What is the G8?

The G8 is an economic and political organization designed to bring about discussion and effect change among the world's most powerful nations. The G8, which stands for Group of Eight, includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Although the leaders of these countries keep in touch to varying degrees anyway, they meet as the G8 once a year in order to discuss the state of world economics and politics.
The group has a nominal presidency, and the holder of that office is different every year, with the post rotating throughout the membership, so that the leader of one country is also the G8 president for a year. The G8 has no headquarters, budget, or permanent staff. The country that holds the presidency is the host country for the G8 summit of that year and has the responsibility for paying for all costs associated with it. In recent years, security has required a hefty price tag.
The summit usually takes place in the middle of the calendar year, and it consists of three days of sometimes intense, very high-level talks between all eight leaders. Meetings between lower-level officials take place at various times leading up to the high-level summit. Topics of discussion at G8 summits have historically included controversial issues, such as global warming, Third World debt, Middle East peace, economic policy and conversation, andterrorism. Protests of one or more countries' policies usually accompany the summits. Sometimes, these protests get more coverage than the summits themselves.
Economic policy and conversation is at the root of the G8. The mid-1970s oil crisis shook the economics of the world's largest countries, and at the urging of then-French President Valery Giscard D'Estaing, the leaders of all the current members of the G8, except Canada and Russia, met to discuss how to respond to the oil crisis. This was in 1975, and the group's original name was the Library Group. It was soon changed to G6.
Canada joined the group the very next year, making it the G7. Russia joined in 1991, after the fall of communism in that country. The fall of communism in Germany also meant that the official delegation from that country was all-inclusive, not just representing West Germany, as had been the case when the Library Group first convened.

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What are the Different Types of Clouds in the Sky?

Clouds are made of tiny drops of water or small crystals of ice. Water vapor rises into the air, cooling and condensing into droplets of water, or if the air is cold enough, crystals of ice. When enough water vapor condenses into billions of ice crystals or drops of water, a cloud forms. Depending on how the cloud forms, it becomes one of several types of clouds. The three main types of clouds found in the sky are cumulus, stratus and cirrus. They each have many derivatives.
Cumulus clouds are white and fluffy, like cotton balls in the sky. These clouds form when warm, moist air rises quickly from the ground and cools off rapidly. They can form in clusters, and often are seen over the sea at regular intervals. A cumulus cloud may break up in about ten minutes. When they turn dark gray, they are called cumulonimbus clouds, which can produce rain, hail, or lightning. If the cloud has the suffix nimbus in the name, it meansprecipitation.
Stratus clouds are flattened sheets of clouds that may stay in place for some time. They cause overcast weather or rain. Nimbostratus clouds are formed when air rises very slowly over a large area, and promise long steady rain. They resemble heavy gray blankets stretched out in the sky.
Cirrus clouds form very high in the sky, and are made up completely of ice crystals. These clouds are wispy and light, and look a bit like feathers in the sky. If enough cirrus clouds are in the sky that they seem to run into each other, they are called cirrostratus clouds, which look like a white veil in the sky.
Fog is similar to clouds in that they are both are made of tiny droplets of water. Clouds form much higher in the sky than fog, which forms at ground level. Fog is formed on calm, cool nights, because the ground is cold. The water vapor in the air condenses into droplets of water near the ground, filling the air with these droplets, and creating fog. These droplets of water are so small that it takes 7 trillion of them to make one tablespoon of water.

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What is Lava?

Lava is molten rock that spews from an erupting volcano. It is extremely hot, reaching temperatures as high as 1,300 to 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit (704 to 1093 degrees Celsius). In a volcanic eruption, lava is in liquid form. When it solidifies, it forms igneous rock. However, it can take quite a long time to cool, traveling great distances before becomes solid.
Molten rock is not always called lava. Before a volcano erupts and molten rock is still underground, it is called magma. Besides being a little cooler, molten rock is not dramatically different once it's above ground. The distinction between magma and lava is basically made to make geological occurrences easier to understand and explain.
Eruptions of lava are no accident. Underground, magma contains gas bubbles. These gas bubbles are usually kept from expanding by pressure from layers of overlying rocks. Sometimes, however, gas pressure can increase enough that the bubbles begin to expand and rise, carry magma with them. When the pressure increases to high enough levels, the volcano can fracture, allowing magma to escape, enabling the bubbles to expand rapidly, and causing an eruption of lava.
Lava can be propelled to amazing heights; a lava fountain can shoot up to 2,000 feet (609.6 meters) above a volcano. As with the eruption itself, it is gas that sets such explosive propulsions in motion. As gas bubbles expand and burst in magma, it climbs toward the surface and is forced up and out of the volcano. Lava flows at various speeds, ranging from very slow to relatively fast. One of the fastest measured flows reached about 37 miles (59.5 kilometers) per hour.
Many individuals are unaware that lava isn’t always red. It can be bright orange, bright red, dark red, or brownish red, depending on its temperature. At its hottest, above about 1832 degrees Fahrenheit (1,000 degrees Celsius), it is bright orange, while it is dark red at temperatures between 1472 and 1,832 degrees Fahrenheit (800-1000 degrees Celsius). Lava is dark red at temperatures between 1202and 1472 degrees Fahrenheit (650-800 degrees Celsius), and brownish red at temperatures ranging from 932 to 1202 degrees Fahrenheit(500 to 650 degrees Celsius). In its solid form, lava is black.
There are a few different types of lava. Each is classified by its silica content. The types of lava are basalt, andesite, dacite, and rhyolite. Basalt has the lowest silica content, while rhyolite has the highest. The silica content affects how lavas flow. For example, basaltic lavas are given to widespread, thin flows; rhyolite is stiffer and flows at a slower pace.

