Features

ALGETE, Spain — With a vast wardrobe catering to everything from “House of the Dragon” to “The Crown”, Spain’s Peris Costumes has carved out a well-tailored niche for itself, renting costumes to producers across the globe.

“Here, you can find everything,” says CEO Javier Toledo showing off a vast array of costumes and accessories — from suits of armour to frock coats, sailor suits and monastic robes.

All around him mannequins dressed in 18th-century gowns stand next to posters of the many films his company has worked on in recent years. 

“There are starting to be rather a lot,” admits the 63-year-old entrepreneur with white hair and a neatly trimmed goatee whose business is based in Algete, a small town just outside Madrid. 

Since Toledo took over 10 years ago, the business has been transformed. 

What began as a small family firm set up by tailors specialising in theatre costumes in the eastern coastal city of Valencia in 1856 has become a world leader in costume hire for the film industry.

And it’s a success story closely linked to the rise of on-demand streaming giants such as Netflix, Disney+ and HBO. 

“We have responded to the changes that have taken place in the market,” he told AFP, pointing notably to the explosion in popularity “of the series”.

When he bought the company, Peris Costumes only had a dozen staff, all based in Madrid. 

Today, the group employs 250 people and has offices or workshops in 15 capital cities, including Budapest, Berlin, Paris and Mexico City. 

“During the first half of the year, we were involved in almost 600 productions. And by the end of the year we’re hoping that will be more than 1,000,” says marketing director Myriam Wais. 

Among the films and series that have chosen the company are numerous super-productions which are very demanding in terms of period or fantasy costumes.

Whether it’s “The Rings of Power”, “Mulan” or “Marco Polo”, many productions prefer to rent costumes rather than invest in making their own.

“Trying to make [the costumes] from scratch is practically impossible because of the time and costs involved,” says Toledo. 

And producers appreciate “having costumes that have been worn in and aged with time”, he explains.

To expand its catalogue, Peris Costumes has in recent years has bought up millions of gowns, hats, pairs of shoes and uniforms from studio giants like Warner Bros. 

And all these complement its own in-house collections put together in the workshops of its costume designers. 

“In total, we have more than 10 million articles” of clothing and accessories, says Wais, reeling off a list of the most popular styles and eras.

It is, she says, “the biggest wardrobe in the world”. 

In a nearby room, four garment makers are working with pieces of leather, with a hammer-like maul and pliers on hand.

“Right now, we’re working on our inventory but there are also orders,” she says. 

In another room is the jewellery workshop, where close to 20,000 pieces are stored, including the jewels worn by Elizabeth Taylor in the 1963 epic “Cleopatra” and the papal cross worn by Jude Law in the 2016 series “The Young Pope”.

At Peris Costumes, the rule is to never throw anything away, not even if it is damaged during filming. 

“We have an area called ‘The Walking Dead’ in which we put everything that is broken or damaged but that could be reused,” Wais says, the term referencing a TV series about zombie apocalypse survivors.

With demand showing little sign of ebbing, this Spanish outfitter has recently started digitising some of its catalogue with the help of a studio equipped with 144 high-resolution cameras.

Dubbed Peris Digital, this service lets production companies “create 3D images” of costumes which can be used “during post-production”, Wais says. 

And this “virtual wardrobe” has also proved popular with the makers of video games, the company says.

First launched in 2016, the second generation Volkswagen Tiguan was a distinct step up from its predecessor. Only slightly larger, it was, however, a better designed, refined and equipped vehicle. Built on Volkswagen’s modular MQB platform that also underpins the Golf, the second generation Tiguan also delivered improved driving characteristics.

A classier and more upmarket effort, the Tiguan has since been lightly updated and subtly restyled for its 2020 mid-life face-lift, and features improved tech, lighting and infotainment systems.

Crisp and clean style

A mainstream compact crossover now imbued with premium flavours, the MQB-based Tiguan is slightly shorter, wider and longer than the original, and is available in standard and more spacious long wheelbase Allspace versions. The second generation Tiguan is an elegantly conservative and more contiguous design with an emphasis on straight lines and a perception of width. Handsomely mature is design, the Tiguan’s relatively level waistline and restrained rear pillar width lend it an airy ambiance and allow for good driving visibility.

Built with increased lightweight aluminium content for a 50kg weight reduction, the Tiguan features crisp and clean surfacing, with a sharply ridged crease running along its side towards dramatic, almost boomerang-style, rear lights, while a jutting tailgate spoiler lends a certain sporting style. Broader and more dramatic than its predecessor, the face-lifted Tiguan receives a higher bonnet line, wider grille and new bumper treatment. Its aggressively browed front lights are also redesigned and feature a new signature and LED elements.

