room.

 

MAC Strobe Cream

Last and definitely not least, is an innovative product from the most renowned makeup brand around. Strobe cream is a mixture of a highlighter and a moisturiser, with 101 different ways to use it. Once I have done my foundation, I use my finger to blend the cream down my nose, across my cheek bones and onto my cupids bow. If you want that Victoria Secret glow, strobe cream is a makeup bag must.

Venue Guide: Unexpected Art

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Arts.

Imperial War Museum North

The Quays, Trafford Wharf Road, M17 1TZ

While not solely an art museum, The Imperial War Museum North has its own collections of photography, looking at art through the lens of history and time. It also hosts a number of interesting visual art exhibitions such as its Big Picture Show, currently screening, an award-winning 360-degree experience where the combination of sound and projected digital moving images and photographs bring to life peoples’ experiences of war.

 

Museum of Science and Industry

Liverpool Road, M3 4FP

The Museum of Science and Industry might sound like an unlikely stop-off in this quest to discover Manchester’s art scene, but nowhere else can you find such an enthusiastic recognition of the harmony between art and science in our ever-advancing modern world. More than anywhere else, MOSI is eager to embrace the new forms of art that develops alongside new scientific advancements and proudly exhibits the aesthetic appeal of technologies old and new. As Manchester celebrates its annual science festival this autumn, we can gear ourselves up for this fusion of art and science to be greater than ever as MOSI hosts an exhibition of contemporary architecture now found in the Antarctic. At the site of the world’s oldest surviving railway station, MOSI is a striking piece of Manchester’s historical and cultural identity.

 

People’s History Museum

Left Bank, M3 3ER

A vast collection of printed material, physical objects and photographs shows the lives of ordinary people at work, rest and play. This museum documents the history of working people in Britain through works of art including 18th and 19th century political cartoons, political posters relating to the Labour, Conservative and Liberal parties, the Spanish Civil War  and the Communist Party of Great Britain. Paintings include depictions of many workers and leading figures of the Labour and communist parties of Great Britain. There is also a large collection of the work of Cliff Rowe, a founding member of the Artists International Association.

 

Venue Guide: Destination Art

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Arts.

Manchester Art Gallery

Mosley Street, M2 3JL 

Since the temporary closure of the Whitworth gallery, The Manchester Art Gallery is the biggest art gallery in the city, best known for its Victorian paintings and, in particular, its collection of famous Pre-Raphaelite art works. Its historic galleries display art and design from the 17th and 18th centuries and it also houses a contemporary exhibit. Currently displaying a number of free small exhibitions such as an exhibit exploring the role of painters, such as Francis Bacon, Lucien Freud and David Hockney, in the reinvention of figurative art in the second half of the 20th century. Alongside this, lies a display featuring English and French Impressionism and Post-Impressionism, an exhibition celebrating the art occurring between the two World Wars and a variety of contemporary exhibitions, one of which concentrates on the fairy-tale art of Mancunian artist Alison Erika Forde.

 

Cornerhouse

70 Oxford Street, M1 5NH

Alongside the laid back comfy-seating-adorned appeal of the cinema theatres, providing the best in independent and international cinema, the Cornerhouse welcomes you with a trendy café bar and bookshop and is home to three floors of contemporary and interactive art galleries. Located on Oxford Road, the Cornerhouse embraces artists that have not yet received much recognition in the UK, boasting a keen interest in accessible art that focuses on engagement and participation with its visitors. The Cornerhouse is by far one of the most relaxed and interesting places to view art in Manchester and hopefully with its move to First Street in 2014, it will not lose any of its lively character, down to earth charm and, most importantly, its beloved student-friendly cinema ticket prices.

 

The Lowry

Pier 8 The Quays, Salford, M50 3AZ

Named after the beloved Lancashire-born LS Lowry, most famously recognised for his visual documentation of the North West’s industrial era, The Lowry is worth visiting for the building and landscape alone. Located in the redeveloped Salford Quays, the building is built in glass and metal, reflecting the surrounding landscapes that LS Lowry himself once observed. It brings together both performing and visual arts and shows the works of Lowry alongside a vast array of contemporary exhibitions.

 

The Manchester Museum

The Univerity of Manchester, Oxford Road, M13 9PL

This university-owned museum situated directly on campus is home to an impressive collection of archaeology, anthropology and natural history. With its Victorian interior and meandering chambers of history, the museum is a perfect place to withdraw from the hustle and bustle of term-time Oxford road, marvel at the pristine preservation of time and relish in the innate peace and quiet each room brings.

 

Whitworth Art Gallery

Oxford Road,M15 6ER

The Whitworth Gallery, although sadly closed for refurbishment until next summer can still be admired for its impressive Victorian architecture on the Oxford Road bus route.

Venue Guide: Off the Beaten Track

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Arts.

Craft and Design Centre

17 Oak Street, M4 5JD

In the heart of Manchester’s creative Northern Quarter, Manchester Craft & Design Centre is housed in a former Victorian fish and poultry market building. It’s home to 19 working studio boutiques where 35 artists, designers and craftspeople produce and sell work to the public six days a week. 

 

Artzu

Quay House, Quay St, M3 3JE

An independent gallery space is set in the heart of Spinningfields. Currently showing paintings by the artist Andrew Hunt who was twice selected for The BP National Portrait Award.

 

Castlefield Gallery

2 Hewitt Street, M15 4GB

An organisation for developing and emerging contemporary artists and practice, this gallery responds to national and international trends, promoting artists at key stages of their careers.

