The Mimosa Effect 2

Baked enamel finish. Color: Standard beige. Other colors available.

Cell walls have a number of functions

Attention must be given to the structural nature of the cell

The cell wall provides a porous medium for the circulation and distribution of water, minerals, and other nutrients

A pre-cast concrete cell can withstand extreme physical abuse, clever entry, concealment attempts, and repeated tampering.

The cell wall counters the effects of osmotic pressure, keeping the cell from bursting

Corrosive materials or bodily fluids can deteriorate cell wall systems over time, allowing for corroded areas to be used to hide contraband or be used as a ligature point

The cell wall bestows rigidity to the plant, maintaining the cell’s characteristic shape

The hostel was built in the old military barracks of the old Austro-Hungarian empire;
the doors and windows are still barred, the floors still sloped to accommodate drains

The cell walls of all bacteria are not identical. In fact, cell wall composition is one of the most important factors in bacterial species analysis and differentiation

The dungeon is kept as it once was, although a camera obscura has been placed in the wall so that the shadows of passers-by are turned upside-down

The relative rigidity of the cell wall renders plants sedentary, unlike animals, whose lack of this type of structure allows their cells more flexibility, which is necessary for locomotion.

A suicide prevention cell should
(1) not have joints at the ceiling and between the walls for the purpose of anchoring a
hook through the wall and committing hanging.
(2) Seamless floors should be used instead of tile that has sharp corners.
(3) Floor surface should be nonslip surface that can’t be removed.

“Perspective can be a prison,” say the architects,

The rooms have been transformed by guest artists. Beds hang in mid-air. Poems are scrawled on the walls. Artwork is made from cupboards. Doorways are turned into sundials.

“Too many things have a rational beginning. We need more mystery;
The struggle of man against power
is the struggle of memory against forgetting”

———

This found poetry compilation was inspired by the Poetry Thursday prompt, “If These Walls Could Talk.” For more PT poems visit www.poetrythursday.blogspot.com

The prison/hostel article (and its corresponding quotes) can be found at: www.villagemagazine.ie/article.asp?sid=1&sud=38&aid=3135

Ad copy from companies manufacturing concrete and modular prison cells can be found at:
http://www.opmg.com/e-mail/email2005Bsuicide/1-E-mail%202005BSecurity-Precast.htm
www.pxdirect.com/holding_cell.htm

Information on the biology of plant cell walls can be found by Googling “cell walls”