i used the picture about halfway through this video-with the marriage scene and the refinery in the background-to describe the chinese perspective on modernity in my paper on bicycle use in the people’s republic. enjoy.

Chris Henry Funeral Held Dec 22nd 2009-He will never return to the football field

Chris Henry’s Fiancee Spoke at his Funeral Today and the NFL showed their support.  The Cincinnati Bengals were present along with the NFL Commissioner.

Head coach Marvin Lewis Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer  gave eulogies. There was no live video feed on the internet of the memorial service.

Image : http://www.flickr.com

Outside the plasma, LCD televisions and can be the same. Similar in a way that they are using both methods, you can watch on a flat screen. There are differences between them.

Plasma TVs can go bigger than 42 inches, while the LCD is only about 37 cm. Thus, in general, plasma televisions are larger than LCD televisions. But if there is a 42-inch LCD TV will cost more expensive than plasma TVs of the same. LCD TVs are lighterPlasmas. Plasma TVs are bigger and does not require installation by a professional. They are, however, well constructed to prevent overheating due to constant use. You just need a good airing.

The contrast of plasma televisions background is good, another reason to include it in your home theater. E 'ideal for watching your favorite movies. If your lighted room, you can use as LCD TVs have screens brighter. If the dark room, LCD televisions seem tooff strong rays. One can see from every angle if you have a plasma television. However, this is not the same for LCD televisions, as it is flat. The farther you travel, it is less bright.

Plasma TVs have their disadvantages. One of these is the burn-in. If you're in for a long time, the last image displayed on the screen appeared for a while 'of time left, they are often permanently on the screen. This can be annoying for the viewer. Estimated lifea plasma TV is 25,000 to 30,000 hours.

De pdf/a-standaard blijkt voor meerdere interpretaties vatbaar.

Als je gebruik wilt maken van standaarden, dan zijn hulpmiddelen om de naleving ervan te controleren heel belangrijk. In het geval van technische standaarden die over data- en bestandsstructuren gaan, kan men vaak beschikken over controlesoftware die aangeeft of bijvoorbeeld een bestand aan de standaard voldoet. Dit zijn de zogenaamde parsers oftewel validators. Als er meerdere validators zijn voor dezelfde standaard, dan is het wel spannend om te zien of de verwerking van een gegeven testbestand elke keer tot hetzelfde resultaat leidt. Standaarden zijn namelijk vaak op verschillende manieren te interpreteren. En dit kan de oorzaak zijn van afwijkende resultaten. Dat maakt het allemaal wat lastiger.

Voor de relatief nieuwe documentstandaard PDF/A was dit een hele belangrijke drempel. PDF/A is tenslotte een ISO-standaard voor langetermijnarchivering van elektronische documenten. En in het geval van PDF/A bestonden er inderdaad verschillende validators op de markt die in bepaalde situaties verschillende resultaten opleverden.

Isartor Suite - testbestanden voor PDF/A validators

Het internationale PDF/A Competence Center heeft getracht dit euvel snel op te lossen door een verzameling bestanden ter beschikking te stellen waarmee de leveranciers van validators hun software kunnen finetunen. De noodzaak van het Competence Center om een validator voor validators te ontwikkelen, wijst erop dat de standaard voor PDF/A voor meerdere interpretaties vatbaar is. En het verbaast mij dat dit nooit eerdere boven tafel is gekomen. Wellicht is de standaard wel te snel ontwikkeld? Of zijn de onderliggende fouten er nooit uitgehaald? Hoe dan ook, het Competence Center heeft ervoor gezorgd dat de neuzen van de validators inmiddels dezelfde kant op staan.

Dit is de link voor de download van de testbestanden:

http://www.pdfa.org/doku.php?id=pdfa:en:isartor_test_suite

Op deze site is een testreport over de betrouwbaarheid van verschillende validators. Tevens is er een aanvullende verzameling van testbestanden:

http://www.pdflib.com/developer/pdfa/validation-report

There are many developments going in PDF/A (PDF for Archiving), the standard for long-term archiving of electronic documents. I am not referring to the development of the standard itself, but what is happening around the standard. When the standard was presented to the public, one of the predictions was that there will be alternatives to the Adobe Acrobat Reader. There is nothing wrong with the Adobe Reader but when it comes to viewing PDF/A files, there are sufficient arguments for an alternative reader:

• The Adobe Reader takes too long to start-up because there are too many functions loaded into memory.
• It requires too much space on the screen. I am referring to the bars with function buttons on the top and left. This makes it difficult to integrate document viewing into business apllications like a contact center dashboard for instance.
• The left and right mouse buttons of the Adobe Reader cannot be freely configured. In order to resize the document, for instance, you need to use the function keys. This takes time.
• The Adobe Reader is a browser plug-in. In order to view a PDF document you must install a piece of software. And each new version needs to be installed again. In these times consumers are not really happy when the computer asks you for permission to install something on your computer.

