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A white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) buck from north Texas.
It’s a feeling that every photographer has experienced – the one we spend countless hours in the field chasing. It’s what makes all the early mornings, long days, missed opportunities, and failed attempts worthwhile. It’s the high that keeps us coming back for more – when everything lines up just the way we hoped it would, the image we envisioned unfolds before us, and we succeed in capturing it. This is the story of one such experience.
I returned from Argentina in mid-November, drawn back by work commitments, while my wife and son remained for a couple more weeks to soak up as much family time as possible. Every free day I had during this time I spent in the whitetail woods to photograph, and otherwise soak up the rut. This included several days I had off over Thanksgiving. In all I spent six nights camping in north Texas. By day six I had logged 20 miles or so through the backcountry. I had experienced numerous incredible encounters with multiple bucks and witnessed some quintessential rut behaviors. Would my trip have ended there, it would have been a good one – but I still hadn’t captured the shot I was really after. Over the previous days I clocked a few brief encounters with a handful of big, mature bucks that I really hoped to have good photo ops with. But with time running short, it was looking like that wouldn’t happen.
That morning felt especially cold as I crawled from my sleeping bag and suited up. My legs and back voiced their disproval, in their way, as they longed for a rest after lugging around heavy gear for miles on uneven ground over the last several days. I ignored their pleas and stepped out into the frigid predawn. As was my daily ritual, I began boiling water for coffee in the darkness. I mixed in a packet of Swiss Miss for good measure, and watched the world come alive around me. That particular morning, as I looked up after taking a sip, my headlamp caught the tapeta lucida of several eyes 30 yards or so from where I stood in my campsite. There were at least six does there. I watched them as I finished my coffee, and before long I spotted another set of eyes approaching, rather quickly, from the timber. I bumped up the intensity of my headlight and could see it was a buck. After a few minutes of observation I realized it was one of my target bucks, a big 8-point with chocolate antlers that I spotted briefly as it crossed a trail two days prior. After all my wandering, here he was, in the open, just before me. It would have made for an incredible image, were it not for the fact that it was still completely dark.
So I watched him, and as luck would have it, or so I thought, he stuck around as the sky began to turn from black to gray. I could see without my headlamp now as he moved about the does, apparently checking each one to determine their reproductive readiness. “Just stick around for another 15 minutes” I remember thinking. At that point, though perhaps not ideal, the light would be usable. Of course, as it always happens, about five minutes later the does scattered and he moved off back into the woods. I wasn’t giving up though, and I grabbed my camera and set out after him. For the next 20 minutes or so I followed him. At times I would lose him, and try to anticipate where he might emerge based on the terrain and the direction he was moving.
Eventually the day brightened enough that I would be able to capitalize, should he provide the opportunity. I lost him again, but moved ahead in the general direction he was moving to a clearing where a doe was feeding. Sure enough, a few minutes later he appeared at the woods’ edge. I could tell that he was interested in that particular doe, and began to allow myself to hope that I might get a shot at him. Just then, the first rays of sun began filtering through the autumn foliage of the tallest post oaks. Then the doe caught wind of the buck and set out across the clearing. “Ok,” I thought to myself. “This might be it. If he breaks for her I might just get a chance.” And then he did.
The big 8 broke from the timber and moved across the clearing. And then, like an actor hitting a mark, he paused in the one beam of light that had managed to penetrate the clearing. He looked at me for what felt like an eternity, though it must have only been a few seconds. I remember my hands shaking as I pressed the shutter button, and hoping against hope that I got the shot. As soon as he emerged, he was gone, tearing through the brush after the doe. As I looked at my LCD screen to review the images, I was hit by the emotion of it all. I’m incredibly happy with the photo, not only for its qualities, but also for the memory of that magical moment in time where all the hard hours of pursuit paid off. I had the image I was after, and despite covering miles and miles of prairie and woodland, it happened within earshot of my tent. It was one of nature’s incredible gifts that I feel so very fortunate to have received.
I still have many images from Argentina to share, but over the next couple of weeks I’ll be sharing more images from my time in the whitetail woods.
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The flowers are succeeded by large, eggshaped seed capsules of a green colour, about the size of a large walnut and covered with numerous sharp spines, hence the name of the plant. When ripe, this seed-vessel opens at the top, throwing back four valve-like forms, leaving a long, central structure upon which are numerous rough, dark-brown seeds. The appearance of the plant when in flower and fruit is so peculiar that it cannot be mistaken for any other native herb.
The plant is smooth, except for a slight downiness on the younger parts, which are covered with short, curved hairs, which fall off as growth proceeds. It exhales a rank, very heavy and somewhat nauseating narcotic odour. This foetid odour arises from the leaves, especially when they are bruised, but the flowers are sweet-scented, though producing stupor if their exhalations are breathed for any length of time.
The plant is strongly narcotic, but has a peculiar action on the human frame which renders it very valuable as a medicine.
The White Monastery is located west of Sohag city and is a Coptic Orthodox monastery named after Saint Shenoute the Archimandrite.
The Monastery was founded about A.D. 350 by Pgol, who was then succeeded by Ebonh. Its third leader was the great saint Shenoute, who led the monastic federation from A.D. 385 to 465. Shenoute’s name is now attached to this site. His miraculous life is recorded in an ancient biography written by his successor Besa.
Shenoute assumed the leadership of his monastic federation in A.D. 385. As a monastic leader, he was a strict reformer of monastic moral life, an energetic administrator, a fiery preacher, and a great spiritual guide. He accompanied Coptic Pope Cyril I to the First Ecumenical Council of Ephesus (A.D. 431). He defended the poor and used the monastery to shelter refugees in time of crisis.
When driving to Elgol to passed this old church ruins with a beautiful snow-capped mountain behind and just had to stop and photo it.
Cill Chriosd (Christ's Church or "Kilchrist") is a ruined former parish church of Strath , on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. It was constructed around the 16th century, replacing an earlier Medieval church on the same location, and was used until 1840 when the Parish church was relocated to Broadford. It lies on the B8083 Broadford to Torrin and Elgol road.
The ruins of the church lie at the top of a small mound, surrounded by the graveyard. It has been described by Miers as "The long, low, rubble ruin of the post- Reformation parish church of Strath has roughly dressed quoins and jambs, and a balustraded burial enclosure added to the east gable in the early 18th century for the Mackinnons."
The church doorway, in the south wall, has splayed jambs and check and square sconsions. The south wall also has three windows, with check and inward splay; the east gable has a similar window, which is now built up. The insides measure 52 feet 9 inches (16.08 m) by 17 feet 6 inches (5.33 m). The side walls are 8 feet (2.4 m) tall and 2 feet 3 inches (0.69 m) deep, with the gables 2 feet 10 inches (0.86 m) in thickness. The church is 30 degrees from due east-west, and has no openings in the north and west walls.
The church is the remains of the parish church of Strath, including the cleared villages of Boreraig and Susinish.
The location is thought to have a heritage of Christian worship dating back to the 7th century, when St Mael Ruba preached from nearby Cnoc na-Aifhreann ("hill of the mass"). The original Parish church for Strath was located at Ashiag, and was founded by St Mael Ruba in the 7th Century AD; the new parish church was relocated to this location in the later Middle Ages. The present ruined church probably replaced the first medieval stone church in the 16th century. Written records for the church date back to 1505, although the earliest records only give a list of the names of the ministers. In 1505 the chaplain Kenneth ("Kensoch") Adamson succeeded John MacGillebredison, before being replaced by John Johnson, and then John Ronaldson in 1508 after Johnson's death.
On 19 June 1627, Neil Mackinnon became the first Protestant minister of the church, however he "is remembered primarily for his meanness and his greed". During his appointment ceremony he 'gave his grite and solemn oath that he all treulie according to his knowledge, give up the Clerk of Councell the names of all the Papists he knew within the Isles'. It is recorded that he only allowed his workmen one meal on Sundays (rather than two, as for other days) as they were resting. However, one Sunday two hungry workmen waited until after MacKinnon had finished preaching and had left the church before setting to work with their foot plough. Following this, the preacher allowed them two meals every day.
Cill Chriosd was replaced by a new parish church in Broadford in 1840.
Records from 1913 show that there were a pair of unusual gravemarkers in the graveyard - one dedicated to Chief Lachlan Mor and carrying "obscure hieroglyphics", the other possibly dating from the pre-Christian era. However, both have since vanished. Most graves are connected to Clan MacKinnon, and are from the 18th and 19th centuries. One memorial, in the inner wall of the burial enclosure, is for "Charles Third", who was apparently born in Corry near Broadford as a MacKinnon but later died in Australia after emigrating. A worn medieval slab carved with an ornate cross is located in the south corner of the graveyard.
The churchyard also has an amorial stone, as well as a possible fragment of the necking and lower arms of a crude cross, with one side plane and the other side bearing two animals carved into a relief on the lower portion. The graveyard also contains a slab of slate with a foliated cross, with one side preserved but the other side worn away.
IMG_6353
One of the most popular Spanish built vans, before the succeeding MB100. Looking a little bit laid up. I'll have to revisit to see if it's still sat here.
Questions from various angles
Paul Jaisini claims he paints invisible paintings.
Is it Anti-Realism?
Is it Visual Emancipation? Is it full Visual Emancipation from any kind of visual image?
Paints Invisible Paintings - Is it just a figure of speech?
Is it Utopian?
Is it driven by unconscious and irrational thus in accordance to Sigmund the invisible painting is not rationally autonomous?
How could it be verified and where or what is the invisible painting’s by Paul Jaisini evidence?
Paul Jaisini wants to cultivate Invisible Style. It surely is a style that is not a lucid one, for clarity would expose the lack of content.
Is there any content?
Is it an attack on the ‘metaphysics of presence’?
What is the definition if there is certain definitions to apply to Invisible Painting? Can it be informative about contemporary culture?
Is Paul Jaisini with Invisible Paintings promotes Postmodern Obscurantism - deliberately preventing (fully if it is in fact the invisible painting) the facts or the full details of Invisible Painting’s matter from becoming known?
(Obscurantism: deliberately restricting knowledge—opposition to the spread of knowledge, a policy of withholding knowledge from thepublic; and, deliberate obscurity—an abstruse style (as in literature and art) characterized by deliberate vagueness.) Leo Strauss also was criticized for proposing the notion of “esoteric” meanings to ancient texts, recondite knowledge inaccessible to the “ordinary” intellect.
Kant employed technical terms that were not commonly understood. Schopenhauer contended that post-Kantian philosophers such as Fichte, Schelling, and Hegel deliberately mimicked Kant’s way of writing. “Because of his style which was obscure, Kant was properly understood by exceedingly few. And it is as if all the philosophical writers, who since Kant had had some success, had devoted themselves to writing still more unintelligibly than Kant. This was bound to succeed!”[
Does Paul Jaisini wants to be understood on any level or he wants no understanding of his Invisible Paintings? Can there be any level of understanding if not seeing the Invisible Paintings?
Explore May 22.09. #210.
It doesn't grow well in this cold part of Surrey. Better in the Scilly Isles even though I have heard a garden guru tell us that it's becoming common in England due to global warming. Well. I've had this for 4 years, overwintered it in the porch when it tends to look rather ropey. Up to last year had only succeeded in getting about 3 flowers in all from it. This year it has produced 12 buds so perhaps it is coming into its own at last Once it does flower it is well worth the wait..
I am very grateful for single invites but really don't want multiple ones. PLEASE no personal graphics, spinning or flashing comments. They stress my eyes
I had come to Lucille's to stop for once rather than fly by knowing I had just missed the exit and tell myself I'd catch it on the way back. When I pulled up there was someone sitting in the shade who seemed to be waiting and sure enough that was what Lucy was doing. She had been traveling along Route 66 that weekend attending several events along the way when their car had broken down. They were on the way home and her husband had accompanied the car as it was towed to OKC for repairs (about an hour drive). Lucy had stayed behind and was chatting with visitors as they happened to pass through. It was serendipity that the car had broken down so close to Lucille's. Her name had come from several Route 66 icons; Lucille (the owner of the former gas station/ store that bears her name) and Pops (a popular new stop in Arcadia, OK).
It was great meeting her and to hear her enthusiasm for the road. She was no stranger to Route 66 and had familiarity with not only the sights, but many of the people connected to the road too. During some time in NY when up there for Fashion Week she had come up with some ideas of how to join in on promoting Route 66 and keeping its memory alive for future generations.
Her message to the world: 'Get on the road and see what you can see while you can. Keep the memories alive.'
She was hoping to purchase the landmark Lucille's and turn it back to something folks could enjoy beyond just a snapshot as they passed by. I wish her luck in her endeavor and look forward to visiting with her after she has succeeded and is not just on the picnic table outside, but actually back in the building proper.
This is my 81st submission to the Human Family Group. To view more street portraits and stories visit The Human Family
A young woman roams the countryside, searching for her father. A man appears by an ancient shrine, does he know of her fathers fate? Did he succeed in his quest to find the legendary temple of the dragons?
Main Pic
Along the same vein as these two:
Whenever Wherever Whomever Whatever, Complex Challenges Challenge Challengers; Fearful Folks Frequently Fail, Strong Steady Stable Succeed - IMRAN™
Life is an amazing journey of challenges and trials, mixed together like salt and pepper. Too much and they can bring tears to our eyes. But they’re also what add flavor to life. Too little and life is bland.
Some want to leave the kitchen, unable to handle the heat. Others confidently light a roaring fire fueled by determination. They get ready to grill any adversity, char any challenges, and burn off fear, uncertainty, and doubt.
You can choose to face the facts, recognize the reality, look at the ingredients of life that fate has presented, and choose to cook up the most unique and zesty adventure of life, until even sweet success throws itself at you.
“Whenever Wherever Whomever Whatever, Complex Challenges Challenge Challengers; Fearful Folks Frequently Fail, Strong Steady Stable Succeed!”
Which one are you? The choice is completely yours.
May God be with you, no matter what comes next. Ready? Let’s go!
© 2023 IMRAN™
#IMRAN #inspiration #motivation #life #coaching #leadership #challenges #prayers #faith #confidence #hope #happiness #success #language #metaphors #similes #alliteration #wordplay
Hefty thunderstorm, unfortunately I did not succeed to get some lightnings within as the third lightning was so near to me that I fled to my car and the rain was really hefty than but there came no further lightnings again.
This is a stitched panorama made fron 4 single shots with the Leica M9 and the glorious Planar 2/50. I made some enhancement of contrast, but only a little bit of saturation because it was so high alone from this special light.
The Ford Taunus P5 series succeeded the 1960-64 Taunus 17M P3.
New was the 20M V6 version. The 20M TS version was the fastest of the P5 range.
The Taunus P5 saloon was presented in Sept. 1964. The P5 estate (the Turnier) followed in Jan. 1965.
1998 cc 6 cylinder V-shape engine.
1082 kg.
Production Ford Taunus P5: Nov. 1964-July 1967.
Original first reg. number: april 1, 1966.
New Dutch pseudo-historical reg. number: Nov. 3, 2001.
Exported after Febr. 13, 2020.
Diemen, De Wissel, Sept. 29, 2016.
© 2016 Sander Toonen, Halfweg / All Rights Reserved
To succeed, you need to find something to hold on to, something to motivate you, something to inspire you.
