AGD H I Y O U T H M O V E M E N T M A G A Z I N E

I s s u e # 0 6O c t o b e r 2 0 1 3

Dhi Youth MovementYouth for Youth, to empower and to lead

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Dhi Youth MovementYouth for Youth, to empower and to lead

Dhi Youth Movement began in early 2012 as a small initiative by a few young inspired individuals in Male', with the vision to bring a positive change to society by empowering young people to actively contribute to society.

Our group, with a strong following on Facebook, was used to mobilize volunteers for a flash freeze on 29th March 2012 and since then there has been no turning back.

We officially got registered as an NGO on 12th of December 2012 as Dhivehi Youth Movement under the Associations and Societies Act of the Maldives (Act No. 1/2003).

Any and all Maldivians between the age of 16 and 27 are welcome to join DYM. And everyone's ideas and thoughts are welcome and appreciated.

D Y M c o r e g r o u p a t t h e 0 t h A n n i v e r s a r y p h o t o s h o o t

F o l l o w t h i s l i n k f o r t h e o n l i n e a p p l i c a t i o n f o r m :h t t p : / / b i t . l y / 1 a P b A W Y

DYM IS OFFICIALLY OPEN

FOR MEMBERSHIPS!

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2

a letter from the

designdirectorThis being my second issue as Design Director, I’d like to take this chance to say I’m thankful to the

DYM team for giving me this opportunity and for all feedback, both negative and positive, I got for the

previous issue. I’ve been doing graphic designing here and there for a while but nothing nearly on this

scale. Page by page learning is what I’ve been doing so far and it’s just so much fun.

Our magazine, I’d say is a great platform. It’s providing an opportunity for talented young people to

express their feelings or tell our readers what they want heard. Whether it be some casual information

about an ongoing thread, a review about what to read or watch or even if it’s a deep thought and well

versed poem, there’s something in this magazine for everyone.

In this issue, we’re featuring two young and talented footballers, Waadu and Faraa. Our team members

had a lot of fun with the interviews and I would like to thank them myself for giving us the time and going

through the rain and sun to give us what we got.

From what I can see, I think our magazine has a pretty bright future. I hope you guys stick with us for this

ride because we’re hoping to reach the stars but in due time.

3

Editor’s ChoiceEditor’s ChoiceIntriguing and thought provoking articles from around

the web handpicked for you,

TheEnergy-WaterNexusby Tom Murphy | Do the Math

Isdemocracyoverrated?by Roger Scruton | BBC News Magazine

How Baghdad attack put UN aid missions at riskby Imogen Foulkes | BBC News Magazine

Thetrouble withfreedomby John Gray | BBC News Magazine

Coffee and Qahwaby John McHugo | BBC News Magazine

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THE

DYMagTEAM

Sifr, Editor-in-ChiefSifr is simultaneously rude, charming and arrogant. His only redeeming quality is that he is

proficient. Relentless in his pursuit of knowledge and impartial truth. Self professedly classy

and stylish. He enjoys the company of bright and attractive young ladies. He is a basketball

player, a stargazer, a gym rack, a philosopher but most of all a mind of science.

Shaha, Content DirectorShaha is a free spirit who enjoys classic literature, tea with lots of milk, good books and lots of

sunshine. She dreams of huge closets and making a mark in the world. She believes in

mismatching socks, breaking stereotypes and handwritten letters.

Hassan, Deputy EditorHassan is a 5'9'' male human who has a particular affinity for hyphenating words-and-phrases that don't

need hyphenation, a tendency to overuse commas and various other punctuation (as well as being fond of

abusing parenthesis for irrelevant side thoughts... hey look, something SHINY!), coupled with his continual

misuse of asterisks to *stress* words for emphasis instead of using CAPS, (that in most cases don't even

*NEED* emphasis). Most printer output errors are able to put together more cohesive thoughts than him. Ice

cream is his friend.

@ s i f r s a b r

@ s h a h a a a

Ahusam, Marketing DirectorAhusam mostly goes with the flow, a footballer. art, music, and cooking is a passion, a die hard

fan of new radient sc.enjoys anything with a good sauce and loves cats and all animals.he is a

chef and thinks even the smallest of voices should be heard. He loves photography and

talking, A lot. no seriously he cant stop if he starts.

Imy, Design DirectorImy is just a dreaming, believing, photographing, graphic designing, video gaming, good food

consuming, tv series watching, constantly ranting everyday teenager. Loves his friends and

making new ones. Often dreams of traveling the world someday due to suffering from a

terminal case of wanderlust.f b . c o m / i m y . 1 1 7

5

SAMModel

@ s a m a _ e m

T h e C o n t r i b u t o r s

SHUMAStylist

MOONYWriter

LUNAWriter

@ l u l u m o o s a

TOBYPhotographer

f b . c o m / m o n k e y g r a p h y

MUNZIRWriter

@ m u n z i r _ a l i

GIRL IN TOQUEWriter

5

6

JINWriter

@ j i n e x i l i r

MAHIDWriter

@ m a r t y _ m a h i d

IXMAEL NAAILWriter

@ i x m a e l n a a i l

ABOWriter

@ m r a b o 0 4

THIHNANWriter

ZAINALWriter

@ z a i k o k k o

SHIYAZWriter

@ a b o o s h i y a z

FAZUWriter

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CONTENTSRegulars0203040508

Letter from the Design DirectorEditor’s ChoiceThe DYM TeamThe ContributorsCalendar

Specials2636

Interviews with Waadu & FarahWonder Woman: Bags by Mary

Spots41434547

Eyes of a ChildThe Patriotism in MeElectoral Corruption and ViolenceThe Fame Monster

0911

Movie ReviewMusic Review

Entertainment

535557

Health - Bright in WhiteRecipe - Blueberry Whipped Cream Cake Science - Carl Sagan’s Cosmic Calendar

Living

616365

Poem - You and are insignificant speckPoem - What is lovePoem - Girlfriend

Misc

17 Kurta KrazeFashion

4951

Infirmities in Life - StrokesBloodwritings - Love Curse

Column

52 Past EventsDYM

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8

01st

02nd

04th

05th

06th

10th

11th

14th

15th

16th

20th

24th

International Day of Older Persons

World Vegetarian Day

International Day of Non Violence

World Smile Day

Teacher’s Day

Nawaf’s Birthday

Sifr’s Birthday

International Day of the Girl Child

Hajj Day

Alha Eid

World Food Day

World Statistics Day

UN Day

October 2013

p h o t o b y : i m y

CONTENTS

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9

Watching and reviewing this movie was the first task “assigned” to me

as the amateur movie critic for DYMag. One fine day, our content

director Shaha called me to set everything up for me to attend the

screening and I went there with the following state of mind:

What I knew: That this was a “movie with a social message”.

What I didn’t know: What genre of a movie this was, what language of a

movie this was, and who the director, producers, or the cast of the

movie was. So basically, I knew nothing about the movie.

What I found out: This is a family-fantasy movie in the Japanese

language (with English subtitles), made by a Japanese organization

by the name of Asian-Pacific Children’s Conventions (APCC) as part

of celebrating their 25th anniversary and spreading the values of their

OMOIYARI spirit to more people. The movie rather smartly

interchanges between 3 timelines; 1996, 2013 and 2030.

It follows the main character Midori (Mio Yuki), a Japanese schoolgirl

in 1996, who lives with her father, taking care of him since her mother

passed away. One day, Midori’s father remarries and brings home a

Chinese woman named Rinrin (Hitomi Sato). Midori, in spite of trying

hard to accept Rinrin as her new mother, finds it hard to connect with

Rinrin due to their many racial and cultural differences. Midori soon

becomes infuriated with having Rinrin at her home, and sees her as an

embarrassment. Through the chaos created due to the two women

not getting along, Midori’s father writes a picture-story book for the two

of them, called “Flying Goldfish and the Secret of the World.”

The book is about accepting people from different races and cultures

of the world and that the secret to a better world lies in not judging, but

embracing people from other cultures. The movie shows how the

message from the book goes on to inspire generations spanning 2013

to 2030.

It sounds kind of childish, I know. But that’s the whole point. You see,

we all know that the underlying message from the movie that I wrote

above is true. That if countries got along better, there would be so

much less of wars and disputes and chaos in the world. The problem

is most of us realize that in the cusp of adulthood and by then we

would be accustomed to ways of life already established in our

childhood. And our lives will be so full of our personal and individual

issues that we couldn’t really care any less about countries fighting.

This movie aims to make young children (and even adults) aware that

most of the “bad things” happening in the world is the result of cultural

non-acceptance, that the world can be a better place if we just love

each other the way we are, and to make parents realize the

importance of raising their children with that belief. The movie in the

process touches on the subject of cultural diversity, respect and

understanding.

And the movie does a pretty good job at getting the message across. I

say so because given how little I knew about the movie, it strummed a

tune from a nerve in my heart. I had never before watched anything

Japanese/Chinese or even Korean-produced, except for the pop

virus that was Gangnam Style. I always said that actors from that race

speak like they are complaining and they are so much surgically

altered that emotional expressions are nearly non-existent in their

acting. So naturally I was bummed when I walked into the screening.

But I walked out feeling… accomplished. Because the movie, despite

all its differences and barriers from what my mind is used to, was able

to get to me. I looked past the language that I wasn’t able to

understand, the actors that I formerly thought couldn’t act, and the

silliness of the childlike plot, and I was able to understand what the

movie was communicating. The actors made me laugh, got me

worried, and even made me emotional. It made me accept the art from

the pop culture of a country that I previously judged to be “not my

thing”. It made me realize that art, like any other parts of a culture, is

best when it’s diversified and inclusive. It also made me develop a

respect for the preservation of cultures by indulging in them.

In short, this movie made me believe.

“Peace by Piece” art contest

This movie will be screened for the public at the end of October (no

specific date set yet, due to political instability.) The event will be

launched by the Bridge Club Maldives (BCM), a branch of Bridge

Club International Organization (BCIO), which is a group working

under the Asian-Pacific Children’s Convention (APCC) for their

BRIDGE project.

More about the BCIO and APCC can be found at:

BCIO: http://www.bcio.org/about/

APCC: http://www.apcc.gr.jp/e/

The screening will be followed by an art contest by the name of “Peace

by Piece” organized by the BCIO, and BCM, as their local branch, is

launching the competition in Maldives, and it is open for all the

members of the public. The art contest invites any form of art

(paintings, drawings, poems etc.) and it should strongly resemble the

message and values from the movie. BCM will be giving non-cash

prizes to the local winners from the participants from Maldives, while

BCIO will be giving the prizes for winners from the participants from all

over the world.

Details about the date of the screening will be uploaded to their web

page when a date is set. I will also hopefully keep updated on the

event, and you can contact me through DYMag (my twitter handle is

@MrAbo04). Meanwhile, further information about the participation,

judges and competition prizes can be found at the official web page

for the “Peace by Piece” art competition, which is as follows:

“Peace by Piece”: http://www.bcio.org/activity/

We kindly request that as many children and parents and any

interested parties from the public attend the movie screening and take

part in the art competition which will be held and carried out for a very

good and worthy cause and will enable many to be recognized,

locally and internationally, for their artistic skills and abilities.

REVIEWMOVIE

by Abo

10

Watching and reviewing this movie was the first task “assigned” to me

as the amateur movie critic for DYMag. One fine day, our content

director Shaha called me to set everything up for me to attend the

screening and I went there with the following state of mind:

What I knew: That this was a “movie with a social message”.

What I didn’t know: What genre of a movie this was, what language of a

movie this was, and who the director, producers, or the cast of the

movie was. So basically, I knew nothing about the movie.

What I found out: This is a family-fantasy movie in the Japanese

language (with English subtitles), made by a Japanese organization

by the name of Asian-Pacific Children’s Conventions (APCC) as part

of celebrating their 25th anniversary and spreading the values of their

OMOIYARI spirit to more people. The movie rather smartly

interchanges between 3 timelines; 1996, 2013 and 2030.

It follows the main character Midori (Mio Yuki), a Japanese schoolgirl

in 1996, who lives with her father, taking care of him since her mother

passed away. One day, Midori’s father remarries and brings home a

Chinese woman named Rinrin (Hitomi Sato). Midori, in spite of trying

hard to accept Rinrin as her new mother, finds it hard to connect with

Rinrin due to their many racial and cultural differences. Midori soon

becomes infuriated with having Rinrin at her home, and sees her as an

embarrassment. Through the chaos created due to the two women

not getting along, Midori’s father writes a picture-story book for the two

of them, called “Flying Goldfish and the Secret of the World.”

