THE first circus for ten years to include animals is to be held at the Great Yarmouth Hippodrome over Christmas and new year.
The nine Chitty Chitty Bang Bang dogs will be joining Charlie Chaplin look-a-like Ionut Roncescau in a comedy routine worthy of the master himself.
Jack and Peter Jay's Christmas Spectacular returns for its seventh successful season and is running from tonight until Sunday January 6.
Ionut, who is originally from Romania, said: “I have been performing this act for 10 years. Funnily enough I was in a show here in 1997. It is great to be able to perform with the terrier dogs and they love it!”
The dogs have all been appearing in the recent west end show Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. The new Norfolk tradition is combining more than 60 acts including the best in international artists, a unique water spectacle with synchronised swimmers, giant fountains and the magic of Christmas with a large children's troupe, hilarious clowns and impressive acrobats.
The bill includes for the first time ever the Bulgarian Globe of Death Bikers, and includes death defying stunts in a huge steel globe.
The Kenya Chiefs, are bringing the mad rhythms and acrobatics of Africa to the show, also making an appearance will be Robert Foxhall, the man who can fly, a hit from this year's circus summer season smash Excape.
From the Ukraine, with supermodel looks and amazing body skills, Anastasia Voladas performs her mind boggling balancing act. The glamorous Estelle Clifton Dancers and the Jan Baines Show Swimmers combine with the 30 Children from the Dance Estelle and Norwich's unique youth gymnastic team Chermond Circus Academy to create a wonderful Christmas atmosphere. Aerialists Pasha and Cara perform high in the roof of the Hippodrome above the water spectacle with an amazing soundtrack and artistic virtuosity. Young comedy star Bippo, who has just been starring in the nationwide tour of Zippo's Circus, brings his own kind of clown mayhem into the ring.
Estelle said: “This is especially gratifying for me, because three of my students will be taking part this year.”
Peter Jay said: “Our Christmas seasons have gone from strength to strength and I urge everyone to book early as many of these shows will sell out - especially our fabulous New Years Eve Gala show and Boxing Day. It's a fantastic experience for all the family, full of the magic spirit of Christmas. It's an ideal festive family treat.”
Tickets are on sale now at £15, £14, £12.50 and £10 - OAP's £11 in all seats, Children £9 (add £2 to all seats for the special New Years Eve Gala show.) Call 01493 844172.
Source
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Indiana Road Conditions When Winter Blast Arrives
Indianapolis - The snow arrived Saturday morning, and it was only the beginning of a pre-Christmas winter blast.
A Winter Storm Warning is in effect for much of Central Indiana through Sunday afternoon. Several inches are expected in the metro area by Saturday afternoon, with a sleet/snow mix expected later. Heavy snow is expected overnight with totals as high as 17 inches in areas to the north of Marion County.
Detailed Forecast
We'll see the first band of snow pass through Central Indiana Saturday morning, with about one to three inches falling, some areas picking up four. SkyTrak Weather says we should see a break this afternoon before freezing rain, sleet and snow develop for tonight and early Sunday morning.
Wind gusts to 35 and 45 mph on Sunday morning could make for blizzard like conditions. Areas that see all snow and no ice could pick up 10-17 inches. This area includes just to the north of I-70. Along and south of I-70 6-12 inches is possible along with significant freezing rain and sleet. Our far southern counties will see about 4-8 inches due to a lot of ice and rain. Some areas in Hamilton County could see the greater snow amounts.
CLOSINGS AND DELAYS
Stay tuned to Eyewitness News and WTHR.com for the latest updates on the storm, as well as closings and delays. Sign up for your Personal Forecast from WTHR.com to stay on top of the weather. And when it's all over, head outside and snap a few pictures for our photo gallery.
Ice wreaks havoc on roadways
Around 3:00 pm, the snowfall that blanketed the area turned to a light rain. By the late evening hours, the rain had begun to freeze on windshields in the downtown area, and some roads on the north side had become icy. The far northwest corner of Interstate 465 was closed around 9:45 Saturday night, and two southbound lanes of the outerbelt near I-70 on the east side closed due to a crash shortly before 11 pm.
In Carmel, a van crashed into a pond at 141st Street and Towne Road, apparently trapping four people inside. Crews transported the victims to the hospital and remain on the scene. There is no report on the condition of the passengers, which witnesses say included an adult and three children.
Further north, there were reports of ice on I-65 toward Lebanon causing at least one accident. At 11 pm, the freezing rain and ice extended north from south of Indianapolis to Frankfort. North of the rain was heavy snow. Meteorologist Jude Redfield says the freezing rain will continue until 2 am before temperatures get cold enough for the precipitation to turn to snow. The storm is now forecast to leave 5 to 9 inches of snow on the ground around central Indiana, including what fell Saturday morning.
In addition to the precipitation, winds picking up to between 25 and 40 miles an hour could create blizzard-like conditions in the morning into the early afternoon.
Snow gives way to ice in the afternoon
At around 9:30 am, traffic on I-65 was smooth, although the snowfall was picking up and the wind got stronger. State police reported several slide-offs on different parts of the interstates and in the metro area.
State and county road crews started working Friday to prepare the roads. In Indianapolis, some 75 Department of Public Works drivers are planning for 12-hour shifts and began dropping salt on roads before the snow started falling. The state used liquid salt brine to get ahead of predictions for impending ice. Around 60 INDOT trucks will be out, as well as 300 in the central Indiana area.
"Typically the worst is when the snow is falling heavily. So take a look outside the window and if possible try to squeeze your Christmas shopping in when it's not falling from the sky," said Paul Whitmore, Department of Public Works.
Many drivers were heeding that advice as they headed to the mall or grocery store early Saturday morning. Some hardware stores reported that they had already sold out of snowblowers.
INDOT plans to have Hoosier Helpers on patrol on the Interstate system within Marion County to assist motorists that get stranded in the storm.
Anderson vehicle order
Anderson Mayor Kevin S. Smith has asked all city residents to remove their vehicles from city streets, if possible, in anticipation of a major snowstorm that is expected to develop Saturday. If all vehicles can be moved to driveways or other private property, the city's snow emergency task force will be better able to clear streets and roadways. See the city website for updates.
Emergency declarations
Indiana has a new standardized system to report across the state during severe weather and other hazardous situations if it includes snowstorms and tornadoes, floods, fires, utility failures, major accidents, public health energies and even acts of terrorism.
Before this year, each of Indiana's 92 counties reported conditions differently making it difficult to give an appropriate response in a timely manner. Now the system includes one easy to read statewide map that can be posted here and allows for quick emergency declarations meaning a quicker response for those who need help.
ISP offers winter driving tips
The combination of snow, freezing rain, ice and wind can cause driving conditions to change quickly. To help Hoosiers prepare for this winter storm, the Indiana State Police offers the following safety tips.
Be prepared:
Should you become stranded:
A four-wheel drive vehicle may keep you from being stuck in deep snow or aid in acceleration during slippery road conditions, but it will not allow you to stop any quicker. Slow down and allow yourself plenty of stopping distance.
For Indiana road conditions between December 1 and April 1, call 317-232-8298 or 800-261-7623 or visit the state police web site.
Source
A Winter Storm Warning is in effect for much of Central Indiana through Sunday afternoon. Several inches are expected in the metro area by Saturday afternoon, with a sleet/snow mix expected later. Heavy snow is expected overnight with totals as high as 17 inches in areas to the north of Marion County.
Detailed Forecast
We'll see the first band of snow pass through Central Indiana Saturday morning, with about one to three inches falling, some areas picking up four. SkyTrak Weather says we should see a break this afternoon before freezing rain, sleet and snow develop for tonight and early Sunday morning.