Tony Dorsett
Have a great new week everyone.
Copyright© 2014 Kim Hojnacki
This image is protected under the United States and International Copyright laws and may not be downloaded, reproduced, copied, transmitted or manipulated without written permission.
Iphone cases | laptop skins | Ipad cases | Samsung S4 cases | Tote Bags | Mugs
well ! here is the first shot of my himalayan trip... a shot taken from inside the bus...was hard to compos as i was inside the bus and frame area was limited..
managed to bring in the rays effect i wanted... the color of the cloud and rays makes a beautiful effect on the picture and also thanks to the bus driver ! (the compo is not bad and have to thank the driver or driving that way !) ....
himalayas - a place to visit atleast once in your life time !..all my foreign pals out there , please make a trip to himalayas(india) when ever you can !...
more pics from this trip will be shared soon !:)
Today I succeeded in seeing "Gravity" and followed on with some dress shopping.
It was a couple of weeks ago that I tried and failed to see this movie. I should probably have used the time when I was not in a cinema to browse the clothes rails, but I was not dressed for it. As I was expecting to spend my afternoon in a darkened theatre, I was dressed simply and casually. I was not even wearing tights (pantyhose) so I could not show my legs. Perhaps I could have modelled jeans or floor-length gowns, but I really was not in the mood for either.
Due to the recent success of "Gravity" at the awards, its run was extended so I had another chance today and there were no problems this time. The movie is tense and the 3D effects are stunning! I am so glad I did not decide to wait for the DVD and see it in 2D.
Though the days are getting longer, it is still clearly Winter with cold air and bitter winds so I dressed warmly, as you can see here. I was also careful to dress suitably for trying on dresses and after the show was over I dropped in on the department store near the cinema. This is just to show what I wore out on the street; the usual self-indulgent posing will follow soon.
Colosseum
Following, a text, in english, from the Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia:
The Colosseum, or the Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre (Latin: Amphitheatrum Flavium, Italian Anfiteatro Flavio or Colosseo), is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire. It is considered one of the greatest works of Roman architecture and Roman engineering.
Occupying a site just east of the Roman Forum, its construction started between 70 and 72 AD[1] under the emperor Vespasian and was completed in 80 AD under Titus,[2] with further modifications being made during Domitian's reign (81–96).[3] The name "Amphitheatrum Flavium" derives from both Vespasian's and Titus's family name (Flavius, from the gens Flavia).
Capable of seating 50,000 spectators,[1][4][5] the Colosseum was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical mythology. The building ceased to be used for entertainment in the early medieval era. It was later reused for such purposes as housing, workshops, quarters for a religious order, a fortress, a quarry, and a Christian shrine.
Although in the 21st century it stays partially ruined because of damage caused by devastating earthquakes and stone-robbers, the Colosseum is an iconic symbol of Imperial Rome. It is one of Rome's most popular tourist attractions and still has close connections with the Roman Catholic Church, as each Good Friday the Pope leads a torchlit "Way of the Cross" procession that starts in the area around the Colosseum.[6]
The Colosseum is also depicted on the Italian version of the five-cent euro coin.
The Colosseum's original Latin name was Amphitheatrum Flavium, often anglicized as Flavian Amphitheater. The building was constructed by emperors of the Flavian dynasty, hence its original name, after the reign of Emperor Nero.[7] This name is still used in modern English, but generally the structure is better known as the Colosseum. In antiquity, Romans may have referred to the Colosseum by the unofficial name Amphitheatrum Caesareum; this name could have been strictly poetic.[8][9] This name was not exclusive to the Colosseum; Vespasian and Titus, builders of the Colosseum, also constructed an amphitheater of the same name in Puteoli (modern Pozzuoli).[10]
The name Colosseum has long been believed to be derived from a colossal statue of Nero nearby.[3] (the statue of Nero itself being named after one of the original ancient wonders, the Colossus of Rhodes[citation needed]. This statue was later remodeled by Nero's successors into the likeness of Helios (Sol) or Apollo, the sun god, by adding the appropriate solar crown. Nero's head was also replaced several times with the heads of succeeding emperors. Despite its pagan links, the statue remained standing well into the medieval era and was credited with magical powers. It came to be seen as an iconic symbol of the permanence of Rome.
In the 8th century, a famous epigram attributed to the Venerable Bede celebrated the symbolic significance of the statue in a prophecy that is variously quoted: Quamdiu stat Colisæus, stat et Roma; quando cadet colisæus, cadet et Roma; quando cadet Roma, cadet et mundus ("as long as the Colossus stands, so shall Rome; when the Colossus falls, Rome shall fall; when Rome falls, so falls the world").[11] This is often mistranslated to refer to the Colosseum rather than the Colossus (as in, for instance, Byron's poem Childe Harold's Pilgrimage). However, at the time that the Pseudo-Bede wrote, the masculine noun coliseus was applied to the statue rather than to what was still known as the Flavian amphitheatre.
The Colossus did eventually fall, possibly being pulled down to reuse its bronze. By the year 1000 the name "Colosseum" had been coined to refer to the amphitheatre. The statue itself was largely forgotten and only its base survives, situated between the Colosseum and the nearby Temple of Venus and Roma.[12]
The name further evolved to Coliseum during the Middle Ages. In Italy, the amphitheatre is still known as il Colosseo, and other Romance languages have come to use similar forms such as le Colisée (French), el Coliseo (Spanish) and o Coliseu (Portuguese).
Construction of the Colosseum began under the rule of the Emperor Vespasian[3] in around 70–72AD. The site chosen was a flat area on the floor of a low valley between the Caelian, Esquiline and Palatine Hills, through which a canalised stream ran. By the 2nd century BC the area was densely inhabited. It was devastated by the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64, following which Nero seized much of the area to add to his personal domain. He built the grandiose Domus Aurea on the site, in front of which he created an artificial lake surrounded by pavilions, gardens and porticoes. The existing Aqua Claudia aqueduct was extended to supply water to the area and the gigantic bronze Colossus of Nero was set up nearby at the entrance to the Domus Aurea.[12]
Although the Colossus was preserved, much of the Domus Aurea was torn down. The lake was filled in and the land reused as the location for the new Flavian Amphitheatre. Gladiatorial schools and other support buildings were constructed nearby within the former grounds of the Domus Aurea. According to a reconstructed inscription found on the site, "the emperor Vespasian ordered this new amphitheatre to be erected from his general's share of the booty." This is thought to refer to the vast quantity of treasure seized by the Romans following their victory in the Great Jewish Revolt in 70AD. The Colosseum can be thus interpreted as a great triumphal monument built in the Roman tradition of celebrating great victories[12], placating the Roman people instead of returning soldiers. Vespasian's decision to build the Colosseum on the site of Nero's lake can also be seen as a populist gesture of returning to the people an area of the city which Nero had appropriated for his own use. In contrast to many other amphitheatres, which were located on the outskirts of a city, the Colosseum was constructed in the city centre; in effect, placing it both literally and symbolically at the heart of Rome.
The Colosseum had been completed up to the third story by the time of Vespasian's death in 79. The top level was finished and the building inaugurated by his son, Titus, in 80.[3] Dio Cassius recounts that over 9,000 wild animals were killed during the inaugural games of the amphitheatre. The building was remodelled further under Vespasian's younger son, the newly designated Emperor Domitian, who constructed the hypogeum, a series of underground tunnels used to house animals and slaves. He also added a gallery to the top of the Colosseum to increase its seating capacity.
In 217, the Colosseum was badly damaged by a major fire (caused by lightning, according to Dio Cassius[13]) which destroyed the wooden upper levels of the amphitheatre's interior. It was not fully repaired until about 240 and underwent further repairs in 250 or 252 and again in 320. An inscription records the restoration of various parts of the Colosseum under Theodosius II and Valentinian III (reigned 425–455), possibly to repair damage caused by a major earthquake in 443; more work followed in 484[14] and 508. The arena continued to be used for contests well into the 6th century, with gladiatorial fights last mentioned around 435. Animal hunts continued until at least 523, when Anicius Maximus celebrated his consulship with some venationes, criticised by King Theodoric the Great for their high cost.
The Colosseum underwent several radical changes of use during the medieval period. By the late 6th century a small church had been built into the structure of the amphitheatre, though this apparently did not confer any particular religious significance on the building as a whole. The arena was converted into a cemetery. The numerous vaulted spaces in the arcades under the seating were converted into housing and workshops, and are recorded as still being rented out as late as the 12th century. Around 1200 the Frangipani family took over the Colosseum and fortified it, apparently using it as a castle.
Severe damage was inflicted on the Colosseum by the great earthquake in 1349, causing the outer south side, lying on a less stable alluvional terrain, to collapse. Much of the tumbled stone was reused to build palaces, churches, hospitals and other buildings elsewhere in Rome. A religious order moved into the northern third of the Colosseum in the mid-14th century and continued to inhabit it until as late as the early 19th century. The interior of the amphitheatre was extensively stripped of stone, which was reused elsewhere, or (in the case of the marble façade) was burned to make quicklime.[12] The bronze clamps which held the stonework together were pried or hacked out of the walls, leaving numerous pockmarks which still scar the building today.
During the 16th and 17th century, Church officials sought a productive role for the vast derelict hulk of the Colosseum. Pope Sixtus V (1585–1590) planned to turn the building into a wool factory to provide employment for Rome's prostitutes, though this proposal fell through with his premature death.[15] In 1671 Cardinal Altieri authorized its use for bullfights; a public outcry caused the idea to be hastily abandoned.
In 1749, Pope Benedict XIV endorsed as official Church policy the view that the Colosseum was a sacred site where early Christians had been martyred. He forbade the use of the Colosseum as a quarry and consecrated the building to the Passion of Christ and installed Stations of the Cross, declaring it sanctified by the blood of the Christian martyrs who perished there (see Christians and the Colosseum). However there is no historical evidence to support Benedict's claim, nor is there even any evidence that anyone prior to the 16th century suggested this might be the case; the Catholic Encyclopedia concludes that there are no historical grounds for the supposition. Later popes initiated various stabilization and restoration projects, removing the extensive vegetation which had overgrown the structure and threatened to damage it further. The façade was reinforced with triangular brick wedges in 1807 and 1827, and the interior was repaired in 1831, 1846 and in the 1930s. The arena substructure was partly excavated in 1810–1814 and 1874 and was fully exposed under Benito Mussolini in the 1930s.
The Colosseum is today one of Rome's most popular tourist attractions, receiving millions of visitors annually. The effects of pollution and general deterioration over time prompted a major restoration programme carried out between 1993 and 2000, at a cost of 40 billion Italian lire ($19.3m / €20.6m at 2000 prices). In recent years it has become a symbol of the international campaign against capital punishment, which was abolished in Italy in 1948. Several anti–death penalty demonstrations took place in front of the Colosseum in 2000. Since that time, as a gesture against the death penalty, the local authorities of Rome change the color of the Colosseum's night time illumination from white to gold whenever a person condemned to the death penalty anywhere in the world gets their sentence commuted or is released,[16] or if a jurisdiction abolishes the death penalty. Most recently, the Colosseum was illuminated in gold when capital punishment was abolished in the American state of New Mexico in April 2009.
Because of the ruined state of the interior, it is impractical to use the Colosseum to host large events; only a few hundred spectators can be accommodated in temporary seating. However, much larger concerts have been held just outside, using the Colosseum as a backdrop. Performers who have played at the Colosseum in recent years have included Ray Charles (May 2002),[18] Paul McCartney (May 2003),[19] Elton John (September 2005),[20] and Billy Joel (July 2006).
Exterior
Unlike earlier Greek theatres that were built into hillsides, the Colosseum is an entirely free-standing structure. It derives its basic exterior and interior architecture from that of two Roman theatres back to back. It is elliptical in plan and is 189 meters (615 ft / 640 Roman feet) long, and 156 meters (510 ft / 528 Roman feet) wide, with a base area of 6 acres (24,000 m2). The height of the outer wall is 48 meters (157 ft / 165 Roman feet). The perimeter originally measured 545 meters (1,788 ft / 1,835 Roman feet). The central arena is an oval 87 m (287 ft) long and 55 m (180 ft) wide, surrounded by a wall 5 m (15 ft) high, above which rose tiers of seating.
The outer wall is estimated to have required over 100,000 cubic meters (131,000 cu yd) of travertine stone which were set without mortar held together by 300 tons of iron clamps.[12] However, it has suffered extensive damage over the centuries, with large segments having collapsed following earthquakes. The north side of the perimeter wall is still standing; the distinctive triangular brick wedges at each end are modern additions, having been constructed in the early 19th century to shore up the wall. The remainder of the present-day exterior of the Colosseum is in fact the original interior wall.
The surviving part of the outer wall's monumental façade comprises three stories of superimposed arcades surmounted by a podium on which stands a tall attic, both of which are pierced by windows interspersed at regular intervals. The arcades are framed by half-columns of the Tuscan, Ionic, and Corinthian orders, while the attic is decorated with Corinthian pilasters.[21] Each of the arches in the second- and third-floor arcades framed statues, probably honoring divinities and other figures from Classical mythology.
Two hundred and forty mast corbels were positioned around the top of the attic. They originally supported a retractable awning, known as the velarium, that kept the sun and rain off spectators. This consisted of a canvas-covered, net-like structure made of ropes, with a hole in the center.[3] It covered two-thirds of the arena, and sloped down towards the center to catch the wind and provide a breeze for the audience. Sailors, specially enlisted from the Roman naval headquarters at Misenum and housed in the nearby Castra Misenatium, were used to work the velarium.[22]
The Colosseum's huge crowd capacity made it essential that the venue could be filled or evacuated quickly. Its architects adopted solutions very similar to those used in modern stadiums to deal with the same problem. The amphitheatre was ringed by eighty entrances at ground level, 76 of which were used by ordinary spectators.[3] Each entrance and exit was numbered, as was each staircase. The northern main entrance was reserved for the Roman Emperor and his aides, whilst the other three axial entrances were most likely used by the elite. All four axial entrances were richly decorated with painted stucco reliefs, of which fragments survive. Many of the original outer entrances have disappeared with the collapse of the perimeter wall, but entrances XXIII (23) to LIV (54) still survive.[12]
Spectators were given tickets in the form of numbered pottery shards, which directed them to the appropriate section and row. They accessed their seats via vomitoria (singular vomitorium), passageways that opened into a tier of seats from below or behind. These quickly dispersed people into their seats and, upon conclusion of the event or in an emergency evacuation, could permit their exit within only a few minutes. The name vomitoria derived from the Latin word for a rapid discharge, from which English derives the word vomit.
Interior
According to the Codex-Calendar of 354, the Colosseum could accommodate 87,000 people, although modern estimates put the figure at around 50,000. They were seated in a tiered arrangement that reflected the rigidly stratified nature of Roman society. Special boxes were provided at the north and south ends respectively for the Emperor and the Vestal Virgins, providing the best views of the arena. Flanking them at the same level was a broad platform or podium for the senatorial class, who were allowed to bring their own chairs. The names of some 5th century senators can still be seen carved into the stonework, presumably reserving areas for their use.