The book is about accepting people from different races and cultures

of the world and that the secret to a better world lies in not judging, but

embracing people from other cultures. The movie shows how the

message from the book goes on to inspire generations spanning 2013

to 2030.

It sounds kind of childish, I know. But that’s the whole point. You see,

we all know that the underlying message from the movie that I wrote

above is true. That if countries got along better, there would be so

much less of wars and disputes and chaos in the world. The problem

is most of us realize that in the cusp of adulthood and by then we

would be accustomed to ways of life already established in our

childhood. And our lives will be so full of our personal and individual

issues that we couldn’t really care any less about countries fighting.

This movie aims to make young children (and even adults) aware that

most of the “bad things” happening in the world is the result of cultural

non-acceptance, that the world can be a better place if we just love

each other the way we are, and to make parents realize the

importance of raising their children with that belief. The movie in the

process touches on the subject of cultural diversity, respect and

understanding.

And the movie does a pretty good job at getting the message across. I

say so because given how little I knew about the movie, it strummed a

tune from a nerve in my heart. I had never before watched anything

Japanese/Chinese or even Korean-produced, except for the pop

virus that was Gangnam Style. I always said that actors from that race

speak like they are complaining and they are so much surgically

altered that emotional expressions are nearly non-existent in their

acting. So naturally I was bummed when I walked into the screening.

But I walked out feeling… accomplished. Because the movie, despite

all its differences and barriers from what my mind is used to, was able

to get to me. I looked past the language that I wasn’t able to

understand, the actors that I formerly thought couldn’t act, and the

silliness of the childlike plot, and I was able to understand what the

movie was communicating. The actors made me laugh, got me

worried, and even made me emotional. It made me accept the art from

the pop culture of a country that I previously judged to be “not my

thing”. It made me realize that art, like any other parts of a culture, is

best when it’s diversified and inclusive. It also made me develop a

respect for the preservation of cultures by indulging in them.

In short, this movie made me believe.

“Peace by Piece” art contest

This movie will be screened for the public at the end of October (no

specific date set yet, due to political instability.) The event will be

launched by the Bridge Club Maldives (BCM), a branch of Bridge

Club International Organization (BCIO), which is a group working

under the Asian-Pacific Children’s Convention (APCC) for their

BRIDGE project.

More about the BCIO and APCC can be found at:

BCIO: http://www.bcio.org/about/

APCC: http://www.apcc.gr.jp/e/

The screening will be followed by an art contest by the name of “Peace

by Piece” organized by the BCIO, and BCM, as their local branch, is

launching the competition in Maldives, and it is open for all the

members of the public. The art contest invites any form of art

(paintings, drawings, poems etc.) and it should strongly resemble the

message and values from the movie. BCM will be giving non-cash

prizes to the local winners from the participants from Maldives, while

BCIO will be giving the prizes for winners from the participants from all

over the world.

Details about the date of the screening will be uploaded to their web

page when a date is set. I will also hopefully keep updated on the

event, and you can contact me through DYMag (my twitter handle is

@MrAbo04). Meanwhile, further information about the participation,

judges and competition prizes can be found at the official web page

for the “Peace by Piece” art competition, which is as follows:

“Peace by Piece”: http://www.bcio.org/activity/

We kindly request that as many children and parents and any

interested parties from the public attend the movie screening and take

part in the art competition which will be held and carried out for a very

good and worthy cause and will enable many to be recognized,

locally and internationally, for their artistic skills and abilities.

Directed by: Hiroki Hayashi Munehiro Kuriyama Writer:

Mio Yuki, Hitomi Sato, Dankan, Aimi SatsukawaStarring: 2013Year:

Midori’s Flying Goldfish空飛ぶ金魚と世界のひみつ

11

M U S I CS P EC I A L

On October 22nd, 2013 Taylor Swift’s fourth studio

album Red will be one year old. In the one year that

it has been out in the world, it has sold over 6

million copies worldwide (3.7 million in the US alone), earned positive, if not rave reviews from respectable music critics, spawned 4 top-10 and 2 top-20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. In the chart

week following its October release last year, it

debuted on the Billboard 200 chart at number 1,

having sold over 1.208 million copies in its first week alone, making her the only female artist to have 2 albums sell more than 1 million copies in a single week. It remained at number 1 on the chart

for 6 non-consecutive weeks (her 3rd album to do

so, tying her with the Beatles as the only artists to

achieve that feat) and is still among the top 100.

The lead single We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together was unveiled in August 2012 and

instantly broke records as the fastest selling digital

song of all time (it’s listed in the new issue of

Guinness Book of World Records for that achievement) and also became the song with the

biggest single-week-sales by any female artist with

623000 copies being sold in the first week. It

reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100,

becoming Swift’s first song to do so. The 3rd single I Knew You Were Trouble is among the best-selling digital singles of all time, which sold over 582000 copies in its biggest sales week.

I could go on about this for very long (I haven’t even

begun about the case full of awards it has won) but do you really need more proof to know that it’s legit awesome? Probably not. Or with the recent media craze over how she dates famous men to write

about them and make money, you just don’t care

about how her albums are. So I’m not going to do a

basic what’s-good-what’s-bad review here. The album has its weak points but even those are pretty good. Instead, I’m going to do a track-by-track, somewhat extra detailed evaluation of the album,

with a look at who the songs are about, and

individual song ratings based on my personal

tastes (and I pretty much believe all the songs are great!).

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albumreviewby abo

1. State of Grace (written by: Swift) | Rating: 4.5/5 | Speculated subject: Jake Gyllenhaal

First verse through, and you’d know that this is not the Taylor Swift you heard on her 3 previous albums. The big drum beats and rock guitars

are not the only thing different; she sounds like another woman. This song, cleverly written about the delicate feeling of how love comes to

you when you least expect it and changes you forever, was instantly acclaimed by critics, with the arena-rock production drawing heavy

comparisons to U2’s best works. Upon being released as promotional single, the song debuted and peaked at number 13 on the Hot 100

chart.

2. Red (written by: Swift) | Rating: 3.5/5 | Speculated subject: Jake Gyllenhaal

If listening to State of Grace made you doubtful that Swift has abandoned her country music side, here you have the beautiful sound of the

banjos introducing the song. In this title track, Swift has painted colors on a love-gone-bad affair where loving the person all together is

“Red”. The song was generally favorably received by critics, who praised the lyrics but criticized the repetitions of the word “Red” on the

chorus. Released later as the second country single from the album, it previously charted at number 6 on the Hot 100 and at number 2 on the

Hot Country Songs chart.

3. Treacherous (written by: Swift, Dan Wilson) | Rating: 4/5 | Speculated subject: Jake Gyllenhaal or John Mayer (hard to say, really)

“I’ll do anything you say, if you say it with your hands” from this song’s first verse has been widely regarded as the most explicit line Swift has

ever written (Swift has joked that Wilson came up with that line). This song, written about the heady feeling of being on the edge of danger in a

relationship, starts very gently and builds up until it soars. Co-written and produced by Adele’s Someone Like You producer Dan Wilson, this

song also drew positive acclaim from critics who praised her hushed vocals and compared it to one of U2’s biggest hits With or Without You.

4. I Knew You Were Trouble (written by: Swift, Max Martin, and Shellback) | Rating: 4/5 | Speculated subject(s): John Mayer or Harry Styles

(mostly about Styles)

First taste of pop maestros Max Martin and Shellback on the album and it’s literally the most unique song Swift has ever recorded. With no

hint of country in sight, she has ventured into dubstep and yet she sounds nothing like the rest of the electro pop on the charts. A chorus

written over a few piano keys later became a chaotic pop masterpiece about ignoring the warning signs of a bad relationship and later

regretting everything. Critics commended it for its mainstream appeal, yet noted the dubstep drop as being relatively limited. But it peaked

at number 2 on the Hot 100, selling millions and becoming one of Swift’s biggest hits.

overall rating: 4/5

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5. All Too Well (written by: Swift, Liz Rose) | Rating: 5/5 (maybe I’m overrating it but…) | Speculated subject: Jake Gyllenhaal (Definitely)

If you had felt that so far in the album, Swift has not fully done her hard-jabbing, confessional songwriting that she’s oh-so famous for, this is

going to shut your doubts up. Lyrically this is the best song on the album, probably the best Swift has written so far. This song is not about a

particular feeling or situation; it’s an experience. Memories of a love affair (now buried away) laid bare, written in such a picturesquely poetic

way that listening to it is like being there when it all happened. If Treacherous built up till it soared, this one builds up until it explodes. Critics

lauded this song, most labeling it as the best track on the album and calling it “Classic Swift”. Due to heavy downloads upon the album’s

release, it charted at number 80 on the Hot 100.

6. 22 (written by: Swift, Max Martin, and Shellback) | Rating: 4/5 | Speculated subject(s): Selena (Gomez), Dianna (Agron), Ashley and Claire (her GFs)

Right after the emotional rollercoaster of All Too Well, this Martin and Shellback helmed song abruptly changes the mood of the album. This

bubblegum-party-pop song is probably the most clear cut pop song of Swift’s career. Lyrically it’s about the joys of being 22, and how no

matter what age you are, things will be alright “if you just keep dancing like you’re 22”. It’s deadly catchy and received positive reception from

the critics who praised the new pop sound Martin and Shellback has created for Swift. Released as the album’s fourth single, it peaked at

number 20 of the Hot 100, becoming the album’s 2nd top 20 hit.

7. I Almost Do (written by: Taylor Swift) | Rating: 4/5 | Speculated subject: Jake Gyllenhaal (this album is mostly about him, let’s face it)

With the opening guitar chords, this song nicely breaks the pop sound of 22 and takes us back to country. This highly personal song is about

the post-breakup agony of wondering about your ex and wanting to reach back out, but refraining every time in fear of being hurt again. This

song was also received warmly by critics; most of them complimenting that Swift sounds the most like her when channeling country. Upon the

album’s release, heavy downloads made this one of the many songs on the album to top the iTunes chart and peaked at number 65 on the Hot

100 chart.

8. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together (written by: Swift, Max Martin and Shellback) | Rating: 4/5 | Speculated subject: Jake Gyllenhaal

The song that officially kicked off the Red-era, this gem of a pop song was an instant hit. Though initially it received a mixed reception from the

critics for Swift’s focus on a pop sound rather than country storytelling, most have later gone on to call this one of the smartest pop songs of the

past decade. It received a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year. Commercially, as I noted above, it broke digital song records, and went

on to rule the Hot 100 chart at number 1 for 3 weeks, becoming Swift’s 1st number 1.

9. Stay, Stay, Stay (written by: Taylor Swift) | Rating: 4/5 | Speculated subject: (I really hope) Jake Gyllenhaaal (or maybe just a fantasy lover)

This is Swift’s ultimate answer to the people that says she only writes “breakup songs.” This song hints on breakup, but is actually a very jovial

love song. Having a clear country-pop arrangement doesn’t stop it from being as catchy as the purely pop songs on the album. Here, Swift

sings asking her lover to stay together because of the many ways that they complement each other. Critics reviewed this song positively; with

some comparing it to Swift’s country hit Ours. Commercially, it has so far peaked at number 91 on the Hot 100.

10. The Last Time (feat. Gary Lightbody of Snow Patrol) (written by: Swift, Lightbody and Jacknife Lee) | Rating: 3.5/5 | Speculated subject:

Jake Gyllenhaal (Duh!)

Probably the most mature and darkest sounding song on the album, this alternative rock ballad is about two estranged lovers where the man is

asking for a last chance to be together and the girl reluctantly letting her walls down for one last time. Some critics commented that this song

didn’t go well with the overall sound of the album but others have labeled it the most underrated song on the album, with particular praise going

to the chemistry between Swift and Lightbody’s vocals.

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11. Holy Ground (written by: Taylor Swift) | Rating: 3.5/5 | Speculated subject: Jake Gyllenhaal

Swift recruited a number of different producers for this album after producing her 3rd album entirely with Nathan Chapman. The man behind

many hits by Fun., Bruno Mars, and Pink, Jeff Bhasker produced this stomping, upbeat song that reminisces happy memories of a relationship.

