The Ways of White Folks: Stories

Book Description

In these acrid and poignant stories, Hughes depicted black people colliding--sometimes humorously, more often tragically--with whites in the 1920s and '30s.

Customer Reviews:

A Must for any Langston Hughes Reader!.......2007-04-23

I'm not a short story person but I was a assigned this book for my Harlem Renaissance Class years ago at Rutgers. I just recently read his classic short story, "THank You, MAm" which by the way isn't in this book. I loved "Cora Unashamed," "Slave on the Block," "Home," Passing," others also are "A Good Job Gone," "A Rejuvenation Through Joy," "The Blues I'm Playing," "Red-Headed Baby," "Poor Little Black Fellow," "Little Dog," "Berry," "Mother and Child," "One Christmas Eve," and "Father and Son." Surprisingly Thank You, Mam was not included in this anthology of Hughes' short stories. This book should be used in the classroom. Short Stories are usually short, sweet, and capture something that we might miss. In this book, Hughes' observations are keen and certainly interesting about life in New York City and the uneasy relationship between races. We hope that life has changed for the better for people from all walks of life. I was particularly surprised by the whites' attitudes towards blacks like the patronization. Nobody likes to be patronized and treated as inferior.

Excellent Read.......2007-01-09

This book of short stories is my all time favorite. It is definitely a classic.

One of My Favorite Writers of All Time.......2006-03-21

major fan of both Langston Hughes and James Baldwin, I found this to be beautifully written. In this book there is humor, horror and everything else in between. For once, black culture and the point of view is truely captured in poetic splendor.
This book is such an important vehicle for anyone that wanders what it truely means to be Black in this world.

For centuries the view of Blacks have been hushed and limited and quite frankly meant to be unopened. If you ever wandered what it maybe like to be Black or why Blacks have the views that they do, simply read this book. Though there are some elements of satire, the stories speak truthfully and clearly in a non-offensive manner.

Brilliant observations on a sick society!.......2005-08-11

Hughes' style may lead some readers to think that this book is simplistic. But that is far from the case. His observations were poignant, heartwrenching at times and brutally honest. What was saddened me most was my own observation that in terms of sentiment and race relations, little has changed since this classic was written.

Langston Gets Tough!!!!.......2005-03-26

The thing that has always bothered me about certain admirers of Langston Hughes is the way, unintentional I guess, some seem to neuter him into being a kind of "minstrel man,"nonthreating to a certain audience because he doesn't challenge them to think to much about certain subjects. THE WAYS WHITE FOLKS definitely disproves this fallacy and proved Langston Hughes could show his teeth.

Without ever standing on a soapbox to shout and point his a finger, here in this collection of short stories Hughes express a range of moods from humorous and bitingly caustic to the tragic showing the various types of ways black and white American interacted with one another during the early part of the 20th century. There is the perennial favorite "CORA UNASHAMED", dealing with a black woman's loneliness and self-awaking in a predominantly white community, SLAVE ON THE BLOCK, dealing with "liberal minded" white dilettantes, "HOME", about a sickly black man who returns home from Europe only to face brutal prejudice, "REJUVENATION THROUGH JOY", a biting satire
that may (?) have been taking a small swipe at Jean Toomer who Hughes lost much respect for after he turned his back to his people to live as white. Then there are the stories "THE BLUES I'M PLAYING" with its hints of Langston's former patron Mrs. Mason, "A GOOD JOB" and "POOR LITTLE FELLOW", all kind of showing the various choices, sacrifices, and prejudice faced in its varied degrees to just get by. And, more shorts where Hughes pretty much presents the entire skin color spectrum of the black American community while recounting in a few stories the often cruel ways these colors came to be, "RED-HEADED BABY" and "FATHER AND SON", this latter about an arrogant black son by a white southern father who refuses to acknowledge him as kin and the resulting tragic consequences. "PASSING", my lease favorite because it was very disturbing, is nevertheless truthful to the affects of racism and self-hate on the soul (e.g. just look at certain male and female actors and singers who cater to prejudiced imaginary percentage points of race for success).