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How does OnLive work?

OnLive is a cloud gaming service available in the United Kingdom and United States. It allows its users to directly stream games – be that single or multiplayer – directly and on-demand to their computer, television, laptop or tablet. This, in contrast to traditional digital stores such as Steam and Origin, enables games to be played without downloading any data files to a local computing device. In addition, due to data and processing power handled almost entirely from a remote machine, local devices can be barebones setups, acting really as just audio/visual access portals.

OnLive's Spectator mode enables users to view HD streams of other users' games live

OnLive works, in essence, like a Virtual Network Computing (VNC) system. VNCs are graphical sharing systems that utilise an RFB (remote framebuffer) protocol to remotely control another computer. This allows the actions of the remote computer to be dictated through the local machine, with all keyboard, mouse and gamepad actions transmitted along with the graphical screen. So, in OnLive’s system, a thin client (the service’s interactive menu) is used by the user to select, stream and control content that is stored and processed in large remote data centres on their own devices.

The MicroConsole delivers an HDMI and optical port for high-fidelity sound and visuals

As power and storage are of no consequence therefore in the local machine – with only enough computing power needed to run the thin client – the key facet of OnLive and all cloud-gaming services is bandwidth and internet connectivity. A fast internet connection is needed in order to maintain a constant two-way stream of data, with the user’s input commands through the thin client sent one way (to the data centre), and the data content and subsequent actions of the user’s input sent back. For example, OnLive necessitates a 2MBps connection in order to output content at a screen resolution of 1,024 x 576, while it requires a greater than 5MBps connection to output at 1,280 x 720. This is purely to ensure that there is no lag in the transference of data packets between machines.

Detailed information is included for each title hosted on the OnLive service, including a Metacritic score, compatible control inputs and age rating

The OnLive system is accessed in three distinct ways. Accessing the service via personal computer or Mac necessitates downloading and installing dedicated software. Once this is achieved, OnLive is accessed via launching an executable file, where content can be streamed directly over the user’s desktop. Similarly, OnLive is accessed via a tablet computer by downloading a free app – in the case of the Apple iPad, acquired through the App Store. Once installed this, when selected, launches OnLive’s tablet client, which when partnered with the service’s Bluetooth-connected wireless controller, allows titles to be streamed on the device’s screen. Finally, OnLive can be accessed through a user’s television. This method, however, necessitates OnLive’s MicroConsole TV Adapter, a small auxiliary system that sits between the router and the television and handles encoding/decoding processes of streams, as well as the connectivity of peripherals.

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What is a Lunar eclipse?

What happens when the Earth comes between the Moon and the Sun?

Approximately three times a year, the world experiences a lunar eclipse, when for a brief period of time – ranging from a matter of minutes to hours – the Moon appears a dark red colour, despite being entirely out of sight of the Sun. To understand what’s going on here we need to get to grips with the motion and phases of the Moon as it orbits our planet.

From Earth we only ever see roughly half of the Moon. This is because our natural satellite is tidally locked to our planet, so it orbits with the same side facing towards us (although, due to a slight wobble in its orbit, we can actually see about 59 per cent of its surface from the ground). For this reason the Moon goes through phases in the night sky, depending on where it is in respect of the Sun. During a full Moon the Sun is lighting up the entirety of the half we can see, but when the Sun shines on just the side of the Moon we can only see a thin crescent.

As light from the Sun reaches Earth, not all of it hits the surface. Most of it goes straight past our planet into space. However, at the boundary of Earth’s atmosphere and space, something odd happens. The light from the Sun refracts, or bends, in our atmosphere. As sunlight is white light, it splits into its constituent colours (namely, all of them). Colours with a longer wavelength, like red, refract more than those with a shorter wavelength, like blue.