The song is not a personal favorite for me on the album, but critics applauded it, and called the line “Tonight I’m gonna dance for all that we’ve

been through, but I don’t wanna dance if I’m not dancing with you” one of the most notable lyrics from the album.

12. Sad, Beautiful, Tragic (written by: Taylor Swift) | Rating: 3.5/5 | Speculated subject: (Need I say it?) Jake Gyllenhaal

Have you heard the song Last Kiss from Swift’s 3rd album Speak Now? One might say this is Swift’s attempt to recapture that delicate yet

powerful sound, but with more country appeal. This is the album’s ultimate breakup ballad for country fans. With its irresistibly melancholic

ukulele notes, this song delicately sung about the pain and loneliness in the aftermath of a relationship’s ending, received some criticism over

the predictability of its chorus, but was otherwise embraced for its pretty production and lyrics, mostly by fans.

13. The Lucky One (written by: Taylor Swift) | Rating: 4/5 | Speculated subject: The legendary singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell (and herself!)

It comes as no surprise that Swift would place a song titled “The Lucky One” as the 13th track on the album, as 13 is her lucky number. In my

view, this is the most well written song on the album after All Too Well. The clever narrative tells the story of a young girl in Hollywood, achieving

fame and how it slowly begins to undo her, and in the end Swift envying how the star left Hollywood before it destroyed her. This celebrity truth

song is about as far as Swift has gone to complain about fame, and critics generally praised it, noting several lines from it as some of the best

lyrics on the album.

14. Everything Has Changed (feat. Ed Sheeran) (written by: Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran) | Rating: 4/5 | Speculated subject: Conor Kennedy

(finally!)

One of the most buzzed about songs on the album before its release, this sweet love song written with and featuring British ginger (and Swift’s

now best friend) Ed Sheeran is purely about the initial feeling of falling in love. Though it received general acclaim from critics, some were

disappointed about the lack of Sheeran’s solo feature. But a remixed version released later has Sheeran singing the 2nd verse entirely by

himself. The song is the overall 6th single from the album, and has so far peaked at 41 on the Hot 100.

15. Starlight (written by: Taylor Swift) | Rating: 3/5 | Speculated subject: Ethel and Robert F. Kennedy

This is a clear fist-in-the-air kind of pop song, not as instantly catchy as 22 and WANEGBT, but after a few listens, becomes pretty fun. It’s a love

song about a carefree night spent dancing and daydreaming as teenagers. Rumored at first to be about Swift’s then romance with Connor

Kennedy, Swift’s secret messages in the lyric sheets revealed that the song is actually about Conor’s grandparents, Ethel and Robert F.

Kennedy. Critical reception was generally positive, but some noted it as being rather “silly”.

16. Begin Again (written by: Taylor Swift) | Rating: 4.5/5 | Speculated subject: “He” is Jake Gyllenhaal, “You” is Conor Kennedy (Sweet!)

After going through different states of relationships (mostly breakups) throughout the album, Swift ends the album with this feel-good country

treasure about finding love again after a bad relationship. The song received heavy acclaim when it was first released as a promotional single,

with particular compliments going for her storybook songwriting of comparing past and present, and some also admired Swift for placing a

purely country song as the album closure. The song was released as the 2nd single from the album, but had previously charted on the Hot 100

at number 7.

So, yeah. That was it. Most of the songs are about Jake Gyllenhaal. What did you expect, that she would have written about the bucket load of men that people accuse her of whoring around with? Well, Taylor Swift is a bad bitch but she is no fool. She is bad as in that no man who has crossed her path has escaped being a subject of her talents. And that talent has gone on far beyond her and her exes and got critics singing praises and inspired and healed millions of people around the world. What more could an artist want?

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Model: Sam

Styling: Shuma

Photography:Toby

Assistance: Moony &

Ahusam

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1919

2020

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This issue of DYMag, we bring to you two young

footballers that we love, Faraa and Waadu. Both

of them are fresh, interesting players and we had

a great time interviewing them and holding the

photo-shoot through the blazing sun and pouring

rain. We hope they inspire you to live your

dreams!

&WAADU FARAA

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&WAADU FARAA

Interview by: Ahusam and Sifr Photography by: Toby

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FARAH27

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Farah how did it all start?

I used to play since I was pretty small, I remember I was in grade 4. Used to play football with

the neighbourhood kids back then. I joined FAM when I was in grade 7, which was 2005. I

joined FAM as part of an invitation to all the schools from FAM to select young enthusiastic

players for the national team

How is the support from your family?

At first my parents weren’t very excited that I wanted to play football, maybe that is because I

am a girl, even though they weren’t happy I wanted to go because of the love I had for football

and when I started to go regularly, they gradually accepted the fact and I am happy to say it’s

all okay.

What is the biggest achievement you’ve had in the eld of football?

When we first played an international game in Kuwait, and as a matter of fact it was the first

international win by the women’s national team of the Maldives, and I was pretty happy about

that.

What kind of challenges do you face being a female athlete in this sport here?

The negativity of the public, you can see that in the home game we played against Qatari

women’s national team, the stadium was near empty only a handful of people, that was the

family members of our team. Also the FAM doesn’t promote the women’s national team

compared to the men’s team and I feel that that’s also a reason why there is the negativity.

What is a day that you simply cannot forget in football?

The match we played against the Qatari women’s national team here in our home soil, as that

was a game that we won and it is the first win of the women’s national team on home soil and

that was an amazing feeling.

Being a footballer is there a particular diet that you follow?

No, I am the kind of person to eat anything and everything at all, although I know healthy

foods is important for being fit and energetic footballer, I try my best to eat good food as much

as I can nowadays since I'm trying to improve my diet (laughs)

What is the most important thing of being a footballer is?

Attitude, you cannot play the game if you have a bad temper, and it is impossible to play if you

have a high temper, it’s a must to have a positive thinking in the game, Its not the end even if

we do lose, it just means we have to keep moving forward.

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Who would you say has helped you get this far?

Team mates, they help a lot, there are times where I wanted to quit so bad, but

they kept supporting me and encouraged me to keep coming to practice,

without them I wouldn’t have got this far and I wouldn’t have hung on this long.

Who would be your inspiration?

Fadwa, She’s a great footballer.

What are your visions for the future?

To bring a continental trophy to our home soil, hopefully that will happen soon.

Football Legend or High paid executive?

I would play football and become a legend, I would try and become one here in

Maldives, because I have an interest and I wanted to do since I was a kid. I

wouldn’t go for a job which clashes with football.

Do you think Maldivian football industry is at a good place?

its improving, we’ve seen a vast improvement from before. If there was a

women’s league we could see something better in the future.

Whats your dream team?

USA national team

If you could change something about yourself what would you change?

eating habits, a better diet, honestly I don’t eat regularly, and that affects my

game both mentally and physically, I think it’s mostly because I can't eat

anything and everything, but I'm trying really hard to fix it.

Being an athlete what is the worst injury you have come across?

I twisted my ankle in the match against Qatar national team here in male’ and I

still haven’t recovered from that injury.

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Favourite Team - National Team USA

Favourtie Club – Manchester United Football Club

One food you cannot live without – Masbathaa rihaakuraa

Favourite player – Womens: Tobin Heath, Mens: Cristiano Ronaldo

Do you secretly like to dance? – Yes *chuckles*

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WAADU31

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How did it all start?

Honestly to say, when I was little I used to kick a ball around, and I used to watch the national

team play a lot, and I wanted to be one of those players, on the pitch playing and making my

nation proud.

What is your earliest football memory?

I remember playing in an interclass football tournament when I was in grade three, we started

off pretty good, went to the final played pretty well and it had to go to a penalty shootout and I

remember kicking the ball way out there.

How is your support from your family?

Everyone from my family supports me very well, especially mom, she used to go to a lot of

games when I was little, although she is busy these days, she does try and go to as many

games as she can.

What is the biggest achievement in this eld you’ve achieved?

Scoring an international goal, when we played in an AFC under 13 festivals against

Cambodia. We lost the game in the end but I was pretty happy that I scored a goal.

Do you have any challenges in this eld?

Being consistent, going to practices regularly, you need to have a commitment when playing

professionally, it will show on the field if you don’t have these qualities, and it will be hard

when you are a newcomer to this profession.

What is a day you can’t simply forget in football?

Taking the Youth Championship trophy for club Valencia was a huge achievement, and also

being selected in the under 23 national team is a highlight of my career so far.

Being a professional footballer do you have a particular diet that you follow?

Here? There is not a particular diet that I follow, how ever its important to make sure you’ve

had a good days breakfast and had all the nutrients in your body to be match fit that day. I try

to have all the meals that day and I would consider pasta above anything else for lunch on a

match day.

What is the most important thing being a professional footballer is?

Discipline, not only on the pitch, you won’t survive this field if you don’t maintain your discipline

both on and off the field.

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Favourite Team - Arsenal & Real Madrid

Favorite player- Ronaldo

One food you cannot live without - Pasta!

What kind of music do you listen to - I listen to all kinds of music ,

mostly rock. Three Days Grace.

What is your most embarrassing moment? - Missing the penalty in

grade 3, because I was small I didn’t know how to handle the

pressure. And obviously my friends teased me mercilessly when I

got to class saying I missed a penalty. That would be the most

embarrassing moment for me.

Do you secretly like to dance? - No.

Not at all. Never.

Are you into pets? -No. I’m scared

of pets *chuckles*

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Who would you say helped you get this far?

Mom, outside of that all my coaches but definitely mom

What are your visions of football?

To play for the national team and play so well that my nation is proud of me.

Who do you take as an inspiration?

Ali Ahsfaq (Dhagandey) that’s because of public support he has and the love that Maldivians

give him, even more respect and love than the politicians in the Maldives.

What is your message for the young generation?

Guys this field has a future, not only as a footballer, as a coach or an official, all you need is a

commitment, you can build your life around football.

If you had a choice to become a legend in football or have a high position job somewhere,

what would you choose?

I would choose to be a legend, because to have the love and support is much more influential

than being in a high position job.

Do you think Maldivian football is in a good place?

Yes, but talking about the talent and players we have here we can go much much further.

If you could change anything about yourself what would you change?

Honestly? I’m already 20 and I’m pretty comfortable about myself, although I would like to

become a little bit physically fitter.

Being an athlete what’s the biggest injury you’ve had?

Insha Allah thankfully I haven’t had a horrific injury as yet.

Why football?

Because I love it, it’s because me and football are inseparable.

All-Star Eleven:

GK- Cassias

CB- Sergio Ramos, Thiago Silva

RB- Lahm , LB Marcelo

DMF - Sergio Busquets

AMF - Iniesta , Ozil

RWF- Ronaldo

LWF - Messi

CF - Ali Ashfaq

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WONDER WHOMAN:

BAGS BYMARY

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WONDER WHOMAN:

BAGS BYMARY

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ary of Bags By Mary

Malways loved creating

small things such as

handmade cards, decorating her room

and making baby clothes ever since

she was a child. She likes creating

things from her own hands which gives

her a sense of accomplishment. She

loves sewing, photography, art and

music. Her motivation comes from her

family and friends. She is lucky to be

surrounded by inspiring friends and the

amazing creativity of her family. She

feels that it’s her turn to give back and

share her own ideas but she often

feels there’s too little time to do it all.

Mary began sewing bags during

August 2012 and since then she has

created a Facebook page and started

selling bags under the name of Bags

by Mary. Her page has gained more

than 3500 likes in under a year. By

day, she’s a mother of six year old

Zeek, her biggest encouragement. She

works both as a mother and an

entrepreneur trying to let out her

creative side through her business.

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Mary began sewing bags during August 2012 and

since then she has created a Facebook page and

started selling bags under the name of Bags by

Mary. Her page has gained more than 3500 likes

in under a year. By day, she’s a mother of six

year old Zeek, her biggest encouragement. She

works both as a mother and an entrepreneur

trying to let out her creative side through her

business.

Her Facebook page is her only mean to reach

customers as she does not have a physical shop

but it has never stopped her. During April this

year, she participated on Maldives Consumer Fair

held at Dharubaaruge which was her first

exposure to the mass markets and through that

event she met a lot of encouraging people who

supported her work and believed in her to go

further in the business.