Wind gusts to 35 and 45 mph on Sunday morning could make for blizzard like conditions. Areas that see all snow and no ice could pick up 10-17 inches. This area includes just to the north of I-70. Along and south of I-70 6-12 inches is possible along with significant freezing rain and sleet. Our far southern counties will see about 4-8 inches due to a lot of ice and rain. Some areas in Hamilton County could see the greater snow amounts.
CLOSINGS AND DELAYS
Stay tuned to Eyewitness News and WTHR.com for the latest updates on the storm, as well as closings and delays. Sign up for your Personal Forecast from WTHR.com to stay on top of the weather. And when it's all over, head outside and snap a few pictures for our photo gallery.
Ice wreaks havoc on roadways
Around 3:00 pm, the snowfall that blanketed the area turned to a light rain. By the late evening hours, the rain had begun to freeze on windshields in the downtown area, and some roads on the north side had become icy. The far northwest corner of Interstate 465 was closed around 9:45 Saturday night, and two southbound lanes of the outerbelt near I-70 on the east side closed due to a crash shortly before 11 pm.
In Carmel, a van crashed into a pond at 141st Street and Towne Road, apparently trapping four people inside. Crews transported the victims to the hospital and remain on the scene. There is no report on the condition of the passengers, which witnesses say included an adult and three children.
Further north, there were reports of ice on I-65 toward Lebanon causing at least one accident. At 11 pm, the freezing rain and ice extended north from south of Indianapolis to Frankfort. North of the rain was heavy snow. Meteorologist Jude Redfield says the freezing rain will continue until 2 am before temperatures get cold enough for the precipitation to turn to snow. The storm is now forecast to leave 5 to 9 inches of snow on the ground around central Indiana, including what fell Saturday morning.
In addition to the precipitation, winds picking up to between 25 and 40 miles an hour could create blizzard-like conditions in the morning into the early afternoon.
Snow gives way to ice in the afternoon
At around 9:30 am, traffic on I-65 was smooth, although the snowfall was picking up and the wind got stronger. State police reported several slide-offs on different parts of the interstates and in the metro area.
State and county road crews started working Friday to prepare the roads. In Indianapolis, some 75 Department of Public Works drivers are planning for 12-hour shifts and began dropping salt on roads before the snow started falling. The state used liquid salt brine to get ahead of predictions for impending ice. Around 60 INDOT trucks will be out, as well as 300 in the central Indiana area.
"Typically the worst is when the snow is falling heavily. So take a look outside the window and if possible try to squeeze your Christmas shopping in when it's not falling from the sky," said Paul Whitmore, Department of Public Works.
Many drivers were heeding that advice as they headed to the mall or grocery store early Saturday morning. Some hardware stores reported that they had already sold out of snowblowers.
INDOT plans to have Hoosier Helpers on patrol on the Interstate system within Marion County to assist motorists that get stranded in the storm.
Anderson vehicle order
Anderson Mayor Kevin S. Smith has asked all city residents to remove their vehicles from city streets, if possible, in anticipation of a major snowstorm that is expected to develop Saturday. If all vehicles can be moved to driveways or other private property, the city's snow emergency task force will be better able to clear streets and roadways. See the city website for updates.
Emergency declarations
Indiana has a new standardized system to report across the state during severe weather and other hazardous situations if it includes snowstorms and tornadoes, floods, fires, utility failures, major accidents, public health energies and even acts of terrorism.
Before this year, each of Indiana's 92 counties reported conditions differently making it difficult to give an appropriate response in a timely manner. Now the system includes one easy to read statewide map that can be posted here and allows for quick emergency declarations meaning a quicker response for those who need help.
ISP offers winter driving tips
The combination of snow, freezing rain, ice and wind can cause driving conditions to change quickly. To help Hoosiers prepare for this winter storm, the Indiana State Police offers the following safety tips.
Be prepared:
- Before traveling, check the forecast and let someone know your travel route.
- Keep your gas tank at least half-full.
- Carry a winter driving kit that should include blankets, flashlight, extra batteries, a brightly colored cloth, sand (or cat litter), shovel, candle, matches, non-perishable high calorie food, first aid kit, and jumper cables.
- Slow down on snow/ice covered roads.
- Allow extra time to arrive at your destination.
- Clear all windows of ice and snow and remove snow from hood, roof, and lights.
- Use extra caution when driving across bridges, underpasses, shaded areas and intersections where ice is slow to melt.
- Avoid abrupt stops and starts. Slow down gradually and keep wheels turning to avoid loosing traction.
- Use low beam headlights to decrease glare from ice.
Should you become stranded:
- Don't leave your car. It's the best protection you have.
- Tie a brightly colored cloth to your antenna.
- Roll down your window a small amount.
- Keep the exhaust pipe free of blockage to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.
- Don't panic. An idling car uses only one gallon of gas per hour.
A four-wheel drive vehicle may keep you from being stuck in deep snow or aid in acceleration during slippery road conditions, but it will not allow you to stop any quicker. Slow down and allow yourself plenty of stopping distance.
For Indiana road conditions between December 1 and April 1, call 317-232-8298 or 800-261-7623 or visit the state police web site.
Source
Reps. Mack, Mary Bono Wed in Private Ceremony
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Mary Bono, who was married to late singer-turned-politician Sonny Bono and replaced him in Congress after his death, has married U.S. Rep. Connie Mack.
Bono's sister, Katherine Whitaker, told The Associated Press the couple were married Saturday in a private ceremony attended by 35 family members.
"It was fantastic," Whitaker said. "It was a very quiet ceremony."
A spokeswoman for Mack had said in November that Asheville was selected because it is Whitaker's home.
Mack, a Republican representative from Florida, and Bono, R-Calif., had been dating for two years. Bono's chief of staff, Frank Cullen Jr., said Mack proposed in late August while the couple were on a camping trip in Arches National Park in Utah.
The 45-year-old Bono replaced Sonny Bono in Congress in a special election in 1998. The 40-year-old Mack, who is divorced, is the son of the Florida senator of the same name and great-grandson of Hall of Fame baseball manager Connie Mack.
Source
Bono's sister, Katherine Whitaker, told The Associated Press the couple were married Saturday in a private ceremony attended by 35 family members.
"It was fantastic," Whitaker said. "It was a very quiet ceremony."
A spokeswoman for Mack had said in November that Asheville was selected because it is Whitaker's home.
Mack, a Republican representative from Florida, and Bono, R-Calif., had been dating for two years. Bono's chief of staff, Frank Cullen Jr., said Mack proposed in late August while the couple were on a camping trip in Arches National Park in Utah.
The 45-year-old Bono replaced Sonny Bono in Congress in a special election in 1998. The 40-year-old Mack, who is divorced, is the son of the Florida senator of the same name and great-grandson of Hall of Fame baseball manager Connie Mack.
Source
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Turkish Delight, Anyone?
Dessert, anyone?
Here's a recipe for Turkish Delight that I found off the internet. You could try it out for yourself, but if you're a first time cook, try making smaller batches! ;-)
Turkish Delight Recipe
Ingredients:
1 lb glucose
5 1/2 lbs granulated sugar
3/4 lb cornstarch
juice of one lemon
1 ts pulverized mastic
a few drops of food coloring if desired
3 Tbs orange blossom water or rose water
3 to 4 oz almonds or pistachios, chopped
cornstarch to dust the tray
powdered sugar
Directions:
Put the glucose and the granulated sugar into a large pan with 2 cups of water. Stir well and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Put the cornstarch into another large pan. Add 6 cups water gradually, stirring until well mixed. Bring to the boil slowly, stirring all the time, until you have a smooth, creamy white paste. Add this slowly to the hot sugar and water syrup, stirring vigorously so that no lumps form.
