Nature

What can we do to slow down or stop Global Warming

2010-05-29T22:21:00.001-07:00

Climate change is a change in the statistical distribution of weather over periods of time that range from decades to millions of years. It can be a change in the average weather or a change in the distribution of weather events around an average (for example, greater or fewer extreme weather events). Climate change may be limited to a specific region, or may occur across the whole Earth.
In recent usage, especially in the context of environmental policy, climate change usually refers to changes in modern climate. It may be qualified as anthropogenic climate change, more generally known as "global warming" or "anthropogenic global warming" (AGW).
For information on temperature measurements over various periods, and the data sources available, see temperature record. For attribution of climate change over the past century, see attribution of recent climate change.

Human influences

Main article: Global warming
Anthropogenic factors are human activities that change the environment. In some cases the chain of causality of human influence on the climate is direct and unambiguous (for example, the effects of irrigation on local humidity), while in other instances it is less clear. Various hypotheses for human-induced climate change have been argued for many years. Presently the scientific consensus on climate change is that human activity is very likely the cause for the rapid increase in global average temperatures over the past several decades. Consequently, the debate has largely shifted onto ways to reduce further human impact and to find ways to adapt to change that has already occurred.

Of most concern in these anthropogenic factors is the increase in CO2 levels due to emissions from fossil fuel combustion, followed by aerosols (particulate matter in the atmosphere) and cement manufacture. Other factors, including land use, ozone depletion, animal agriculture and deforestation, are also of concern in the roles they play - both separately and in conjunction with other factors - in affecting climate, microclimate, and measures of climate variables.

Physical evidence for climatic change

Evidence for climatic change is taken from a variety of sources that can be used to reconstruct past climates. Reasonably complete global records of surface temperature are available beginning from the mid-late 1800s. For earlier periods, most of the evidence is indirect—climatic changes are inferred from changes in proxies, indicators that reflect climate, such as vegetation, ice cores, dendrochronology, sea level change, and glacial geology.

Historical and archaeological evidence

Main article: Historical impacts of climate change
Climate change in the recent past may be detected by corresponding changes in settlement and agricultural patterns. Archaeological evidence, oral history and historical documents can offer insights into past changes in the climate. Climate change effects have been linked to the collapse of various civilizations.

Glaciers

Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 450,000 years
Glaciers are considered among the most sensitive indicators of climate change, advancing when climate cools and retreating when climate warms. Glaciers grow and shrink, both contributing to natural variability and amplifying externally forced changes. A world glacier inventory has been compiled since the 1970s, initially based mainly on aerial photographs and maps but now relying more on satellites. This compilation tracks more than 100,000 glaciers covering a total area of approximately 240,000 km2, and preliminary estimates indicate that the remaining ice cover is around 445,000 km2. The World Glacier Monitoring Service collects data annually on glacier retreat and glacier mass balance From this data, glaciers worldwide have been found to be shrinking significantly, with strong glacier retreats in the 1940s, stable or growing conditions during the 1920s and 1970s, and again retreating from the mid 1980s to present.
Percentage of advancing glaciers in the Alps in the last 80 years
The most significant climate processes since the middle to late Pliocene (approximately 3 million years ago) are the glacial and interglacial cycles. The present interglacial period (the Holocene) has lasted about 11,700 years.Shaped by orbital variations, responses such as the rise and fall of continental ice sheets and significant sea-level changes helped create the climate. Other changes, including Heinrich events, Dansgaard–Oeschger events and the Younger Dryas, however, illustrate how glacial variations may also influence climate without the orbital forcing.

Glaciers leave behind moraines that contain a wealth of material - including organic matter that may be accurately dated - recording the periods in which a glacier advanced and retreated. Similarly, by tephrochronological techniques, the lack of glacier cover can be identified by the presence of soil or volcanic tephra horizons whose date of deposit may also be precisely ascertained.

What can we do to slow down or stop Global Warming

Replace a regular incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb (cfl)
CFLs use 60% less energy than a regular bulb. This simple switch will save about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide a year.
We recommend you purchase your CFL bulbs at 1000bulbs.com, they have great deals on both screw-in and plug-in light bulbs.
Install a programmable thermostat
Programmable thermostats will automatically lower the heat or air conditioning at night and raise them again in the morning. They can save you $100 a year on your energy bill.
Move your thermostat down 2° in winter and up 2° in summer
Almost half of the energy we use in our homes goes to heating and cooling. You could save about 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year with this simple adjustment.
Clean or replace filters on your furnace and air conditioner
Cleaning a dirty air filter can save 350 pounds of carbon dioxide a year.
Choose energy efficient appliances when making new purchases
Look for the Energy Star label on new appliances to choose the most energy efficient products available.
Do not leave appliances on standby
Use the "on/off" function on the machine itself. A TV set that's switched on for 3 hours a day (the average time Europeans spend watching TV) and in standby mode during the remaining 21 hours uses about 40% of its energy in standby mode.
Wrap your water heater in an insulation blanket
You'll save 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year with this simple action. You can save another 550 pounds per year by setting the thermostat no higher than 50°C.
Move your fridge and freezer
Placing them next to the cooker or boiler consumes much more energy than if they were standing on their own. For example, if you put them in a hot cellar room where the room temperature is 30-35ºC, energy use is almost double and causes an extra 160kg of CO2 emissions for fridges per year and 320kg for freezers.
Defrost old fridges and freezers regularly
Even better is to replace them with newer models, which all have automatic defrost cycles and are generally up to two times more energy-efficient than their predecessors.
Don't let heat escape from your house over a long period
When airing your house, open the windows for only a few minutes. If you leave a small opening all day long, the energy needed to keep it warm inside during six cold months (10ºC or less outside temperature) would result in almost 1 ton of CO2 emissions.
Replace your old single-glazed windows with double-glazing
This requires a bit of upfront investment, but will halve the energy lost through windows and pay off in the long term. If you go for the best the market has to offer (wooden-framed double-glazed units with low-emission glass and filled with argon gas), you can even save more than 70% of the energy lost.
Get a home energy audit
Many utilities offer free home energy audits to find where your home is poorly insulated or energy inefficient. You can save up to 30% off your energy bill and 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Energy Star can help you find an energy specialist.
Cover your pots while cooking
Doing so can save a lot of the energy needed for preparing the dish. Even better are pressure cookers and steamers: they can save around 70%!
Use the washing machine or dishwasher only when they are full
If you need to use it when it is half full, then use the half-load or economy setting. There is also no need to set the temperatures high. Nowadays detergents are so efficient that they get your clothes and dishes clean at low temperatures.
Take a shower instead of a bath
A shower takes up to four times less energy than a bath. To maximize the energy saving, avoid power showers and use low-flow shower heads, which are cheap and provide the same comfort.
Use less hot water
It takes a lot of energy to heat water. You can use less hot water by installing a low flow shower head (350 pounds of carbon dioxide saved per year) and washing your clothes in cold or warm water (500 pounds saved per year) instead of hot.
Use a clothesline instead of a dryer whenever possible
You can save 700 pounds of carbon dioxide when you air dry your clothes for 6 months out of the year.
Insulate and weatherize your home
Properly insulating your walls and ceilings can save 25% of your home heating bill and 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Caulking and weather-stripping can save another 1,700 pounds per year. Energy Efficient has more information on how to better insulate your home.
Be sure you're recycling at home
You can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide a year by recycling half of the waste your household generates.
Recycle your organic waste
Around 3% of the greenhouse gas emissions through the methane is released by decomposing bio-degradable waste. By recycling organic waste or composting it if you have a garden, you can help eliminate this problem! Just make sure that you compost it properly, so it decomposes with sufficient oxygen, otherwise your compost will cause methane emissions and smell foul.
Buy intelligently
One bottle of 1.5l requires less energy and produces less waste than three bottles of 0.5l. As well, buy recycled paper products: it takes less 70 to 90% less energy to make recycled paper and it prevents the loss of forests worldwide.
Choose products that come with little packaging and buy refills when you can
You will also cut down on waste production and energy use... another help against global warming.
Reuse your shopping bag
When shopping, it saves energy and waste to use a reusable bag instead of accepting a disposable one in each shop. Waste not only discharges CO2 and methane into the atmosphere, it can also pollute the air, groundwater and soil.
Reduce waste
Most products we buy cause greenhouse gas emissions in one or another way, e.g. during production and distribution. By taking your lunch in a reusable lunch box instead of a disposable one, you save the energy needed to produce new lunch boxes.
Plant a tree
A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime. Shade provided by trees can also reduce your air conditioning bill by 10 to 15%. The Arbor Day Foundation has information on planting and provides trees you can plant with membership.
Switch to green power
In many areas, you can switch to energy generated by clean, renewable sources such as wind and solar. In some of these, you can even get refunds by government if you choose to switch to a clean energy producer, and you can also earn money by selling the energy you produce and don't use for yourself.
Buy locally grown and produced foods
The average meal in the United States travels 1,200 miles from the farm to your plate. Buying locally will save fuel and keep money in your community.
Buy fresh foods instead of frozen
Frozen food uses 10 times more energy to produce.
Seek out and support local farmers markets
They reduce the amount of energy required to grow and transport the food to you by one fifth. Seek farmer's markets in your area, and go for them.
Buy organic foods as much as possible
Organic soils capture and store carbon dioxide at much higher levels than soils from conventional farms. If we grew all of our corn and soybeans organically, we'd remove 580 billion pounds of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere!
Eat less meat
Methane is the second most significant greenhouse gas and cows are one of the greatest methane emitters. Their grassy diet and multiple stomachs cause them to produce methane, which they exhale with every breath.
Reduce the number of miles you drive by walking, biking, carpooling or taking mass transit wherever possible
Avoiding just 10 miles of driving every week would eliminate about 500 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions a year! Look for transit options in your area.
Start a carpool with your coworkers or classmates
Sharing a ride with someone just 2 days a week will reduce your carbon dioxide emissions by 1,590 pounds a year. eRideShare.com runs a free service connecting north American commuters and travelers.
Don't leave an empty roof rack on your car
This can increase fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by up to 10% due to wind resistance and the extra weight - removing it is a better idea.
Keep your car tuned up
Regular maintenance helps improve fuel efficiency and reduces emissions. When just 1% of car owners properly maintain their cars, nearly a billion pounds of carbon dioxide are kept out of the atmosphere.
Drive carefully and do not waste fuel
You can reduce CO2 emissions by readjusting your driving style. Choose proper gears, do not abuse the gas pedal, use the engine brake instead of the pedal brake when possible and turn off your engine when your vehicle is motionless for more than one minute. By readjusting your driving style you can save money on both fuel and car mantainance.
Check your tires weekly to make sure they're properly inflated
Proper tire inflation can improve gas mileage by more than 3%. Since every gallon of gasoline saved keeps 20 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, every increase in fuel efficiency makes a difference!
When it is time for a new car, choose a more fuel efficient vehicle
You can save 3,000 pounds of carbon dioxide every year if your new car gets only 3 miles per gallon more than your current one. You can get up to 60 miles per gallon with a hybrid! You can find information on fuel efficiency on FuelEconomy and on GreenCars websites.
Try car sharing
Need a car but don't want to buy one? Community car sharing organizations provide access to a car and your membership fee covers gas, maintenance and insurance. Many companies – such as Flexcar - offer low emission or hybrid cars too! Also, see ZipCar.
Try telecommuting from home
Telecommuting can help you drastically reduce the number of miles you drive every week. For more information, check out the Telework Coalition.
Fly less
Air travel produces large amounts of emissions so reducing how much you fly by even one or two trips a year can reduce your emissions significantly. You can also offset your air travel carbon emissions by investing in renewable energy projects.
Encourage your school or business to reduce emissions
You can extend your positive influence on global warming well beyond your home by actively encouraging other to take action.
Join the virtual march
The Stop Global Warming Virtual March is a non-political effort to bring people concerned about global warming together in one place. Add your voice to the hundreds of thousands of other people urging action on this issue.
Encourage the switch to renewable energy
Successfully combating global warming requires a national transition to renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and biomass. These technologies are ready to be deployed more widely but there are regulatory barriers impeding them. U.S. citizens, take action to break down those barriers with Vote Solar.
Protect and conserve forest worldwide
Forests play a critical role in global warming: they store carbon. When forests are burned or cut down, their stored carbon is release into the atmosphere - deforestation now accounts for about 20% of carbon dioxide emissions each year. Conservation International has more information on saving forests from global warming.
Consider the impact of your investments
If you invest your money, you should consider the impact that your investments and savings will have on global warming. Check out SocialInvest and Ceres to can learn more about how to ensure your money is being invested in companies, products and projects that address issues related to climate change.
Make your city cool
Cities and states around the country have taken action to stop global warming by passing innovative transportation and energy saving legislation. If you're in the U.S., join the cool cities list.
Tell Congress to act
The McCain Lieberman Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act would set a firm limit on carbon dioxide emissions and then use free market incentives to lower costs, promote efficiency and spur innovation. Tell your representative to support it.
Make sure your voice is heard!
Americans must have a stronger commitment from their government in order to stop global warming and implement solutions and such a commitment won't come without a dramatic increase in citizen lobbying for new laws with teeth. Get the facts about U.S. politicians and candidates at Project Vote Smart and The League of Conservation Voters. Make sure your voice is heard by voting!
Share this list!
Send this page via e-mail to your friends! Spread this list worldwide and help people doing their part: the more people you will manage to enlighten, the greater YOUR help to save the planet will be (but please take action on first person too)!