 

Islington Mill

James Street, Salford, M3 5HW

Based in Salford and housed in the buildings and courtyard of a former Victorian mill Islington Mill runs innovative inter-disciplinary arts programmes forged in the spirit of D-I-Y.

 

Chinese Arts Centre

Market Buildings, Thomas Street, M4 1EU

The Centre houses a number of permanent art installations by contemporary Chinese artists and interesting design features that reference Chinese culture as well as temporary art exhibitions.

 

Antwerp Mansion

Kent Road West, M14 5RF

A derelict Victorian mansion that has been turned into a haven for music, art and photography.

 

The Veggie Café

The Univerity of Manchester

The sad news of the potential closing of the much-beloved veggie café doesn’t just taunt us with the possible loss of lecture-sustaining flapjacks and 60p tea, it also leads us to reflect on its variety of roles in daily university life, especially its place, albeit its modest place, in Manchester’s art scene. In its own right, the cafe deserves a degree of recognition as a platform for local artists to exhibit and sell their work but also purely as a place where you can view art – whatever you think of it. Combined with the greasy-spoon type charm of the cafe’s layout and the scattering of mismatching canvasses, The Veggie Cafe is homely, welcoming and we’ll miss it. So before we have to say goodbye, go and take a visit, buy a flapjack and a tea, but most importantly, marvel, grumble or wince at the walls.

 

 

 

 

 

Dos and Don’ts: Surviving your first year

Written by Lauren Arthur on . Posted in Lifestyle.

DO:

  1. Grab the free stuff. Whether it’s taking the tea and toast offered to you as you stagger through OP at 3am or dragging yourself out of bed before 3pm and trudging along to Freshers’ fair. You’ll soon be poor; free stuff is good.
  2. Make the most of halls. No, they’re not the most luxurious of places to live but you’re surrounded by friends (hopefully), have your kitchen cleaned for you and most importantly can use as much gas and electricity as you please. (Second/third/fourth year problem: hypothermia vs. diminishing overdraft).
  3. Find your nearest Domino’s. The beautiful offer of free pizza only comes around twice a year so source as many vouchers as you can and get queuing.
  4. Sign up for UNiDAYS/studentbeans.com. Your inbox is probably full enough but they keep you up to date with student offers and discounts.
  5. Embrace your flat mates. They might not be your sort of people but unless you plan on moving halls, you’re stuck with them for a year so suck it up and try your best. (N.B. No romantic relationships until you’re out of halls. Awkwardness for the two involved and the rest of the flat is not pleasant.)

 

DON’T:

  1. Tarnish your clean rep. Go out and have fun, of course. But be wary. No one wants to bump into last night’s conquest as you creep out of a flat humming The Great Escape.
  2. Blurt out all of your secrets in I Have Never. Unless you’re lucky, most people you spend Freshers’ Week with won’t turn out to be your closest friends so stay safe and keep schtum.
  3. Sleep with people from home. As if everyone at uni knowing your business isn’t bad enough, the whole of your home town will soon find out too. The individual involved will also be there every Christmas, Easter and summer holiday. Steer clear: it’s really not worth it.
  4. End up in your overdraft after seven days. It’s going to be an expensive week, granted, but there’s no need to start buying all your new ‘bffls’ vodka redbulls and Sambuca shots.
  5. Neglect ma and pa. Their levels of worrying will be at an all time high so a quick call or Skype should keep them happy (and sweet if financial issues should arise later in the year).

Taking on the Man Booker Prize

Written by Esmé Clifford Astbury on . Posted in Books.

It is Man Booker Prize time again! The longlist has been read and culled, and now we are down to the last six. You really have to be a fan to come back to this prize year after year. But it is a lot of fun, and this year the shortlist is less contentious than in previous years. Last year we had the debate about double winners: Hilary Mantel won for the second time with Bring Up the Bodies, the second part of her Thomas Cromwell trilogy, having had her first success in 2009 with Wolf Hall. Previous debates have included whether the shortlist was ‘literary’ enough or ‘diverse’ enough.

The 2013 shortlist seems to have scored all round. It is without a doubt the most diverse that we have seen in years. Robert Macfarlane, the chair of the judges this year, said that the shortlist “is most instantly striking for its global range” and that it “shows the English language novel to be a form of world literature.”

The shortlist includes only one English writer, Jim Crace, for Harvest. He is joined by a Zimbabwean, NoViolet Bulawayo, for We Need New Names, an Anglo-Indian American, Jhumpa Lahiri, for The Lowland, a New Zealander, Eleanor Catton, for The Luminaries, a Canadian-Japanese American, Ruth Ozeki, for A Tale for the Time Being, and an Irishman, Colm Tóibín, for The Testament of Mary.

The Booker Prize is a Commonwealth prize and all the novels on the shortlist are in English. As Fintan O’Toole pointed out in a recent piece in The Observer, we used to believe that “subject peoples could never throw off the yoke of empire unless they abandoned the language of the imperial oppressor”.  But here we have the English language used in so many different and rich ways.

The diversity of the authors goes beyond their nationalities. While Crace, the oldest author on the list, is 67, Catton is only 28, making her the youngest ever shortlistee. While Tóibín is a prolific author with more than 15 titles to his name, The Luminaries is Catton’s second novel.

Macfarlane said: “These six superb works of fiction take us from gold-rush New Zealand to revolutionary Calcutta, from modern-day Japan to the Holy Land of the Gospels, and from Zimbabwe to the deep English countryside. World-spanning in their concerns, and ambitious in their techniques, they remind us of the possibilities and power of the novel as a form.”