Bring to a boil again, and cook, uncovered, over a constant low flame for 3 hours, stirring as often as possible with a wooden spoon. If the flame is too high, the bottom of the mixture will tend to carmelize.
The mixture must be cooked until it reaches the right consistency. THis takes about 3 hours, and on this depends the success of the recipe. To test the consistency, squeeze a small blob of the mixture between two fingers. Only when it clings to both fingers as they are drawn apart, making gummed threads, is it ready. It may then have acquired a warm golden color. Add the lemon juice and the flavorings. THe mastic should be ground with a little granulated sugar to be successfully pulverized. Add coloring if you wish. Stir vigorously and cook a few minutes longer. Add the chopped nuts and mix well.
Pour the hot mixture out about 1 inch deep into trays that have been dusted with cornstarch to prevent sticking. Flatten it with a knife and leave it to set for at least 24 hours. THen cut into squares with a sharp knife, and roll in sifted powdered sugar. The Halkoum will keep for a long time packed in a box.
Source
Here's a recipe for Turkish Delight that I found off the internet. You could try it out for yourself, but if you're a first time cook, try making smaller batches! ;-)
Turkish Delight Recipe
Ingredients:
1 lb glucose
5 1/2 lbs granulated sugar
3/4 lb cornstarch
juice of one lemon
1 ts pulverized mastic
a few drops of food coloring if desired
3 Tbs orange blossom water or rose water
3 to 4 oz almonds or pistachios, chopped
cornstarch to dust the tray
powdered sugar
Directions:
Put the glucose and the granulated sugar into a large pan with 2 cups of water. Stir well and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Put the cornstarch into another large pan. Add 6 cups water gradually, stirring until well mixed. Bring to the boil slowly, stirring all the time, until you have a smooth, creamy white paste. Add this slowly to the hot sugar and water syrup, stirring vigorously so that no lumps form.
Bring to a boil again, and cook, uncovered, over a constant low flame for 3 hours, stirring as often as possible with a wooden spoon. If the flame is too high, the bottom of the mixture will tend to carmelize.
The mixture must be cooked until it reaches the right consistency. THis takes about 3 hours, and on this depends the success of the recipe. To test the consistency, squeeze a small blob of the mixture between two fingers. Only when it clings to both fingers as they are drawn apart, making gummed threads, is it ready. It may then have acquired a warm golden color. Add the lemon juice and the flavorings. THe mastic should be ground with a little granulated sugar to be successfully pulverized. Add coloring if you wish. Stir vigorously and cook a few minutes longer. Add the chopped nuts and mix well.
Pour the hot mixture out about 1 inch deep into trays that have been dusted with cornstarch to prevent sticking. Flatten it with a knife and leave it to set for at least 24 hours. THen cut into squares with a sharp knife, and roll in sifted powdered sugar. The Halkoum will keep for a long time packed in a box.
Source
The Rules Of Attraction - Coming To Grips With It
You And Yours
THIS week sees reality show, I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here returning to our screens.
Many are already speculating about the possibility of another jungle romance. This is, after all, the show that brought together one of the nation's most famous couples, Peter Andre and Katie Price.
Not only did Katie and Peter fall for each other on the show but they went on to get married and have a family.
However, couples who get together in the fishbowl environment of reality television rarely last the course when they get back out into the real world. Just look at Big Brother couple Ziggy and Chanelle's very public break-up.
The rules of attraction seem to be amplified so much in the extreme environment of these shows that the resulting relationships can be artificial.
They might be very intense and passionate in the early stages but they quickly fizzle out when boring reality hits. People often find themselves falling for others who they are thrown together with in group situations, especially when there is some pressure involved.
Here are some reasons why you might find yourself falling for someone who you work closely with and why these kinds of relationships might prove to be short-lived:
One obvious reason for this is that humans are driven to form relationships. So when placed in a small group environment, your choice is limited and you might fall for the person who you are most attracted to out of that group, even if you wouldn't normally give them a second glance.
Sharing a group experience gives you something in common and this is a crucial ingredient in attraction. This can soon fade if you discover you have little else in common.
It always feels good to be listened to and understood. Someone who is going through the same experience as you will be interested and is more likely to empathise with you.
However, this doesn't mean they will give their full attention to everything you have to say and once you realise this, you might well feel let down.
Proximity and familiarity are also important in attraction. You are more likely to be attracted to someone who happens to be close by and who you see often.
Being in a stressful situation can make us more likely to form bonds with others. So while you might feel the need to be with someone while you're under pressure, you may well wonder why you bothered with them once the pressure is off.
Lastly, the excitement of a different or new experience can make a relationship seem special. But even the most passionate of relationships will become more predictable in time. The real test of the relationship will be dealing with the monotony of everyday life.
Rosemarie Lynass is a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy
Source
THIS week sees reality show, I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here returning to our screens.
Many are already speculating about the possibility of another jungle romance. This is, after all, the show that brought together one of the nation's most famous couples, Peter Andre and Katie Price.
Not only did Katie and Peter fall for each other on the show but they went on to get married and have a family.
However, couples who get together in the fishbowl environment of reality television rarely last the course when they get back out into the real world. Just look at Big Brother couple Ziggy and Chanelle's very public break-up.
The rules of attraction seem to be amplified so much in the extreme environment of these shows that the resulting relationships can be artificial.
They might be very intense and passionate in the early stages but they quickly fizzle out when boring reality hits. People often find themselves falling for others who they are thrown together with in group situations, especially when there is some pressure involved.
Here are some reasons why you might find yourself falling for someone who you work closely with and why these kinds of relationships might prove to be short-lived:
One obvious reason for this is that humans are driven to form relationships. So when placed in a small group environment, your choice is limited and you might fall for the person who you are most attracted to out of that group, even if you wouldn't normally give them a second glance.
Sharing a group experience gives you something in common and this is a crucial ingredient in attraction. This can soon fade if you discover you have little else in common.
It always feels good to be listened to and understood. Someone who is going through the same experience as you will be interested and is more likely to empathise with you.
However, this doesn't mean they will give their full attention to everything you have to say and once you realise this, you might well feel let down.
Proximity and familiarity are also important in attraction. You are more likely to be attracted to someone who happens to be close by and who you see often.
Being in a stressful situation can make us more likely to form bonds with others. So while you might feel the need to be with someone while you're under pressure, you may well wonder why you bothered with them once the pressure is off.
Lastly, the excitement of a different or new experience can make a relationship seem special. But even the most passionate of relationships will become more predictable in time. The real test of the relationship will be dealing with the monotony of everyday life.
Rosemarie Lynass is a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy
Source
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Washington Monument Height - Vietnam Memorial invites reflection, reconciliation
Vietnam Memorial invites reflection, reconciliation
Joseph R. Reisert
11/16/2007
Source
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., was dedicated 25 years ago this week.
The occasion was commemorated last Sunday, Veterans Day, with a ceremony featuring an address by former Secretary of State Colin Powell. Powell, a retired general, is a veteran of the Vietnam War.
I was on the Mall early on Saturday, long before the official event, but even then scores of returning Vietnam veterans were making their pilgrimage to the memorial that has meant so much to so many of them.
When it was built, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was unlike everything else on the National Mall.
The Lincoln and Jefferson memorials and the Washington Monument are all soaring, white marble edifices.
The two marble memorials stand as shrines to the ideals of America's most idealistic presidents. Both feature larger than life statues of the presidents they honor, as if Lincoln and Jefferson were greater than ordinary mortals. Both memorials feature the words through which they called America to its highest expressions of liberty and equality.
The Washington Monument is simple and abstract, an unmarked obelisk pointing to the sky -- suggesting the greatness of Washington's achievement and the uprightness of his character.