Is The Carbon Footprint of Spam a Threat to the Environment?

2010-05-29T22:19:00.001-07:00

Spam emails hound all email users - be it businesses or private persons. It seems this internet scourge is doing much more damage than causing irritation to recipients. Spam is also attributed to hep increase greenhouse gas emissions particularly carbon dioxide which is harmful to the planet.

Every email user knows the nuisances brought by spam all too well. Companies struggle against this internet scourge that takes away a bit of the business’ precious working time. Private persons also feel the irritation of scouring through the huge pile of spam emails to be able to open legitimate emails.

The effects of this common everyday nuisance has never been quantified but all agrees that it does take away a bit of precious time from work. Recently, McAfee attempts to paint a clearer picture of the problem by coming up with a report on the effects of spam and relating it to the environment.

Obviously, global warming is one of the key issues haunting our generation today. In relation to that, McAfee with the aid of ICF International, came up with novel ideal of determining how spam impacts the environment. And as it turns out, it seems that the nemesis of most computer users - spam emails - prove to be the nemesis of the planet too.

It's Carbon Footprint

McAfee’s report "The Carbon Footprint of Spam" contains interesting information on the harmful effects of carbon footprint of spam that could invariably lead to global warming. The study, conducted by ICF International as commissioned by McAfee, says that approximately 62 trillion spam emails are sent each year. These contribute to 33 billion kilowatt hours of electric consumption which translates into greenhouse gas emissions equal to 3.1 million cars on the road using at least 2 billion gallons of gasoline.

Key findings in the said report include the following equally startling facts:

- 52% of energy used associated to spam is from recipients deleting spam and searching for valid emails.

- A single spam message has a greenhouse gas emission of 0.3 grams of carbon dioxide or equal to driving three feet. If the numbers are added up, the annual volume of spam would equal to driving around the earth 1.6 million times.

- A small business normally consumes 50,000 KWh for emails per year. Around a fifth of that emails, therefore a fifth of the energy used, are for spam.

- Spam filtering saves 135 TWh electricity every year or equal to 13 million cars off the road.

- Spam filtering is good but fighting spam at the source is way better. McColo a source of online spam went offline temporarily in 2008. The temporary respite saved the recipients of energy consumption equal to 2.2 million cars taken off the road.

McAfee's report is indeed very interesting but it fails to address certain issues like how to determine how much energy is being used for other applications in comparison with spam. The methodology used is also subject to questions. However, the bottomline remains the same- that spam emails do not contribute anything good for recipients and now, for the environment as well.

Wild flower Pictures

2010-03-15T05:58:00.001-07:00

Green Nature Wallpaper

2010-03-11T05:25:00.001-08:00

The Most Popular Tourist Attraction in Croatia

2010-03-10T05:04:00.001-08:00

Photograph by Jack Brauer

All of the Croatian people I have met through my years have always talked about the natural beauty of their homeland. I always nodded in agreement because it struck me that most people shared the same sentiment, regardless of their origin. This says to me, that natural beauty and splendor are everywhere. Our planet is a wonderful place and there are countless gems like the Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia, for us to appreciate and preserve.

The Plitvice Lakes National Park was granted UNESCO World Heritage status in 1979. The beauty of the National Park lies in its sixteen lakes, inter-connected by a series of waterfalls, and set in deep woodland populated by deer, bears, wolves, boars and rare bird species
Photograph by Roman Bonnefoy

The National Park covers a total area of 300 square kilometers (116 sq. miles), whilst the lakes join together over a distance of eight kilometers (5 miles).

The sixteen lakes are separated into an upper and lower cluster formed by runoff from the mountains, descending from an altitude of 636 meters (2,087 ft) to 503 meters (1,650 feet) over a distance of some eight km (5 miles), aligned in a south-north direction. The lakes collectively cover an area of about two square km, with the water exiting from the lowest lake to form the Korana River.

The lakes are renowned for their distinctive colours, ranging from azure to green, grey or blue. The colours change constantly depending on the quantity of minerals or organisms in the water and the angle of sunlight.
There’s also quite an altitude difference - the highest point is at 1,280 meters (4,200 ft), the lowest at 380 meters (1,247 ft) - although the total height difference between the lakes themselves is only 135 meters (443 ft). Veliki Slap is the largest waterfall, at 70 meters (230 ft) tall.
Photograph by Henning Schroder

Brief History
The Plitvice Lakes had become a major tourist attraction in the late 19th century. The first hotel was built there in 1896, and as early as 1893 it already had a conservation committee - the predecessor of today’s national park authority. In 1949 the communist government of Yugoslavia nationalized the lakes and made them a national park. The park was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979 in recognition of its “outstanding natural beauty, and the undisturbed production of travertine (tuff) through chemical and biological action”.

The park soon became one of Yugoslavia’s most popular tourist attractions. However, in March 1991 it became the scene of the Plitvice Lakes incident - the first armed confrontation of the Croatian War of Independence that resulted in fatalities. The park was held by forces of the Republic of Serbian Krajina during the conflict and suffered some damage in the process, with hotels and other facilities being used as barracks. At auto-camp Grabovac there were civilian deaths (three children) from a Yugoslav Army shell in September 1991[4]. It was retaken by the Croatian Army in August 1995 during Operation Storm, which ended the Croatian war.

The Bible, seen from outer space

2010-03-08T02:20:00.001-08:00

A group of Australian artists called The Glue Society has recently displayed a project that will surely be controversial. The work consists of a set of digital pictures that try to represent a series of biblical episodes just as they would be seen through a satellite, such as with Google Earth. Above, we can Moses crossing the Red Sea. It's funny how these pictures are close to our own stereotypes...

The cucifixion
Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden (look closely)

Noah's Ark after the Deluge

A sea monster

2010-02-09T02:18:00.001-08:00

Hundreds of people come to look at this “strange alien” that has been washed on a beach in Wales.

In fact – this is not a Cthulhu tentacle, but “the biggest specimens of free-floating goose barnacles”, although they are quite unusual.

If You Think These Are Natural Landscapes You Are Wrong

2010-02-06T00:24:00.000-08:00

To create a realistic image of rolling plains of grass blown by the wind, Matthew uses faux fur.

