TED: Gabriel Barcia-Colombo: Capturing memories
in video art - Gabriel Barcia-Colombo (2012)

post from TEDTalks (video) on 15 July 2012 11:12:32 AM. © TEDTalks (video)

Using video mapping and projection, artist Gabriel Barcia-Colombo captures and shares his memories and friendships. At TED Fellow Talks, he shows his charming, thoughtful work -- which appears to preserve the people in his life in jars, suitcases, blenders ...

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NuSTAR opens its X-ray eye

post from Bad Astronomy on 15 July 2012 08:59:40 AM. © Bad Astronomy

Sorry I didn’t post this when it happened, but some good news: In late June, NASA’s NuSTAR X-ray observatory saw first light! This is the traditional moment when a telescope first opens up its eye and sees light from the external Universe.[...]

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http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BadAstronomyBlog/~3/3CHhJMkWC-w/

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Russian rocket launches new crew to space

post from Space Tourism, Space Transport and Space Exploration News on 15 July 2012 08:17:20 AM. © Space Tourism, Space Transport and Space Exploration News

Baikonur, Kazakhstan (AFP) July 16, 2012
A Soyuz rocket blasted off with an international crew of three toward the International Space Station on Sunday in a mission testing the reliability of Russia's crisis-prone space programme. NASA's Sunita Williams and Japan's Akihiko Hoshide and Yury Malenchenko of Russia started their journey on top of the Soyuz-FG under the open skies of the Kazakh steppe on schedule and without a hitch.

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http://www.space-travel.com/reports/Russian_rocket_launches_new_crew_to_space_999
.html

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Mangarbani Sacred Grove

post from Wildbytes from India on 15 July 2012 07:55:00 AM. © Wildbytes from India

5km to the side of Gurgaon -Faridabad four lane road, driving through a thick forest of Vilayati Kekar trees interpersed with construction sites, you enter Mangarbani village (wrongly spelt Manger at the direction board on the main road).

The Art and Craft Hotel raises a few eyebrows just before we enter the village. Builders are already in possession of Dream plans to convert the ancient village of Mangarbani into a "Tourist Paradise", the Hotel is probably waiting for those Dreams to take wings.

Entrance to Mangarbani
At this sleepy village of about 300 hamlets we ask our way to the Bani. As we reach Bani, the three soldiers from Mangarbani village who started the fight to save Mangarbani against seemingly odd barriers, greet us. We, a few friends who learnt about Mangarbani through the film "The Lost Forest", had decided to devote the Sunday Morning to see the forest for ourselves.

"Heavenly'" " So cool'" "Longest tailed peacock" "Beautiful bird sounds" remarks kept coming as we walked. The residents pitched in with their knowledge of the Bani. The first and last rule of the Bani " Do not pluck or cut anything from the Bani. If you graze your animals inside, you raise the wrath of Gudanya Baba whose Samadhi in a cave is worshipped by the villagers.

Broken Kadamb branch-Remove it at your peril!
Here is an excerpt from the magazine "Down To Earth"

---What sets the Bani apart from the surrounding vegetation is that 95 per cent of it comprises a slow growing tree called Dhau (Anogeissus pendula). The tree has a unique feature. If it is nibbled by cattle, it spreads out on the ground or over rocks like thick prostrate undergrowth. If left undisturbed, it grows into a middle-sized tree. The 13-meter-tall dhaus in Mangar Bani testify to the forest?s antiquity, points out Pradip Krishen, the author of Trees of Delhi. ......

Sacred grove of Dhau trees seen from temple top
We saw Desi papri trees, Vat and Dhok trees , Seetaphal trees and Kadamb trees which were fruiting and Dhau, the endemic tree of the area which were sprouting all over after the rains.

Fruit of Kadamb tree
Sweet fruit of Seeta Phal tree

Dhau sprouting through rocks

Take the Dhau outside Mangarbani and they refuse to grow. The Dhau is believed to be one large organism in Managrbani which propagates through root grown saplings only. Untouched by the British ( The British never discovered this village tucked away in the interior, according to locals) and the Forest Department, Vilayati Keekar is absent in the village. No bougainvillas and no lantana bushes are seen anywhere. The Forest has remained natural as it was 3000 years ago. A Natural Museum worth presrving for the next generation!

