The Milky Way is not the only galaxy visible in our skies. In the southern hemisphere you can also see the two Magellanic Clouds. They are generally thought to be satellite galaxies linked
by gravity to the Milky Way, but recent research suggests they may be just passing through our neighborhood.
The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) lies in the constellations Dorado and Mensa. It is about 25,000–30,000 light-years across and contains about 100 billion solar masses. The LMC is classed as an irregular galaxy, although it has a bar in its center and some signs of spiral arms. It may have once been a spiral galaxy that was pulled into a new shape by the gravity of the Milky Way.
The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) is one of the most distant objects that can be seen with the naked eye. This irregular dwarf galaxy is a smaller version of the LMC. It contains less dust and gas, but it still has a number of star-forming regions (the red regions shown above). The SMC has a visible diameter of about 15,000 light-years and contains several hundred million stars. Its mass is about seven billion times the mass of our Sun.
On December 12, 1903, the Wright brothers made the first sustained and
controlled flight by powered airplane in history at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. At least, this is the accepted story. But had man mastered the power of flight much earlier, perhaps hundreds or even thousands of years earlier? Some researchers believe that there is evidence to suggest that this is indeed the case, but that the knowledge has been lost to history. The physical evidence for this ancient flight comes mainly in the form of enigmatic South American and Egyptian artifacts and Egyptian carvings.The first examples are the socalled gold aircraft from Colombia. Some of these artifacts date to about A.D. 500 and are attributed to the Tolima culture, which inhabited the highlands of Colombia from around A.D. 200 to 1000.
Traditionally described by archaeologists as animal or insect figurines, the
objects seem to display features compatible with airplane technology, such as
delta wings, vertical stabilizers, and horizontal elevators. A further example, a stylized gold alloy flying fish pendant, comes from the Calima culture of
southwest Colombia, (c. 200 B.C.- A.D. 600). A photo of such a pendant was
included in Erich Von Daniken's 1972 book, The Gold of the Gods, and he
believed the object represented an airplane used by outer space visitors.
Although the figure is thought by archaeologists to represent a stylized version of a flying fish found in the region, there are some features, particularly those around the tail, which appear significantly different from anything found in nature.
More gold examples were fashioned by the Sinu culture of coastal Colombia, a gold-working community that existed between about A.D. 300 and A.D. 1550. These objects were about 5 centimeters long and were worn as pendants on neck chains. In 1954, some examples of the Sinu models were among the collection of ancient gold artifacts sent by the Colombian government on a United States tour; 15 years later a modern reproduction of one of the artifacts was given to zoologist and author Ivan T. Sanderson to examine.
Apparently, his conclusion was that the object was not characteristic of any known winged animal. The front wings were delta-shaped and straight edged, for example, not like an animal or insect. Sanderson thought that it appeared more mechanical than biological, and even went as far as to suggest that it represented a high-speed aircraft at least 1,000 years old. In fact, the airplane-like appearance of the objects encouraged Dr. Arthur Poyslee to conduct windtunnel experiments at the Aeronautical Institute of New York, where he came to a positive conclusion about the object's ability to fly. In August 1996, a reproduction of one of these gold models, built at a scale of 16:1, was flown successfully by three German engineers: Algund Eenboom, Peter Belting, and Conrad Liibbers. From their research, they concluded that the original artifact resembled a modern space shuttle or the supersonic Concorde rather than an insect.
“You Can Do It if You Believe You Can!"
IT MAY SEEM TO BE A DEPARTURE FROM THE subject of this lesson to start with a discussion
of love, but after you have completed the lesson you will understandthat the subject could not have been omitted without impairing the value of the lesson.The word love is used here in an all-encompassing sense. There are many objects, motives, and people that can inspire love, and one of
these inspirations can be work. Great artists, for example, generally love their work.But it is not uncommon for many people to speak of hating work, and it is easy to envision work that is dull, tiring, and emotionally unsatisfying. Work that you do merely for the sake of earning a living is seldom enjoyable.