The tier above the senators, known as the maenianum primum, was occupied by the non-senatorial noble class or knights (equites). The next level up, the maenianum secundum, was originally reserved for ordinary Roman citizens (plebians) and was divided into two sections. The lower part (the immum) was for wealthy citizens, while the upper part (the summum) was for poor citizens. Specific sectors were provided for other social groups: for instance, boys with their tutors, soldiers on leave, foreign dignitaries, scribes, heralds, priests and so on. Stone (and later marble) seating was provided for the citizens and nobles, who presumably would have brought their own cushions with them. Inscriptions identified the areas reserved for specific groups.
Another level, the maenianum secundum in legneis, was added at the very top of the building during the reign of Domitian. This comprised a gallery for the common poor, slaves and women. It would have been either standing room only, or would have had very steep wooden benches. Some groups were banned altogether from the Colosseum, notably gravediggers, actors and former gladiators.
Each tier was divided into sections (maeniana) by curved passages and low walls (praecinctiones or baltei), and were subdivided into cunei, or wedges, by the steps and aisles from the vomitoria. Each row (gradus) of seats was numbered, permitting each individual seat to be exactly designated by its gradus, cuneus, and number.
The arena itself was 83 meters by 48 meters (272 ft by 157 ft / 280 by 163 Roman feet).[12] It comprised a wooden floor covered by sand (the Latin word for sand is harena or arena), covering an elaborate underground structure called the hypogeum (literally meaning "underground"). Little now remains of the original arena floor, but the hypogeum is still clearly visible. It consisted of a two-level subterranean network of tunnels and cages beneath the arena where gladiators and animals were held before contests began. Eighty vertical shafts provided instant access to the arena for caged animals and scenery pieces concealed underneath; larger hinged platforms, called hegmata, provided access for elephants and the like. It was restructured on numerous occasions; at least twelve different phases of construction can be seen.[12]
The hypogeum was connected by underground tunnels to a number of points outside the Colosseum. Animals and performers were brought through the tunnel from nearby stables, with the gladiators' barracks at the Ludus Magnus to the east also being connected by tunnels. Separate tunnels were provided for the Emperor and the Vestal Virgins to permit them to enter and exit the Colosseum without needing to pass through the crowds.[12]
Substantial quantities of machinery also existed in the hypogeum. Elevators and pulleys raised and lowered scenery and props, as well as lifting caged animals to the surface for release. There is evidence for the existence of major hydraulic mechanisms[12] and according to ancient accounts, it was possible to flood the arena rapidly, presumably via a connection to a nearby aqueduct.
The Colosseum and its activities supported a substantial industry in the area. In addition to the amphitheatre itself, many other buildings nearby were linked to the games. Immediately to the east is the remains of the Ludus Magnus, a training school for gladiators. This was connected to the Colosseum by an underground passage, to allow easy access for the gladiators. The Ludus Magnus had its own miniature training arena, which was itself a popular attraction for Roman spectators. Other training schools were in the same area, including the Ludus Matutinus (Morning School), where fighters of animals were trained, plus the Dacian and Gallic Schools.
Also nearby were the Armamentarium, comprising an armory to store weapons; the Summum Choragium, where machinery was stored; the Sanitarium, which had facilities to treat wounded gladiators; and the Spoliarium, where bodies of dead gladiators were stripped of their armor and disposed of.
Around the perimeter of the Colosseum, at a distance of 18 m (59 ft) from the perimeter, was a series of tall stone posts, with five remaining on the eastern side. Various explanations have been advanced for their presence; they may have been a religious boundary, or an outer boundary for ticket checks, or an anchor for the velarium or awning.
Right next to the Colosseum is also the Arch of Constantine.
he Colosseum was used to host gladiatorial shows as well as a variety of other events. The shows, called munera, were always given by private individuals rather than the state. They had a strong religious element but were also demonstrations of power and family prestige, and were immensely popular with the population. Another popular type of show was the animal hunt, or venatio. This utilized a great variety of wild beasts, mainly imported from Africa and the Middle East, and included creatures such as rhinoceros, hippopotamuses, elephants, giraffes, aurochs, wisents, barbary lions, panthers, leopards, bears, caspian tigers, crocodiles and ostriches. Battles and hunts were often staged amid elaborate sets with movable trees and buildings. Such events were occasionally on a huge scale; Trajan is said to have celebrated his victories in Dacia in 107 with contests involving 11,000 animals and 10,000 gladiators over the course of 123 days.
During the early days of the Colosseum, ancient writers recorded that the building was used for naumachiae (more properly known as navalia proelia) or simulated sea battles. Accounts of the inaugural games held by Titus in AD 80 describe it being filled with water for a display of specially trained swimming horses and bulls. There is also an account of a re-enactment of a famous sea battle between the Corcyrean (Corfiot) Greeks and the Corinthians. This has been the subject of some debate among historians; although providing the water would not have been a problem, it is unclear how the arena could have been waterproofed, nor would there have been enough space in the arena for the warships to move around. It has been suggested that the reports either have the location wrong, or that the Colosseum originally featured a wide floodable channel down its central axis (which would later have been replaced by the hypogeum).[12]
Sylvae or recreations of natural scenes were also held in the arena. Painters, technicians and architects would construct a simulation of a forest with real trees and bushes planted in the arena's floor. Animals would be introduced to populate the scene for the delight of the crowd. Such scenes might be used simply to display a natural environment for the urban population, or could otherwise be used as the backdrop for hunts or dramas depicting episodes from mythology. They were also occasionally used for executions in which the hero of the story — played by a condemned person — was killed in one of various gruesome but mythologically authentic ways, such as being mauled by beasts or burned to death.
The Colosseum today is now a major tourist attraction in Rome with thousands of tourists each year paying to view the interior arena, though entrance for EU citizens is partially subsidised, and under-18 and over-65 EU citizens' entrances are free.[24] There is now a museum dedicated to Eros located in the upper floor of the outer wall of the building. Part of the arena floor has been re-floored. Beneath the Colosseum, a network of subterranean passageways once used to transport wild animals and gladiators to the arena opened to the public in summer 2010.[25]
The Colosseum is also the site of Roman Catholic ceremonies in the 20th and 21st centuries. For instance, Pope Benedict XVI leads the Stations of the Cross called the Scriptural Way of the Cross (which calls for more meditation) at the Colosseum[26][27] on Good Fridays.
In the Middle Ages, the Colosseum was clearly not regarded as a sacred site. Its use as a fortress and then a quarry demonstrates how little spiritual importance was attached to it, at a time when sites associated with martyrs were highly venerated. It was not included in the itineraries compiled for the use of pilgrims nor in works such as the 12th century Mirabilia Urbis Romae ("Marvels of the City of Rome"), which claims the Circus Flaminius — but not the Colosseum — as the site of martyrdoms. Part of the structure was inhabited by a Christian order, but apparently not for any particular religious reason.
It appears to have been only in the 16th and 17th centuries that the Colosseum came to be regarded as a Christian site. Pope Pius V (1566–1572) is said to have recommended that pilgrims gather sand from the arena of the Colosseum to serve as a relic, on the grounds that it was impregnated with the blood of martyrs. This seems to have been a minority view until it was popularised nearly a century later by Fioravante Martinelli, who listed the Colosseum at the head of a list of places sacred to the martyrs in his 1653 book Roma ex ethnica sacra.
Martinelli's book evidently had an effect on public opinion; in response to Cardinal Altieri's proposal some years later to turn the Colosseum into a bullring, Carlo Tomassi published a pamphlet in protest against what he regarded as an act of desecration. The ensuing controversy persuaded Pope Clement X to close the Colosseum's external arcades and declare it a sanctuary, though quarrying continued for some time.
At the instance of St. Leonard of Port Maurice, Pope Benedict XIV (1740–1758) forbade the quarrying of the Colosseum and erected Stations of the Cross around the arena, which remained until February 1874. St. Benedict Joseph Labre spent the later years of his life within the walls of the Colosseum, living on alms, prior to his death in 1783. Several 19th century popes funded repair and restoration work on the Colosseum, and it still retains a Christian connection today. Crosses stand in several points around the arena and every Good Friday the Pope leads a Via Crucis procession to the amphitheatre.
Coliseu (Colosseo)
A seguir, um texto, em português, da Wikipédia, a enciclopédia livre:
O Coliseu, também conhecido como Anfiteatro Flaviano, deve seu nome à expressão latina Colosseum (ou Coliseus, no latim tardio), devido à estátua colossal de Nero, que ficava perto a edificação. Localizado no centro de Roma, é uma excepção de entre os anfiteatros pelo seu volume e relevo arquitectónico. Originalmente capaz de albergar perto de 50 000 pessoas, e com 48 metros de altura, era usado para variados espetáculos. Foi construído a leste do fórum romano e demorou entre 8 a 10 anos a ser construído.
O Coliseu foi utilizado durante aproximadamente 500 anos, tendo sido o último registro efetuado no século VI da nossa era, bastante depois da queda de Roma em 476. O edifício deixou de ser usado para entretenimento no começo da era medieval, mas foi mais tarde usado como habitação, oficina, forte, pedreira, sede de ordens religiosas e templo cristão.
Embora esteja agora em ruínas devido a terremotos e pilhagens, o Coliseu sempre foi visto como símbolo do Império Romano, sendo um dos melhores exemplos da sua arquitectura. Actualmente é uma das maiores atrações turísticas em Roma e em 7 de julho de 2007 foi eleita umas das "Sete maravilhas do mundo moderno". Além disso, o Coliseu ainda tem ligações à igreja, com o Papa a liderar a procissão da Via Sacra até ao Coliseu todas as Sextas-feiras Santas.
O coliseu era um local onde seriam exibidos toda uma série de espectáculos, inseridos nos vários tipos de jogos realizados na urbe. Os combates entre gladiadores, chamados muneras, eram sempre pagos por pessoas individuais em busca de prestígio e poder em vez do estado. A arena (87,5 m por 55 m) possuía um piso de madeira, normalmente coberto de areia para absorver o sangue dos combates (certa vez foi colocada água na representação de uma batalha naval), sob o qual existia um nível subterrâneo com celas e jaulas que tinham acessos diretos para a arena; Alguns detalhes dessa construção, como a cobertura removível que poupava os espectadores do sol, são bastante interessantes, e mostram o refinamento atingido pelos construtores romanos. Formado por cinco anéis concêntricos de arcos e abóbadas, o Coliseu representa bem o avanço introduzido pelos romanos à engenharia de estruturas. Esses arcos são de concreto (de cimento natural) revestidos por alvenaria. Na verdade, a alvenaria era construída simultaneamente e já servia de forma para a concretagem. Outro tipo de espetáculos era a caça de animais, ou venatio, onde eram utilizados animais selvagens importados de África. Os animais mais utilizados eram os grandes felinos como leões, leopardos e panteras, mas animais como rinocerontes, hipopótamos, elefantes, girafas, crocodilos e avestruzes eram também utilizados. As caçadas, tal como as representações de batalhas famosas, eram efetuadas em elaborados cenários onde constavam árvores e edifícios amovíveis.
Estas últimas eram por vezes representadas numa escala gigante; Trajano celebrou a sua vitória em Dácia no ano 107 com concursos envolvendo 11 000 animais e 10 000 gladiadores no decorrer de 123 dias.
Segundo o documentário produzido pelo canal televisivo fechado, History Channel, o Coliseu também era utilizado para a realização de naumaquias, ou batalhas navais. O coliseu era inundado por dutos subterrâneos alimentados pelos aquedutos que traziam água de longe. Passada esta fase, foi construída uma estrutura, que é a que podemos ver hoje nas ruínas do Coliseu, com altura de um prédio de dois andares, onde no passado se concentravam os gladiadores, feras e todo o pessoal que organizava os duelos que ocorreriam na arena. A arena era como um grande palco, feito de madeira, e se chama arena, que em italiano significa areia, porque era jogada areia sob a estrutura de madeira para esconder as imperfeições. Os animais podiam ser inseridos nos duelos a qualquer momento por um esquema de elevadores que surgiam em alguns pontos da arena; o filme "Gladiador" retrata muito bem esta questão dos elevadores. Os estudiosos, há pouco tempo, descobriram uma rede de dutos inundados por baixo da arena do Coliseu. Acredita-se que o Coliseu foi construído onde, outrora, foi o lago do Palácio Dourado de Nero; O imperador Vespasiano escolheu o local da construção para que o mal causado por Nero fosse esquecido por uma construção gloriosa.
Sylvae, ou recreações de cenas naturais eram também realizadas no Coliseu. Pintores, técnicos e arquitectos construiriam simulações de florestas com árvores e arbustos reais plantados no chão da arena. Animais seriam então introduzidos para dar vida à simulação. Esses cenários podiam servir só para agrado do público ou como pano de fundo para caçadas ou dramas representando episódios da mitologia romana, tão autênticos quanto possível, ao ponto de pessoas condenadas fazerem o papel de heróis onde eram mortos de maneiras horríveis mas mitologicamente autênticas, como mutilados por animais ou queimados vivos.
Embora o Coliseu tenha funcionado até ao século VI da nossa Era, foram proibidos os jogos com mortes humanas desde 404, sendo apenas massacrados animais como elefantes, panteras ou leões.
O Coliseu era sobretudo um enorme instrumento de propaganda e difusão da filosofia de toda uma civilização, e tal como era já profetizado pelo monge e historiador inglês Beda na sua obra do século VII "De temporibus liber": "Enquanto o Coliseu se mantiver de pé, Roma permanecerá; quando o Coliseu ruir, Roma ruirá e quando Roma cair, o mundo cairá".
A construção do Coliseu foi iniciada por Vespasiano, nos anos 70 da nossa era. O edifício foi inaugurado por Tito, em 80, embora apenas tivesse sido finalizado poucos anos depois. Empresa colossal, este edifício, inicialmente, poderia sustentar no seu interior cerca de 50 000 espectadores, constando de três andares. Aquando do reinado de Alexandre Severo e Gordiano III, é ampliado com um quarto andar, podendo suster agora cerca de 90 000 espectadores. A grandiosidade deste monumento testemunha verdadeiramente o poder e esplendor de Roma na época dos Flávios.
Os jogos inaugurais do Coliseu tiveram lugar ano 80, sob o mandato de Tito, para celebrar a finalização da construção. Depois do curto reinado de Tito começar com vários meses de desastres, incluindo a erupção do Monte Vesúvio, um incêndio em Roma, e um surto de peste, o mesmo imperador inaugurou o edifício com uns jogos pródigos que duraram mais de cem dias, talvez para tentar apaziguar o público romano e os deuses. Nesses jogos de cem dias terão ocorrido combates de gladiadores, venationes (lutas de animais), execuções, batalhas navais, caçadas e outros divertimentos numa escala sem precedentes.
O Coliseu, como não se encontrava inserido numa zona de encosta, enterrado, tal como normalmente sucede com a generalidade dos teatros e anfiteatros romanos, possuía um “anel” artificial de rocha à sua volta, para garantir sustentação e, ao mesmo tempo, esta substrutura serve como ornamento ao edifício e como condicionador da entrada dos espectadores. Tal como foi referido anteriormente, possuía três pisos, sendo mais tarde adicionado um outro. É construído em mármore, pedra travertina, ladrilho e tufo (pedra calcária com grandes poros). A sua planta elíptica mede dois eixos que se estendem aproximadamente de 190 m por 155 m. A fachada compõe-se de arcadas decoradas com colunas dóricas, jónicas e coríntias, de acordo com o pavimento em que se encontravam. Esta subdivisão deve-se ao facto de ser uma construção essencialmente vertical, criando assim uma diversificação do espaço.