Thus, in line with the edge of the Earth facing away from the Sun, you get an area known as the penumbra. This is a slightly more diffused circular coned shadow of the Earth that appears behind the planet. Inside the penumbra is an area known as the umbra. This is where the more heavily refracted red light is bent, forming a small shadowed circle out of view of the Sun. If an object like the Moon moves within this narrow cone it will turn a deep shade of red. When it moves out of the umbra and back into the penumbra, it will slowly change back to its more familiar white tone as the non-refracted sunlight hits its surface once again.

How do we know the next lunar eclipse will occur on 10 December 2011?

A lunar eclipse only occurs during a full Moon, when the Moon is directly out of sight of the Sun, but not every full Moon is a lunar eclipse. This is due to the position of our natural satellite in relation to the Sun-Earth plane. Although the Earth orbits in a relatively flat plane around the Sun, the Moon moves up and down in its orbit in three-dimensional space, about five degrees off this plane. Any point at which it crosses the plane is called a node. When a node and full Moon coincide this is when we can observe a lunar eclipse, as the Moon will be completely obscured from the Sun by the Earth.

It takes 27.2 days for the Moon to move from node to node, but 29.5 days for it to go through its full Moon phases, so lunar eclipses will occur at a rate of approximately three a year across the globe. The Moon’s cycle of dancing between nodes and changing to a full Moon is known as the Saros cycle and takes 6,585 days to complete, allowing lunar eclipses to be predicted long into the future.

There is absolutely no danger in observing a lunar eclipse. The light reflected from the Moon poses no threat to your eyesight, unlike solar eclipses, which can be dangerous to view with the naked eye.

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How Does Welding Work?

Welding is a fabrication process in which metals and thermoplastics are joined together to produce and object or structure. These materials are commonly joined by the melting of a filler material (such as steel) at their boundary points, fusing them together. This coalescence is achieved with three main techniques: gas welding, arc welding and laser welding.
Gas welding, also commonly referred to as oxy-fuel welding, is the most common type of welding and also the oldest. This process works through the combustion of acetylene in an oxygen stream, with the gas funnelled to a point of focus (ie the welding stick; this can be a handheld or stationary, robotic applicator) where it is ignited to produce a high-temperature flame. Gas welding produces a welding flame of 3,100°C (5,612°F) and as such, is typically used to weld high-alloy steels. However, the flame produced in a gas-based system is typically less concentrated than other methods, leading to greater weld distortion.
Arc welding differs to gas welding significantly. This technique involves melting the work materials through an electrical arc. This is generated by attaching a grounding wire to the welding material and then placing another electrode lead against it, itself attached to an AC or DC power supply. When the electrode lead is drawn away from the materials it generates an electrical arc (an ongoing plasma discharge caused by the electrical breakdown of gas), which through its expelled heat, welds the materials at the welding tip. Unlike gas welding, arc welding produces a narrow and concentrated weld point.
Finally, laser welding – which is one of the newest and most expensive forms of welding – utilises a high-energy laser beam to fuse work materials. As the laser beam has a high-energy density, this technique can achieve a deep penetration and incredibly focused weld, with little surrounding distortion. Due to this, laser welding is commonly used in large industrial applications, where speed and finesse is of great importance.

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Christmas - Birth Day Celebration of Jesus Christ

Christmas or Christmas Day is a holiday observed generally on December 25 to commemorate the birth of Jesus, the central figure of Christianity. The date is not known to be the actual birthday of Jesus, and may have initially been chosen to correspond with either the day exactly nine months after some early Christians believed Jesus had been conceived, the date of the winter solstice on the ancient Roman calendar, or one of various ancient winter festivals. Christmas is central to the Christmas and holiday season, and in Christianity marks the beginning of the larger season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days.

Christmas is both a sacred religious holiday and a worldwide cultural and commercial phenomenon. For two millennia, people around the world have been observing it with traditions and practices that are both religious and secular in nature. Christians celebrate Christmas Day as the anniversary of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, a spiritual leader whose teachings form the basis of their religion. Popular customs include exchanging gifts, decorating Christmas trees, attending church, sharing meals with family and friends and, of course, waiting for Santa Claus to arrive. December 25--Christmas Day--has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1870.

Although nominally a Christian holiday, Christmas is also widely celebrated by many non-Christians, and many of its popular celebratory customs have pre-Christian or secular themes and origins. Popular modern customs of the holiday include gift-giving, music, an exchange of greeting cards, church celebrations, a special meal, and the display of various decorations; including Christmas trees, lights, garlands, mistletoe, nativity scenes, and holly. In addition, several similar mythological figures, known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas and Santa Claus among other names, are associated with bringing gifts to children during the Christmas season.

Because gift-giving and many other aspects of the Christmas festival involve heightened economic activity among both Christians and non-Christians, the holiday has become a significant event and a key sales period for retailers and businesses. The economic impact of Christmas is a factor that has grown steadily over the past few centuries in many regions of the world.