Artist Matthew Albanese created a “Sugarscape” out of corn syrup, jelly, and twenty pounds of sugar. Although the model may look like scene directly from Antarctica it took the artist over two months to grow the crystals in his studio.

He also used such materials as paprika for his Martian landscape, cotton and many others to give this incredible illusion of something real. So if you have ever seen a landscape that you thought looked good enough to eat; now you have seen the real thing. It is truly a work of art.Matthew creates cloud effects using cotton wool and careful lightng
Sugarland, Made out of 20 pounds of sugar, jello and corn syrup. The crystals were grown in studio over the course of two months.
Paprika Mars. Made out of 12 pounds paprika, cinnamon, nutmeg, chili powder and charcoal
Mars # 2. Again, Paprika, cinnamon, thyme, chili powder, charcoal,
Fields, After the Storm. This model is simply made out of faux fur(fields), cotton (clouds) and sifted tile grout(mountains).
Volcano, “Breaking Point”, made out of tile grout, cotton, phosphorous ink. this model volcano was illuminated from within by 6-60 watt light bulbs.
The making of the volcano image, lit from within by six 60-watt light bulbs
A miniature living room…
Burning Room, Made of wood, nylon, plexiglass, purchased dollhouse furniture. The model was actually set on fire to achieve this effect.
Aurora Borealis. This one was made by photographing a beam of colored light against a black curtain to achieve the edge effect. The trees were composited from life ( so far the only real life element in any of these images) The stars are simply strobe light through holes in cork board.
This one is a mixture of many different materials, tile grout, moss, bottle brushes (pine trees) Actual clippings from ground cover and was built on top of standard outdoor patio table (water glass). The sky is canvas painted blue. Coloring was again achieved by shifting white balance.
Tornado made of steel wool, cotton, ground parsley and moss
Above the B.Q.E, Model is made of painted plaster sky has been composited

Beautifull Nature images

2010-02-05T02:18:00.000-08:00

The United Kingdom's manufacturing sector is heating up at a faster rate than forecast by the market, according to the producer price indexes released today by the UK national statistics office.

The PPI input, which captures changes in the average price of a fixed basket of goods and services purchased by the UK Manufactures, rose by 2.0% in January from 0.1% the previous month. Analysts had predicted a much more modest increase of 0.2%. In yearly terms, the PPI input jumped to 8.4% in January, above forecasts of 6.5%, from 6.9% in December.

The PPI output, which measures price changes of goods produced by UK manufacturers, was 0.4% in January, down from December's 0.5%, but still ahead of predictions of a slide to 0.3%. In annual terms, however, the PPI output set a high not seen since December 2008 with an increase of 3.8% in January, above expectations of a 3.7% rise and December's figure of 3.5%

The Avatar Real Mountains

2010-02-02T02:10:00.001-08:00

In a beautiful part of southern China there are some mountains called the Southern Sky Column Mountains which have recently been renamed to the Avatar Hallelujah Mountains after the floating mountains that were featured in the blockbuster movie Avatar.

The floating Hallelujah Mountains in the movie were the inspiration of a Hollywood photographer who, in 2008, shot photos of the Southern Sky Column Mountains. Now, tourists can go on a tour to see Avatar’s floating mountain and learn that they were once called the Southern Sky Mountains.

Some rare varieties of Beautiful Flowers

2010-01-23T21:38:00.000-08:00

Amazing Art with Tree Branches

2010-01-20T03:57:00.001-08:00

The Nature Beauty Of Rocks

2010-01-16T21:21:00.000-08:00

One&Only Luxury Resort Hotel Reethi Rah, Maldives

2010-01-11T02:42:00.000-08:00

When it comes to luxury hotels no one does it like the One&Only resorts located in the most exotic spots around the world. The One&Only Reethi Rah in Maldives is no exception and features a seductive landscape and interior design that lets you know you are on vacation! I had the pleasure of staying at the Pamilla in Cabo San Lucas Mexico and can personally attest to the special feeling you get from the moment you wake until you shut your eyes at night. Here are some of the glamorous shots from in and around the One&Only Reethi Rah,

If dry, cracked, and generally irritated skin has adults in pain periodically due to an allergic reaction, stress, or weather, imagine the pain children and infants who have developed eczema go through. There have been supposed “miracle cures” for decades hoping to be the end to eczema but without expensive and dangerous prescription drugs; people searching a more natural approach have been silently suffering.

As a form of dermatitis (inflammation of the epidermis/skin), eczema is a broad term for a whole range of various skin conditions. The common denominator in all of these problems is that they are all consistent in the patient with symptoms like edema/swelling, dryness, itching, crusting, oozing, and blistering. Infantile eczema, for example, is a common case called atopic eczema which is a skin disease revolving around allergens. Believed to be hereditary, infantile eczema is often transmitted to babies through families who have a history of asthma and hay fever. Usually associated with red blotchy rashes on sensitive areas such as the head, neck, bottom, and inside the joints like between the fingers, under the knees, and inside the elbows, eczema can occur anywhere on the skin.

While searching for natural, healthy, and alternative soothers for childhood (or infantile) eczema, there are several different products that claim to be better than the scores of lotions, gels, creams, oatmeal baths, and powders aimed at “severely dry skin,” and are supposedly great for kids because of their highly sensitive skin. Because there is temptation to scratch an itch, it is important for parents to be able to control eczema, not only to prevent it from worsening in the present but also to ward off unsightly scars on their child’s skin.

Nice Images Of Colourfull Sky

2009-12-29T09:21:00.001-08:00

Unusual trees from around the world

2009-12-16T02:43:00.000-08:00

It was Buddha who said:
"A tree is a wonderful living organism which gives shelter, food, warmth and protection to all living things. It even gives shade to those who wield an axe to cut it down."

And Joyce Kilmer immortalised the grace and beauty of trees in poetry:
"I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth's sweet flowing breaste;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree."

Here we present some of the most amazing and unusual trees from around the world. They include the Basket Tree, Giant Sequoias of California, Circus Tree, Chapel-Oak. Tule Tree. Banyan Tree, and Baobab Trees - including one with a toilet built inside it.

Pueblo County could see more mass vaccination clinics after the new year begins, but for now the health department is moving vaccines through other channels to reach people who did not attend the large clinics.

Dr. Christine Nevin-Woods, executive director of the Pueblo City-County Health Department, said that 13,706 doses of H1N1 flu vaccine were given at nine clinics held at schools and the Colorado State Fairgrounds, and at the health department in sessions for health care workers.

Another 18,000 doses were sent out to hospitals and other health care providers. She said that about 2,000 doses were left over from Saturday’s open clinic at Centennial High School and 7,200 more are expected to arrive this week.

Nevin-Woods said as many as 700 doses will go to the Pueblo Community Health

Center, which she said can deliver them very efficiently to low-income clients. Other batches will go to pharmacies and doctors' offices in an effort to reach

seniors who did not attend the department’s mass clinics.

The health department also will give second doses to children 9 years old and younger. To get those, parents should call the health department to schedule an appointment.

When vaccines first were distributed, it was difficult for doctors to get them but Nevin-Woods said that situation has changed and she’s encouraging doctors to call the health department to obtain them.

10 Most Suggestive Cacti On Earth

2009-12-12T02:21:00.001-08:00

Today, we’d like to take a look at a plant that is especially close to our, er, hearts – the cactus! The following pictures will prove that this prickly green friend can be quite a source of amusement.This red cactus is apparently common in Yucatan and even said to have, er, enhancing properties if boiled and eaten as a soup. Right…The next specimen belongs to the Cephalocereus gaumeri species and is often referred to as “old man” cactus, because of the white wool on top looking like long white hairs – not what you’re thinking. The limp things hanging down from the cactus fruits are flower remains. Maybe it’s not a cactus man after all?
What this cactus seems to have too much of …
… this one seems to lack. Little blue pills, anyone?
It’ll take some balls to come out of hiding:
Tom, Dick and Harry playing the same old tune…

There has been conflicting evidence as to whether soy foods increase breast cancer risks or reduce the chances of breast cancer. With soy products of all kinds gaining in popularity, women are concerned about consumption when they are at risk of or have experienced breast cancer. Now, there is new evidence indicating soy foods may actually benefit women that eat moderate amounts by reducing their risk of breast cancer recurrence and lower their risk of death.

Because soy contains isoflavone, an estrogen-like compound which in labs seemed to help cancer cells to grow and increase tumor growth in animals, many breast cancer patients have worried that by eating soy products they may be increasing their odds of recurrence or death. However, based on a new study published in the December 9^th issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, there seems to be no reason for breast cancer patients to avoid soy foods.

The lead author of the newly released study, Dr. Xiao Ou Shu, a professor of medicine at Vanderbilt University, and her colleagues used data from the Shanghai Breast Cancer Survival Study that consisted of 5,042 Chinese women ranging in age from 20 to 75 that had been diagnosed with breast cancer between March 2002 and April 2006, for their study. The group examined data on cancer progression at six months following a breast cancer diagnosis, and again at 18, 36, and 60 months following the diagnosis. The group considered the cancer diagnosis, treatment, and lifestyle factors of the patients, including their diets.

Dr. Shu said, “There was a linear response, and we found the higher the intake, the lower the mortality, up to 11 grams of soy protein.” One-fourth of a cup of tofu daily would grant someone 11grams of soy protein, according to Dr. Shu. The study found the group of women with the highest intake of soy products had a 29 percent lower risk of death, and a 32 percent less chance of suffering a recurrence of breast cancer, when compared to the group of ladies that consumed less than 5.3 grams of soy daily during the study.

Dr. Shu said, “Some doctors have advised women not to eat soy foods…. But another school of physicians think it’s safe. So it has been controversial. Our findings are important because, nowadays, it’s very difficult to avoid soy exposure. Soy flour and soy protein has been added to many foods in this country. Women may consume it and not even know it.”