Os assentos eram em mármore e a cavea, escadaria ou arquibancada, dividia-se em três partes, correspondentes às diferentes classes sociais: o podium, para as classes altas; as maeniana, sector destinado à classe média; e os portici, ou pórticos, construídos em madeira, para a plebe e as mulheres. O pulvinar, a tribuna imperial, encontrava-se situada no podium e era balizada pelos assentos reservados aos senadores e magistrados. Rampas no interior do edifício facilitavam o acesso às várias zonas de onde podiam visualizar o espectáculo, sendo protegidos por uma barreira e por uma série de arqueiros posicionados numa passagem de madeira, para o caso de algum acidente. Por cima dos muros ainda são visíveis as mísulas, que sustentavam o velarium, enorme cobertura de lona destinada a proteger do sol os espectadores e, nos subterrâneos, ficavam as jaulas dos animais, bem como todas as celas e galerias necessárias aos serviços do anfiteatro.
O monumento permaneceu como sede principal dos espetáculos da urbe romana até ao período do imperador Honorius, no século V. Danificado por um terremoto no começo do mesmo século, foi alvo de uma extensiva restauração na época de Valentinianus III. Em meados do século XIII, a família Frangipani transformou-o em fortaleza e, ao longo dos séculos XV e XVI, foi por diversas vezes saqueado, perdendo grande parte dos materiais nobres com os quais tinha sido construído.
Os relatos romanos referem-se a cristãos sendo martirizados em locais de Roma descritos pouco pormenorizadamente (no anfiteatro, na arena...), quando Roma tinha numerosos anfiteatros e arenas. Apesar de muito provavelmente o Coliseu não ter sido utilizado para martírios, o Papa Bento XIV consagrou-o no século XVII à Paixão de Cristo e declarou-o lugar sagrado. Os trabalhos de consolidação e restauração parcial do monumento, já há muito em ruínas, foram feitos sobretudo pelos pontífices Gregório XVI e Pio IX, no século XIX.
Hi Scott,
I will try to be brief (it's not easy for me), I've got a lot of work to do over at Google+ today (which is where I'm spending more and more of my time) -- we have a photo hangout show there tonight that I should be working on right now.
First, congratulations on your new appointment as CEO. As a long-term critic of Yahoo I wish you the best and believe every new CEO deserves a fresh chance. I hope you succeed beyond your wildest dreams. The Street does not like the news of your appointment, but Yahoo's stock would have probably gone down with *ANY* CEO appointment. The Street wants Yahoo to be sold off and your appointment makes that likelihood a little more murky (why hire a CEO to come get a boatload of severance cash if you're just going to sell the company in 2 weeks anyways -- unless the CEO is being hired to actually sell the company).
I'm going to give you some advice about Yahoo. It probably won't make a bit of difference (it didn't for Carol).
1. Flickr represents your *BEST* possible chance for social at Yahoo, but it's probably too late. Social is key. Social is winning. Facebook is social. Google is social. Twitter is social. Every great web company *must* incorporate social going forward. It's imperative. You can start from scratch or you can try to leverage your best shot at social which is Flickr. I know Flickr is not the most profitable thing Yahoo does -- and I know that profits are very important to CEO types like yourself, but trust me, forget about the immediate profitability, social IS important for your longer-term sustainability.
Google has spent hundreds of millions of dollars so far for social on Google+ -- with *NO* advertising or paid accounts. Why? Well for many reasons that have nothing to do with short-term profitability, but just assume that they can siphon off even 1% of the supposed $100 billion value of Facebook, that's a billion dollars for spending a few hundred mil. Not a bad return. Of course they have plans to siphon off *FAR* more than just 1% and far better ways to monetize things in the longer run beyond even just the network itself.
2. It will be challenging to turn flickr into a full fledged social network. Too many people think of it as a photo sharing site. This is one of your challenges -- but fix social for photographers and you'll pull in other accounts... maybe. But the competition for social is fierce. The competition wants what little photo social Flickr has left by the way. They are siphoning it off right now as we speak. There's a reason that Flickr's uniques are down 20% since June (according to Compete.com). Look at this last flickr post by Ingo Meckmann. Ingo's a great photographer by the way. This is what is happening to Flickr right now. Photographers are leaving. Google+ is siphoning off your flickr accounts and you're losing your best social asset at Yahoo. Ingo's move away from Flickr is just one of many, many, many such moves.
3. Flickr lacks vision and a leader. Maybe this is because most people at Yahoo don't care about Flickr (again, it's not the most profitable thing in the world). Maybe this is because Yahoo cannot recruit a strong leader. I don't know. Again, this is your challenge. I've been on Flickr since 2004. Remember when Bradley Horowitz bought Flickr for Yahoo back in the day? Back when Stewart Butterfield ran the show there. Stewart was a bold visible leader. It helped that he was cofounder of the site and it was his baby, but he was a big personality who was out there banging the drum, interacting with the community, selling flickr to the world. Even if you didn't always agree with his management decisions, he was at least visible.
Who is selling flickr to the world now? Nobody, that's who. Do we even know who the General Manager of Flickr is anymore? Who is out there drumming up Flickr photo walks like Google+ is doing? Nobody. Who is out there talking about weekly Flickr innovation? Nobody.
Look at the big bold leadership of Google+. Look at Vic Gundotra and Bradley Horowitz -- the very top guys. These guys are constantly promoting their baby. They live and breath it. It's in their blood. I had a little censorship hiccup over on Google+ the other day and within about 10 minutes of posting about it at 1am in the morning Vic Gundotra himself responded to the issue and it got fixed. Go to their Google+ accounts and look at what they are posting. Now look what your Flickr Chief is posting (sorry Markus, nothing personal). Who is rallying the troops at Flickr? Who is leading the charge?
4. You have an excellent opportunity to turn Flickr into a stock photography powerhouse and you should. Why? Well for two reasons. First off there are only two companies in the world today who can compete with Getty Images. Google and Yahoo (with Flickr). It's a multi-billion dollar industry ripe for disruption. But secondly, if you really reformed the stock photography market you'd attract all of the best photographers in the world today to Flickr. If you came out with something fairer than a 20% Getty payout and you really put the muscle behind promoting Flickr as a stock powerhouse, you'd retain many of your top photographers who are leaving and you'd attract many more. It's a hook, and a big hook, what social person doesn't like being *paid* to be social? Best of all, you get a cut. How many bored housewives with cameras are sitting out there who wouldn't want to earn a few extra hundred bucks a month? Make this dream come true not just for some of the accounts on Flickr, but open it up to literally everyone.
5. Innovate, innovate, innovate. Apparently you are a tech guy. Flickr needs circles (like Google+). You need to spend about 3 weeks studying Flickr Groups and why they are one of the stickiest social things on the web over the past 10 years. Alot about Flickr Groups need to be changed (you need more robust blocking tools, you need better ways to track threads across groups, you need to integrate group threads into your mobile experience, etc.), but at core, they are highly social little mini social systems buried deep inside of Yahoo. Figure them out. Free them. Promote them. Use them to their full potential instead of letting them languish in obscurity buried in the basement of flickr.
6. Get a flickr account yourself. I gave Carol this advice too and she never took it. Really. You are CEO of Yahoo. You *should* at least have a flickr account. It would be best if you really used it of course, but even if all it is is a puppet account that your assistant posts vacation photos to for you, do it. If you don't support your own product, why should we? More importantly, what kind of message does it send to your employees working on Flickr if you can't even be bothered to set up an account.
7. Overhaul community management at flickr. It's gotten better now that Heather's out (I finally got off the Explore blacklist that Heather always denied ever even existed), but barely. Follow Google's lead and beef up the community management team (I think Google has like 20 community managers or something like that). Get folks in there who will interact with the community, who will promote the community, who will celebrate the community.
Look at Vic Gundotra's last post over at Google+. What is it? It's a post celebrating an interesting article by Trey Ratcliff, one of the photo community leaders who has emerged on Google+. How do you think it makes Trey feel when Vic Gundotra himself comes out and brings up one of his posts? How do you think it made Mike Elgan feel last night? Look at how popular a flickr account Trey has. Who at flickr is reaching out to him and making him feel as special as Vic is making him feel? Who is community management?
Vic is leading by example here. And his community managers are doing the same thing. That's so smart. This is one of the many reasons why Google is winning at social. I hope Brian Rose and Chris Chabot and Natalie Villalobos and Michael Hermeston and Ricardo Lagos and tag team of Dave Cohen and Vincent Mo, and Tony Payne and Chew Chee and Sparky and soooooo many more Googlers got big fat year-end bonuses at Google, because they deserve it (and wayyy more Googlers that I know I left out, sorry).
Where is the community manangement at Flickr? Where is the outreach? Where is the social?
Finally, try this. Hop on the Verge's (don't you love cutting edge new tech sites?) article about your new appointment today, or wherever and ask the question, "what is the best internet property that Yahoo has today?" Watch how many people say Flickr. Flickr represents your best chance to funnel positive technology out of Yahoo in a highly visible way. People care more about Flickr than any other Yahoo property. It's highly, highly visible, despite profitability issues. Let your other sleepy little businesses provide the profitability why you hold Flickr up as your beacon and proof that Yahoo can innovate. Do something bold. Get rid of the paid account. Facebook and Google+ don't charge for accounts. I know there's probably a big gasp there as paid accounts are probably the number one thing contributing to Flickr's profitability at present, but do it anyways. People will love it. It will get great press. It will be a big bold move and a signal that Yahoo has much bigger plans for profitability going forward than paid Pro accounts.
That is all Scott. Best of luck. If you ever want to talk about Flickr, I have many, many more ideas on how you can turn that failing ship around. Show us you've got what it takes.
Towers of Rosenborg Castle
The clouds were lit up orange from citylights. I dialed the colors a bit trying to get a spooky look.
Did I succeed? I think I like it right now, but not sure if I still like it in a few day?... :-)
If at first you don't succeed and you try, try again without changing your methods and continue not to succeed - you are a loser. You will be mocked and ridiculed by everyone!!!
The above little monster refuses to hover properly for me, so I decided to try something else. Now, mind you, that does not mean that I am now not a loser (just ask my wife or any of my friends, if you can find any). Today, I decided to try for some perched shots. Much more success. Not exactly what I wanted, but more success. Kind of like the saying "Old something is better than new nothing."
Generally, old sayings are only applicable if changed to meet the new world that we live in - for instance:
"Early to bed, early to rise means you probably didn't see who won American Idol last night."
"Something old, something new, something borrowed . . . Hey! It's still not too late to change your mind!!!"
"The best things in live are fried."
"Too many cooks are probably a result of union regulations."
"A penny saved is a penny earned and is probably all I will make selling this photo on microstock."
© Steve Byland 2009 all rights reserved
Unauthorized use or reproduction for any reason is prohibited.
Please do not blog this without contacting me first.
Captured and posted with my iPad mini.
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The Legend of the Felsenkirche (“Crag Church”)
Felsenkirche (“Crag Church”), a legendary church and symbol of the town
According to legend, there were two noble brothers, Wyrich and Emich, who both fell in love with a beautiful girl named Bertha. The brothers lived at Castle Bosselstein, which stood atop a 135 m-high hill. Bertha was from a noble line that occupied the nearby Lichtenburg Castle.
Neither brother was aware of the other’s feelings for Bertha. When Wyrich, the elder brother, was away on some unknown business, Emich succeeded in securing Bertha’s affections and, subsequently, married her. When Emich announced the news to his brother, Wyrich’s temper got the better of him. In the heat of the moment, he hurled his brother out of a window of the castle and sent him to his death on the rocks below.
Wyrich was almost immediately filled with remorse. With the counsel of a local abbot, he began a long period of penance. At this time, Bertha disappears from the historical record. Many romantics feel that she died of a broken heart.
As Wyrich waited for a heavenly sign showing that he was forgiven, the abbot suggested that he build a church on the exact place where his brother died. Wyrich worked and prayed himself into exhaustion. However, the moment the church was completed, he received his sign: a miraculous spring opened up in the church.
Wyrich died soon after this. When the local bishop came to consecrate the new church, he found the noble lord dead on its steps. Wyrich was later placed in the same tomb with his brother.
G'day everyone, I'm finished! I'm succeeded on a beautiful 1 bedroom, 2 lounge, 1 bathroom, 1 kitchen home. A fierce, Modern* & masculine Interior incorporating solid wooden trims, natural grain cemented brick walls, steel beam supports around the Exterior, surrounded by nature on the edge of an island! - More photo's to come soon!
I appreciate it so much that you've really given me this opportunity, I'm so grateful - Thank you Todd & Mikey, I'm just absolutely astonished with the credibility from the very beginning of the first rock foundation, and building up a home, I am just lost for words I can't see the keyboard, I've been balling my eyes out majority of this journey, my eyes are stinging! lol
It just means so much to me, to make people smile & get the best quality homes, exteriors & interiors that they possibly can, to makes someone's day is enough ♥
Two Happy, satisfied clients :)
If you didn't get to see my last Farnsworth home, please check out this link here: www.flickr.com/photos/130260781@N02/31514452511/in/datepo...
Make sure if you haven't done so, to check out my Facebook, follow me for
updates on my SL life, my life in general, projects, client work, behind the scenes,
giveaway's & much more! --> www.facebook.com/ZhaoiIntaglio
Song Choice: www.youtube.com/watch?v=WezUyzGI8m4 - Felon - Isla (Such a great tune, one of my faves.)
About the pic: I know this pic is really simple, but thats what I love about it. Sorry its not in focus, but it was taken from the car. 100% natural no modelling! Me and my friend were also fighting while I took the pic, so that made it even harder to take! Don't ask!!!!
Hope you like the words to go with it, please tell me what you think...........
I believe the children are our are future
Teach them well and let them lead the way
Show them all the beauty they possess inside
Give them a sense of pride to make it easier
Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be
Everybody searching for a hero
People need someone to look up to
I never found anyone who fulfills my needs
A lonely place to be
So I learned to depend on me
I decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadow
If I fail, if I succeed
At least I'll live as I believe
No matter what they take from me
They can't take away my dignity
Because the greatest love of all
Is happening to me
I found the greatest love of all
Inside of me
The greatest love of all
Is easy to achieve
Learning to love yourself
It is the greatest love of all
And if by chance, that special place
That you've been dreaming of
Leads you to a lonely place
Find your strength in love
What the Pampas AR succeeds in the most is probably how easy it is to clean and maintain. This bullpup assault rifle's internals are based on the reliability of the AK platform, but of course made better. It fires the widely used 7.62x39mm round, so it won't be much trouble to purchase ammunition for it. It also features QSI's latest optic: a thermal hybrid sight.
Quicksilver Ind. produces top of the notch firearms made for easy and cheap mass production, while maintaining very high quality. Our firearms will always be fully ambidextrous, two toned, operator-friendly and accessory-friendly.