Confident delivery

More visually assertive in R-line design specification with bigger bumper, broader side intakes and larger alloy wheels, the top-spec Tiguan available in the Middle East is powered by a transversely-mounted turbocharged 2-litre 4-cylinder engine. 

Primarily driving the front wheels, but transmitting more power rearwards as necessary courtesy of its 4Motion all-wheel-drive system, the Tiguan 2.0 TSI channels output through a 7-speed automated dual-clutch gearbox (DSG). It meanwhile produces 177BHP at approximately 6,000rpm and generous 236lb/ft torque throughout a 1,500-4,000rpm band.

Capable and familiar, the Tiguan 2.0 TSI’s engine is responsive from standstill, with little of the spooling lag expected from turbocharged vehicles. Refined in operation and eager in delivery, the Tiguan’s power accumulation is underwritten by a generous wave of torque across a broad and easily accessible mid-range, for confident overtaking. 

Reasonably brisk, it is estimated to dispatch the 0-100km/h benchmark in 7.7-seconds and onto a 208km/h top speed, while combined cycle fuel consumption is estimated at a moderate 7.4l/100km.

Quick and composed

Versatile in accelerating when cruising, the Tiguan’s engine is well complemented by its DSG gearbox’s broad ratio range in terms of performance and efficiency. The DSG is meanwhile quick and slick in executing shifts in a sequence, as it features two clutches for odd and even gears, whereby the next anticipated ratio is already lined-up and ready for seamlessly quick cog changes. Built primarily for road use, the Tiguan’s driving modes can leverage its gearbox response profile for modest off-road driving.

With generous 200mm ground clearance and stability and traction control-based off-road assistance features, the Tiguan’s all-wheel-drive system can also divert power to the rear wheels for added traction over loose surfaces. The Tiguan is meanwhile smooth and comfortable on road. Riding on MacPherson strut front and multilink rear independent suspension, the Tiguan delivers confidently comfortable highway stability, and good cabin refinement from noise, vibrations and harshness. The Tiguan’s vertical control is meanwhile comparatively well composed and settled over most dips and crests.

Smooth and spacious

Capable and confident, rather than outright exciting, the Tiguan’s dynamics are nevertheless reassuring, and it is tidy in, and through, corners. Not as agile as a Golf, the taller and heavier Tiguan is, however, nimble for a crossover and dispatches corners with comparatively nimble precision and only moderate body lean. Better absorbing road imperfections with smaller alloy wheel options, it can be slightly firm over sudden bumps and potholes when fitted with larger alloys. Steering is meanwhile light yet precise. 

Inside, the Tiguan features a well-adjustable, supportive and comfortable seating position, and good road visibility for manoeuvring and parking. Classy, uncluttered and logical in presentation, the Tiguan features good build quality inside. Offering notably good space for rear passengers, for its segment, it also generously accommodates 615-litres luggage capacity, which expands to 1,655-litres with rear seats folded. Well-equipped with standard and optional features, the face-lifted Tiguan is available with digital touch panel controls, an improved infotainment system and digital cockpit instrumentation.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Engine: 2-litre, turbocharged, transverse 4-cylinders

Bore x stroke: 82.5 x 92.8mm

Valve-train: 16-valve, DOHC, direct injection

Gearbox: 7-speed dual clutch automated, four-wheel-drive

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 177 (180) [132] @4,000-6,000rpm

Specific power: 89.2BHP/litre

Power-to-weight: 107BHP/tonne

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 236 (320) @1,500-4,000rpm

Specific torque: 161.3Nm/litre

Torque-to-weight: 194Nm/tonne

0-80km/h: 5.2-seconds (estimate)

0-100km/h: 7.7-seconds (estimate)

Top speed: 208km/h

Fuel consumption, 7.4-litres/100km (estimate)

Fuel capacity: 60-litres

Height: 1673mm

Wheelbase: 2677mm

Track, F/R: 1576/1566mm

Headroom, F/R (w/sunroof): 1004/967mm

Minimum ground clearance: 200mm (estimate)

Cabin width, F/R: 1503/1491mm

Luggage volume, min/max: 615/1655-litres

Kerb weight: 1650kg (estimate) 

Steering: Electric-assisted rack & pinion

Turning circle: 11.5-metres

Suspension, F/R: MacPherson struts/Multi-link

Is comparing yourself to others only making you feel bad about yourself and your body? Let’s not waste energy on comparisons, as it keeps us from achieving our goals.