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is, in every respect, the opposite of the others. They are erected from white marble; it is constructed from black granite. They reach skyward; it is a wall, set into a hillside, below ground. The wall consists of two long, narrow triangles set base to base, reaching a height of about 10 feet in the center, tapering to a point at either end. Etched into the wall are the names of those killed or officially recorded as missing in action, listed in chronological order.
Where the older memorials articulate or imply the nobility of America's moral aspirations, the Vietnam Memorial spoke to me of nothing but failure and futility, and, of course, of death.
So I thought, when it opened.
Too young to have any first-hand recollection of the war or the turmoil it provoked at home, I nevertheless knew what I liked in a war memorial: I liked the noble and the grand. I much preferred the equestrian statue of Ulysses S. Grant, facing west from the front of the Capitol toward the Washington Monument, looking every inch the conquering Civil War general whose grim determination to take and inflict heavy casualties won the war and saved the Union.
Twenty-five years later, I have come to appreciate what the Vietnam Memorial's architect, Maya Lin, must have understood intuitively: the Vietnam War was nothing like the Civil War, and the America of the decades after that war was nothing like the self-confident, rising power that emerged from Grant's victory.
Although the memorial opened to controversy, Vietnam veterans and the friends and kin of those whose names appear on the wall have embraced it. Long before I came to understand the memorial or to value it for itself, I found myself deeply moved by the emotional responses of other visitors as they walked, or stood, or knelt before the somber wall of black granite. The memorial spoke to those veterans and others touched by the Vietnam War, and it reached them -- intimately, viscerally -- in a way it did not reach me.
The philosopher Charles Griswold recently published a remarkable book about forgiveness, and near its end, he offers a profound interpretation of the Vietnam Memorial, which, finally, enabled me to understand: it is, or rather invites, a process of national apology and forgiveness.
The memorial does not, as I had thought, speak of failure or futility. It does not speak, affirmatively, at all; it questions.
The memorial's black granite is polished to a reflective finish for a reason. Standing before the wall to read the names inscribed there, the visitor sees his own reflection, with the names of the lost and fallen across his own image. The walls, one of which points to the Lincoln Memorial, the other to the Washington Monument, invite us to ask ourselves: Did we live up to our national ideals in sending these of our fellow citizens to war in Vietnam? Did we live up to those ideals in how we treated them and their fellow veterans when they returned home to us?
The Vietnam Memorial's power to invite reflection and reconciliation, and even healing, is extraordinary. But I also pray that we will not need to construct our next war memorial in its likeness.
Joseph R. Reisert is associate professor of American Constitutional Law and chairman of the Department of Government at Colby College in Waterville.
Joseph R. Reisert
11/16/2007
Source
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., was dedicated 25 years ago this week.
The occasion was commemorated last Sunday, Veterans Day, with a ceremony featuring an address by former Secretary of State Colin Powell. Powell, a retired general, is a veteran of the Vietnam War.
I was on the Mall early on Saturday, long before the official event, but even then scores of returning Vietnam veterans were making their pilgrimage to the memorial that has meant so much to so many of them.
When it was built, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was unlike everything else on the National Mall.
The Lincoln and Jefferson memorials and the Washington Monument are all soaring, white marble edifices.
The two marble memorials stand as shrines to the ideals of America's most idealistic presidents. Both feature larger than life statues of the presidents they honor, as if Lincoln and Jefferson were greater than ordinary mortals. Both memorials feature the words through which they called America to its highest expressions of liberty and equality.
The Washington Monument is simple and abstract, an unmarked obelisk pointing to the sky -- suggesting the greatness of Washington's achievement and the uprightness of his character.
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is, in every respect, the opposite of the others. They are erected from white marble; it is constructed from black granite. They reach skyward; it is a wall, set into a hillside, below ground. The wall consists of two long, narrow triangles set base to base, reaching a height of about 10 feet in the center, tapering to a point at either end. Etched into the wall are the names of those killed or officially recorded as missing in action, listed in chronological order.
Where the older memorials articulate or imply the nobility of America's moral aspirations, the Vietnam Memorial spoke to me of nothing but failure and futility, and, of course, of death.
So I thought, when it opened.
Too young to have any first-hand recollection of the war or the turmoil it provoked at home, I nevertheless knew what I liked in a war memorial: I liked the noble and the grand. I much preferred the equestrian statue of Ulysses S. Grant, facing west from the front of the Capitol toward the Washington Monument, looking every inch the conquering Civil War general whose grim determination to take and inflict heavy casualties won the war and saved the Union.
Twenty-five years later, I have come to appreciate what the Vietnam Memorial's architect, Maya Lin, must have understood intuitively: the Vietnam War was nothing like the Civil War, and the America of the decades after that war was nothing like the self-confident, rising power that emerged from Grant's victory.
Although the memorial opened to controversy, Vietnam veterans and the friends and kin of those whose names appear on the wall have embraced it. Long before I came to understand the memorial or to value it for itself, I found myself deeply moved by the emotional responses of other visitors as they walked, or stood, or knelt before the somber wall of black granite. The memorial spoke to those veterans and others touched by the Vietnam War, and it reached them -- intimately, viscerally -- in a way it did not reach me.
The philosopher Charles Griswold recently published a remarkable book about forgiveness, and near its end, he offers a profound interpretation of the Vietnam Memorial, which, finally, enabled me to understand: it is, or rather invites, a process of national apology and forgiveness.
The memorial does not, as I had thought, speak of failure or futility. It does not speak, affirmatively, at all; it questions.
The memorial's black granite is polished to a reflective finish for a reason. Standing before the wall to read the names inscribed there, the visitor sees his own reflection, with the names of the lost and fallen across his own image. The walls, one of which points to the Lincoln Memorial, the other to the Washington Monument, invite us to ask ourselves: Did we live up to our national ideals in sending these of our fellow citizens to war in Vietnam? Did we live up to those ideals in how we treated them and their fellow veterans when they returned home to us?
The Vietnam Memorial's power to invite reflection and reconciliation, and even healing, is extraordinary. But I also pray that we will not need to construct our next war memorial in its likeness.
Joseph R. Reisert is associate professor of American Constitutional Law and chairman of the Department of Government at Colby College in Waterville.
10 Weird Tech Devices For Your Bedroom
Geek out your bedroom with these devices, including an LED blanket that tells stories and an iPod-friendly bed. (Just make sure to ask your spouse first.)
by Jennifer L. DeLeo
Source
Traditionally, the bedroom is known as the place to catch some zzz's (we're trying to keep it "PG" here, folks). With the dawn of the digital age, however, it's no longer just a room to unwind or send the kids to be punished; there are just too many tech distractions: TVs, gaming consoles, stereo systems, computers, and more.
That said, there's more you can do than just watch late-night TV or check your e-mail in the comfort of your bedroom. With the addition of these unusual tech products to the boudoir—a wrist band that relieves snoring and iPod-friendly sleepwear, for example—you may never want to leave your bedroom.
Here are a couple of the products you'll find in today's 10 Weird Tech Devices for Your Bedroom slideshow:
Snore Relief Wrist Band
Live with a snorer? We're sorry. Hopefully you can get a good night's rest by treating your bed mate to the Snore Relief Wrist Band. It consists of a microphone that can "discriminate between ambient noise…and snoring and uses electrical signals that gently stimulate the median nerves located at the inner wrists without waking you." A study of the device showed that 80 percent of the participants stopped snoring after two weeks of use. And, the device is also water-resistant. You know, in case you drool in your sleep. It operates on one AAA battery and sells for $79.95 at Hammacher.com.