-------------------------------------------------------
Credit to Benjoo for the Noveske KX3 flash suppressor.
Check out the high definition image here:
Yours truly,
~ Shockwave
Two of this years coot chicks, I watched these until a gull began to pester them. Luckily it never succeeded!
So how did I do?
I think I at least came close to succeeding!
My all- well mostly all pink ensemble is centered around my Baltogs wet look pink hologram leotard from nydancewear.com's custom cut line. I've matched it up with my pink lycra fishnet minidress from flirtcatalog.com, Leg Avenue hot pink fishnet hose from electriqueboutique.com worn over Hanes Alive Barely There support hose from onehanesplace.com
and my fantastic shiny pink stiletto platform stocking boots also from electriqueboutique.com.
To see more pix of me in tight, sexy and revealing outfits click this link:
www.flickr.com/photos/kaceycdpix/sets/72157625518169685
To see more pix of me in sexy boots click here: www.flickr.com/photos/kaceycdpix/sets/72157622816479823/
To see more pix of me in Baltogs lycra spandex clothing click this link: www.flickr.com/photos/kaceycdpix/sets/72157617535517907/
To see more pix of me in wet look lycra spandex outfits click this link: www.flickr.com/photos/kaceycdpix/sets/72157625106117954
To see more pix of me in see through and fishnet outfits click this link: www.flickr.com/photos/kaceycdpix/sets/72157622319095237
DSC_7493-8
Will he succeed, or will he fail?!...
(Alt shot to main photo on Instagram)
Part 45 of 52 of my 'Build-a-MOC-a-Week' project for 2021.
© All rights reserved. Use without permission is illegal
View on large - Press L
- Finalmente ci sono riuscito, tutt'e tre insieme! Dopo un millesimo di secondo erano sopra di me...e sopra la 7d!
- Finally I succeeded, all three together! After a millisecond were on top of me ... and over the 7d!
Kii Battleship
Class overview
Operators: Imperial Japanese Navy
Preceded by: Ise class
Succeeded by: Iburi Class
Planned: 8
Completed: 8
General characteristics
Type: Fast battleship
Displacement: 51,500 tons (normal)
Length: 250.4 m
Beam: 34.8 m
Draft: 9.8 m
Installed power: 170,000 shp
Propulsion: 4 shafts
4 × geared steam turbines
Speed: 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Armament:
4 × twin 460 mm (18.1 in) guns;
12 155mm guns in four triple turrets;
4 double 127 mm AA guns;
102 47mm guns in 34 triple turrets;
Armor:
Waterline belt: 400 mm
Deck: 180 mm (5 in)
This is the second battleship class used by Japan during the “Alternate World” Second Russo-Japanese war, the Kii Battleship, in 1947.
And now a “little” of What if Story:
In 1919, shortly after the end of the First World War, the Americans invited the World Powers of the time to a conference in Boston to stop the “Battleships Race” in existence at the time between the US and the empires of Japan and the United Kingdom (in the real world, this appended in Washington in 1921). The US had an ambitious plan of building 50 battleships on the next 10 years; so costly that would make the United States almost bankrupt. Therefore, the Americans decided to reduce their battleship fleet to only 15 battleships and stop all new ships under construction. Therefore, the Colorado Battleships were sunk as targets, together with many other older battleships. However, things were even worst for Japan; after the conference, Japan was only allowed to have 8 ships-of-line and one of them needed to be converted into a training vessel. The two almost complete battleships of the Nagato class were cancelled and their hulls used for target practice and numerous testings. The Amagi battlecruisers, the Tosa and Kii battleships, which were just starting to be built, were immediately cancelled. With only 7 operational battleships, Japan virtually lost any chance of ever winning a war against the US.
Therefore, attempts were made to transform the US into a new ally, especially after Britain refused to continue the defensive treaty with Japan after 1921. To achieve this, Japan supported all interests of the United States on the Pacific region, while Japan could advance and expand to China. This was only possible because the dangerous and charismatic Mao Tze Tung achieved power in China in 1926, transforming China into a huge and dangerous enemy for both Japan and the US. American and British relations also became bitter, after the Americans demanded the payment of every guns, ammo and food sent to England during the war, with very high Taxes…
With this, Japan could effectively expand into China… but things got a little different in 1928. In 1928, the Kzarin of Russia decided to revenge the Romanov family and above all else, the loss of the First Russo-Japanese war. To achieve this, she started a huge naval program (52 battleships and battlecruisers, 10 huge aircraft carriers, almost 80 cruisers and 400 other ships!). Amongst other things, the Kzarin wanted to conquer both China and Japan (and maybe prepare a massive invasion of the United States in 1950)…
With such a large fleet, Japan was simply doomed. Since Russia wasn’t at the Boston Conference (and since the Kzarin did everything she wanted), Russia was free to start its huge naval program. First, the Russians decided to build their new ships with the help of the British, which supported Russia, starting with 16 battleships of the Sevastopol class, armed with nine 406mm (16,0”) guns, 28knots of speed and 320mm of armour, faster and better protected than any battleship in the world at the time (only Hood, Renown and Repulse were faster).
If Japan wanted to survive, new ships needed to be built as a response immediately; but how? At the time, the Japanese industry represented just 3% of the world Industrial Power while Russia (after the so called Russian Miracle) represented 31% (4% more than the US). It was just a matter of time before the 50 Russian battleships were completed and ready to destroy Japan. So if quantity wasn’t the solution, quality was.
Japan therefore decided to build their new battleships with more armour, speed and guns than any other nation in the world. Since the United States were at the time crossing the crash of the Wall Street in 1929, Japan was free to start the construction of the new ships.
Still, during that period, the Japanese never stopped developing and testing new things, for example the construction of a series of aircraft carriers for training and extensive tests on the hulls of the two Nagatos to develop new techniques to improve the defence of their battleships. Much was also learn with the help of many American designers who started working for Japan during the Wall Street chaos.
The Japanese therefore started the construction of a powerful class of 8 new battleships, based on the cancelled No. 13 design, which was extremely secret at the time. They called to this new ship class, the “Kii”s. The 8 old battleships and battlecruisers of the Japanese navy were slowly removed from service since they were considered by now obsolete; every time a Kii was completed, one old ship was removed. New tests were performed on those old ships and the new lessons learn were applied to the next battleship class, the “Iburi”s and some improvements were also performed on the “Kii”s.
Heavily armoured to survive 406mm shells and heavy weight torpedoes, the “Kii”s were designed to fight various enemy ships at the same time. The main belt of armor along the side of the vessel was 400mm (16 in) thick, with additional bulkheads 305mm (12.0 in) thick beyond the main-belt. Furthermore, the top hull shape was very advanced, the peculiar sideways curving effectively maximizing armor protection and structural rigidity while optimizing weight, a techninc recently developed in Japan. Armor plates in both the main belt and main turrets were made of Vickers Hardened, which was a face-hardened steel armor. Deck armour—180 millimetres thick—was composed of a nickel-chromium-molybdenum alloy.
The ship was also heavily protected against Torpedoes; special bulges and a great number of counter flooding devices were installed. In total, the vessels of the kii class contained 970 watertight compartments to help control flooding. The most recent battleship completed by the United States at the time, the USS West Virginia (BB-48) had only maximum armour of 457mm (turret face) and 343mm on belt armor while the typical Russian battleship of time had a maximum belt armor of 320mm.
The primary armament of the Kii class was eight 45-caliber 460mm (18,1”) guns in four twin-gun turrets, two each fore and aft of the superstructure, firing a 1,550-kilogram (3,420 lb) shell at a muzzle velocity of 800 meters per second (2,600 ft/s). These huge guns, the largest in the world at the time, were kept in secret and special covers were put on the front of the barrels to deceive every body about their true size. The Russians only discovered the size of those guns during the Second battle of Tsushima, when 18,1” started to pierce the Russian battleships. The secondary battery consisted of 12 155mm guns mounted in triple turrets on the sides of the ship. The ships' anti-aircraft defenses consisted of eight 127mm guns mounted in 4 double turrets.
In addition, the “Kii”s carried 24 47mm automatic anti-aircraft guns, primarily mounted amidships. When refitted in 1944 for the naval engagements against Russia, the number of 47 mm anti-aircraft guns was increased to 102.
To direct and control the main and secondary artillery against the enemy ships initially the ships had a very old and ineffective system with very high shell dispersion. The Americans therefore provided an advanced targeting radar to Japan in 1942 together with the latest (for the time at least) analogic targeting computers, providing unparallel precision for the Japanese warships at the time.
With the recent appearance of the Aircraft Carrier and the British Battlecruiser Hood (armed with eight 380mm guns and 30knots of maximum speed), the new Japanese battleship needed to be faster than the preceding class. To achieve this, 170 000 horsepower was provided through four huge steam turbines. Although all Japanese aircraft carriers were still faster, the Kiis were at the time the fastest battleships in the world, achieving 30,5knots during trials fully armed. That feature was also kept in secret until 1937, everybody thinking that they were only capable of achieving 25 knots.
Operational Story:
Once the new ships became operational during the 30´s, they were heavily used on naval games, trainings and occasionally strikes against the Communist China. A number of times these ships travelled to Pearl Harbor and even to the San Diego Naval Base, to perform courtesy visits. The American admirals became great friends of their Japanese equivalents, because Japan was in every way the shield of the United States on the Pacific against Russia and China.
When war was declared by Russia, all 8 “Kii”s were operational and ready to defend the nation. They formed two separate naval squadrons; each one with four “Kii” battleships (eight 460mm guns each), four “Nishi” Heavy Cruisers (fifteen 254mm guns each ship), 1 “Iwate” Aviation heavy cruiser (nine 254mm guns each ship), 4 “Osasa” Light cruisers (fifteen 155mm guns each ship), 2 Aso Anti-aircraft cruiser and 10/14 destroyers, therefore a very powerful battery of 32 460mm guns, 60 254mm guns, 108 155mm guns and around 300 torpedo tubes, plus reloads.
Hope you like it! Don´t forget to see my other MOCs at: www.flickr.com/photos/einon/
Eínon
I tried making this look more like a painting than a photograph, and don't know how well that succeeded, but I like how it came out.
i'm feeling a bit ill today and don't have the energy to process a whole lot of my more recent images -- the best i can offer today is this image of a tavern that's hidden away at the windmills area in chios (tolis has a beautiful gallery). i couldn't see it from the road -- i spotted it only when i was walking around the windmills themselves.
i don't know how, but my train of thought led me to imagine a huge party for flickr friends and contacts, with everyone holding a camera, shooting each other and looking for something interesting.
i'll try to get around to your streams today -- (it cheers me up!) -- but i hope you forgive me if i don't succeed.
on the blog: toomanytribbles.blogspot.com/2009/09/friends-of-gold.html
EDIT: hey, look where my moon candy landed! www.focus.it/natura/gallery/10092009-1252-113-astronomi-p...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about 106,400,000 square kilometres (41,100,000 sq mi),[1] it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area. The first part of its name refers to Atlas of Greek mythology, making the Atlantic the "Sea of Atlas".
The oldest known mention of "Atlantic" is in The Histories of Herodotus around 450 BC (Hdt. 1.202.4): Atlantis thalassa (Greek: Ἀτλαντὶς θάλασσα; English: Sea of Atlas); see also: Atlas Mountains. The term Ethiopic Ocean, derived from Ethiopia, was applied to the southern Atlantic ocean as late as the mid-19th century.[2] Before Europeans discovered other oceans, the term "ocean" itself was synonymous with the waters beyond the Strait of Gibraltar that we now know as the Atlantic. The early Greeks believed this ocean to be a gigantic river encircling the world.
The Atlantic Ocean occupies an elongated, S-shaped basin extending longitudinally between Eurasia and Africa to the east, and the Americas to the west. As one component of the interconnected global ocean, it is connected in the north to the Arctic Ocean (which is sometimes considered a sea of the Atlantic), to the Pacific Ocean in the southwest, the Indian Ocean in the southeast, and the Southern Ocean in the south. (Other definitions describe the Atlantic as extending southward to Antarctica.) The equator subdivides it into the North Atlantic Ocean and South Atlantic Ocean.
Geography
The Atlantic Ocean is bounded on the west by North and South America. It connects to the Arctic Ocean through the Denmark Strait, Greenland Sea, Norwegian Sea and Barents Sea. To the east, the boundaries of the ocean proper are Europe; the Strait of Gibraltar (where it connects with the Mediterranean Sea–one of its marginal seas–and, in turn, the Black Sea, both of which also touch upon Asia) and Africa.
In the southeast, the Atlantic merges into the Indian Ocean. The 20° East meridian, running south from Cape Agulhas to Antarctica defines its border. Some authorities show it extending south to Antarctica, while others show it bounded at the 60° parallel by the Southern Ocean.[3]
In the southwest, the Drake Passage connects it to the Pacific Ocean. The man-made Panama Canal links the Atlantic and Pacific. Besides those mentioned, other large bodies of water adjacent to the Atlantic are the Caribbean Sea; the Gulf of Mexico; Hudson Bay; the Arctic Ocean; the Mediterranean Sea; the North Sea; the Baltic Sea and the Celtic Sea.
Covering approximately 22% of Earth's surface, the Atlantic is second in size to the Pacific. With its adjacent seas, it occupies an area of about 106,400,000 square kilometres (41,100,000 sq mi);[1] without them, it has an area of 82,400,000 square kilometres (31,800,000 sq mi). The land that drains into the Atlantic covers four times that of either the Pacific or Indian oceans. The volume of the Atlantic with its adjacent seas is 354,700,000 cubic kilometers (85,100,000 cu mi) and without them 323,600,000 cubic kilometres (77,640,000 cu mi).
The average depth of the Atlantic, with its adjacent seas, is 3,339 metres (1,826 fathoms; 10,950 ft); without them it is 3,926 metres (2,147 fathoms; 12,880 ft). The greatest depth, Milwaukee Deep with 8,380 metres (4,580 fathoms; 27,500 ft), is in the Puerto Rico Trench. The Atlantic's width varies from 1,538 nautical miles (2,848 km; 1,770 mi) between Brazil and Sierra Leone to over 3,450 nautical miles (6,400 km; 4,000 mi) in the south
Cultural significance
Transatlantic travel played a major role in the expansion of Western civilization into the Americas. It is the Atlantic that separates the "Old World" from the "New World". In modern times, some idioms refer to the ocean in a humorously diminutive way as the Pond, describing both the geographical and cultural divide between North America and Europe, in particular between the English-speaking nations of both continents. Many British people refer to the United States and Canada as "across the pond", and vice versa
Ocean bottom
The principal feature of the bathymetry (bottom topography) is a submarine mountain range called the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.[5] It extends from Iceland in the north to approximately 58° South latitude, reaching a maximum width of about 860 nautical miles (1,590 km; 990 mi). A great rift valley also extends along the ridge over most of its length. The depth of water at the apex of the ridge is less than 2,700 metres (1,500 fathoms; 8,900 ft) in most places, while the bottom of the ridge is three times as deep. Several peaks rise above the water and form islands.[6] The South Atlantic Ocean has an additional submarine ridge, the Walvis Ridge.[7]
The Mid-Atlantic Ridge separates the Atlantic Ocean into two large troughs with depths from 3,700–5,500 metres (2,000–3,000 fathoms; 12,000–18,000 ft). Transverse ridges running between the continents and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge divide the ocean floor into numerous basins. Some of the larger basins are the Blake, Guiana, North American, Cape Verde, and Canaries basins in the North Atlantic. The largest South Atlantic basins are the Angola, Cape, Argentina, and Brazil basins.