Christmas and Santa Claus

Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, or simply "Santa", is a figure which was derived from the Dutch figure of Sinterklaas, a historical, legendary figure who in many Western cultures, is said to bring gifts to the homes of the good children during the late evening and overnight hours of Christmas Eve, December 24 or on his Feast Day, December 6 (Saint Nicholas Day).

Christmas Facts

Each year, 30-35 million real Christmas trees are sold in the United States alone. There are 21,000 Christmas tree growers in the United States, and trees usually grow for about 15 years before they are sold.

Today, in the Greek and Russian orthodox churches, Christmas is celebrated 13 days after the 25th, which is also referred to as the Epiphany or Three Kings Day. This is the day it is believed that the three wise men finally found Jesus in the manger.

In the Middle Ages, Christmas celebrations were rowdy and raucous—a lot like today's Mardi Gras parties.

From 1659 to 1681, the celebration of Christmas was outlawed in Boston, and law-breakers were fined five shillings.

Christmas wasn't a holiday in early America—in fact Congress was in session on December 25, 1789, the country's first Christmas under the new constitution.

Christmas was declared a federal holiday in the United States on June 26, 1870.

The first eggnog made in the United States was consumed in Captain John Smith's 1607 Jamestown settlement.

Poinsettia plants are named after Joel R. Poinsett, an American minister to Mexico, who brought the red-and-green plant from Mexico to America in 1828.

The Salvation Army has been sending Santa Claus-clad donation collectors into the streets since the 1890s.

Rudolph, "the most famous reindeer of all," was the product of Robert L. May's imagination in 1939. The copywriter wrote a poem about the reindeer to help lure customers into the Montgomery Ward department store.

Construction workers started the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree tradition in 1931.

