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The Khajuraho Group of Monuments is a group of Hindu and Jain temples in Madhya Pradesh, India, about 175 kilometres southeast of Jhansi. They are one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India. The temples are famous for their nagara-style architectural symbolism and their erotic sculptures.
Most Khajuraho temples were built between 950 and 1050 by the Chandela dynasty. Historical records note that the Khajuraho temple site had 85 temples by 12th century, spread over 20 square kilometers. Of these, only about 20 temples have survived, spread over 6 square kilometers. Of the various surviving temples, the Kandariya Mahadeva Temple is decorated with a profusion of sculptures with intricate details, symbolism and expressiveness of ancient Indian art.
The Khajuraho group of temples were built together but were dedicated to two religions - namely Hinduism and Jainism - suggesting a tradition of acceptance and respect for diverse religious views among Hindus and Jains.
LOCATION
Khajuraho group of monuments are located in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, in Chhatarpur district, about 620 kilometres southeast of New Delhi. The temples are in a small town also known as Khajuraho, with a population of about 20,000 people (2001 Census).
Khajuraho is served by Civil Aerodrome Khajuraho (IATA Code: HJR), with services to Delhi, Agra, Varanasi and Mumbai. The site is also linked by Indian Railways service, with the railway station located approximately six kilometres from the monuments entrance.
The monuments are about 10 kilometres off the east-west National Highway 75, and about 50 kilometres from the city of Chhatarpur, that is connected to Bhopal - the state capital - by the SW-NE running National Highway 86.
HISTORY
The Khajuraho group of monuments was built during the rule of the Rajput Chandela dynasty. The building activity started almost immediately after the rise of their power, throughout their kingdom to be later known as Bundelkhand. Most temples were built during the reigns of the Hindu kings Yashovarman and Dhanga. Yashovarman's legacy is best exhibited by Lakshmana temple. Vishvanatha temple best highlights King Dhanga's reign. The largest and currently most famous surviving temple is Kandariya Mahadeva built in the reign of King Ganda from 1017-1029 CE. The temple inscriptions suggest many of the currently surviving temples were complete between 970 to 1030 CE, with further temples completed during the following decades.
The Khajuraho temples were built about 35 miles from the medieval city of Mahoba, the capital of the Chandela dynasty, in the Kalinjar region. In ancient and medieval literature, their kingdom has been referred to as Jijhoti, Jejahoti, Chih-chi-to and Jejakabhukti.
Khajuraho was mentioned by Abu Rihan-al-Biruni, the Persian historian who accompanied Mahmud of Ghazni in his raid of Kalinjar in 1022 CE; he mentions Khajuraho as the capital of Jajahuti. The raid was unsuccessful, and a peace accord was reached when the Hindu king agreed to pay a ransom to Mahmud of Ghazni to end the attack and leave.
Khajuraho temples were in active use through the end of 12th century. This changed in the 13th century, after the army of Delhi Sultanate, under the command of the Muslim Sultan Qutb-ud-din Aibak, attacked and seized the Chandela kingdom. About a century later, Ibn Battuta, the Moroccan traveller in his memoirs about his stay in India from 1335 to 1342 CE, mentioned visiting Khajuraho temples, calling them “Kajarra” as follows:
...near (Khajuraho) temples, which contain idols that have been mutilated by the Moslems, live a number of yogis whose matted locks have grown as long as their bodies. And on account of extreme asceticism they are all yellow in colour. Many Moslems attend these men in order to take lessons (yoga) from them.
— Ibn Battuta, about 1335 CE, Riḥlat Ibn Baṭūṭah, Translated by Arthur Cotterell
Central Indian region, where Khajuraho temples are, remained in the control of many different Muslim dynasties from 13th century through the 18th century. In this period, some temples were desecrated, followed by a long period when they were left in neglect. In 1495 CE, for example, Sikandar Lodi’s campaign of temple destruction included Khajuraho. The remoteness and isolation of Khajuraho protected the Hindu and Jain temples from continued destruction by Muslims. Over the centuries, vegetation and forests overgrew, took over the temples.
In the 1830s, local Hindus guided a British surveyor, T.S. Burt, to the temples and they were thus rediscovered by the global audience. Alexander Cunningham later reported, few years after the rediscovery, that the temples were secretly in use by yogis and thousands of Hindus would arrive for pilgrimage during Shivaratri celebrated annually in February or March based on a lunar calendar. In 1852, Maisey prepared earliest drawings of the Khajuraho temples.
NOMENCLATURE
The name Khajuraho, or Kharjuravāhaka, is derived from ancient Sanskrit (kharjura, खर्जूर means date palm, and vāhaka, वाहक means "one who carries" or bearer). Local legends state that the temples had two golden date-palm trees as their gate (missing when they were rediscovered). Desai states that Kharjuravāhaka also means scorpion bearer, which is another symbolic name for deity Shiva (who wears snakes and scorpion garlands in his fierce form).
Cunningham’s nomenclature and systematic documentation work in 1850s and 1860s have been widely adopted and continue to be in use. He grouped the temples into the Western group around Lakshmana, Eastern group around Javeri, and Southern group around Duladeva.
Khajuraho is one of the four holy sites linked to deity Shiva (the other three are Kedarnath, Kashi and Gaya). Its origin and design is a subject of scholarly studies. Shobita Punja has proposed that the temple’s origin reflect the Hindu mythology in which Khajuraho is the place where Shiva got married; with Raghuvamsha verse 5.53, Matangeshvara honoring ‘’Matanga’’, or god of love.
DESCRIPTION
The temple site is within Vindhya mountain range in central India. An ancient local legend held that Hindu deity Shiva and other gods enjoyed visiting the dramatic hill formation in Kalinjar area. The center of this region is Khajuraho, set midst local hills and rivers. The temple complex reflects the ancient Hindu tradition of building temples where gods love to play.
The temples are clustered near water, another typical feature of Hindu temples. The current water bodies include Sib Sagar, Khajur Sagar (also called Ninora Tal) and Khudar Nadi (river). The local legends state that the temple complex had 64 water bodies, of which 56 have been physically identified by archeologists so far.
All temples, except one (Chaturbhuja) face sunrise - another symbolic feature that is predominant in Hindu temples. The relative layout of temples integrate masculine and feminine deities and symbols highlight the interdependence. The art work symbolically highlight the four goals of life considered necessary and proper in Hinduism - dharma, kama, artha and moksha.
Of the surviving temples, 6 are dedicated to Shiva and his consorts, 8 to Vishnu and his affinities, 1 to Ganesha, 1 to Sun god, 3 to Jain Tirthanks. For some ruins, there is insufficient evidence to assign the temple to specific deities with confidence.
An overall examination of site suggests that the Hindu symbolic mandala design principle of square and circles is present each temple plan and design. Further, the territory is laid out in three triangles that converge to form a pentagon. Scholars suggest that this reflects the Hindu symbolism for three realms or trilokinatha, and five cosmic substances or panchbhuteshvara. The temple site highlights Shiva, the one who destroys and recycles life, thereby controlling the cosmic dance of time, evolution and dissolution. The temples have a rich display of intricately carved statues. While they are famous for their erotic sculpture, sexual themes cover less than 10% of the temple sculpture. Further, most erotic scene panels are neither prominent nor emphasized at the expense of the rest, rather they are in proportional balance with the non-sexual images. The viewer has to look closely to find them, or be directed by a guide. The arts cover numerous aspects of human life and values considered important in Hindu pantheon. Further, the images are arranged in a configuration to express central ideas of Hinduism. All three ideas from Āgamas are richly expressed in Khajuraho temples - Avyakta, Vyaktavyakta and Vyakta.
The Beejamandal temple is under excavation. It has been identified with the Vaidyanath temple mentioned in the Grahpati Kokalla inscription.
Of all temples, the Matangeshvara temple remains an active site of worship. It is another square grid temple, with a large 2.5 metres high and 1.1 metres diameter lingam, placed on a 7.6 metres diameter platform.