Play Print iBoxers
Admit it: you prance around your bedroom in your boxers with a hairbrush in your hand, belting out Madonna's "Material Girl" in front of your mirror. Why not kick it up a notch of the ridiculous scale by sporting these iPod-friendly Print iBoxers from Play? Made of ribbed cotton and spandex, it features a small front pocket to tuck away your MP3 player or mobile phone while dancing around the bedroom. Available in pink or turquoise, sing in fashionable sleepwear for $19 each from FreshPair.com. And guys, you're not left out: Play also makes iBoxers for Men, priced at $22 each.
Now check out the rest of our 10 Weird Tech Devices for Your Bedroom story, including Pottery Barn's Tune-In Bed and Display-It Smart Bedside Table, The Story Blanket, d-light Huggable Pillow, Eyezone Massager, Ozone Inflatable Lounger, Little Lamp, and Flickering LED Remote-Controlled Scented Candle.
by Jennifer L. DeLeo
Source
Traditionally, the bedroom is known as the place to catch some zzz's (we're trying to keep it "PG" here, folks). With the dawn of the digital age, however, it's no longer just a room to unwind or send the kids to be punished; there are just too many tech distractions: TVs, gaming consoles, stereo systems, computers, and more.
That said, there's more you can do than just watch late-night TV or check your e-mail in the comfort of your bedroom. With the addition of these unusual tech products to the boudoir—a wrist band that relieves snoring and iPod-friendly sleepwear, for example—you may never want to leave your bedroom.
Here are a couple of the products you'll find in today's 10 Weird Tech Devices for Your Bedroom slideshow:
Snore Relief Wrist Band
Live with a snorer? We're sorry. Hopefully you can get a good night's rest by treating your bed mate to the Snore Relief Wrist Band. It consists of a microphone that can "discriminate between ambient noise…and snoring and uses electrical signals that gently stimulate the median nerves located at the inner wrists without waking you." A study of the device showed that 80 percent of the participants stopped snoring after two weeks of use. And, the device is also water-resistant. You know, in case you drool in your sleep. It operates on one AAA battery and sells for $79.95 at Hammacher.com.
Play Print iBoxers
Admit it: you prance around your bedroom in your boxers with a hairbrush in your hand, belting out Madonna's "Material Girl" in front of your mirror. Why not kick it up a notch of the ridiculous scale by sporting these iPod-friendly Print iBoxers from Play? Made of ribbed cotton and spandex, it features a small front pocket to tuck away your MP3 player or mobile phone while dancing around the bedroom. Available in pink or turquoise, sing in fashionable sleepwear for $19 each from FreshPair.com. And guys, you're not left out: Play also makes iBoxers for Men, priced at $22 each.
Now check out the rest of our 10 Weird Tech Devices for Your Bedroom story, including Pottery Barn's Tune-In Bed and Display-It Smart Bedside Table, The Story Blanket, d-light Huggable Pillow, Eyezone Massager, Ozone Inflatable Lounger, Little Lamp, and Flickering LED Remote-Controlled Scented Candle.
Do Almonds Grow On Trees?
Managed investment schemes in return
Geoff Easdown
December 01, 2007 12:00am
Source
PROMOTERS of managed investment schemes may win a reprieve in their fight to retain the tax-effective status of their olives, almond and table grape products.
Labor's election promise to undertake a comprehensive review of the costs and benefits of managed investment schemes could see the Taxation Office lift a ban the Coalition was to have enforced on new schemes from June 30.
The new government, looking to attract city money to the bush, has undertaken to consult widely with the investment and rural communities with a view to developing options for attracting long-term, sustainable investment in rural and regional areas.
At Swan Hill, where high-worth investors have generated jobs and injected tens of millions dollars via olive and almond projects into the local economy, the news that rigid tax office decision-makers might have to compromise is being welcomed.
"We'd support that," said the local rural city council's economic development chief Garry Tepper this week. He noted that a review of the MIS industry would match the protest his council made to the Howard Government last February after the axe was brought down on MIS-funded horticulture without the sector having been consulted.
At the time, Swan Hill council told the government the decision jeopardised hundreds of millions of dollars of future investment as well as hundreds of new jobs, particularly in the region's export-based almond and olive industries.
"Council has already been informed that jobs have been lost, contractors dismissed and forward orders and supplies cancelled," then local mayor Garry Norton had protested.
Now, six months later, a new attempt appears set to be made to deal with the ever-thorny MIS issue.
It's an issue that has divided communities and seen neighbours taking sides as stock exchange-listed promoters buy land and take up irrigation rights at prices ordinary farmers cannot afford.
"What we have now is a government that's more willing to look at both sides of the fence," Shane Kelly, principal of leading agricultural analysts Adviser Edge, told BusinessDaily late this week.
Six months ago National Party MPs, led by then agriculture minister Peter McGauran, backed the farm lobby protest against MIS and used the influence they had in Cabinet to favour the taxman.
MIS firms such as stock exchange listed Timbercorp, Great Southern Plantations and the Rewards Group were told their only option was to mount a test case which the Tax Office would reject, prompting a string of legal appeals that could, at some time in the distant future, be adjudicated by the High Court.
As a result, Timbercorp has curtailed planting at its Robinvale and Murray Bend orchards to 1200ha of almonds and 2300ha of olives this year, all of which, says managing director Sol Rabinowicz, come from a mix of investment projects from last year as well as some from the September 2007 season.
Little wonder that Mr Tepper was only too willing this week to provide statistics.
They show that $900 million worth of investment had been ploughed into developing 28,000ha for horticulture within the Swan Hill municipality over the past decade. Most of the funding came from agribusiness firms that obtained the cash by selling shares to city-based, wealthy professionals through MIS schemes.
"At current farm gate prices the horticultural industry generates about $400 million a year and that's likely to double as plantings mature," Mr Tepper told BusinessDaily. "We also value the almond industry at $50 million now, and that looks like going up to $400 million as the trees mature and reach peak production four to five years from now."
In terms of new employment, MIS increased full-time job numbers across the region by 290 between 2003 and 2006, with the almond industry spawning about 25 jobs for each 1000ha planted.
This season, various promoters operating north of Swan Hill put 6000ha into the ground creating 150 jobs. The expenditure amounts to about $100 million in wages annually.
"And that's going to grow over the years as well," Mr Tepper said.
He argues that jobs and incomes generate taxes, a point his council made to the former government when it decided to axe investor deductions.
Instead, the Coalition charged ahead, and without consulting MIS promoters announced it would axe tax breaks offered to olives, almonds, table grapes, mangoes and all ventures apart from plantation forestry -- exempted to help protect the environment.
Mr Kelly said the decision last February could have played out two different ways, both bad for MIS.
"The ATO might have won the test case, and had the Libs won the election they could have legislated MIS out of the present tax model," he said.
But Mr Kelly argues that concerns of both sides must be considered, especially traditional farmers when a cost-benefit analysis is made. "Land and water prices have increased but a real look needs to be taken at what is driving that," he said.
Is MIS really the culprit driving up prices?
"If it is MIS then you need to balance that against other issues, not just the farms but what also flows to regional centres."
Mr Kelly acknowledges that MIS developments need a lot of water to irrigate horticultural crops and concedes "that water has to come from somewhere".
T HAT somewhere is the Goulburn-Murray dairy and orchards districts surrounding the towns of Echuca, Nathalia and Shepparton where excess water has been traded under permanent and temporary arrangements to corporates -- in many cases at prices that drought-affected dairy farmers can't afford.
A new report into the economics and social aspects of water trading and the farming revolution brought about by MIS published this month argues that water trading is no temporary phenomenon; that there is a clear movement of water from irrigation districts to greenfield sites, most of which have been developed by MIS investors.
Commissioned by the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, the National Water Commission and the Murray-Darling Basin Commission, the study points out how traded water has helped existing industries, such as wine production, and prompted the development of horticultural ventures in Sunraysia.