Under the shade of ancient trees
Mangarbani, a serene forest

Besides the Bani being the Preserve of fauna and flora endemic to the Aravalis (probably the only patch in Rajasthan-Haryana-Delhi, where Aravalis have survived in their original glory), this unspoilt forest is most likely responsible for water recharging and safeguarding water veins underground. Destroy this vegetation cover, build on it and we could end up blocking/destroying any number of water veins under those impenetrable rock-systems. Gurgaon and Faridabad have seen Surajkund, Badkhal and Dumdama lakes disappear within the last 25-30 years, once vegetation in Aravalis was destroyed and hilllsides dug up for minerals/stones for construction and/or levelled for putting up buildings. The ban by the Supreme Court on all mining cant restore those water bodies, they are gone for ever.Will the Gurgaon-Faridabad-Delhi residents let the unspoilt Aravalis in and around Manger Bani disappear? They could be destroying the most important water-recharge System/Preserve that could have sustained the coming generations by providing much needed elixir of life 'WATER'SAVE THE ARAVALIS THAT WE STILL HAVE------REHABILITATING THEM MAY BE BEYOND ALL OF US. AFTER ALL THESE MOUNTAINS TOOK MILLIONS OF YEARS TO BECOME OUR BENEFICIARIES------
Listen to the young men from Mangarbani making an appeal

video details and more

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http://indianwildlifeclub.blogspot.com/2012/07/mangarbani-sacred-grove.html

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when a heat wave is just a heat wave

post from weird things on 15 July 2012 07:21:07 AM. © weird things

Not to get too far into this blog’s tech projects right off the bat, let’s pause for a minute and talk about a far less esoteric topic like the weather, because by FSM’s left meatball was it hot last week. Normally, in my little slice[...]

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http://worldofweirdthings.com/2012/07/15/when-a-heat-wave-is-just-a-heat-wave/

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Kids Biotechnology Weekend

post from Canadian BioTechnologist2.0 on 15 July 2012 06:48:07 AM. © Canadian BioTechnologist2.0

This site ROCKS! First there was mud. Then there were worms. and now there is Yucky! Test your skills with Whack-A-Roach. All you need to know about barfing, belching and blackheads! Plus mad scientist fun in Yucky Labs! Clink: http://yucky.discovery.com/flash/ Filed under: Education

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http://cbt20.wordpress.com/2012/07/15/kids-biotechnology-weekend-5/

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Now Your Smartphone Can Be Used To Diagnose Ear
Infections At Home

post from Singularity Hub on 15 July 2012 05:57:11 AM. © Singularity Hub

Cameras in smartphones will inevitably replace nearly all portable cameras and camcorders, but could they also make basic medical instruments [...]

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http://singularityhub.com/2012/07/15/now-your-smartphone-can-be-used-to-diagnose-
ear-infections-at-home/

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Downwind Faster than the Wind

Is it possible to travel downwind faster than the wind while powered only by the wind? This video examines some of the efforts made to find out.

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http://machineslikeus.com/videos/downwind-faster-wind

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What Is It for 7/15/12

This week's image:Check back on Wednesday for the answer!

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http://cr4.globalspec.com/blogentry/20368/What-Is-It-for-7-15-12?from_rss=1

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Be wary of miracles too good to be true

Not for the first time I’ve suspected that lyricist and drummer with the Canadian rock band Rush, Neil Peart has been reading my blog. First time was having written about the concept of earthshine, the band’s next album featured a song on that very concept, the reflected light from the Earth illuminating the dark face [...]

Be wary of miracles too good to be true is a post from: Sciencebase Science Blog

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http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/SciencebaseScienceBlog/~3/VzxYlRWDYDA/be-wary-of-m
iracles-too-good-to-be-true.html