The most visited temple, Kandariya Mahadev, has an area of about 6,500 square feet and a shikhara (spire) that rises 116 feet. Jain templesThe Jain temples are located on east-southeast region of Khajuraho monuments. Chausath jogini temple features 64 jogini, while Ghantai temple features bells sculptured on its pillars.
ARCHITECTURE OF THE TEMPLES
Khajuraho temples, like almost all Hindu temple designs, follow a grid geometrical design called vastu-purusha-mandala. This design plan has three important components - Mandala means circle, Purusha is universal essence at the core of Hindu tradition, while Vastu means the dwelling structure.
The design lays out a Hindu temple in a symmetrical, concentrically layered, self-repeating structure around the core of the temple called garbhagriya, where the abstract principle Purusha and the primary deity of the temple dwell. The shikhara, or spire, of the temple rises above the garbhagriya. This symmetry and structure in design is derived from central beliefs, myths, cardinality and mathematical principles.
The circle of mandala circumscribe the square. The square is considered divine for its perfection and as a symbolic product of knowledge and human thought, while circle is considered earthly, human and observed in everyday life (moon, sun, horizon, water drop, rainbow). Each supports the other. The square is divided into perfect 64 sub-squares called padas.
Most Khajuraho temples deploy the 8x8 padas grid Manduka Vastupurushamandala, with pitha mandala the square grid incorporated in the design of the spires. The primary deity or lingas are located in the grid’s Brahma padas.
The architecture is symbolic and reflects the central Hindu beliefs through its form, structure and arrangement of its parts. The mandapas as well as the arts are arranged in the Khajuraho temples in a symmetric repeating patterns, even though each image or sculpture is distinctive in its own way. The relative placement of the images are not random but together they express ideas, just like connected words form sentences and paragraphs to compose ideas. This fractal pattern that is common in Hindu temples. Various statues and panels have inscriptions. Many of the inscriptions on the temple walls are poems with double meanings, something that the complex structure of Sanskrit allows in creative compositions. All Khajuraho temples, except one, face sunrise, and the entrance for the devotee is this east side.Above the vastu-purusha-mandala of each temple is a superstructure with a dome called Shikhara (or Vimana, Spire). Variations in spire design come from variation in degrees turned for the squares. The temple Shikhara, in some literature, is linked to mount Kailash or Meru, the mythical abode of the gods.In each temple, the central space typically is surrounded by an ambulatory for the pilgrim to walk around and ritually circumambulate the Purusa and the main deity. The pillars, walls and ceilings around the space, as well as outside have highly ornate carvings or images of the four just and necessary pursuits of life - kama, artha, dharma and moksa. This clockwise walk around is called pradakshina. Larger Khajuraho temples also have pillared halls called mandapa. One near the entrance, on the east side, serves as the waiting room for pilgrims and devotees. The mandapas are also arranged by principles of symmetry, grids and mathematical precision. This use of same underlying architectural principle is common in Hindu temples found all over India. Each Khajuraho temple is distinctly carved yet also repeating the central common principles in almost all Hindu temples, one which Susan Lewandowski refers to as “an organism of repeating cells”.
CONSTRUCTION
The temples are grouped into three geographical divisions: western, eastern and southern.
The Khajuraho temples are made of sandstone, with a granite foundation that is almost concealed from view. The builders didn't use mortar: the stones were put together with mortise and tenon joints and they were held in place by gravity. This form of construction requires very precise joints. The columns and architraves were built with megaliths that weighed up to 20 tons. Some repair work in the 19th Century was done with brick and mortar; however these have aged faster than original materials and darkened with time, thereby seeming out of place.
The Khajuraho and Kalinjar region is home to superior quality of sandstone, which can be precision carved. The surviving sculpture reflect fine details such as strands of hair, manicured nails and intricate jewelry.
While recording the television show Lost Worlds (History Channel) at Khajuraho, Alex Evans recreated a stone sculpture under 4 feet that took about 60 days to carve in an attempt to develop a rough idea how much work must have been involved. Roger Hopkins and Mark Lehner also conducted experiments to quarry limestone which took 12 quarrymen 22 days to quarry about 400 tons of stone. They concluded that these temples would have required hundreds of highly trained sculptors.
CHRONOLOGY
The Khajuraho group of temples belong to Vaishnavism school of Hinduism, Saivism school of Hinduism and Jainism - nearly a third each. Archaeological studies suggest all three types of temples were under construction at about the same time in late 10th century, and in use simultaneously. Will Durant states that this aspect of Khajuraho temples illustrates the tolerance and respect for different religious viewpoints in the Hindu and Jain traditions. In each group of Khajuraho temples, there were major temples surrounded by smaller temples - a grid style that is observed to varying degrees in Hindu temples in Angkor Wat, Parambaran and South India.
The largest surviving Saiva temple is Khandarya Mahadeva, while the largest surviving Vaishnava group includes Chaturbhuja and Ramachandra.
Kandariya Mahadeva Temple plan is 109 ft in length by 60 ft, and rises 116 ft above ground and 88 ft above its own floor. The central padas are surrounded by three rows of sculptured figures, with over 870 statues, most being half life size (2.5 to 3 feet). The spire is a self repeating fractal structure.
ARTS AND SCULPTURE
The Khajuraho temples feature a variety of art work, of which 10% is sexual or erotic art outside and inside the temples. Some of the temples that have two layers of walls have small erotic carvings on the outside of the inner wall. Some scholars suggest these to be tantric sexual practices. Other scholars state that the erotic arts are part of Hindu tradition of treating kama as an essential and proper part of human life, and its symbolic or explicit display is common in Hindu temples. James McConnachie, in his history of the Kamasutra, describes the sexual-themed Khajuraho sculptures as "the apogee of erotic art": "Twisting, broad-hipped and high breasted nymphs display their generously contoured and bejewelled bodies on exquisitely worked exterior wall panels. These fleshy apsaras run riot across the surface of the stone, putting on make-up, washing their hair, playing games, dancing, and endlessly knotting and unknotting their girdles....Beside the heavenly nymphs are serried ranks of griffins, guardian deities and, most notoriously, extravagantly interlocked maithunas, or lovemaking couples."
The temples have several thousand statues and art works, with Kandarya Mahadeva Temple alone decorated with over 870. Some 10% of these iconographic carvings contain sexual themes and various sexual poses. A common misconception is that, since the old structures with carvings in Khajuraho are temples, the carvings depict sex between deities; however the kama arts represent diverse sexual expressions of different human beings. The vast majority of arts depict various aspects the everyday life, mythical stories as well as symbolic display of various secular and spiritual values important in Hindu tradition. For example, depictions show women putting on makeup, musicians making music, potters, farmers, and other folks in their daily life during the medieval era. These scenes are in the outer padas as is typical in Hindu temples.
There is iconographic symbolism embedded in the arts displayed in Khajuraho temples. Core Hindu values are expressed in multitude of ways. Even the Kama scenes, when seen in combination of sculptures that precede and follow, depict the spiritual themes such as moksha. In the words of Stella Kramrisch,
This state which is “like a man and woman in close embrace” is a symbol of moksa, final release or reunion of two principles, the essence (Purusha) and the nature (Prakriti).
— Stella Kramrisch, 1976
The Khajuraho temples represent one expression of many forms of arts that flourished in Rajput kingdoms of India from 8th through 10th century CE. For example, contemporary with Khajuraho were the publications of poems and drama such as Prabodhacandrodaya, Karpuramanjari, Viddhasalabhanjika and Kavyamimansa. Some of the themes expressed in these literary works are carved as sculpture in Khajuraho temples. Some sculptures at the Khajuraho monuments dedicated to Vishnu include the Vyalas, which are hybrid imaginary animals with lions body, and are found in other Indian temples. Some of these hybrid mythical art work include Vrik Vyala (hybrid of wolf and lion) and Gaja Vyala (hybrid of elephant and lion). These Vyalas may represent syncretic, creative combination of powers innate in the two.