“Envy makes us feel empty even when we’re full,” says pastor Alex Ehly is referring to how people compare themselves to others while looking at their cups as half empty instead of half full. Little did he realise how much his statement hits a cord with us desperate dieters. We spend our days craving all sorts of things we can’t have that we miss enjoying what we can have!

We tend to believe that the grass is always greener on the other side. Sadly, all that comparing, craving and coveting steals our joy as we waste our days chasing after the wind!

A different strategy

What would happen if we tried a different strategy to replace things that leave us feeling empty with something that actually fills us? No, I’m not talking about doughnuts (Nice try!). What if we spent less time trying to look like the perfect neighbours next door and more time getting to know them?

You’ll find that they have their own challenges and we don’t have a monopoly on that. You might learn something from them to help you deal with your issues. 

You’ll also discover that when you go beyond outward appearances, you stop defining people by how they look. Instead, you begin to see them less through superficial lenses and more through a deeper understanding of who they are as human beings.

Think about how much time you’ll save when you stop comparing yourself to others. That time could be put to better use thinking about something life-giving instead of life-sucking. The only person we should be comparing ourselves to is our own self as we seek to do better today than we did yesterday and the day before.

There are a million improvements we each can work on that we can practice daily if we set our mind to it but when we’re busy looking at someone else, we end up taking our focus off our own goals.

It’s time to pause

Halt. Stop. Quit fooling yourself into believing the lies the world keeps trying to feed us. This is how advertisements and television commercials work. They try to sell you something you’ll never use, making you think you can’t live without it. They make it look so cool and show other people envying you for buying their product. Not to mention all the junk food commercials that make you feel hungry even when you’re not, causing you to break down and give in to the cravings.

The crazy thing is that we’ve all done this because we naturally envy and crave what we see. It takes intentionality to become aware of our thoughts and to stop doing what everyone else is doing, even if it means swimming upstream in a culture that keeps going downstream!

You deserve better. Give yourself some credit and take the higher road less travelled. Here’s to a healthier life physically, mentally and emotionally as we joyfully start living our lives to our fullest potential. 

Reprinted with permission from Family Flavours magazine

SAN FRANCISCO — Elon Musk on Friday began his first full day leading Twitter, with critics and fans anxious to see how the planet’s richest man will run one of the world’s leading social media platforms.

The mercurial Tesla chief’s tumultuous, $44 billion bid to buy the company concluded after months of uncertainty and speculation, and now users could start to see his plans.

Musk tweeted “the bird is freed” on Thursday, a jokey reference to the firm’s logo, shortly after he said he made the purchase “to help humanity, whom I love”.

Yet, the idea of Musk running Twitter has alarmed activists who fear a surge in harassment and misinformation, with Musk himself known for trolling other Twitter users.

European politicians were quick to warn him that the continent had regulations for social media companies.

“In Europe, the bird will fly by our rules,” tweeted Thierry Breton, the EU internal market commissioner, in response on Friday to Musk’s “bird” message.

Musk said on Thursday Twitter “cannot become a free-for-all hellscape where anything can be said with no consequences”.

He had previously vowed to dial back content moderation and was expected to clear the way for former US president Donald Trump to return to the platform.

The then-president was blocked over concerns he would ignite more violence like the deadly attack on the Capitol in Washington to overturn his election loss.

Far-right users were quick to rejoice over the purchase on the network, posting comments such as “masks don’t work” and other taunts, under the belief that moderation rules will now be relaxed.

“Free speech will always prevail,” tweeted Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, prompting hundreds of mostly angry replies accusing her of hypocrisy.

Benefit of the doubt 

Among Musk’s first acts in power on Thursday were the reported firing of chief executive Parag Agrawal and other senior officials — though the company did not reply to AFP’s request for comment and Agrawal still listed himself as CEO on his Twitter profile.

Agrawal previously went to court to hold Musk to the terms of the deal, and the takeover came just before a deadline imposed by the judge.

Musk, who is using a combination of his own money, funds from wealthy investors and bank loans to finance the deal, has conceded he is overpaying for a company that has regularly posted eye-watering losses.

Twitter says it has 238 million daily users, dwarfed by the likes of Facebook’s 2 billion, but has not been able to monetise in the same way as its rivals.