Despite its diversity, there is a certain cohesiveness to the shortlist. “What connects them is connection,” said Macfarlane, “they are all about ways of connecting: technological, familial, emotional and in one case elemental.” “They are also inevitably about connections in reverse: loss, grief, separation, exile and dispossession,” he added.

We want to approach the Booker Prize in a new way this year at The Mancunion. We are looking for six intrepid book reviewers who will each take one of the shortlisted books and tell our readers why it should win the Man Booker Prize 2013. We will feature the reviews, run a poll to allow you to vote for your favourite and see how close Manchester students’ views are to the Booker judges’.  The winner will be announced on October 15 so we need to get these reviews in fast.

If you are interested in reviewing a book from the shortlist, please email us at [email protected].

[poll id=”1″]

New Humble Bundle Available

Written by Alasdair Preston on . Posted in Games.

Just in time to save freshers from spending huge quantities of their student loan on games, Humbe Bundle Inc. have released the ninth Humble Indie Bundle. The concept of the bundle is to sell a set of four games and allow the buyer to name their price. If you should pay more than the average spent, two bonus games are unlocked. At time of writing, the average price paid was $4.61 or £2.90. Soundtracks for all of the games are also included.

 

Included in the latest Humble Bundle is Brütal Legend, the action adventure game starring Jack Black as a Nathan Explosion-esque roadie who finds himself in a fantasy world that echoes the artwork of his favourite artists. Paying more than the average also gives you FTL: Faster Than Light and Fez, both of which are outstanding titles. Fez is a mind-bending platformer that has seen successful releases on PC and consoles. One of the early Kickstarter success stories was FTL, a game that tasks you to strategically make your way across a randomly generated galaxy and deliver your important information before you’re destroyed by the enemy fleet. It draws inspiration from great sci-fi TV shows such as Star Trek and Firefly.

Image source: www.FTLgame.com

After agreeing to pay, you can also allocate your money exactly as you see fit, dividing between the developers, charities and Humble Bundle Inc. themselves. The promotion supports several good causes, all game related in nature. The Electronic Frontier Foundation is aimed specifically at defending the rights of the people in digital matters in courtrooms and beyond. Another supported charity is Watsi, a website similar to Kickstarter in design that allows people to browse profiles of others around the world desperately in need of medical care and fund them directly, with 100% of the donations going to those in need. Childs Play also benefits, and they aim to bring gaming to unfortunate children in hospitals in the form of games and consoles.

 

Humble Bundle Inc. also runs a weekly bundle that is worth keeping an eye on as it usually features some top quality titles for low cost. All games in the bundles are for PC, and often support OS X. Purchase also comes with keys to activate the games on Steam, or you can download them directly.

Should we trust league tables?

Written by Alice Rigby on . Posted in Opinion.

A record six UK universities are in the top 20 in the world, with four of those in the top 10, according to the QS ranking system published last week. The University of Manchester consistently performs better in international league tables than in national ones and this year was no exception. The university was 8th highest in the UK according to QS, but did not enter the top 30 in The Guardian. For many students this can make the university experience here a disconcerting one, with anxiety rocketing about the impact these results can have on the perception of a degree that most have only one opportunity to complete. However, league tables often stem from subjective sources, conflicting figures and a bias towards specific kinds of institutions. The league tables are not as accurate a reflection of a university’s reputation as first appears.

League tables have become endemic in education since the early 2000s. From your primary school, to your sixth form college and maybe even up to your graduate scheme, you can find a rank for every institution you have been a part of.

Due to their data centric nature, league tables are used as a definitive guide to the value of a university, department, or even sports provision – particularly by nervous teenagers trying to select a university to study at and a city, town, or campus to live on for three years.

Yet much of the information used by the national league tables is, at best, flawed. With their reliance on the results of the inherently subjective national student survey, the outcome for any particular programme can be heavily distorted by the opinions provided. While most of the opinions in the survey are given in good faith, they are based on only limited knowledge of equivalent courses. In the league tables they are used as a measure of equivalent value despite this lack of knowledge. If the basic information forming league tables is this unreliable surely they can’t reflect the actual value of the university as accurately as is believed?

International league tables are often ignored in comparison to the national ones. This is partly based on a common belief that these are decided entirely on research results. Instead, it is another subjective survey that forms the majority base for the world rankings. The academic peer review involves academics ranking up to 30 exceptional institutions in their field. However, these opinions are founded in a more comprehensive knowledge of equivalent departments than the student survey. Academics may have worked with an institution remotely, visited them or even held a position there. Clearly these results are of more value than those used by the national tables.

Similarly, where student experience informs the remainder of the national league tables, the world rankings are based on measures that are arguably of more concern to current students. The employer review surveys the largest international graduate recruiters to see which institutions they hold in highest regard. The citations per faculty measurement can be used to indicate whether your learning will be provided by a cutting edge research facility. The faculty to student ratio measurement shows just how much staff time is likely to be devoted to each student.

By contrast, the national surveys focus on facilities expenditure, entry requirements and “good honours” achieved, all slightly arbitrary forms of measurement, with the latter two easily distorted by institutions. This all indicates that a better performance in the international league tables could suggest that a university is addressing students’ actual concerns – encouraging news for University of Manchester students.

However, league tables should not really concern students at all. As a relatively new phenomenon, many employers in particular are much less likely to be aware of league table outcomes. Instead, measures such as Russell Group membership, red brick status or even simply the age of a university have much more sway with many of the influential members of society than the league tables will ever do. This is enforced by the constant fluctuation in league table results, rendering these an inconsistent measure of value. In the case of degree value, the elite status of Manchester benefits all students here.