B E A U T I F U L R I V E R S

2009-11-25T20:11:00.000-08:00

Stunning collection of Luxury Paradise Islands

2009-11-16T02:14:00.001-08:00

Lofoten Islands, Norway
Roatan, Honduras
Luxury Paradise Island of Tahiti
Sveti Stefan, Montenegro
Petit St Vincent, Caribbean
San Blas Islands, Panama
Taprobane, Sri Lanka
Los Roques, Venezuela
North Island, Seychelles
Dhoni Mighili, Maldives
Aitutaki, South Pacific
Malapacao Island, The Philippines

The Best Gardens In The World

2009-11-14T04:12:00.000-08:00

Butchart Gardens, British

Salvation Mountain a man-made mountain

2009-11-09T02:20:00.001-08:00

Financial Update :-

World markets track US higher after jobs report

Asian stock markets rose Monday as investors took a surprisingly weak U.S. jobs report as a sign that interest rates in the world's largest economy will stay low longer than expected. European shares opened higher.
Also buoying sentiment were bullish corporate earnings results and gold's climb above $1,108 an ounce.
Asia's gains followed Wall Street, where stock indexes climbed modestly Friday after the government said the U.S. unemployment rate surpassed 10 percent last month for the first time since 1983.
While clear evidence of America's economic woes, the climb in joblessness still gave investors reassurances the Federal Reserve will need to keep its bank lending rate at a record low range of zero to 0.25 percent for the time being. Low interest rates tend to slow demand for the dollar and support liquidity, which can in turn boost stocks.
"The economic sector is still weak, and we can expect no interest rate hike in the near term," said Linus Yip, strategist at First Shanghai Securities Ltd. in Hong Kong. "So all this is helping the U.S. market and the Hong Kong markets to remain firm."
Now that Asian investors have digested the U.S. labor market data, their focus will likely shift back to mainland China, Yip said. Several key economic indicators are due out this week, including retail sales, industrial output and the consumer price index.
During early trade in Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.9 percent, Germany's DAX was up 1.3 percent and France's CAC-40 gained 1.1 percent.
In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 1.7 percent to 22,207.55, and Japan's Nikkei stock average edged up 0.2 percent to 9,823.90.
Benchmarks in mainland China, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand also advanced.
Financial and insurance stocks were sharply higher in several markets.
Australia's AXA Pacific Holdings Ltd. soared more than 32 percent after the insurer rejected a $10 billion takeover bid from rival AMP Ltd. and French parent AXA SA. The rebuff raised investor hopes for a higher offer.
In Japan, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group Holdings Inc. surged 8.6 percent after the nonlife insurer reported better-than-expected earnings results for the April-September half.
Earnings hopes bolstered Chinese issue as well, sending the Shanghai Composite Index up for a seventh straight session.
"The euphoria carried on, as investors were confident to see a profitable fourth quarter based on reports for the past three months," said Li Xianmin, an analyst for Pingan Securities in the southern city of Shenzhen.
Shares in companies linked to renewable energy rose ahead of U.S. President Barack Obama's visit to Beijing next week on hopes the two governments will discuss possible measures to promote the industries.
Chinese gold miners soared on higher gold prices. Shandong Gold Mining Co. soared 7.7 percent and Zijin Mining Group Co. added 3.3 percent.
Ongoing concerns about the strong yen pressured the Tokyo market, with the country's major exporters taking a hit. The dollar fell under the 90 yen line Friday, though recovered slightly in Monday trading.
Nissan Motor Co. lost 2.3 percent, while Panasonic Corp. fell 2 percent.
On Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 17.46, or 0.2 percent, to 10,023.42. The Standard & Poor's 500 index closed up 2.67, or 0.3 percent, at 1,069.30.
U.S. futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street Monday. Dow futures added 56 points, or 0.6 percent, to 10,034, and S&P futures rose 7.5 points, or 0.7 percent, to 1,073.70.
Oil prices shot higher in Asia as Hurricane Ida threatened oil installations in the Gulf of Mexico. Benchmark crude for December delivery was up 94 cents to $78.37; the contract fell $2.19 on Friday.
Gold prices continued their march higher, trading up $10, or about 0.9 percent, at $1,105.7. Prices hit a high of $1,108.8 during the session.
The dollar was trading at 90.08 yen from 89.97 yen late Friday. The euro stood at $1.4934 from $1.4885.

7 More Deserted Wonders of the Modern World

2009-11-06T21:59:00.001-08:00

(7) Gunkanjima, Japan: Once known for having one of the highest population densities in the world (1.4 people per square meter) “Battleship Island” is now completely deserted. Known today as “Ghost Island,” this strange place stands out from other hundreds of abandoned Japanese islands for its massive concrete sea walls and omnipresent and ominous concrete architecture. Some people have snuck onto the island to take photographs and explore.
(6) Varosha, Cyprus: Photographing this city, fenced off by the Turkish military in 1974, is forbidden. These images show a rare glimpse inside of this eerie ghost town. The area was once home to thousands of Greek Cypriots who have been denied for decades the right to return to their homes. The photographer who took these images nearly lost his camera to a military patrol, and the slanted angles are a result of shooting from his side when he could.
(5) Verona, New Jersey: The Essex Mountain Sanatorium is an amazing example of a prevalent type of abandonment. Mental hospitals were largely abandoned in the United States during the 1960s and 1970s, being widely considered no better than prisons for the mentally ill. In the wake of this movement, many such building complexes were simply left to decay over time. Of course, breaking into these and taking photographs often yields interesting stories.
(4) Bangkok, Thailand: This former Russian Embassy, including the century-old Luang Sathorn Mansion, is remarkably preserved despite being long abandoned. Sound-proofed and metal-lined walls tell the story of what was once a Russian intelligence stronghold during the Cold War. Pieces of intelligence and communications equipment are strewn about, but much of the architecture and decor remain intact.
(3) Pyongyang, North Korea: Once slated to be the largest hotel structure in the world, the Ryugyung Hotel building remains incomplete, a towering but hollow concrete shell. At over 1,000 feet high, this building represents a political response to the South Korean company’s equivalent. It is unclear whether the structure will ever be finished. For now, it remains an empty giant on the skyline.
(2) Detroit, Michigan: The population of detroit has decreased by half over the past fifty years. Vast areas of land have been cleared in an effort to rid the city of its abandonments, but many structures still remain. Even landmark buildings of historical and architectural value have been demolished. People tend to think that all urban areas grow over time, but Detroit provides a striking counterexample.

(1) Centralia, Pennsylvania: Fourty years later, this abandoned town is still burning from below, due to a coal mine fire that never went out, bringing underworld metaphors to life. Carbon monoxide rose to dangerous levels (and sink holes opened up beneath unsuspecting residents) before many left the area for good. Today, a few people still live in or around Centralia, though smoke continues to curl up out of the ground and through gaping cracks in highways. Some try to comprehend it through fascinating videos of the town. Others just pass through, documenting their experience of this surreal place.

Honorable Mentions go out to three other reader-submitted recommendations: (1) Humberstone, Chile, is now a World Heritage Site. (2) Cook, Australia, is an abandoned outpost town in the Australian Outback. (3) Gary, Indiana, though not fully abandoned has some impressive deserted structures. Know of even more?

If you haven’t already, be sure to check out the Original 7 Deserted Wonders of the Postmodern World and feel free to add others below! Also be sure to see the Oldest Skyscrapers in the World. Also consider these Abandonments Resources if you are interested in exploring urban abandonments in your own area.

Beautifull Nature images

2009-10-31T01:21:00.001-07:00

Principles of insurance
Commercially insurable risks typically share seven common characteristics.[1]
1. A large number of homogeneous exposure units. The vast majority of insurance policies are provided for individual members of very large classes. Automobile insurance, for example, covered about 175 million automobiles in the United States in 2004.[2] The existence of a large number of homogeneous exposure units allows insurers to benefit from the so-called “law of large numbers,” which in effect states that as the number of exposure units increases, proportionally the actual results are increasingly likely to become close to expected proportions. There are exceptions to this criterion. Lloyd's of London is famous for insuring the life or health of actors, actresses and sports figures. Satellite Launch insurance covers events that are infrequent. Large commercial property policies may insure exceptional properties for which there are no ‘homogeneous’ exposure units. Despite failing on this criterion, many exposures like these are generally considered to be insurable.
2. Definite Loss. The event that gives rise to the loss that is subject to the insured, at least in principle, take place at a known time, in a known place, and from a known cause. The classic example is death of an insured person on a life insurance policy. Fire, automobile accidents, and worker injuries may all easily meet this criterion. Other types of losses may only be definite in theory. Occupational disease, for instance, may involve prolonged exposure to injurious conditions where no specific time, place or cause is identifiable. Ideally, the time, place and cause of a loss should be clear enough that a reasonable person, with sufficient information, could objectively verify all three elements.
3. Accidental Loss. The event that constitutes the trigger of a claim should be fortuitous, or at least outside the control of the beneficiary of the insurance. The loss should be ‘pure,’ in the sense that it results from an event for which there is only the opportunity for cost. Events that contain speculative elements, such as ordinary business risks, are generally not considered insurable.
4. Large Loss. The size of the loss must be meaningful from the perspective of the insured. Insurance premiums need to cover both the expected cost of losses, plus the cost of issuing and administering the policy, adjusting losses, and supplying the capital needed to reasonably assure that the insurer will be able to pay claims. For small losses these latter costs may be several times the size of the expected cost of losses. There is little point in paying such costs unless the protection offered has real value to a buyer.
5. Affordable Premium. If the likelihood of an insured event is so high, or the cost of the event so large, that the resulting premium is large relative to the amount of protection offered, it is not likely that anyone will buy insurance, even if on offer. Further, as the accounting profession formally recognizes in financial accounting standards, the premium cannot be so large that there is not a reasonable chance of a significant loss to the insurer. If there is no such chance of loss, the transaction may have the form of insurance, but not the substance. (See the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board standard number 113)
6. Calculable Loss. There are two elements that must be at least estimable, if not formally calculable: the probability of loss, and the attendant cost. Probability of loss is generally an empirical exercise, while cost has more to do with the ability of a reasonable person in possession of a copy of the insurance policy and a proof of loss associated with a claim presented under that policy to make a reasonably definite and objective evaluation of the amount of the loss recoverable as a result of the claim.