However, Twitter holds an outsized influence on public debate because it is the favoured platform for many companies, politicians, journalists and other public figures.

Musk, though, has expressed frustration at content moderation and critics fear his ownership will be seen as a greenlight for hate speech and misinformation.

Musk is already the boss of car firm Tesla and rocket company SpaceX and it is not clear what his Twitter role might be, though unconfirmed reports suggested he might become interim CEO.

The closure of the deal marks the culmination of a long back-and-forth between the billionaire and the social network.

Musk tried several times to step back from the deal after his unsolicited offer was accepted in April, accusing Twitter of misleading him over the number of “bot” accounts.

Twitter dismissed his claims and accused him of inventing excuses, eventually filing a lawsuit to hold him to the agreement.

With a trial looming, the unpredictable billionaire capitulated and revived his takeover plan.

During the tumult, some employees have quit the firm over Musk’s takeover, said a worker who asked to remain anonymous.

“But a portion of people, including me, are willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for now,” the employee said.

KATHMANDU — US climber Hilaree Nelson’s death has brought home how treacherous the Himalayas are, dangers that guides and experts say are rising due to climate change and as more people seek high-altitude thrills.

Nelson, 49, was fatally swept down from close to the peak of the 8,163-metre Manaslu, the world’s eighth-highest mountain that she and her partner were attempting to ski down.

What are the biggest killers?

Nepal is home to the most popular Himalayan peaks. Between 1950 and 2021, 1,042 deaths were recorded there, 405 of them this century. 

A third of deaths are caused by avalanches, according to the Himalayan Database, and a third by climbers falling. Many also die from mountain sickness and exhaustion. 

The deadliest is 8,091-metre Annapurna massif, with 72 deaths for 365 ascents since the 1950s — or one for every five successful summits. Dhaulagiri and Kanchenjunga both have a death rate of over 10 per cent. 

Steep passages and avalanche danger have earned Pakistan’s K2 the name “savage mountain”, with at least 70 fatalities since 1947.

The most deaths occur on Everest, with more than 300 dying between 1950 and 2021. But with many more climbers, the fatality rate is comparatively low at 2.84 per cent.

How has climate change hit the Himalayas?

A 2019 study warned that Himalayan glaciers were melting twice as fast than before the turn of the century. 

Another study this year, using carbon dating, showed the top layer of ice close to the Everest summit was around 2,000 years old, suggesting that the glacier was thinning more than 80 times faster than the time it took to form.

How has this increased the dangers?

Although no extensive research has been done looking at climate change and mountaineering risks in the Himalayas, climbers have reported crevasses widening, running water on previously snowy slopes, and increasing formation of glacial lakes.

“Wearing snow crampons on thinning ice and exposed rocks can be particularly dangerous,” said the hugely experienced Nepali mountaineer Sanu Sherpa, 47, who has climbed all 14 highest peaks in the world twice.

“Snow coverage is a lot less. I worry that the mountains will be just rocks in the next few generations.”

As glaciers become more unpredictable, avalanche risk can increase. 

In 2014, an immense tumbling wall of snow, ice and rock killed 16 Nepali guides on Everest’s treacherous Khumbu Icefall in one of the deadliest accidents on the Himalayas.

“The weather has become more erratic. Some years warmer, others colder,” a mountaineering blogger Alan Arnette told AFP.

“Overall, the usual historical patterns cannot be used as predictions, so climbing has become much more dangerous concerning the weather.”

What about overcrowding?

But experts say a major killer is also the inexperience of a new wave of ill-prepared mountaineer tourists rushing for summits among the hundreds who flock to Nepal, Pakistan and Tibet every year.

The rapid growth of the climbing industry has created fierce competition among companies for business, raising fears that some were cutting corners on safety.

Nepal this year issued 404 permits for Manaslu peak, double than usual. Pakistan issued about 200 for K2, twice the usual number.

In 2019 a massive traffic jam on Everest forced teams to wait hours in freezing temperatures, lowering depleted oxygen levels that can lead to sickness and exhaustion. 

At least four of the 11 deaths that year were blamed on overcrowding. 

Make mountains safer?

Many tour companies now use drones for remote sensing for risk assessment, monitor real-time climbers’ vital data and some climbers wear GPS trackers.

Expedition organisers are also stocking more oxygen and the quality of weather reports has vastly improved. 

But Lukas Furtenbach of Furtenbach Adventures said that more needs to be done.

“Companies need to invest in avalanche education and training and risk assessment tools for their guides and also in avalanche equipment like beacons and [rescue technology] RECCO,” he told AFP.

