Literary Review: Declaration of Independence (Thomas Jefferson)

by Sandy on March 19, 2010 · Filed Under history · 1 Comment 

Thomas Jefferson’s “Declaration of Independence”

Thomas Jefferson is esteemed as one of the most significant figures in American history, despite being misrepresented by scholars. The former American president, credited with a plethora of writings, is most famous for his Declaration of Independence. This political paper is the founding document for the United States of America. Through Jefferson, the Founding Fathers declared their independence from England and the rationale in support of their action (Raphael 117-152). Not generally thought of as a literary work, a few prominent historians have conducted critical analyses of its content, style, and sources. Some scholars focus on the text’s creative technique, while others ponder its sources and their relevance. Americans are wide-ranging in their evaluation of its assignment in the development of the county’s heritage and in their interpretations of its implications. Scholars dedicate a great deal of effort to study the Declaration. However, instead of expounding on the understanding, it greatly increases the amounts and variances of viewpoints.

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CES 2008 – Have touch phones jumped the shark?

by Steve on March 18, 2010 · Filed Under Technology · 9 Comments 

Motorola ROKR E8

Touch Phones.

There are all sorts of announcements coming out of CES. Not the least of which was Motorola’s news of a new touch-sensitive addition to it’s Moto ROKR line of phone’s called the E8. I blame Apple for the abundance of new touch phone’s coming out. Everybody seems to be making some kind of iPhone clone. HTC has it’s touch, Motorola now has the E8. Who’s next?
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Religion as a Cyber Society

by Sandy on March 17, 2010 · Filed Under social · 1 Comment 

sdfThe exponential growth of the Cyber society and Cyber culture within the Internet has not gone unnoticed by the “religious community.” As I write, church web sites are being published and electronic prayer groups zip by in modems and wire networks across the globe. Even isolated monasteries like the Monastery of the Christ in the Desert (see sidebar) are able to send their Benedictine messages from their cloister in New Mexico. New age religions also use the [virtual] soil of the Internet as the center of their “virtual church” (see end of the Cyber society Observation for links on religious web pages). With these in mind, it is safe to write that Religion has seamlessly incorporated itself within the realm of Cyber society. The presence of Religion in Net Culture is not an unforeseen trend. Although Religion and Modernity does not have the best relationship, Religion has learned that they need to conform with the current trends of technology to survive. Read more

Amazing But True

by Sandy on March 15, 2010 · Filed Under weird · 3 Comments 

Amazing But True

The word “queue” is the only word in the English language that is still pronounced the same way when the last four letters are removed.
Beetles taste like apples, wasps like pine nuts, and worms like fried bacon.
Of all the words in the English language, the word ’set’ has the most definitions.
What is called a “French kiss” in the English speaking world is known as an “English kiss” in France. Read more

Humvee Doors Trap Troops

by Steve on March 14, 2010 · Filed Under military · 1 Comment 

WASHINGTON – Doors that jam shut during an attack are an unintended consequence of the Pentagon’s effort to add armor to Humvees transporting U.S. troops in Iraq.Due to the jamming problem, records show the Army must fix the doors of some 18,000 armored Humvees that serve as the main troop transport vehicle Read more

Canada’s Gravity Hole

by Jonathan on March 13, 2010 · Filed Under Science · 2 Comments 

Massive Ice Sheet Partial Cause of Missing Canadian GravityHudson Bay

A mysterious dip in gravity over northern Canada has long been a weighty topic for some scientists.

Satellite data indicates that that a massive ice sheet that once covered eastern North America is at least the partial cause of this gravitational anomaly.

Scientists have known that the area around Hudson Bay has lower gravity than the surrounding areas.

Two theories have emerged to explain the strange phenomenon, but conclusive evidence has been elusive. Read more