TEMPLE NAME - DEITY - YEAR COMPLETED
Chausath Yogini - Devi, 64 Yoginis - 885
Brahma - Vishnu - 925
Lalgun Mahadev - Shiva - 900
Matangeshwar - Shiva - 1000
Varaha - Vishnu - 950
Lakshmana - Vaikuntha Vishnu - 939
Parshvanath - Parshvanath - 954
Visvanatha - Shiva - 999
Devi Jagadambi - Devi, Parvati - 1023
Chitragupta - Sun, Chitragupta - 1023
Kandariya Mahadeva - Shiva - 1029
Vamana - Vamana - 1062
Adinath Jain Temple - Rishabha - 1027
Javeri - Vishnu - 1090
Chaturbhuja - Vishnu - 1110
Duladeo (Duladeva) - Shiva - 1125
Ghantai - Jain Tirthankara - 960
Vishnu-Garuda - Vishnu - 1000
Ganesha - Shiva - 1000
Hanuman - Hanuman - 922
Mahishasuramardini - Devi - 995
Karel Appel (Amsterdam, April 25, 1921 - Zurich, May 4, 2006) - Tête de soleil (1961) - oil on canvas 120,5X 140,5 cm - GAM Gallery of Modern Art of Turin
Il sentimento dominante nell'opera di Appel è quello della tragicità dell'esistenza, che egli ha riversato nella pittura fin dal tempo della partecipazione alle attività dei gruppo Cobra (1948-1951). Le presenze antropomorfe, che in altri artisti del gruppo assumono la sembianza ieratica di totem, nei suoi dipinti appaiono invece scosse da un movimento deformante, coinvolte in un processo di metamorfosi di ascendenza espressionistica. Il colore, caricato della medesima violenza, costruisce le figure senza passare attraverso schemi formali precisi, spesso avvicinandosi, come nel caso di quest'opera, ad una densità materica vicina a quella degli Informali.
The dominant feeling in Appel's work is that of the tragedy of existence, which he poured into painting from the time of his participation in the activities of the Cobra group (1948-1951). The anthropomorphic presences, which in other artists of the group assume the hieratic semblance of totems, in his paintings appear instead shaken by a deforming movement, involved in a process of metamorphosis of expressionistic ancestry. The color, charged with the same violence, builds the figures without passing through precise formal patterns, often approaching, as in the case of this work, a material density close to that of the Informals.
RM 1217 at Seven Sisters on 27 December 1980. The precise location is the Broad Lane crew changeover point for westbound 41`s and it looks to be an unattended bus awaiting a crew.
A location I knew well from my time as a conductor on the 41`s a few years before this picture was taken. Around 5pm there was a shift change at the huge Gestetner factory nearby. The exodus from which could fill a bus at the previous stop and many of the workers knew to avoid a certain running number around that time as it would be a crew change bus. The next bus was scheduled so close behind that they knew it would almost certainly overtake the previous one!
The milk float was once such a familiar sight all over the UK but they seemed to just disappear in a way that nobody noticed so catching one on film recalls a bit of social history. Improbable really that they hung on well into the supermarket age offering just a few products that could be so easily picked up along with other shopping. Their demise was inevitable.
I have loaded this photograph for two resons: first it is Park's of Hamilton 40th anniversary and second, there are not that many photos on flickr showing the shorten Y series for 8-metre (to be precise 8.2-metre) bodywork. Now for the history lesson: Bedford was once one of the major players in the bus, coach and truck industry, producing vehicles at not only a rapid rate, but in guises to suit all applications. That's a bit of a corny line, agreed, but nevertheless true. The Bedford Y series mid-engined single-deck bus/coach chassis range was launched in September 1970, with the YRQ. At first the YRQ was powered by the Bedford 466 cu in engine mated to a Turner gearbox. In 1974, the Turner box was replaced with a Eaton box shared with the YRT. In the autumn of 1975 the Y series was up-graded with the new Bedford 500 engine, thus the YRQ became the YLQ and the YRT became the YMT. Towards the end of the seventies, Bedford offered a shorten version of the YLQ for 8-metre bodywork. This conversion was carried out by Tricentrol Chassis Developments of Dunstable, who was also a dealer and operator. During the latter part of 1980 Bedford launched the YNT, which was powered by the Blue Series turbocharged engine. The YLQ and YMT had the option of a de-rated version of the Blue Series engine, with a none-turbo version as standard, thus the YLQ, became the YMQ. Then in 1982, with the introduction of the VIN identification for vehicles, Bedford could no longer use the letter Q, thus the YMQ, became the YMP. A year later both the YMP and YMT both used the Blue Series engine as standard, rated at 175bhp. During 1985, Bedford built 20 shorten YMPs in-house, which replaced the Tricentrol conversions. During 1971, a 21 year old Scot, called Douglas Park, took over his Farther's coach company- Park's Thistle Coaches, which was founded in 1949. The new company was named Park's of Hamlton, with their famous black livery , which was carried over from Park's Thistle Coaches. The fleet was a mixture of Bedfords and Fords. Park's purchased their first Volvo B58 coaches in 1973. During the rst of the seventies, a mixture of heavyweight and lightweight coaches would be purchased each year: AEC, Bristol, Ford, Leyland and Volvo. During the early part of 1987, Park's purchased three Plaxton Paramount 3200 bodied shorten YMPs, these were the last Bedfords purchased by Park's of Hamilton. I understand that they were bought for use on the Irish tours under contract to Contiki. I caught up with two out of the three Park's short YMPs in April 1988. The location is Lowther Street in Carlisle, the Border City. These 8-metre midi-coaches (C35F) had 175bhp on tap, so would be very nippy to drive. These three Park's YMPs were part of the 20 shorten YMP chassis converted in-house by Bedford. I have just found a copy of Coaching Journal and Bus Review dated August 1974, which features a road-test of a Panorama Elite III YRQ. The vehicle was fitted with the option of a two speed rear axle at a extra cost of £147, the total cost of the coach was £10,275. At the end of the 108 mile test, the coach had returned 12.4mpg.
We are staying north of the border today, in Portstewart to be precise. Having had a good look at the photo I am struck by the three hard working (is that the correct word?) men on the middle pier, they seem to be very relaxed and laid back. I am expecting a very precise date range for this photo.
Among the commetary, insights and dating suggestions for this image is confirmation (from the StreetView provided by B-59) that the buildings in the middle of this image have been replaced or otherwise unrecognisable. Thankfully the buildings on the left of Harbour Place and the right of the Promenade remain. One of the other main takeaways from today is how excited we all are for tomorrow's launch of the Photo Detectives exhibition One more sleep indeed :)
Photographer: Robert French
Collection: Lawrence Photograph Collection
Date: Catalogue range c.1880-1900
NLI Ref: L_ROY_05579
You can also view this image, and many thousands of others, on the NLI’s catalogue at catalogue.nli.ie
PACIFIC OCEAN (Aug. 12, 2021) An MH-60S Sea Hawk, assigned to the “Black Knights” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 4, takes off from the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70). Vinson is participating in Large-Scale Exercise (LSE) 2021, globally integrated training that demonstrates the Navy’s ability to deploy precise, lethal, and overwhelming force across three naval component commands, five numbered fleets, and 17 time zones. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Megan Alexander)
Friendship
We cannot tell the precise moment when friendship is formed. As in filling a vessel drop by drop, there is at last a drop which makes it run over; so in a series of kindnesses there is at last one which makes the heart run over.
—Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451
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Bessacarr meeting venue and confirm precise address details, use the interactive map on the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church UK “Our Locations” page.
Typical Weekly Service Times
Gospel preaching – Sunday at 17:15
Bible meeting – Tuesday at 19:15
The PBCC is a global Christian community of just over 55,000 members, founded around 200 years ago by John Nelson Darby. Members live in ordinary homes across Australia, New Zealand, Europe, the Americas and the Caribbean, running businesses, volunteering locally, and contributing to their neighbourhood economies
ESA’s ultra-precise deep-space navigation technique – Delta-DOR – tells us where spacecraft are, accurate to within a few hundred metres, even at a distance of 100 000 000 km.
In order to navigate a spacecraft around our Solar System we have to know how far away it is, how fast it is travelling and in what direction. Each of these steps are explained in this new infographic, "How not to lose a spacecraft".
