Chronic fatigue syndrome: Symptoms, treatment, and causes

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/184802

Chronic fatigue syndrome — also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) OR systemic exertional intolerance disease (SEID)— is a serious, chronic illness that can cause pain and extreme fatigue.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that up to 3.3 million people in the United States have ME/CFS, most of whom do not have a diagnosis.

In the past, some people did not believe that ME/CFS was a real illness. However, experts have started to take it more seriously in recent years, and research is underway to find out why it happens and how to treat it.

Lifestyle strategies and medical treatment may help people manage some of the symptoms.

Symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome

ME/CFS is a complex condition that can affect a range of bodily systems and functions.

Many of the possible symptoms resemble those of other conditions, making ME/CFS hard to diagnose.

The symptoms of ME/CFS can vary widely, but there are three core symptoms:

Reduced ability to function 

A person with ME/CFS experiences fatigue that interferes with their ability to carry out daily tasks.

The fatigue:

- is severe
- does not improve with rest
- is not due to activity
- was not previously present

For a diagnosis of ME/CFS, this fatigue and the resulting decrease in activity levels must last 6 months or longer.

Post-exertional malaise 

A person with post-exertional malaise (PEM) will experience a “crash” after physical or mental exertion.

During times of PEM, they may have new or worsening symptoms that include:

- difficulty thinking
- difficulty sleeping
- a sore throat
- headaches
- dizziness
- tiredness

Following an event that triggers PEM, the person may be unable to leave the house, get out of bed, or do regular chores for several days or even weeks. The symptoms tend to become worse 12 to 48 hours after the exertion.

The trigger will depend on the individual. For some people, even having a shower or going to the grocery store can trigger PEM.

Sleep disorders

A range of sleep disorders can occur with ME/CFS. The person may feel very sleepy but be unable to sleep or not feel refreshed after sleeping. They may experience:

- intense and vivid dreaming
- restless legs
- nighttime muscle spasms
- sleep apnea

Other key symptoms

As well as the three core symptoms above, one of the following two symptoms must be present for a diagnosis of ME/CFS, according to the CDC.

Problems with thinking and memory: People may experience “brain fog“, which includes problems with:
- making decisions
- focusing on details
- thinking quickly
- remembering things

Dizziness when standing up: When the person moves from lying on their back to sitting or standing, they may experience:
- dizziness
- lightheadedness
- faintness
- vision changes, such as blurred vision or seeing spots

Other possible symptoms

Pain is a common symptom. A person with ME/CFS will often experience pain or discomfort that does not stem from an injury or other identifiable cause.

Common types of pain include:

- muscle aches and pains
- joint pain without redness or swelling
- headaches

The person may also experience:

- tenderness in the lymph nodes, especially the neck or armpits
- gastrointestinal problems
- chills and night sweats
- allergies to food
- sensitivity to light, touch, heat, or cold
- muscle weakness
- shortness of breath
- irregular heartbeat
- irritability and mood changes
- anxiety or panic attacks
- numbness, tingling, and burning in the hands, feet, and face
- eye pain
- a low grade fever
- vision problems

In addition, the American Myalgic Encephalomyelitis and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Society (AMMES) notes that other possible symptoms include:

- muscle twitching
- rashes
- canker sores
- depression
- high stress levels
- saying words incorrectly
- tinnitus
- extreme symptoms of premenstrual syndrome (PMS)
- lack of sex drive or sexual impotence
- hair loss
- unexplained weight changes
- chest pain
- seizures
- paralysis
- spatial disorientation
- difficulty walking
- difficulty moving the tongue to form words

Causes and risk factors of chronic fatigue syndrome

Experts do not know what causes ME/CFS, but some people with the condition say that it started after another health issue, such as:

- a flu-like illness
- a stomach bug or other infection
- the Epstein-Barr virus, which causes mononucleosis, commonly known as “mono”
- extreme physical stress, for example, surgery 

There is growing evidence of a link between ME/CFS and the way the immune system works, but more research is necessary to establish the mechanism behind this.

According to the Office on Women’s Health, females are two to four times more likely than males to experience ME/CFS. The condition can also affect children, although this is less common.

Diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome

The symptoms of ME/CFS vary widely and can resemble those of other conditions, which can make it difficult to diagnose.

If a person seeks medical help for ME/CFS, a doctor will likely begin the diagnostic process by:

- asking about the person’s symptoms
- carrying out a physical examination
- recommending tests to try to identify the cause of any symptoms

To receive a diagnosis of ME/CFS, a person must have the three core symptoms of the condition for 6 months or longer. In addition, the doctor must be unable to find another explanation for the symptoms.

It can take time to eliminate other possible causes of ME/CFS symptoms, but there is no specific test that can identify the condition.

In 2018, researchers found that the levels of some molecules appeared to change when people had ME/CFS. One day, this may help make it easier to diagnose ME/CFS, but more studies are necessary before this can happen.

In 2019, another research team announced that they had made further progress in developing a test. The test focused on certain features of blood cells and electrical activity in people with ME/CFS.

In the past, many doctors did not believe that ME/CFS was a real disease, but major health organizations now recognize it.

Where to find support

Various advocacy groups, including Solve M.E., are working to promote awareness of ME/CFS and empower people with the condition to persist in getting a diagnosis.

The AMMES list other advocacy groups on their website, provide useful resources, and explain where people can get support.

Treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome

There is currently no cure or treatment specific to ME/CFS, but a doctor may work with individuals to help them manage the symptoms. The treatment plan will vary among individuals, as ME/CFS affects people differently.

However, it may involve:

- focusing on whichever symptom poses the greatest challenge
- alleviating pain
- learning new ways to manage activities

Managing PEM

One way to manage fatigue after activity is through pacing or activity management.

The person will work with a doctor to determine the best way to balance rest and activity. The doctor will also help them identify their personal triggers and establish how much exertion they can tolerate.

Sleep

ME/CFS causes fatigue and can also disrupt sleep. A doctor will encourage the person to establish healthy sleeping habits, such as a regular sleep schedule.

If these strategies do not help, the doctor may prescribe medication.

Pain

At first, a doctor may recommend over-the-counter (OTC) drugs for headaches and other types of pain. If these do not work, they may prescribe stronger medication.

A person with ME/CFS may be sensitive to various chemicals. Therefore, they should speak with a doctor before using any new medication.