Time passes slowly, and boredom and weariness are inevitable in such circumstances.It is possible, however, to be engaged in work that you love, work that gives you personal satisfaction and which you approach in a spirit of anticipation and excitement. When engaged in work that you love,
you can labor for unbelievably long periods of time without noticing the clock, because you are focused on the challenge and the satisfaction you are getting. Your endurance, therefore, depends very largely on the extent to which you like, dislike, or love what you are doing. This is the basis for one of the most important philosophies of this course: You are most ifficient and will more quickly and easily succeed when engaged in work that you love, or work that you perform on behalf of some person whom you love.
Whenever the element of love enters into any task you perform, the quality of your work becomes immediately improved and the quantity increased, without a corresponding increase in the fatigue
caused by that work.
“Down time is not the name of the game.”
Usher
singer
Set a specific power goal Most people are surprised to learn that the reason they're not getting what they want in life is because their goals are too small. And too vague. And therefore have no power. Your goals will never be reached if they fail to excite your imagination. What really excites the imagination is the setting of a large and specific power goal.
Usually, a goal is just a goal. But a power goal is a goal that takes on a huge reality. It lives and breathes. It provides motivational energy. It gets you up in the morning. You can taste it, smell it, and feel it. You've got it clearly pictured in your mind. You've got it written down. And you love writing it down because every time you do it fills you with clarity of purpose. In his audiotape series, "Visioneering," my old partner Dennis Deaton teaches the transforming power of lofty goals. Deaton talks about creating a "mental movie" that you watch as often as possible.
He urges you to make it a movie that stars you—living the results of achieving your specific goal. Walt Disney left us many great things: Disneyland, Walt Disney World, great animated films, and Annette Funicello. But what I believe was his greatest gift was the summing up he did of his life's work: "If you can dream it," he said, "you can do it." A power goal is a dream with a deadline. The deadline itself motivates you. People who have created power goals start living on purpose. They know what they're up to in life. How can you tell if you've got a big enough and real enough power goal? Simply observe the effect your goal has on you. It's not what a goal is that matters; it's what a goal does.
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“Forget past mistakes. Forget failures. Forget everything except what you’re going to do now and do it.”
Will Durant
historian
The Hill of Tara-With a history going back to 2500 B.C., this was the seat of the ancient high kings of Ireland, sacred dwelling place of the gods, and entrance to the Celtic otherworld. As a center for the ancient religion of the Pagans, Tara was allegedly visited by St. Patrick in his attempt to bring Christianity to Ireland.
The Ohio Serpent Mound-This enigmatic Native American structure is the
largest effigy earthwork in the world, and one of a number of enigmatic ancient mounds in North America. When was this huge structure built and what was its purpose? Avebury-A huge stone circle and henge monument at the heart of a prehistoric landscape in southern England, Avebury is older than Stonehenge and is one of the most important megalithic sites in the world. Rennes-le-Chateau-A village in southern France which has become the center of speculation regarding the hidden treasure of the Knights Templar. Apparently the village also has connections with sacred geometry, the Priory of Sion, and the Holy Grail.
The Tower of Babel-Known from the Book of Genesis as a tower built by man to reach the heavens, could the story have its origin in a historical structure in the ancient city of Babylon? The Legends of Lake TiticacaLegends of lost cities and Inca gold surround this lake, the highest in the world navigable to large vessels. Could recent archaeological discoveries provide solid evidence for these stories? Glastonbury-Supposedly the birthplace of Christianity in Britain and the location of a possible ancient zodiac in the lanscape, this small town in Somerset, England, is associated with legends concerning Joseph of Arimathea, the Holy Grail, and King Arthur.