Viewing a PDF/A document is no different from viewing a ‘traditional’ PDF document. But for PDF/A documents you do not need to have all the functionality of the Adobe Reader installed. The user only wants to view an archived document. No need to fill-in forms, apply digital signatures, add comments, share documents via Acrobat.com with other users, run a spellchecker et cetera.

Take a look at all the features of the Adobe Reader and ask yourself which are essential for viewing an archived document. In fact, what you really want as a user, is to use the mouse to perform certain actions such as zooming or printing. But this is only possible using the function buttons or menu items – and that takes time.

Why do we (system architects, application designers, document managers etc.) only consider the Adobe Reader when we want to integrate PDF viewing into applications, like a contact center dashboard? Or in Web-based customer portals? There are Java-based readers available which integrate perfectly into (web) applications, occupy less space on the screen and provide configurable mouse buttons. You can even have a different configuration per application – or leave it to the user to set personal preferences. For 2010 I expect more alternative PDF/A readers to hit the market. These developments are positive for the development and acceptance of the PDF/A standard. Therefore I keep a close eye on it. I suggest you do the same, for your own benefit.

Carol #1 ____________________

Carol #2 ____________________

Carol #3 ____________________

Carol #4 ____________________

Carol #5 ____________________

Carol #6 ____________________

Carol #7 ____________________

Carol #8 ____________________

Once again, this file comes from ages ago and I cannot put a source to the pictures . . . so many thanks to the artist wherever he/she is!

In the world of today is not an existing or potential customers are expected to deal with the traditional (outdated claims) Stay products. In addition, a product can manufacturers, relying on outdated technology and products that do not expect a long way to go without satisfying the actual needs of customers. It became clear that today's customers demand innovative products and are more than willing to pay a fair price for the same money.

Consider some of themost important factors relevant to the popularity and growth of innovative products relating to high-quality TV technology. Apart from other factors mentioned above, intense competition in the market from new market participants, increase in disposable income of customers and some of the positive market development for several reasons remarkable.

A potential customer searching for the latest LCD TVs in the city should not confine itself to its product search to the traditional Market alone. He must discover the ever-growing online market to do better in the situation, a reasonable business. The current day market offers a variety of high-quality yet cheap LCD TV for the users at affordable prices. The only thing to keep in mind to understand the perfect market. Here is a detailed market analysis will prove to be handy.

If you then for some of the best names in the city can go for Samsung, Philips and Haier. The> Samsung LA 19R71 (Bordeaux), Samsung LA 26R71 and Samsung are LA32S8 (Sonoma Trenz) some of the best and latest acclaimed LCD TVs in the market. This Samsung LCD TVs showing seamless performance paired with brilliant resolution and thereby offer an enhanced viewing experience for their users.

However, a potential customer are important factors such as quality, performance, ignoring warranty, customer care, after-sales –Service and price, to name but a few, while a cheap LCD TV.

More Linke : billig lcd fernseher Shop Full HDs TV UK Samsung HDTVs Samsung led HDTV

Less famous than spring cherry blossom viewing or fall maple viewing, the Aoyama ginkos draw a crowd to see the gorgeous double allée of ginkos turning bright yellow. Last weekend was probably the peak days, with just the right balance of leaves still on the trees and enough on the ground for children to toss into the air.

As dusk approached, the leaves became even paler and more luminous. It’s wonderful to see how Tokyo residents appreciate well-cared for trees and join together in public to share this seasonal moment.

The ginko tree street is officially called Icho Namiki Meijijingu Gaien. Below is an image from the Tokyo Gymnasium looking out to Gaien Nishi Dori.