But in the end, it comes down to decisions operators make.

“We of course work as hard as we can to get our clients to the top, but only if this can be done within strict margins,” said Mike Hamill of Climbing the Seven Summits.

“We are not afraid to back off of a climb if conditions or weather dictate that it is too dangerous.” 

WASHINGTON — Parents often worry about the harmful impacts of video games on their children, from mental health and social problems to missing out on exercise. 

But a large new US study published in JAMA Network Open on Monday indicates there may also be cognitive benefits associated with the popular pastime.

Lead author Bader Chaarani, an assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Vermont, told AFP he was naturally drawn to the topic as a keen gamer himself with expertise in neuroimagery.

Prior research had focused on detrimental effects, linking gaming with depression and increased aggression. 

These studies were however limited by their relatively small number of participants, particularly those involving brain imaging, said Charaani.

For the new research, Chaarani and colleagues analysed data from the large and ongoing Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study, which is funded by the National Institutes of Health.

They looked at survey answers, cognitive test results, and brain images from around 2,000 nine- and ten-year-olds, who were separated into two groups: those who never played games, and those who played for three hours or more a day.

This threshold was chosen as it exceeds the American Academy of Paediatrics screen time guidelines of one or two hours of video games for older children.

Impulses and memory

Each group was assessed in two tasks.

The first involved seeing arrows pointing left or right, with the children asked to press left or right as fast as they could. 

They were also told to not press anything if they saw a “stop” signal, to measure how well they could control their impulses. 

In the second task, they were shown people’s faces, and then asked if a subsequent picture shown later on matched or not, in a test of their working memory.

After using statistical methods to control for variables that could skew results, such as parental income, IQ, and mental health symptoms, the team found the video gamers performed consistently better on both tasks.

As they performed the tasks, the children’s brains were scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Video gamers’ brains showed more activity in regions associated with attention and memory.

“The results raise the intriguing possibility that video gaming may provide a cognitive training experience with measurable neurocognitive effects,” the authors concluded in their paper. 

Right now it’s not possible to know whether better cognitive performance drives more gaming, or is its result, said Chaarani.

The team hope to get a more clear answer as the study continues and they look again at the same children at older ages.

This will also help exclude other potential factors at play such as the children’s home environment, exercise and sleep quality.

Future studies could also benefit from knowing what genres of games the children were playing — though at age 10 children tend to favour action games like Fortnite or Assassin’s Creed.

“Of course, excessive use of screen time is bad for overall mental health and physical activity,” said Chaarani. 

But he said the results showed video games might be a better use of screen time than watching videos on YouTube, which has no discernible cognitive effects.

GENEVA — Researchers at Europe’s science lab CERN, who regularly use particle physics to challenge our understanding of the universe, are also applying their craft to upend the limits to cancer treatment.

The physicists here are working with giant particle accelerators in search of ways to expand the reach of cancer radiation therapy, and take on hard-to-reach tumours that would otherwise have been fatal.

In one CERN lab, called CLEAR, facility coordinator Roberto Corsini stands next to a large, linear particle accelerator consisting of a 40-metre metal beam with tubes packed in aluminium foil at one end, and a vast array of measurement instruments and protruding colourful wires and cables.

The research here, he told AFP during a recent visit, is aimed at creating very high energy beams of electrons — the negatively charged particles in the nucleus of an atom — that eventually could help to combat cancerous cells more effectively.

They are researching a “technology to accelerate electrons to the energies that are needed to treat deep-seated tumours, which is above 100 million electron volts” (MeV), Corsini explained.

The idea is to use these very high energy electrons in combination with a new and promising treatment method called FLASH.

Reducing ‘collateral damage’

This method entails delivering the radiation dose in a few hundred milliseconds, instead of minutes as is the current approach.

This has been shown to have the same destructive effect on the targeted tumour, but causes far less damage to the surrounding healthy tissue.

With traditional radiation therapy, “you do create some collateral damage”, said Benjamin Fisch, a CERN knowledge transfer officer.

The effect of the brief but intense FLASH treatment, he told reporters, is to “reduce the toxicity to healthy tissue while still properly damaging cancer cells”.

FLASH was first used on patients in 2018, based on currently available medical linear accelerators, linacs, that provide low-energy electron beams of around 6-10 MeV.

At such low energy though, the beams cannot penetrate deeply, meaning the highly-effective treatment has so far only been used on superficial tumours, found with skin cancer.