The Eleusinian Mysteries-In ancient Greece, mysterious initiation ceremonies
based on the cult of Demeter and Persephone were performed at Eleusis, a small town west of Athens. What did these strange rites involve and who were the initiates? Carnac-Located on the south coast of Brittany, northeast France, the village of Carnac is famous as the site of more than 3,000 prehistoric standing stones,
which legend describes as a Roman legion turned to stone by the British wizard Merlin. Why are there so many of these megaliths in this small area, and who erected them? Chaco Canyon-An amazing Native American urban ceremonial center located deep in the remote deserts of New Mexico. What was the purpose of the mysterious lines radiating out from the Chaco complex for as much 32 miles into the wilderness? Mohenjo-daro-A sophisticated city of 35,000 inhabitants, with baths, an elaborate drainage system, and two-story buildings, dating back more than 5,000 years to the Indus Valley Civilization of modernday Pakistan and northern India.
Tenochtitlan-The capital of the Aztec empire, built on an island in Lake Texcoco in what is now central Mexico. Under the Aztecs, the island was artificially enlarged to become the largest and most powerful city in Meso-America.Chartres Cathedral-Located southwest of Paris in the town of Chartres, this Gothic cathedral was allegedly built on the site of a sacred grove of the Druids, and has been connected with sacred geometry, the mysterious Black Madonna, and the Knights Templar.
Lyonesse-Legendary sunken land believed by some to lie off the Isles of Scilly, to the southwest of Cornwall, England. This mysterious kingdom has sometimes been associated with King Arthur's Avalon, as well as various locations mentioned in Celtic and fairy mythology. Could the Lyonesse legends preserve a folk memory of the flooding of the Isles of Scilly and part of Cornwall? King Solomon's TempleAccording to the Bible, this was the first Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, and allegedly the resting place of the Ark of the Covenant and a fabulous treasure. Did the temple exist, and if so, do its remains still lie beneath modern Jerusalem? Nabta Playa-By the fifth millennium B.C. the peoples in Nabta Playaonce a large lake in the Nubian Desert 500 miles south of modern day Cairohad constructed the world's earliest known astronomical device.
Who were these mysterious people and how advanced was their astronomical knowledge?
The idea of a tapeworm being in the human body is not exactly a pleasant
thing to consider. However, this entire scenario gets worse when you then
discover the facts about the longest one that has ever been uncovered within
the human body.
The exact details of who had it are difficult to ascertain, but doctors reported
that one individual who was complaining of being unwell actually had a
tapeworm inside their body that measured a staggering 33m. For others, that
is over 108ft of tapeworm, which makes you wonder how on earth their body
was able to operate and do anything at all.
Now, just imagine trying to pass that kind of thing all on your own. How
numb would your legs get just from sitting there?
Bonus
There are approximately 100 million acts of sexual intercourse each day.
A cockroach will live nine days without its head before it starves to death.
Many insects can carry 50 times their own body weight. This would be like an adult person lifting two heavy cars full of people.
Elephants are the only mammals that cannot jump.
A honeybee can fly at fifteen miles per hour.
A polar bears skin is black. Its fur is actually clear, but like snow, it appears white.
The strongest muscle in the human body is the tongue. (The heart is not a muscle).
On a clear day in September 1991, high in the desolate Otztal Alps, close to the border between Italy and Austria, two German hikers (Helmut and Erika Simon) made what has proven to be one of the most incredible discoveries of the 20th century. Lying face down in the ice was a frozen body. Thinking they had found the remains of a mountaineer who had died in a fall, the couple informed the authorities, who arranged to visit the site the following day. Due to the melting of the glacier, it was not unusual to find the bodies of climbers who had died in accidents in the area.
Three weeks earlier, the mummified remains of a man and woman who had set off hiking in 1934, never to be seen again, had been discovered. The day after Helmut and Erika Simon's discovery, the Austrian police arrived at the site and be gan, somewhat clumsily, to remove the body from its frozen grave. During its extraction from the ice, some of the body's clothing was shredded, a hole was punched in the hip with a jackhammer, and its left arm was snapped while attempting to force the body into a coffin.
The body was transported to the University of Innsbruck, where a careful
examination revealed that it was definitely not a modern mountaineer.