Credits: ESA
Buddy seems to be a very German male red squirrel. It appears she is checking if that branch has grown vertically plumb and horizontal 😂 (Squirrels-2019-9155.jpg)
A precise arrangement of copper-toned industrial fasteners, showcasing the geometric beauty of hexagonal nuts and threaded bolts with a shallow depth of field. Captured in Montreal, Quebec.
The Lord Nelson bar to be precise, although, as a young school leaver, I harboured aspirations to enter the legal profession, either that or journalism.
Alas, a lack of O Levels and the equal lack of inclination to re-sit exams, ensured those two avenues were closed off forever.
A quick glance at today’s weary condition of those two professions fills me with relief that things turned out the way they did.
Print has kept me gainfully employed for all but 6 months of my working life and although it wasn’t the road to riches it proved sufficient for me to raise four kids and pay my way without resort to ‘benefits’.
None of which bears any relevance to the pic...apart from the fact my modest income allows for a weekly, relaxing tour of a couple of city bars.
My Chromascope Quilt pattern cover. 50" x 60" Play with scraps, experiment with color placements, and create precise points with this design, pieced with a single foundation template. Pattern in my Etsy shop (teaginnydesigns.etsy.com). Link from my blog, see profile page.
New images of Saturn from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope herald the start of the planet's "spoke season" surrounding its equinox, when enigmatic features appear across its rings. The cause of the spokes, as well as their seasonal variability, has yet to be fully explained by planetary scientists.
Like Earth, Saturn is tilted on its axis and therefore has four seasons, though because of Saturn's much larger orbit, each season lasts approximately seven Earth years. Equinox occurs when the rings are tilted edge-on to the Sun. The spokes disappear when it is near summer or winter solstice on Saturn. (When the Sun appears to reach either its highest or lowest latitude in the northern or southern hemisphere of a planet.) As the autumnal equinox of Saturn's northern hemisphere on May 6, 2025, draws near, the spokes are expected to become increasingly prominent and observable.
The suspected culprit for the spokes is the planet's variable magnetic field. Planetary magnetic fields interact with the solar wind, creating an electrically charged environment (on Earth, when those charged particles hit the atmosphere this is visible in the northern hemisphere as the aurora borealis, or northern lights). Scientists think that the smallest, dust-sized icy ring particles can become charged as well, which temporarily levitates those particles above the rest of the larger icy particles and boulders in the rings.
The ring spokes were first observed by NASA's Voyager mission in the early 1980s. The transient, mysterious features can appear dark or light depending on the illumination and viewing angles.
"Thanks to Hubble's OPAL program, which is building an archive of data on the outer solar system planets, we will have longer dedicated time to study Saturn’s spokes this season than ever before," said NASA senior planetary scientist Amy Simon, head of the Hubble Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) program.
Saturn's last equinox occurred in 2009, while NASA's Cassini spacecraft was orbiting the gas giant planet for close-up reconnaissance. With Cassini's mission completed in 2017, and the Voyager spacecrafts long gone, Hubble is continuing the work of long-term monitoring of changes on Saturn and the other outer planets.
"Despite years of excellent observations by the Cassini mission, the precise beginning and duration of the spoke season is still unpredictable, rather like predicting the first storm during hurricane season," Simon said.
While our solar system's other three gas giant planets also have ring systems, nothing compares to Saturn's prominent rings, making them a laboratory for studying spoke phenomena. Whether spokes could or do occur at other ringed planets is currently unknown. "It's a fascinating magic trick of nature we only see on Saturn – for now at least," Simon said.
Hubble's OPAL program will add both visual and spectroscopic data, in wavelengths of light from ultraviolet to near-infrared, to the archive of Cassini observations. Scientists are anticipating putting these pieces together to get a more complete picture of the spoke phenomenon, and what it reveals about ring physics in general.
The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and ESA. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore conducts Hubble science operations. STScI is operated for NASA by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, in Washington, D.C.
For more information: www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2023/hubble-captures-the-sta...
Amber Rix designed brass dice machined by Cybernetic Research Labs. Machined metal is wonderful to see up close, and these dice are precise with their sharp edges and brushed metal facades.
The precise construction date of the first Kaunas Castle is unknown. Archeological data suggests that a stone castle was built on the site during the middle of the 14th century. Situated on an elevated bank near the river junction about 100 kilometers (62 mi) from the capital city of Vilnius, it served as a strategic outpost and guarded nearby cities as well as trade routes.
A written account states that in 1361, the Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights Winrich von Kniprode issued an order to gather information about the castle, specifically the thickness of its walls, as preparation for an assault on the castle. During 1362, Kaunas Castle underwent a siege by the Teutonic Order. The siege of the castle lasted three weeks. During this attack, the Teutonic Knights constructed a siege tower and erected wall-penetration machinery; primitive fire arms might have been used, since gunpowder technology was emerging in Europe. At that time, the castle walls were over 11 meters (36 feet) high, when its firing galleries are factored in. According to Wigand of Marburg, the castle's garrison consisted of about 400 Lithuanian soldiers, commanded by Kęstutis's son Vaidotas. After three weeks, the Knights managed to breach the castle’s walls, and soon afterwards the castle was taken. On Easter Sunday in 1362, the knights conducted a Mass at the castle to commemorate their victory.
Apparently, of the castle's defense force of 400, only 36 survived. Questions remain with regard to the castle's defenders' lack of support from outside during the siege. In any event, Kęstutis soon regained and rebuilt Kaunas Castle, but it remained a point of contention between Lithuanians and Teutonic Knights for many years. In 1384 Kaunas Castle was re-captured by the Teutonic Knights. At this time Grand Master Konrad Zöllner von Rotenstein began reconstruction of Kaunas Castle and renamed it Marienwerder. The presence of the Knights in Kaunas meant that the entire defensive system of castles along the Nemunas was threatened. Confronting this situation, the Lithuanians launched an attack on the castle later the same year.
It seems likely that the Lithuanians mustered an army near Vilnius as a strategic maneuver, since Lithuanians could use the downstream flow of the Neris River to transport artillery and military provisions from Vilnius; the Knights were forced to use overland or upstream transport. During the 1384 assault, the Lithuanians deployed cannons and trebuchets; the besieged Teutonic Knights had also installed cannons in the castle, which apparently destroyed the Lithuanians' trebuchet. Nevertheless, the castle was retaken by the Lithuanians.
After 1398, the Teutonic Knights were no longer able to reconquer the castle. After the Battle of Grunwald, Kaunas Castle lost its strategic military importance and was used as a residence. The castle served administrative purposes after the death of Vytautas the Great. Sigismund Augustus gave this castle to his wife Barbara Radziwill in 1549. During the 16th century, the castle was strengthened and adapted to new defensive purposes by the construction of an artillery bastion near the round tower. The diameter of the bastion was about 40 meters (130 feet) and the height of the bastion's walls was about 12 meters (39 feet); the wall worked in conjunction with a defensive trench. At the bottom of the bastion a firing gallery was installed, which was linked with the tower.
In 1601, Kaunas Castle housed courts and an archive. At some time in 1611, part of the castle was flooded by the Neris River. Due to its convenient location, it was used by the Swedish military during its war with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, after which its military functions ceased. In the mid-17th century, large portions of the castle were again flooded. The castle was used as a prison in the 18th century; later the Russian administration granted permission for houses to be built in the castle's territory, which resulted in significant damage to the castle itself.
For many years afterwards, Kaunas Castle stood abandoned. In the 1960s the round tower was opened as a museum, but due to the tower's structural deterioration, the museum was transferred elsewhere.
A close-up of the sculpture 'Kontinuitat' by the Swiss architect, artist, painter, typeface designer, industrial designer and graphic designer Max Bill. This sculpture can be found in Frankfurt, Germany.
Bill was born in Winterthur. After an apprenticeship as a silversmith during 1924-1927, Bill took up studies at the Bauhaus in Dessau under many teachers including Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee and Oskar Schlemmer from 1927 to 1929, after which he moved to Zurich.