Certain stories in this collection represent a time gone by in race relations in this country. But, while the situation in race relations have change quite significantly, it has not changed completely. There are stories in the WAYS OF WHITE FOLKS that still hold a relevant truth today as the first time they were made public. Still, there exist a widespread denial of the complicated blood history of the larger black American community, only a specific few within the community being allowed the privilege to acknowledge their heritage and, often out of self-hate, contributing to the prejudiced stereotypes against the larger black American community whose blood is "equally" rich and the "same" in its diversity. Still, there exist those little touchs of bigotry today that one has to smile away and pretend doesn't exist and hurt or be branded the angry black and thus difficult,AND the psychologically damaging effects of viewing favorably light skin blacks over dark skin blacks.

Langston Hughes was a skilled and astute observer and this is why much of his work continues to be popular and stand the test of time beyond simple entertainment value. THE WAYS OF WHITE FOLKS is definitely deserves and gets a 5 star rating!!!

Book Description

From New York Times bestselling author James Luceno comes an all-new Star Wars adventure that reveals the action and intrigue unfolding directly before Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

Mired in greed and corruption, tangled in bureaucracy, the Galactic Republic is crumbling. In the outlying systems, where the Trade Federation maintains a stranglehold on shipping routes, tensions are boiling over?while back in the comfort of Coruscant, the hub of civilized space and seat of the Republic government, few senators seem inclined to investigate the problem. And those who suspect Supreme Chancellor Valorum of having a hand in the machinations are baffled?especially when Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi foil an assassination attempt on the Chancellor.

With the crisis escalating, Valorum calls for an emergency trade summit. As humans and aliens gather, conspiracies sealed with large sums of money run rampant, and no one is entirely above suspicion. But the greatest threat of all remains unknown to everyone except three members of the Trade Federation who have entered into a shadowy alliance with a dark overlord. While the trio will be content with more money and fewer problems, Darth Sidious has grander, far more terrifying plans.

It is a time that tests the mettle of all those who strive to hold the Republic together?none more so than the Jedi Knights, who have long been the galaxy's best hope for preserving peace and justice. Yet despite their most valiant efforts, the meeting will explode into fiery chaos beyond everyone?s worst fears . . .

From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews:

A good prequel to the prequel.......2007-10-06

This novel takes place just before the beginning of Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. It gives some background information about certain things from TPM, such as the Trade Federation's blockade of Naboo. It also introduces some interesting characters whom I grew attached too. Unfortunately, knowing what happens in TPM does diffuse some suspense, but this novel does match the movie in tone and in pacing, so if you like The Phantom Menace, you should like this book.

Not bad..not great either, but not bad.......2007-07-25

I found all the internal politics and workings of the Senate and such to be a little slow and boring at times, but it was interesting to see the formative steps leading up to what would be Valorum's Downfall in Attack of the Clones and what lead to the blockade of trade with Naboo in the Phantom Menace.

Sidious's machinations are the undercurrent of the entire book, even though he's really not the soul focus, but it's how he sets the wheels in motions and everyone's reactions to his plans, once set in motion, that is really what the book is about.

It was also nice to see Qui Gon have a good portion of pages dedicated to him as well in this book. A really great character that, like darth maul, wasn't fully realized in the films.

As i said, I found the politics at times to be a little slow which brought the book down a little bit for me. But overall, a solid Star Wars read.

Prologue to Episode I.......2007-04-17

Movie fans were thrilled that Episode I introduced Obi-Wan Kenobi's Jedi Master and wanted to know more about him and his relationship with his padawan. This book focuses on Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan's adventures in the month leading up to The Phantom Menace. The background for the galactic politics that rushed by us in the movie are presented here in much more detail, including the scandal surrounding Supreme Chancellor Valorum. Senator Palpatine is active and his friend, Lt. Governor Tarkin, in involved in the plot. We learn much more about the Trade Federation and their motivations. And we see brief glimpses of Darth Sidious lurking in the shadows, manipulating events. This book answered most of the questions I had after first watching Episode I, including why the Chancellor had to dispatch two Jedi to Naboo "secretly."

The excellent Shadow Hunter (Star Wars: Darth Maul) includes a short story at the end by James Luceno that features Darth Maul and sets up Cloak of Deception.

I also highly recommend the following 5-star novels that are extremely relevant to the film series:

Labyrinth of Evil (Star Wars, Episode III Prequel Novel)
Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader (Star Wars)
Shadows of the Empire (Star Wars)

Great read.......2006-12-27

An in-depth look at Valorum by one o the best SW writers. I enjoyed reading this one more than several of the others I have come across. While some of the other authors are capable, Luceno writes the best stories.

