Shell

Shell may refer to:

Architecture and design

Business

Chemistry and Physics

Computing

Shell corporation

A shell corporation is a company which serves as a vehicle for business transactions without itself having any significant assets or operations. Some shell companies may have had operations, but those may have shrunk due to unfavorable market conditions or company mismanagement. A shell corporation may also arise when a company's operations have been wound up, for example following a takeover, but the “shell” of the original company continues to exist.

Shell corporations are not in themselves illegal, and they do have legitimate business purposes. However, they are a main component of the underground economy, especially those based in tax havens. They may also be known as international business companies, personal investment companies, front companies, or "mailbox" companies.

Shell companies can also be used for tax avoidance. A classic tax avoidance operation is based on the buying and selling through tax haven shell companies to disguise true profits. The firm does its international operations through this shell corporation, thus not having to report to its country the sums involved, avoiding any taxes.

Shell (computing)

In computing, a shell is a user interface for access to an operating system's services. In general, operating system shells use either a command-line interface (CLI) or graphical user interface (GUI), depending on a computer's role and particular operation.

The design of a shell is guided by cognitive ergonomics and the goal is to achieve the best workflow possible for the intended tasks; the design can be constricted by the available computing power (for example, of the GPU) or the available amount of graphics memory. The design of a shell is also dictated by the employed computer periphery, such as computer keyboard, pointing device (a mouse with one button, or one with five buttons, or a 3D mouse) or touchscreen, which is the direct human–machine interface.

CLI shells allow some operations to be performed faster in some situations, especially when a proper GUI has not been or cannot be created. However, they require the user to memorize commands and their calling syntax, and also to learn the shell-specific scripting language, for example bash script. CLIs are also easier to be operated via refreshable braille display and provide certain advantages to screen readers.

Memento (novel)

Memento (Warning) is a novel with reporting elements, written by Czech author Radek John and published in 1986. The story is set in Prague in the 1980s.

The novel is written with literary language with elements of argot and slang of drug addicts. It is a subjective narration from the point of view of Michal, the main character. The author wanted to warn the public of rising drug problems in present days. Its importance lies in the fact it is the first work concerning this taboo theme in the time of the previous totalitarian communist regime in Czechoslovakia. The situation at that time was that the number of addicts was growing, but it had not been publicly discussed. It warns that escaping from problems through drugs will end badly.

See also

References

Memento (film)

Memento is a 2000 American neo-noir psychological thriller film directed by Christopher Nolan. The screenplay was written by Nolan based on his younger brother Jonathan Nolan's short story "Memento Mori". It stars Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Joe Pantoliano. Memento is presented as two different sequences of scenes interspersed during the film: a series in black-and-white that is shown chronologically, and a series of color sequences shown in reverse order (simulating in the audience the mental state of the protagonist, who suffers from anterograde amnesia). The two sequences "meet" at the end of the film, producing one complete and cohesive narrative.

Memento premiered on September 5, 2000, at the Venice International Film Festival and was released in European theaters starting in October 2000. It was acclaimed by critics, who praised its nonlinear narrative structure and motifs of memory, perception, grief, and self-deception. The film was successful at the box office and received numerous accolades, including Academy Award nominations for Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing. The film was subsequently ranked one of the best films of its decade by several critics and media outlets.

Közi

Közi is a Japanese visual kei rock musician who plays guitar, piano, keyboard and synthesizer. He is best known as guitarist for the rock band Malice Mizer. After the band went on an indefinite hiatus in 2001, he formed the industrial rock duo Eve of Destiny and also started a solo career. As of 2012, Közi is in the bands Dalle, My Horror Revue, XA-VAT and ZIZ, while occasionally working on his solo career.

During his time in Malice Mizer, Közi often assumed the role of a pierrot doll, dressing in clown-like costumes with large ruffs, always in shades of red, his favourite colour. In music videos and on-stage he would often make movements reminiscent of a marionette (string puppet). Közi has continued this visual style to some extent, but his contemporary stage costumes are more gothic. His work on the Izayoi no Tsuki project was reminiscent of carnival music, and artwork for his projects usually follow a dramatic, theatrical theme. Very few details about his private life are known.

Biography