Beaches Backgrounds

2009-10-24T22:27:00.001-07:00

Cell, Tumor, and Stem Cell Biology

In vivo, Noninvasive, Label-Free Detection and Eradication of Circulating Metastatic Melanoma Cells Using Two-Color Photoacoustic Flow Cytometry with a Diode Laser
Key Words: circulating tumor cells • melanoma • photoacoustic detection
The circulating tumor cell (CTC) count has been shown as a prognostic marker for metastasis development. However, its clinical utility for metastasis prevention remains unclear, because metastases may already be present at the time of initial diagnosis with existing assays. Their sensitivity ex vivo is limited by a small blood sample volume, whereas in vivo examination of larger blood volumes may be clinically restricted by the toxicity of labels used for targeting of CTCs. We introduce a method for in vivo photoacoustic blood cancer testing with a high-pulse-repetition-rate diode laser that, when applied to melanoma, is free of this limitation. It uses the overexpression of melanin clusters as intrinsic, spectrally-specific cancer markers and signal amplifiers, thus providing higher photoacoustic contrast of melanoma cells compared with a blood background. In tumor-bearing mouse models and melanoma-spiked human blood samples, we showed a sensitivity level of 1 CTC/mL with the potential to improve this sensitivity 103-fold in humans in vivo, which is impossible with existing assays. Additional advances of this platform include decreased background signals from blood through changes in its oxygenation, osmolarity, and hematocrit within physiologic norms, assessment of CTCs in deep vessels, in vivo CTC enrichment, and photoacoustic-guided photothermal ablation of CTCs in the bloodstream. These advances make feasible the early diagnosis of melanoma during the initial parallel progression of primary tumor and CTCs, and laser blood purging using noninvasive or hemodialysis-like schematics for the prevention of metastasis.

Beautifull Mountains in the world

2009-10-21T03:25:00.001-07:00

Today Forex Update :-
Sterling climbs further, approaching 1.6600

The Pound continues rallying on the back of BoE minutes and, after having confirmed above 1.6500, the Pound has reached 1.6590, right below 1.6600. The Pound has broken 1.6435 Fibonacci resistance and, according to Karen Jones, technical analyst at Commerzbank, targets 1.6745/70.

EUR/USD: Euro recovery, capped at 1.4965 level

Euro recovery from 1.4880 support area has been capped at 1.4965 resistance (Oct 15 and 16 high), ad the Euro has eased to levels around 1.4935 at the moment of writing.

On a wider perspective, decline from 1.4995 high yesterday is corrective in nature, according to Stoyan Mihaylov, technical analyst at Deltastock.com: "Although there was a downward attempt, bottoming at 1.4883, the pattern below 1.4993 seems rather corrective in nature and our target at 1.5104 remains unchanged. Crucial on the downside is 1.4828 support."

Initial resistance at the moment, lies at 1.4970 (Oct 15 and 16 high), and above here, 1.4995/00 (Oct 20 high) and 1.5020. On the downside, support levels lie at 1.4880 (Oct 20 low), and below here, 1.4860 and 1.4825 (Oct 18 low).

Nice Flower Art

2009-10-20T03:15:00.001-07:00

Today Forex Update :-
European stocks, slightly down on banks woes; Euro and Pound hold gains

European stock markets have opened Tuesday's session on a slight sell tone, as weaker financial sector has outbalanced upbeat corporate earnings in the U.S. Euro and Pound hold Asian session's gains. Eurostoxx 50 Index trades 0.50% down, while Geman DAX index drops 0.55% and the French CAC Index declines 0.45%.

GBP/USD: Pound, negative biased while below 1.6435/70 - Commerzbank

The Pound has managed to hold gains on European session and the pair remains moving in a range roughly from 1.6355 to 1.6435, testing what according to Karen Jones, technical analyst at Commerzbank is a key area to negate bearish bias.

On the wekly chart, Jones observes the Pound trading on a negative bias while below 1.6435/70 area: "For now a bearish bias will remain while capped by 1.6443/70, however a break back below 1.6135/15 is needed to alleviate upside pressure and re-target 1.5690 then 1.5270."

On the upside, above 1.6470, the odds for a re-test of 1.7000 area will increase, says Jones: "Should the 1.6470/1.6535 resistance be breached we would allow for the recent high charted at 1.7040/45 to be tested – this is major resistance we would again allow for failure."

Amazing Canyons Images

2009-10-17T00:26:00.001-07:00

Insurance Update :-
In this article I will be writing about the loan against LIC policy. As I have explained in my previous articles about the different kind of loans and how to apply for it. Loans agaist LIC policy is one of the good idea to get loans for cheaper price. It involves many restrictions because you will not be eligible to get huge loans under this scheme even if you have the policy. I will explain the conditions involved in getting the loan against LIC policy. If you have any doubts please post it in the comments section.
What is Cash Value for LIC policy?
In my previous article I have explained what is surrender value?. Cash Value is also referred as the Surrender Value of the polciy. Before applying for the loan you must know the exact cash value of the policy because if it is very low then there is no point in applting the loan if your need is huge amount.
Loan on LIC
The provision of loan against a life insurance policy is basically an advance against the cash value (surrender value) of the policy. The advance is always less than the case value. Most of the insureres approve 90% of the cash value of the policy. In case a loan is provided, the policy is absolutely assigned and held by the insurance company as security for repayment of the loan.
• You have to pay the interest specified in the loan.
• If you failed to pay the interest on time, that will be added to the principla and calculated the interest.
• If the total dept is more than the cash value, the insurer has the rights to terminate your policy.
• If the policy is matured before completing the loan, insurer has the rights to deduct the loan amount from your maturity amount.

Beautifull Lovely Flower

2009-10-15T09:59:00.002-07:00

Latest Forex Update :-

Forex: USD/CHF ends week below 1.0400

Dollar closed the week with gains against the Swiss Franc for the first time after three with losses. USD/CHF moved away from intra-week highs. The pair peaked at 1.0452, posting a fresh 3-week high on Thursday but then pulled back ending Friday around 1.0350.

USD/CHF is moving with an upside trend in four hour chat but still faces a downside pressure in bigger timeframe charts.

The Swiss also lost ground against Cable. GBP/CHF pulled back strongly after falling to a 7-month low at 1.6219. The pair managed to finish the week above 1.6500.

EUR/CHF plunged Thursday and Friday, losing completely the gains of Wednesday: the pair rallied surprisingly jumping from 1.5070 to 1.5240 bringing the attention to the Swiss National Bank.

Most Voted Pictures of the Forests

2009-10-12T04:07:00.001-07:00

Oil rises above $72 as investors eye US company earnings this week
SINGAPORE (AP) -- Oil prices rose above $72 a barrel Monday in Asia as investors looked to a slew of U.S. corporate earnings reports this week for signs of economic recovery.
Benchmark crude for November delivery was up 63 cents at $72.40 by late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 8 cents to $71.77 on Friday.
Crude investors will be eyeing third quarter company results and forecasts for the rest of the year for clues about the strength of the U.S. economy. Top banks JPMorgan Chase & Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Corp. report this week along with Google Inc., Southwest Airlines Co., Intel Corp., IBM Corp., General Electric Co., and Johnson & Johnson.
A more optimistic crude demand forecast by the International Energy Agency on Friday helped boost trader confidence. The Paris-based IEA, which advises oil-consuming countries, said demand will likely reach 86.1 million barrels a day in 2010, up 1.7 percent from this year.
On Sunday, Kuwaiti oil minister Sheik Ahmed Al Abdullah Al Sabah told the state news agency that an oil price range between $60 to $80 a barrel is acceptable -- echoing earlier remarks by Saudi Arabia.
The two Middle Eastern countries are members of the Organization for Petroleum Exporting Countries, which accounts for about a third of the world's oil production.
In other Nymex trading, heating oil rose 1.72 cents to $1.87 a gallon. Gasoline for November delivery gained 1.1 cents to $1.779 a gallon. Natural gas for November delivery jumped 7 cents to $4.84 per 1,000 cubic feet.
In London, Brent crude rose 64 cents to $70.64 on the ICE Futures exchange.

The Forgotten Fruit in ice

2009-10-08T04:47:00.000-07:00

Icicles hang from an orange tree in Balm, Florida, on January 3
it is difficult to convey, in two dimensions, how the ice enclosure acts like a lens, and appears to magnify the cherry within. i may take a few more snapshots later, seeing as how this ice isn’t going to melt anytime soon
this is like a beautiful sugar coated fruit!
Very beautiful, too bad these ice storms create such problems.
Great photo. The ice is so clear it is almost hard to tell that the berries and twig are completely encased. Amazing.
Well you have the ice and lemon, I will try to find some gin and tonic!

Forex latest Update :-

Forex: AUD/NZD: Aussie rallies above 1.2200 to 1.2245/55 area

Australian Dollar has rallied during the day so far, and the pair's bounce at 1.1935 low on Tuesday, has extended to levels above 1.2200/10 area, breaking, thus, above the downtrend line off mid September highs to test 1.2240 (Sept 30 high) at the moment of writing.

In case of breaking above 1.2240/55 (Sept 30/21 highs), next resistance levels would be at 1.2300 (Sept 14 high) and 1.2400 area, on the downside, support levels lie at 1.2155/70 , previous highs, and once below there, 1.2055/65 (Oxct 2 low/intra-day low) and 1.1990 (Oct 5 low).