The deep ocean floor is thought to be fairly flat with occasional deeps, abyssal plains, trenches, seamounts, basins, plateaus, canyons, and some guyots. Various shelves along the margins of the continents constitute about 11% of the bottom topography with few deep channels cut across the continental rise.
Ocean floor trenches and seamounts:
•Puerto Rico Trench, in the North Atlantic, is the deepest trench at 8,605 metres (4,705 fathoms; 28,230 ft)[8]
•Laurentian Abyss is found off the eastern coast of Canada
•South Sandwich Trench reaches a depth of 8,428 metres (4,608 fathoms; 27,650 ft)
•Romanche Trench is located near the equator and reaches a depth of about 7,454 metres (4,076 fathoms; 24,460 ft).
Ocean sediments are composed of:
•Terrigenous deposits with land origins, consisting of sand, mud, and rock particles formed by erosion, weathering, and volcanic activity on land washed to sea. These materials are found mostly on the continental shelves and are thickest near large river mouths or off desert coasts.
•Pelagic deposits, which contain the remains of organisms that sink to the ocean floor, include red clays and Globigerina, pteropod, and siliceous oozes. Covering most of the ocean floor and ranging in thickness from 60–3,300 metres (33–1,800 fathoms; 200–11,000 ft) they are thickest in the convergence belts, notably at the Hamilton Ridge and in upwelling zones.
•Authigenic deposits consist of such materials as manganese nodules. They occur where sedimentation proceeds slowly or where currents sort the deposits, such as in the Hewett Curve.
Water characteristics
On average, the Atlantic is the saltiest major ocean; surface water salinity in the open ocean ranges from 33 to 37 parts per thousand (3.3 – 3.7%) by mass and varies with latitude and season. Evaporation, precipitation, river inflow and sea ice melting influence surface salinity values. Although the lowest salinity values are just north of the equator (because of heavy tropical rainfall), in general the lowest values are in the high latitudes and along coasts where large rivers enter. Maximum salinity values occur at about 25° north and south, in subtropical regions with low rainfall and high evaporation.
Surface water temperatures, which vary with latitude, current systems, and season and reflect the latitudinal distribution of solar energy, range from below −2 °C (28 °F). Maximum temperatures occur north of the equator, and minimum values are found in the polar regions. In the middle latitudes, the area of maximum temperature variations, values may vary by 7–8 °C (12–15 °F).
The Atlantic Ocean consists of four major water masses. The North and South Atlantic central waters make up the surface. The sub-Antarctic intermediate water extends to depths of 1,000 metres (550 fathoms; 3,300 ft). The North Atlantic Deep Water reaches depths of as much as 4,000 metres (2,200 fathoms; 13,000 ft). The Antarctic Bottom Water occupies ocean basins at depths greater than 4,000 metres.
Within the North Atlantic, ocean currents isolate the Sargasso Sea, a large elongated body of water, with above average salinity. The Sargasso Sea contains large amounts of seaweed and is also the spawning ground for both the European eel and the American eel.
The Coriolis effect circulates North Atlantic water in a clockwise direction, whereas South Atlantic water circulates counter-clockwise. The south tides in the Atlantic Ocean are semi-diurnal; that is, two high tides occur during each 24 lunar hours. In latitudes above 40° North some east-west oscillation occurs.
Climate
Climate is influenced by the temperatures of the surface waters and water currents as well as winds. Because of the ocean's great capacity to store and release heat, maritime climates are more moderate and have less extreme seasonal variations than inland climates. Precipitation can be approximated from coastal weather data and air temperature from water temperatures.
The oceans are the major source of the atmospheric moisture that is obtained through evaporation. Climatic zones vary with latitude; the warmest zones stretch across the Atlantic north of the equator. The coldest zones are in high latitudes, with the coldest regions corresponding to the areas covered by sea ice. Ocean currents influence climate by transporting warm and cold waters to other regions. The winds that are cooled or warmed when blowing over these currents influence adjacent land areas.
The Gulf Stream and its northern extension towards Europe, the North Atlantic Drift, for example, warms the atmosphere of the British Isles and north-western Europe and influences weather and climate as far south as the northern Mediterranean. The cold water currents contribute to heavy fog off the coast of eastern Canada (the Grand Banks of Newfoundland area) and Africa's north-western coast. In general, winds transport moisture and air over land areas. Hurricanes develop in the southern part of the North Atlantic Ocean. More local particular weather examples could be found in examples such as the; Azores High, Benguela Current, Nor'easter.
History
The Atlantic Ocean appears to be the second youngest of the five oceans. It did not exist prior to 130 million years ago, when the continents that formed from the breakup of the ancestral super continent Pangaea were drifting apart from seafloor spreading. The Atlantic has been extensively explored since the earliest settlements along its shores.
The Vikings, the Portuguese, and the Spaniards were the most famous among early explorers. After Columbus, European exploration rapidly accelerated, and many new trade routes were established.
As a result, the Atlantic became and remains the major artery between Europe and the Americas (known as transatlantic trade). Scientific explorations include the Challenger expedition, the German Meteor expedition, Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and the United States Navy Hydrographic Office.
Notable crossings
Ra II, a ship built from papyrus, was successfully sailed across the Atlantic by Thor Heyerdahl proving that it was possible to cross the Atlantic from Africa using such boats in early epochs of history.
•Around 980 – 982, Eric the Red discovered Greenland, geographically and geologically a part of the Americas.
•In 985 or 986, Bjarni Herjólfsson was the first European to sight the Americas. He did not go ashore, though.
•In the year 1000, the Icelander Leif Ericson was the first European to set foot on North American soil, corresponding to today's Eastern coast of Canada, i. e. the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, including the area of land named "Vinland" by Ericson. The Norse discovery was documented in the 13th century Icelandic Sagas and was corroborated by recent L'Anse aux Meadows archeological evidence.
•Around 1010, Thorfinnr Karlsefni led an attempted Viking settlement in North America with 160 settlers, but was later driven off by the natives. His son Snorri Thorfinnsson was the first American born (somewhere between 1010 and 1013) to European (Icelandic) immigrant parents.
•In 1419 and 1427, Portuguese navigators reached Madeira and Azores, respectively.
•From 1415 to 1488, Portuguese navigators sailed along the Western African coast, reaching the Cape of Good Hope.
•In 1492, Christopher Columbus landed on the island of San Salvador in The Bahamas.
•In 1497, John Cabot landed at Bonavista Newfoundland and Labrador.
•In 1500, Pedro Álvares Cabral reached Brazil.
•In 1524, Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano discovered the United States of America's east coast.
•In 1534, Jacques Cartier entered the Gulf of St. Lawrence and reached the mouth of the St. Lawrence River.
•In 1583, Sir Humphrey Gilbert claimed Newfoundland for the English Crown.
•In 1764 William Harrison (the son of John Harrison) sailed aboard the HMS Tartar, with the H-4 time piece. The voyage became the basis for the invention of the global system of Longitude.
•In 1858, Cyrus West Field laid the first transatlantic telegraph cable (it quickly failed).
•In 1865 Brunel's ship the SS Great Eastern laid the first successful transatlantic telegraph cable .
•In 1870 the small City of Ragusa (Dubrovnik) became the first small Lifeboat to cross the Atlantic from Cork to Boston with two men crew, John Charles Buckley and Nikola Primorac (di Costa), only.[9]
•In 1896 Frank Samuelsen and George Harbo from Norway became the first people to ever row across the Atlantic Ocean.
•On April 15, 1912 the RMS Titanic sank after hitting an iceberg with a loss of more than 1,500 lives.[10]
•1914–1918, the First Battle of the Atlantic took place.
•In 1919, the American NC-4 became the first seaplane to cross the Atlantic (though it made a couple of landings on islands and the sea along the way, and taxied several hundred miles).
•Later in 1919, a British aeroplane piloted by Alcock and Brown made the first non-stop transatlantic flight, from Newfoundland to Ireland.
•In 1921, the British were the first to cross the North Atlantic in an airship.
•In 1922, Sacadura Cabral and Gago Coutinho were the first to cross the South Atlantic in an airship.
•In 1927, Charles Lindbergh made the first solo non-stop transatlantic flight in an aircraft (between New York City and Paris).
•In 1931, Bert Hinkler made the first solo non-stop transatlantic flight across the South Atlantic in an aircraft.
•In 1932, Amelia Earhart became the first female to make a solo flight across the Atlantic
•1939–1945, the Second Battle of the Atlantic. Nearly 3,700 Allied ships were sunk at a cost of 783 German U-boats.[11]
•In 1952, Ann Davison was the first woman to single-handedly sail the Atlantic Ocean.
•In 1965, Robert Manry crossed the Atlantic from the U.S. to England non-stop in a 13.5 foot (4.05 meters) sailboat named "Tinkerbell".[12] Several others also crossed the Atlantic in very small sailboats in the 1960s, none of them non-stop, though.
•In 1969 and 1970 Thor Heyerdahl launched expeditions to cross the Atlantic in boats built from papyrus. He succeeded in crossing the Atlantic from Morocco to Barbados after a two-month voyage of 6,100 km with Ra II in 1970, thus conclusively proving that boats such as the Ra could have sailed with the Canary Current across the Atlantic in prehistoric times.[13]
•In 1975, Fons Oerlemans crossed the Atlantic in 82 days, starting from Safi (Morocco) to Trinidad and Tobago, on a selfmade raft.
•In 1980, Gérard d'Aboville was the first man to cross the Atlantic Ocean rowing solo.
•In 1984, Five Argentines sail in a 10-meter-long raft made from tree trunks named Atlantis from Canary Islands and after 52 days 3,000 miles (4,800 km) journey arrived to Venezuela in an attempt to prove travelers from Africa may have crossed the Atlantic before Christopher Columbus.[14][15]
•In 1994, Guy Delage was the first man to allegedly swim across the Atlantic Ocean (with the help of a kick board, from Cape Verde to Barbados).
•In 1998, Benoît Lecomte was the first man to swim across the northern Atlantic Ocean without a kick board, stopping for only one week in the Azores.
•In 1999, after rowing for 81 days and 4,767 kilometres (2,962 mi), Tori Murden became the first woman to cross the Atlantic Ocean by rowboat alone when she reached Guadeloupe from the Canary Islands.
Ethiopic Ocean
The Aethiopian Sea, Ethiopic Ocean or Ethiopian Ocean (Okeanos Aithiopos), is an old name for what is now called the South Atlantic Ocean, which is separated from the North Atlantic Ocean by a narrow region between Natal, Brazil and Monrovia, Liberia. The use of this term illustrates a past trend towards referring to the whole continent of Africa by the name Aethiopia. The modern nation of Ethiopia, in northeast Africa, is nowhere near the Ethiopic Ocean, which would be said to lie off the west coast of Africa. The term Ethiopian Ocean sometimes appeared until the mid-19th century.[
Economy
The Atlantic has contributed significantly to the development and economy of surrounding countries. Besides major transatlantic transportation and communication routes, the Atlantic offers abundant petroleum deposits in the sedimentary rocks of the continental shelves. The Atlantic hosts the world's richest fishing resources, especially in the waters covering the shelves. The major fish are cod, haddock, hake, herring, and mackerel.
The most productive areas include Newfoundland's Grand Banks, the Nova Scotia shelf, Georges Bank off Cape Cod, the Bahama Banks, the waters around Iceland, the Irish Sea, the Dogger Bank of the North Sea, and the Falkland Banks. Eel, lobster, and whales appear in great quantities. Various international treaties attempt to reduce pollution caused by environmental threats such as oil spills, marine debris, and the incineration of toxic wastes at sea.
Terrain
From October to June the surface is usually covered with sea ice in the Labrador Sea, Denmark Strait, and Baltic Sea. A clockwise warm-water gyre occupies the northern Atlantic, and a counter-clockwise warm-water gyre appears in the southern Atlantic. The Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a rugged north-south centerline for the entire Atlantic basin, first discovered by the Challenger Expedition dominates the ocean floor. This was formed by the vulcanism that also formed the ocean floor and the islands rising from it.
The Atlantic has irregular coasts indented by numerous bays, gulfs, and seas. These include the Norwegian Sea, Baltic Sea, North Sea, Labrador Sea, Black Sea, Gulf of Saint Lawrence, Bay of Fundy, Gulf of Maine, Mediterranean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea.
Islands include Newfoundland (including hundreds of surrounding islands), Greenland, Iceland, Faroe Islands, Great Britain (including numerous surrounding islands), Ireland, Rockall, Sable Island, Azores, St. Pierre and Miquelon, Madeira, Bermuda, Canary Islands, Caribbean, Cape Verde, São Tomé and Príncipe, Annobón Province, Fernando de Noronha, Rocas Atoll, Ascension Island, Saint Helena, Trindade and Martim Vaz, Tristan da Cunha, Gough Island (Also known as Diego Alvarez), Falkland Islands, Tierra del Fuego, South Georgia Island, South Sandwich Islands, and Bouvet Island.
Natural resources
The Atlantic harbors petroleum and gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals and whales), sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules, and precious stones.
Natural hazards
Icebergs are common from February to August in the Davis Strait, Denmark Strait, and the northwestern Atlantic and have been spotted as far south as Bermuda and Madeira. Ships are subject to superstructure icing in the extreme north from October to May. Persistent fog can be a maritime hazard from May to September, as can hurricanes north of the equator (May to December).
The United States' southeast coast has a long history of shipwrecks due to its many shoals and reefs. The Virginia and North Carolina coasts were particularly dangerous.
The Bermuda Triangle is popularly believed to be the site of numerous aviation and shipping incidents because of unexplained and supposedly mysterious causes, but Coast Guard records do not support this belief.
Hurricanes are also a natural hazard in the Atlantic, but mainly in the northern part of the ocean, rarely tropical cyclones form in the southern parts. Hurricanes usually form between June 1 and November 30 of every year. The most notable hurricane in the Atlantic would be Hurricane Katrina in the 2005 season
Current environmental issues
Endangered marine species include the manatee, seals, sea lions, turtles, and whales. Drift net fishing can kill dolphins, albatrosses and other seabirds (petrels, auks), hastening the fish stock decline and contributing to international disputes.[16] Municipal pollution comes from the eastern United States, southern Brazil, and eastern Argentina; oil pollution in the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Lake Maracaibo, Mediterranean Sea, and North Sea; and industrial waste and municipal sewage pollution in the Baltic Sea, North Sea, and Mediterranean Sea.
In 2005, there was some concern that warm northern European currents were slowing down, but no scientific consensus formed from that evidence.[17]
On June 7, 2006, Florida's wildlife commission voted to take the manatee off the state's endangered species list. Some environmentalists worry that this could erode safeguards for the popular sea creature.
