Notes from Underground

Chess-News.ru‏ (@Chess__News)

The “Case of Mihaela Sandu”: crime and punishment? Natalia Oleksandrivna Zhukova — the head signatory of the j’accuse letter against Mihaela Sandu (pictured above) — was banned by FIDE Ethics Commission for three months with a proviso (in fact, the penalty is suspended for one year, provided that Zhukova will not repeat again irresponsible and unjustified accusations), while all others signatories have been severely warned for their reckless and unjustified attitude to accuse Sandu of cheating. For further details, see chess-news.ru/node/23084.

Representative democracy

Aerodynamic levitation

The toilet of the future? This was built for the Russian Mir space station. Practical, but slightly unsettling. Photo: Science Photo Library.

The Pit Stop of Doom

A public toilet in Diepsloot, South Africa. Photo: Jennifer van den Bussche.

An urgent appeal! The Referee accidentally dropped his own iPhone down the toilet!

Community toilets in Addis Abeba, Ethiopia, typically consist of a hole in the floor.

Where are Santa’s Pants?

Nigel David Short (‏@nigelshortchess)

Winterreise

A toilet by the wall barrier near the Rafah crossing point into Egypt from Gaza. Photo: David Levene for The Guardian.

Winter is coming (but he forgot his wallet)

A cashier awaits clients as she sells tickets to a public toilet in central Kiev, Ukraine. Photo: Gleb Garanich/Reuters.

Metamorphosis

Arcovazzi is saying to everyone he is a Marvel kinda superhero who has all the sorts of superpowers! According to him, when the night falls, monster rise (but perhaps the same could be said for the day, too), and he transforms himself into “Mr. Muscle”. Well, if bathroom drain is clogged, you know what you have to do: just call the toll-free telephone number; he will be happy to fix a date!

The Metamorphosis: Arcovazzi Day ’n’ Night

Stairway to Heaven

An abandoned toilet on the banks of the Mekong river in Laos. The degradation of the water, vital as an economic lifeline for 60 million people, is a great concern for the six Asian nations it flows through. Photo: Barbara Walton/EPA.

Network of suppliers

A poster illustrates the business venture between UMAWA and its customers in a pit-latrine-emptying venture in Kigamboni district, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Photo: WaterAid/Christina Chacha.

They Can’t Wait!

A huge inflatable toilet was installed outside United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York, United States, to mark World Toilet Day 2014. Photo: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images.

Why Don’t We Do It in the Road?

Nigel David Short (@nigelshortchess)

En busca del paraíso

Mexico City’s lavatories may not cope with its creaking sewage system, but what they lack in efficiency they make up for in creative design. “Incredible improvisation... Unlike most European and U.S. cities, Mexico has no rules to dictate public sanitation design”, says Kurt Hollander, who must also be credited for the above picture.

The Golden Ratio

王雷 (Wáng Léi), Knitting Toilet Paper, 2010
Photo courtesy of 中央美术学院 (China Central Academy of Fine Arts)

Grand Slam

Portable toilets waiting for dispatch. Glastonbury Festival took a break in 2012 in part because organisers thought the cost of cubicles would have exceeded their budgets. Photo: Kevin Frayer/AP.

Arcovazzi’s Letterhead

Artwork © 2016 DesignRulz

Nonlinear Arcovazzi equation

Ventris onus misero, nec te pudet, excipis auro, Basse, bibis vitro: carius ergo cacas. You’ve a golden pot for your arse But you drink your wine from glass— You value your stink Far more than your drink. Per andare di corpo hai vasi d’oro, o Basso, e tu non ti vergogni, ma bevi in vetri senza alcun decoro. Conta di più per te, e questo agogni, cagare con dovizia i tuoi bisogni.

Martial, Epigrams, Book 1, XXXVII
English translation by Olive Pitt-Kethley
Italian translation by Franco Zagato

Displaying above book shelf type French toilet and colorfully decorated Victorian period toilet. Photo courtesy of Sulabh International Museum of Toilets, Delhi, India.

Stendhal syndrome

There are more than 1,000 toilets in this free-of-charge public restroom in 重庆 (Chóngqìng), China. A return to the communal toilet? Photo: AP.

Arcovazzi’s World

Artwork © Zabou | zaboujojo.wordpress.com