But the CERN physicists are now collaborating with the Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) to build a machine for FLASH delivery that can accelerate electrons to 100 to 200 MeV, making it possible to use the method for much more hard-to-reach tumours. 

‘Game-changer’

Deep-lying cancer tumours that can’t be rooted out using surgery, chemotherapy or traditional radiation therapy are often today considered a death sentence.

“It is the ones which we don’t cure at the moment which will be the targets,” Professor Jean Bourhis, head of CHUV’s radiology department, told AFP.

“For those particular cancers, which may be one third of the cancer cases, it could be a game-changer.”

There are particular hopes that the FLASH method, with its far less harmful impact on surrounding tissue, could make it possible to go after tumours lodged in the brain or near other vital organs.

Bourhis said it might not relegate deaths from stubborn cancer tumours to the history books, “but at least there will be a new opportunity for more cures, if it works”.

‘Compact’

One challenge is making the powerful accelerator compact enough to fit inside a hospital.

At CERN, a large gallery has been dedicated to housing the CLEAR accelerator, which requires 20 metres to push the electrons up to the required energy level — and another 20 metres to condition, measure and deliver the beam.

But Corsini insisted that CERN had the know-how to “accelerate in a much more compact space”.

The prototype being designed with CHUV will aim to do the same job with a machine that is 10 metres overall.

This “compact” solution, Corsini said, “reduces the cost, reduces power consumption and variability, and you can easily put it into a hospital without having to build a whole building”. 

Construction of the prototype is scheduled to begin next February, and patient clinical trials could begin in 2025, Bourhis said, “if everything goes smoothly”.

A sign of the increasing sophistication of Japan’s automotive industry and its rapid ascent and reputation for quality, reliability and value, the advent of the Japanese sports coupe was also intended to garner a reputation for desirability.

Taking the fight to European and US manufacturers, from the 1960s and 1970s, Japanese sports coupes may not be as prevalent as in the past, but have nevertheless been making a comeback.

With a back catalogue of icons like the 1967 Toyota 2000GT – which briefly replaced James Bond’s usual Aston Martin – and the rotary-engine Mazda RX7 since 1978, Japanese sports coupes, however, hit their stride on international markets with the 1969 arrival of the Datsun 240Z (aka Nissan Fairlady Z). The latest, resurgent crop meanwhile includes the lightweight and uncomplicated Subaru BRZ, latest Nissan Z iteration, and the returning Toyota Supra.

Nissan Z

A classic front engine and rear-drive sports car that promises old school thrills, the Nissan Z’s balanced chassis, combustion engine and manual gearbox cater to hardcore driving enthusiasts, even as the Japanese manufacturer positions other products towards greater electrification. Initially complementing the more powerful and soon to be discontinued Nissan GT-R on its arrival, the Z is, however, a different beast geared for driving pleasure rather than outright performance. 

Dropping the numerical prefixes of predecessors, the strikingly modern yet subtly retro-infused Z’s clean, fresh and unambiguously visceral design pays homage to predecessors, with its long bonnet and pert, short squared-off tail hinting at the original 240Z, and rear lights inspired by the 300Z. Uncluttered in surfacing and styling sensibility, the Z features a big rectangular grille, slim side intake gills and an athletic, alert and urgent yet un-fussed demeanour.

Powered by a twin-turbocharged 3-litre V6 engine producing 400BHP at 6,400rpm and 350lb/ft throughout 1,600-5,200rpm the Z provides both sportily peaky power delivery and abundant mid-range versatility, and is available with either 6-speed manual or 9-speed automatic gearboxes. Pouncing through 0-97km/h in 4.2-seconds in manual guise, the Z is, meanwhile, available in standard Sport or a Performance variant with larger staggered alloy wheels and a limited-slip rear differential for added agility and stability.

Specifications

Engine: 3-litre, twin-turbocharged V6-cylinders

Gearbox: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel-drive, limited slip differential

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 400 (406) [298] @6,400rpm

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 350 (475) @1,600-5,200rpm

0-97km/h: 4.2-seconds (estimate)

Top speed: 250km/h (estimate)

Length: 4,380mm

Width: 1,845mm

Height: 1,315mm

Wheelbase: 2,550mm

Weight: 1,596kg (estimate)

Suspension, F/R: Double wishbones/multi-link

Tyres, F/R: 255/40R19/275/35R19

Toyota Supra

Something of a modern icon in its previous generation with its conservative power estimates and highly durable, tuner-friendly engine, the Toyota Supra made its comeback in 2019. Returning after a 21-year hiatus, the latest Supra was follow-up to the 2012 Toyota GT86, on the path to bringing the fun back to the giant Japanese manufacturer, which had developed a reputation for reliable and sensible, if not quite exciting, cars during the 2000s.