Marine pollution
Marine pollution is a generic term for the entry into the ocean of potentially hazardous chemicals or particles. The biggest culprits are rivers and with them many agriculture fertilizer chemicals as well as livestock and human waste. The excess of oxygen-depleting chemicals leads to hypoxia and the creation of a dead zone.[18]
Marine debris, which is also known as marine litter, describes human-created waste floating in a body of water. Oceanic debris tends to accumulate at the center of gyres and coastlines, frequently washing aground where it is known as beach litter
Bordering countries and territories
The states (territories in italics) with a coastline on the Atlantic Ocean (excluding the Baltic and Mediterranean Seas) are:
Europe
• Belgium
• Denmark
• Germany
• Spain
• France
• Faroe Islands
• Guernsey
• Isle of Man
• Ireland
• Iceland
• Jersey
• Netherlands
• Norway
• Portugal
• Sweden
• United Kingdom
Africa
• Morocco
• Angola
• Benin
• Bouvet Island
• Côte d'Ivoire
• Cameroon
• Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Republic of the Congo
• Cape Verde
• Western Sahara (claimed by Morocco)
• Spain (Canary Islands)
• Gabon
• Ghana
• Guinea
• Gambia
• Guinea-Bissau
• Equatorial Guinea
• Liberia
• Mauritania
• Namibia
• Nigeria
• Senegal
• Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
• Sierra Leone
• São Tomé and Príncipe
•
South America
• Argentina
• Brazil
• Chile
• Colombia
• Falkland Islands
• France (French Guiana)
• Guyana
• South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
• Suriname
• Uruguay
• Venezuela
Caribbean
• Aruba
• Anguilla
• Antigua and Barbuda
• Bahamas
• Saint Barthélemy
• Barbados
• Cuba
• Curaçao
• Cayman Islands
• Dominica
• Dominican Republic
• France (Martinique and Guadeloupe)
• Grenada
• Haiti
• Jamaica
• Saint Lucia
• Saint Martin
• Montserrat
• Netherlands (Caribbean Netherlands)
• Puerto Rico
• Saint Kitts and Nevis
• Sint Maarten
• Turks and Caicos Islands
• Trinidad and Tobago
• Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
• British Virgin Islands
• United States Virgin Islands
Central and North America
• Belize
• Bermuda
• Canada
• Costa Rica
• Greenland
• Guatemala
• Honduras
• Mexico
• Nicaragua
• Panama
• Saint Pierre and Miquelon
• United States
...a one-legged attempt!
Juvenile Sparrow ☻ (Passer domesticus) ☻ Junger Spatz
Gelungen ...
... ein einbeiniger Versuch!
An immediate reaction to this shot may be why is the tip of the Imagination building cut off. The answer to that is because immediately just out of frame is the monorail beam. With that in mind I really liked this angle shooting the imagination building with these multi-colored flowers in the foreground and ultimately framed it so the cut off feels intentional and not awkward. Whether or not I succeeded is up for debate but I wanted to share it anyway.
For the psychedelic trance musical band, see Astral Projection (band). For physical travel to other stars, see Interstellar travel."The Separation of the Spirit Body" from , a Chinese handbook on alchemy and meditation
Astral projection (or astral travel) is a term used in esotericism to describe a willful out-of-body experience (OBE), a supposed form of telepathy, that assumes the existence of a soul or consciousness called an "astral body" that is separate from the physical body and capable of travelling outside of it throughout the universe where it interacts with other astral bodies and is capable of implanting ideas into other people's minds. The idea of astral travel is rooted in esotericism and occultism, and was promoted by 19th century Theosophists—philosophers who explored the mystical and preternatural origins of the natural world.It is sometimes reported in association with dreams, and forms of meditation.Some individuals have reported perceptions similar to descriptions of astral projection that were induced through various hallucinogenic and hypnotic means (including self-hypnosis). There is no scientific evidence that there is a consciousness or soul which is separate from normal neural activity or that one can consciously leave the body and make observations..Claims of scientific evidence of astral projection are pseudoscientific.According to classical, medieval and renaissance Hermeticism, Neoplatonism, and later Theosophist and Rosicrucian thought the astral body is an intermediate body of light linking the rational soul to the physical body while the astral plane is an intermediate world of light between Heaven and Earth, composed of the spheres of the planets and stars. These astral spheres were held to be populated by angels, demons and spirits.The subtle bodies, and their associated planes of existence, form an essential part of the esoteric systems that deal with astral phenomena. In the neo-platonism of Plotinus, for example, the individual is a microcosm ("small world") of the universe (the macrocosm or "great world"). "The rational soul...is akin to the great Soul of the World" while "the material universe, like the body, is made as a faded image of the Intelligible". Each succeeding plane of manifestation is causal to the next, a world-view called emanationism; "from the One proceeds Intellect, from Intellect Soul, and from Soul - in its lower phase, or that of Nature - the material universe".Often these bodies and their planes of existence are depicted as a series of concentric circles or nested spheres, with a separate body traversing each realm.[18] The idea of the astral figured prominently in the work of the nineteenth-century French occultist Eliphas Levi, whence it was adopted and developed further by Theosophy, and used afterwards by other esoteric movements.
Biblica
Some have claimed that the Bible contains mentions of astral projection.[weasel words]Carrington, Muldoon, Peterson, and Williams—renowned experts in the field of astral projection—claim that the subtle body is attached to the physical body by means of a psychic silver cord. The final chapter of the Book of Ecclesiastes is often cited in this respect: "Before the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be shattered at the fountain, or the wheel be broken at the cistern." Scherman, however, contends that the context points to this being merely a metaphor, comparing the body to a machine, with the silver cord referring to the spine
Paul's Second Epistle to the Corinthians is more generally agreed to refer to the astral planes; "I know a man in Christ, fourteen years ago, (whether in the body I know not, or out of the body I know not, God knows) such a one caught up to the third heaven..."This statement gave rise to the Visio Pauli, a tract that offers a vision of heaven and hell, a forerunner of visions attributed to Adomnan and Tnugdalus as well as of Dante's Divine Comedy.
Ancient Egypt
Similar concepts of soul travel appear in various other religious traditions. For example, ancient Egyptian teachings present the soul (ba) as having the ability to hover outside the physical body via the ka, or subtle body
China
Taoist alchemical practice involves creation of an energy body by breathing meditations, drawing energy into a 'pearl' that is then "circulated". "Xiangzi ... with a drum as his pillow fell fast asleep, snoring and motionless. His primordial spirit, however, went straight into the banquet room and said, "My lords, here I am again." ... When Tuizhi walked ... with the officials to take a look, there really was a Taoist sleeping on the ground and snoring like thunder. Yet inside, in the side room, there was another Taoist beating a fisher drum and singing Taoist songs. The officials all said, “Although there are two different people, their faces and clothes are exactly alike. Clearly he is a divine immortal who can divide his body and appear in several places at once. ..." ... At that moment, the Taoist in the side room came walking out, and the Taoist sleeping on the ground woke up. The two merged into one."
India
Similar ideas such as the Lin'ga S'ari-ra are found in ancient Hindu scriptures such as the YogaVashishta-Maharamayana of Valmiki. Modern Indians who have vouched for astral projection include Paramahansa Yogananda who witnessed Swami Pranabananda doing a miracle through a possible astral projection, and Osho (Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh) who practiced it himself.The Indian spiritual teacher Meher Baba described one's use of astral projection:In the advancing stages leading to the beginning of the path, the aspirant becomes spiritually prepared for being entrusted with free use of the forces of the inner world of the astral bodies. He may then undertake astral journeys in his astral body, leaving the physical body in sleep or wakefulness. The astral journeys that are taken unconsciously are much less important than those undertaken with full consciousness and as a result of deliberate volition. This implies conscious use of the astral body. Conscious separation of the astral body from the outer vehicle of the gross body has its own value in making the soul feel its distinction from the gross body and in arriving at fuller control of the gross body. One can, at will, put on and take off the external gross body as if it were a cloak, and use the astral body for experiencing the inner world of the astral and for undertaking journeys through it, if and when necessary....The ability to undertake astral journeys therefore involves considerable expansion of one’s scope for experience. It brings opportunities for promoting one’s own spiritual advancement, which begins with the involution of consciousness.Astral projection is one of the Siddhis considered achievable by yoga practitioners through self-disciplined practice. In the epic The Mahabharata Drona leaves his physical body to see if his son is alive.
Japan
The 'ikiryō' as illustrated by Toriyama Sekien.
In Japanese mythology, an ikiryō (生霊?) (also read shōryō, seirei, or ikisudama) is a manifestation of the soul of a living person separately from their body. Traditionally, if someone holds a sufficient grudge against another person, it is believed that a part or the whole of their soul can temporarily leave their body and appear before the target of their hate in order to curse or otherwise harm them, similar to an evil eye. Souls are also believed to leave a living body when the body is extremely sick or comatose; such ikiryō are not malevolent.[
Inuit In some Inuit groups, people with special capabilities are said to travel to (mythological) remote places, and report their experiences and things important to their fellows or the entire community; how to stop bad luck in hunting, cure a sick person etc., things unavailable to people with normal capabilities.
Amazon
The yaskomo of the Waiwai is believed to be able to perform a "soul flight" that can serve several functions such as healing, flying to the sky to consult cosmological beings (the moon or the brother of the moon) to get a name for a new-born baby, flying to the cave of peccaries' mountains to ask the father of peccaries for abundance of game or flying deep down in a river to get the help of other beings.
"Astral" and "etheric"
The expression "astral projection" came to be used in two different ways. For the Golden Dawn and some Theosophists[ it retained the classical and medieval philosophers' meaning of journeying to other worlds, heavens, hells, the astrological spheres and other imaginal landscapes, but outside these circles the term was increasingly applied to non-physical travel around the physical world.Though this usage continues to be widespread, the term, "etheric travel", used by some later Theosophists, offers a useful distinction. Some experients say they visit different times and/or places:"etheric", then, is used to represent the sense of being "out of the body" in the physical world, whereas "astral" may connote some alteration in time-perception. Robert Monroe describes the former type of projection as "Locale I" or the "Here-Now", involving people and places that actually exist: Robert Bruce calls it the "Real Time Zone" (RTZ) and describes it as the non-physical dimension-level closest to the physical. This etheric body is usually, though not always, invisible but is often perceived by the experient as connected to the physical body during separation by a “silver cord”. Some link "falling" dreams with projection.According to Max Heindel, the etheric "double" serves as a medium between the astral and physical realms. In his system the ether, also called prana, is the "vital force" that empowers the physical forms to change. From his descriptions it can be inferred that, to him, when one views the physical during an out-of-body experience, one is not technically "in" the astral realm at all.Other experients may describe a domain that has no parallel to any known physical setting. Environments may be populated or unpopulated, artificial, natural or abstract, and the experience may be beatific, horrific or neutral. A common Theosophical belief is that one may access a compendium of mystical knowledge called the Akashic records. In many accounts the experiencer correlates the astral world with the world of dreams. Some even report seeing other dreamers enacting dream scenarios unaware of their wider environment.The astral environment may also be divided into levels or sub-planes by theorists, but there are many different views in various traditions concerning the overall structure of the astral planes: they may include heavens and hells and other after-death spheres, transcendent environments, or other less-easily characterized states
Notable practitioners
Emanuel Swedenborg was one of the first practitioners to write extensively about the out-of-body experience, in his Spiritual Diary (1747–65). French philosopher and novelist Honoré de Balzac's fictional work "Louis Lambert" suggests he may have had some astral or out-of-body experience.
There are many twentieth century publications on astral projection,although only a few authors remain widely cited. These include Robert Monroe,Oliver Fox,Sylvan Muldoon, and Hereward Carrington,and Yram.Robert Monroe's accounts of journeys to other realms (1971–1994) popularized the term "OBE" and were translated into a large number of languages. Though his books themselves only placed secondary importance on descriptions of method, Monroe also founded an institute dedicated to research, exploration and non-profit dissemination of auditory technology for assisting others in achieving projection and related altered states of consciousness.Robert Bruce,William Buhlman, and Albert Taylor,have discussed their theories and findings on the syndicated show Coast to Coast AM several times. Michael Crichton gives lengthy and detailed explanations and experience of astral projection in his non-fiction book Travels.The soul's ability to leave the body at will or while sleeping and visit the various planes of heaven is also known as "soul travel". The practice is taught in Surat Shabd Yoga, where the experience is achieved mostly by meditation techniques and mantra repetition. All Sant Mat Gurus widely spoke about this kind of out of body experience, such as Kirpal Singh.Eckankar describes Soul Travel broadly as movement of the true, spiritual self (Soul) closer to the heart of God. While the contemplative may perceive the experience as travel, Soul itself is said not to move but to "come into an agreement with fixed states and conditions that already exist in some world of time and space".American Harold Klemp, the current Spiritual Leader of Eckankar practices and teaches Soul Travel, as did his predecessors, through contemplative techniques known as the Spiritual Exercises of ECK (Divine Spirit).
In occult traditions, practices range from inducing trance states to the mental construction of a second body, called the Body of Light in Aleister Crowley's writings, through visualization and controlled breathing, followed by the transfer of consciousness to the secondary body by a mental act of will.There is no known scientific evidence that astral projection as an objective phenomenon exists.There are cases of patients having experiences suggestive of astral projection from brain stimulation treatments and hallucinogenic drugs.Robert Todd Carroll writes that the main evidence to support claims of astral travel is anecdotal and comes "in the form of testimonials of those who claim to have experienced being out of their bodies when they may have been out of their minds."Subjects in parapsychological experiments have attempted to project their astral bodies to distant rooms and see what was happening. However, such experiments have produced negative results.According to Bob Bruce of the Queensland Skeptics Association, astral projection is "just imagining", or "a dream state". Although parallel universes are mathematically possible,Bruce writes that the existence of an astral plane is contrary to the limits of science. “We know how many possibilities there are for dimensions and we know what the dimensions do. None of it correlates with things like astral projection.” Bruce attributes astral experiences such as "meetings" alleged by practitioners to confirmation bias and coincidences.The psychologist Donovan Rawcliffe has written that astral projection can be explained by delusion, hallucination and vivid dreams.Arthur W. Wiggins, writing in Quantum Leaps in the Wrong Direction: Where Real Science Ends...and Pseudoscience Begins, said that purported evidence of the ability to astral travel great distances and give descriptions of places visited is predominantly anecdotal. In 1978, Ingo Swann provided a test of his alleged ability to astral travel to Jupiter and observe details of the planet. Actual findings and information were later compared to Swann's claimed observations; according to an evaluation by James Randi, Swann's accuracy was "unconvincing and unimpressive" with an overall score of 37 percent. Wiggins considers astral travel an illusion, and looks to neuroanatomy, human belief, imagination and prior knowledge to provide prosaic explanations for those claiming to experience it.A recent study, The AWARE Study, conducted by medical researcher Sam Parnia, was designed to get information on possible OBEs during cardiac arrest.
When we succeed in learning something we feel better, more confident in ourselves and our ability to tackle all sorts of new tasks.
Knowledge is power. ...
One of the most crucial reasons to learn something new is that you gain brain power when you do. You will improve your mental health.
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Here's how your brain and body benefit when you crack open a book.
Reading gives muscle to your memory, gives your workout more staying power, keeps your brain young, can melt away stress, boosts your vocabulary, improves empathy, can encourage life goals.