Joseph McMoneagle joined the U.S. Army was the Army Security Agency, and be set for classified contracts. As a result of unusual events in his life: near-death experience, a UFO sighting, and numerous spontaneous out-of-body episodes, he became aware of his intuitive abilities and developed the ability of remote viewing. Later he became one of the original Intelligence Officers recruited for the top-secret Army program now known as Stargate. After leaving the army, …

Tags : home DIY http://diy-toolsandequipment.blogspot.com/ http://diy-diylandscaping.blogspot.com

Go karts can make your heart pump like almost nothing else. If you’re hooked on the thrill of go karting and you are dying to purchase a sleek new go kart there are a few tricks you need to learn. With a little patience go karts can be bought for as much as 50% off of the regular retail price. They are incredibly fun, and they’ve become extremely popular these days. You can find go karts at just about every family fun center or amusement park.

Racing go karts or off road gokarts are just plain fun. But you already know how exciting go karts are so let’s get to the nuts and bolts of how to purchase a go kart at rock bottom discount prices.

Finding cheap go karts is a lot easier than you may think, you just have to wait a little longer before you buy. But don’t worry, not too long. It’s really a simple tactic that I call price shopping. Price comparisons are certainly something you have already heard about, but if you do it right you can find some great discounts.

In the olden days you had to call up different stores or actually go visit them to get some price comparisons for racing or off road gokarts. But today we have the internet which makes it a whole lot easier. It still takes a little work and some patience, but the savings can be well worth the wait.

First, go to Google.com and type ‘go karts,’ ‘go kart,’ ‘go kart sale’ or ‘discount go karts’ into the search box. You may also want to try ‘go carts,’ ‘go cart,’ ‘gocarts,’ ‘gocart,’ ‘gokarts’ or ‘gokart’ spelled differently or enter some different gokarting words that may be appropriate. This will yield an unbelievable amount of online dealers. Check out about 10 or 20 of them and make a note of the different models and prices that they offer. Also, you’ll notice on the right side of the Google search web pages there are many sponsored ads. Companies pay a lot of money to advertise there. Many of these sites have great prices and they should be checked out too.

Second, do the same thing Yahoo.com. Find a few go kart sites that offer the types of go karts that you are searching for and make a note of the models and their prices. Once again, look at the sponsored ads on the page and visit some of them too. Keep track of the cheapest prices you can find.

Third, visit Froogle.com. Froogle is an offshoot of Google. It is a giant shopping site where you can find lots of different models. Search for ‘gokart’ and ‘gokarts’ just as you did at Google and Yahoo, making sure to write down the cheap discount prices you find for the go kart models you are most interested in.

Fourth, go to ebay and do another similar search. Look at the different auctions and notice the prices that go karts are actually selling for. This is one of the best ways to determine a selling price. You may have to keep track of a few auctions for a few days, but it will give you a good idea of the value for different types of go karts.

Do you get the idea? All you’re doing is spending a little time locating all of the best prices you can find online. Then you’re keeping track of these prices so that you can compare them. Now here’s the hard part. Wait a week or two and then do it all over again. I know that waiting is hard, but if you try to avoid an impulse buy you can usually find lower prices. After a couple of weeks you will have determined which go kart dealers offer the best prices.

Saving up to 50% on the price of a great go kart is worth waiting a couple of weeks for. Once you’ve done your homework you just might be rewarded with a wonderfully cheap gokart. And once the work is over, it’s fun time.

Thanks To : shoes cheap

There was a time when the only buying choice for sneakers was white or black. Today’s athletic shoes are the product of sophisticated science and engineering that have expanded consumer choices to precise details about athletic shoe cushioning, flexibility, orthopedic qualities, and the breathability of inner and outer materials. The distinctions between walking shoes, running shoes, and cross trainers from the same manufacturer may be small in some cases but they are real differences that will affect your walking experience, and not just a marketing gimmick.

Walking Shoes

Walking shoes have more flexible soles and are specially designed to promote the easy roll of the foot from heel to toe, your natural walking motion. Cushioning is designed to absorb about 1.5 times body weight for any shoe size. Walking shoes do not have to be as rugged so there is more opportunity for manufacturers to use mesh and other lighter, highly breathable materials on the shoe outers. Feet sweat and some walkers will really appreciate this feature. Tread designs are less deep and the soles and side walls provide all around grip. The best walking shoe is, in fact, a Walking Shoe, but you could certainly use the other types of athletic shoes in your walking program so long as the fit was right.