However, it does mean the social impacts of what is happening will probably become a permanent feature of rural economies.
"Communities can find change and adjustment difficult," the study noted. It also found that water trading was a catalyst for change that would have happened as a consequence of the drought, the variation of commodity markets and rural adjustment.
As Kelly argues: "High value horticulture will always be able to pay more for water than dairy farmers."
Geoff Easdown
December 01, 2007 12:00am
Source
PROMOTERS of managed investment schemes may win a reprieve in their fight to retain the tax-effective status of their olives, almond and table grape products.
Labor's election promise to undertake a comprehensive review of the costs and benefits of managed investment schemes could see the Taxation Office lift a ban the Coalition was to have enforced on new schemes from June 30.
The new government, looking to attract city money to the bush, has undertaken to consult widely with the investment and rural communities with a view to developing options for attracting long-term, sustainable investment in rural and regional areas.
At Swan Hill, where high-worth investors have generated jobs and injected tens of millions dollars via olive and almond projects into the local economy, the news that rigid tax office decision-makers might have to compromise is being welcomed.
"We'd support that," said the local rural city council's economic development chief Garry Tepper this week. He noted that a review of the MIS industry would match the protest his council made to the Howard Government last February after the axe was brought down on MIS-funded horticulture without the sector having been consulted.
At the time, Swan Hill council told the government the decision jeopardised hundreds of millions of dollars of future investment as well as hundreds of new jobs, particularly in the region's export-based almond and olive industries.
"Council has already been informed that jobs have been lost, contractors dismissed and forward orders and supplies cancelled," then local mayor Garry Norton had protested.
Now, six months later, a new attempt appears set to be made to deal with the ever-thorny MIS issue.
It's an issue that has divided communities and seen neighbours taking sides as stock exchange-listed promoters buy land and take up irrigation rights at prices ordinary farmers cannot afford.
"What we have now is a government that's more willing to look at both sides of the fence," Shane Kelly, principal of leading agricultural analysts Adviser Edge, told BusinessDaily late this week.
Six months ago National Party MPs, led by then agriculture minister Peter McGauran, backed the farm lobby protest against MIS and used the influence they had in Cabinet to favour the taxman.
MIS firms such as stock exchange listed Timbercorp, Great Southern Plantations and the Rewards Group were told their only option was to mount a test case which the Tax Office would reject, prompting a string of legal appeals that could, at some time in the distant future, be adjudicated by the High Court.
As a result, Timbercorp has curtailed planting at its Robinvale and Murray Bend orchards to 1200ha of almonds and 2300ha of olives this year, all of which, says managing director Sol Rabinowicz, come from a mix of investment projects from last year as well as some from the September 2007 season.
Little wonder that Mr Tepper was only too willing this week to provide statistics.
They show that $900 million worth of investment had been ploughed into developing 28,000ha for horticulture within the Swan Hill municipality over the past decade. Most of the funding came from agribusiness firms that obtained the cash by selling shares to city-based, wealthy professionals through MIS schemes.
"At current farm gate prices the horticultural industry generates about $400 million a year and that's likely to double as plantings mature," Mr Tepper told BusinessDaily. "We also value the almond industry at $50 million now, and that looks like going up to $400 million as the trees mature and reach peak production four to five years from now."
In terms of new employment, MIS increased full-time job numbers across the region by 290 between 2003 and 2006, with the almond industry spawning about 25 jobs for each 1000ha planted.
This season, various promoters operating north of Swan Hill put 6000ha into the ground creating 150 jobs. The expenditure amounts to about $100 million in wages annually.
"And that's going to grow over the years as well," Mr Tepper said.
He argues that jobs and incomes generate taxes, a point his council made to the former government when it decided to axe investor deductions.
Instead, the Coalition charged ahead, and without consulting MIS promoters announced it would axe tax breaks offered to olives, almonds, table grapes, mangoes and all ventures apart from plantation forestry -- exempted to help protect the environment.
Mr Kelly said the decision last February could have played out two different ways, both bad for MIS.
"The ATO might have won the test case, and had the Libs won the election they could have legislated MIS out of the present tax model," he said.
But Mr Kelly argues that concerns of both sides must be considered, especially traditional farmers when a cost-benefit analysis is made. "Land and water prices have increased but a real look needs to be taken at what is driving that," he said.
Is MIS really the culprit driving up prices?
"If it is MIS then you need to balance that against other issues, not just the farms but what also flows to regional centres."
Mr Kelly acknowledges that MIS developments need a lot of water to irrigate horticultural crops and concedes "that water has to come from somewhere".
T HAT somewhere is the Goulburn-Murray dairy and orchards districts surrounding the towns of Echuca, Nathalia and Shepparton where excess water has been traded under permanent and temporary arrangements to corporates -- in many cases at prices that drought-affected dairy farmers can't afford.
A new report into the economics and social aspects of water trading and the farming revolution brought about by MIS published this month argues that water trading is no temporary phenomenon; that there is a clear movement of water from irrigation districts to greenfield sites, most of which have been developed by MIS investors.
Commissioned by the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, the National Water Commission and the Murray-Darling Basin Commission, the study points out how traded water has helped existing industries, such as wine production, and prompted the development of horticultural ventures in Sunraysia.
However, it does mean the social impacts of what is happening will probably become a permanent feature of rural economies.
"Communities can find change and adjustment difficult," the study noted. It also found that water trading was a catalyst for change that would have happened as a consequence of the drought, the variation of commodity markets and rural adjustment.
As Kelly argues: "High value horticulture will always be able to pay more for water than dairy farmers."
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Visits the Capital Of Spain
PGMA visits Basque Region's capital city of Vitoria, Spain
Thursday, December 06 2007 @ 06:36 PM UTC
World
VITORIA, Spain, December 6 - President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo made a brief visit to the Basque Region's capital city of Vitoria, Spain on the last day of her four-day state visit to Spain, en route to the United Kingdom.
The President and her delegation arrived at the Foronda Airport here at 1 p.m. Wednesday (Madrid time) and were warmly welcomed by Vitoria officials led by Secretary General for External Action Inaki Aguirre.
The President immediately proceeded to the Palacio de Ajuria Enea where she had a meeting with the President of the Basque government, Lehendakari Senor Don Juan Jose Ibarretxe.
As the President passed through the Cordon of Basque Police Honor Guards at the entrance of the Palace, the "Agur Jaunak," a Basque traditional song was sang.
She was then presented a "Makila," a special scepter of honor and authority by Lehendakari, who expressed his deep gratitude to the President.
"I could not express fully well how grateful I am with your visit," Lehendakari said as he presented the scepter that is given only to persons looked up with esteem and authority.
The "Makila" is the Basque people's stick that symbolizes authority and its manufacturing process has been maintained over centuries.
It is made out of wild meadler cut during winter and goes through a process that would allow it to swerve to form the design that characterizes the "Makila."
The branch is peeled in a furnace, stained, adorned with brass or silver ring at the bottom carefully hand-engraved with Basque motifs.
The other end of the rod is topped with a horn grip fixed by means of a threaded silver covered with plaited leather.
The President and her official party, among them Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesperson Ignacio R. Bunye, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo and Trade Secretary Peter Favila, were treated to a sumptuous lunch that included Iberian Bellota ham, Cantabrian lobster salad with seafood dressing, baked wild sea bass with shallots in Txakolf white wine, Hake Kokotxas with clams in salsa verde and cream-filled crepes with seasonal fruits.
The Basque Region is one of the 17 autonomous regions in Spain, located in the northern part along the Zadorra River.
The region has its own regional police force, tax collection and education system.