Nondrug therapies that may help include:

- gentle stretching and toning exercises
- gentle massage
- heat therapy
- water therapy

Anxiety and depression

Anxiety and depression are common among people with ME/CFS. Antidepressant drugs may help some people, but they can sometimes make symptoms worse.

Lifestyle remedies that may help include:

- relaxation techniques
- massage
- deep breathing
- gentle exercise, such as tai chi or yoga

Experimental medicines

Some laboratory research has investigated the potential action of rituximab (Rituxan), a cancer drug that targets certain cells in the immune system, for treating ME/CFS.

However, more research is necessary to ensure that the drug is safe to use in the treatment of this condition. 

Lifestyle strategies for managing chronic fatigue syndrome

Various strategies can help people manage ME/CFS.

These include:

- finding a doctor who understands the condition
- seeking a counselor who can help manage the emotional and practical challenges
- making family and friends aware of the symptoms and challenges
- scheduling rest and activity times to maximize quality of life
- using calendars and journals to help with memory lapses
- learning which relaxation techniques are effective for them
- following a balanced and nutritious diet
- taking nutritional supplements if tests reveal a deficiency
- finding someone to help with child care and household chores at difficult times, if possible

What about exercise?

Gentle stretching, yoga, and tai chi might be helpful in some cases, and at the right time, but vigorous exercise can make symptoms worse.

The CDC notes that exercise plans that benefit many people with chronic diseases are not usually suitable for people with ME/CFS, and they may be dangerous.

People with symptoms or a diagnosis of ME/CFS should not follow any type of activity plan without discussing it with their doctor first.

Can I live a normal life with CFS?

ME/CFS affects people differently and can impact lives in different ways. People with mild ME/CFS may be able to go to work or school and function well in other areas of life, although they may need to plan their activities carefully and schedule plenty of rest.

People with moderate ME/CFS may have difficulty performing daily tasks and attending work or school. Those with severe impairment may need to use a wheelchair or spend a lot of time in bed. They will likely need help with daily activities. People may have severe impairment for months or even years.

What foods should I avoid with chronic fatigue?

There is no research to suggest that limiting certain foods helps with CFS. However, if people have symptoms of irritable bowel at the same time, they can try to:

- eat a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables
- avoid sugary foods and refined grains, such as white bread and pasta
- choose slow-release carbohydrates, such as brown rice, oats, and starchy vegetables
- drink plenty of water or unsweetened beverages
- avoid alcohol
- cut out junk food

Summary

ME/CFS is a life changing condition that can affect every aspect of a person’s daily life.

It can take time to get a diagnosis, as the symptoms are not specific but overlap with those of other conditions. Whether or not a person has a diagnosis, lifestyle strategies can help them manage the challenges.

Until scientists find a specific treatment, coping strategies will play a key role in managing ME/CFS.

Just finished watching 36 Hours (1964) and Don Quixote (1957)...

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Fatigue and Weakness With CFS: Why Rest Doesn't Help | CFS Recovery

https://cfsrecovery.com/symptoms/fatigue-weakness/

You're tired in a way that sleep doesn't fix. You wake up after 10 or 12 hours and feel like you haven't rested at all. Your muscles feel heavy, weak, like they've forgotten how to work. Walking to the kitchen feels like a workout. And no matter how much you rest, the exhaustion doesn't budge.

This isn't laziness. This isn't "just being tired." What you're experiencing has a real explanation, and it's one of the most common things people with CFS deal with every single day.

Your nervous system may be stuck in overdrive, and your muscles may have deconditioned on top of that. Both of these are commonly reversible.

What Does CFS Fatigue Actually Feel Like?

CFS fatigue is a deep, persistent exhaustion that doesn't improve with rest or sleep. It's one of the defining features of ME/CFS, reported by virtually 100% of people with the condition. It's also one of the most common symptoms in long COVID, fibromyalgia, and other nervous system conditions. But calling it "fatigue" barely scratches the surface of what it actually feels like.

It's not the tiredness you feel after a long day. It's the kind of exhaustion where your body feels like it's running through wet concrete. Your legs feel like they weigh twice what they should. Your arms struggle to lift a glass of water. Getting out of bed takes every ounce of willpower you have, and by the time you're standing, you already need to sit back down.

On top of the fatigue, there's the weakness. Your muscles feel like they've lost their strength. Tasks that used to be automatic now require conscious effort. Climbing stairs, carrying groceries, even holding your phone up: these things feel disproportionately hard.

The specifics vary person to person, but the pattern is consistent:

- Exhaustion that doesn't improve with sleep or rest
- Muscles that feel heavy, weak, or "jelly-like"
- Feeling physically drained after minimal activity
- Waking up feeling as tired (or more tired) than when you went to sleep
- Difficulty doing things that used to be effortless
- A "wired but tired" feeling where your body is exhausted but your mind won't shut off

If your blood tests come back normal and your doctors say nothing is wrong, that's actually useful information. It suggests the issue may be functional rather than structural. The nervous system could be what's keeping you stuck.

Why Fatigue and Weakness Happen With CFS

The fatigue and weakness you're feeling aren't random. They make perfect sense when you understand what's happening inside your body.

There are actually two things going on at the same time. The first is the nervous system piece. The second is physical deconditioning. Most people only focus on one. Understanding both is what changes things.

The nervous system piece

When your nervous system gets stuck in a chronic stress response (fight-or-flight mode), your body runs on adrenaline. It's like leaving the engine running 24/7. Your body is burning fuel constantly, even when you're lying still. That's why you feel exhausted even though you haven't done anything. Your body is working overtime behind the scenes, running stress responses, scanning for threats, keeping everything on high alert.

Research has documented that autonomic nervous system dysfunction is a consistent finding in ME/CFS. The system that's supposed to toggle between "active" and "rest" gets stuck in "active." That constant activation drains your energy reserves.

The deconditioning piece

On top of the nervous system fatigue, there's a physical reality: when you don't use your muscles, they weaken. It's called deconditioning, and it happens faster than most people realize. Studies show that healthy, active people can lose 25-30% of muscle strength after just two weeks of inactivity. If you've been stuck in bed or on the couch for months, significant muscle loss has occurred.