Running Shoes

Running shoes are designed to absorb impacts up to three times your body weight and provide sufficient lateral stability to control pronation. Heels are higher and more heavily cushioned. Treads and sides are designed for maximum forward grip. Trail running shoes have impregnated solid guards to prevent bruising from sharp rocks. Running shoes from the same manufacturer will not be as flexible at the ball of the foot as a purpose made walking shoe.

Cross-Trainers

Cross-trainers attempt to provide a versatile compromise between walking and basketball, tennis or other court shoes. Generally, cross trainers have more rigid metatarsal (side-to-side) support than running shoes, and do not have adequate heel cushioning for long distance running, Cross-trainers work OK if running is limited to a few miles at a time but a cross-trainer shoe would likely break down faster than a purpose made running shoe.

Tags : New Balance Running Shoes

Women are always trying to find that “fountain of youth” or a way to take years off their appearances. Although finding the right accessories for your age group is not exactly a fountain of youth, it can certainly add or subtract years to any woman.

Some women continually keep up with the ever-changing trends in fashion. There comes a time, however, where certain fads only make a woman look older. For example, some of the really hot trends right now include way oversized handbags and bags with tapestry-type patterns. On a young teenager, twenty or thirty something, these women’s handbags look young, hip, and fabulous. Some women’s dress shoes and handbags that are often affectionately named “granny shoes and bags” can be worn well on a teen or young adult.

If you worry about making this mistake, there is a simple saying about trends, “if you wore it the first time around, don’t wear it the second.” For example, the flair-leg jeans were one of the trademarks of the 60’s and 70’s. A few years ago the flair-leg jeans made a huge comeback for young teens and changed the shape of the popular slacks. They did, however, look completely out of place on the middle-aged population and ultimately made them look like they were trying way to hard to be back in the younger generation.

While young, you are allowed to experiment with fashion, try the latest trends, and play with your image. This is a part of the road to self-discovery. However, by your thirties, you should have found a certain style that fits your body type and fits your personality while staying away from over the top. This is not saying that older generations cannot look great, there are many ways to stay chic and fashion forward. Instead of choosing the bright red and platinum handbag, choose the same design in a chocolate color. This way, you get the fun of the handbag style without looking over the top.

When you dress well, conscious of the accessories you pick, you can take years away from your appearance and just feel great! There are still many fashionable handbags and shoes that look great but are still fun. Dressing for your age does not mean playing it safe. Just remember the golden rule, “if you wore it the first time around, don’t wear it the second.”

Visit : Shoes Golf

The Kimberly hole in the historic mining town of Kimberley in South Africa is well known around the world for being the world’s largest man-made hole producing precious diamonds. Kimberly is now also famous for being blessed as a sacred home for the popular Meerkat species.

The effect of the screenings of Animal Planet’s Meerkat Manor episodes has ignited a tremendous amount of spectator value and interest in wild Meerkat viewing for tourists from around the world. On the edge of the mysterious Kalahari Desert wilderness is a large concession that is home to more than 70 species of mammal including lion, cheetah and the rare desert black rhino. This historical home of the Bushmen offers a rare but beautiful natural habitat for these small social carnivores also known as the desert Mongoose.

News of these exquisite creatures has traveled far and wide as tourists share their unique Meerkat encounters with other wildlife and travel enthusiasts. Meerkat sightingsare becoming so popular that travelers are making a visit to view the Kimberly Meerkat an essential part of their Meerkat experience en route to their visits to see the Desert Meerkats. Travelers can enjoy the sightings and attractions offered by this famous old mining town which is less than 400 kilometers away from the Kalahari Desert before they continue on to their tour of viewing the Meerkat in their natural surrounds.

The Meerkat adventure begins before sunrise in Kimberley. Travelers enjoy early morning coffee and rusks (a crispy baked dough enjoyed as a typical South African morning treat) in the ‘veld’ (a South African term for the bush) while watching the sun come up and the Meerkat awakening to another day with a ritual sunbathing session. This is a wild gang of Meerkat and the viewing is done at a respectful distance. After a rustic brunch in the African ‘veld’, travelers visit the Big Hole in Kimberly where the middle part of the day is spent exploring the history of this fascinating diamond town.