Bags by Mary is a one of a kind, because it

provides customers with customized bags. Mary

lets her customers pick the fabric, the design and

so in accordance with the taste of the customer,

she tried to create a one of a kind bag that is

perfectly tailored just for the customer’s needs.

She also loves to create from recyclable

materials, old jeans and such to give them a new

life as a pretty bag! She also created her own

patterns to offer as materials for new bags.

Mary mentions that her favourite bags so far

include a bad made from a pair of men’s shorts

(pictured below) which was given by an artist

volunteering to remake into a bag. She’s also very

fond of the bags she created in her beach

inspired collection which are currently available in

Hulhumale Souvenir Shop. She would like to

thank them for the opportunity they have given

her showcase her work. It was a new experience

for her and she really enjoyed making them and

thinks they are some of her best work yet.

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Her biggest supporters and her mother, sister

and brother who tries to help her in any way they

can. She had to use a regular old sewing

machine and it was a lot of work to create bags

but her brother gifted her a brand new

professional sewing machine which had made

her life easier. She has a mini working station at

her house where she works most of the day. Her

sister has been one of the constant sources of

inspiration in her life.

In future, she would like to open a shop to sell not

only bags but her other creations as well

including pillow covers, bed sheets, cushions and

more. She would also like to keep on creating

and designing more bags and experimenting to

create more unique styles. She is even thinking

of trying materials such as leather.

Mary thanks all her fans for the inspiration and

support in helping reach her goal. She mentions

that one of the best feelings is when a customer

tells her than they understand her vision and

loves her work.

facebook.com/bags.by.mary.maldives

FINDBAGS BY MARYON FACEBOOK

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Don’t we all remember those happy

moments when we were in elementary

school, when there was this imaginary race

to see who finishes the work first and all

that show-offs and pride when we get those

small but shiny stickers on our books? I for

one do and couldn’t help but missing the

feeling in one noisy calculus class.

As we become more mature, learn big and

complicated words and start solving

equations about how many years it will take

for a car to be worthless to sell, we start to

think differently. Comprehend the world in a

different way. Look at the people around us

in a different way. But we never forgot

about our childhood, things we did and stuff

we thought and the dreams we had. So

here is some from my life; some stupid and

cool things I did while I was a kid.

1. I was Flash, Gandalf and Martian

Manhunter, but never Batman.

I know, I know, batman is the coolest

among all. But as a kid, I never found that

Bruce Wayne or his batcave any

fascinating than the fastest person on

earth. Maybe I liked his batmobile and his

oversized computer, but I am pretty positive

I did not like him. As for Flash, his sense of

humor is just awesome, Gandalf being

Gandalf (I have a thing for wizards, guilty!)

and the Martian Manhunter being able to fly

and the telepathic abilities with the part

where he walks through walls are just….

Well…. Awesome!

2. I had more money than Bill Gates.

Oh yes, about that. When I was a kid, I

used to make wallets out of A3 papers and

cut some A4 papers like bank notes and

color them like real ones and keep them in

my pocket. If life was easy and the paper

money I created had any value at all, I bet

my face will be in the Forbes magazine

every month. But then again, life is not that

easy and my colored banknotes were just

piece of papers on which I could’ve drawn

a house and a sun in the corner. (With a

dragon breathing fire beside it). It did have

a value for me though, it was embedded in

my mind for all these years and it brings

back memories where I use them to “buy”

bananas from my mom.

3. My very own kingdom of Lurkistone

The name isn’t as cool as Mordor or

Terabithia, but it sure was an awesome

NAME

name for a 10 year old to come up with. I

would wait desperately for every annual

holiday to come so that I could go and join

my grandparents in the island, who owns a

property 4 times bigger than the house we

live in the capital. And this property I am

talking about has a backyard that looks

more like a forest with all types of trees

grown in a careless manner. And that was

my kingdom. I would roam around here and

there in that backyard like Jesse and Leslie

(in bridge to Terabithia). It was my kingdom

of Lurkistone, where the wizards and the

witches are always in battle, where the city

never dies and the dragons always flies. It

is a magical city where you can bomb a

whole district and magically, everything

comes together and fixes itself. It just takes

a matter of minutes. Or so I imagined.

4. Mushrooms are the home for ghosts

It was my mom who told me that ghosts

live under mushrooms and till I was almost

16, I kept on believing that. It was one day

in biology class that our teacher told us that

mushrooms feed on decaying organic

material and I happen to tell a friend of

mine sitting next to me that, they feed on

decaying matter because the ghost living

under it (or in it) likes dead stuff. He

happened to laugh his guts out and teased

me about it the whole day. I went home

and asked my mother about it and she

laughed, telling me that it was a white lie

she told me to stop making me from going

to the backyard of my grandparents’ house.

(Which actually never worked, because I

spend most of my vacation there). Parents

should seriously consider about not lying to

their kids.

That was some of the highlights of the weird me I

used to be when I was a kid. I bet you were one

too, so grab a pencil or a pen and jot them down

and share it with your friends. See what is common

in you and your friends when they were cute and

innocent. And cool.

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name for a 10 year old to come up with. I

would wait desperately for every annual

holiday to come so that I could go and join

my grandparents in the island, who owns a

property 4 times bigger than the house we

live in the capital. And this property I am

talking about has a backyard that looks

more like a forest with all types of trees

grown in a careless manner. And that was

my kingdom. I would roam around here and

there in that backyard like Jesse and Leslie

(in bridge to Terabithia). It was my kingdom

of Lurkistone, where the wizards and the

witches are always in battle, where the city

never dies and the dragons always flies. It

is a magical city where you can bomb a

whole district and magically, everything

comes together and fixes itself. It just takes

a matter of minutes. Or so I imagined.

4. Mushrooms are the home for ghosts

It was my mom who told me that ghosts

live under mushrooms and till I was almost

16, I kept on believing that. It was one day

in biology class that our teacher told us that

mushrooms feed on decaying organic

material and I happen to tell a friend of

mine sitting next to me that, they feed on

decaying matter because the ghost living

under it (or in it) likes dead stuff. He

happened to laugh his guts out and teased

me about it the whole day. I went home

and asked my mother about it and she

laughed, telling me that it was a white lie

she told me to stop making me from going

to the backyard of my grandparents’ house.

(Which actually never worked, because I

spend most of my vacation there). Parents

should seriously consider about not lying to

their kids.

That was some of the highlights of the

weird me I used to be when I was a kid. I

bet you were one too, so grab a pencil or a

pen and jot them down and share it with

your friends. See what is common in you

and your friends when they were cute and

innocent. And cool.

Share with us something crazy fun or

amazing that you did as a child

@Dhiyouth

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p h o t o b y : h t t p : / / w w w . i c k r . c o m / p h o t o s / a b l l o /

ThePatriotismin me...

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It is as if I could almost feel it. See it. Love it. Yes, it is that strong within me. Then why do I feel as if it is slipping by me. As if I

am losing that ray of sunshine I used to see so clearly even in the cloudiest skies. A smile that was once so hopeful is now

invisible. A buoyant dream that is now vague in my memories. Do I not love this country anymore? Do I want to live my life in

another? Have I subconsciously already given up my ambitious goal to serve my homeland?

Yes, this is what keeps me up at nights, the fear of losing the patriotism in me…

Well, two years ago I set out on a dream to be a leader that this country needs for the future. I wanted to make a difference

just like the many well-known leaders of the world who left behind a legacy. I wanted to believe in the change that I wished to

see in the world, I wanted to be that change.

What I did not believe in, was a separated and hateful nation. Where people were stereotyped, discriminated and identified

by the color of the dress they wore. I did not wish to see hypocrites, racists, or people being judged for their views and

opinions.

I dream of a tolerant society where peace exists. Where people respect each other’s differences in opinion, a country where

we all live peacefully. A nation with leaders who take accountability of what they say or do. To live in a society in which young

people are given high priority to pave way for a better future. A Maldives with more citizens making their future plans to live

among their families and not migrate to other parts of the world just to get away from the poor services, facilities and dispute

happening around them every day.

When I think about these dreams today, all I can think about is a dying nation. Where hope for unity is more or less buried in

the past. So many people today, are lost in the darkness of the divided system. Why don’t people try to understand the true

meaning of a democratic country? Can’t we all hope to build a place where everyone’s opinion is respected and tolerated?

Where everyone’s voice matters?

It was once said, the mind is the limit. As long as the mind can envision the fact that you can do something, you can do it - as

long as you really believe in it. So the optimism has not died yet. My mind is not willing to give in yet. The moment you lose is

the moment you stop trying.

So, for all those people out there thinking and sharing the same concerns, let’s envision a brighter future for us. Let us young

people not give up. Let us learn from today’s lessons and not repeat them in the future. Let us look forward to a united realm.

With one voice and one goal let’s say I will not let the patriotism in me, fade away…

by: Aishath Loona Moosa (@LuluLoona)An inspired and patriotic young citizen of Maldives ever since 2011

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&ELECTORAL CORRUPTION VIOLENCE: A MALDIVIANPERSPECTIVE

“Acts or threats of coercion, intimidation, or physical harm perpetrated to affect an electoral process or that arise in the context of electoral competition”

– UNDP on Electoral Violence

Article by Zainal, Photo by Imy

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November 23rd, 2009. 57 people are massacred in Maguindanao, Philippines. The victims’ were on their way to file certificate of candidacy for Esmael Mangudadatu, a local politician. Mangudadatu did go on to win the election eventually, but it is important to note the extreme lengths people are willing to go to, to achieve their political requisite, especially in electoral democracies today.

Although the Maldives is yet to see extreme heights of such malice directly attributable to politics and elections, the rising tensions which we are seeing today suggests that we may be headed on a similar path.

The features of electoral violence have made it distinct from other type of political violence. It might occur in the pre-election period, on the Election Day and during the post-election period of the electoral process. And, involves different actors like government forces, political parties and third parties with financial and/or other incentives.

Why electoral violence culminates, in most cases ultimately comes down to two main causes. They are corruption and the negligence of the rule of law. Similarly in the Maldives, whatever types of election related violence which we have experienced so far, the bulk of it is attributable to corruption.

From a perspective specific to Maldivian politics, corruption occurs in two main ways; clientelism and patronage.

In ‘clientelism’, relations are personal ‘patron-client’ relations, and the client is expected to give political support for a particular politician in order to secure personal benefits such as land, office and status. In the Maldives, clientelism occurs on almost all levels, from the simplest level of a financial incentive for a vote to facilitating state projects to ‘client’ businesses in return for financial and political support for the ‘patron’.

Patronage, though similar to clientelism, represents a higher level of politics and the relations are more than personal. Electorates are required to provide political backing for a specific politician or party in return for public utilities such as sewerage systems, harbors and roads. One ‘famous’ example of this in the Maldives is the ever-strong promise of a bridge which connects Male’ and Hulhumale’.

Further, such politics also resort to ‘ethno-religious’ appeal for securing political support. Although the ‘ethno’ component is not relevant to the Maldives, we have largely seen the ‘religious’ component being utilized for political gain. Terms such as ‘Laadheenee’ (Secularism) and ‘Mullar’ (Religious

Fundamentalist) are heavily used as propaganda in the anti-campaigning process.

Such acts breeds hatred among a society and creates distrust among the people towards a par t icu lar par ty, ru l ing government and subsequently, the electoral process itself. The overall atmosphere created by this leads to violence in all forms such as vandalism, destruction of public and private property, and at a larger scale, civil disobedience and strikes. We are already seeing these events right after the first round of the presidential elections in the Maldives.

The nature of electoral management bodies such as the elections commission, police force and the judiciary can also be instrumental in facilitating the conditions for electoral violence. These bodies may be perceived as lacking the required impartiality, independence, and competence, resulting in high level mistrust and creating divisions among the electorate, ultimately leading to heightened risk of electoral violence.

The current situation in the Maldives highlights the aforementioned mistrust in electoral management bodies. September 7th, 2013 saw the first round of the presidential elections and as soon as the results were announced, one of the losing parties challenged the integrity of the election at the Supreme Court. It is important to note that all international and local observers involved found the election to be free and fair and further praised the Elections Commission for a seamless process. Ultimately however, the Supreme Court accepted the case, continued proceedings without a verdict and ordered a halt of the second round of elections beyond constitutional deadlines.