More to the point, although national league tables attempt to measure the undergraduate student experience at each institution, this is wholly subjective. For some entry requirements may be an essential measure of their future university, as sitting in a class with other ‘straight-A’ students is of high importance to them. By contrast, for most the value of the undergraduate experience is based on the atmosphere of the city they move to, the tranquillity of the campus they study on or even just the people they meet. None of these things can really be reflected in data or league tables.

Does porn empower women?

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Opinion.

YES 

Charlotte Green

The easy answer to this question is no. It’s easy to say that an industry based around watching surgically-enhanced idealised women faking orgasms is degrading, sexist and overall extremely un-empowering. But to say this is to have some basic confusion about what pornography actually is. It isn’t merely watching two normal people have normal sex in a room with average lighting and teddy bears on the shelves. Pornographic sex is about as far away from normal sex as sharks are to goldfish. Both fish, but one has a lot more vibrators and varying camera angles. Pornography is fantasy, expressions of raw sexual desire, fictional scenarios and unreal positions. And within this context, it does empower women.

Pornography is the ultimate expression of sexual freedom. Having sex for money with numerous partners is no longer stigmatised as ‘selling your body’ or ‘losing your virtue’. These days sex is a skill, and if you do it well it can even make you a star. The women who participate are not demonised as whores or sluts; simply women who enjoy sex enough to make a living out of it and uninhibited enough to share it. In this sense it differs from other branches of the global exploitative sex trade in that the actors made a choice to be there. For me that says a lot. Making a deliberate choice to be paid for sex rather than having no other option shows a confidence and empowerment of sexuality rather than degradation.

The industry has also been a contributing factor in destroying the myth that women do not in fact enjoy sex, just roll around woodenly in the hope of possible babies. I admit that having women writhing and screaming during the most banal of sexual acts might be stretching the truth somewhat, but it’s a far cry from Sigmund Freud’s assertion there was no such thing as the vaginal orgasm. Of course for every type of film that portrays female characters as self-aware, realistic sexual beings there is an antithesis; Bridesmaids and Transformers, Caligula and Two Girls, One Cup. It should be made clear that exploitation and degradation of women is not limited to pornography, often the most calculating offenders are the big-budget Hollywood blockbusters who use gratuitous sex and nudity to guarantee packed cinemas. I mean, who among us can really remember the plot of Basic Instinct? At least pornos are gratuitously honest.

Ultimately porn empowers women because it acts as an arena within which women can be overtly, publicly sexual, not because they are forced to, but because they want to. I think it’s important to show that women are capable of dominating, being dominated, having sex with single or multiple partners and enjoying it. Sexual preference is one’s own, but understanding that women can have the same sex drive as men and can be empowered by that sex needs to be general knowledge, and if it requires pornography to achieve that then I say roll on the cameras.

NO

Alice Rigby

On the surface it appears that porn today could easily be a media through which women are empowered. Women are most often the stars of pornography, with their participation essential to the viewer’s pleasure. Women are consuming porn in ever increasing numbers, disturbing the traditional view that it only interests men. Women’s sexuality has been brought to the forefront of society, thanks largely to the ‘50 Shades’ phenomenon. The type of male domination and female objectification addressed by the sepia laden Lovelace seems to have stayed in the 70s.

Many of these developments have led to a widespread defence of porn, particularly in light of the restrictions proposed by the government earlier this year. Many now consider porn an issue of free speech, with women’s rights no longer an essential element of the debate. Many women actively support porn, only increasing the normality with which it is viewed in today’s culture. More exceptionally, competition to star in porn is now fierce with many viewing it as an acceptable platform from which to launch careers.

However, there have been just as many changes in pornography that have served to damage women. The aesthetics of the industry are a clear area in which pornography is detrimental to women. In ‘mainstream’ porn cosmetic surgery is rife and apparent, with the ideal sexual partner portrayed being an unrealistic standard against which men, particularly early teenagers with little sexual experience, will undoubtedly judge future partners. Furthermore, any appearance that varies from this norm is placed in a specialist category, specifying this as entirely unusual. Over the last few years we have become increasingly aware of the devastating affect our aesthetic culture has had on girls and women. The porn industry is, like fashion, one of the areas that dramatically lags behind in implementing the change needed in light of this.

Furthermore, the industry itself has failed to empower women using the simplest means available to it. Although women are the prominent stars of the industry, the business and commercial side of porn is still dominated by men. It is these men who make serious money out of porn, who recruit porn stars and who control the production of porn: its aesthetics, its content and the ultimate product distributed the consumer. This is one of the areas of porn in which women could have made the largest strides. Artistically, it is not outlandish to assume that when men are in control of producing porn they are unlikely to do so with women’s sexuality in mind, a situation that prevents porn from empowering women inherently.

One of the most powerful arguments that has been made in favour of porn in recent years is that it is increasingly consumed by women alongside men. This seems to be a compelling defence and surveys suggest that female consumption of porn has increased from around 20% in the 1970s to 75% or more in the last 5 years. However, in light of the male consumption figures this defence collapses. The same study that produced the figures listed above also found that 100% of the males they surveyed had viewed porn. Other studies, looking into the effects of porn consumption, have also struggled to find male participants that haven’t viewed porn.

This figure clearly shows that the primary consumer of porn is still the male population. Basic business principles dictate that the product will be created with this consumer in mind. While it is primarily men who are viewing porn it will be male sexual gratification that the industry has in mind when creating its product. Any female gratification will simply be an accidental by product of this process. Despite this occurring, the process of producing porn still consists of the use of female performers to create films that are focused on satisfying men. This is the antithesis of female empowerment.