Afternoon sunsets are then spent with a tame or habituated Meerkat group of orphans. Up close and personal, visitors will be able to get an intimate insight into their social lives and also some great photo opportunities. When the Meerkats go to sleep in their burrows, the visitors bid each other farewell over sundowners and shared memories of an unforgettable day with Meerkats in the Kalahari Desert.

The Kalahari is renowned for having exclusive luxury private and malaria free game reserves situated in the heart of the Northern Cape Province. It offers the ultimate safari experience in elegantly simple surroundings nestled in the red sands of the Kalahari. Star gazing is big in the Kalahari, hot air ballooning too, but the reserve is known across the world as an excellent place for bird watching with more than 200 species of birds some of them indigenous to the arid zone, found in the varying habitats of the reserve. Raptors and in particular, vultures, are very well represented. The most abundant species are the white-backed vulture and the lappet-faced vulture.

Of course the main activity in this Game Reserve is game watching from the private game viewing vehicle or guided walks or horseback trails across the red dunes.

With activities like these one can almost predict that some of the luxurious deluxe facilities available within the reserve would include a well stocked private wine cellar, private plane, high powered telescope (for star gazing, of course), a private chef, a library and a host of other luxuries.

Using the Mind’s Eye

Pictures from fotosearch

Plot Pictures

Trying to get students to see things in the mind’s eye has always been one of my goals.  Visualizing allows me to better understand a concept and it provides hooks for the memory.

For the plot of a short story, I have added to the standard plot picture with several additions, additions I feel are helpful because they add important details. The pictures below are a progression from the standard plot outline familiar to most (but perhaps not all), my first adaptation (and this one may be sufficient for early grades), and then my latest version (and even this is only the very basic, no frills short story plot).

Your standard plot picture

The standard plot picture may be sufficient to explain the idea that a story has a beginning (where the reader learns where and when the story takes place, who the main characters are, if any significant events have occurred before the actual beginning of the story), it rises to a climax (a main problem exists that must be solved and in seeking that solution the events build toward the climax), a height of interest and answer to the problem is given, and then loose ends are tied up and/or unanswered questions are answered.

The standard plot picture doesn’t really say most of the specifics I’ve just mentioned but the BIG picture is given. I thought the picture needed to be more focused.

My Original Adaptation to the Standard Plot Picture

My improved and/or more detailed adaptation to the standard plot picture

My first improvement, and this is the one I used throughout most of my career, simply indicates where the Initial Incident occurs and shows it with a Q in a circle. After the information given in the introduction, the reader is met with the story’s BIG problem. I have always asked my students to note that problem as a question. When I introduce the whole notion of the simplest plot structure, I use fairy tales: What will happen to Goldilocks when the three bears return? Will Little Red Riding Hood get safely to her grandma’s house? Will the three little pigs stay safe from the big bag wolf?

The steps rising to the climax are a series of “Good” and “Bad” events – good for the protagonist’s situation or bad. We begin by playing the Good and Bad Game. Situations like this are invented: You and a friend are in a life boat in the middle of the ocean. Students then offer suggestions. Good – the boat has oars. Bad – a shark swims by and bites one of the oars in half. Good – you whack the shark over the head and he swims away. Bad – there is no food in the boat. Good – there is a first aid kit and it contains a fish hook and some line. . . and on we go. Students are quick to catch on to the idea that suspense increases through any series of events that keep the reader in doubt.

The steps are only a generalization as I am quick to point out that most stories do not follow a one good – one bad sequence. More often a number of either good or bad events occur in a row only to be interrupted by an opposite event. In Goldilocks’ case, it’s a “two bad, one good” sequence – this chair is too hard, this chair is too soft, this chair is just right.

For me, the climax has always been the answer to the BIG question, not the point of highest interest, the split second before the reader discovers what happens. In the real world a climax is a climax. I rest my case. A = answer.

The shortest part of the story seems to have been blessed with the most names: epilogue, resolution, falling action, denouement. I use Epilogue/Resolution because it fits my mnemonic. For my students, the plot of a short story is 3I-RACER. That’s 3 I’s, one for Introduction, the next two are for Initial Incident. The RA is Rising Action, C is Climax, ER is Epilogue or Resolution.

Fairy tales offer a perfect epilogue/resolution with the ubiquitous “They all lived happily ever after.”