Star Wars Cloak fo Deception.......2006-10-13

The book "Star Wars Cloak of Deception" is a story about an assassination attempt on Supreme Chancellor Valorum's life. A man by the name of Havac hired Captain Cohl to kill the chancellor. Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi find out about this assassination plan on Supreme Chancellor Valorum's life and try to foil this plot. Chancellor Palpatine tries to help Supreme Chancellor Palpatine to get the support he needs to tax the Trade Federation on the goods they trade. I enjoyed this book very much. It had a lot of good plot twists.

Beyond the Cloak of Deception Politics, Religion & Economics in the Price System

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Beyond the Cloak of Deception Politics, Religion & Economics in the Price System
Skip Sievert
Manufacturer: Geotech LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000FT94KS

Product Description

Insightful exploration of the price system

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Cloak of Deception
James Luceno
Manufacturer: Arrow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OGZYR4

Soviet Operational Deception: The Red Cloak

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Soviet Operational Deception: The Red Cloak
Richard N. Armstrong
Manufacturer: University Press of the Pacific
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Japan | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 1410217507

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Cloak of Deception :Star Wars
James Luceno
Manufacturer: BALLANTINE BOOKS @
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000UCJWBG

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Star Wars - Cloak Of Deception
James Luceno
Manufacturer: Del Rey/Ballantine/Lucas
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Star Wars: Cloak of Deception
James Luceno
Manufacturer: Del Rey
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000N4ABDO

Book Description

All new Phd's hope that their dissertations can become books. But a dissertation is written for a committee and a book for the larger world. William Germano's From Dissertation to Book is the essential guide for academic writers who want to revise a doctoral thesis for publication. The author of Getting It Published, Germano draws upon his extensive experience in academic publishing to provide writers with a state-of-the-art view of how to turn a dissertation into a manuscript that publishers will notice.

Acknowledging first that not all theses can become books, Germano shows how some dissertations might have a better life as one or more journal articles or as chapters in a newly conceived book. But even dissertations strong enough to be published as books first need to become book manuscripts, and at the heart of From Dissertation to Book is the idea that revising the dissertation is a fundamental process of adapting from one genre of writing to another.

Germano offers clear guidance on how to do just this. Writers will find advice on such topics as rethinking the table of contents, taming runaway footnotes, shaping chapter length, and confronting the limitations of jargon, alongside helpful timetables for light or heavy revision. With crisp directives, engaging examples, and a sympathetic eye for the foibles of academic writing, From Dissertation to Book reveals to recent PhD's the process of careful and thoughtful revision—a truly invaluable skill as they grow into their new roles as professional writers.

Customer Reviews:

Stop Repeating and Get to the Point!.......2007-08-29

Blah, Blah, Blah....this book doesn't even get to the core of the help one is seeking when buying this type of book until Chapter 5 and there are only 9 chapters in the book! There is a lot of repetition. Although the price isn't bad for this type of book, it could have easily been written up in a one page checklist of all the things to do and not do. A far better resource for helping you turn your dissertation into a book is: Revising Your Dissertation; Advice From Leading Editors, Edited by Beth Luey. What Germano takes in 9 chapters to cover, Luey's book covers it in the first chapter alone and then continues to give you much more practical advice.

On another note, although I know this wasn't intentional, it surprised me to find that each time Germano used the third person, he often chose "she/her/herself" instead of using both (himself/herself). This caught my attention early on in the book because everytime the author described the author of the dissertation trying to turn it into a book, he referred to the writer as a "she" and too often the mistakes that "She" made along the way in submitting "her" non-revised disseration. Not until the end of the book Page 115 do you finally see Germano use the term "he/himself in combination with "her/herself" and in that instance it was a positive praise..."every dissertation writer should strive to be the hero of her or his own work..." I just found it interesting that the whole book saw the dissertation writer as a "She" and often making mistakes, and finally when reaching the end, the success is given to both the "He and She" or the "He" alone. I am surprised that the editor of this book didn't catch that...I suppose both were not thinking about their audience enough!

Anyways, its a fine book if you want to get your feet wet but there are better books out there that will give you the same advice but with more direction and less talk...and one positive note, even Germano, himself indicates further resources to turn to at the end of his book, including Luey's book.

