RANGO

In the film, Rango is a pet chameleon who lives in a terrarium. He has long thought himself a hero, but then finds himself removed from his contemporary American southwest surroundings and ending up in an Old West town called Dirt, which is populated by various desert critters garbed like characters out of a spaghetti western. As he’s always thought himself a hero, Rango establishes himself as the lawman, strolling the streets as a sheriff like character.Unknown to him, the ‘good guy’ role doesn’t do very well in Dirt — with a whole cemetery filled with good guy tombstones. But that doesn’t stop Rango from trying, constantly seeking to fit in, with his surroundings, no matter how challenging — just like a good chameleon! At a certain point in the narrative, Rango will come to question everything about himself.

REAL STEEL

A boxing drama set in the near-future where 2,000-pound robots that look like humans do battle.

Apart from silencing opponents and enriching personal friends, the one thing Vladimir Putin was really good at was fixing elections. In this, he had a perfect track record since March 2000—until last Sunday. The Russian parliamentary election on December 4th was neither free nor fair. Several opposition groups had been barred from the ballot; officials pressured voters to support the ruling party; the vote-count was marred by ballot-stuffing and the rigging of protocols. But even in these conditions—and even by the official figures—most Russians voted against Vladimir Putin. His party, United Russia,received 49.3 percent of the vote, losing its two-thirds supermajority in Parliament for the first time in eight years. Compared to the last poll in 2007, when it registered 64.3 percent, United Russia’s result represents a net loss of 13 million votes and 77 seats in the 450-seat Duma (down from 315 to 238).

Being, Consciousness, and the Future of Europe

The eurozone is going to the wire in its struggle to preserve the euro. Although some criticize it for taking too much time, it is encouraging to see that it seems to have finally found the will to defend itself against a looming economic disaster stemming from the potential collapse of its common currency.

That radical steps toward a fiscal union are needed if the euro is to be preserved few would deny. It is another question, though, whether such steps should be seen as strengthening the political unity of Europe. It seems obvious to some that the two march hand in hand, but what seems obvious is in itself no guarantee of truth. Some critical reasoning seems to be in order.

The Autumn of the US-Russia Reset

Acolleague and I have described the post-Soviet era in Russia as the “age of impunity,” whereby even the most howlingly obvious crimes of man or state are implausibly denied or whitewashed in a manner redolent of Stalinist propaganda. Two such examples have furnished themselves in quick succession in the last month, one relating to the conviction of a notorious Russian arms dealer and the other to a Russian nuclear scientist’s facilitation of Iran’s atom bomb project. Both acts would have spelt the end of the US-Russian “reset” without the added complications of renewed brinkmanship over the placement of a US missile defense shield in Eastern Europe and the drubbing delivered to Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party in a transparently fraudulent parliamentary election on December 4th.

Webb at the potter's wheel

The writer and artisan Edmund de Waal is internationally renowned for his ceramics and as the best-selling author of The Hare With Amber Eyes.

In his latest work, The Pot Book, he charts the history of pottery and ceramic ware from the third millennium BC to the present day. But De Waal is also still very much an active potter.

Today presenter Justin Webb went to his south London studio to try his hand at pottery under Edmund de Waal's expert tuition.

Asia's next generation theme parks

When it comes to fun, Asia means business. In 2010, six out of the 10 fastest growing theme parks were from that region. And South Korea is next in line to help Asia steal the mantle of theme park supremacy from the United States.

Executives predict that 2.8 million people a year will visit the Robotland theme park in Incheon, which is scheduled to open within two years.

Rajan Datar reports from South Korea.

ECB urged to underwrite bonds

Italy may have stepped back from the brink, but its government bond yields are still in the danger zone.

The European Central Bank is being urged to stem the crisis by underwriting the Italian bond market.

But this is an option Germany is highly sceptical of.

On Sunday the president of Germany's powerful Bundesbank told the UK's Financial Times that the ECB should not be used as a lender of last resort to governments.

DR Congo's Nyamulagira volcano's spectacular eruption

The Nyamulagira volcano in the Democratic Republic of Congo is spewing out lava in what volcanologists say may be its biggest eruption in 100 years.

Experts say the volcano in the Virunga National Park does not currently threaten the town of Goma.

Park rangers have set up a camp from which visitors can view the fireworks.

Heather Sharp reports.

Five best ways to make money

1. Sell unwanted stuff on eBay/Amazon

Everyone knows about online auction site eBay, but have you ever thought about using Amazon to sell your unwanted goods? Ebay charges for listing your item whereas at Amazon you only pay if your item sells, although it also takes an 86p fee plus VAT. As with eBay, make sure you apply the correct postage to your item – postage on larger items can be hefty and eat into any profit.