Interesting Book Facts

by Melissa on March 12, 2010 · Filed Under weird · 2 Comments 

Strange But True

Agatha Christie’s fictional character Hercule Poirot is the only fictional character ever to be honored with an obituary on the front page of The New York Times.
Author Dr. Seuss wrote the book “Green Eggs and Ham” because the editor made him a bet that he could not write a book, which contained less than fifty words.
During his entire lifetime, Herman Melville’s timeless classic of the sea, “Moby Dick,” sold only 3,715 copies.
Edinburgh has more booksellers per head of population than any other city in Britain.
Ernest Vincent Wright wrote a fifty thousand-word novel, “Gadsby,” without any word containing the letter “e.”
General Lew Wallace’s best seller Ben Hur was the first work of fiction to be blessed by a pope.
George Orwell’s book “Animal Farm” was turned down many times by different publishers. One of them actually said, “it was impossible to sell animal stories in the U.S.A.”
In 1998, Ten Speed Press publishing company published a book, “The Eat A Bug Cookbook” by David George Gordon that contains over 33 bug recipes.
Keeping Warm With an Axe, is the title of a real how-to book.
The Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. has the world’s largest collection of comic books with over 5,000 titles and 100,000 issues.
The all time best selling electronic book is Stephen King’s “Riding The Bullet.”
The book “Little Red Riding Hood” was banned in 1990 by two school districts in California. They did this because in the book there was a picture of a basket that had a bottle of wine in it.
The smallest book in the world is “Chekhov’s Chameleon,” which measures 0.9 by 0.9 millimeters. The book has 30 pages and three colour illustrations and is not much larger than a grain of salt.
The world’s largest public library is the Chicago Public Library, which has a collection of over 2 million books.
There was a book written fourteen years before the sinking of the Titanic happened titled “Futility” by Morgan Robertson. This book was remarkably similar to the tragedy that happened to the Titanic in 1912.

Kentucky Derby

by Alex on March 11, 2010 · Filed Under Sports · 1 Comment 

Kentucky Derby

Grade 1 Race
Kentucky Derby

“The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports”
Location Churchill Downs
Louisville, Kentucky, USA
Inaugurated: 1875
Race type Thoroughbred
Website: 2007 Kentucky Derby
Race information
Distance 1¼ miles
Track Dirt, Left-handed
Qualification 3-year-old
Weight Colt/Gelding: 126 lbs (57.2 kg)
Filly: 121 lbs. (54.9 kg)
Purse US$2 million
Bonuses: US$ 200

The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old thoroughbred horses, staged annually in Louisville, Kentucky, on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is over one and a quarter miles (2 km) at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds (57.2 kg) and fillies 121 pounds (54.9 kg).[1] The race is known in the United States as “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports” for its approximate duration, and is also called “The Run for the Roses” for the blanket of roses draped over the winner. It is the first leg of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing in the US and typically draws around 155,000 fans. It is the single oldest annually held sporting event in the entire South. Read more

Weird Town Names

by Robert on March 10, 2010 · Filed Under weird · 13 Comments 

Wierd Town Names
Big Bone Lick
Bigfoot, Texas, USA
Blow Me Down, Newfoundland, Canada
Bonanza, Colorado, USA
Celebration, FL, USA
Chicken, Alaska, USA
Climax, Michigan, USA
Crackpot, England
Crotch Lake, Ontario, Canada
Cut and Shoot, Texas, USA
Deadhorse, Alaska, USA
Dildo, Newfoundland, Canada
Ding Dong, Texas, USA
Earth, Texas, USA
Egypt, Texas, USA
Fucking, Austria
French Lick, Indiana, USA
Frostproof, Florida, USA
Gun Barrel City, Texas, USA
Half.com, Oregon, USA
Happy, Texas, USA
Hell, Michigan, USA
Holy Moses, Colorado, USA
Hot Coffee, Missouri, USA
Humansville, Missouri, USA
Hygiene, Colorado, USA
Intercourse, Pennsylvania, USA
Jot ‘em Down, Texas, USA
Knockemstiff, Ohio, USA
Last Chance, Colorado, USA
Looneyville, Texas, USA
Mary’s Igloo, Alaska, USA
Monkey’s Eyebrow, Arizona, USA
Nameless, Texas, USA
Needmore, Texas, USA
Ninety-Six, South Carolina, USA
North Pole, Alaska, USA
Nothing, Arizona, USA
Notrees, Texas, USA
Okay, Oklahoma, USA
Santa Claus, Indiana, USA
Shorter, Alabama, USA
Smackover, Arkansas, USA
Sopchoppy, Florida, USA
Study Butte, Texas, USA
Toad Suck, Arkansas, USA
Truth Or Consequences, New Mexico, USA
Two Egg, Florida, USA
Valentine, Texas, USA
Vulcan, Alberta, Canada
Waterproof, Louisiana, USA
Why, Arizona, USA

Muhammad

by Melissa on March 9, 2010 · Filed Under history · 2 Comments 

Muhammad

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

“Muhammad” in a new genre of Islamic calligraphy started in the 17th century by Hafiz Osman.[1]

 

A 16th-century Ottoman illustration depicting Muhammad at the Kaaba. Muhammad's face is veiled, a practice followed in Islamic art since the 16th century. Read more

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