At first, all Sophia Young wanted was to find a job until she could find a husband. Instead, she finds herself working for Scott Kraft, a notoriously unpredictable and demanding tech mogul. She soon becomes more interested in her work in investor relations than in getting married, which she never planned on. She is quickly promoted and becomes an asset at Kraft’s new business, an animation company called Treehouse that’s set to disrupt the movie industry. Fans of Pixar, Apple and Steve Jobs will enjoy the parallels between Jobs and the fictional Kraft. Kraft, who founded a revolutionary technology company called Quince before taking over Treehouse, also creates the first wave of smart phones, known as “Q-phones.” Similarly, author Anna Yen pays homage to Pixar, where she herself worked in investor relations. In the book, Treehouse creates movies like “The Amazings,” and “Treasures,” which seem to be a nod to Pixar’s real-life movies “The Incredibles” and “Toy Story.” As Sophia becomes

History makes a great story when it’s told well. And who can resist a good story? I certainly can’t. Having been a history major in undergrad, I may be particularly susceptible. So when I came across Matthew Kneale’s new book, “Rome: A History In Seven Sackings” in the leisure reading collection at Pattee Library, I had to check it out. There are many histories of long-lived cities. Paris, London, Jerusalem and Rome have all had more than a few treatments. But every so often a writer looks at a history like this in a different way, and that makes it all the more interesting. Kneale’s choice of looking at Rome through seven different times it was conquered over the millennia is a particularly intriguing choice. Beginning with an early, brief occupation in 387 B.C. and continuing up to the Second World War, it is an engrossing tale. Organizing the history of Rome around these seven “sackings” offers fascinating snapshots of the city at specific moments in time. Together, they weave a

“It was as black in the closet as old blood. They had shoved me in and locked the door. I breathed heavily through my nose, fighting desperately to remain calm.” So begins “Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie,” the first book in the “Flavia de Luce” murder mystery series by Alan Bradley. What appears to be a rather violent kidnapping is actually just the latest episode in a running battle between 11-year-old Flavia and her two older sisters, 13-year-old Daphne and 17-year-old Ophelia. Fortunately, Flavia turns out to be quite capable of holding her own against her sisters by using her love of chemistry to inflict the odd rash or occasional bout of indigestion on them. Set in rural England in the early 1950s, the series follows Flavia as she travels the countryside seeking adventure on Gladys, her trusty two-wheeled steed and partner in all adventures. In many ways, Flavia is a youthful reincarnation of Don Quixote. Her ability to imagine all kinds of possibilities in ordinary situations

“What does a landscape dream of in its unsettled dreams?” Todd Davis’s newest collection of poems, titled “Native Species,” opens with this question. The question is gentle and idle. It’s the kind of thing you ask yourself while half-asleep on a streambank on a hot day. But then there’s that word “unsettled.” The landscape may be “settled.” It may be cultivated into farm and town… but its dreams are unsettled, uneasy, perhaps even wild. As the poem winds through images of a flooded house, the reader becomes unsettled, too. And is reminded that landscapes––including the ones that humans shape––can shift in ways that we do not expect or control. Todd Davis excels at this kind of movement––the kind that starts in streambank idling but ends in a landslide. Or, just as often, the kind that begins in an abstract concept and distills into a single, sparkling image. In “Native Species,” his sixth full-length collection of poetry, Davis returns to themes his readers will find familiar:

“The Tangled Tree: A Radical New History of Life” offers those who usually read novels a chance to enjoy ‘creative non-fiction.’ This book is a well-told narrative about the molecular building blocks of life and how they evolved. David Quammen accepts the challenge of documenting the advancement of evolutionary life science while revealing its significance to all of our lives. Quammen also gives us insight into the vibrant communities of scientists carrying out similar work. Quammen begins by introducing the image of the Tree of Life. He describes how it has evolved from the image of a ladder-to-heaven in ancient and medieval thinking into Darwin’s branching, upward-growing tree. Quammen closes his introduction with his own surprising proposition. He suggests Darwin’s tree image is no longer the precise metaphor for what life is. Quammen introduces each new evolutionary twist and turn until the new Tree of Life ends up looking more like a web than an upwardly-reaching tree with