Alternatively, if speed is of the essence you could use eBay's recently launched smart phone seller app, which enables you to use your mobile to take a picture of an item and list it on eBay within 60 seconds.

2. Sell your art, design, photography or writing

Many talented (and not so talented) artists are making money by selling their designs to websites such as Imagekind, Zazzle and Red Bubble, which showcase artists' work and sell it on their behalf.

At Red Bubble you can upload photos, T-shirt designs, illustrations and writing, and the website will sell it at a price of your choosing, and produce it and ship it for you after deducting its own charges, which range from £8.81 for small laminated prints to £12.34 for a T-shirt. Over the past three years Red Bubble has shipped 352,700 items.

At Teefury you can submit designs in the hope the website will choose it as their daily T-shirt (each design is only available for 24 hours). It pays each artist $1 for every shirt sold and the artist keeps full rights to their design once the sale window closes.

At Threadless the community votes on whether to make your design available for purchase, and you can even submit simple text slogans to be voted on.

3. Leaflet your local area offering your services

You might be surprised by how many neighbours need a dog-walker, baby-sitter or car-washer. Type up a simple flyer and leaflet your community – with any luck you'll get a phone call that day. The trick is to negotiate your price beforehand to avoid spending all day cleaning a car for the princely sum of £1 (you could offer an hourly rate for big jobs or a one-off fee). Also, be opportunist – if neighbours' lawns are looking a little long offer to mow them. In the autumn, if leaves are making a nuisance of themselves, offer to sweep them from people's drives.

4. Be thrifty

Not strictly a money-maker, but you could certainly save a few bob if you tighten the purse strings. Use up the food you have in your fridge and cupboards rather than shop for more or eat out. Do not boil full kettles of water unless necessary, turn off lights and unused white goods. If you are going shopping, spend a little longer finding the cheapest brands in the supermarket. Make sure you budget properly, and are not overpaying on credit cards and other bills, and eliminate any unnecessary spending.

5. Claim for delayed journeys

If you regularly use the London tube or an overground train service and have recently been delayed, claim for it. The key is to retain your ticket in the event of a delay and to claim quickly.

Via its Delay Repay scheme, First Capital Connect pays its oft-beleaguered customers who suffer a delay of 30 mins or more, but you must make your claim within 28 days of the delay.

East Midlands Trains will refund half of the cost of the delayed part of your journey if the delay is 30–59 minutes; the full cost if the delay is an hour or more; and the total cost of your return journey if the delay is more than two hours.

Transport for London will pay back the cost of your single fare if a tube or DLR journey is delayed by 15 minutes or more; it will pay you the value of your single delayed journey if a London Overground service is delayed by more than 30 minutes. However, TfL will not pay for security alerts, third-party action or bad weather.

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All Saints and All Souls Day

Both the Feast of All Saints and the Feast of All Souls evolved in the life of the Church independently of paganism and Halloween. However, elements of pagan practices were perhaps “baptized” by some cultures or attached themselves to the celebration of All Saints and All Souls.

Let us first address the Feast of All Saints. The exact origins of this celebration are uncertain, although, after the legalization of Christianity in 313, a common commemoration of Saints, especially the martyrs, appeared in various areas throughout the Church. For instance in the East, the city of Edessa celebrated this feast on May 13; the Syrians, on the Friday after Easter; and the city of Antioch, on the first Sunday after Pentecost. Both St. Ephrem (d. 373) and St. John Chrysostom (d. 407) attest to this feast day in their preaching. In the West, a commemoration for all the saints also was celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost. The primary reason for establishing a common feast day was because of the desire to honor the great number of martyrs, especially during the persecution of Emperor Diocletion (284-305), the worst and most extensive of the persecutions. Quite supply, there were not enough days of the year for a feast day for each martyr and many of them died in groups. A common feast day for all saints, therefore seemed most appropriate.

Geothermal Energy

Geothermal energy is the heat from the Earth. It's clean and sustainable. Resources of geothermal energy range from the shallow ground to hot water and hot rock found a few miles beneath the Earth's surface, and down even deeper to the extremely high temperatures of molten rock called magma.

Almost everywhere, the shallow ground or upper 10 feet of the Earth's surface maintains a nearly constant temperature between 50° and 60°F (10° and 16°C). Geothermal heat pumps can tap into this resource to heat and cool buildings. A geothermal heat pump system consists of a heat pump, an air delivery system (ductwork), and a heat exchanger-a system of pipes buried in the shallow ground near the building. In the winter, the heat pump removes heat from the heat exchanger and pumps it into the indoor air delivery system. In the summer, the process is reversed, and the heat pump moves heat from the indoor air into the heat exchanger. The heat removed from the indoor air during the summer can also be used to provide a free source of hot water.