Picture this: if you put a cast on your arm for three months and then took it off, that arm would look and feel completely different from the other one. Not because something is wrong with the arm, but because muscles need regular use to maintain their strength. "Use it or lose it" is real.

1 The nervous system gets stuck in overdrive
Your body runs on adrenaline 24/7. Even lying still, your system is burning through energy reserves. You feel exhausted because your body is constantly in stress mode.

2 Inactivity leads to muscle deconditioning
Because you're too tired to move, your muscles start to weaken. The less you use them, the more they atrophy. Simple tasks start requiring more effort.

3 Weakness creates more fear and avoidance
Feeling weak is scary. It makes you want to rest more. But more rest means more deconditioning, which means more weakness. The spiral feeds itself.

4 The cycle reinforces both problems
The nervous system stays activated because you're stressed about the weakness. The muscles keep declining because you're not using them. Breaking this cycle requires addressing both pieces.

This is important to understand because it means the weakness you feel isn't all from CFS itself. A significant chunk of it is from the muscles not being used. And that part is very fixable.

CFS Fatigue vs. Normal Tiredness

Everyone gets tired. But CFS fatigue is fundamentally different from the tiredness healthy people experience. Here's how to tell the difference:

Normal Tiredness

Has a clear cause (long day, bad sleep, exercise), Improves after a good night of sleep, You can push through it with effort, Proportional to effort (more activity = more tired), Muscles feel tired but functional, Energy returns within a day or two of rest, Blood tests may show low iron, thyroid issues, etc.

CFS Fatigue

Often appears without an obvious trigger, Persists even after 10-12+ hours of sleep, Pushing through causes crashes that last days, Disproportionate (minimal effort = massive exhaustion), Muscles feel heavy, weak, or like "jelly", Rest doesn't restore energy. Can persist for weeks or months, Standard blood tests typically come back normal

If your experience matches the right column, that's a strong signal that your nervous system is involved. And that's actually hopeful, because nervous system patterns can change.

What Makes Fatigue and Weakness Worse

Fatigue fluctuates. Some days are more manageable than others. Understanding what drives the worst days helps you recognize the pattern instead of feeling blindsided by it.

Too much rest. This sounds counterintuitive, but it's one of the biggest traps. When you rest all day every day, your muscles continue to decondition. You lose more strength. And the weaker you get, the more effort simple tasks require, which makes the fatigue feel even worse. Rest is important, but too much of it feeds the downward spiral.

Pushing too hard. The opposite extreme is just as damaging. If you have a "good day" and try to do everything you've been missing, you'll often crash hard afterward. That crash reinforces fear and drives you back to resting, which starts the deconditioning cycle again.

Stress and fear about the fatigue. Worrying about why you're so tired, wondering if you'll ever feel normal, analyzing every symptom: all of these thoughts activate the nervous system further. More activation means more energy drain. The fatigue itself becomes a stressor that makes the fatigue worse.

Poor sleep quality. Even if you're sleeping 10+ hours, the quality of that sleep matters. When the nervous system is activated, sleep tends to be light and unrefreshing. You spend hours in bed without getting the deep, restorative sleep your body needs.

Running on adrenaline. Some people feel "wired but tired." Their body is exhausted, but their mind is racing. That's adrenaline. The nervous system keeps pumping stress hormones even when the body is depleted. This creates a cycle where you can't rest properly but also can't function properly.