"The Swerve: How the World Became Modern" by Stephen Greenblatt is the biography of a man named Poggio Bracciolini, and the history of a poem titled "On the Nature of Things." Bracciolini began adult life as a scribe, which is the 15th Century version of a notary public. It was a useful, but not unique, position in what is now Italy. Despite his humble beginnings, Bracciolini used his intelligence, charm, and exceptional penmanship to become the personal secretary to Pope John XXII. That was quite an achievement for a person of common birth. But, it was Bracciolini’s avocation as a book collector that gave him a place in history. Bracciolini spent much free time - and money - searching for rare manuscripts in the monastic libraries of Europe. In particular, he looked for manuscripts containing the works of ancient Greek philosophers. In January 1417, he found a manuscript of the poem, "On the Nature of Things.” Written by Titus Lucretius Carus around 50 B.C.E., "On the Nature of Things

How do we love the land, even as we participate in doing damage to it? How do we honor those who have come before us, even as we acknowledge the destruction they advanced? These are the questions that came to me as I read “Pennsylvania Furnace” a new book of poems by Julie Swarstad Johnson. In poems that weave effortlessly, sometimes magically, between past and present, Johnson considers the significance of resource extraction in relation to American lives. Her poems step back and forth across the continent, juxtaposing the Arizona desert-cities of the author’s home with the ridges and valleys of central Pennsylvania. Here in Appalachia, where her parents are from, Johnson finds the remnants of Pennsylvania’s booming 19 th -century ironmaking industry and goes on a journey to learn about those old furnace stacks that stand, as one poem puts it, “like lone towers left from fortresses / by the roadside.” Like students of this local history who came before her, Johnson acknowledges that

We will be having two large size format flagship stores, one in Delhi and one in Bombay (price points between INR 100- 10,00,000) whereas THT gifting will have products ranging from INR.1000 – Rs.5000. Our endeavour is that THT Gifting reaches 50 in terms of the number of stores in the next five years--JJ Valaya

Wonderchef, a Rs 200-crore company had recently entered north Indian market by launching its first flagship store in Gurugram.

Prestige will also be launching new products in water purifier segment.

Sanjeev Kapoor's business ventures range from premium cookware and appliances brand Wonderchef to TV channel FoodFood to a chain of restaurants across India and abroad.

With this addition, Wonderchef has 10 exclusive brand outlets in the country besides its omni-channel presence across 5000 retail outlets, it said in a release.

Ravi Saxena, MD, Wonderchef emphasizes that it is the best time to award industry status to retail sector for overall economic growth.

Founded in 2009 by Kapoor and former Sodexo Pass India MD Ravi Saxena, the company sells premium kitchen appliances, cookware and bakeware under the Wonderchef brand.

TPG’s investment comes at a time when Livspace is also strengthening its offline network of experiential stores across top cities.

We expect to make up Kerala losses in September, October and November as the state rebuilds its economy.

The state government is looking to re-introduce the old tradition, where steel or other metal utensils were taken on rent from vendors and community stores. Over the years, disposable plates, glasses, cups and other utensils have gained popularity, replacing the system.

​​The Borosil group, which comprises two listed entities Borosil Glass Works Ltd and Gujarat Borosil Ltd, expects to attain a combined turnover of around Rs 1,000 crore in the current financial year and from there, it hopes that it has "potential" to double it in the next 4-5 years.

Besides, TTK Prestige has plans to expand its distribution network further and expects higher sales from fast-growing online channels.

“He is well-acquainted with the working culture of large global brands, which puts him at the right position to take charge of reinforcing Stovekraft’s position as the market leader in the FMCD (fast moving consumer durables) space,” chairman and MD Rajendra Gandhi said.

“We see this second round of investment from TCA as a token of faith. We have grown 500% over the previous financial year and on track for very aggressive growth next year as well.” said Jagadeesh Kumar of The Indus Valley.

According to the statement released by the company, Srivastava, an alumnus of IIM-Ahmedabad, comes with over 15 years of cross-functional business experience. She has also mentored multiple start-ups and turned around their businesses towards better revenues and growth.

The Sajjan Jindal-led JSW group’s JSW Paints entered the highly competitive paints industry in India with an initial investment of Rs 600 crore.

Established in 2000, Indigo Paints is a relatively new entrant to the decorative paints industry that is dominated by the like of Asian Paints, Berger and Nerolac.

The decorative business segment in India recorded high double digit volume growth.

From Rs 12 crore in FY09, the Pune-headquartered company, which is gunning for an IPO, closed FY19 with revenue of Rs 600 crore. Here Jalan talks to TOI about his plans for the company.