According to the Varengold Bank Research Team, the pair has reached strong resistance area, and a pull back towards 1.2000 should be taken into account: "As we can see, the market has reached two strong resistance levels. The resistance levels are the horizontal line from the middle of September of around 1.22 and the bearish trend line, which has also been established during September. The pair could be overbought and may probably pull back towards the support line at around 1.20."

European markets rise on upbeat earnings season's kickoff; Euro and Pound, higher

European markets are going through considerable advances on Thursday following a positive start of U.S. earnings season and further advance on basic resources. Euro and Pound have rallied to last weeks' range tops.

Eurostoxx 50 Index advances 1.5%, while German DAX Index advances 1.3%, and the French CAC Index advances 1.51%. In the UK, the FTSE Index trades 1.0% higher in the first hours of trading.

Risk appetite has improved on the back of Alcoa's third quarter's profits. The aluminum producer swung into profits after three consecutive quarters with losses. Alcoa's shares have advanced 8.2% in Frankfurt market.

Euro and Pound testing resistance areas

EUR/USD remains struggling against 1.4770 resistance on rally from 1.4650 low on Wednesday; after having hit fresh two-week high at 1.4788.

GBP/USD rally from 1.5860 low, has extended to 1.6075, one-week high, although the Pound has eased to levels below 1.6050. At the moment the pair trades at 1.6040; 0.50% above its day-opening level.

USD/JPY recovery from 88.00 low on Wednesday was halted at 89.40, and the Dollar returned to levels right above 88.00. During European session, the pair has been moving between 88.15 and 88.40.

The coolest Aqua Forest aquarium with healthy plants and happy fish

2009-10-03T23:20:00.001-07:00

Aquascaping styles

Dutch style aquascapes

The Dutch aquarium follows an orderly, often symmetrical arrangement, in which multiple types of plants having diverse leaf colors, sizes and textures are displayed much as terrestrial plants are shown in a flower garden. This style was developed in the Netherlands starting in the 1930’s, as freshwater aquarium equipment became commercially available. It emphasizes plants located on terraces of different heights, and frequently omits rocks and driftwood. Linear rows of plants running left-to-right are referred to as “Dutch streets.” Tall growing plants that cover the back glass originally served the purpose of hiding bulky equipment in the tank.

Nature style aquascapes

A contrasting approach is the nature or Japanese style, introduced in the 1990’s by Takashi Amano. Amano’s three-volume series, Nature Aquarium World, sparked a wave of interest in aquarium gardening, and he has been regarded as quite possibly the most influential aquascaper in the world. Amano’s compositions draw on Japanese gardening techniques that attempt to mimic natural landscapes by the asymmetrical arrangement of masses of relatively few species of plants, and carefully selected stones or driftwood. The objective is to evoke a landscape in miniature, rather than a colorful garden. This style draws particularly from the Japanese aesthetic concepts of Wabi-sabi, which focuses on transience and minimalism, and Iwagumi, which governs rock placement. Plants with small leaves are usually emphasized, with more limited colors than in the Dutch style, and fish or freshwater shrimp are usually selected to complement the plants and control algae.

Biotopes

The styles above often combine plant and animal species based on the desired visual impact, without regard to geographic origin. Biotope aquascapes are designed instead to replicate exactly a particular aquatic habitat at a particular geographic location, and not necessarily to provide a garden-like display. Plants and fish need not be present, but if they are, they as well as any gravel and hardscape must match what would be found in nature in the habitat being represented.

Paludariums

In a paludarium, part of the aquarium is underwater, and part is above water. This allows plants to grow emersed, with their roots underwater but their tops in the air, as well as completely submersed.

Saltwater reefs

Dutch and nature style aquascapes are traditionally freshwater systems. In contrast, relatively few ornamental plants can be grown in a saltwater aquarium. Saltwater aquascaping typically centers on mimicking a reef. An arrangement of live rock forms the main structure of this aquascape, and it is populated by corals and other marine invertebrates as well as coralline algae, which together serve much the same aesthetic role as freshwater plants.

Forex Update :-
Pound at 5-month low against US Dollar

The pound is currently headed for a third straight weekly decline against the greenback, as comments from the Bank of England undermine the UK currency.

Duncan Higgins, Senior Analyst at Caxton FX says: "It's all the more surprising that Cable is currently at its lowest point since May because the dollar has been comparatively weak recently. Positive economic data from around the world has supported a strong rise in risk appetite in the market, which has taken its toll on haven currencies.

"In particular, the higher-yielding Aussie and kiwi dollar has risen sharply and the Euro too has been trading at year highs. Demand for the pound however has been severely shaken in the wake of leading Bank of England officials announcing their support of a weak pound. Cable has fallen in value by 6.5%, from highs of near $1.70, in early August to current trading levels of below $1.59."

Later today, US non-farm payrolls data will be released, which is set to add further pressure to the struggling pound. A forecast survey earlier in the week predicted only a slight decrease in the number of people claiming unemployment benefits, and more recent speculation has suggested that the overall jobless rate in the US could rise to a 26-year high of 9.8%. Amid concern that the dollar is too weak at the moment, this data is likely to lead the pound even lower over the short term, with the price possibly heading down towards 1.57 next week.

Mysterious by humans for centuries

2009-10-03T00:56:00.001-07:00

Many of us go for a walk in the mountains to find solitude. But as the following pictures show, it could be a bit creepy – the mountain itself might be watching. Mountain faces are not only beautiful, but have been regarded as something mysterious by humans for centuries. As a result, there are many legends entwined around them.

One such popular legend is that of Lover’s Rock in Antequera in Andalusia, Spain. The hillock resembles a face lying down and is said to be that of an Indian warrior. According to the legend, the mountain witnessed the tragic love affair between a young Christian man from Antequera and a young woman from Africa. Because of their different religions, society did not tolerate their love. With troops on their heels, the couple is said to have fled to the mountain where they threw themselves off in a loving embrace rather than spend a lifetime without each other.

Image: Mountainus7

This is Mount Yiouktas in Heraklion, Crete. The Greek head of the gods, Zeus, is supposed to have been born on Crete and as legend has it, also died there, leaving his profile imprinted on the mountain as a mythical tomb.

Image: Pavaan Solanki

This astonishingly real looking mountain face is located in Junagadh in Gujarat, India. The mountain is also known as Girnar Hill and is here seen from Bhavnath Temple. The photographer cheated a bit by turning the picture by 90 degrees, but the result is stunning. The five peaks of the mountain range are each adorned by intricately carved stone temples. As a pilgrimage, Hindus and Jains climb from peak to peak (around 8,000 steps). Legend has it that climbing Girnar barefoot will earn the pilgrim a place in heaven.
Image: Christopher Fay

Now, leaving the legends, this awesome mountain face includes a whole mountain range and numerous fir trees. Unfortunately, Florida-based photographer Christopher Fay did not include any information about the location. Maybe someone will recognize it. What does the face remind you of, is it more Yoda or Gremlins?

Image: Manos2036

This is another mountain showing a face in profile, also on Crete. It looks similar to Picture 2 but look at that nose and the elegant forehead! Crete seems laden with legends, but we knew that already from reading Greek mythology.

Image: Daoi

Here, the snow on this mountain in Iceland contributes in forming a rather grumpy looking face. No wonder mountaineers talk about the ‘north face’ of a mountain.

Image: Shea Photography

The guard of this mountain seems to have been immortalized as a face jutting out of the mountain. No wonder it was popularly known as the ‘Old Man of the Mountain’. This rock face could be found in Franconia Notch State Park in New Hampshire until May 2003. Then, after hanging around for 12,000 years, the whole face fell off, just like that.

Image: Kostas Pagiamtzis

This rock face in Kings Canyon National Park in California does not look that extraordinary but if you look really closely, on top of the green moustache, huge nose and sleeping eyes, there seems to be a third eye, making him a cyclops!

Image: Rudolf Henning

In this picture of Lookout Mountain in Rock City, GA, the top of the mountain seems to be the headgear for the face underneath. Gives the term stone faced a whole new meaning.

Image: kthschsslr

This mountain top in Estes Park, Colorado does not only have a face, but doesn’t the top part going to the right look like a howling bear? Or maybe one starts seeing hidden faces and animals everywhere after looking at too many rock faces…

Forex Update :-
US Dollar Forecast for Recovery Will be Put to the Test

The US Dollar finished the week higher against the Euro and other key counterparts, but a sharply disappointing Nonfarm Payrolls report nearly derailed the nascent Greenback recovery through Friday’s close. The trade-weighted US Dollar Index hit fresh monthly highs near 77.50 just ahead of the release. Immediate declines in the US S&P 500 initially sent the dollar higher, but markets clearly expressed their displeasure with the worse-than-expected payrolls release and sold USD through in subsequent trading. Sudden USD losses complicate our otherwise bullish near-term Dollar forecast, but we continue to forecast further Greenback recovery through near-term trade. Comparatively limited event risk in the days ahead has left volatility expectations lower, but flare-ups in financial market tensions could nonetheless force major moves across USD currency pairs.

Earlier in the week we argued that the US Dollar set an important bottom against the Euro on fairly clear sentiment extremes. US CFTC Commitment of Traders data shows that Non-Commercial traders—a group mostly comprised of hedge funds and other large speculators—remained the most net-long the Euro/US Dollar since it traded near 1.6000 in early 2008. Though sentiment can and does remain extreme for extended periods of time, early signs of EURUSD reversal support our calls for a broader US Dollar reversal. Strong correlations between the US Dollar and key risky asset classes nonetheless leave the currency at the throes of the recent upheaval in the S&P 500. It will subsequently be critical to watch for any signs that the recent equity market tumble is the start of a larger decline.

US Dollar traders should almost certainly keep an eye out for abrupt shifts in risk sentiment, but a relatively empty US economic calendar leaves limited scope for major day-to-day shifts. The notable exception is Monday’s US ISM Non-Manufacturing report, which will shed further light on the state of the domestic services industry. According to 2008 estimates, the Services industry accounts for nearly 80 percent of US GDP. Suffice it to say, any noteworthy surprises in the highly-anticipated report could force major moves in the US Dollar and broader financial markets. Indeed, the ISM Non-Manufacturing survey tends to be one of the most market-moving events on release.