The Age of the Independent Inventor

In this post, I will quote from ‘Paths of Fire: An Anthropologist’s Inquiry into Western Technology’ (1996) by Robert McCormick Adams. I think that I will make a post soon that will include my review of the TV shows The Boys (2019-2026) and Stranger Things (2016-2025). I watched the first two seasons of Stranger Things when they were released, but then lost interest in the series. I finished watching the series a few days ago. When it comes to The Boys, I watched the first three seasons when they were released, but then lost interest in the series. I finished watching this series a few months ago. Since I like to finish watching what I start, I had no doubt that I'd get around to finishing watching the two series someday. Cobra Kai (2018-2025) is another show that I have to finish watching. "The foregoing account of the increasing scale and productivity of industrial operations is important not only for the impressive duration and cumulative character it documents but for the systemic breakthrough to mass production that was a part of it. These features clearly were major contributors to America's climb to unchallenged industrial ascendancy from the Civil War era to the Great Depression and the buildup to World War II. But they were not the only contributors. Of comparable importance, at least in the earlier part of the period, were an impressive series of major inventions that permanently displaced the image of the United States as largely an adopter rather than innovator, and that associated American technology instead with a special kind of creative luster. Emerging from obscurity to occupy positions of great social esteem in the late nineteenth-century was a substantial group of remarkably prolific, characteristically independent, inventors who were largely responsible for these breakthroughs. It was an era when scientific research was only beginning to become identified with universities, and when industrial research capabilities also were still rudimentary. The relative weakness of these other avenues of innovation no doubt helps to account for the public adulation that the group achieved. But as Thomas Hughes's penetrating discussion of them illustrates, it cannot wholly explain either their many similarities in personality and approach or the extraordinary fecundity of their work. Thomas A. Edison (1847-1931), "the Wizard of Menlo Park," was by all odds the dominant figure as well as prototype of the group. With virtually no formal schooling, already as a telegraph operator in his youth he began to display what became a lifelong penchant for study and, especially, experiment. ("No experiments are useless," he once replied to a critical business associate.) A tirelessly committed, hunt-and-try pragmatist, he dismissed formal theory and was content to rely upon trusted subordinates for mathematical rigor as well as the construction of working models. But the record of his accomplishments, both before and after he established and led a team of co-workers in what became renowned as something close to a manufacturing production line for inventions, was by any measure extraordinary. The numbers are impressive enough he received over a thousand patents in sixty years. His expectation for the forthcoming schedule at Menlo Park, "a minor invention every ten days and a big thing every six months or so," was a realistic projection of the pace he had maintained during the early years of his inventive career. But no less impressive was the radical, rather than merely incremental, character of many of his and his staff's contributions. Beginning with an electrical vote recorder, a stock ticker, and automatic telegraph systems, he went on to an electric pen that presently developed into the mimeograph; the carbon transmitter that was fundamental to the introduction of the telephone; the phonograph; an early variant of the incandescent lamp; the "Edison effect" covering his observation of a flow of electric current from filament to plate in incandescent lamp bulbs - the principle at the heart of the later development of radio tubes and hence of an entire industry that would presently follow; and many improvements in dynamos and electric propulsion and distribution systems. Later, in the 1890s and beyond, his attention would be directed still more widely, to magnetic ore extraction, storage batteries, a "kinetescopic camera," and a variety of chemical processes. Almost mythical as this parade of interests and achievements seems, it is striking that there were others who were nearly as prolific. Elihu Thomson (1853-1937), concentrating on arc and incandescent lighting, alternating current transformers, motors, generators, and controls, electric meters, and high-frequency apparatus, also preferred to work with a small subordinate team isolated from other concerns, and held almost seven hundred patents. Francis H. Richards, Edward Weston, Alexander Graham Bell, and Nikolai Tesla are among many who exemplify roughly into the same pattern. Lee de Forest, Edwin H. Armstrong, and Wilbur and Orville Wright are further, somewhat later exemplars. Not all shared Edison's antagonism to formal science. Some had even received advanced European academic training and hence were familiar with James Clerk Maxwell's and Heinrich Rudolph Hertz's fundamental work on the propagation of radiomagnetic waves. Some, like Tesla, had a taste for overdramatic flamboyance that occasionally carried them outside the bounds of science. But they shared a burning concern to invent. Applying to the group as a whole is Thomas Hughes's remark on the Wright brothers: "Enthusiasm and a vague longing for fame and fortune explain more about their choice of inventing an airplane than do rational economic considerations." Elmer A. Sperry (1860-1930), holder of over 350 patents, is a variant from the pattern principally in that he became a successful manufacturer at the age of nineteen. Responsible for a succession of impressive achievements in the design and production of arc lights and search lights, he also introduced commercial electrolytic processes and designed and manufactured electric mining machinery and electric motors and transmissions for streetcars. Sperry's most enduring interests and contributions, however, lay in the direction of high-precision gyroscopic control devices. These found application in his introduction of the marine gyrocompass, automatic gyro-pilots for steering ships and stabilizing airplanes, gyrostabilizers for ships, and during World War I (in connection with his membership on the Naval Consulting Board) gyrocontrols for the guidance of submarine and aerial torpedos. All in all, the half-century or so after the Civil War saw in the United States an era of unparalleled inventive achievement. With independent inventors in the leadership, there was a tendency to concentrate on radical inventions for reasons both obvious and obscure. As noted, they were not constrained in their problem choices by mission-oriented organizations with high inertia. They prudently avoided choosing problems that would also be chosen by teams of researchers and developers working in company engineering departments or industrial laboratories. Psychologically they had an outsider's mentality; they also sought the thrill of a major technological transformation. Carried along with this transformative spirit, and with accompanying industrial growth, was a cultural outlook of sweeping technological optimism and even omnipotence; technology rather than science, for the role accorded to science and scientists was generally a subordinate one. Yet rising mainly from obscure origins and with access to rigorous scientific training only in a few cases, this highly unusual clustering of inventors made an extraordinary contribution to the amenities of modern civilization that we now take for granted. Technological advance in America changed in character as it approached the modern era. At least in some sectors, of which the manufacture of farm equipment is one, there is evidence of a transitional stage of organized product improvement before the full development of corporate research laboratories. An "inventive profession" was recruited into corporate ranks, composed not of academically trained scientists and engineers but of craftsmen with practical experience in farm-machine shops and a track record of some earlier success as small-scale entrepreneur-patentees. The trend may have begun slowly as early as the 1850s, but from 1870 onward most patents concerned with some of the technologically more complex machine requirements were received by hired professionals. From the mid-1870s onward, Rosenberg and Birdzell rightly speak of the most promising and active sector of the technological frontier turning away from exploitation of the long-familiar, visible world of mechanical objects and machine components. Beginning to receive attention instead was a hitherto invisible world of electromagnetic forces and microscopic or submicroscopic particles. This latter world offered few immediate attractions for the technological innovator. In order to enter it at all, new levels of organizational support needed to be assured not only for long-term investigative efforts but for expensive instrumentation and laboratory facilities. Specialization was also becoming more necessary as the knowledge base in science and technology advanced. To an increasing degree, new inventions and innovations came to depend on the collaborative efforts of specialists. Individual inventors played a smaller and progressively declining part; even Thomas Edison stood at the head of a substantial staff and laboratory devoted to the business of invention. Before long a fundamental division of labor would appear between “work done by basic scientists, functioning in what amounted to an autonomous sector of their own, pursuing knowledge for its own sake, and funded by grants and subsidies not directly linked to economic values, on the one hand, and work done by industrial scientists, functioning in the economic sector, and funded on the basis of the economic value of their work, on the other.” By 1890, the situation had begun to change more rapidly. For physicists, and more especially mathematicians, nonacademic employment opportunities still were not numerous. A number of universities, on the other hand, had succeeded in establishing relationships with local industries that as yet lacked research facilities of their own. Records probably do not exist from which to plot the pattern with any accuracy, but Nathan Rosenberg and Richard Nelson have recently offered their general impression that "a century ago a large share of American university research was very much 'hands-on' problem-solving." Simultaneously, universities were evolving in the direction of offering some support for their faculties' less immediately utilitarian, basic research, and being recognized as an advantageous setting for it. Moreover, a new situation had begun to present itself in the rapidly expanding electric power industry. Despite the continuing public adulation of Edison and his own tenacious efforts, he was demonstrably losing his battle to prevent the victory of alternating current generation over the direct current networks he had introduced. With this defeat went a loss of opportunities for many self-taught technicians or even empirically trained engineers to retain their former leadership against academically better-trained counterparts. The prodigously growing utilization of steel provides perhaps the earliest example of industry's discovery of the need for growing numbers of trained scientists. Bessemer converters of the 1850s had opened the door to relatively cheap and plentiful steel production. "One part fuel in the Bessemer process equalled 6 or 7 parts in the old method of steelmaking, and comparison of labor and machinery requirements would yield similar results." But while effective in removing carbon and silicon as impurities in molten iron, phosphorus in any concentration was left as an unresolved problem. Moreover, the process proceeded so quickly, with so little opportunity for intervention or control by the operators, that it was difficult to specify the properties of the resultant product within commercially acceptable limits. A need quickly appeared, therefore, for quantitative chemical analysis. Low-cost steel became a resource of enormous importance in practically every industrial field. Iron rails of Civil War vintage would support only eight-ton rolling stock before wearing out in a couple of years. The steel rails of 1905 carried seventy-ton cars and lasted ten years. In transportation in high-performance machinery of all kinds, in steel girders for bridges and the new multistory buildings, in agricultural equipment, and presently in the fabricating of automobiles and airplanes, reliable steel components were a critical constituent. The transition from the Bessemer process to open-hearth furnaces contributed to this end, permitting the use of a wider range of iron ores and facilitating the widening use of alloys that met increasingly demanding specifications. But the essential point is that already by the early years of this century chemical analysis, and hence trained chemists, became an essential part of the process. Before the turn of the century General Electric had already organized a semi-autonomous consulting-engineering department, essentially an R & D laboratory-under the renowned Charles P. Steinmetz. Here ways were found to prepare tungsten lamp filaments that were ductile rather than brittle, and to achieve important results in the design of radio tubes and other electronic equipment. The American Bell Telephone Company (later AT&T) similarly began to strengthen its engineering department during the 1890s, and soon afterward, faced with eroding patent protection of some of its key products, took steps leading to the founding of the great Bell Laboratories. From the limited available data, however, it appears that by the early years of the twentieth century the dominant area of industrial research activity lay in chemistry and its offshoots. Electrical machinery and instruments provided less than 10 percent of total industrial research employment in 1921, while by contrast slightly more than 40 percent and an almost equivalent proportion of all the new industrial laboratories opened during the entire 1899-1946 period was attached to the chemicals, glass, rubber, and petroleum industries. The industrial demand for organic chemists also swelled as new products and by-products proliferated. Drug, food-processing, and petroleum works identified a new need for organic chemists. The gross proportions are reported to have remained "remarkably stable," modified only by an increasing research intensity on the part of the automobile industry, even while there was a tenfold growth in total employment at industrial laboratories between 1921 and 1940. Already by the turn of the century, the president of the American Chemical Society could claim that "many of the more important [industrial] works have corps of chemists numbering from 10 to 50, while very many more have smaller numbers." Du Pont's consistent policy of investing heavily in R & D laboratories, employing numbers of professional chemists that were a full order of magnitude higher than even the larger of those suggested earlier, followed by the time of World War I. Out of this complex presently came the firm's entry into the production of tetraethyl lead, cellophane films, freon refrigerant, and rayon. Later still, Du Pont was responsible for the major commercial successes of neoprene and nylon, although the bulk of Du Pont's other innovations during the interwar period were acquired rather than originating in its own research laboratories."