After working on graphic designs for the few modern buildings being constructed, he built his first work, his own house and studio in Zurich-Hongg. From 1937 onwards he was a prime mover behind the Allianz group of Swiss artists.
Bill is widely considered the single most decisive influence on Swiss graphic design beginning in the 1950s with his theoretical writing and progressive work. His connection to the days of the Modern Movement gave him special authority. As an industrial designer, his work is characterized by a clarity of design and precise proportions. Examples are the elegant clocks and watches designed for Junghans, a long-term client. Among Bill's most notable product designs is the "Ulmer Hocker" of 1954, a stool that can also be used as a shelf element, a speaker's desk, a tablet or a side table. Although the stool was a creation of Bill and Ulm school designer Hans Gugelot, it is often called "Bill Hocker" because the first sketch on a cocktail napkin was Bill's work.
As a designer and artist, Bill sought to create forms which visually represent the New Physics of the early 20th century. He sought to create objects so that the new science of form could be understood by the senses: that is as a concrete art. Thus Bill is not a rationalist – as is typically thought – but rather a phenomenologist. One who understands embodiment as the ultimate expression of a concrete art. In this way he is not so much extending as re-interpreting Bauhaus theory. Yet curiously Bill's critical interpreters have not really grasped this fundamental issue. He made spare geometric paintings and spherical sculptures, some based on the Mobius strip, in stone, wood, metal and plaster. His architectural work included an office building in Germany, a radio studio in Zurich, and a bridge in eastern Switzerland.
Malte de nuit - ou plus précisément les îles habitées. Les plus petites ne sont pas éclairées puisque personne n'y habite, et elles sont complètement invisibles dans l'obscurité de la Méditerranée. Au sud, le port de Marsaxlokk, brille de mille feux, j’imagine qu’il n’y a pas d’heure pour transborder les conteneurs ?
Malta by night, or at least the inhabited islands. The smaller uninhabited islands have no city lights and so blend in with the Mediterranean at night- except when the moon is full and reflects on the sea, yes I feel poetic tonight. The freeport on the south of the island lights up brightly.
Credits: ESA/NASA–T. Pesquet
532C0405
Le Chrysler Building est un gratte-ciel situé à New York, aux États-Unis, et plus précisément à l’intersection de la Lexington Avenue et de la 42e rue, dans le quartier de Midtown dans l'arrondissement de Manhattan. D'une hauteur de 319 mètres jusqu'à la pointe de sa flèche, il fut la plus haute structure du monde, après la tour Eiffel (324m), en 1930 et 1931, jusqu'à la construction de l'Empire State Building.
En 2005, un sondage du Skyscraper Museum auprès de personnes dont le métier est lié à l'architecture a fait ressortir le Chrysler Building comme étant leur gratte-ciel favori de New York.
La construction du Chrysler Building, supervisée par l'architecte américain William Van Alen, s’est étalée entre 1928 et 1930, l'inauguration ayant eu lieu le 27 mai 1930. Il a été déclaré National Historic Landmark le 8 décembre 1976. Le Chrysler Building a été rénové en 1978, avec la construction d'un hall, composé essentiellement de marbre, d'acier et de granite, semblable à celui de l’Empire State Building. En outre, la flèche a été rénovée en 1995, car l’acier inoxydable avait perdu de son éclat avec le temps. Le bâtiment appartient aujourd’hui à Abu Dhabi Investment Council (75 %) et à Tishman Speyer Properties (25 %).
fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysler_Building
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The Chrysler Building is an Art Deco style skyscraper in New York City, located on the east side of Manhattan in the Turtle Bay area at the intersection of 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue. At 1,046 feet (319 m), the structure was the world's tallest building for 11 months before it was surpassed by the Empire State Building in 1931. It is still the tallest brick building in the world, albeit with an internal steel skeleton. After the destruction of the World Trade Center, it was again the second-tallest building in New York City until December 2007, when the spire was raised on the 1,200-foot (365.8 m) Bank of America Tower, pushing the Chrysler Building into third position. In addition, The New York Times Building, which opened in 2007, is exactly level with the Chrysler Building in height. Both buildings were then pushed into 4th position, when the under construction One World Trade Center surpassed their height.
The Chrysler Building is a classic example of Art Deco architecture and considered by many contemporary architects to be one of the finest buildings in New York City. In 2007, it was ranked ninth on the List of America's Favorite Architecture by the American Institute of Architects. It was the headquarters of the Chrysler Corporation from 1930 until the mid-1950s. Although the building was built and designed specifically for the car manufacturer, the corporation did not pay for the construction of it and never owned it, as Walter P. Chrysler decided to pay for it himself, so that his children could inherit it.
Früher dachte ich immer, dass der Teich im Wuhletal namenlos wäre, denn auf Stadtplänen ist zwar der Teich zu sehen, aber der Name fehlt. Auf genaueren Karten allerdings ist er als Karpfenteich eingetragen. Karpfen habe ich dort noch nicht gesehen, und ich bezweifle, dass dort welche im Wasser herumschwimmen, sonst säßen sicher Angler am Ufer. Ob er jemals wirklich zur Karpfenzucht gedient hat, lässt sich nicht ermitteln, aber irgendwoher muss er den Namen ja bekommen haben.
I used to think that the pond in Wuhletal was nameless, because although the pond can be seen on city maps, the name is missing. On more precise maps, however, it is marked as "Carp Pond". I haven't seen any carp there yet, and I doubt that there are any swimming around in the water, otherwise there would certainly be anglers on the banks. It is not possible to determine whether it was ever really used for carp farming, but it must have got its name from somewhere.
I just got back from a weekend, well most of a weekend, at the coast. A bunch of us made a pilgrimage down to Astoria on Saturday night for a photography opening, my boss' to be precise. You tend to try not to miss your boss' opening galas. :-p It was an amazing show. My boss, Jake (I rarely think of him as my "boss" anymore) photographs with an 8x10 Deardorf view camera, then makes wonderful contact portraits of the work. The photography and the printing were both beautiful. He was also showing with another Portland photographer, Ray Bidegain, who also photographs with a variety of large format view cameras and prints platinum and palladium contact prints. Platinum printing is some of the most archival printing a photographer can do, you can expect the prints to not only outlive you, but your children, their children, their children and very likely their children. Perhaps longer than that even, but at a certain point you begin splitting hairs.
I enjoyed the show very much, as much for the photography as for the printing. It is rare to see such exceptional printing outside of a museum. I mean, I don't consider myself much of a slouch when it comes to printing my own images, but these prints made even mine look awkward and crude by contrast. So I found that inspiring. I switched over to digital printing a few years ago fairly firmly. Not because I believed I could get a digital print that equaled an optical print. I could not then and still don't believe even the best digital printing looks anywhere as good as the best optical printing. But I did and do believe I can produce a better image in the digital darkroom and to give digital printing its dues, it has come a long way and while it may not equal optical printing, you can sure make some pretty damn good digital prints these days.
But this image is a good example of that, and was actually going to be the subject of my discussion tonight before I got sidetracked and on the tangent regarding Jake and Ray's show.
This image really was a process, and though it was a brief process I wanted to share it, to illustrate how the process certainly begins with the taking up of a camera (or just before) but certainly doesn't end with the push of the shutter.
This was taken on a previous trip to Astoria, in fact on a day I was down there delivering my show to the same gallery that is hosting Jake's and Ray's works. It was a bright overcast day and Washington was just barely discernible. The Megler bridge looked like it was depositing traffic into the ether in fact, which was the idea that floated across my creative consciousness and initially inspired me to point my camera in that direction. I knew I wanted the bridge as one element, and I wanted to frame it in such a way as to swoop in from the side and terminate near the middle in that white, misty nothingness. Without making use of a telephoto lens, I had to include the ruins of the pilings in the frame, which I actually kind of like. The same as the bridge, they end up ending in nothing, their remainder not just invisible, but completely obliterated by time. So in a sense, they worked for me in emphasizing the mysterious and timeless feeling I was trying to go for in this image. I overexposed a bit, to blow the sky out just a tad more.