Like the largely Subaru-engineered GT86, the Supra is similarly based on the BMW Z4, albeit developed with Toyota, with the fixed-head Supra coupe expected to undoubtedly be stiffer than BMW’s open-top roadster. In terms of design, however, the Supra may share its basic snouty long-bonnet proportions with the Z4, but its styling details are starkly different with busy, bulging and arcing body surfacing, enormous intakes and twin-dome roof.

Powered by a choice of turbocharged BMW engines including an entry-level 2-litre 4-cylinder developing 194BHP and 255BHP, the Supra is also available with a 3-litre in-line 6-cylinder engine in 355BHP and 382BHP states of tune. Powering the rear wheels through a choice of 8-speed automatic or 6-speed manual gearboxes, the most powerful Supra also produces 368lb/ft torque and sprints through 0-97km/h in estimated 4.2-seconds, in manual variant.

Specifications

Engine: 3-litre, turbocharged, in-line 6-cylinders

Gearbox: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel-drive, limited slip differential

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 382 (387) [285] @5,800-6,500rpm

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 368 (499) @1,800-5,000rpm

0-97km/h: 4.2-seconds (estimate)

Top speed: 250km/h (estimate)

Length: 4,380mm

Width: 1,865mm

Height: 1,295mm

Wheelbase: 2,470mm

Weight: 1,542kg (estimate)

Suspension, F/R: Double wishbones/multi-link

Tyres, F/R: 255/35R19/275/35R19

Subaru BRZ

Less complex and more affordable than most sports cars, the Subaru BRZ first launched in 2012, and follows a similar “just right” approach as the Mazda MX-5 roadster, to deliver an engagingly pure and back-to-basic driving experience with none of the bloat often associated with more up-market coupes. Arriving in 2021, the second generation BRZ remains true to its predecessor’s uncluttered and unexaggerated ethos, with only negligible size and weight gains.

A recipe for fun driving with its classic front-engine and rear-drive balance, standard 6-speed manual gearbox and low-slung and compact horizontally-opposed, naturally-aspirated 4-cylinder engine, the new BRZ, however, gets bump up from 2- to 2.4-litres in engine displacement, and is about 50 per cent stiffer for improved handling, comfort and safety. Like its predecessor, the BRZ is perhaps more widely known and sold as the badge-engineered Toyota GR86.

Eager and progressive in delivery, the BRZ’s incrementally larger and more powerful high-strung “boxer” engine develops 228BHP at 7,000rpm and 184lb/ft torque peaking at 3,700rpm. Engineered for high-rev thrills, the lightweight BRZ hustles its 1,277kg mass through 0-97km/h in an estimated 5.4-seconds and onto 225km/h. Famed for intuitively balanced and precise rear-drive handling and steering, the nimble BRZ also features a limited-slip differential for enhanced stability and agility.

Specifications

Engine: 2.4-litre, horizontally-opposed 4-cylinders

Gearbox: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel-drive, limited slip differential

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 228 (231) [170] @7,000rpm

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 184 (250) @3,700rpm

0-97km/h: 5.4-seconds (estimate)

Top speed: 225km/h (estimate)

Length: 4,265mm

Width: 1,775mm

Height: 1,310mm

Wheelbase: 2,575mm

Weight: 1,277kg

Suspension, F/R: MacPherson struts/Double wishbones

Tyres: 215/45R17

Although I’m a makeup artist, I, like most women, must deal with body image and break free from negative thought cycles. Our perception of our body image and our emotions and feelings towards it contributes to our self-confidence and self-esteem. 

Body image is the picture you have of yourself mentally and the emotions you feel when you look in the mirror. Accepting how you look does not mean you do not have flaws or are unaware of them. It means you are aware of your flaws and can resist the pressure of changing them to please society or to fit societal stereotypes. 

Self-esteem is the extent to which you value and respect yourself and your overall opinion of yourself. Both a healthy body image and good self-esteem support and strengthen your self-confidence. Hence, these three concepts are connected and inter-related.