How "Merry Christmas" is said in different countries
Afrikaans: Geseënde Kersfees
Afrikander: Een Plesierige Kerfees
African/ Eritrean/ Tigrinja: Rehus-Beal-Ledeats
Albanian:Gezur Krislinjden
Arabic: Milad Majid
Argentine: Feliz Navidad
Armenian: Shenoraavor Nor Dari yev Pari Gaghand
Azeri: Tezze Iliniz Yahsi Olsun
Bahasa Malaysia: Selamat Hari Natal
Basque: Zorionak eta Urte Berri On!
Bengali: Shuvo Naba Barsha
Bohemian: Vesele Vanoce
Bosnian: (BOSANSKI) Cestit Bozic i Sretna Nova godina
Brazilian: Feliz Natal
Breton: Nedeleg laouen na bloavezh mat
Bulgarian: Tchestita Koleda; Tchestito Rojdestvo Hristovo
Catalan: Bon Nadal i un Bon Any Nou!
Chile: Feliz Navidad
Chinese: (Cantonese) Gun Tso Sun Tan'Gung Haw Sun
Chinese: (Mandarin) Kung His Hsin Nien bing Chu Shen Tan
Choctaw: Yukpa, Nitak Hollo Chito
Columbia: Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo
Cornish: Nadelik looan na looan blethen noweth
Corsian: Pace e salute
Crazanian: Rot Yikji Dol La Roo
Cree: Mitho Makosi Kesikansi
Croatian: Sretan Bozic
Czech: Prejeme Vam Vesele Vanoce a stastny Novy Rok
Danish: Glædelig Jul
Duri: Christmas-e- Shoma Mobarak
Dutch: Vrolijk Kerstfeest en een Gelukkig Nieuwjaar! or Zalig Kerstfeast
English: Merry Christmas
Eskimo: (inupik) Jutdlime pivdluarit ukiortame pivdluaritlo!
Esperanto: Gajan Kristnaskon
Estonian: Rõõmsaid Jõulupühi
Ethiopian: (Amharic) Melkin Yelidet Beaal
Faeroese: Gledhilig jol og eydnurikt nyggjar!
Farsi: Cristmas-e-shoma mobarak bashad
Finnish: Hyvaa joulua
Flemish: Zalig Kerstfeest en Gelukkig nieuw jaar
French: Joyeux Noel
Frisian: Noflike Krystdagen en in protte Lok en Seine yn it Nije Jier!
Galician: Bo Nada
Gaelic: Nollaig chridheil agus Bliadhna mhath ùr!
German: Fröhliche Weihnachten
Greek: Kala Christouyenna!
Haiti: (Creole) Jwaye Nowel or to Jesus Edo Bri'cho o Rish D'Shato Brichto
Hausa: Barka da Kirsimatikuma Barka da Sabuwar Shekara!
Hawaiian: Mele Kalikimaka
Hebrew: Mo'adim Lesimkha. Chena tova
Hindi: Shub Naya Baras (good New Year not Merry Christmas)
Hungarian: Kellemes Karacsonyi unnepeket
Icelandic: Gledileg Jol
Indonesian: Selamat Hari Natal
Iraqi: Idah Saidan Wa Sanah Jadidah
Irish: Nollaig Shona Dhuit, or Nodlaig mhaith chugnat
Iroquois: Ojenyunyat Sungwiyadeson honungradon nagwutut. Ojenyunyat osrasay.
Italian: Buone Feste Natalizie
Japanese: Shinnen omedeto. Kurisumasu Omedeto
Jiberish: Mithag Crithagsigathmithags
Korean: Sung Tan Chuk Ha
Lao: souksan van Christmas
Latin: Natale hilare et Annum Faustum!
Latvian: Prieci'gus Ziemsve'tkus un Laimi'gu Jauno Gadu!
Lausitzian:Wjesole hody a strowe nowe leto
Lettish: Priecigus Ziemassvetkus
Lithuanian: Linksmu Kaledu
Low Saxon: Heughliche Winachten un 'n moi Nijaar
Luxembourgish: Schèine Chreschtdaag an e gudde Rutsch
Macedonian: Sreken Bozhik
Maltese: IL-Milied It-tajjeb
Manx: Nollick ghennal as blein vie noa
Maori: Meri Kirihimete
Marathi: Shub Naya Varsh (good New Year not Merry Christmas)
Navajo: Merry Keshmish
Norwegian: God Jul, or Gledelig Jul
Occitan: Pulit nadal e bona annado
Papiamento: Bon Pasco
Papua New Guinea: Bikpela hamamas blong dispela Krismas na Nupela yia i go long yu
Pennsylvania German: En frehlicher Grischtdaag un en hallich Nei Yaahr!
Peru: Feliz Navidad y un Venturoso Año Nuevo
Philippines: Maligayang Pasko!
Polish: Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia or Boze Narodzenie
Portuguese:Feliz Natal
Pushto: Christmas Aao Ne-way Kaal Mo Mobarak Sha
Rapa-Nui (Easter Island): Mata-Ki-Te-Rangi. Te-Pito-O-Te-Henua
Rhetian: Bellas festas da nadal e bun onn
Romanche: (sursilvan dialect): Legreivlas fiastas da Nadal e bien niev onn!
Rumanian: Sarbatori vesele or Craciun fericit
Russian: Pozdrevlyayu s prazdnikom Rozhdestva is Novim Godom
Sami: Buorrit Juovllat
Samoan: La Maunia Le Kilisimasi Ma Le Tausaga Fou
Sardinian: Bonu nadale e prosperu annu nou
Scots Gaelic: Nollaig chridheil huibh
Serbian: Hristos se rodi.
Singhalese: Subha nath thalak Vewa. Subha Aluth Awrudhak Vewa
Slovak: Vesele Vianoce. A stastlivy Novy Rok
Slovene: Vesele Bozicne Praznike Srecno Novo Leto or Vesel Bozic in srecno Novo leto
Spanish: Feliz Navidad
Swedish: God Jul and (Och) Ett Gott Nytt År
Tagalog: Maligayamg Pasko. Masaganang Bagong Taon
Tamil: (Tamizh) Nathar Puthu Varuda Valthukkal (good New Year not Merry Christmas)
Trukeese: (Micronesian) Neekiriisimas annim oo iyer seefe feyiyeech!
Thai: Sawadee Pee Mai or souksan wan Christmas
Turkish: Noeliniz Ve Yeni Yiliniz Kutlu Olsun
Ukrainian: Srozhdestvom Kristovym or Z RIZDVOM HRYSTOVYM
Urdu: Naya Saal Mubarak Ho (good New Year not Merry Christmas)
Vietnamese: Chuc Mung Giang Sinh
Welsh: Nadolig Llawen
Yoruba: E ku odun, e ku iye'dun! 

Merry Christmas to All
jingle bell jingle bell
jingle all the way
Santa clause is coming along
riding on a sledge
jingle bell jingle bell
jingle all the way
santa clause is coming along
riding on a sledge <

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Why are Insects attracted to light?

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How Did The First Phone Call Work?

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What Are Martial Arts

In its broadest sense, the martial arts refer to any type of combat technique, often stressing hand and foot combat. In many cases, the term is used to refer to self-defense techniques born in Asian countries, although practices from all over the world can be counted in the definition. Mental discipline and the search for enlightenment are also part and parcel of many martial arts. While some focus on using one's feet to attack or disarm an opponent, other martial arts concentrate on the use of one's hands or making throws to render an opponent useless.


Some of the more popular martial arts are Tae Kwan Do, Kenpo, Judo, Hapkido, Kung Fu, Akido, and Karate. Each of these stresses the art form of the discipline itself. Through repeated practice of moves, steps, punches, and kicks, students of these martial arts develop, grace, strength, and mental discipline.