Glen Schofield says EA recently turned down his Dead Space 4 proposal | VGC

https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/glen-schofield-says-ea-recently-turned-down-his-dead-space-4-proposal/

Electronic Arts reportedly rejected a Dead Space 4 proposal from series creator Glen Schofield and other developers who worked on the original game.

Schofield directed the 2008 survival horror game, while Bret Robbins was its creative director and Christopher Stone was the animation director.

The trio discussed wanting to make Dead Space 4 in a recent interview with Dan Allen Gaming (via Resetera).

“We tried actually, you know, the three of us yeah, we tried Dead Space 4,” Schofield said.

“All three of us sat there and wanted to do it,” Stone added.

Schofield said discussions took place this year, but EA rejected the idea.

“Well we didn’t go too deep, they just said no, we’re not interested right now, we appreciate it, blah blah blah, and you know, we know who to talk to, so we didn’t go take it any further, and we respected their opinion you know, they know their numbers and what they have to ship and all that.”

“The industry is in a weird place right now,” Stone said. “People are really hesitant to take chances on things, so you’ve got to you know, take it with a grain of salt, who knows, maybe one day, I think we’d all love to do it.”

“Yeah, we’ve got some ideas,” Schofield added.

In April, a pair of reports claimed that the Dead Space franchise was on hold after sales of the most recent game failed to meet EA’s expectations.

Dead Space remake studio Motive was reportedly keen to make another series entry after the franchise returned to critical acclaim in January 2023, but its plans were said to have been scuppered by lacklustre sales.

The claims followed EA’s announcement that Motive had joined its wider Battlefield development team.

Mark Hamill vs Star Wars The Last Jedi

Mark Hamill and his dislike for Star Wars The Last Jedi...

Homeless by Thomas Benjamin Kennington, 1890.

Now listening to The Captain And Me by the Doobie Brothers and Take It While It's Hot by Sweet Sensation...

On St. Georges Avenue in North Vancouver. Spring of 2019.

St. Georges Avenue is a residential street in North Vancouver, a scenic city across the Burrard Inlet from Vancouver, known for its blend of urban amenities and natural beauty (e.g., proximity to the North Shore Mountains). It runs through the Central Lonsdale neighborhood, a bustling area with shops, restaurants, and community services. The street is part of a well-connected residential zone, with easy access to key local landmarks and transit options, making it a desirable place to live or visit.

The Saint George Apartments is a multi-faceted community on or near St. Georges Avenue. It offers studio, 1-bedroom, 2-bedroom apartments, and 3-bedroom townhomes, featuring amenities like in-suite laundry, in-floor radiant heating, and stainless-steel appliances. Located near Central Lonsdale, it’s close to Lonsdale Quay Market, retail shops, and outdoor attractions like water and mountain vistas. It emphasizes a “better way of life,” appealing to those seeking modern living with access to nature, suggesting St. Georges Avenue is a hub for young professionals, families, or retirees.

St. Georges Avenue is well-integrated into the city’s road network, accessible via major arteries like Lonsdale Avenue. Its location near Central Lonsdale places it within walking distance of public transit (e.g., SeaBus to Vancouver) and the Highway 1 corridor, enhancing connectivity.

As of 2025, North Vancouver’s real estate remains competitive, with Central Lonsdale seeing steady demand due to its amenities and views. Prices for condos or apartments on St. Georges Avenue likely range from CAD 600,000 to over CAD 1 million, depending on size and condition.

Central Lonsdale, where St. Georges Avenue is located, is known for its vibrant community feel, with local favorites like the Lonsdale Quay Market offering fresh produce and artisan goods. The area’s proximity to parks (e.g., Lynn Canyon) and outdoor activities aligns with Vancouver’s active lifestyle culture. The population includes a mix of young families, professionals, and older residents, with a growing international community reflecting North Vancouver’s diversity. North Vancouver is generally safe, with low crime rates compared to Vancouver proper. St. Georges Avenue’s residential nature suggests a quiet, family-friendly environment, though its central location means some traffic noise.