“As a socially responsible company, Asian Paints is committed to providing necessary support towards various relief measures announced by the government to combat Covid-19” said K.B.S. Anand, Managing Director & CEO, Asian Paints Limited.

Berger said it has decided against any involuntary furloughs or organisational restructuring that may lead to downsizing of headcount and consequent loss of livelihood during the time of widespread uncertainty. It stated that there will be no impact of the crisis on new recruitment offers.

"To ensure the safety of our customers, we are recalling all TROLIGTVIS travel mugs marked "Made in India". We urge customers to return the product to any of our stores for a full refund. We apologise for any inconvenience this recall may cause," the world's largest furniture retailer said.

“There are no medical issues and this is purely a proactive initiative keeping the safety of our customers in mind,” the Swedish furniture and home products retailer said on its website, urging consumers to stop using the Troligtvis-branded travel mugs immediately.

Home audio is not the only segment that the two firms are targeting. Other products in the range include lights, crockery, furniture, and other knick-knacks like a reflective raincoat and a cajón. Some of the devices like the speakers and smart lighting bulbs can be connected together.

"I think we could broaden the product range a bit in our lower price range," Abrahamsson Ring said, adding that new materials, production techniques and distribution methods would help make IKEA "even more affordable".

The Ikea compliance team last week visited Vadodara-based Shaily Engineering, the company that had supplied the mugs, as part of the investigation, a source said. Ikea was prompted to recall the mugs after tests found excessive level of dibutyl phthalate (DBP), a substance that is used as plasticisers.

With already three stores in Bengaluru and one in Chennai, the company now plans to open two new stores in Hyderabad with an investment of Rs 5 crore, it said. In the next 12 to 18 months, WoodenStreet further plans to open 4 additional stores in South India, along with a third store in Hyderabad.

The Mumbai-based startup is currently in talks with local furniture players in the country. It is looking to add 8-10 new partners every month and take the count to a total of 150-180 suppliers by the end of 2020.

Johan Andersson, the store's logistics boss whose team found them, had just read that hospitals were suffering from a shortage of masks amid the coronavirus outbreak so he rang up Sahlgrenska University Hospital - Sweden's biggest - in Gothenburg and asked if they were interested.

A majority of IKEA stores are or have been temporarily closed in recent months. A few stores in Germany and Israel, as well as the one in Wuhan, the city in China where the coronavirus was first discovered, reopened this week.

Shih-In Ma is a social justice advocate who works to promote diversity and inclusion in Centre County. The State College native and Penn State alum, left a corporate career at IBM to begin a journey of spirituality, self-reflection and meditation. Her journey has taken her around the world and included spending four years in India with Amma, who's known as the hugging saint. Shih-In Ma teaches meditation and shares opportunities for others to gain better insight and understanding of those around them. TRANSCRIPT: Cheraine Stanford Welcome to Take Note on WPSU, I'm Cheraine Stanford. Shih-In Ma is a social justice advocate who works to promote diversity and inclusion in Centre County. The State College native and Penn State alum, left a corporate career at IBM to begin a journey of spirituality, self-reflection and meditation. Her journey has taken her around the world and included spending four years in India with Amma, who's known as the hugging saint. Shih-In Ma teaches meditation

Robert Crumb is best known as an underground cartoonist, whose work, including Fritz the Cat and Mr. Natural, remains controversial. But Crumb is also a collector and celebrator of old blues records. Jerry Zolten is a professor of communication arts and sciences and integrative arts at Penn State Altoona. His work includes the book “Great God A’Mighty! The Dixie Hummingbirds: Celebrating the Rise of Soul Gospel Music.” WPSU's Anne Danahy spoke with Crumb and Zolten about their love of old blues music and records.

A recent study published in the journal Science found the number of birds in North America is plummeting. The bird population dropped by more than a quarter over the past 50 years. Grassland birds, shore birds and songbirds are all affected. WPSU's Anne Danahy spoke with Greg Grove, editor of Pennsylvania Birds, and Doug Wentzel, president of the State College Bird Club, about bird watching and those trends