The words Tae Kwan Do, translate to: "the way of foot and fist." Though primarily an art where strikes with the foot are the focus, Tae Kwon Do also teaches the use of one's hands to strike an opponent or to block an opponent's kicks or punches. This Korean-born art stresses flexibility and mental discipline.


Jujitsu is a Japanese martial art originally developed to complement the weaponry fighting of the Samurais. Over time its focus has been shifted to hand to hand combat, though weapon usage in various Jujitsu teachings is still an important part of the discipline.


Developed by instructor Morihei Ueshiba, Akido, as a martial art, stresses throws and joint locks. Akido's focus is not on using punches or kicks to defeat an opponent; rather, Akido teaches the concept of using an opponent's own energy to gain control of the opponent or to toss the opponent aside.


The roots of Kenpo and Karate can both be traced to the 5th century BC, and as such it carries a great deal of mystery with it. Kenpo's teachings began in the Shaolin temple and was considered a necessary art form to lead one along the "path of enlightenment." Karate developed primarily as a form of fist combat, and the teaching of Karate instructors still focus on using the hand as a weapon. Today, Karate and Kenpo are still taught at martial arts academies through the world.


Judo and Kung Fu are two other time-honored and popular martial arts. The teachings of Kung Fu are based on the movements of five animals: the dragon, the tiger, the snake, the leopard, and the crane. Grace, strength, and mental discipline are the goal of any student of Kung Fu.


Combining finesse and flexibility, Judo's origins can be found in the hand to hand combat teachings of Jujitsu. In the 1950s, the International Federation of Judo was founded and many teachers immigrated to other counties to teach this art. With the spread of Judo's popularity, it became an Olympic sport in 1964. It has continued to increase in popularity as a competitive sport, though some claim it has done so at the expense of the intellectual and spiritual elements of the art itself.

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What is a Megapixel?

A megapixel refers to one million pixels, and is commonly used in reference to digital cameras as an indication of resolution capability. A pixel is a tiny square on a computerized display that is so small it appears as a dot. The display screen is a solid grid of these squares or dots, which can be easily seen with a magnifying glass. The more pixels or dots that make up the display screen, the clearer the resolution or image will be. Greater numbers of dots or pixels allow for more refinement of the image, which results in higher, truer image replication.
When it comes to digital cameras, the picture quality capability is measured in megapixels. For example, a 3.1 megapixel camera can take pictures with a resolution of 2048 x 1536, which equals 3,145,728 pixels. That is, the resulting image will be made up of 3.1 megapixels, or over three million dots. Printers measure quality in DPI (dots per inch). A printer capable of only 300 DPI will not print the 3.1 megapixel image in its native high quality. It's simply not capable of reproducing the fine detail. Instead the image may appear grainy. If you wish to print photos, be sure the printer is well suited to the capabilities of your digital camera.
The number of megapixels required to suit your needs depends on what the camera will be used for, and what size prints are desired, if any. The higher the resolution —- or greater the megapixels —- the more flexibility the camera will have in terms of being able to deliver high resolution prints in large sizes, such as 8x10.
For those who do not wish to print digital photos at all, but prefer to view images on the computer or television display, purchasing a high megapixel camera is not required. Even 1.5 megapixels will suffice. That said, most cameras as of fall 2005 are 3.1 megapixel or better.
If you are planning to print pictures in sizes up to 8x10, experts recommend a camera with 4-5 megapixels, or a resolution of about 2500 x 2000. For prints up to 12x16, look for resolutions of 3200 x 2400 or better, which translates to a 6 megapixel camera or greater. As a comparison, many professionals use 11 megapixel digital cameras for maximum resolution and clarity even in large printed displays. If you don't plan to print enlargements, paying for more megapixels than you need will be a waste of money.
Aside from the megapixel rating of the digital camera, the amount of internal memory and type of flash card can make a big difference in convenience and long-term cost. Larger internal memory allows for more flexibility, as does the ability to use flash cards with higher capacities, though those with lower capacities will be less expensive.

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Ice Cream Sandwich OS unveiled

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How are coins made?

Coins can be made in three different ways: casting from moulds; striking by hand; and using machinery. Casting techniques were generally limited to the earliest issues, except in East Asia. Hand

production involved placing hot metal blanks between two engraved dies, and hammering them together to produce two-sided coins. In the West, mechanised production began in the 16th century, but the tremendous scientific and industrial progress of the 18th and 19th centuries, with the introduction of steam power, revolutionised coin production. The 21st century mint is almost fully automated, including computer software and computer-aided manufacture for designing and cutting dies.

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Facebook Sold Users Information

LONDON: Facebook is facing a crackdown in Europe for harvesting its users' personal information and "selling" the same to advertisers, a media report said.