The losing party accuses the Elections Commission for committing systemic fraud and of being biased. The opposition party which won 45% of the votes in the first round accuses the judiciary of being corrupt, partiality, and also points out that the bench lacks integrity for failure to take actions on clear indiscretions by some of the bench members.

The Maldives, at this point is facing a constitutional impasse’. Many would agree that the root of this problem links to corruption. The people’s faith in the system is at an all-time low. Given the current events, it is no surprise that the scope for violence among the electorates are quite high. Again, it may not get as intense as the Philippines in 2009, but we as a nation have to brace ourselves for what may lie ahead. We are way beyond the point for prevention measures against corruption for the current electoral cycle. We are now forced to damage control and mitigate the violence as best we can.

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THE FAME MONSTERI n w h i c h w e t u r n k i d s i n t o m o n s t e r s f o r u s t o h u n t f o r f u nWhen I say Miley Cyrus, what’s the first thing that comes to

mind? How about Justin Bieber? Or Lindsay Lohan or

Amanda Bynes?

These are all young people who became famous for

various reasons, were equally revered and reviled by

society [that is to say, people like you and I] and have had

various highly publicized mishaps.

Miley started out as Hannah Montana in a saccharine

Disney series, making her one of the so-called ‘Disney

Kids’ like Vanessa Hudgens and Demi Lovato, etc. She

was loved by many but also equally disliked by many,

which [we are told] is the price of fame. But all eyes

focused on her after her VMA performance where she dry

humped a guy old enough to be her dad on a public stage.

And then released a video song where she was perched

stark naked on a wrecking ball. ‘What the heck is wrong

with her?!’ the world cried out. ‘How dare she do that!’

And then we have Justin Bieber. To say he is a polarizing

artist is an understatement akin to saying that 9/11

‘bothered a few Americans’ or that the Red Wedding ‘made

a few Game of Thrones fans a bit sad’. He has been

accused of single handedly destroying pop music, of being

the devil, of being Hitler or equal to Hitler, of being the pop

music equivalent of Twilight, etc until eventually, the name

became associated with the ultimate shaming of a person;

‘you like Justin Bieber, don’t you?!’ = worst insult ever. And

this was BEFORE he made some controversial comments

about rape, was caught relieving himself into a bucket in a

restroom, reportedly spat on some of his fans from his hotel

balcony and is known for being late for his own concerts,

thereby making his fans wait standing for ages.

Lindsay Lohan. Oh god. What can we say about this child

actor who gained fame for a double role in the 90’s movie,

the Parent Trap? Let’s see… Movie, movie, bad movie,

alcoholism, worse movie, drugs, rehab, drugs again, jail,

rehab, indie movie that tanked, alcoholism part 2, drugs,

drugs, rehab, jail, drugs, about to make a movie but director

gets rid of her for being ‘unmarketable’, drugs, rehab, jail,

alcoholism part 3, drugs, jail… and it goes on. When she

gets publicly snubbed on the TV series, Glee, you know

she’s become the laughing stock of the town. Isn’t it just

hilarious when a young person loses their way and since

there’s no one to help her or care about her, turns to drink

and drugs to escape her woes? That’s just good comedy

right there.

Honorable mentions go to Amanda Bynes for alcoholism,

drugs, shoplifting and reported mental instability. In fact,

her parents manage her affairs now because she has been

legally deemed unfit to do so. And Harry Styles from One

Direction; a maddeningly popular boy band from the UK.

He can’t even date a woman without her getting death

threats. And that’s from the people who actually LIKE him

and/or his music. He has been accused of ruining a couple

of marriages and he can’t even seem to get a tattoo without

causing a damn riot. Also note how Taylor Swift can’t date

people without being labeled a harlot or some kind of

break-up junkie. Yes, she handles it rather poorly

sometimes by [allegedly] writing songs about it but how is

that so different from us? Are WE at our best when our

ventures into love backfire on us?

The public is quick to crucify these young people for their

actions. And while it is true that most of them [all of them?]

are old enough to take responsibility for their actions, one

must ask if they are the only ones to blame.

These young people have been in the public eye from a

very early age and basically grew up there. They were

constantly scrutinized for what they say, what they do, what

they eat, what they wear, where they go, who they

associate with, what they buy, what they don’t do and so on

and so forth. They were under a harsh judgmental

microscope that engineered a situation where they were

damned if they do and damned if they don’t. It’s bound to

drive anyone nuts… So can you really blame them only if

they do something crazy?

Our society has long since had a practice of building up

celebrities by adoring them [or hating on them] and when/if

they ever screw up, privately or publicly, we tear them

down. We abuse them, mock them, judge them, insult them

and push them into corners. Before the years of the

internet, this was just water cooler gossip. But with the

advent of social media, the hate just amplified and was

given an infinite medium to manifest upon.

Even back in the days of Britney Spears [former pop icon

turned train-wreck with reported mental issues and a failed

marriage] and Backstreet Boys [apparently, gay, gay, gay,

homosexuals, gay, totally gay, their heterosexual

relationships are fake, gay, gay] and Michael Jackson

[alleged child molester apparently with Peter Pan

syndrome], the public loved getting their sharp claws into

someone famous to tear them down.

Maybe it’s got to do with the fact that hating on others gives

us less chance to reflect upon our own shortcomings.

Maybe we just hate people who we think are somehow

‘better’ [that is to say, more accomplished] than us in

various ways. Or maybe we just think it’s funny when these

‘larger-than-life’ celebrities screw up like the rest of us.

Because they’re not real people, right? They don’t have

real families, right? They don’t have real issues, right? They

don’t have real feelings, right? Right? RIGHT?!

Right. Because if they WERE real people and had real

families and had real issues and had real feelings, we’d be

downright cruel for abusing another human being that way,

especially abusing the anonymity the internet gifts us with…

Lady Gaga was right to call her second album, the Fame

Monster. She was alluding to the dark side of fame that the

famous have to deal with. But I’m going to take the term

and apply it to people like Miley and Justin and Lindsay and

Amanda and Harry; they are the fame monsters.

We created them. We gave them fame, we simultaneously

loved and hated them, we scrutinized everything they said

and did, we took away their freedom of choice, we pushed

them into corner and when they attempted to break out and

assert their individuality [in various, admittedly self-

destructive ways], we started hunting them. Because

hunting monsters is always fun in the movies.

In her song, Wrecking Ball, Miley cries and sings, “All you

ever did was wreck me.” Some say it is about her ex-fiance,

Liam Hemmsworth, aka Thor’s brother.

But I disagree. I think it’s about you. Yes, you. The reader,

sitting at your computer. You. And also me, sitting at mine.

It is about us. All of us. From the days of Hannah Montana

to her ‘Can’t Be Tamed’ days to her VMA performance, all

we ever did was wreck her.

And now, she is now a wreck.

Good job.

48

THE FAME MONSTERI n w h i c h w e t u r n k i d s i n t o m o n s t e r s f o r u s t o h u n t f o r f u n

by Moony

When I say Miley Cyrus, what’s the first thing that comes to

mind? How about Justin Bieber? Or Lindsay Lohan or

Amanda Bynes?

These are all young people who became famous for

various reasons, were equally revered and reviled by

society [that is to say, people like you and I] and have had

various highly publicized mishaps.

Miley started out as Hannah Montana in a saccharine

Disney series, making her one of the so-called ‘Disney

Kids’ like Vanessa Hudgens and Demi Lovato, etc. She

was loved by many but also equally disliked by many,

which [we are told] is the price of fame. But all eyes

focused on her after her VMA performance where she dry

humped a guy old enough to be her dad on a public stage.

And then released a video song where she was perched

stark naked on a wrecking ball. ‘What the heck is wrong

with her?!’ the world cried out. ‘How dare she do that!’

And then we have Justin Bieber. To say he is a polarizing

artist is an understatement akin to saying that 9/11

‘bothered a few Americans’ or that the Red Wedding ‘made

a few Game of Thrones fans a bit sad’. He has been

accused of single handedly destroying pop music, of being

the devil, of being Hitler or equal to Hitler, of being the pop

music equivalent of Twilight, etc until eventually, the name

became associated with the ultimate shaming of a person;

‘you like Justin Bieber, don’t you?!’ = worst insult ever. And

this was BEFORE he made some controversial comments

about rape, was caught relieving himself into a bucket in a

restroom, reportedly spat on some of his fans from his hotel

balcony and is known for being late for his own concerts,

thereby making his fans wait standing for ages.

Lindsay Lohan. Oh god. What can we say about this child

actor who gained fame for a double role in the 90’s movie,

the Parent Trap? Let’s see… Movie, movie, bad movie,

alcoholism, worse movie, drugs, rehab, drugs again, jail,

rehab, indie movie that tanked, alcoholism part 2, drugs,

drugs, rehab, jail, drugs, about to make a movie but director

gets rid of her for being ‘unmarketable’, drugs, rehab, jail,

alcoholism part 3, drugs, jail… and it goes on. When she

gets publicly snubbed on the TV series, Glee, you know

she’s become the laughing stock of the town. Isn’t it just

hilarious when a young person loses their way and since

there’s no one to help her or care about her, turns to drink

and drugs to escape her woes? That’s just good comedy

right there.

Honorable mentions go to Amanda Bynes for alcoholism,

drugs, shoplifting and reported mental instability. In fact,

her parents manage her affairs now because she has been

legally deemed unfit to do so. And Harry Styles from One

Direction; a maddeningly popular boy band from the UK.

He can’t even date a woman without her getting death

threats. And that’s from the people who actually LIKE him

and/or his music. He has been accused of ruining a couple

of marriages and he can’t even seem to get a tattoo without

causing a damn riot. Also note how Taylor Swift can’t date

people without being labeled a harlot or some kind of

break-up junkie. Yes, she handles it rather poorly

sometimes by [allegedly] writing songs about it but how is

that so different from us? Are WE at our best when our

ventures into love backfire on us?

The public is quick to crucify these young people for their

actions. And while it is true that most of them [all of them?]

are old enough to take responsibility for their actions, one

must ask if they are the only ones to blame.

These young people have been in the public eye from a

very early age and basically grew up there. They were

constantly scrutinized for what they say, what they do, what

they eat, what they wear, where they go, who they

associate with, what they buy, what they don’t do and so on

and so forth. They were under a harsh judgmental

microscope that engineered a situation where they were

damned if they do and damned if they don’t. It’s bound to

drive anyone nuts… So can you really blame them only if

they do something crazy?

Our society has long since had a practice of building up

celebrities by adoring them [or hating on them] and when/if

they ever screw up, privately or publicly, we tear them

down. We abuse them, mock them, judge them, insult them

and push them into corners. Before the years of the

internet, this was just water cooler gossip. But with the

advent of social media, the hate just amplified and was

given an infinite medium to manifest upon.

Even back in the days of Britney Spears [former pop icon

turned train-wreck with reported mental issues and a failed

marriage] and Backstreet Boys [apparently, gay, gay, gay,

homosexuals, gay, totally gay, their heterosexual

relationships are fake, gay, gay] and Michael Jackson

[alleged child molester apparently with Peter Pan

syndrome], the public loved getting their sharp claws into

someone famous to tear them down.

Maybe it’s got to do with the fact that hating on others gives

us less chance to reflect upon our own shortcomings.

Maybe we just hate people who we think are somehow

‘better’ [that is to say, more accomplished] than us in

various ways. Or maybe we just think it’s funny when these

‘larger-than-life’ celebrities screw up like the rest of us.

Because they’re not real people, right? They don’t have

real families, right? They don’t have real issues, right? They

don’t have real feelings, right? Right? RIGHT?!

Right. Because if they WERE real people and had real

families and had real issues and had real feelings, we’d be

downright cruel for abusing another human being that way,

especially abusing the anonymity the internet gifts us with…

Lady Gaga was right to call her second album, the Fame

Monster. She was alluding to the dark side of fame that the

famous have to deal with. But I’m going to take the term

and apply it to people like Miley and Justin and Lindsay and

Amanda and Harry; they are the fame monsters.

We created them. We gave them fame, we simultaneously

loved and hated them, we scrutinized everything they said

and did, we took away their freedom of choice, we pushed

them into corner and when they attempted to break out and

assert their individuality [in various, admittedly self-

destructive ways], we started hunting them. Because

hunting monsters is always fun in the movies.