How to create a healthier body image

• Respecting your body: Nurture your body with well-balanced food choices that include your daily needs of vitamins and minerals and your favourite foods in moderation. Since poor body image is often linked to dieting, avoid fad diets

• Exercising to build body image: You may view exercise as a punishment, making it difficult for you to initiate physical activity. You may view exercise negatively because you see it as a way to change the way you look, which intensifies the negative feelings you have of yourself and the pressure you feel about fitting into society’s beauty preferences and stereotypes. If you view exercise as self-care and not because you care how others view your body, you will find that exercise positively influences the way you experience and view your body

• Avoiding focusing too much on your appearance: When you intensely focus on your appearance and body image, you may find yourself repeatedly checking the mirror, seeking reassurance about your looks or obsessing over perceived physical flaws. If your thought patterns about yourself are leaving you feeling embarrassed, ashamed and anxious, then seek out a mental health professional for support

• Practising self-care that doesn’t involve your looks: As a makeup artist, I, of course, promote skincare routines, and I encourage you to see it as a fun way to set aside time for yourself after a long day. But also think about non-food related, non-appearance related skincare rituals that will bring calm and tranquillity into your life, such as meditation, yoga, watching a movie, taking a stroll, reading, writing or making art — creativity has a tangible positive impact on our mental wellbeing

The sooner you realise that you are good enough exactly as you are, the happier you will be in your own skin.

By Rama Hijazi
Makeup Artist

Reprinted with permission from Family Flavours magazine

NEW YORK — A commercial plane photoshopped with the tail of a shark, hashtags that misleadingly evoke sustainability, tokenistic use of minorities to distract and to signal virtue: a Harvard recently published report highlights rampant greenwashing by leading companies on social media.

The investigation, commissioned by Greenpeace Netherlands, involved analysing the text and images of 2,300 posts by 22 of Europe’s largest carmakers, fossil fuel producers and airlines this June and July.

“During this summer of record temperatures and wildfires in Europe, these fossil fuel interests have remained explicitly silent on the topic of climate change, and instead, they engage in what we interpret to be strategic brand positioning,” lead author Geoffrey Supran told AFP.

Entitled “Three Shades of Green(washing)”, the report released during New York’s Climate Week found that only one in five “green” car ads actually present a product for sale, while the rest simply promote the brand as green.

One in five posts by oil, car and airline companies centre on sports, fashion or social causes that direct attention away from their core businesses.

Two-thirds of companies’ social media posts painted a “green innovation” sheen on their operations, the report found, with automakers generating by far the most compared with airlines and oil and gas firms.

While there was already some awareness around these trends, Supran said the strength of the new study was its use of peer-reviewed social science methods to lend more quantitative weight.

A key feature of the companies’ posts was how often they were about their sponsorship of sports events or charity, as opposed to talking about what they sell.

“In principle those kinds of activities should be applauded. The issue becomes when corporate philanthropy slips into corporate social responsibility washing, things like greenwashing, sportswashing and wokewashing,” Supran said.

Examples of greenwashing include an Instagram post by Lufthansa where a plane blends into the body of a shark swimming in the ocean. 

The post was to highlight a coating modelled off shark skin that is applied to the plane’s body to improve airflow and reduce fuel consumption.

Tweets by Air France-KLM and Lufthansa promoted their use of biofuel on some routes using the hashtag “SustainableAviationFuel”.

Those posts omit the fact that such fuels constitute only a tiny fraction of overall fuel used by the industry, and not all experts are yet convinced it can power climate-safe air travel, the report said.

‘Pretty insidious’

Green posts also tend to feature more women, non-binary people and non-Caucasian people — for example, a tweet by Wizz Air on World Environment Day shows an elderly Black woman, who appears to be part tree, part person, standing in a lush green forest.

Not only does the post appear tokenistic, the report said, it also promotes an article about how to reduce personal energy consumption. 

This is a widespread corporate practice researchers call “redirecting responsibility” in which individual behaviour, rather than the actions of governments and companies, is placed at the centre of climate action.

A YouTube video by Fiat meanwhile features a group of attractive youths sailing and driving through beautiful mountains in the Italian countryside.

“Behavioural psychologists have observed significant affective responses from consumers exposed to nature imagery,” explained Supran. 

“It can make a company seem greener actually in a unique way that does the subtle work of overriding even the most critical observers in a pretty insidious way.”

Silvia Pastorelli, a Greenpeace campaigner, said in a statement that the report highlighted techniques that had been “hiding in plain sight”.

“This is a systematic greenwashing effort that must be addressed with a legal ban on all fossil fuel advertising and sponsorship across Europe, just as happened with tobacco,” she added.