The original negative was shot on color, it happened to be what I had in the camera. So I scanned it in and hemmed and hawed over the photo a bit. It was mostly there for me, but not quite all the way. So I removed the color completely. In reality the muted tones were doing absolutely nothing to help the photo go in the direction I wanted them to. So if something is not helping a photo, it is weakening it. The colors went, perhaps to the same place as the tops of the pilings. We will never know.
The conversion to black and white cleaned the image up and simplified it beautifully. I really like simple images. The simpler the better most often. I adjusted levels a bit to make the sky a bit whiter and blow out what little detail was there. Again, the detail in the sky was only confusing the image and I wanted to make it simple and direct. Finally I cloned out a few pilings that occurred right at the edge of the frame. I had try to compose a clean edge in camera but that had turned out to not be possible with the alignment of the pilings, so I composed as clean as I could with the expectation of removing the offending rascals later.
And this is the result. It is not a stellar image, but I like it for its simplicity and calm nature.
Days at the beach are just that, days at the beach.
Anyway, I wanted to share a bit of the process I went through, or at least a bit of the mindset. Again, nothing severely enlightening, but nonetheless helpful. I also admit that I definitely had Michael Kenna's work on the brain while post processing this image, though not when I was originally shooting it.
Thanks to those of you who made suggestions, I have reprocessed this to incorporate them. It uses 5 MAP points, a more precise RGB toe-point, a slight histogram stretch to brighten it and intensify the color (white point only), a very skinny S-curve applied to gamma, and a small unsharp mask in Photoshop.
Comparison shot (original) is here: static.flickr.com/120/302084017_e8c943ffdd.jpg
The scope was the historic Otto Struve 82" Telescope at The University of Texas' McDonald Observatory, Ft. Davis, Texas.
This was Astronomy Magazine's online Photo of the Day on November 28, 2006:
www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx?c=ga&id=99&aid...
Wow. Now NASA/JPL has it online!
JPL has since used it in a press release and another online composite for their Saturn Observation Campaign 2007.
Blogged by C|Net, alongside two NASA photos (from Hubble and Spitzer orbiting telescopes!):
news.com.com/2300-11397_3-6159390-3.html?tag=ne.gall.pg
PhysOrg.com lists it here: www.physorg.com/multimedia/pix478/
It accompanies a very nice Cassini spacecraft mission article with audio commentary on Scientific Frontline, here:
www.sflorg.com/control_room/cassini.html
NASA/JPL used it again (April 2007) in a PodCast at:
www.jpl.nasa.gov/videos/whatsup/whatsup20070405/
Blogged here, as a click-through link to Phil Plaitt's amazing video on Saturn from the Denver Museum:
It was used by NPR today on the occasion of the telescope's 75th Anniversary:
marfapublicradio.org/blog/mcdonald-observatory-75th-anniv...
First of my photos to hit 800 views (February 14, 2007) -- 1,000 views (March 26, 2007) -- 1,200 views (May 12, 2007) -- 1,500 views (July 21, 2007) -- 1,750 (August 12, 2007) -- 2,000 views (Oct. 2007) -- 4,000 views (Apr. 2008) -- 5,000 views (July 29, 2008) -- 10,000 views (Mar. 2010).
If you use this photo, please credit: Jeff Barton and Josh Walawender
Sam Harris has always been a man of precise words and razor-sharp thoughts, his voice carrying the clipped cadence of someone who has spent a lifetime considering each syllable before speaking it aloud. When I photographed him in March of 2016 at Dove Mountain, Arizona, I was struck by his stillness. He has the presence of someone who is not merely thinking, but thinking about thinking, plumbing the depths of consciousness with the same intensity a mountaineer might study a precipice before making the ascent.
Born in 1967, Harris is best known as a neuroscientist, philosopher, and writer who has spent decades interrogating the human condition. He first gained widespread attention with his book The End of Faith (2004), a fierce and unflinching examination of religious belief that won the PEN/Martha Albrand Award for First Nonfiction. In it, Harris argued against the dangers of dogma with the kind of cool, analytical detachment usually reserved for lab reports, making the case that faith—unchecked and unquestioned—was one of civilization’s great existential threats. The book, written in the wake of September 11th, made him both a hero and a heretic, a role he seemed to accept with the quiet assurance of a man who expected no less.
His intellectual journey has been one of relentless inquiry, unafraid to step into the fray of controversy. Whether tackling free will, artificial intelligence, or the moral implications of neuroscience, Harris approaches each subject with the rigor of a scientist and the tenacity of a trial attorney. His book Free Will (2012) presents a case against the very idea of human volition, arguing that our actions and thoughts are dictated by prior causes beyond our control—a notion as unsettling as it is liberating. He moves easily between philosophy and empirical science, grounding his arguments in the latest research on the brain while never losing sight of their broader implications.
Yet, for all his cerebral intensity, Harris is not without a deep fascination with the subjective, with the inner world of experience. His book Waking Up (2014) is a testament to this—an attempt to reconcile the apparent contradiction between rigorous rationality and the profound states of consciousness explored in meditation. Having spent time in silent retreats, studying under Buddhist teachers, and experimenting with psychedelics, Harris has sought to strip spirituality of its supernatural trappings and ground it in something more defensible: the raw, unfiltered reality of direct experience.
This tension—between the rational and the experiential, the cold precision of science and the warmth of personal insight—is what makes Harris such a compelling figure. His Making Sense podcast, launched in 2013, serves as an intellectual salon of sorts, a place where he engages with scientists, philosophers, writers, and thinkers across disciplines, from artificial intelligence experts to moral philosophers. He is never afraid to challenge his guests, nor does he shy away from re-examining his own positions. In conversation, as in his writing, Harris wields clarity like a scalpel—his arguments honed to their sharpest edge, his questions cutting straight to the heart of a matter.
The man I met at Dove Mountain was much as I expected: deliberate, measured, and strikingly present. He had a way of looking at you that made it clear he was not just waiting for his turn to speak but genuinely absorbing what you said, weighing it against the vast architecture of ideas he carried within him. There was an intensity in his silence, the sense that his mind was constantly at work, peeling back layers of assumption to examine the bare scaffolding underneath.
Harris is, above all, a seeker—a man who has spent his life charting the contours of belief, knowledge, and consciousness with the precision of a cartographer mapping an undiscovered world. He does not offer easy answers, nor does he indulge in comforting illusions. Instead, he asks us to look unflinchingly at the reality before us, to question, to examine, to think. And in doing so, he invites us into the great, unfinished conversation that is the pursuit of truth.
Having refined and precise knowledge of schools is a must before selecting the best one for your kids. Enlisted below are the top 5 schools in East Delhi.
Oberes Torhaus (in English: "Upper Gatehouse") in the village of Ickelheim, a district of the town of Bad Windsheim, Franconia (Bavaria)
Some background information:
Yes, one of the two gatehouses of Ickelheim, the lower one, to be precise, is available for purchase. However, both are almost identically constructed. Of course, you cannot buy the large building at its site, but only a small model of it for your model railway. The company Busch, a German producer of model railway equipment, has recreated the gate and offers it as a building kit for sale. So if you are the proud owner of a model railway, how about a nice little timber-framed gatehouse for your model railway layout?
With its more than 600 residents the village of Ickelheim is situated just about four km (2.5 miles) south of the district town of Bad Windsheim, in which it is incorporated. It is also located about 50 km (31 miles) west of the city of Nuremberg. Most likely, the settlement was already founded during the so-called Franconian colonisation in the 6th century. However, documented is its existence since the year 741.
In 889, Ickelheim was mentioned in a document as a Franconian royal seat. In the following centuries, the settlement evolved into a so-called Rundling (a circular village) with two gatehouses, which was surrounded by a rampart and a moat. However, the two gatehouses, which exist now, are not the original ones from medieval times. Instead, both were built in 1713 just to flag both accesses to the village. Anyway, the timber-framed gatehouses of Ickelheim are very unusual buildings and I don’t remember ever having seen any gatehouses resembling them – neither in Germany nor anywhere else.