From Dissertation to Dissertation.......2007-06-01

As a graduate student just beginning to write my dissertation, this book was very, very helpful. Eric Foner's blurb on the back cover suggests putting it into the hands of PhD candidates at the conclusion of their doctoral defenses. I would suggest doing so at the conclusion of their general exams, when the typical dissertation errors Germano describes can still be avoided. Reading this book before writing a considerable portion of my dissertation has given me a clear set of questions to keep in mind as I move forward. It is an excellent complement to Bolker's WRITING YOUR DISSERTATION IN 15 MINUTES A DAY, which offers encouragement and writing tips unhinged from the (reasonable) obsession with turning a dissertation into a book.

From Dissertation to Book.......2007-01-15

I don't see that the book contributed anything substantially different from other books on non-fiction publishing. It offered more generalizations than specific, concrete suggestions. Perhaps for graduate students and students just submitting the dissertation, this book could be helpful (It does, after all, introduce readers to the world of academic publishing); however, for those who have already begun work on the book manuscript or who have definitively made the decision (and have the support to do so), I think this book will be less helpful.

Kicking into gear.......2007-01-03

Trying to organize my thoughts and goals after finishing my dissertation has been a long, slow process. This book outlines some of the typical pitfalls, identifies a step-by-step process and has set up some guidelines I need to move ahead. Good luck to anyone trying for this!

Encouraging Yet Realistic Advice.......2006-07-25

This book spoke directly to me, a person finishing her dissertation who saw the potential for publishing but didn't know how to get started. The author works for a publishing company and once wrote a dissertation, so his advice is trustworthy. I also felt that the ideas he shared were practical and doable. Having read this book gave me a clear sense of direction as I began my own book manuscript, and I kept the author's advice clearly in mind as I wrote. One downside: The book is wordy and leans toward a scholarly tone. While it isn't exactly an enjoyable read, it is high interest if the reader is thinking about publishing all or parts of her dissertation, and certainly those of us who have written dissertations can get through scholarly text! I recommend this book. It is one of a kind on the market right now.

Model-Based Methods in Motion Capture (Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science & Technology, 42)

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Model-Based Methods in Motion Capture (Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science & Technology, 42)
Alf Kjartan Halvorsen
Manufacturer: Uppsala universitet
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Graphic Design | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

General | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 9155453813

Book of Jasher, The One of the Sacred Books of the Bible Long Lost or Undiscovered . Now offered in Photographic Reproduction of the Version by Alcuin with Testimonies & Notes Various Readings a Prelinary Dissertation

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Book of Jasher, The One of the Sacred Books of the Bible Long Lost or Undiscovered . Now offered in Photographic Reproduction of the Version by Alcuin with Testimonies & Notes Various Readings a Prelinary Dissertation
Preliminary Explanation translated into English from Hebrew by Flaccus Albinus Alcuinus of Britain
Manufacturer: Rosicrucian Order A.M.O.R.C.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000JD7NGC

Compact Constraints for Verification of Well Quasi-Ordered Programs (Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science & Technology, 51)

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Compact Constraints for Verification of Well Quasi-Ordered Programs (Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science & Technology, 51)
Aletta Nylen
Manufacturer: Uppsala Universitet
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 9155457886

Book Description

This Ph.D. dissertation explores algorithms and constraint systems for efficient verification of infinite-state transition systems that are monotonic with respect to a well quasi-ordering. A major problem in verification of infinite-state systems is constraint explosion, that is, the number of constraints generated during analysis is too large. The problem can be reduced either by reducing the number of constraints that need to be analyzed (partial order methods) or by producing constraint systems that are more compact in the sense that the number of states represented by a single constraint is increased.

The main contributions of this thesis are: (1) An unfolding algorithm for symbolic verification of unbound Petri nets. Unfoldings is a partial order method which has previously only been used in verification of finite-state systems, (2) A framework for developing compact constraint systems. The framework is based on the theory of better quasi-ordering and allows construction of constraint systems that are much more compact than those developed in previous frameworks based on well quasi-ordering, (3) A framework for developing constraint systems that are suitable for forward analysis. In forward analysis, the constraints give a characterization of the set of reachable states. Although this is not computable in general, it turns out that for some applications forward analysis is more efficient than backward analysis.