While it cannot be denied that the pornographic industry has developed hugely over the last 30 years, not all of these developments have been for the better. More specifically, thanks to its aesthetics, business structure and primarily male consumer the patriarchal elements of porn have become engrained in its culture. Though the expression of female sexuality has become fashionable over the last year, the porn industry still falls drastically behind on catering to or even acknowledging this. While porn continues to be consumed primarily by men, men will remain in positions of power within the industry and the content of porn will keep on representing women as categorically failing to adhere to perfection. Until the basic motivating factor for the production of porn, male pleasure, changes, porn cannot empower women.

My Political Hero: Mel Smith

Written by Joe Anthony on . Posted in Opinion.

When comedian Mel Smith died earlier this summer, he left behind a Britain that laughs at its political establishment as readily as it discusses the weather. A Britain where no public figure is immune to ridicule and no policy too small to mock. In short, we live in an age of satire. Social criticism meets uproarious laughter – it all feels so natural these days.
Yet rewind to Mel’s youth and we encounter an entirely different political landscape. The UK was a dreary land of rationing, class distinction and deference to politicians. This was a nation that didn’t ask questions. When Churchill inexplicably disappeared for four months, only to return with news that he had suffered a massive stroke, the public merely mumbled a collective tut. So what happened between then and now to so radically change the way we perceive our leaders?
The bubble burst in the wake of the scandalous ‘63 Profumo Affair.  On the ashes of establishment pride, comedians Peter Cook and Dudley Moore laid the foundations for a nation to turn it’s infamously sharp wit against those it elected to govern. Yet by the 70’s, satire was firmly removed from the comedic zeitgeist as the surreal, whimsical offerings of Monty Python reigned supreme. The art-form appeared to be relegated to the rank of cultural outcast, until ‘Not the Nine O’clock News’ forced its way onto British screens in 1979.
The show brought satire back in from the cold. Smith, Griff Rhys Jones and Rowan Atkinson set out to deliberately move away from the then BBC norm of stale mother-in-law jokes and clumsy avoidance of political issues.
The show launched what was to become a tidal wave of satirical devastation upon the newly elected Thatcher government. NTNOCN consistently proved itself to be cuttingly witty. One famous example of which is a sketch of Mel having his arms hacked off during a Conservative Party broadcast to illustrate slim lined economic efficiency. From astute witticisms, to the downright silly, NTNOCN endlessly strove to push boundaries and in doing so revitalised political comedy and unleashed a renaissance of satire that we still enjoy today.  By 1983 it seemed Smith and the other writers had been far too cavalier with establishment sensibilities, leading the program to be deemed too provocative in the run up to the ‘83 election. It was duly cancelled.
So why is Mel my hero? The answer is simple. He helped make humour an essential ingredient in holding those in power to account, a process that changed the face of broadcasting and in doing so fundamentally altered British society. NTNOCN brought it new legitimacy, respectability and vastly enlarged boundaries. It is difficult to imagine ‘Spitting Image’ being commissioned – as it was the year after NTNOCN ended – without the trail blazing of comedians and writers such as Smith.
More measurable are the achievements of the media company he set up with writing partner Rhys Jones. Talkback Productions helped elevate satire to ever greater heights and complexity. The firm commissioned a multitude of ground breaking shows, among which was ‘Smack the Pony’, the long overdue comedy exclusively written and performed by women which not only won a large number of awards, but struck a blow for feminism in an overwhelmingly male field. Talkback would later produce ‘Da Ali G Show’, ‘I’m Alan Partridge’, ‘The Day Today’ as well as his own show ‘Alas Smith and Jones’.
Mel Smith was no Abraham Lincoln or Florence Nightingale. He didn’t free the slaves or nurse wounded men in the Crimea. But he galvanised and started (or perhaps restarted) a process which continues today. This process, enjoyed worldwide, is of course satire; serious political discourse transmitted through humour. From ‘The Onion’ to ‘Four Lions’, his legacy lives on.

Why ‘trolls’ are endangering public debate

Written by Alice Rigby on . Posted in Opinion.

In the arena of social debate this has been the summer of discontent. Over the last year women’s issues have been headline news, with battles over the acceptability of page three, everyday sexism and pornography representing just some of the discussions taking place across all media. However, with these debates, aggressive behaviour from both sides has become a worrying upward trend.
Most notably, online “trolls” have targeted the individuals involved in these debates on twitter and other social media networks, using intimidation to silence them. With behaviour that used to be solely targeted at celebrities in the public eye now directed towards civilian campaigners, there is a potential for the debate over trolling to eclipse the very issues under discussion.

Last week, this issue came to Manchester, with Julie Bindel, the controversial guardian writer, pulling out of a debate over the porn industry due to rape and death threats. Has threatening behaviour now become a hindrance to public debate?

We have seen major women’s issues dragged to the fore by everyday women and grassroots campaigns, this year. From Lucy Anne-Holmes campaigning against Page Three to Caroline Criado-Perez fighting to replace the only woman on a banknote with another woman, the feminism debate has been given somewhat of a new lease of life. Yet all of these women have something else in common – they have all been subjected to violent and often explicit threats, of rape and death, utilising information such as their addresses and their relationships. These threats have increasingly escalated to their most criminal form. Despite this, many have dismissed these threats because they are online. In our culture, such threats are accepted as par of the course in online debate. Yet the subjects themselves feel genuinely threatened. At some stage, violence has become an expected element of debate.