In her song, Wrecking Ball, Miley cries and sings, “All you

ever did was wreck me.” Some say it is about her ex-fiance,

Liam Hemmsworth, aka Thor’s brother.

But I disagree. I think it’s about you. Yes, you. The reader,

sitting at your computer. You. And also me, sitting at mine.

It is about us. All of us. From the days of Hannah Montana

to her ‘Can’t Be Tamed’ days to her VMA performance, all

we ever did was wreck her.

And now, she is now a wreck.

Good job.

49

strokesIn celebration of World’s Stroke Day on 29th October

by Thihnan

There has been an alarming increase in the incidents of stroke amongst Maldivians.

The most common reason why this leads to death is the failure to understand the

symptoms. Once a stroke occurs, it is difficult to save the person so to minimize the

risk of death, the best thing to do is to be prepared for a stroke.

The first thing you need to understand about a stroke is that it is completely different

from a heart attack. Strokes occur in the brain. A person can suffer from a stroke if

the blood flow to the brain is stopped. Blood vessels can be blocked by cholesterol or

a blood clot or can even burst open due to loss in strength of its walls leading to

internal bleeding. The walls of blood vessels become weaker with age which is usually

why old people have a higher risk of strokes.

If a patient has a stroke, they are given immediate medical attention. An IV fluid is

injected which will dissolve any obstructions preventing the flow of blood to the brain.

This is most effective only within 3 hours from the occurrence of a stroke. Otherwise,

the person is most likely to be too damaged to heal leading to death. This is why you

need to give your family members, your friends or any other immediate medical

attention if they have a stroke.

The best way to immediately treat a stroke is to know when you are going to

get one. Just look out for these important symptoms.

If you have at least 2 of these symptoms, it is recommended that you get an

immediate check up.

50

Symptoms:Numbness or weakness. If you suddenly feel a part of your body

being weak especially one side of your body, try to smile or lift both

arms and legs. If you have difficulty doing so or if one arm droops, this

might be a sign of an incoming stroke.

Speech difficulty. If you suddenly can not understand parts of simple

sentences or cannot repeat short ones, this could mean that blood

supply to the brain controlling language is limited.

Blurry vision. Sometimes right before a stroke, you might start to see a

less clearly.

Difficulty in movement. If you find it difficult to move around or co-

ordinate your muscles, this could mean that a stroke is occurring to a

part of the brain that controls balance and muscle coordination.

Severe headaches. It is quite easy to misread this symptom. Severe

headaches can also mean migraine, lack of water, stress or lack of

sleep.

5151

52

Past Events!

DYM Eid Scavenger HuntWhen: 16th OctoberWhere: Helipad Area

Five teams of six people joined us at

helipad area at 4:00 and the scavenger

hunt began. Teams Batman, Oreo, The

Bunch, Bubbles and Nameless

competed against each other in

competing 16 tasks including taking

selfies with four presidential candidates,

reenacting a scene of Titanic on a

parked vehicle and asking people what

the fox says.

After two hours of fun, the teams came

back and when the scores were tallied,

Batman won with 215 points and got a

snacks hamper as a gift! Some of the snacks in the snack hamper“Batman”

won. Picture courtesy of “Batman”, of course.

52

53

For those of you struggling with yellow teeth, let me tell you

something. Your teeth are actually yellow! Teeth have four

different layers. Teeth contain a layer of dentin which

carries the nerves in your teeth. Dentin is yellow; the ugly

yellow which makes you cringe. So if this is the case, why

do some people have ‘pearly whites’? Because a tooth needs protection like any other organ, it

has a protective shell around it known as the enamel. The

enamel is white which is why teeth are sparkly white.

Medically it means that your teeth are strong and healthy. Due to certain foods, drinks and smoking etc, a film forms

on your teeth that corrodes the enamel. As the enamel gets

thinner, the yellow dentin is revealed. Before you know it,

your teeth start to get yellower and yellower. Some people try to keep the teeth white only because it

looks good. Here’s a motivator; since the enamel is the

protective shell, with thinner enamel our teeth are more

sensitive. This is why you might feel pain when taking in

cold food or drinks. The nerves are directly exposed

meaning everything becomes painful. It becomes difficult

to chew on hard food as well. You are most likely to end up

having to ground everything you eat. So if you don’t want to

carry a blender on your next date to the restaurant, think

ahead! We already know of the basic routine. Brush, floss, and see

a dentist. Brushing and flossing plays an important role in

keeping your teeth healthy as it directly removes the

agents that might cause harm. Dentists can give you a

thorough check- up and clean your teeth up which adds to

the proper maintenance your teeth deserves. Sadly, a visit

to a dentist is often costly which could be why most of us

avoid it. Moreover, brushing and flossing is never enough

to completely remove the film which is why you might still

see a light yellow taint. So now what? Many foods such as apples, pears and carrots often

promote the production of saliva in your mouth. Saliva

works as the same principle as toothpaste. Saliva is

alkaline which neutralize the film on your teeth as it is

acidic. Bottom line; the more the saliva, the whiter your

teeth.

It is also important that you prevent foods like coffee, tea

and oranges from coming into contact with your teeth

because they form a direct stain. However it doesn’t mean

you should completely avoid it. Try using a straw to drink

these as it can minimize the contact. Another way of

minimizing the after effect is to wash your mouth after

eating. If you have more time, try brushing. Drinking water

can also help. This might make you think that ‘pearly whites’ take a lot of

effort. It’s not really the case because it’s all about habits.

Adopt good ones and get rid of the bad ones and before

you know it, you’ll have perfect teeth all thanks to your

subconscious!

B r i g h t

In celebration of October being National Dental Hygiene Month

W h i t ei n

53

54

For those of you struggling with yellow teeth, let me tell you

something. Your teeth are actually yellow! Teeth have four

different layers. Teeth contain a layer of dentin which

carries the nerves in your teeth. Dentin is yellow; the ugly

yellow which makes you cringe. So if this is the case, why

do some people have ‘pearly whites’? Because a tooth needs protection like any other organ, it

has a protective shell around it known as the enamel. The

enamel is white which is why teeth are sparkly white.

Medically it means that your teeth are strong and healthy. Due to certain foods, drinks and smoking etc, a film forms

on your teeth that corrodes the enamel. As the enamel gets

thinner, the yellow dentin is revealed. Before you know it,

your teeth start to get yellower and yellower. Some people try to keep the teeth white only because it

looks good. Here’s a motivator; since the enamel is the

protective shell, with thinner enamel our teeth are more

sensitive. This is why you might feel pain when taking in

cold food or drinks. The nerves are directly exposed

meaning everything becomes painful. It becomes difficult

to chew on hard food as well. You are most likely to end up

having to ground everything you eat. So if you don’t want to

carry a blender on your next date to the restaurant, think

ahead! We already know of the basic routine. Brush, floss, and see

a dentist. Brushing and flossing plays an important role in

keeping your teeth healthy as it directly removes the

agents that might cause harm. Dentists can give you a

thorough check- up and clean your teeth up which adds to

the proper maintenance your teeth deserves. Sadly, a visit

to a dentist is often costly which could be why most of us

avoid it. Moreover, brushing and flossing is never enough

to completely remove the film which is why you might still

see a light yellow taint. So now what? Many foods such as apples, pears and carrots often

promote the production of saliva in your mouth. Saliva

works as the same principle as toothpaste. Saliva is

alkaline which neutralize the film on your teeth as it is

acidic. Bottom line; the more the saliva, the whiter your

teeth.

It is also important that you prevent foods like coffee, tea

and oranges from coming into contact with your teeth

because they form a direct stain. However it doesn’t mean

you should completely avoid it. Try using a straw to drink

these as it can minimize the contact. Another way of

minimizing the after effect is to wash your mouth after

eating. If you have more time, try brushing. Drinking water

can also help. This might make you think that ‘pearly whites’ take a lot of

effort. It’s not really the case because it’s all about habits.

Adopt good ones and get rid of the bad ones and before

you know it, you’ll have perfect teeth all thanks to your

subconscious!

b y T h i h n a n54

55

Blueberry Whipped Cream Cake

Ingredients

Butter Cake:

250g butter250g sugar250g eggs250g our 1 tsp baking powderA dash of vanilla

Blueberry Whipping Frosted:

300g Whipped Cream150g Blueberries

Instructions

For the cake, you simply need to make a normal butter cake. And here I’ll show you

how. If you already have your own favorite recipe of cake, you are always welcome to

bring a twist to your Blueberry Whipped Cream Cake.

To start off, whip up the sugar n butter together with a whisk or an electric beater

until you get a smooth creamy puffed up mixture. This as I have mentioned earlier is

what we call

the Creaming Method.

Now add the eggs bit by bit while whisking continuously. Since we don’t want the egg

and the creamy mixture to separate, this would happen if you add all the eggs

directly.

Sieve the flour and baking powder and add it in. Whisk continuously to end up with

fabulous smooth cake dough. Finally mix in the vanilla. And bake for 30 minutes at

180 degree Celsius.

by: Girl in Toque

56

Blueberry Whipped Cream Frosting

This is bit is quite simple. Whip up the cream to form stiff peaks of whipped cream

and fold in the blueberries by slowly scraping the bottom of the bowl and bringing the

whipping cream on top in a circular motion as u don’t want the stiff peaks to go away

completely.

Cut the cake horizontally in half or into three layers and spread the frosting all over in

between each layer by stacking one above the other. Trim off the excess frosting

from the sides and spread a clean layer of frosting on the top and the sides of the

cake. Add in any extra decorations you like =)

Now let’s get arranging!

56

57

CALENDAR

CARL SAGAN’S

COSMIC B Y : M A H I D

57

58

Carl Sagan was an American astronomer,

astrophysicist and cosmologist who

dedicated most of his academic life to the

popularisation of science. He was also a

Pulitzer Prize winning author, credited with

20 books, all of which were aimed at

enhancing the public understanding of

science. Sagan is perhaps best known for

the television series Cosmos: A personal

Journey, which explored the development of

key scientific ideas till date along with their

social implications. A book, based on the

series followed, also named Cosmos, which

remained in the New York Times Bestseller

list for more than 70 weeks. Even for the

accomplished scientist that Sagan was, he

was an absolute genius as a writer. His

books took readers on an epic journey from

the primordial universe to countless galaxies,

to life and death of stars to the story of life on

Earth. The captivating power of his books

lies not only in the vastness and depth of his

scientific knowledge but the magic with which

he strung the words, doing almost poetic

justice to the grandeur of the universe.

Discovering Cosmos was a big step in my

science education. It triggered an insatiable

thirst for scientific knowledge in me. The

seemingly incoherent theories, equations of

text books and my own astute observations

fell into place and I could, for the first time,

see a glimpse of the bigger picture. The

simple elegance of the universe we live in

made my perception of life more meaningful.

One of the most interesting and provocative

of Sagan’s creations is the cosmic calendar.

It comes from his book Dragons of Eden.

When Sagan wrote the book, it was

estimated that the age of the universe was

15 billion years. He created a calendar by

compressing the 15 billion year history of the

universe into the span of a single non-leap

year. He added marks on the calendar to

represent significant points of both geological

and anthropological history. My aim is to give

a narrative of the Sagan Calendar with some

different historical marks which might be

more relevant to our society. Recent

cosmological data suggests that the age of

the universe is 13.7 billion years old.

However due to the sheer age of the

universe and the relative time span of a year,

the cosmic calendar will remain largely

unchanged. The task which I took on my

shoulders is colossal no doubt, and I can

only hope that I do it some justice.

At exactly midnight, a silent explosion with

power and energy beyond all imagination

happened, creating space itself as it

propagated through the vast nothingness.

The origin of this mighty event was a single

point; infinitely small and extremely hot. The

explosion ejected vast amounts of hydrogen

and helium with relatively small amounts

lithium. Every tiny bit of matter there ever

was and there ever will be was created at

that instant, including the “stuff” of which we

all are made. This was the big bang and the

universe has just been born.

The first few months in the life of the

universe were uneventful. Occasionally,

clouds of gas would be attracted by gravity

and form a hot ball of gas. Nuclear reactions

start at the centre of this ball and it would

officially become a star. Some of these stars

will soon die out because their resources

would be exhausted and would collapse

under its own weight. Blackholes are

examples of such “fallen” stars. Smaller stars

will live longer as they run through the

available resources at a slower rate. They

can be viewed as a small office with “low

running cost”, hence they exhaust the

revenue slowly. (For the sake of this

metaphor, the office does not make a profit.