The European Commission is planning to stop the way the popular social networking website "eavesdrops" on its users to gather information about their political opinions, sexuality, religious beliefs -- and even their whereabouts, 'The Sunday Telegraph' reported.

Using sophisticated software, Facebook collects information from people's activities on the social networking site -- whatever their individual privacy settings -- and make it available to advertisers, www.swarooptheking.net it claimed.

However, following concerns over the privacy implications of the practice, a new European Commission directive, is to be introduced in January, which will ban such advertising unless users specifically allow it, the newspaper said.

Even though most of the information it harvests is stored on computers in the USA, if Facebook fails to comply with the new legislation it may face legal action.

Viviane Reding, the vice-president of European Commission, said the directive would amend current European data protection laws in the light of technological advances and ensure consistency in how offending firms are dealt with across the EU.

"I call on service providers -- especially social media sites -- to be more transparent about how they operate. Users must know what data is collected and further processed (and) for what purposes."

Facebook has, however, denied the claims. A spokesman for the company said: "We do not share people's names with an advertiser without a person's explicit consent and we never sell personal information to third parties." 

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Types Of Music

Music is no stranger to anyone, but have you ever asked someone as to what music is. If not, then try on but be prepared that you would not receive any definite answer from anyone. The dictionary defines music as ‘the art of arranging tones in an orderly sequence so as to produce a unified and continuous composition’. However, in the larger picture, the definition of music varies with culture, people, place or time. Music is sublime and too varied, leaving each individual with a different set of choice. For some music may be a source of relaxation, while for others it could be the means to let out their internal anguish. Even a person with the least inclination towards melody can recognize a piece of music instantly.  With the diversity in the forms of music, here is a classification of some of the different types of music.

  

Different Kinds of Music

  

Classical Music

Classical music is the main form of music, and refers mainly to the music which prevailed in the world before the 20^th century. Classical music is a complex form of music and requires intensive training and knowledge. Classical music may also refer to the local and folk music of any particular country or region. In the world of Western music, the works of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven are defined as classical music.

Rock

Rock music came into existence in the rock and roll era of the 1950s. Rock music has its focus mainly on guitars, drums and heavy vocals. However, use of piano, synthesizer, saxophone, flute, mandolin and sitar has also been witnessed in the modern rock era. These instruments are mainly used to create a deeper impact. Elvis Presley and The Beatles are considered to be the pioneers of rock music. Over the years, rock music has diversified into various genres like hard rock, metal rock, progressive rock etc.

Heavy Metal

Heavy metal music, also known as ‘information music’, started off after the Second World War. It includes various sub-genres, such as thrash metal, death metal, black metal and so on. The most important requirement of a heavy metal band is the presence of at least one electronic guitarist. There may be a few soft and subtle pieces, but most of the songs are loud, fast and aggressive with some heavy use of the guitar and drums, and lot of screaming, mostly in death metal. Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath were some of the famous bands of this genre.

Jazz

Jazz music owes its origin to the African American communities in the Southern United States. Cornet, trumpet, saxophone, piano and violin are the main instruments used in jazz music. Jazz music carries a strong and intricate rhythm and is a lot influenced by the blues in terms of using components like blue notes and phrasing of melodies. Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald and Freddie Hubbard were some of the most famous jazz artists.

Trance

Trance music is characterized by fast beats, short melodic synthesizer phrases, and a musical form that varies up and down throughout a track.. Trance music is mostly played in clubs and discotheques, for listeners to groove and dance. The name trance suggests the hypnotic effect of this type of music, and quite often gets associated with the use of drugs. Trance music is a combination of various forms of music such as industrial, techno, and house.

  

Hip-Hop

Hip-hop music originated among the Black American during the 1970s, with a deep influence from the Jamaican music. Hip-hop employs bass as the main instrument and includes rapping and audio mixing. Bob Marley and Roberts Nesta Marley were the pioneers in popularizing hip-hop music. By 2000, hip-hop made its way to the world music charts, and now with the success of hip-hop artists like Eminem, 50 Cents, Usher and Akon, hip-hop is going places around the globe.

Folk Music

Folk music or traditional music mirrors the needs, desire, likes, dislikes and life of the local people. Folk music mostly depicts the struggle for survival and culture of the people. Country music is a genre that has evolved out of folk music. Bob Dylan’s songs have become anthem for people fighting against social injustice. 

Techno

Techno, also known as fusion, is an electronic dance music influenced from the African American styles like funk, electro and electric jazz. It was developed by a group known as “The Belleville Three”, initiated by Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson and Juan Atkins in the suburbs of Detroit. Among the various styles of techno that exists today, Detroit Techno is considered to be the base for all others. Techno music is mainly an instrumental genre that uses instruments like synthesizers, drum machines, multi-tracking and hardware sequencers for creating harmony.