Take for example the ever-raging debate over atheism. Ricky Gervais, Christian Jessen and Stephen Fry have all been threatened in such debates and yet all have laughed it off. Much of their ability to do so stems from their status as famous individuals. The public profile that makes their views so prominent also significantly protects them from a genuine threat of violence. In the case of the civilian social campaigners this protection is not afforded. Their addresses are readily available online and their individual histories can be tracked. The normalisation of threats of violence, so unusual and unaccepted when voiced in the physical world, has only served to do these campaigners a disservice.

However, there is an aspect of the social debate where such campaigners, or their supporters, have been at fault themselves. The phrase ‘bigot’ is thrown around abundantly, often by those on the liberal side of the agenda. Although this phrase in itself isn’t violent, it is often used to accompany violent language. More to the point, it degrades the debate at hand by casually dismissing a particular point of view. It presents a particular opinion as not worthy of patience, consideration or understanding and so easily frustrates those who hold these opinions, opinions that they feel are genuine and worthy of discussion.

If one side, no matter how ‘right’ they seem to be, fails to even attempt to understand another perspective the opposing side cannot be expected to do so regardless. As such, the use of ‘bigot’ to comprehensively dismiss any opposition to one’s own views, as frustrating as that opposition may be, only serves to inflame and damage a debate. This has arguably encouraged the use of reactionary and violent tactics by those who feel that their opinion has been ignored when they have used ‘reasonable’ means.

It has become apparent that the rules surrounding public debate need to be significantly rethought to encourage the continued, public discussion of key social issues.

While virtual threats are still considered a non-issue many will be discouraged from involving themselves in these divisive discussions. And, while the rapidity of online response continues to be used as a means to render an opinion invalid, the holders of those opinions will continue to use increasingly reactionary tactics to establish their point of view.

Much debate needs to be rebalanced and much of the online world needs to be considered as a reflection of the physical one. Until then, intellectual debate will continue to be undermined by base aggression – from both sides of the fence.

Pub Crawl: A boozy wander up Oxford Road

Written by Ben Walker on . Posted in Food & Drink, Freshers' Guide.

The Friendship

A Hydes Pub, always with a selection of guest ales as well, the Friendship is the pub at the centre of Fallowfield. An extensive beer garden (covered and heated) is ideal for large groups such as sports teams to congregate. The premier venue for live sport too. (pictured below, Mancunion)

 Wahlbar

Originally an off shoot of Gas Lamp (Deansgate), Wahl is the most stylish and up market bar in the student bubble. There is as extensive bottled beer selection including the classic American selection of Anchors and Sierra Nevada’s, and Odell’s, plus an ever changing guest selection. The cocktail menu is worth exploring, especially during 6-9 as it’s two for £5.50. Downstairs is a live music venue. (Pictured below, Ben Walker)

 

Fallow

Previously belonging to the Trof family, Fallow is the new face of one of the area’s most trendy venues. A very good beer selection and a decent cocktail menu too, prices ranging from £3.50-£6.00.

Best bar food in Fallowfield, boasting a superb breakfast menu and legendary Full English.

 

256

256 beer garden  (Mancunion)

Bar and kitchen by day, turning into a club later on, hosting a variety of nights covering all sorts of music and interests.

A stylishly renovated ecclesiastical building, there is also a huge beer garden (pictured below). An ideal location to enjoy the inexpensive food, wide range of drinks and cocktails.

 The Salutation

Hidden behind the RNCM, ideal for those travelling up Oxford Road or living in and around Main Campus. The Salutation is a traditional pub, parquet flooring, lots of dark carved wood and brass trim. The drink selection is bang up to date with interesting local ales and a decent bottled selection.

Due to the location, often less busy, ideal for a relaxing pint amidst the Welcome Week

 Deaf Institute

Converted from its namesake into a large, hip ‘cafe Bar and Music Hall’, the Deaf Institute is a multi-floored venue of the highest quality. Hosting a variety of music events throughout the week and serving wholesome, rustic and interesting food.

Temple

Formerly and famously a public toilet, Temple is a subterranean hide away for good beer and one of the best duke boxes around. On busy nights the crowds spill out on the two stairways and the pavement, creating a buzzing, if not cramped atmosphere.

Stairs leading into the Temple. Photo: The Mancunion

Is this the end of our Veggie Café?

Written by Aidan Gregory on . Posted in News.

A popular campus hangout is under threat after the Students’ Union ordered the premises be vacated.

The Vegetarian Café, a favourite with both staff and students, has to leave its current library-adjacent location by January 31st.

Leslie Brown, who has successfully run the café for over 16 years, said she is devastated by the order and has lodged an appeal with her solicitor.

The move is part of the University’s ‘Campus Masterplan’, which includes improving disabled access to the Veggie Café’s current home in the Schunck Building, a location the Students’ Union let from the University and sub-let to the Veggie Café. Ultimately the plan is to create a space for postgraduate research students.

In a statement to The Mancunion, the SU Exec Team said, “We have agreed with the University that we will vacate from the building and we have been in discussion with the current Vegetarian Café occupying the space.

“The Vegetarian Café has been given notice of the situation several months in advance, and alternative business premises have been offered.”

The location put forward to Brown as a replacement was the current RBS home next to Academy 1. But for her it is not “a viable business alternative”.

Brown told The Mancunion, the move to the proposed premises would completely change the nature of the Veggie Café as it has been known for years. There would no longer be enough space for society meetings, it would turn the café into a takeaway, and deny her the unique advantage of the Schunck Building being so close to the University library.

She added, “It’s a unique place. There’s nowhere else like it.”

“People can come here and have healthy food, which is cheap and home cooked. We don’t buy frozen chips and things like that.”