The available money at the start is fixed and

constant). The first nine months of the

cosmic calendar passes in such a manner,

chaotic and monotonous.

On September 9th such a star is born in the

distant corners of what would be known as

the Milky Way galaxy. For the first 4 days,

this star does not show the promise of

amounting to anything other than a burning

ball of gas. However on the 14th day of

September, large and stray fragments of

debris going around the young star stick

together and form a planet: Earth. The

central star is the Sun and eight other

planets will revolve around it, though one of

wh ich wi l l be th rown out ra ther

unceremoniously much to the dismay of

some Humans who will later inhabit Earth.

It will be many millions of years (or days on

Cosmic Calendar) before life can thrive on

Earth. For now, the atmosphere of the planet

is toxic and its surface unwelcoming. It is

estimated that the first life forms of appeared

on Earth around September 25th. These

were nothing more than self-replicating

molecules in the primeval soup. The oldest

rocks found on earth are dated to have

formed on second day of October. A week

later the first sexually reproducing micro-

organisms appeared on the surface. Even by

this time, the temperature of earth was far

from hospitable to any form of higher animals

we see today. It was extremely hot. Even in

its literal sense, one could say that the

microorganisms had sex before it was cool!

November would be an uneventful month

too, but for the coming of photosynthetic

plants and eukaryotic (cells with nuclei) into

the scene. We are fast approaching the end

of our cosmic year but the humans are

nowhere to be seen. By the start of the very

last month of the year, earth starts to develop

an atmosphere with oxygen, paving way for

higher life forms. First 24 days of December

flies by with appearance of meagre life such

as worms, plankton and vertebrates. But our

day of interest is the 24th: The dawn of the

dinosaurs. They will roam the earth as top

predator of the planet for the next 165 million

years, fighting, killing and out-competing

anything that got into their way. They were

fast with killer instincts; lethal predators on

top of their game. For any hypothetical

zoologist observing the Earth during that

time, it would seem that dinosaurs will be

around for many more millions of years to

come, their genetic descendants inheriting

the land. But on December 29th, just two

days before New Year’s Eve, catastrophe hit

the Earth in the form a blazing meteor.

Though the point of impact was the Yucatan

Peninsula in South America, the consequent

events ultimately drove the giant predators

extinct.

Now we arrive at the close: the very last day

of our cosmic calendar. Even for the first 22

and half hours of December 31st, the signs

of the imminent and inevitable humans are

elusive. At around 10:30 PM, just one and a

half hours before the end, the Homo sapiens

emerge. We are by far the most

sophisticated life forms ever to live on earth

with brain volume per body mass far greater

than any other organism. We are possibly

the first self-conscious beings capable of

rational thought (at least some of us are!). In

just half an hour of our arrival, we would

learn the history of the universe spanning

364 days and 22.5 hours. A Great feat

indeed. Initially, we lead an inefficient

lifestyle with most of our time spent on

collecting food as a hunter gatherer. As a

result we are unable to utilise our superior

brains for intellect. We realise the error of

our ways at the last minute. Literally. At

11:59 PM and 20 seconds past, we invent

agriculture. At 11:59:56, just four seconds

ago Jesus (PBUH) was born in Bethlehem

and the Roman Empire rises.

It is an interesting observation that all of

recorded human history occupies the last 20

seconds of our cosmic calendar, and the

written history of Maldives just two. In the last

two seconds, the whole of our country

converts from Buddhism to Islam, we fight

countless wars against invaders from the

region. It is in these two seconds that we

become enslaved by the Portuguese and

remain so for fifteen years. Just a blink of an

eye ago, we established a modern

democracy.

In the last two seconds, humans invent

modern science, medicine and technology.

We acquire means to destroy ourselves and

make first steps into space and start the

search for extraterrestrial life. Global culture

emerges as a result of globalisation. And

now, we’re in the first second of the of the

New Year‘s day. A moment of thought to the

Cosmic Calendar can help us to perceive

how insignificant our time here is on cosmic

scale. It shows us that we are not special or

privileged. As Sagan very succinctly put it

“we are like butterflies who flutter for a day

and think it’s forever”. It is clear that our

complacency is deeply misplaced. How we

live on earth will decide our future on this

planet just like any other species. If we are

unable to adapt and change for the better,

we will perish. This is not merely a superficial

rhetoric. This is evidenced by the countless

species that have lived and died on this

planet. Like any other species we face

threats. Overpopulation threatens the globe

and man-made climate change is manifesting

itself rapidly. Hunger threatens one-third of

the whole population. Civil wars have been

ripping countries and communities apart.

While it is true that we have little cosmic

significance, we are also intelligent. We are

truly capable of changing the path on which

we are. Our fate most definitely will be

decided by our scientific wisdom, sensitivity

and the will of human spirit.

58

59

Carl Sagan was an American astronomer,

astrophysicist and cosmologist who

dedicated most of his academic life to the

popularisation of science. He was also a

Pulitzer Prize winning author, credited with

20 books, all of which were aimed at

enhancing the public understanding of

science. Sagan is perhaps best known for

the television series Cosmos: A personal

Journey, which explored the development of

key scientific ideas till date along with their

social implications. A book, based on the

series followed, also named Cosmos, which

remained in the New York Times Bestseller

list for more than 70 weeks. Even for the

accomplished scientist that Sagan was, he

was an absolute genius as a writer. His

books took readers on an epic journey from

the primordial universe to countless galaxies,

to life and death of stars to the story of life on

Earth. The captivating power of his books

lies not only in the vastness and depth of his

scientific knowledge but the magic with which

he strung the words, doing almost poetic

justice to the grandeur of the universe.

Discovering Cosmos was a big step in my

science education. It triggered an insatiable

thirst for scientific knowledge in me. The

seemingly incoherent theories, equations of

text books and my own astute observations

fell into place and I could, for the first time,

see a glimpse of the bigger picture. The

simple elegance of the universe we live in

made my perception of life more meaningful.

One of the most interesting and provocative

of Sagan’s creations is the cosmic calendar.

It comes from his book Dragons of Eden.

When Sagan wrote the book, it was

estimated that the age of the universe was

15 billion years. He created a calendar by

compressing the 15 billion year history of the

universe into the span of a single non-leap

year. He added marks on the calendar to

represent significant points of both geological

and anthropological history. My aim is to give

a narrative of the Sagan Calendar with some

different historical marks which might be

more relevant to our society. Recent

cosmological data suggests that the age of

the universe is 13.7 billion years old.

However due to the sheer age of the

universe and the relative time span of a year,

the cosmic calendar will remain largely

unchanged. The task which I took on my

shoulders is colossal no doubt, and I can

only hope that I do it some justice.

At exactly midnight, a silent explosion with

power and energy beyond all imagination

happened, creating space itself as it

propagated through the vast nothingness.

The origin of this mighty event was a single

point; infinitely small and extremely hot. The

explosion ejected vast amounts of hydrogen

and helium with relatively small amounts

lithium. Every tiny bit of matter there ever

was and there ever will be was created at

that instant, including the “stuff” of which we

all are made. This was the big bang and the

universe has just been born.

The first few months in the life of the

universe were uneventful. Occasionally,

clouds of gas would be attracted by gravity

and form a hot ball of gas. Nuclear reactions

start at the centre of this ball and it would

officially become a star. Some of these stars

will soon die out because their resources

would be exhausted and would collapse

under its own weight. Blackholes are

examples of such “fallen” stars. Smaller stars

will live longer as they run through the

available resources at a slower rate. They

can be viewed as a small office with “low

running cost”, hence they exhaust the

revenue slowly. (For the sake of this

metaphor, the office does not make a profit.

The available money at the start is fixed and

constant). The first nine months of the

cosmic calendar passes in such a manner,

chaotic and monotonous.

On September 9th such a star is born in the

distant corners of what would be known as

the Milky Way galaxy. For the first 4 days,

this star does not show the promise of

amounting to anything other than a burning

ball of gas. However on the 14th day of

September, large and stray fragments of

debris going around the young star stick

together and form a planet: Earth. The

central star is the Sun and eight other

planets will revolve around it, though one of

wh ich wi l l be th rown out ra ther

unceremoniously much to the dismay of

some Humans who will later inhabit Earth.

It will be many millions of years (or days on

Cosmic Calendar) before life can thrive on

Earth. For now, the atmosphere of the planet

is toxic and its surface unwelcoming. It is

estimated that the first life forms of appeared

on Earth around September 25th. These

were nothing more than self-replicating

molecules in the primeval soup. The oldest

rocks found on earth are dated to have

formed on second day of October. A week

later the first sexually reproducing micro-

organisms appeared on the surface. Even by

this time, the temperature of earth was far

from hospitable to any form of higher animals

we see today. It was extremely hot. Even in

its literal sense, one could say that the

microorganisms had sex before it was cool!

November would be an uneventful month

too, but for the coming of photosynthetic

plants and eukaryotic (cells with nuclei) into

the scene. We are fast approaching the end

of our cosmic year but the humans are

nowhere to be seen. By the start of the very

last month of the year, earth starts to develop

an atmosphere with oxygen, paving way for

higher life forms. First 24 days of December

flies by with appearance of meagre life such

as worms, plankton and vertebrates. But our

day of interest is the 24th: The dawn of the

dinosaurs. They will roam the earth as top

predator of the planet for the next 165 million

years, fighting, killing and out-competing

anything that got into their way. They were

fast with killer instincts; lethal predators on

top of their game. For any hypothetical

zoologist observing the Earth during that

time, it would seem that dinosaurs will be

around for many more millions of years to

come, their genetic descendants inheriting

the land. But on December 29th, just two

days before New Year’s Eve, catastrophe hit

the Earth in the form a blazing meteor.

Though the point of impact was the Yucatan

Peninsula in South America, the consequent

events ultimately drove the giant predators

extinct.

Now we arrive at the close: the very last day

of our cosmic calendar. Even for the first 22

and half hours of December 31st, the signs

of the imminent and inevitable humans are

elusive. At around 10:30 PM, just one and a

half hours before the end, the Homo sapiens

emerge. We are by far the most

sophisticated life forms ever to live on earth

with brain volume per body mass far greater

than any other organism. We are possibly

the first self-conscious beings capable of

rational thought (at least some of us are!). In

just half an hour of our arrival, we would

learn the history of the universe spanning

364 days and 22.5 hours. A Great feat

indeed. Initially, we lead an inefficient

lifestyle with most of our time spent on

collecting food as a hunter gatherer. As a

result we are unable to utilise our superior

brains for intellect. We realise the error of

our ways at the last minute. Literally. At

11:59 PM and 20 seconds past, we invent

agriculture. At 11:59:56, just four seconds

ago Jesus (PBUH) was born in Bethlehem

and the Roman Empire rises.

It is an interesting observation that all of

recorded human history occupies the last 20

seconds of our cosmic calendar, and the

written history of Maldives just two. In the last

two seconds, the whole of our country

converts from Buddhism to Islam, we fight

countless wars against invaders from the

region. It is in these two seconds that we

become enslaved by the Portuguese and

remain so for fifteen years. Just a blink of an

eye ago, we established a modern

democracy.

In the last two seconds, humans invent

modern science, medicine and technology.

We acquire means to destroy ourselves and

make first steps into space and start the

search for extraterrestrial life. Global culture

emerges as a result of globalisation. And

now, we’re in the first second of the of the

New Year‘s day. A moment of thought to the

Cosmic Calendar can help us to perceive

how insignificant our time here is on cosmic

scale. It shows us that we are not special or

privileged. As Sagan very succinctly put it

“we are like butterflies who flutter for a day

and think it’s forever”. It is clear that our

complacency is deeply misplaced. How we

live on earth will decide our future on this

planet just like any other species. If we are

unable to adapt and change for the better,

we will perish. This is not merely a superficial

rhetoric. This is evidenced by the countless

species that have lived and died on this

planet. Like any other species we face

threats. Overpopulation threatens the globe

and man-made climate change is manifesting

itself rapidly. Hunger threatens one-third of

the whole population. Civil wars have been

ripping countries and communities apart.

