Conjoined twins, popularly referred to as Siamese twins, are twins joined in utero. It is a very rare phenomenon, estimated to occur in anywhere between one in 49,000 births to one in 189,000 births, with a somewhat higher incidence in Southwest Asia and Africa. Approximately half are stillborn, and an additional one-third die within 24 hours. Most live births are female, with a ratio of 3:1.
Richard Ford is an American novelist and short story author, and writer of a series of novels featuring the character Frank Bascombe.
Chang Bunker and Eng Bunker were Siamese (Thai)-American conjoined twin brothers whose fame propelled the expression "Siamese twins" to become synonymous for conjoined twins in general. They were widely exhibited as curiosities and were "two of the nineteenth century's most studied human beings".
The time loop or temporal loop is a plot device in fiction whereby characters re-experience a span of time which is repeated, sometimes more than once, with some hope of breaking out of the cycle of repetition. The term "time loop" is sometimes used to refer to a causal loop; however, causal loops are unchanging and self-originating, whereas time loops are constantly resetting: when a certain condition is met, such as a death of a character or a clock reaching a certain time, the loop starts again, possibly with one or more characters retaining the memories from the previous loop.
Jonathan Allen Lethem is an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. His first novel, Gun, with Occasional Music, a genre work that mixed elements of science fiction and detective fiction, was published in 1994. In 1999, Lethem published Motherless Brooklyn, a National Book Critics Circle Award-winning novel that achieved mainstream success. In 2003, he published The Fortress of Solitude, which became a New York Times Best Seller. In 2005, he received a MacArthur Fellowship. Since 2011, he has taught creative writing at Pomona College.
Abigail Loraine Hensel and Brittany Lee Hensel are American conjoined twins. They are dicephalic parapagus twins, and are highly symmetric for conjoined twins, giving the appearance of having a single body without marked variation from typical proportions. Each has a heart, stomach, spine, pair of lungs, and spinal cord. Each twin controls one arm and one leg. When they were infants, learning to crawl, walk, and clap required cooperation. They can eat and write separately and simultaneously. Activities such as running, swimming, hair-brushing, playing piano or volleyball, riding a bicycle, or driving a car require coordination.
Shelley Jackson is an American writer and artist known for her cross-genre experimental works. These include her hyperfiction Patchwork Girl (1995) and her first novel, Half Life (2006).
Lori and George Schappell are conjoined twins. George has performed as a country singer. As of 2022, they are the oldest living conjoined twins in the world. Guinness World Records noted that George's gender transition made him and Lori the first set of conjoined twins to identify as different genders.
The 48 Laws of Power (1998) is a self-help book by American author Robert Greene. The book is a New York Times bestseller, selling over 1.2 million copies in the United States.
Clarence and Carl Aguirre are former conjoined twins born in Manila. They were conjoined at the top of the head and shared 8 centimetres (3.1 in) of brain. More than 1–2 centimetres (0.4–0.8 in) will affect brain functionality in one or both of twins. Without separation, they were expected to live around 6–8 months.
Darin Strauss is a best-selling American writer whose work has earned a number of awards, including, among numerous others, a Guggenheim Fellowship and the National Book Critics Circle Award. Strauss's 2011 book Half a Life, won the 2011 NBCC Award for memoir/autobiography. His most recent book, The Queen of Tuesday, came out in August, 2020. It is currently nominated for the Joyce Carol Oates Literary Prize.
Jim Butcher is an American author. He has written the contemporary fantasy The Dresden Files, Codex Alera, and Cinder Spires book series.
Krista and Tatiana Hogan are Canadians who are conjoined craniopagus twins. They are joined at the head and share a skull and a brain. They were born in Vancouver, British Columbia, and are the only unseparated conjoined twins of that type currently alive in Canada. They live with their mother, Felicia Simms, in Vernon, British Columbia, have two sisters and a brother and often travel to Vancouver for care at BC Children's Hospital and Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children.
Frank Morgan was a jazz saxophonist with a career spanning more than 50 years. He mainly played alto saxophone but also played soprano saxophone. He was known as a Charlie Parker successor who primarily played bebop and ballads.
The Thirteenth Tale (2006) by Diane Setterfield is a gothic suspense novel, the author's first published book.
Camp Half-Blood Chronicles is a media franchise created by author Rick Riordan, encompassing three five-part novel series, two short-story collections, two myth anthology books, a stand-alone short story, three crossover short stories, an essay collection, multiple guides, seven graphic novels, two films, a video game, a musical, and other media. Set in the modern world, it focuses on groups of demigod teenagers, and features many characters from Greek and Roman mythology. The first series, Percy Jackson & the Olympians, follows the adventures of a boy named Percy Jackson at a summer camp for Greek demigods. The second series, The Heroes of Olympus, introduces several more lead characters and a second camp for Roman demigods named Camp Jupiter. The third series, The Trials of Apollo, follows the now-mortal god Apollo, with appearances by many characters from the first and second series.
Mark Polish and Michael Polish, known informally as the Polish brothers, are American twin screenwriters and film producers. Michael usually directs their films, and Mark often has an acting role.
Craniopagus twins are conjoined twins that are fused at the cranium. The union may occur on any portion of the cranium, but does not primarily involve either the face or the foramen magnum; their brains are usually separate, but they may share some brain tissue. Conjoined twins are genetically identical and always share the same sex. The thorax and abdomen are separate and each twin has its own umbilicus and umbilical cord.
Chang & Eng is a book by American author Darin Strauss, published in 2000. It was a nominee for multiple awards, including the Pen Hemingway, the Barnes & Noble Discover Award, the New York Public Library's Literary Lions Award, and a winner of the American Library Association's Alex Award.
Michael R. Jackson is an American playwright, composer, and lyricist, best known for his musical A Strange Loop, which won the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the 2022 Tony Award for Best Musical. He is originally from Detroit.