Politically, the Basque Region has a strong presence of a separatist movement, including a small but volatile terrorist organization, the ETA.
It is economically progressive as it is a commercial and industrial center in an agricultural region.
Source
Thursday, December 06 2007 @ 06:36 PM UTC
World
VITORIA, Spain, December 6 - President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo made a brief visit to the Basque Region's capital city of Vitoria, Spain on the last day of her four-day state visit to Spain, en route to the United Kingdom.
The President and her delegation arrived at the Foronda Airport here at 1 p.m. Wednesday (Madrid time) and were warmly welcomed by Vitoria officials led by Secretary General for External Action Inaki Aguirre.
The President immediately proceeded to the Palacio de Ajuria Enea where she had a meeting with the President of the Basque government, Lehendakari Senor Don Juan Jose Ibarretxe.
As the President passed through the Cordon of Basque Police Honor Guards at the entrance of the Palace, the "Agur Jaunak," a Basque traditional song was sang.
She was then presented a "Makila," a special scepter of honor and authority by Lehendakari, who expressed his deep gratitude to the President.
"I could not express fully well how grateful I am with your visit," Lehendakari said as he presented the scepter that is given only to persons looked up with esteem and authority.
The "Makila" is the Basque people's stick that symbolizes authority and its manufacturing process has been maintained over centuries.
It is made out of wild meadler cut during winter and goes through a process that would allow it to swerve to form the design that characterizes the "Makila."
The branch is peeled in a furnace, stained, adorned with brass or silver ring at the bottom carefully hand-engraved with Basque motifs.
The other end of the rod is topped with a horn grip fixed by means of a threaded silver covered with plaited leather.
The President and her official party, among them Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesperson Ignacio R. Bunye, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo and Trade Secretary Peter Favila, were treated to a sumptuous lunch that included Iberian Bellota ham, Cantabrian lobster salad with seafood dressing, baked wild sea bass with shallots in Txakolf white wine, Hake Kokotxas with clams in salsa verde and cream-filled crepes with seasonal fruits.
The Basque Region is one of the 17 autonomous regions in Spain, located in the northern part along the Zadorra River.
The region has its own regional police force, tax collection and education system.
Politically, the Basque Region has a strong presence of a separatist movement, including a small but volatile terrorist organization, the ETA.
It is economically progressive as it is a commercial and industrial center in an agricultural region.
Source
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
The Seven (7) Wonders Of The World
The 7 Wonders of the World... really? Did you know that are actually 14 Wonders?
The first group consists of the 7 Natural Wonders which are formed by nature, hence the term "natural" wonders of the world! The second group of 7 wonders refer to man made artifacts and words of art.
The man-made group includes seven works of art and architecture regarded by ancient Greek and Roman observers as the most extraordinary structures of antiquity.
The Seven Man-Made Wonders Of The World
While the list of these man-made wonders of the world varied and changed over time, here are some of the great structures of the world that have made it to the list since the sixth century:
On the other hand, we have nature creating some really amazing formations. These seven natural wonders of the world are commonly considered to be:
The first group consists of the 7 Natural Wonders which are formed by nature, hence the term "natural" wonders of the world! The second group of 7 wonders refer to man made artifacts and words of art.
The man-made group includes seven works of art and architecture regarded by ancient Greek and Roman observers as the most extraordinary structures of antiquity.
The Seven Man-Made Wonders Of The World
While the list of these man-made wonders of the world varied and changed over time, here are some of the great structures of the world that have made it to the list since the sixth century:
- The pyramids of Egypt
- The hanging gardens of Babylon
- The statue of Zeus at Olympia
- The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
- The temple of Artemis at Ephesus
- The Colossus of Rhodes and
- The Pharos Lighthouse at Alexandria
On the other hand, we have nature creating some really amazing formations. These seven natural wonders of the world are commonly considered to be:
- Mount Everest in Nepal
- Victoria Falls in Zambia/Zimbabwe
- The Grand Canyon in Arizona
- The Great Barrier Reef in Australia
- The Northern Lights
- Paricutin volcano in Mexico and
- The Harbor of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Genetree.com - Examine Your Own DNA!
If you've always wanted to know your family DNA and predisposition for health, you'll find this article really interesting.
Frankly, I'd rather keep my mind focused on staying happy, healthy and wealthy versus looking for information that will cause me to be worried and start stressing out. Worrying and stress is also one way you can create a mental downturn, and start a cycle where you just add reasons to be miserable!
Start-up enables users to examine their own DNA
GOOGLE-BACKED FIRM INCLUDES MEDICAL DATA
By Elise Ackerman
Mercury News
A start-up partly funded by Google will let people search for information about their personal genetic makeup, such as whether they are predisposed to have a good memory or heart disease.
23andMe, which began offering its service to the public Monday, is one of a handful of new companies seeking to unlock the secrets of the genome for ordinary people with deeply personal concerns: Am I susceptible to breast cancer? Could I develop diabetes?
But the new services, including ones soon to be offered by Navigenics of Redwood Shores and deCode Genetics of Iceland, are raising a host of knotty questions, as scientists and genetic experts caution that the data can be both difficult to interpret and susceptible to misuse.
The co-founders of 23andMe, Linda Avey, a veteran of the biopharmaceutical industry, and Anne Wojcicki, a health care investor who is married to Sergey Brin, Google's co-founder, said they think this information should be accessible and have worked hard to provide it in a responsible way.
The 23andMe service uses tools made by Illumina, of San Diego, to analyze an individual's DNA for nearly 600,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms, known as SNPs, which are the millions of small variations sprinkled over a person's 23 pairs of chromosomes. The company is named after those chromosomal pairs. Scientists have linked the variations to diseases and human traits like memory.
23andMe uploads the analysis to an online database where customers can explore the degree to which the information in their genes has been linked by scientists to particular diseases, traits and characteristics. The service, which costs $999, includes an "odds calculator" that combines the genetic information with customers' ages and ethnicities to give an idea of the common health risks they could face.
Hank Greely, a law professor at Stanford University who has been exploring the implications of the new services, said while companies like 23andMe have good intentions, they could easily end up leading their customers astray.
"A lot of the genetic results are early, weak and preliminary," Greely said. "One worries that people will think the information is more powerful than it actually is and change their lives based on it."
For example, he said, a woman could learn that her genetic association with breast cancer is normal or low and stop getting mammograms.
There are also privacy concerns. Once a person's DNA analysis is put into a database, it is at risk of loss or theft.
Avey and Wojcicki said they are protecting the data with stringent security measures, and that they plan to conduct regular audits.
Wojcicki also said the company is vetting the information it provides to customers according to a set of standards developed in consultation with expert advisers. Both Wojcicki and Avey are sensitive to the fact that genetic studies have been known to make a big media splash - only to be quietly retracted later. "We are erring on the side of caution," Wojcicki said.
Ultimately, Wojcicki and Avey are hoping that customers themselves will agree to participate in large-scale studies that could ultimately benefit humanity as a whole. They said important research has progressed slowly because of the difficulty in amassing enough genetic data. Right now, 23andMe has about 200 DNA profiles in its database.
23andMe encourages customers to share information by providing tools that let people compare themselves to brothers, sisters and even, potentially, distant relatives and strangers.
The company plans to unveil a social-networking component in the future.
Other social networks based on genetic similarities have already launched, such as GeneTree.com of Salt Lake City, but none includes medically relative information.
Scott Woodward, executive director of the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation, which put together the database behind GeneTree, said the Genetree team decided not to collect medical information because of the risks it created for donors. "We felt like it would detract from our mission of helping people reconnect," Woodward said.
The foundation currently has one of the largest private DNA databases with more than 100,000 samples from around the world.