St. Georges Avenue in North Vancouver is a residential street in the heart of Central Lonsdale, offering modern living options like The Saint George apartments, strong connectivity, and proximity to shopping and nature. It’s an attractive spot for those seeking a balanced urban-outdoor lifestyle, with a real estate market reflecting its desirability.

 

Codex Benedictus

https://www.facsimilefinder.com/facsimiles/codex-benedictus-facsimile

The Codex Benedictus, also known as the Cassinese Lectionary, is an impressive example of a vitae, or Saints’ Lives, in both size and content. It was made in Montecassino in the Benevento region of Southern Italy around 1071. The manuscript describes the life of Saint Benedict — the founding saint of Montecassino abbey — whose relics reputedly still reside in the church there. It also describes the lives of his twin sister, Saint Scholastica, and his first oblate, Saint Maur.

The manuscript reveals a great deal about the milieu in which it was made and informs on the working practices of the artists during this time. It is among the larger of the extant vitae, being 37 cm x 25 cm, and its 262 parchment folios are in generally excellent condition.

Born in Nursia, Italy, Benedict, who died around 560, is an important figure in the development of Christian religious practices. While at the community of Montecassino, he established a set of rules for both monks and laymen, which were to shape Western monasticism for centuries and which are still observed in some monasteries today.

The Codex Benedictus was made during a period of great artistic endeavor under the abbacy of Desiderius (1058–1087). Intent on repairing the crumbling abbey, he also commissioned many works of art including mosaics, wall paintings, and lavishly illuminated manuscripts. Considered one of the most important of the illuminated manuscripts made at Montecassino, it not only features the life of their founding saint, but is also one of the few remaining examples of artistic works from Montecassino of this period.

The parchment used is of the highest quality, and a wide range of pigments are employed on the extensive pictorial programs of the saints’ lives. Gold is used throughout but is particularly employed to decorate the ornate, full-page initials, all of which attest to this lectionary as an exceptionally luxurious object.

Evidence of Ottonian and Byzantine Styles

The manuscript has an unusually large number of depictions for a vitae: sixty-five multi-scene miniatures for Benedict and twenty-nine for Maur. The depictions reflect the increasing impact of Byzantine images in the West. The full-page initials are derived from and interpret earlier traditions using gold, vibrant colors, and animals, to enliven the interlaced forms (fols. 3v, 53r, 72v).

With its wealth of images for the separate cycles of Benedict and Maur, the Codex Benedictus is clearly the work of several artists. These artists not only employ different techniques but also have different skill levels, as evidenced in some images by unsatisfactory drapery, badly-proportioned heads, and poorly-detailed facial features. Some depictions also show evidence of highly-skilled execution with minor involvement by a lesser-skilled artist.

The artists employed a model as the basis for the depictions which may have emanated from Rome. One indicator of such a source are two tenth-century frescos found in the church of St. Crisogono in Rome which are replicated almost identically on fols. 31r and 61r. Other depictions may reflect an earlier model, but unique details demonstrate the artists adapted and included their own innovative style.

Some initials are closely allied to those found in Ottonian manuscripts, but the artists improved the style to create their own versions (fols. 18v, 87v). Large initials and small capitals employ red dots to decorate the shapes. Terminals and mid-sections are accented by large interlace knots, in some cases including beaked monsters and dogs (fols. 3v, 53r, 72v, 259v).

An Enduring Script

Written in Beneventan minuscule, the text shows no evidence of haste in the clear, precise rendition of the letters. This is indicative of the desire to produce an item of quality, where rushed letter forms might indicate pressure to complete, for whatever reason. The scribe is thought to be the monk, Leone, also possibly responsible for Codex Casinensis 99 and the Exultet Scroll, Vat. Lat. 3784.

Historians named the script after the Benevento region in which it flourished in southern Italy. Early versions of the style date from the late eighth century, and it evolved and remained in use until the end of the thirteenth. Among other identifiable traits, it is characterized by an extensive use of ligatures, giving the text a particularly pleasing visual appearance.

The apogee of the style is considered to be during Desiderius’ abbacy. The letter forms during this period demonstrate a regularity and precision which contributes to the overall appearance of the script and is evident in the Codex Benedictus.

A Lavish Liturgical Manuscript

Produced during the abbacy of Desiderius (1058–87) while undertaking the reconstruction of Montecassino abbey, the manuscript was intended for liturgical use on the abbey’s important feast days of Saints Benedict, Scholastica, and Maur.

The abbey’s inventory indicates it was located there during the papacy of Paul II (1464-1471). Subsequently, the inventory of around 1475 lists it in the Vatican Library collection.

History of Soviet Architecture and City Planning (Part 9, Post-WWII Reconstruction)

This 9th episode discusses the Post-WWII reconstruction in the USSR.

SOURCES*

Andreĭ Vladimirovich Ikonnikov, Russian architecture of the Soviet period

Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism

A. Palladin, "The Ruined Cities Are Reborn", USSR information bulletin, Volume VIII, no. 14, July 28, 1948

Robert Dale, “Divided we Stand: Cities, Social Unity and Post–War Reconstruction in Soviet Russia, 1945–1953”, Contemporary European History, Vol. 24, No. 4, Special Issue: Urban Societies in Europe (November 2015)

Alexei Tarkhanov, Stalinist architecture

Maurice Frank Parkins, City planning in soviet Russia

Hans Blumenfeld, "USSR Postwar Reconstruction", TASK Planning and Architecture, Vol. 7-8, special issue on Reconstruction (published by Harvard University), 1948

I. Vizen, "Prefabricated Housing Booms in USSR As New Buildings Rise", USSR information bulletin, Volume VIII, no. 23, December 8, 1948

A. Bazdyrev, “History of Soviet Architecture: From Palaces to Boxes”

*Tarkhanov, Parkins and Dale are capitalist authors whose work I don’t recommend. Ikonnikov is a revisionist whose work is of varying quality. Fundamentals of ML is a revisionist textbook, which should be read only very critically. Blumenfeld is a liberal but his writings are good. Bazdyrev is also a good author. I also recommend the USSR information bulletin.