This more detailed version of the very simple plot structure of a story is my “since I’ve been retired” version. It is not classroom tested . . . but it does appeal to my “let’s not dummy down” philosophy. It only includes a few small additions and I think it makes things a bit more clear. The jagged lines forming the introduction are a series of W’s and perhaps should be shown as such. (I added a picture below that does this.) The introduction, once again as portrayed in fairy tales, is the “Once upon a time, a long time ago, in a far away place, there lived a . . .” part. It tells when, where, who.

Another W in the Introduction could be What if one can make the leap to Antecedent Action being thought of as What important events occurred before the actual beginning of the story. The arrow below the W’s indicates the Antecedent Action.

The labeled version of the above plot picture

As promised above, the slightly altered plot picture with W’s in the Introduction.

Like most of the teachers in North America, I’ve recently been through another round of report cards and parent/teacher/student conferences.  I’ve had a classroom blog for several years, but this year I am making more of an effort to use each student’s blog as an online portfolio, with examples of the students’ work from all subject areas.

As part of the process, each student looked at their blog with me and chose three “articles” that they felt represented their best work and wished to share with their parents.  We had recently made recordings with Vocaroo of each child reading a book that they had practiced to share, so that was a popular choice. Aside from that choice the students, without exception, chose to show articles that contained images and proceeded to tell their parents (with my support) what they had done well in creating the image in terms of their use of colour, space, details, shapes etc.  I don’t think this is just because they do not yet write well–actually some of them do write well for this point in the school year.

This further reinforced my conviction that my students are more visually oriented every year.  They come to me with five or six years of viewing TV, video, games and various online sites behind them. Their brain is wired to view images.  I’m glad that my province has included viewing as one of the six strands of our language arts curriculum.  In fact, we are supposed to be giving viewing the same amount of  teaching time as we do reading and writing, the traditional text-based mediums.

What does this mean for me as a teacher who is helping them to create an online portfolio of their work? Certainly I need to give them lots of opportunities to express themselves through visual means   (representing, another great strand of our language arts curriculum).  Students learn uniquely  through the creation of digital media.  I’m also more convinced than ever of my need to systematically teach them the age-appropriate strategies they need to become effective viewers and contributors in this digital age.

Our first house viewing today was at Sin Ming. Sin Ming is a very small town. Say that you live in Sin Ming, most people will say “Oh, your kid goes to Ai Tong”, or the famous places of worships nearby and Bishan Park.

As this is our first time, we are not quite sure what to expect for a house viewing. So it’s a surprise when it ended without any fuss.

• The block is located 5 mins walk from the bus stop. Driving to the block was misleading as there was quite a few turns. Plus!

• There is a small road that leads to the opposite of Thomson Plaza in 5 mins. However, I don’t think is well lit enough for a walk at night. Plus!

• The apartment was on a lift floor, at the end of the corridor. Non of the windows are exposed to passers-by. There is only one neighbour facing the main door. Huge Plus!

• The living and dining room’s walls and ceilings are decent. There are no built in TV consoles or cabinets. This could save us $$ in renovation. Plus!

• The kitchen layout and size is similar to my current one. It is covered top to bottom with wheat-coloured-patterned tiles. It also has built in cabinets, which I think are light brown coloured. Minus!

• The kitchen faces the opposite root of a low mansionette block. I’m guessing the afternoon sun will reflect the orange glare into the rooms. Minus!

• Main bedroom and Bedroom 1 is quite alright. they are similar to my house.  But again, the orange glare might be a nuisance. Neutral.

• Bedroom 2 has a strange layout. Minus!

• Storeroom is small. Minus!

• There is a small mini mart a few blocks away. It’s a 5 – 7 min walk. It’s closed today, hmm..  are the owners celebrating Hari Raya? Plus!

Location: 7/10. Near to my work place and parent’s place. Quiet with privacy.

Transport: 7/10. Bishan MRT station is 7 – 9 busstops away. Marymount MRT station is 4 – 6 busstops away.

Amenities: 6/10. 1 minimart. No hawker centre and wet market. Closest shopping centre is Thomson Plaza.

Price: 7/10.  The valuation is comparable to a 5-room Punggol BTO. After adding the COV, the price is tipping over to the high side.

Ellenborough Falls are located to the west of Taree in New South Wales, Australia. To get there from Taree simply follow Tourist Drive 8.

The falls drop some 200m over the escarpment. There are a number of viewing areas giving good falls of the waterfall.