Glaciar Perito Moreno Argentina 2006

2009-09-30T06:14:00.001-07:00

Today Latest Market Update :-
Forex: ADP employment lost 254k jobs; GBP/USD falls to 1.6050

After reaching 1.6125, intra-week high, ahead the ADP employment report, GBP/USD has fallen following worst than expected data in September, pair has reacted down and it is trading below 1.6050.

ADP employment in United Stated has lost 254k jobs in September, worst than 200k decreases expected by market but below of 298k losses in August.

Current appreciation is corrective in nature, according to Karen Jones, technical analyst at Commerzbank, who warns about the possibility of a reversal from current levels: "We look for near term corrective rebounds to ideally remain capped by 1.6110/50 (break down point for the top pattern) and while capped here the immediate outlook remains negative."

On the downside, Jones sees the Pound targeting 1.5690/10: "We continue to target initially 1.5690/10 (Fibonacci retracement and the 55 week ma) and then 1.5270. Slightly longer term it should be noted that the top measures to 1.5135."

Fantasy Moon Images

2009-09-24T03:31:00.001-07:00

Forex Market in India - Rupee seen weaker as Asian shares slip

India Thursday 24 September 2009: Rupee is expected to weaken on Thursday in line with a slide in Asian shares, with a rebound in dollar against the euro from a one-year low also pushing down the local unit. * The dollar index which measures the dollar’s value against a basket of six major currencies, was 0.41 percent higher at 76.365 at 0249 GMT. * Nifty India stock futures traded in Singapore were down 0.6 percent.
The Morgan Stanley index excluding Japan was down 1 percent. The Federal Reserve on Wednesday upgraded its assessment of the U.S. economy, saying growth had returned after a deep recession, while reiterating its promise to hold interest rates very low for a long time. The partially convertible rupee closed at 47.98/48.00 per dollar on Wednesday, slightly weaker than Tuesday’s close of 47.9550/9650. In early deals the rupee rose to 47.85, its highest since Aug. 10, mainly due to a weak dollar overseas.

Beautiful Nature Photography By Nikolaj Lund

2009-09-18T20:35:00.000-07:00

Amazing nature landscapes by Nikolaj Lund, semi-pro photographer based in Aarhus, Denmark.In the summer 2008, after winning 2nd prize in Canon`s “The Assignment” in the category “Landscape”, Lund desided to skip the music and go for photography. In september Nikolaj won 2nd prize in “Cultures on my streets” photo competition in Brussels. Enjoy the awesome and very professional nature photos.

Latest Update :-

NEW YORK (The Street) -- Insurance stocks are the second-most volatile of any industry after banking shares, ensuring there's still money to be made on prudent picks.
TheStreet.com's recommended insurance-stock portfolio from five weeks ago, based on price-to-book value, has surged 50%, compared with a 4.2% gain in the S&P 500 and a 7% increase in the benchmark index's insurance subset. There are still opportunities to be had, as the economy rebounds, pushing up premiums, and as insurers restock capital, giving them a cushion. (Price-to-book value is calculated by taking a company's share price and dividing it by book value per share. Book value is the net asset value of a company, measured by total assets minus intangible assets (patents, goodwill) and liabilities.
Insurers' shares rise and fall frequently, as seen by their so-called beta value of 1.49 versus the S&P 500. Only banking stocks, such as Citigroup and Bank of America, are higher, at 1.51. Industrial companies, represented by General Electric and Boeing, have a beta of 1.08, and consumer staples, which include Wal-Mart and Coca-Cola, are at 0.53.
The star insurance performer was the Phoenix Cos., up 80% over five weeks. PMI Group rose 77%, Conseco increased 76% and Radian Group jumped 75%. Since June 24, Radian has soared almost five-fold.

Dangerous Clouds

2009-09-17T04:28:00.001-07:00

A cloud is a large collection of very tiny droplets of water or ice crystals.The droplets are so small and light that they can float in the air.Looking west southwest at a wall cloud that was located south of El Dorado, Oklahoma.

Today Crude Update :-

Crude oil is recording massive gain in the Indian future markets today synchronizing with International front where oil prices witnessed a sharp rally as speculators extended holding, eying more production cut in the OPEC meet this weekend.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, Crude oil for April delivery lifts up USD 4.70 to settle at USD 47.03 a barrel. Tracking it, MCX Crude oil April contract is trading up by 1.07pct at Rs 2,455 at 10.23a.m after opening at Rs 2,450 a bbl. Crude oil May agreement is also gaining at Rs 2,517 a bbl. Also, NCDEX Crude oil April contract is also trading higher by 5.54pct at Rs 2,457 after opening at Rs 2,447 and Crude oil May contract is moving upward by 3.32pct at Rs 2,521 as compared to its earlier close of Rs 2,440 a bbl.

Darvaz The Door to Hell

2009-08-21T11:58:00.001-07:00

This place in Uzbekistan is called by locals “The Door to Hell”. It is situated near the small town of Darvaz. The story of this place lasts already for 35 years. Once the geologists were drilling for gas. Then suddenly during the drilling they have found an underground cavern, it was so big that all the drilling site with all the equipment and camps got deep deep under the ground. None dared to go down there because the cavern was filled with gas. So they ignited it so that no poisonous gas could come out of the hole, and since then, it’s burning, already for 35 years without any pause. Nobody knows how many tons of excellent gas has been burned for all those years but it just seems to be infinite there.

Most Epic Road Trips.

2009-08-16T10:44:00.000-07:00

I’ve had some great road trips in my life, and making the film sent me on a few more. The idea that that Last Ride was a ‘road movie’ never really kicked in until I began the long search for locations throughout the deserts of South Australia.

During pre-production I clocked up over 20,000 kms just sitting in the passenger seat watching the most inspiring landscape pass before me. And then of course we approached the making of our ‘road movie’ as a road trip ourselves, taking the cast and crew on an epic 5000 km journey through that same inspiring landscape.

In celebration of the road trip I have made a list of what I reckon could be the 7 MOST EPIC ROAD TRIPS. EVER.

So whether you are planning a road trip, by car, motorcycle, bicycle or hitching, the most important thing to remember, as we all know, is that it’s the journey, not the destination that makes a great road trip.

1. The Alaskan Highway (2,237 KM)

The Alaskan Highway, stretches from Dawson Creek to Delta Junction, Alaska and Yukon. It was built during World Warr 2 and is one of the most well known roads in the world. You can read the full history about the road on wiki . This road trip is epic for two reasons. Wether condition & long distance between each town. Prepare for cold weather and a lot of driving.

So unless you feel like eating road kill you should stock up on some substantial snacks for the long and beautiful drive. Along the trip you can expect a lot of forest views and with a slight detour you can check out Liard Hot Springs and take a quick dip the temperature is around 42°-52°C (107°-126°F). Next up is Sign Forest at Watson Lake with over 45,000 sign posts that you can check out.

You can also expect to see a lot of wildlife like elk, grizzly bears, marmots and moose alongside the road. And if want to see some reindeer then make a quick stop in Yukon.2. Route 66: Chicago to California (3,945 KM)The mother of all roads, Route 66 is not for the faint hearted. It’s a long, long drive so do it in comfort not style. Route 66 was built in 1925 and starts in Chicago and heads through, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California and ends in Las Angeles. This is as epic as it gets.

Although the road was decommissioned in 1985 for the Interstate 40, this road is the ultimate road trip. There’s seriously a lot to see and do in 3945 KM so here’s a summary of some places to stop at.

– Dixie Truckers Home (McClean, Illinios) – The oldest truck stop on Route 66 around 70 years old.

– Devil’s Elbow (Missouri)

– Oklahoma City and a few numerous towns (Oklahoma)

– Cadillac Ranch (Amarillo, Texas)

– Blue Swallow Motel (Tucumcari, New Mexico) – The oldest motel on the Route 66
– Grand Canyon (Flagstaff, Arizona) – It’s the Grand Canyon!
– Sitgreaves Pass (Arizona) – Windy and dangerous roads with magnificent views

– Santa Monica Pier (Santa Monica, California)

3. Drive New Zealand’s South Island (440KM)

Not one of the longest drives but the scenery you get to see is simply amazing. You should take at least 7 days to complete the south island drive, or long enough to soak up its truly magnificent views. The road starts in Milford Sound and takes you south then back north ending at Wanaka. With plenty to see, touch and do from the jagged Fiordland mountains, rugged southern coast and sandy beaches.

There are plenty of rolling green pastures and forestry, including mountain ranges with spectacular views that might remind you of Frodo’s epic journey in Lord of the rings. New Zealand’s has some of the most exotic wild plants and birds in the world along with some of the best national parks, marine life, and natural blowholes.

The best thing about this trip is that you can see almost every scene from inside your. But stop often and get out amongst it.

I did this road trip in a campervan a few years back, but I would love to go back and do it by bike.

4. The Great Ocean Road: Geelong to Warnambool, Australia (300KM)

Possibly one of the world’s most spectacular scenic routes in the world with amazing coastal views, towering rock edges, plenty of surfing hotspots, lush forests and long beaches. The route starts in Torquay and ends at Allansford. You could finish the trip in one day however take a few days to enjoy some of the more notable attractions.

– Twlve Apostles – Famous rock formations

– London Arch Port Campbell National Park
– The Great Otway National Park –Bushing walking & wildlife

Lake Baikal One of the Most Beautiful in the World

2009-08-04T03:45:00.001-07:00

Lake Baikal is one of the most beautiful, magnificent places in the entire world. Lake Baikal is in the south of East Siberia. In the form of a new moon, Baikal stretches from southwest to north-east between latitudes 55°47' and 51°28' in the northern hemisphere and longitudes 103°43' and 109°58'. The lake is 636 km long, while its width varies from 81 km at its greatest point in central Baikal, to 27 km at its narrowest point, opposite the delta of the river Selenga. Baikal is 455 metres above sea level. Its shoreline measures some 2000 km, more than half of which is protected.