While it is true that we have little cosmic

significance, we are also intelligent. We are

truly capable of changing the path on which

we are. Our fate most definitely will be

decided by our scientific wisdom, sensitivity

and the will of human spirit.

59

60

Carl Sagan was an American astronomer,

astrophysicist and cosmologist who

dedicated most of his academic life to the

popularisation of science. He was also a

Pulitzer Prize winning author, credited with

20 books, all of which were aimed at

enhancing the public understanding of

science. Sagan is perhaps best known for

the television series Cosmos: A personal

Journey, which explored the development of

key scientific ideas till date along with their

social implications. A book, based on the

series followed, also named Cosmos, which

remained in the New York Times Bestseller

list for more than 70 weeks. Even for the

accomplished scientist that Sagan was, he

was an absolute genius as a writer. His

books took readers on an epic journey from

the primordial universe to countless galaxies,

to life and death of stars to the story of life on

Earth. The captivating power of his books

lies not only in the vastness and depth of his

scientific knowledge but the magic with which

he strung the words, doing almost poetic

justice to the grandeur of the universe.

Discovering Cosmos was a big step in my

science education. It triggered an insatiable

thirst for scientific knowledge in me. The

seemingly incoherent theories, equations of

text books and my own astute observations

fell into place and I could, for the first time,

see a glimpse of the bigger picture. The

simple elegance of the universe we live in

made my perception of life more meaningful.

One of the most interesting and provocative

of Sagan’s creations is the cosmic calendar.

It comes from his book Dragons of Eden.

When Sagan wrote the book, it was

estimated that the age of the universe was

15 billion years. He created a calendar by

compressing the 15 billion year history of the

universe into the span of a single non-leap

year. He added marks on the calendar to

represent significant points of both geological

and anthropological history. My aim is to give

a narrative of the Sagan Calendar with some

different historical marks which might be

more relevant to our society. Recent

cosmological data suggests that the age of

the universe is 13.7 billion years old.

However due to the sheer age of the

universe and the relative time span of a year,

the cosmic calendar will remain largely

unchanged. The task which I took on my

shoulders is colossal no doubt, and I can

only hope that I do it some justice.

At exactly midnight, a silent explosion with

power and energy beyond all imagination

happened, creating space itself as it

propagated through the vast nothingness.

The origin of this mighty event was a single

point; infinitely small and extremely hot. The

explosion ejected vast amounts of hydrogen

and helium with relatively small amounts

lithium. Every tiny bit of matter there ever

was and there ever will be was created at

that instant, including the “stuff” of which we

all are made. This was the big bang and the

universe has just been born.

The first few months in the life of the

universe were uneventful. Occasionally,

clouds of gas would be attracted by gravity

and form a hot ball of gas. Nuclear reactions

start at the centre of this ball and it would

officially become a star. Some of these stars

will soon die out because their resources

would be exhausted and would collapse

under its own weight. Blackholes are

examples of such “fallen” stars. Smaller stars

will live longer as they run through the

available resources at a slower rate. They

can be viewed as a small office with “low

running cost”, hence they exhaust the

revenue slowly. (For the sake of this

metaphor, the office does not make a profit.

The available money at the start is fixed and

constant). The first nine months of the

cosmic calendar passes in such a manner,

chaotic and monotonous.

On September 9th such a star is born in the

distant corners of what would be known as

the Milky Way galaxy. For the first 4 days,

this star does not show the promise of

amounting to anything other than a burning

ball of gas. However on the 14th day of

September, large and stray fragments of

debris going around the young star stick

together and form a planet: Earth. The

central star is the Sun and eight other

planets will revolve around it, though one of

wh ich wi l l be th rown out ra ther

unceremoniously much to the dismay of

some Humans who will later inhabit Earth.

It will be many millions of years (or days on

Cosmic Calendar) before life can thrive on

Earth. For now, the atmosphere of the planet

is toxic and its surface unwelcoming. It is

estimated that the first life forms of appeared

on Earth around September 25th. These

were nothing more than self-replicating

molecules in the primeval soup. The oldest

rocks found on earth are dated to have

formed on second day of October. A week

later the first sexually reproducing micro-

organisms appeared on the surface. Even by

this time, the temperature of earth was far

from hospitable to any form of higher animals

we see today. It was extremely hot. Even in

its literal sense, one could say that the

microorganisms had sex before it was cool!

November would be an uneventful month

too, but for the coming of photosynthetic

plants and eukaryotic (cells with nuclei) into

the scene. We are fast approaching the end

of our cosmic year but the humans are

nowhere to be seen. By the start of the very

last month of the year, earth starts to develop

an atmosphere with oxygen, paving way for

higher life forms. First 24 days of December

flies by with appearance of meagre life such

as worms, plankton and vertebrates. But our

day of interest is the 24th: The dawn of the

dinosaurs. They will roam the earth as top

predator of the planet for the next 165 million

years, fighting, killing and out-competing

anything that got into their way. They were

fast with killer instincts; lethal predators on

top of their game. For any hypothetical

zoologist observing the Earth during that

time, it would seem that dinosaurs will be

around for many more millions of years to

come, their genetic descendants inheriting

the land. But on December 29th, just two

days before New Year’s Eve, catastrophe hit

the Earth in the form a blazing meteor.

Though the point of impact was the Yucatan

Peninsula in South America, the consequent

events ultimately drove the giant predators

extinct.

Now we arrive at the close: the very last day

of our cosmic calendar. Even for the first 22

and half hours of December 31st, the signs

of the imminent and inevitable humans are

elusive. At around 10:30 PM, just one and a

half hours before the end, the Homo sapiens

emerge. We are by far the most

sophisticated life forms ever to live on earth

with brain volume per body mass far greater

than any other organism. We are possibly

the first self-conscious beings capable of

rational thought (at least some of us are!). In

just half an hour of our arrival, we would

learn the history of the universe spanning

364 days and 22.5 hours. A Great feat

indeed. Initially, we lead an inefficient

lifestyle with most of our time spent on

collecting food as a hunter gatherer. As a

result we are unable to utilise our superior

brains for intellect. We realise the error of

our ways at the last minute. Literally. At

11:59 PM and 20 seconds past, we invent

agriculture. At 11:59:56, just four seconds

ago Jesus (PBUH) was born in Bethlehem

and the Roman Empire rises.

It is an interesting observation that all of

recorded human history occupies the last 20

seconds of our cosmic calendar, and the

written history of Maldives just two. In the last

two seconds, the whole of our country

converts from Buddhism to Islam, we fight

countless wars against invaders from the

region. It is in these two seconds that we

become enslaved by the Portuguese and

remain so for fifteen years. Just a blink of an

eye ago, we established a modern

democracy.

In the last two seconds, humans invent

modern science, medicine and technology.

We acquire means to destroy ourselves and

make first steps into space and start the

search for extraterrestrial life. Global culture

emerges as a result of globalisation. And

now, we’re in the first second of the of the

New Year‘s day. A moment of thought to the

Cosmic Calendar can help us to perceive

how insignificant our time here is on cosmic

scale. It shows us that we are not special or

privileged. As Sagan very succinctly put it

“we are like butterflies who flutter for a day

and think it’s forever”. It is clear that our

complacency is deeply misplaced. How we

live on earth will decide our future on this

planet just like any other species. If we are

unable to adapt and change for the better,

we will perish. This is not merely a superficial

rhetoric. This is evidenced by the countless

species that have lived and died on this

planet. Like any other species we face

threats. Overpopulation threatens the globe

and man-made climate change is manifesting

itself rapidly. Hunger threatens one-third of

the whole population. Civil wars have been

ripping countries and communities apart.

While it is true that we have little cosmic

significance, we are also intelligent. We are

truly capable of changing the path on which

we are. Our fate most definitely will be

decided by our scientific wisdom, sensitivity

and the will of human spirit.

60

61

b y : M u n z i r

You are anInsignnicant

Speck?

photo by imy61

62

You are an insignificant speck

A grain of sand

In the vast cosmic expanse

Where physical laws keep it on track

It cares not, whether you live or die

You have been misled, open your eyes

Yet, it was once nothingness

An observation where imagination does not extend

From this singularity

Sprang up the cosmos

In it's vastness

Imagination does not extend

Man, lacking science, reason and mathematical constants

Marveling at it's magnificence

Gave birth to myths formed by his own ignorance

We fight to preserve these beliefs

Bronze age fables

Because they provide relief

When all hope is lost

This is the wrong approach

On other people's rights, we encroach

Why must we let suffering relapse?

When we could make these faulty systems collapse

To end injustice, violence and persecution

To end bloody wars genocide and execution

we must first embrace truth with all our heart

Then our bonds will never break apart

You are insignificant

Yet, why must you end your life?

When all your ancestors had mated

When every living creature is related

Obeying the physical laws in perfect harmony

In this cosmic accident

Sprang up the cosmos

In it's vastness

Imagination does not extend

Man, lacking science, reason and mathematical constants

Marveling at it's magnificence

Gave birth to myths formed by his own ignorance

We fight to preserve these beliefs

Bronze age fables

Because they provide relief

When all hope is lost

This is the wrong approach

On other people's rights, we encroach

Why must we let suffering relapse?

When we could make these faulty systems collapse

To end injustice, violence and persecution

To end bloody wars genocide and execution

we must first embrace truth with all our heart

Then our bonds will never break apart

You are insignificant

Yet, why must you end your life?

When all your ancestors had mated

When every living creature is related

Obeying the physical laws in perfect harmony

In this cosmic accident

62

63

What is Loveb y : S h i y a z

photo by imy63

64

Is love a battle field with strong weapons?

Is love a garden filled with flourishing flowers?

Is love a rough sea, where you have to fight for your life?

Is love an incredible scenery, where you cherish your past?

Is love a never ending journey, where you find tears in your life?

Is love a journey, where you find faith and trust in your life?

Is love a never-ending path, where you try to find the destiny?

Is love a full moon night where you marvel the wonders of the world?

Is love a hypnotic poison in which you never know what is happening?

Is love a cleanse in which you see every happiness in your new eyes?

Is love a strong poison which destroys your life without giving a cure?

Is love a strong emotion you need to live, like the soul you need to survive?

Is love an unfortunate dilemma, where you stuck in a middle of a road?

Is love a fortunate reality, where every single step you take is toward bliss?

64

65

Girlfriend

b y : F a z u S i n g a

“Dedicated to all awesome sisters and girl pals."

66

You the Shorty, your voice louder than mine;Your ego and audacity, how you butt into the life that’s mine;

You nag about my choice of clothes;Whine about how I accessorize, I’m tacky I know;

You’re happy to share your gum; whichYou already have chewed up in your mouth;

You offer me relationship advice gladly,Join the nunnery; you’ve been single all your life;

You jam killer stilettos on my feet,Crazy woman, you better be there to catch me when I fall;

You drag me through chick flicks, chow on thePopcorn and wail loudly at the end;

You think sleepovers are great; manicures, pedicures,Facials, munching, music and yet devoid of sleep;

You snitch my tub of ice cream, neverAllowing me to wallow in my sorrows; you take

Your fair share and you’re not bothered to reason whyBut you take my side and bitch about

Why he is not mine;You convinced me that he is not worth chasing, if he

He does not realize that I’m worth the fight;You enjoy shoving me into the water,

Cannon-balling in right after;You laugh when I fall, giggle at my

Frown and fall down before you can help me up;You invade my privacy and drag me

Out of bed when all I want to do is sleep;You pinch and poke me, trip and trod on meDo everything in your power to annoy me;You bend the rules, pick and turn, happy

To stick your toe out of line;Your nose must be a mile long, there’s

Nowhere in my business I don’t find it poking in;You eat my fries, cut in front of me in

Lines, what’s your problem, can’t anything be mine?You bounce off the walls, still the

Hormonal teen after all these years;Your goals in life are ridiculous, but yes

We are getting there in good times;You teach me to laugh, love and live,

As though life has no more tomorrows;Yes girl friend, life wouldn’t be the same

If not for those wild insane moments with you.

66

67

In the meantime, find us at:

Thank you for reading.

See you in November!

f b .com/dh i you thmovemen t

@ dh i you th

dh i you thmovemen t .b logspo t . com

dh iyou thmovemen t

dh i you thmovemen t@gma i l . com

photo by Imy