In the United States, most geothermal reservoirs of hot water
are located in the western states, Alaska, and Hawaii. Wells can be drilled into underground reservoirs for the generation of electricity. Some geothermal power plants use the steam from a reservoir to power a turbine/generator, while others use the hot water to boil a working fluid that vaporizes and then turns a turbine. Hot water near the surface of Earth can be used directly for heat. Direct-use applications include heating buildings, growing plants in greenhouses,
drying crops, heating water at fish farms, and several industrial processes such as pasteurizing milk.

Hot dry rock resources occur at depths of 3 to 5 miles everywhere beneath the Earth's surface and at lesser depths in certain areas. Access to these resources involves injecting cold water down one well, circulating it through hot fractured rock, and drawing off the heated water from another well. Currently, there are no commercial applications of this technology. Existing technology also does not yet allow recovery of heat directly from magma, the very deep and most powerful resource of geothermal energy.

My Tambayan

This place is what I call "my tambayan" in school. I like to hang out in this place because it's a fresh place, a perfect spot for hanging out during break time or when the teacher is out, a place where me and my friends chill and relax.

It is also the place where I can be alone and think deep whenever I get serious or I want to be quiet for a while.

Causes of Poverty

Poverty is the state for the majority of the world’s people and nations. Why is this? Is it enough to blame poor people for their own predicament? Have they been lazy, made poor decisions, and been solely responsible for their plight? What about their governments? Have they pursued policies that actually harm successful development? Such causes of poverty and inequality are no doubt real. But deeper and more global causes of poverty are often less discussed.
Behind the increasing interconnectedness promised by globalization are global decisions, policies, and practices. These are typically influenced, driven, or formulated by the rich and powerful. These can be leaders of rich countries or other global actors such as multinational corporations, institutions, and influential people.

In the face of such enormous external influence, the governments of poor nations and their people are often powerless. As a result, in the global context, a few get wealthy while the majority struggle.

5 Biggest Brain Damaging Habits

1. No Breakfast


People who do not take breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar level. This leads to an insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain causing brain degeneration.


2. Overeating


It causes the hardening of the brain arteries, leading to a decrease in mental power.


3. Smoking


It causes multiple brain shrinkage and may lead to Alzheimer disease.


4. High Sugar Consumption


Too much sugar will interrupt the absorption of proteins and nutrients causing malnutrition and may interface with brain development.


5. Talking Rarely


Intellectual conservations will promote the efficiency of the brain.

Ethernet Standards

There are two types of Ethernet Standards. One is the Cabled Ethernet Standard, under this are the 

10BASE-T, Fast Ethernet, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T.

10BASE-T:

 The 10Base-T standard (also called Twisted Pair Ethernet) uses a twisted-pair cable with maximum lengths of 100 meters. The cable is thinner and more flexible than the coaxial cable used for the 10Base-2 or 10Base-5 standards.

Cables in the 10Base-T system connect with RJ-45 connectors. A star topology is common with 12 or more computers connected directly to a hub or concentrator.

The 10Base-T system operates at 10 Mbps and uses baseband transmission methods.

One of several adaptations of the Ethernet (IEEE 802.3) standard for Local Area Networks (LANs). The 10Base-T standard (also called Twisted Pair Ethernet) uses a twisted-pair cable with maximum lengths of 100 meters. The cable is thinner and more flexible than the coaxial cable used for the 10Base-2 or 10Base-5 standards.

Cables in the 10Base-T system connect with RJ-45 connectors. A star topology is common with 12 or more computers connected directly to a hub or concentrator.

The 10Base-T system operates at 10 Mbps and uses baseband transmission methods.

Fast Ethernet: 

In computer networking, Fast Ethernet is a collective term for a number of Ethernet standards that carry traffic at the nominal rate of 100 Mbit/s, against the original Ethernet speed of 10 Mbit/s. Of the fast Ethernet standards 100BASE-TX is by far the most common and is supported by the vast majority of Ethernet hardware currently produced. Fast Ethernet was introduced in 1995 and remained the fastest version of Ethernet for three years before being superseded by gigabit Ethernet.

100BASE-TX:  

100BASE-TX is much faster than 10BASE-T and has a theoretical bandwidth of 100 Mbps.

At 100 Mbps, transfer rates of 100BASE-TX are ten times that of 10BASE-T.

100BASE-X uses twisted-pair cabling, which is inexpensive and easy to install and the maximum length for a 100BASE-TX segment is only 100 m (328 ft), cables are susceptible to EMI.

My first post

I'm very happy that I finish my blog.