GeneTree is a free social-networking site that uses both genetic information and genealogy to trace users' ancestry back through the centuries and also lets people connect with long-lost relatives.
News Source
Frankly, I'd rather keep my mind focused on staying happy, healthy and wealthy versus looking for information that will cause me to be worried and start stressing out. Worrying and stress is also one way you can create a mental downturn, and start a cycle where you just add reasons to be miserable!
Start-up enables users to examine their own DNA
GOOGLE-BACKED FIRM INCLUDES MEDICAL DATA
By Elise Ackerman
Mercury News
A start-up partly funded by Google will let people search for information about their personal genetic makeup, such as whether they are predisposed to have a good memory or heart disease.
23andMe, which began offering its service to the public Monday, is one of a handful of new companies seeking to unlock the secrets of the genome for ordinary people with deeply personal concerns: Am I susceptible to breast cancer? Could I develop diabetes?
But the new services, including ones soon to be offered by Navigenics of Redwood Shores and deCode Genetics of Iceland, are raising a host of knotty questions, as scientists and genetic experts caution that the data can be both difficult to interpret and susceptible to misuse.
The co-founders of 23andMe, Linda Avey, a veteran of the biopharmaceutical industry, and Anne Wojcicki, a health care investor who is married to Sergey Brin, Google's co-founder, said they think this information should be accessible and have worked hard to provide it in a responsible way.
The 23andMe service uses tools made by Illumina, of San Diego, to analyze an individual's DNA for nearly 600,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms, known as SNPs, which are the millions of small variations sprinkled over a person's 23 pairs of chromosomes. The company is named after those chromosomal pairs. Scientists have linked the variations to diseases and human traits like memory.
23andMe uploads the analysis to an online database where customers can explore the degree to which the information in their genes has been linked by scientists to particular diseases, traits and characteristics. The service, which costs $999, includes an "odds calculator" that combines the genetic information with customers' ages and ethnicities to give an idea of the common health risks they could face.
Hank Greely, a law professor at Stanford University who has been exploring the implications of the new services, said while companies like 23andMe have good intentions, they could easily end up leading their customers astray.
"A lot of the genetic results are early, weak and preliminary," Greely said. "One worries that people will think the information is more powerful than it actually is and change their lives based on it."
For example, he said, a woman could learn that her genetic association with breast cancer is normal or low and stop getting mammograms.
There are also privacy concerns. Once a person's DNA analysis is put into a database, it is at risk of loss or theft.
Avey and Wojcicki said they are protecting the data with stringent security measures, and that they plan to conduct regular audits.
Wojcicki also said the company is vetting the information it provides to customers according to a set of standards developed in consultation with expert advisers. Both Wojcicki and Avey are sensitive to the fact that genetic studies have been known to make a big media splash - only to be quietly retracted later. "We are erring on the side of caution," Wojcicki said.
Ultimately, Wojcicki and Avey are hoping that customers themselves will agree to participate in large-scale studies that could ultimately benefit humanity as a whole. They said important research has progressed slowly because of the difficulty in amassing enough genetic data. Right now, 23andMe has about 200 DNA profiles in its database.
23andMe encourages customers to share information by providing tools that let people compare themselves to brothers, sisters and even, potentially, distant relatives and strangers.
The company plans to unveil a social-networking component in the future.
Other social networks based on genetic similarities have already launched, such as GeneTree.com of Salt Lake City, but none includes medically relative information.
Scott Woodward, executive director of the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation, which put together the database behind GeneTree, said the Genetree team decided not to collect medical information because of the risks it created for donors. "We felt like it would detract from our mission of helping people reconnect," Woodward said.
The foundation currently has one of the largest private DNA databases with more than 100,000 samples from around the world.
GeneTree is a free social-networking site that uses both genetic information and genealogy to trace users' ancestry back through the centuries and also lets people connect with long-lost relatives.
News Source
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Martina Navratilova as the AARP Health & Fitness Ambassador?
Recently retired tennis star Martina Navratilova has teamed up with the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) in an endorsement deal that will see her as the organization's new Health & Fitness ambassador.
In her new role with the AARP, Navaratilova will share tips with AARP members through online chats, speak at various events, and even conduct Q&As and video segments on the AARP website. While the AARP has had ambassadors in the past, Navaratilova is the first ambassador for health and fitness.
This deal is just one of the latest examples of a growing demand for retired athletes as brand ambassadors. Many of the highest-paid endorsements still go to young stars like LeBron James, retired players are beginning to get far more attention than they used to.
One of the benefits of a retired athlete is that their reputation is well-set and they are often have greater name recognition than younger players. Additionally, finance and healthcare companies are eyeing up the growing legions of aging baby boomers now entering retirement, and are on the hunt for endorsers that their customers can relate to.
AARP has more than 39 million members in the United States, age 50 and up. Both Navratilova and AARP have declined to say how much she is getting paid for her work.
Source
In her new role with the AARP, Navaratilova will share tips with AARP members through online chats, speak at various events, and even conduct Q&As and video segments on the AARP website. While the AARP has had ambassadors in the past, Navaratilova is the first ambassador for health and fitness.
This deal is just one of the latest examples of a growing demand for retired athletes as brand ambassadors. Many of the highest-paid endorsements still go to young stars like LeBron James, retired players are beginning to get far more attention than they used to.
One of the benefits of a retired athlete is that their reputation is well-set and they are often have greater name recognition than younger players. Additionally, finance and healthcare companies are eyeing up the growing legions of aging baby boomers now entering retirement, and are on the hunt for endorsers that their customers can relate to.
AARP has more than 39 million members in the United States, age 50 and up. Both Navratilova and AARP have declined to say how much she is getting paid for her work.
Source
Nancy Makin Loses 500-lbs
The story of Nancy Makin is an amazing one. From weighting 700 pounds after 12 years of weight gain, she loses 500-lbs to an amazing 170-lbs.
Why Did Nancy Makin Gain Weight In The First Place?
Nancy Makin started gaining weight after her divorce and fear at her job. To avoid her feelings, she started eating excessively and soon, she couldn't stop.
At this point, she started feeling lonely and rejected by society. And the more she felt alone, rejected by society and lousy, the more it fed her cycle of stuffing herself to avoid facing the real issues even more.
So How Did Nancy Makin Lose 500 Lbs?
Through the wonders of the internet, she found companionship through the anonymity of the internet. Because the internet allowed her to connect to others in the world without having to face them in person, she felt accepted and valued for her mind and soul.
Through communication and relationships with other people online, she started the cycle of getting onto a healthier path in life. In fact, she credits the initial loss of 100 lbs just by talking to others online!
For more resources on weight loss:
Why Did Nancy Makin Gain Weight In The First Place?
Nancy Makin started gaining weight after her divorce and fear at her job. To avoid her feelings, she started eating excessively and soon, she couldn't stop.
At this point, she started feeling lonely and rejected by society. And the more she felt alone, rejected by society and lousy, the more it fed her cycle of stuffing herself to avoid facing the real issues even more.
So How Did Nancy Makin Lose 500 Lbs?
Through the wonders of the internet, she found companionship through the anonymity of the internet. Because the internet allowed her to connect to others in the world without having to face them in person, she felt accepted and valued for her mind and soul.
Through communication and relationships with other people online, she started the cycle of getting onto a healthier path in life. In fact, she credits the initial loss of 100 lbs just by talking to others online!
For more resources on weight loss:
Learn How To Burn Your Fats Here
And if you're over 40 years old and wanting to get fit, you might want to check this out:
How To Be Fit Over 40
In any situation, it's always a good thing to have a balanced life, stay healthy, and enjoy your journey on this earth as much as you can. It's the only one you have, right?
Read more news on Nancy Makin Here
Read more news on Nancy Makin Here
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