The surface area of the lake, when its water level is 454 m above sea level, is 31470 square kilometres. The maximum depth of the lake is 1637 m and average depth - 730 m. Some sources state that the maximum depth is 1642 m. Which is correct? The answer to this question is somewhat paradoxical - they are both correct. The thing is that the telemetry error for such depths is about 2%, i.e. 30 metres. So really it is correct to say that, at its greatest, Baikal is 1640 m deep, and 336 permanent rivers and streams flow into Baikal.
Origins of the Name

The Evenk name Lamu, or Sea was used for a few years by the first Russian explorers in the 17th century, then they changed to the Buryat - «Baigal», and subsequently «Baikal» by means of a phonetic substitute slightly softening the letter «g». Baikal is quite often called a sea, simply out of respect, because of its turbulent spirit, or because its far shore is often hidden in mists... At the same time, a difference is made between the Maloye Morye (Small Sea) and the Bolshoye Morye (Big Sea). Maloye Morye is the part situated between the northern shore of Olkhon and the mainland, all the rest is the Bolshoye Morye.
Baikal's water

Baikal's water is unique and surprising, as is the lake itself. It is unusually transparent, pure and saturated with oxygen. In not so distant times it was considered to have curative properties, and was used as a remedy. In spring the transparency of the lake's water, as measured by a Sekki disc (a white disc, 30 cm diameter), is 40 metres (for comparison, in the Sargasso Sea, which is considered to be the standard of transparency, there is a transparency of 65 metres). Later, when a mass algal bloom occurs, the water's transparency decreases, but in still weather one can see through to the lake floor to a considerable depth from a boat. This high degree of transparency is explained largely by the fact that Baikal's water has a low mineral content and is close to distilled water, thanks to the activity of the organisms living in it. The volume of the lake's water is some 23 thousand cubic kilometres, which is 20% of the world's and 90% of Russia's freshwater resources. Each year Baikal's ecosystem produces some 60 cubic kilometres of clear, richly oxygenated water.
Climate

The climate of East Siberia is acutely continental, but the enormous mass of water in Baikal and its mountainous surroundings create an unusual microclimate. Baikal acts like a large thermo-stabilizer - in winter it's warmer at Baikal, and in summer cooler, for example, than in Irkutsk, some 70 km away from the lake. The difference in temperature is usually around 10 degrees. The forests covering almost the entire coast of Baikal make a considerable contribution to this effect.
Animal life

There are more than 2600 species and varieties of animal and over 1000 species of plants in Baikal. From time to time new species are discovered. There is reason to believe that at present only some 70-80% of Baikal's living organisms are known to science. In former times, when Russian science was not yet in its present state of coma, on average some 10 species were discovered annually.
About 40% of the plants and 85% of animal species inhabiting open Baikal are endemic, that is, they are found only in Baikal. Living organisms are distributed right from the surface of the lake to its very deepest parts. There are 58 species of fish in the lake. The best known being omul, white-fish, grayling, huchen (salmon trout), sturgeon, «golomyanka» - the Baikal oilfish, and «lenok», a fish of the salmon family. Some 2000 species of plant grow on Baikal's shores, and 200 species of bird nest there. A typically marine mammal, the unique Baikal seal or nerpa, is found here. It is suggested that it came here from the Arctic Ocean along the rivers Yenisei and Angara. Its present population numbers a few tens of thousands. It can bee seen quite frequently in summer in the central and northern parts of the lake.

Incredible Natural Private Islands & Island Nations

2009-07-31T09:54:00.000-07:00

Wouldn’t you love to be king of a Caribbean island? Whether you’ve got islomania – a strong attraction to islands – or are just daydreaming about getting away, you’ve got to admit that islands are mysterious, fascinating and somehow irresistible. From a sinking paradise in the pacific to an abandoned former coal mine in Japan, here are 10 of the world’s most incredible natural private islands and island nations. The Sinking Island Nation of Maldives(images via: National Geographic )
The Maldivesis one of the most beautiful island nations in the South Pacific, but it likely won’t be around much longer. The archipelago of almost 1,200 coral islands is just 4.9 feet above sea level, and they’re expected to shrink dramatically as sea levels rise due to global warming over the next century. The government hopes to set aside some of the $1B it rakes in annually from tourism to buy a new home for the nation.
Largest Island within a Lake on an Island within a Lake on an Island
(images via: Zircon 215 )
A lake island on the interior of the island of Newfoundland is the 18th largest lake island in the world, but that’s not what makes it remarkable. Glover Island is located on Grand Lake, and has seven lakes of its own. Within one of those lakes is yet another island, making it an island within a lake on an island within a lake on a island. A similar island called Vulcan Point is located in the Phillipines.
Nauru, the World’s Smallest Independent Island Country
(images via: Web Urbanist)
Nauru, located about 2,500 miles southwest of Honolulu just south of the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, is the world’s smallest independent island country at just 8 square miles. Nauru once had the highest per-capita income in the world due to its rich phosphate stores, but by 2006 the stores were depleted and The island has been an environmental wasteland ever since. To make money, the island nation briefly became a tax haven and money laundering center until striking a deal with the Ausralian government to take in asylum seekers trying to get to Australia.
Redonda Island, a Tiny Uninhabited Micronation
(images via: Marinas )
The tiny Caribbean island of Redonda, which lies about 35 miles southwest of Antigua, is more or less uninhabitable due to a lack of freshwater and the island’s steep, rocky terrain. Yet that didn’t prevent Redonda from becoming a micronation, thanks to a fantasy fiction author named M.P. Shiel who claimed that his father had legally declared himself “King’ of the island in the 19th century. The story is likely fictional, but it gave way to Redonda’s questionable status as a micronation. To this day, there are people who claim to be the sole legitimate King of Redonda, though their claims appear to be hoaxes.
Bouvetøya, the World’s Most Remote Uninhabited Island

(images via: Web Urbanist )
From Web Urbanist : “Bouvet is the remotest uninhabited island in the world. Is roughly 75 square miles of surface is mostly covered by glaciers and and very little survives on the island aside from moss, seals, seabirds and penguins. However, the island has been at the center of some peculiar mysteries. An early discoverer of the island documented second island nearby that was never seen again. In the 1960s an abandoned lifeboat was found on the island, though nothing was ever seen of its passenger. In the above satellite images, it can only be picked out by spotting disturbances in the weather patterns.”
Pitcairn Island, Home of Descendents of Bounty Mutineers

(images via: Wikipedia)
The Pitcairn Islands are most famous for their inhabitants: the descendents of bounty mutineers and the Tahitians who accompanied them. In 1790, the mutineers of the Bounty and their Tahitian companions, some of whom may have been kidnapped, settled on Pitcairn Island and set fire to the Bounty, which can still be seen underwater in Bounty Bay. Most of the mutineers and Tahitian men were killed by alcoholism, disease and murder while the rest of the population went on to live relatively peacefully. The Pitcairn Islands became a British colony in 1838 and are now the last British overseas territory in the Pacific.
Gunkanjima, Japan’s Forbidden Ghost Island

(images via: BLDG Blog )
Gunkanjima Island, formally known as Hashima Island, was once nothing more than an uninhabited coral reef, but with the discovery of coal came settlers who built coal mines and tall concrete apartment buildings. The miners continually expanded the island artificially until it came to resemble a battleship from afar, hence its new nickname, Gunkanjima, or Battleship Island. Gunkanjima had the highest population density on earth not half a century ago when it was owned by Mitsubishi, but it was abandoned in 1974 and remains empty and bare. Travel to the island is prohibited.
Venice, a Group of Seminatural Islands

(images via: Unusal Villa Rentals )
Nygard Cay may just be one of the most fascinating private islands in the Caribbean, but you’ll never see it in person unless you’ve got $42,000 per day to drop. The entire 6-acre island is covered in Mayan-inspired structures including treehouses, slides and a ‘human aquarium’. If you’ve got the cash to live like Oprah, Sean Connery and Robert DeNiro, you can be picked up anywhere in the world in Peter Nygard’s own private Boeing 727.
Floating Island Paradise Made from Plastic Bottles

(images via: Ecoble )

Ok, so this one isn’t a natural island – it’s man-made. But it’s just way too cool not to mention. Back in 1998, Richie Sowa accumulated 250,000 plastic bottles and used them to build his very own private island in Mexico. Sowa, an environmentalist, created the floating Spiral Island by attaching the bottles to a bamboo frame and plywood platform, upon which he built a two-story home. The original 66’x54’ Spiral Island was destroyed by a hurricane, but Sowa is currently rebuilding it.

The Phenomenal Waves Catcher

2009-07-21T03:15:00.001-07:00

Tulip Garden

2009-07-19T00:23:00.000-07:00

Monasteries In The Air

2009-07-17T21:55:00.001-07:00

The Iguazu waterfalls

2009-07-15T10:04:00.001-07:00

Argentina - Brazil
place : borders between the two countries

Very nice shoot of nature

2009-07-06T03:35:00.000-07:00

Volcanic eruption seen from the ISS

2009-07-03T03:41:00.000-07:00

Amazing ICE BERGS

2009-06-27T23:04:00.001-07:00

Amazing Giant Trees Around the World

2009-06-15T05:53:00.001-07:00

Autumn Scene

2009-06-12T03:25:00.001-07:00

Gorgeous Garden

2009-05-25T05:10:00.001-07:00

Beautiful Nature images

2009-05-19T21:06:00.000-07:00

Beautyfull Paradise Island

2009-05-16T05:18:00.000-07:00

Best View Of Sunset

2009-05-15T07:52:00.000-07:00

Road to ride

2009-05-10T21:15:00.001-07:00