The café is well known among students, with a reputation as charming independent alternative to other eateries dotted around campus. It is also popular with students from certain religious backgrounds because of the halal and kosher menu.

Shortly after the plans were made public last month, protests sprang up online. A ‘Save Our Veggie Café’ page on Facebook, created by Christian Union committee member James Birchenough attracted over 1,000 likes within 24 hours and now has over 2,200.

Speaking to The Mancunion, Birchenough was frank about why he started the page, “It would be a tragedy if this place closed.”

Student Abbie Huff started a similar page on popular petition website www.change.org. The page has gathered in excess of 2,300 supporters – including prominent university staff members – as well as many devoted messages of support.

One poster, Sarah Smith, wrote, “This café is simply a haven. Possibly the best café in Manchester; there is nowhere else that matches the friendliness of staff, quality of food, value for money and its beautiful spirit.”

Another, Theodore Vidgen, said the café was “the reason I didn’t get scurvy and die of lesions as a Manchester University student.”

Dr. Leif Jerram – a senior lecturer in the University’s history department – also wrote on the petition page, “All other food on campus (seriously, all) is either of poorer quality or much higher price. To lose this institution in its full form would degrade the campus environment even further.”

Talks between the café management and the Students’ Union are on going.

Manchester drops in world rankings

Written by Sean Doherty on . Posted in News.

Manchester has fallen a place in the QS World University Rankings and Shanghai Jiao Tong Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU).

QS ranked the University of Manchester 33rd in their league table published last week, making it one of eight UK institutions in the top 50, but it is the lowest position the University has held since 2006. ARWU – the system the University uses – placed Manchester at 41, down two places in so many years.

Since the foundation of the University in 2004, the ‘Manchester 2015 Agenda’ has promoted the institution’s mission to make it one of the top 25 universities in the world by 2015. Its Shanghai ranking has jumped 12 places since 2005.

“The vision to make The University of Manchester one of the top 25 universities in the world by 2015 is bold and ambitious,” said Anil Ruia, Chairman of the Board of Governors, writing in a version of the ‘2015 Agenda’ published in 2011, and available on the University website. “There have been and continue to be significant challenges to face, but following extensive review of progress since 2004, we remain committed to the Vision and believe it to be achievable.”

For the second year running, the highlight of the QS ranking was the 100 out of 100 Employer Reputation score. Also a QS survey of ‘Employer’s Best Universities’ placed Manchester 9th in the world. Scores for Academic Reputation and International Students followed close behind in the ranking, with 99.20 and 96.00, respectively.

The low point was the ratio of students to faculty members, which despite rising three points this year to 66:20, saw a slip in ranking to 181.

Times Higher Education ranked Manchester 49th in their world university league tables last year – the new rankings are expected out October 2.

The Mancunion spoke to international students to gauge the impact international ranking lists has on their choice of university.

Third year Biomedical Materials Science student William Loewenhardt from California said, “It’s a little cheaper to study here than back home, even with international fees. Manchester traditionally has a really good reputation anyway but I checked the international rankings before I applied here to see how my course compared to other universities”.

Cassie Riddell, a third year Psychology student from Australia, said, “I looked at the rankings but based my decision more on speaking to people who studied at the University.”

While its international reputation appears to be secure, the University seems to be floundering behind the UK’s other leading academic institutions in student satisfaction.

According to the latest National Student Survey, 84% of students at the University said they were satisfied with their course, meaning Manchester was placed third lowest of any Russell Group university for overall student satisfaction. This marks a 5% increase from the previous year, but still means the University is falling short in its goal to be ranked in the top four of Russell Group institutions for NSS student satisfaction by 2015.

On the upside, Manchester seems to be leading the way in terms of bars and clubs with the latest Which? survey ranking the University among the top in the country for nightlife.

The smell of love

Written by Pippa Allen-Kinross on . Posted in News, Science & Tech.

A Manchester professor believes we subconsciously sniff out the genetics of suitable partners.

‘Compatibility’ genes are disease-fighters, and may “influence how our brains are wired, how attractive we are, even how likely we are to reproduce.”

In his new book ‘The Compatibility Gene’, Professor Daniel M Davis argues that humans are attracted to the smell of those with different compatibility genes to themselves, giving genetic offspring the best chance at fighting disease.

“Relationships are very complicated and there’s lots of ways in which people interact, so it’s just an aspect of that… it’s kind of a glimpse into this wonder of who you are,” said Professor Davis.

The basis comes from Claus Wedekind’s 1994 ‘smelly T-shirt’ experiment, where male students wore a T-shirt for two nights, avoiding anything that might alter their natural smell.

The tops were then put in boxes, and smelt by female students who ranked the smell according to intensity, pleasure and sexiness.

Results showed women preferred T-shirts worn by men with different compatibility genes to their own.

Strong evidence also suggests that mice select mates by smelling urine to detect different compatibility genes.

Davis and his wife underwent a DNA test to analyse their own genetic compatibility.

Although they were a match, Davis said “human relationships are very complicated, and you can’t just do the genetic test and find out if that’s going to be the right partner for you.”

“It turned out I had a particularly rare set of these genes. According to those controversial experiments, if I had a rare set of genes and people were looking for different genes then I would be attractive to lots of people. Which is definitely fun.”

“There’s no hierarchy. Otherwise you can get into a sort of racist situation, but we’re not in that position because actually the whole thing is a celebration of diversity.”

So should those looking for love avoid aftershave and let their natural scent lure the ladies? Davis is skeptical: “I wouldn’t really recommend that as a strategy.”

“It’s not really something that changes your life tomorrow… it’s kind of like, pretty cool.”