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Why Does Slicing an Onion Makes You Cry?

Did you ever wonder why onions make you cry? Slice an onion and the tears start flowing. Why does this happen? Like all other plants, onions are also made of cells; but the onion cells contain sulfur elements.

When we slice the onions, the cells break and release the sulfur vapors. Sulfur has a bad odor, and when these vapors mix with the moisture of our eyes a chemical reaction takes place which produces molecules such as ethylsufine which make your eyes burn.
The eyes then produce tears to wash and and dilute the chemicals – in other words the tears are a natural reaction of the body so that the offensive chemicals can be washed away.

As long as we keep on slicing the onions, more and more cells will break, which will produce more sulfur vapors, and hence more and more tears!
To prevent the tears, try cutting the onions in a bowl of water. The water helps dissolve the sulfur elements, so that they don’t reach your eyes and this prevents the tears from flowing!

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5 Reasons: Why the World will not End in 2012

It has been the most talked about topic that this world is going to end on Dec.21, 2012. Here, I would tell you 5 best reasons, why it will not happen:

Mayans never claimed it:

The Mayans had many calendars they used, one of which was known as the “long count” calendar, which measures very long periods of time. According to this calendar (which has been known to archeologists for decades, by the way) the Earth’s “fifth sun” would end at the Winter solstice, December 21, 2012, at which point a new, sixth 5,125-year cycle would begin. What significance this had to the Mayans is a source of some debate, but it is the general consensus that they did not attribute to it any catastrophic events. Most likely, they simply considered it a time for spiritual renewal or introspection, which doesn’t sound all that dangerous to me. The teaching that the Mayan’s believed it was the end of time, then, appears to be a largely westernized misreading (or deliberate misrepresentation) of the significance of the Mayan calendar and Mayan beliefs associated with it.

Nostradamus never picked 2012:

It has been popularly believed that Nostradamus, the famous sixteenth century French mystic, suggested the end would come in 2012, perfectly coinciding with the Mayan date, which, if true, would be very spooky indeed. However, in reading through Nostradamus’ many quatrains, nowhere does he specifically mention the year 2012 or even suggest that the end would come around that time. In fact, his predictions extend all the way to the year 3797, making it seem we have some time yet before the end is neigh. Additionally, his writings are so obscure as to make any interpretation little better than a guess. Most of them are likely referring to events that took place in his lifetime, with the rest being so vague that they can be made to fit any time frame the reader so desires.

Earth isn’t easy to destroy:

Sure, there are things that could do the planet in, but Earth is a lot hardier a place than many give it credit for. After all, it’s been here for four billion years now, had its clock repeated cleaned by asteroids and comets, endured climactic changes of biblical proportions, and even survived a collision with another planet that created our own moon, and yet it keeps on ticking. And you think a few melting ice caps and puny nuclear weapons are going to do it in? Please…

People who suggest the end is coming don’t know what they’re talking about:

Unfortunately, human beings have a tendency to invest great authority in people who can convince them they are prophecy “experts” or have some sort of hidden knowledge others do not possess that allows them to read the future. Many of these people are sincere individuals who simply misinterpret ancient bible texts, while others are deluded crazies who only want to include others in their fantasy world. A few are even unscrupulous charlatans out to make a quick buck. The bottom line is, however, that nobody really knows what the future holds regardless of who they are or what methodology they use. There simply is no evidence that anyone has ever successfully prophesied some future event (beyond some short-term political or military events easily surmised by gauging current international trends) with anything approaching clarity or accuracy.

Reversal of the magnetic poles would not be catastrophic:

It seems that every few hundred thousand years or so, the Earth’s magnetic field dwindles to practically nothing and then gradually reappears with the north and south poles flipped. Now this flipping of the magnetic poles—which appears to have last happened about 780,000 years ago—isn’t particularly dangerous, but this brief period—about a century or so in duration—of decreased magnetic fields could threaten life on the planet, for without magnetic protection, particle storms and cosmic rays from the sun, as well as even more energetic subatomic particles from deep space, would strike Earth’s atmosphere, eroding the already beleaguered ozone layer and causing all sorts of problems to both man and beast (especially among those creatures that navigate by magnetic reckoning). Further, scientists estimate that we are overdue for such an event and have also noticed that the strength of our magnetic field has decreased about 5 percent in the past century, possibly signaling that such an event may be in our immediate future—within a few centuries if not sooner. However, in being so gradual, should scientists in the future discover that such a shift is in the works, there should be plenty of time to take the necessary precautions to avoid the most destructive effects by moving underground or off planet, or perhaps strengthening the planet’s atmospheric defenses through the use of exotic, futuristic technologies. In any case, it isn’t something we need to worry about in the short term—though it could be a concern for those living a few hundred or even thousands of years from now.

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