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Efficient Implementation of Concurrent Programming Languages (Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science & Technology, 43)
Erik Stenman
Manufacturer: Uppsala Universitet
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Programming | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books
General | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 9155454224

Book Description

This doctoral thesis proposes and experimentally evaluates techniques for efficient implementation of languages designed for high availability concurrent systems. This experimental evaluation has been done while developing the High Performance Erlang (HiPE) system, a native code compiler for SPARC and x86. The two main goals of the HiPE system are to provide efficient execution of Erlang programs, and to provide a research vehicle for evaluating implementation techniques for concurrent functional programming languages. The focus of the thesis is the evaluation of two techniques that enable inter-process optimization through dynamic compilation. The first technique is a fast register allocator called linear scan, and the second is a memory architecture where processes share memory.

Evidence from Basque for a New Theory of Grammar (Outstanding Dissertations in Linguistics)

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Evidence from Basque for a New Theory of Grammar (Outstanding Dissertations in Linguistics)
Esmer Manandise
Manufacturer: Routledge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books

Grammar | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0824051912

Generic Approach to Schedulability Analysis of Real-Time Systems (Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science & Technology, 49)

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Generic Approach to Schedulability Analysis of Real-Time Systems (Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science & Technology, 49)
Elena Fersman
Manufacturer: Uppsala universitet
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 9155457746

Book Description

This Ph.D. dissertation presents a framework design, analysis and implementation of embedded systems. A model of timed automata with extended asynchronous processes is adopted, i.e. tasks triggered by events. A task is an executable program characterized by its worst-case execution time and deadline, and possibly other parameters such as priorities etc, for scheduling. The main idea is to associate each location of an automaton with a task (or a set of tasks). A transition leading to a location denotes an event triggering the tasks and the clock constraint on the transition specifies the possible arrival times of the event. This yields a model for real-time systems expressive enough to describe concurrency and synchronization, and tasks with (or without) preemptive and (or) non-preemptive. It is believed that the model may serve as a bridge between scheduling theory and automata-theoretic approaches to system modeling and analysis.

Local and Semi-Global Approaches to the Extraction of 3d Anatomical Landmarks from 3d Tomographic Images (Dissertations in Artificial Intelligence-Infix, 253)

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Local and Semi-Global Approaches to the Extraction of 3d Anatomical Landmarks from 3d Tomographic Images (Dissertations in Artificial Intelligence-Infix, 253)
S. Frantz
Manufacturer: Ios Pr Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Programming | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

General | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

General | Medicine | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1586032135

Origins of Predicates: Evidence from Plains Cree (Outstanding Dissertations in Linguistics)

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Origins of Predicates: Evidence from Plains Cree (Outstanding Dissertations in Linguistics)
Tomio Hirose
Manufacturer: Routledge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Grammar | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

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Book Description

This book offers a new perspective on natural language predicates by analyzing data from the Plains Cree language. Contrary to traditional understanding, Cree verbal complexes are syntactic constructs composed of morphemes as syntactic objects that are subject to structurally defined constraints, such as c-command. Tomio Hirose illustrates this in his study of vP syntax, event semantics, morphology-syntax mappings, unaccusativity, noun incorporation, and valency-reducing phenomena.

Hirose demonstrates that what is known about aspectual properties of well-studied languages is also true of the less-studied Cree language. His findings significantly advance the study of syntax and semantics in both natural language predicates and in the verbal complexes in polysynthetic languages. Synthesizing the latest in linguistic theory and an array of empirical evidence, this book will be accessible to theoretical linguists, Americanists and students of the Cree language.

Processor Pipelines & Static Worst-Case Execution Time Analysis (Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science & Technology, 36)

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Processor Pipelines & Static Worst-Case Execution Time Analysis (Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science & Technology, 36)
Jakob Engblom
Manufacturer: Uppsala Universitet
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Book Description

Worst-Case Execution Time (WCET) estimates for programs are necessary when building real-time systems. They are used to ensure timely responses from interrupts, to guarantee the throughput of cyclic tasks, as input to scheduling and schedule analysis algorithms, and in many other circumstances. Traditionally, such estimates have been obtained either by measurements or labor-intensive manual analysis, which is both time consuming and error-prone. Static worst-case execution time analysis is a family of techniques that promise to quickly provide safe execution time estimates for real-time programs, simultaneously increasing system quality and decreasing the development cost. This thesis presents several contributions to the state-of-the-art in WCET analysis.

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