For more information visit:

http://www.kevinswilderness.com/NSW/ellenborough_falls.html

For the 2008-2009 TV season, the amount of television watched reached an all-time high as Americans spent four hours and 49 minutes a day on average in front of the TV, up four minutes from last year and up 20% from 10 years ago. The average household watched eight hours and 21 minutes a day on average, also at an all-time high.

The continued increase in television consumption can be attributed to several factors including more television sets in the home, and Americans also have more channels and content to choose from and are using their DVRs more than ever.

Download the complete breakdown of personal and household viewing dating back to 1950.

via

I stayed up last night to see if I could catch a couple of Leonids. After all, some of the news stories were predicting the possibility of a half storm (as many as 500/hr). Well . . . truth to tell, by the time yesterday rolled around the reality was that if it was going to be that strong anywhere on the planet it would be in Asia, but they were still saying there should be 25 – 30/hr in North America, with the possibility of as many as 200/hr. I don’t live in the darkest part of the world, but Simi Valley is a somewhat sleepy little town and my back yard is reasonably dark.

My first experience with a meteor shower was about thirty years ago, out in the Mojave Desert where some friends and I had gone to view the Perseids, one of the more spectacular showers that usually peaks on or about the morning of August 12. It’s a good time to view them – the weather at night in the desert can be quite pleasant and it was. I saw some beautiful bolides; a couple being bright enough to cast faint shadows on the desert floor. Spectacular! Wondrous! Unfortunately, life intervened and I was never able to get out to that spot again, but I’ve attempted viewings many times since; just never in a really dark location. Now that I have more time, or at least my time is more flexible than it’s been for the last couple three decades, I’m beginning to wonder if my eyes are giving out. Surely my patience is wearing thin.

This year I’ve so far attempted both the Perseids and the Orionids and haven’t seen a damn thing! Last night (this morning) was no exception. I did see two meteors, but neither was a Leonid. One came out of the West and was bright and extremely fast. The other came out of the Northwest and was a bit slower and quite a bit fainter. However, the Leonids were a no-show for me. Perhaps I should have planned to stay out all night, but I just couldn’t afford to give up all of today. I guess I’ll have to content myself with the knowledge I have seen at least one spectacular showing and, perhaps, that will have to be good enough. I’ll probably try again; the Geminids are coming up next month. <sigh>

Yesterday saw the launch of Toshiba’s latest ad campaign to promote its new 2010 REGZA SV LCD TV series, Toshiba’s first with LED backlight and local dimming.

The video revolves around the journey of an “ordinary armchair” which was made out of biodegradable balsa wood and sent up 98,268 ft. Fitted with 4 GPS systems and attached to helium balloons, the journey was shot using Toshiba’s own IK-HR1S cameras.

This is the first of two videos with part two set to hit our screens in 2010 to promote the new range of Satellite T Series of ultra low voltage laptops.

Whilst this video is certainly attention grabbing, it’ll be interesting to see whether the TV sales reach the same dizzying heights the chair has or if it’ll be one of those campaigns where the advert is more memorable than the product.

By monitoring my viewing habits my TV turns on and displays the channel most likely to interest me, perhaps with a few suggestions on the side of other channels to try. I rarely watch TV as I get most stuff I want online but when I decide to turn it on for a change, I’d rather be greeted with something interesting. Even better for me would be to have my TV connected with my laptop, when I’m done with it I just type what I am in a mood for to watch on the big screen and it gets it for me while I lie comfortably on my sofa…

http://www.thinkaloo.com

YAY!  My one-yard wonders book arrived today!  (By the way, the deluxe edition with 5 extra projects is only $11 on bn.com!)  I can tell from one very quick flip through that this book is capital-A amazing!  I plan to retreat to another room in the house to look through it while my hubby watches Fringe but I know I’m going to end up sitting on the couch next to him, wondering why I am there, because every week the show freaks me out, yet I still sit and watch it, and at the end of every show I am freaked out and I ask out loud why did I watch the show?!  

Isn’t the book so beautiful?!  And lookie inside!  It’s hardback sprial bound — so awesome that the book can lay flat!  And there is a pattern piece envelope!  I haven’t opened the pattern piece envelope yet because I may decide to go to
local Barnes & Noble store and exchange my regular edition for the deluxe edition — I am very curious about those 5 extra projects!  I will post a full review of the book (I just know it’s going to be great) over the weekend.