A new report titled "More Rivers to Cross: A Report on the Status of African American Professors at Penn State University" finds that there's a shortage of black faculty at the university and offers some reasons for why that is. Penn State professor Dr. Gary King, and associate professor Dr. Darryl Thomas prepared the report with the input of other black faculty. Dr. King teaches in the College of Health and Human Development, and Dr. Thomas teaches African American Studies. We talked with them both about this report, which you can read below. "More Rivers to Cross:... by Emily Reddy on Scribd TRANSCRIPT: Emily Reddy: Welcome to Take Note on WPSU, I'm Emily Reddy. A new report titled "More Rivers to Cross: A Report on the Status of African American Professors at Penn State University" finds that there's a shortage of black faculty at the university and offers some reasons for why that is. Penn State professor Dr. Gary King, and associate professor Dr. Darryl Thomas prepared the report

In her book, “Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore,” Elizabeth Rush takes readers around the country to see rising tides . Rush talks with people around the country who have lost their homes and communities; with scientists who study what’s happening; and with conservationists trying to find ways to restore wetlands. Rush’s book was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. WPSU's Anne Danahy spoke with Rush, who will be in State College March 23 to give a talk at 7 p.m. at Schlow Library to celebrate Earth Day.

Matthew Ferrari is an epidemiologist and associate professor of biology at Penn State who studies infectious diseases and how they spread across populations. He uses mathematical and statistical tools to understand patterns of disease incidence. He talked with WPSU's Cheraine Stanford about the new coronavirus, what we know, what we don’t and what it means for our community and our country.

On this Take Note, we talked about public health messaging, specifically how the U.S. government has communicated about and reacted to the coronavirus outbreak. Also, how dealing with a pandemic is different in a democracy than in an authoritarian country. Our guest was Nita Bharti, an assistant professor of biology and the Lloyd Huck Early Career Professor in the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences at Penn State. This interview is from the Democracy Works podcast, a collaboration between WPSU and the McCourtney Institute for Democracy at Penn State. TRANSCRIPT: Jenna Spinelle: This is Jenna Spinelle here today with Nita Bharti. Nita, thanks for joining us on Democracy Works. Nita Bharti: It's my pleasure. Thanks Jenna. Spinelle: We are going to talk today in the midst of the corona virus outbreak about the relationship between information, government and the public in the midst of an outbreak. That's a complex topic. We're going to kind of come at it from a couple of different angles

Robert Bullard has spent four decades shining a light on issues of environmental racism and fighting for environmental justice. He talks with WPSU's Cheraine Stanford about how the coronavirus pandemic is highlighting existing social inequalities and why he thinks climate and environmental justice are essential issues for the upcoming election. TRANSCRIPT: Cheraine Stanford: Welcome to Take Note on WPSU. I'm Cheraine Stanford. Robert Bullard is an environmental advocate and sociologist who has spent his career shining a light on issues of environmental racism and fighting for environmental justice. He's the distinguished professor of urban planning and environmental policy at Texas Southern University. Among his many accolades, he was the first African-American to receive the Sierra Club's highest honor ,the John Muir award. He's been called the Father of Environmental Justice. Dr. Bullard and I are talking via Zoom today. Dr. Bullard, thank you so much for joining us today. Robert

Bernice Hausman is chair of the Department of Humanities in the Penn State College of Medicine. She’s recognized for her research on vaccines and breastfeeding, including why both can be controversial in the United States. She has written several books, most recently "Anti/Vax: Reframing the Vaccination Controversy," which was published last year. WPSU's Anne Danahy spoke with Hausman about what we can learn from past vaccine controversies about the COVID-19 epidemic.

WPSU is traveling to towns across central and northern Pennsylvania to collect oral history recordings. In Lock Haven we paired with a college journalism class and had students find someone interesting to interview. Lock Haven University student Corryn Wallace talks with her boyfriend, Troy Hester, about growing up in a rough neighborhood in West Philadelphia and his transition to Lock Haven.

WPSU is traveling to towns across central and northern Pennsylvania to collect oral history recordings. In Lock Haven we paired with a college journalism class and had students find someone interesting to interview. Lock Haven University student Julia Snyder talked with her grandmother Mary E. George about George’s fond memories of her grandparents who immigrated from the Czech Republic.

WPSU is traveling to towns across central and northern Pennsylvania to collect oral history recordings. In Lock Haven we paired with a college journalism class and had students find someone interesting to interview. Joseph Isidore talks to fellow Lock Haven University student John Ford about playing on the university football team and about his mom’s recent medical issues.

WPSU is traveling to towns across central and northern Pennsylvania to collect oral history recordings. Lock Haven University student Sara Aderhold talked with social work professor Lynette Reitz.