In 1249, Pope Innocent IV put Heilsbronn Abbey and the fortified settlement of Ickelheim under his protection. However, another charter proves that in 1259, Ickelheim was already in possession of the burgraves of Nuremberg. In 1294, burgrave Conrad IV bestowed the municipal area to the German Order. Subsequently, Ickelheim became a minor administrative seat of the German Order, while the major seat of the whole area was in nearby Virnsberg Castle.
In the first half of the 16th century, the reformation in Franconia was in full swing. Many neighbouring communities had already converted to Protestantism, while Ickelheim was still under control of the Catholic German Order. In 1539, the villagers even demanded a Protestant minister, but the reformation wasn’t implemented in Ickelheim before 1565.
The Thirty Years’ War didn’t spare the community. In 1621, Ickelheim was afflicted with lootings and infringements by the Catholic Imperial forces under command of the military leader Peter Ernst, Count of Mansfeld. And in 1631, Imperial forces once again looted Ickelheim and its neighbouring communities Marktbergel and Ipsheim.
In 1806, the village was incorporated into the new Kingdom of Bavaria. In 1811, the rural community of Ickelheim was created. In 1856, a significant part of the commune was destroyed by fire. The fire was caused by arson and fanned by adverse winds. At the end of World War II, American troops tried to occupy the village. But as the resistance was rather fierce, they draw back and shelled Ickelheim with incendiary grenades. As a result, several houses were destroyed and the municipality was finally seized on 15th April 1945.
Today, Ickelheim is a beautiful little village with not less than three inns. In 1987, the commune won a gold medal in the Germany-wide competition "Unser Dorf soll schoener werden" (in English: "Our village should become more beautiful"). Ickelheim, which used to be an agricultural settlement in the past, is now mainly a village of commuters who work in the towns of Bad Windsheim or Ansbach or even in the city of Nuremberg. Only a few farms have survived. However, it’s noteworthy that at the southern slopes of Ickelheim vines are cultivated, which is quite unique in this area.
A set of four firearms built in Pimp My Gun, ver. 0.6.
[Jackal Arms M-1230 Shorty]
A sawn-off shotgun commonly field by common criminals, local militia and sheriffs. It fires 3-inch, 12 gauge magnum cartridges, capable of decimating armored targets but makes handling a nightmare due to the weapons reduced frame.
A folding stock/rail system is attached to this model for better stability.
[Izhmash AN-201]
A powerful 7.62x39mm assault rifle born from the vaunted AN-94, commonly used by Russian special forces, but more widely used by third-world terrorist organizations. It features a burst mode that fires three rounds at an accelerated rate of 2000 RPM, capable of dealing collateral damage on targets in a line, or defeating heavy body armor. It can also be switched back to fully automatic, firing at a more sedate 800 RPM.
This specific AN-201 has a rail system attached for optics.
[Barton Precision SR-401 "Longbow"]
A precise 7.62x54mm sniper rifle based off of the HK PSG-1, this weapon has been mainly used by most European counter-terrorist forces, but has also found favor by contract killers and professional snipers around the world. Thanks to Barton's proprietary steel parts, the SR-401 has needle like accuracy out to 1500m, beating nearly all semi-automatic rifles of similar caliber.
It also features a highly adjustable folding stock for increased accuracy, comfort, and portability.
[Antonov Steelworks SPK-22]
A rapid-firing yet hard-hitting 9x19mm 7N31 submachine gun with the amalgamated appearance of the older PP-2000 and SR-2M Veresk. Commonly found in the hands of crime syndicates, mafias and gangs, the SPK-22 has a massive 60-round capacity, thanks to its snug-fit casket magazine design. The weapon's design itself is smooth and snag-free, ideal for concealment and quick deployment, provided there are no attachments present.
It also has a folding foregrip that folds flush with the gun, and can be deployed for extra stability.
VAN NUYS - Precise helicopter water drops that tapered the advance of flames, allowed 48 Los Angeles Fire Department responders on the ground to quickly contain and extinguish a non-injury grass fire in the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area on the afternoon of June 18, 2021. The fire, near a homeless encampment northwest of Lake Balboa, was considered accidental, and attributed to careless cooking.
© Photo by Greg Doyle
LAFD Incident: 061821-0867
Connect with us: LAFD.ORG | News | Facebook | Instagram | Reddit | Twitter: @LAFD @LAFDtalk
A killer Sky on Skye ;-) in Elgol to be more precise. It got better an better that evening and this is the last shot I took before I got drenched by a stray wave from the left side. Good this photo was done as the wave hit. I had to dry my epuipment for a couple of minutes then. The filters where useless afterwards, the salt water made big smears as I tried to whipe em. Good I had a rain cloth around my cam so only the back of it got wet. Without it, it might well have been the end of my EOS 40d ;-)
When I was ready to shoot again it was more to test if the camera was still working, the color in the sky was nearly gone.
This is from one exposure, I used a Lee 0.6 hard GND and If I remember right I also had the 0.6 soft GND attached. I'm very happy this photo came out so well.. It really was a pain watching the show afterwards as I dried my camera and the filters and couldn't shoot.
PS: for the germans, I have a new article on kwerfeldein.de/index.php/2011/09/18/und-wieder-klingelt-d... which is about my scotland trip. check it out
cheers
Last time i came in Awash area, i thought the people i saw on the road were Afars. Great mistake! They are Karayu (aka Karrayyu), and are not friends at all with Afars. The Karrayyu are a pastoralist tribe from Ethiopia living in the Awash Valley, around the volcano of Mount Fentale and the Metehara Plain. They belong to the larger ethnic group of the Oromos, who represent the majority (32%) of the ethiopian population. It is said the Karrayyu arrived in the area 200 hundreds years ago, during the so called « great expansion », of the Oromo, during which Oromo settled in different parts of Ethiopia,. This led to cultural diversification. In spite of local differences between those subgroups, they share the same Cushistic language (Afaan Oromo) religion (Waaqeffata) and governance system (Gada). The Karrayyu are one of the last Oromo ethnic subgroups to follow these rules and to preserve the original Oromo lifestyle and culture, and its pastoralist way of life.
There are only 10 000 to 55 000 Karrayyus (because of their nomadic lifestyle it is difficult to have precise figures) whereas they used to be 200 000 at the beginning of the 20th century. Karrayyu are on the verge of instinction. Such a drop was due to the persecutions the Oromos, including the Karrayyu people had to face during Menelik’s II reign (1889-1913). This emperor, from the Amhara ethnic group led the unification of Ethiopia, and imposed the Amhara rule to the Oromos. Later, during the 20th century, the Karrayyu were deprived of most of their lands because of the establishment of national parks and modern farms. In the last four decades, Karrayyu’s were dispossed from 70 per cent of their land, including their shrines, by the government to make sugar and cotton plantations.
Struggle for grazing lands and water resources is a constant and daily challenge for the Karrayyus. This results in conflicts with neighbouring tribes such as the Afar or the Argoba, but also with some other Oromos ethnic subgroups such as the Arsi Oromo. Clashes between herders from these tribes are pretty common, and sometimes people even get shot. Incidents occur about the possession or when some herders raid the cattle from another tribe. Last years these conflicts have intensified as the number of available grazing lands has cut down. Indeed, overgrazing (involved by the recent of growth of the area’s population) leads to soil erosion. The degradation of the rangelands intensifies the pratice of cattle raiding which is already deeply rooted in the culture of the tribes in this area. Some grazing lands have even been abandoned by the Karrayyus in fear of violent conflicts.
Unfortunately the Karrayyu are also famous for the female genital cutting the women have to face and suffer from. According to the 2005 Ethiopian Demographic Health Survey, more than 74 per cent of women between the age of 15 and 49 have undergone some form of genital mutilation and cutting.. Parents believe this practice guarantees their young daughter’s virginity, which is a prerequisite for an honourable marriage.
© Eric Lafforgue
San Lorenzo Maggiore is a church in Naples, Italy. It is located at the precise geographic center of the historic center of the ancient Greek-Roman city, at the intersection of via San Gregorio Armeno and via dei Tribunali. The name "San Lorenzo" may also refer to the new museum now opened on the premises, as well as to the ancient Roman market beneath the church itself, the Macellum of Naples.