Just finished watching Do Not Disturb (1965) and The Devils (1971)...

Just finished watching Drishyam: The Conclusion (2026) and Other Mommy (2026)...

Ford Model T and the advent of mass production

In this post, I will quote from ‘Paths of Fire: An Anthropologist’s Inquiry into Western Technology’ (1996) by Robert McCormick Adams. I think that I finished reading this book almost a year ago. Obviously, I won't be quoting everything from the book on my blog, but I did highlight many pages from it, surprisingly more than I thought I would because the book hasn't become one of my favorites. Still, I did find slightly more than half of the information in it to be interesting. The book isn't available on Google Books, unfortunately. I was able to buy it in very good condition at a used books store. Since it was published in 1996, my copy of the book is already thirty years old. It's far from the oldest book that I own. "At least up until World War II, the refinement of techniques of mass production was probably the most significant American contribution to industrial technology. It was not an unalloyed new discovery, of course; major technological breakthroughs seldom are. Fundamental to it were all of the slowly and dearly won lessons of "armory practice" that eventually gave substance to the American system of manufacture. Then those lessons had to be re-adapted or learned anew by companies needing to demonstrate their competitiveness in order to obtain access to capital markets, as well as to meet the test of the market for their products. But with due regard for its lengthy evolutionary origins, mass production was still a development that was immediately hailed as revolutionary upon its first, full appearance at the Ford Motor Company. And since then it has been consistently and universally recognized as one of the main pillars of effective industrial practice. Only a wide-ranging economic, social, and cultural history could do justice to the way mass production has continued to unfold over the last ninety years or so. Moreover, it is only part - although a major part of the dramatic expansions of scale and reductions of cost clearing the way for the flood of new consumer products that have, over roughly the same period of time, found mass markets and led to the creation of whole industries. A suitably balanced - let alone full account of these developments would detract from this book's principal concern with the major characteristics of technological advance, and would in any case quickly outweigh the longer-term themes on which it concentrates. From this point forward, therefore, attention will be limited to only a few of the most salient features of technological advance and the industrial products or processes embodying them. But by any reckoning, the automobile belongs at or near the head of the list. In terms of the ensemble of fabricating and assembling methods involved in its manufacture, the automobile was in most respects a linear descendant of approaches developed for other, newly devised consumer durables for which there proved to be heavy and increasing demand. The line of that descent, modified along the way to take account of the vastly greater complexity of the product, is the overly narrow technological theme on which considerations of space force me to concentrate. But the automobile was also the triggering mechanism for a revolutionary economic and social transformation. Virtually every pattern of American life has come to be built around the automobile as a mode of indefinitely flexible, individualized transportation - and, indeed, of self-expression. It would be difficult to overestimate the number of subsidiary, component, and service industries that have the automobile at or near their center. The automobile has been accurately described as European by invention and American by adoption. Its early development, beginning in the 1890s, was directed exclusively at a small elite market. The key initial advances in small internal engines were made to meet this very limited demand, taking advantage of better-developed European roads. But beginning little more than a decade later in the United States, and taking advantage of its existing infrastructure of industrial technology better able to sustain mass production of complex machinery, the automobile became the material manifestation of an entirely different vision of economical mass transportation. James Vance has identified what he describes as a series of "great ratchets" in American automobile ownership, linking them to phases of improvement and extension in American city streets and rural highways. Licensed automobile ownership rose from seventy-eight thousand in 1905 to one million in 1912, ten million in 1921, and thirty million in 1937. The earliest phase saw only limited improvement of facilities; the concerted effort on roads began later. But it did also see the introduction of easily serviced, reliable, reasonably powerful, and above all economical vehicles designed to operate even on an unimproved road system. Paramount among them was the Ford Model T, which unquestionably provided the primary stimulus leading to the development of the entire interdependent automobile system. To understand the full magnitude of the transformation it effected, we need to return to the gradually expanding implementation of the American system of manufacture that led the way to it. Cyrus McCormick, the dominant figure, has a largely undeserved reputation for having taken early leadership in introducing the American system, particularly for substituting special-purpose machinery for hand labor and for producing truly interchangeable parts, into the manufacture of reapers and other agricultural equipment. McCormick farm equipment had a solid reputation for basic design and quality, buttressed by success in competitive tests. But as already noted, the company's success was largely based for many years on its prowess in marketing. Only in the early 1880s, thirty years after he is commonly reputed to have done so, did McCormick finally hire personnel who could bring his mode of manufacturing up to the standard of the national armories where mass production methods had first been demonstrated. Treadle-powered sewing machines, introduced in the early 1850s, made an earlier and more substantial, but nevertheless still qualified, technological contribution in terms of interchangeability of parts. Once again, marketing prowess had much to do with their vast popular success. Almost at the outset of their appearance, the applicability of armory practice - the most fully developed form of the American system - was quickly demonstrated by a few manufacturers. On the other hand, the Singer Manufacturing Company, before long coming to dominate the industry, continued to rely for many years on "what contemporaries called the European approach to manufacture - skilled workers using general-purpose machine tools and extensive hand labor." Finally, as annual production approached a half-million units in the early 1880s, more or less contemporaneously with McCormick, the company recognized the necessity of adopting the production of fully interchangeable parts as a goal. But as David Hounshell, the leading student of this transition, goes on to record in detail, "to the dismay of many, Singer's production experts found that such a goal was not easy to achieve. Indeed, manuscript records end before there is clear evidence that Singer realized its goal". Bicycle manufacture proved to be a more significant intervening step along the uphill climb to the successful mass production of automobiles. Armory practice was introduced and perfected for a rapidly growing market, in what was viewed at the time as its first widespread adoption. Then midwestern producers during the 1880s and 1890s pioneered in the stamping of bicycle parts out of sheet steel, a technique initially regarded as "cheap and sorry" by contemporaries although later it proved to be vital in automobile manufacture. And valuable experience was gained in the production and utilization of ball bearings and other high-precision parts where ruggedness and durability were essential. The introduction of Ford's Model T in 1908 represented a new synthesis of manufacturing practices. Well-established lessons of armory practice and pressed-steel construction played their part. Now, however, they were embedded in a more comprehensive approach that extended from radical improvements in manufacturing technology to vehicle design, and