Radiocarbon dating showed that the remains were of a man who had died around 3200 B.C. (in the Late Neolithic period) and was thus the oldest preserved human body ever discovered. Further examinations of Otzi, as he has become known (because he was found in the Otztal Alps), followed, and it was determined that he was 5-feet 2-inches tall and between 40 and 50 years of age when he died, although the cause of death remained a mystery. Analysis of his stomach contents revealed the remains of two meals, the last eaten about eight hours before he died and consisting of a piece of unleavened bread made of einkorn wheat, some roots, and red deer meat. Analysis of extremely wellpreserved pollen from the intestines revealed that Otzi died in late spring or early summer.
Otzi had a total of 57 tattoos on his body, comprising small parallel stripes and crosses, which were made with a charcoal-based pigment. As the tattoos were concentrated around the spine, lumbar region, knees, and ankles, it is believed that they may not have been decorative. Examination of the Ice Man's skeleton revealed that he had been suffering from arthritis, and the positioning of the tattoos at known acupuncture points has persuaded many researchers that Otzi's tattoos served a therapeutic purpose.Otzi had a total of 57 tattoos on his body, comprising small parallel stripes and crosses, which were made with a charcoal-based pigment. As the tattoos were concentrated around the spine, lumbar region, knees, and ankles, it is believed that they may not have been decorative. Examination of the Ice Man's skeleton revealed that he had been suffering from arthritis, and the positioning of the tattoos at known acupuncture points has persuaded many researchers that Otzi's tattoos served a therapeutic purpose.
Easier said than done, I know. But when people ask me about times in my life when the biggest shifts or changes happened, I always reflect back on the moment when I completely let go of making judgments. Can anyone be perfect? No, of course not. But can you get pretty darn close? Heck, yeah! And the results are lifechanging.When we judge, we are literally expending energy, thoughts and time on something that’s none of our business, or that we often lack sufficient knowledge of to make a judgment. As a child I grew up around people who were very judgmental, and I think some of that attitude seeped into my young adult attitudes, even though I would’ve considered myself a non-judging person. Then one day it hit me I was making judgments about people and I had no idea what kind of circumstances were causing them to act as they did. Sometimes you may see overweight people and, as your default reaction, you assume they’re lazy or just have no control when it comes to their eating.
When you see alcoholics, you think they have no self-discipline and that they should just stop drinking. When you see individuals who are grumpy or disrespectful, you think they are bad people. These default mechanisms live inside all of us. But when you get rid of your judgments, a whole part of your soul opens up for new exploration and new growth. As you can see, I love sharing by example. And I want to make
this point in my children’s lives at a young age, so they can be judgment-free their entire lives. For the last five Christmases, after the kids open their presents and we have our morning routine, we jump in the car and drive to downtown Phoenix, armed with bagged lunches that also contain $100 bills. We drive street by street, alley by alley, to find the homeless people on Christmas morning and hand each one of them a lunch bag. We then say “Merry Christmas”, and as we pull away, in so many cases, they are crying or shocked or saying thank God and thank you. And it’s about more than the food and
the money.
It’s about having the chance to feel that someone cares.And my children are old enough to realize that people will say, “Why are you giving money to the homeless? They should work, they’re lazy, they have options, they will use it for drugs or alcohol.” And maybe that’s the case in some instances, but who are we to judge? Rather than pulling away from someone who’s barely dressed,completely dirty, or smells horrible, the lessons I’m able to share with my children are the ones I want to become permanent in their
souls. I get to teach my children that we don’t know if the homeless people’s families threw them out, if they were molested, if they were beaten, if they have a severe learning disability that no one noticed. I
share with my children that there are a million reasons the homeless could be where they are. Some of them may be on drugs, and may use alcohol, and maybe that’s the only thing that quiets the noises
in their heads. I always tell my kids that we have no idea why they are there, but we can wish them well, let them know someone cares,pray for them, and find gratitude for the blessings we’ve had in our
own lives. Yes, this is a lesson for my children from a dad who had a tougher childhood than they are experiencing. And yes, I may be doing this to help create adults who have empathy, caring spirits, no
judgment, and have gratitude. But at the same time, I continue to do things like this to cement those values into my own life and heart. So stop judging and watch your heart, your life, your mind, your world, and your income continue to open up.