Piccadilly rapist convicted

Written by Pippa Allen-Kinross on . Posted in News.

The serial rapist who attacked four women in an hour near Manchester Piccadilly station has been indefinitely detained.

Paranoid schizophrenic Thomas Hall, 33, raped three sex workers and sexually assaulted another after the ‘voices’ in his head told him to.

Two women were forced to run half-naked down the street and beg passing motorists for help.

The final victim heard him boasting over the phone after his attack saying “I’ve done three or four now. I’ve had the best night of my life”.

Judge Richard Mansell QC said: “You are a very dangerous man. Ordinarily you would receive lengthy custodial sentence running well into double figures”.

“These offences demonstrate serious violence and sexual violence. You pose a risk not just to women, but people generally.”

Adrian Farrow, defending, said that Hall suffered flashbacks from a troubling childhood experience.

At the time of the attack, 5th March 2013, he was already on police bail for raping another woman a month earlier.

Hall, who also suffers from personality disorders, pleaded guilty to four counts of rape, one sexual assault and assault causing actual bodily harm.

He has been detained under the mental health act at maximum security Ashworth Hospital, currently also holding Dale Cregan and Ian Brady.

He cannot be released without approval of doctors and a mental health tribunal.

VIP club shut after fight

Written by Pippa Allen-Kinross on . Posted in News.

The exclusive celebrity hotspot ‘Circle Club’ has been temporarily shut following a mass fight.

A bouncer was slashed with a champagne bottle during the brawl, which spilled onto the streets and included 20 people, leading to six arrests.

Police were called in the early hours of Sunday 8th September after doormen were unable to control the situation.

At a town hall meeting, Greater Manchester Police Inspector Phil Spurgeon said, “What happened in the early hours of Sunday ranks up there with one of the most volatile situations I have ever had to deal with in terms of injuries sustained, the levels of aggression shown towards the police, and the fact that it took us 20-25 minutes to restore order. I got staff from four corners of Manchester.”

According to the ‘Circle Club’ website, they are ‘Manchester’s No. 1 VIP and Celebrity Club’, and offer ‘a close-up view of celebrities and Manchester’s most beautiful crowd’ .

Famous faces including Helen Flanagan, Katie Price and Amir Khan have all been seen there in the past.

The fight reportedly began after an argument between two groups of men in the exclusive ‘inner circle’, a VIP area which costs £50 a month membership.

This is not the first time that the ‘Circle Club’ has seen violent VIP’s. In April 2012, the club managed to hold onto its license after footballers Anton Ferdinand and El Hadji Diouf were involved in a bloody mass fight which left a man seriously injured.

In a statement on their Facebook page, ‘Circle Club’ said “the mindless actions of a few have spoiled the enjoyment of many.”

The clubs’ license has been suspended until a full review hearing within 28 days.

Summer 2013: A Review

Written by Robbie Davidson on . Posted in Film.

So that was summer 2013. If you missed it, you didn’t miss much. It was summer of high expectations and low delivery. There were the odd gems scattered around the mediocrity, but generally we can safely say the summer of films was just a bit rubbish.

Before the condemnation begins, its only fair to clarify that by ‘summer movies’ we more specifically mean the mainstream studio movies. As ever there were some excellent independent movies which, as ever, never got the attention they deserved – but that’s for another time. For now we run through the bad, the bad and the ugly.

Things started off bad. Marvel’s followup to last year’s monster hit, The Avengers, saw the return of Tony Stark/Robert Downey Jnr (the two are indistinguishable at times) in Iron Man 3. Despite reuniting him with his director from the brilliant Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, ol’ ironface failed to make an impression. Maybe that was to do with the fact that Iron Man was hardly in the film. Or maybe because the villain turned out to be more parody than pariah.

And so the trend began. Baz Luhrmann’s take on The Great Gatsby was more like an extended music video than an original take on the classic novel. The comedy offerings were even less inspiring: The Hangover Part III was worse than any hangover you’re likely to suffer this Freshers’ Week. The Internship was similarly painful, as the writers seemed to have been obliged to promote Google over any actual laughter.

2013 was the year that proved that even big Hollywood movie stars can’t sell everything. Will Smith and Johnny Depp had the great misfortune of being saddled with blockbusters so bloated and misconceived that even their personal selling power couldn’t stop them from bombing at the box office. After Earth and The Lone Ranger are unlikely to enjoy any sequel prospects to the delight of film goers everywhere.

The biggest disappointment of this summer of disappointments was Man of Steel. Not for many years had a film with so much promise turned out to be such a crushing let down. Whilst other superhero films like The Wolverine never looked much good, Man of Steel looked like it could be our new ‘Dark Knight trilogy’. With Christopher Nolan part of the creative team and the best trailer of the year, we had reason to be hopeful. But perhaps we should have seen it coming: Zack Snyder was the director and Zack Snyder can’t direct. He can cut scenes so rapidly that characters are practically cut off mid-sentence. He can lay waste to cities with as much emotion as a sledgehammer. But can he make Superman actually interesting? No.

But maybe I’m being too harsh. 2013 wasn’t all bad. The return of the Enterprise and her crew in Star Trek Into Darkness was an unadulterated joy. Elysium had a great premise but was let down by too much of what we’d seen a hundred times before. This Is The End and The World’s End provided enough belly laughs to necessitate a second viewing.

Despite the lack of original content this summer, box office revenues rose by 10.2%. Audiences seemed to be quite happy to sit through the inane displeasure of the likes of Pacific Rim and Fast and Furious 7. So who am I to chastise? I did it myself! But the summer’s over and awards season approaches. Some much needed respite. Until next year…