even to a heightened sensitivity to marketing requirements. In manufacturing, there were innovations like multiple machining and new assembly methods, with conveyor systems becoming ubiquitous as labor-savers. These and other new concepts "remained the industry standard for decades... The spark advance and the torque tube, for example, marked a mating of technologies - electrical control concepts to the thermodynamics of engine design - that advanced and displaced the conventions of carriage makers... The market implications of the innovations of this period are well illustrated in the case of... vanadium steel alloy... [Its application] in engines and chassis components was an important part of the development of a lightweight vehicle. When Ford and his engineers found an alloy that afforded three times the design strength of traditional materials... they were released from many old constraints that had been adopted from carriage technologies." As Hounshell notes, Ford production men, given free rein to experiment, were responsible for "a surprising rate of scrapping processes and machine tools," but more importantly "added fresh thinking about work sequences, tool design, and controlling the pace of work." At the time, as in hindsight, it seemed that the Ford Motor Company did not want to make money as much as it wanted to build cars." The automobile industry provides an instructive illustration of an internal dynamic in the production of complex machinery. Technological improvements in one area can stimulate and interact with others, thus tending to preserve a kind of self-generating momentum. While these findings of Nathan Rosenberg seem to implicate technology as a kind of "prime mover," it clearly is so only in a very circumscribed sense and setting. Machine tool features and techniques, for example, not only were developed in response to automobile production requirements but began to borrow and embody innovations introduced for the automobiles themselves. The introduction of the moving assembly line, developed initially for the assembly of magnetos, was perhaps Ford's decisive innovation. An accompanying measure, successfully compensating for the increased stress the line placed upon the labor force, was the unprecedented incentive of the five-dollar day. In early 1913, first adopting the objective of reaching a mass market, assembly of a Model T required twelve hours and twenty-eight minutes; little more than a year later this had been reduced to an hour and a half. By 1920, in consequence, half of the automobiles in all the world were Model T's. In its heyday, steeply reduced purchase costs as well as escalating sales mark the success of what has been rightly described as a lever to move the world. Ford's reliance on time and motion studies to analyze work flow patterns and establish standardized work routines clearly was integral to the radical economies that were introduced into the production process. In these respects, the approach closely resembles the doctrines of "Taylorism," made widely influential at the time by Frederick W. Taylor. But there were also fundamental differences, and it is the differences that help to explain why mass production is now worldwide in scope while Taylorism has essentially disappeared from view: "The Ford approach was to eliminate labor by machinery, not, as the Taylorites customarily did, to take a given production process and improve the efficiency of the workers through time and motion study and a differential piece-rate system of payment (or some such work incentive). Taylor took production as a given and sought revisions in labor processes and organization of work; Ford engineers mechanized work processes and found workers to feed and tend their machines." All of the most essential principles of mass production are exemplified by the installation of the Ford assembly line. Little would be gained by describing its later diffusion and refinements. With the onset of the 1929 depression, in any case, the mass consumer purchasing power needed to sustain high and growing levels of mass production suffered serious and sustained losses. Assembly lines crept back to life again beginning in the later 1930s. But they did not once again fully express the levels of output of complex machinery of which mass production methods were capable, or the speed with which those levels could be reached, until the country was faced with urgent military necessities as a consequence of World War II. The earliest full development of the principles of mass production is probably the most salient U.S. contribution to industrialization. As noted, principles of standardization of labor inputs and components, emphasis on the employment of special-purpose machinery, and the maintenance of a high and uniform rate of throughput had their origins well back in the nineteenth century. They were brought together in a remarkable way during the first few decades of the twentieth. Although modified in some important ways that will be discussed in the following chapter, they remain generally intact and viable today. However, this should not be taken to imply that mass production principles were, or ever could be, applicable in every setting. Large-scale, mass production enterprises form only one end of a very diverse continuum, and this was especially true in the earlier decades of the twentieth century. Nor were all of the enterprises distributed closer to the other end of the continuum weak and struggling. In fact, some of them made significant contributions of their own to advancing technological frontiers. A wide array of products and types of markets simply continued to be best fitted for approaches that are in many senses an antithesis of mass production. Among these were batch work, specialty production involving continuing adaptations and excellence of design, and products requiring a highly skilled, versatile, and motivated work force ready to respond to time-critical, diverse orders with primarily general-purpose machinery. Locomotives, ships, turbines and generators, machine tools, paper and woodworking machinery, mining equipment, castings, fashion apparel, jewelry, and furniture all are good examples, and "all helped define American technical prowess." Baldwin paid its locomotive workers far higher than European wages, for example, but the worker-years required for building its products were only half those of its European competitors. Philip Scranton, who has devoted careful study to this industrial niche, does not minimize the harshly uncertain environments within which such firms had to operate: "Unlike their throughput counterparts, batch firms could never sustain the illusion that they could control their market environments, manage technological change, and use formal rationality to make decisions. Theirs was a world of decision making under uncertainty, of extravagantly imperfect information, and of contingencies that pulled them beyond the boundaries of the firm." Yet for a considerable time they contributed significantly to the historical process by which American industry achieved world dominance. Many of the firms occupying this difficult niche not only survived but grew until the Great Depression of the 1930s. Subsequently many of them, or at any rate their functions, were absorbed into more broadly constituted corporate entities. But whether under one consolidated corporate roof or many independent ones, the diversity of manufacturing approaches they practiced remains alive and well today."

Remasters: You Don't Hate Them Enough

Now listening to Countdown To Extinction by Megadeth and City Of Angels by Gabriel Yared...

On Bute Street in Downtown Vancouver. Spring of 2019.

Bute Street is a vibrant and historically rich corridor running north-south through downtown Vancouver, connecting the historic West End neighborhood right down to the Coal Harbour waterfront. It serves as both a busy urban connector and a key cultural hub for the city.

The southern stretch of Bute Street intersects with Davie Street, forming the heart of Vancouver's queer community, celebrated for its iconic rainbow crosswalks and lively neighborhood atmosphere.

At its northern end, Bute terminates near the Vancouver Convention Centre and Coal Harbour seawall, providing seamless access to scenic walking and cycling paths along Burrard Inlet.

Lined with residential towers, local businesses, cafes, and historic trees, the street balances quiet neighborhood charm with immediate proximity to downtown's commercial core.