The church's origins derive from the presence of the Franciscan order in Naples during the lifetime of St Francis of Assisi, himself. The site of the present church was to compensate the order for the loss of their earlier church on the grounds where Charles I of Anjou decided to build his new fortress, the Maschio Angioino in the late 13th century.
San Lorenzo actually is a church plus monastery. The new museum takes up the three floors above the courtyard and is given over to the entire history of the area that centers on San Lorenzo, beginning with classical archaeology and progressing to a chart display of historical shipping routes from Naples throughout Magna Grecia and the Roman Empire. The museum provides a detailed account of the local "city hall" that was demolished in order to put up the church in the 13th century and continues up past the Angevin period and into more recent history.
Beneath San Lorenzo, about half of an original Roman market has been excavated.The site has been open since 1992, the result of 25 years of painstaking excavation. The market place is the only large-scale Greek-Roman site excavated in the downtown area.
In this church Boccaccio met his beloved Fiammetta (1338) (Wikipedia)
www.cameralenscompare.com/photoAwardsCounterDetails.aspx?...
Großkopf-Ruderfrosch, Polypedates megacephalus an einer Glasscheibe
“The Ark” project was the first attempt of mass colonization of planets outside Solar system. But it was just partly successful. Only third parts of all ships established proper colonies. Some gossips say the real purpose of project was just to get rid of excess population. A few years after the last launch of Ark revolution in hyperspace travelling happened. New hyperdrives were more powerful, faster, reliable, cheaper. So it was possible to establish regular supply lines between new colonies. So there was no need in looking for an ideal world. Colony can be founded everywhere near the source of some valuable resource.
New colonization project was called “Legacy”. It was based on fleets of smaller ships instead of one huge ship as before. “Patriarch” spacecraft was designed to carry fast deployable modules of a new colony. Habitats, industrial facilities, power plants. Everything that is needed to start building. All modules can function on the surface of planet and in space. At first group of engineers constructs small outpost on the planet, builds foundations for landing modules, and after that they are dropped off the orbit. They have their own engines for soft precise landing. Ship’s reactor can also be used as a power plant of settlement. In this case ship stays in orbit and will be deconstructed in future.
Last, but not the least. Big problem of the Ark was in its colonists. It’s very hard to keep billions of people alive in cryosells. Patriarchs have incubation facilities onboard and huge stock of genetic material. The idea is to grow most of population of a new colony artificially. DNA can be modified to provide better adaptability in case of hazardous environment. Moreover, by default all defects, random mutations and genetic illnesses were deleted from genetic material. Should I say it had serious consequences in future?
Utricularia menziesii
The first of the season. At the moment there are only a few but soon there will be more.
Photos: Fred
"Utricularia, commonly and collectively called the bladderworts, is a genus of carnivorous plants consisting of approximately 233 species (precise counts differ based on classification opinions; one recent publication lists 215 species).[1] They occur in fresh water and wet soil as terrestrial or aquatic species across every continent except Antarctica. Utricularia are cultivated for their flowers, which are often compared with those of snapdragons and orchids, especially amongst carnivorous plant enthusiasts." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utricularia
It is very important to be precise!
The assignment this week in Twitter Photochallenge is Self Portrait.
About:
Another creation from my basement. My Sigma 10-20mm was set on 10mm and placed on the floor, one strobe to the left a bit up and another to the right next to the camera.
In post process I realized that I had overexposed the hand, I tried to fix it, but I never got a decent result. Anyway this is me working the floor with a hobby knife :))
Thanks
In and out of Explore, thanks to all for comments and faves :))
Discussion
Comments and critique are as always welcome. Let me hear your opinion, why do you like this, or even better, how would you approach this scenery. Give me your thoughts... If you can't find anything to critique, a simple "nice" is cool too :))
Use
This photo is Copyrighted 2010 © Morten Prom. All rights reserved.
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What I love most about photography is that I seem to forget everything else that is worrying me at the precise moment I pick up my camera. I could be facing a troublesome time in my life and as soon as the camera touches my hands, I simply live in that moment of adrenaline coursing through my veins as I get ready to shoot and as I start the process of taking pictures. Everything else fades out of sight. I can truly let go...To enter a world created wholly of my own imagination. Where floating cups are an everyday occurrence and where even though it has snowed you can wear a dress and not feel cold. Where you can be whatever and whoever you want to be without any worry or doubt connected. To be in a world without insecurity.
I am finding confidence in myself that I never knew I had. Whilst I was shooting this image there was a family moving out of their house right next to this location, so obviously there were removal men, friends and family helping them out. They came to ask me questions about what I was doing and they stood watching me jump, swirl and hold tea cups above my head! The thing is though, I didn't mind, not one little bit. I was happy to just be there on that sunny, yet extremely crisp morning and to just 'do my crazy weird thing'. I want to thank you guys for helping me out, you have given such positive feedback to me which is helping me to grow into the person I have always wanted to be. Someone who isn't afraid of doing what they love!
“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” - E.E. Cummings
Copyright © 2013 Amy Morris. All Rights Reserved.
caesar, to be precise. somehow, shakespeare sounds so much better now that i'm out of 7th grade. this shot is actually a great combo of julius caesar and romeo and juliet. anyway, i'll be gone for a week.....a week of solar showers, cabins with kerosene lamps, and my favorite: peeing in a bucket! hope you all get to do something equally special!
Savage Echoes.
Précises urgence affectée histoires vastes successions chaos grand poète radieux épuisé ennemis horreurs fatigue,
memoriam descendens ignotantia affectata miscalculations superaverunt fragmenta comminuit nave celeri animarum, exasperato leges praecepta de causis inmutata est,
kuzatuvlar massajlar suhbatlar tushuntirishlar joylar tashvishli qarshilik bo'ron yo'nalishlari qo'pol yo'ldoshlar ulkan tog ',
spargerea speranțelor puncte înspăimântătoare pericole neobișnuite conducerea orizontului tăierea mâinilor țipăt mizerie scăpare de fum,
realização de metas intervalos de dependência suspensos direitos recolhendo dobras direções circulares ajustando cursos pombos comparações,
vehementní opatření utvrzení stížností třepotání dojmy atmosférické anály komprese srdce,
持続的な症状満足のいく考慮事項ミラーを計算する比類のない凝縮計画優れた信頼性絶対的なパワーモルダリングシャドウニット.
Steve.D.Hammond.
San Lorenzo Maggiore is a church in Naples, Italy. It is located at the precise geographic center of the historic center of the ancient Greek-Roman city, at the intersection of via San Gregorio Armeno and via dei Tribunali. The name "San Lorenzo" may also refer to the new museum now opened on the premises, as well as to the ancient Roman market beneath the church itself, the Macellum of Naples.
The church's origins derive from the presence of the Franciscan order in Naples during the lifetime of St Francis of Assisi, himself. The site of the present church was to compensate the order for the loss of their earlier church on the grounds where Charles I of Anjou decided to build his new fortress, the Maschio Angioino in the late 13th century.
San Lorenzo actually is a church plus monastery. The new museum takes up the three floors above the courtyard and is given over to the entire history of the area that centers on San Lorenzo, beginning with classical archaeology and progressing to a chart display of historical shipping routes from Naples throughout Magna Grecia and the Roman Empire. The museum provides a detailed account of the local "city hall" that was demolished in order to put up the church in the 13th century and continues up past the Angevin period and into more recent history.
Beneath San Lorenzo, about half of an original Roman market has been excavated.The site has been open since 1992, the result of 25 years of painstaking excavation. The market place is the only large-scale Greek-Roman site excavated in the downtown area.
In this church Boccaccio met his beloved Fiammetta (1338) (Wikipedia)
...this is, to be precise, near Torrenieri, near the old Cassia road from Torrenieri to San Quirico d'Orcia (Tuscany, Italy). And this is taken from the same place where I took "Trees in morning light" (in a different season, summer vs. spring, of course, and other direction :))...
Used my D200 and the Nikkor 12-24 @ 24.
I think bigger is much better here...