ODC - Learning Objects
I imagine the person who built this cairn needed some patience. Glad they succeeded and left it standing for others to enjoy!
"The cowboy Baronet" - Sir Genille Cave-Browne-Cave, 12th Baronet of Cave (1869-1929). My colorization of a 1911 Bain News Service photo in the Library of Congress archive. Sir Genille, who called himself "Harrison" when working as a cowboy in the U.S., was an adventurer (in the positive sense of the word). He returned to his home country after succeeding his father as the 12th Baronet of Cave in 1907.
The Esoteric Curiosa blog has re-published an article from 1909 on Sir Genille. Here are a few extracts from the article:
"It may seem odd that an English tenderfoot, a member of the English aristocracy at that, should go out to the Wild West and beat expert lariat throwers from Wyoming, Arizona, and Colorado, at their own game; yet, Sir Genille Cave-Browne-Cave did it, and his world’s record of 19 ½ seconds, made in 1907 for chasing, catching, roping, throwing and tying a steer, stands and probably will stand until a better cowboy is found.
But there is no mystery in Sir Genille to those who know him. He was born with the spirit of adventure in his blood. Had he lived in the Middle Ages he would have been one of the boldest of the Crusader Knights, as in fact was one of his ancestors. As it was, the roughest life of the British cavalry in Indian and African campaigns was too tame for him. Then he heard the call of the Wild American West. He led a life of reckless daring, among kindred spirits." --
"When the eleventh Baronet of Stretton Hall, Stretton-en-le-Field, Derbyshire died in 1907, it was said that his son had been killed in a duel in Arizona. A cousin of the young man, serving in the British navy, would have succeeded to the estate, but the Crown is slow to bestow titles. It was so in this case. Search was instituted on the plains and in the canyons of the far west. Cave-Browne-Cave was found on a ranch in Colorado. There was nothing in his appearance to indicate that he had ever seen a baronial hall. He had the manner and the apparel of a bronco buster. The red of the sundown land was in his face. The dust from the wake of the coyote was in his hair." --
"The homecoming of the wanderer to Stretton Hall, Stretton-en-le-Field, Derbyshire was an unhappy one. Stretton Hall estate is six miles out from the village of Ashby-de-la-Zouche, an old Norman settlement, and the big rambling house goes back to the early history of England. Sadly, the house had fallen into disuse. It had been neglected so long that a light could not have been seen through the window pane. The halls were empty. The hedges of the grounds were untrimmed. The grass about the doors was tangled so that a hare could not have made its way through it. The opening of a door or a gate created reverberating echoes. The effect was ghostly. The dust on the mirrors in the great carved frames was so thick that the prodigal could see no reflection of his face. All that was left of the estates were huge mortgages and an empty title. A romantic touch is added by the fact the secret passages exist, although now blocked up, connecting Stretton Hall with a water mill, a quarter of a mile away, on the river Mease." --
"Last August when the RMS Lucania was warped into her dock in New York a steerage passenger came ashore. He had traveled incognito. But some of the passengers said he had spent more money for beer for his fellow passengers than a first class cabin ticket would have cost. The steerage passenger wore a bangle bracelet on his wrist. He talked in the lingo of the ranch. When his identity became known it made no difference in his manner. He laughed when somebody called him m’lord. He said that his estate was scattered, and then he added, “I guess I am going home.”
He quickly tired of talking of his estates. He held up the wrist from which the bangle bracelet dangled. “It was put there by the sweetest little blossom that ever bloomed,” he said, with charming abandon. “She lives in Denver,” he continued. “She locked the bracelet there. I am going back west to her get. In two months we will be back in England.”
He had met “the blossom” at a cattle puncher’s contest at which prizes were offered. She admired his riding, and he heard of it. With true gallantry he sought the young woman’s brother and asked permission to meet the sister. To her he was just plain Mr. Cave. So far as she knew all that he possessed was the horse which he rode. The acquaintances ripened into the sort of affection which seems to be stronger under Western skies than it is elsewhere, for the reason, perhaps, that the people out there are more ardent in their manner than they are elsewhere. Not until after he had won his “blossom” did he tell her his history.
When the young Baronet sailed from New York for Liverpool he had $100 to his name and his favorite horse, “Blue Dog.” He showed his true nature when he sailed traveling in a fashion quite characteristic of him on board a cattle ship of the Atlantic Transport Company, actually serving as a cattleman, roughing it as he had done for many year in the past, and in order that he might look after his horse during the voyage.
The finale of the story is pitiful. On his return from England, while he was waiting to begin his journey to the west to claim his “western blossom,” he received a letter which had been sent to him in England and which had been forwarded to New York. The letter told of the death of his sweetheart, Miss May Harrington. While driving her automobile near Denver in company with her brother Robert, the machine slid at a sharp curve, struck a tree and overturned. Miss Harrington and her brother were killed. The young girl’s heart was pierced by an iron rod from the steering gear." --
"Thus, once a cowboy, always a cowboy, and while visiting Liverpool in 1908, the “Bronco Baronet”, met two of his cowboy chums, who were with Colonel Cummins’s Wild West Show at New Brighton, the Coney Island of Liverpool; who with Frank Small, the Tody Hamilton of England, persuaded him to put on once again the cowboy togs and ride a mustang in the arena.
“Just for a lark,” he did it, making his return appearance as a circus performer.
Sir Genille Cave-Browne-Cave, bart., whose exploits were heralded across the Continent over the course of 1907-08, has now become a showman in England. After the Wild West entertainment of Colonel Cummins’s went out of business at New Brighton last fall, Sir Genille engaged some of the cowboy talent, girl riders, Indians and ponies and organized a “wild” venture of his own. It opened at the Hippodrome in London last December and to say the least, it was a “hit” from the send-off. Currently, it is keeping the pace at the Imperial exhibition. After its run is over at the Imperial, Sir Genille expects to tour the provinces with his exhibition. Then, if all goes according to his expectations he will bring the venture to America. He hopes to attain such success as will enable him to restore Stretton Hall to its former glory and rescue his ancestral estates from creditors."
(theesotericcuriosa.blogspot.com/.../bronco-buster...)
I have not found any information about whether Sir Genille was able to restore Stretton Hall to its former glory. Probably he was not able to do it, because after use in WWII to billet soldiers and house Italian prisoners of war, Stretton Hall was demolished in 1945, Sir Genille himself chose a less adventurous lifestyle - he became the Rector at the Alls Saints Church in Londesborough, Yorkshire.
Joshua to Succeed Moses
Then Moses went out and spoke these words to all Israel: “I am now a hundred and twenty years old and I am no longer able to lead you. The Lord has said to me, ‘You shall not cross the Jordan.’ The Lord your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua also will cross over ahead of you, as the Lord said. And the Lord will do to them what he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, whom he destroyed along with their land. The Lord will deliver them to you, and you must do to them all that I have commanded you. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the Lord swore to their ancestors to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance. The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”
[Deuteronomy 31:1-8 NIV]
5 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW:
1. Like it or not, we are ALL sinners: As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous—not even one. No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.” (Romans 3:10-12 NLT)
2. The punishment for sin is death: When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. (Romans 5:12 NLT)
3. Jesus is our only hope: But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. (Romans 5:8 NLT) For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23 NLT)
4. SALVATION is by GRACE through FAITH in JESUS: God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. (Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT)
5. Accept Jesus and receive eternal life: If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9 NLT) But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. (John 1:12 NLT) And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life. (1 John 5:11-12 NLT)
Read the Bible for yourself. Allow the Lord to speak to you through his Word. YOUR ETERNITY IS AT STAKE!
Pontefract (or Pomfret) Castle is a castle ruin in the town of Pontefract, in West Yorkshire, England. King Richard II is thought to have died there. It was the site of a series of famous sieges during the 17th-century English Civil War.
The castle, on a rock to the east of the town above All Saints' Church, was constructed in approximately 1070 by Ilbert de Lacy on land which had been granted to him by William the Conqueror as a reward for his support during the Norman Conquest. There is, however, evidence of earlier occupation of the site. Initially the castle was a wooden structure which was replaced with stone over time. The Domesday Survey of 1086 recorded "Ilbert's Castle" which probably referred to Pontefract Castle.
Robert de Lacy failed to support King Henry I during his power struggle with his brother, and the King confiscated the castle from the family during the 12th century. Roger de Lacy paid King Richard I 3,000 marks for the Honour of Pontefract, but the King retained possession of the castle. His successor King John gave de Lacy the castle in 1199, the year John ascended the throne. Roger died in 1213 and was succeeded by his eldest son, John. However, the King took possession of Castle Donington and Pontefract Castle. The de Lacys lived in the castle until the early 14th century. It was under the tenure of the de Lacys that the magnificent multilobate donjon was built.
In 1311 the castle passed by marriage to the estates of the House of Lancaster. Thomas, Earl of Lancaster (circa 1278–1322) was beheaded outside the castle walls six days after his defeat at the Battle of Boroughbridge, a sentence placed on him by King Edward II himself in the great hall. This resulted in the earl becoming a martyr with his tomb at Pontefract Priory becoming a shrine. It next went to Henry, Duke of Lancaster and subsequently to John of Gaunt, third son of King Edward III. He made the castle his personal residence, spending vast amounts of money improving it.
In the closing years of the 14th century, Richard II banished John of Gaunt’s son Henry Bolingbroke, Duke of Hereford, from England. Following the death of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, in 1399, Richard II seized much of the property due to Bolingbroke. Richard then shared some of the seized property around among his favourites. The castle at Pontefract was among such properties which was under threat. These events aroused Bolingbroke to return to England to claim his rights to the Duchy of Lancaster and the properties of his father. Shakespeare's play Richard II (Act 2, scene 1, 277) relates Bolingbroke’s homecoming in the words of Northumberland in the speech of the eight tall ships:-
NORTHUMBERLAND
Then thus: I have from Port Le Blanc,
A bay in Brittany, receiv’d intelligence,
That Harry Duke of Herford, Rainold Lord Cobham,
Thomas, son and heir to th’ Earl of Arundel,
That late broke from the Duke of Exeter,
His brother, Archbishop late of Canterbury,
Sir Thomas Erpingham, Sir John Ramston,
Sir John Norbery, Sir Robert Waterton, and Francis Quoint—
All these, well furnished by the Duke of Brittany
With eight tall ships, three thousand men of war,
Are making hither with all due expedience,
And shortly mean to touch our northern shore
When Bolingbroke landed at Ravenspur on the Humber, he made straight way for his castle at Pontefract. King Richard II, being in Ireland at the time, was in no position to oppose Bolingbroke. Bolingbroke soon deposed Richard and took the crown for himself as Henry IV.
Richard II was captured by Henry Bolingbroke's supporters in August 1399 and was initially imprisoned in the Tower of London. Sometime before Christmas that year he was moved to Pontefract Castle (via Knaresborough) where he remained under guard until his death, perhaps on 14 February 1400. William Shakespeare's play Richard III mentions this incident:
Pomfret, Pomfret! O thou bloody prison,
Fatal and ominous to noble peers!
Within the guilty closure of thy walls
Richard the second here was hack'd to death;
And, for more slander to thy dismal seat,
We give thee up our guiltless blood to drink.
Various chroniclers suggest that Richard was starved to death by his captors, and others suggest he starved himself. A contemporary French chronicler suggested that Richard II had been hacked to death, but this is, according to the ODNB, "almost certainly fictitious"
Richard III had two relatives of Elizabeth Woodville beheaded at Pontefract Castle on 25 June 1483 – her son, Sir Richard Grey, and her brother, Anthony Woodville, 2nd Earl Rivers.
n 1536, the castle's guardian, Thomas Darcy, 1st Baron Darcy de Darcy handed over the castle to the leaders of the Pilgrimage of Grace, a Catholic rebellion from northern England against the rule of King Henry VIII. Lord Darcy was executed for this alleged "surrender", which the king viewed as an act of treason.
In 1541, during a royal tour of the provinces, it was alleged that King Henry's fifth wife, Queen Catherine Howard, committed her first act of adultery with Sir Thomas Culpeper at Pontefract Castle, a crime for which she was apprehended and executed without trial. Mary, Queen of Scots was lodged at the castle on 28 January 1569, travelling between Wetherby and Rotherham.
On his way south to London, King James rode from Grimston Park to view Pontefract Castle on 19 April 1603 and stayed the night at the Bear Inn at Doncaster. The castle was included in English jointure property of his wife, Anne of Denmark.
Royalists controlled Pontefract Castle at the start of the English Civil War. The first of three sieges began in December 1644 and continued until the following March when Marmaduke Langdale, 1st Baron Langdale of Holme arrived with Royalist reinforcements and the Parliamentarian army retreated. During the siege, mining and artillery caused damage and the Piper Tower collapsed as a result. The second siege began on 21 March 1645, shortly after the end of the first siege, and the garrison surrendered in July after hearing the news of Charles I's defeat at the Battle of Naseby. Parliament garrisoned the castle until June 1648 when Royalists sneaked into the castle and took control. Pontefract Castle was an important base for the Royalists, and raiding parties harried Parliamentarians in the area.
Oliver Cromwell led the final siege of Pontefract Castle in November 1648. Charles I was executed in January, and Pontefract's garrison came to an agreement and Colonel Morrice handed over the castle to Major General John Lambert on 24 March 1649. Following requests from the townspeople, the grand jury at York, and Major General Lambert, on 27 March Parliament gave orders that Pontefract Castle should be "totally demolished & levelled to the ground" and materials from the castle would be sold off. Piecemeal dismantling after the main organised activity of slighting may have further contributed to the castle's ruined state.
It is still possible to visit the castle's 11th-century cellars, which were used to store military equipment during the civil war.
Little survives of what "must have been one of the most impressive castles in Yorkshire" other than parts of the curtain wall and excavated and tidied inner walls. It had inner and outer baileys. Parts of a 12th-century wall and the Piper Tower's postern gate and the foundations of a chapel are the oldest remains. The ruins of the Round Tower or keep are on the 11th-century mound. The Great Gate flanked by 14th-century semi-circular towers had inner and outer barbicans. Chambers excavated into the rock in the inner bailey possibly indicate the site of the old hall and the North Bailey gate is marked by the remains of a rectangular tower.
The castle has several unusual features. The donjon has a rare Quatrefoil design. Other examples of this type of Keep are Clifford's Tower, York and at the Château d'Étampes in France. Pontefract also has an torre albarrana, a fortification almost unknown outside the Iberian Peninsula. Known as the Swillington Tower, the detached tower was attached to the north wall by a bridge. Its purpose was to increase the defender's range of flanking fire.
Wakefield Council, who manage the site, commissioned William Anelay Ltd to begin repairs on the castle in September 2015, but work stopped in November 2016 when Anelay went into administration. The Council then engaged Heritage Building & Conservation (North) Ltd, who began work on the site in March 2017. A new visitor centre and cafe were opened in July 2017; but in April 2018 the council announced that they had terminated the contract with HB&C (North) Ltd, as no work had been done since mid-March, and they had not had any reassurances that the work would restart. On Yorkshire Day 2019, the restoration was completed, and the castle was removed from Historic England's "Heritage At Risk" list.