An 8 year old boy in Alabama survives being sucked into the sky by tornado

Source: New York Daily News by BY VALERIYA SAFRONOVA AND NANCY DILLON



His house is a pile of rubble and he's in the hospital, but Alabama dad Reginald Eppes considers himself lucky, after his 8-year-old was sucked into a tornado and survived.

It happened early Wednesday when howling winds lifted Reginald Jr. off his top bunk bed and into the swirling darkness.

"I was reaching up for him, but my hands never made it. The walls crumpled like paper, and he just went with them," Eppes, 35, told the Daily News from Regional Medical Center in Tuscaloosa.

"Like someone had him on a string and snatched him away real quick."

The Coaling, Ala., dad said he quickly threw his body over 6-year-old James-Peter while his wife shielded their 4-year-old boy. They prayed in a huddle as the rain soaked them.

"It was like a nightmare. I wasn't sure exactly what was happening," he explained. "I just held on to what I had and asked God for protection."

He believes he was granted a miracle.

"I looked up and saw a silhouette, his little shadowy figure walking back over the debris," Eppes recounted. "It was wonderful. You can't explain the relief."

The boy had a gash on his neck and bumps on his head, but a CT scan was negative and doctors found no internal injuries.

"He said it was like he was floating in the air and then just floated back down," said the grateful dad, who also suffered a collapsed left lung.

As Eppes recovered Friday, President Obama toured the heart of Dixie and pledged "maximum federal help" for the deadliest tornado outbreak since the Great Depression.

"I've never seen damage like this. It's heartbreaking," Obama said as he spoke with stunned Tuscaloosa residents amid mountains of debris, overturned cars, downed power lines and uprooted trees piled like matchsticks.

The death toll from Wednesday's devastating string of tornados rose to 318 yesterday and is expected to climb higher.

The outbreak is now considered the most deadly since 1932, when 332 people lost their lives, all in Alabama.

Officials said 228 people were confirmed dead in Alabama while 33 perished in Mississippi, 34 in Tennessee, 15 in Georgia, five in Virginia and one in Kentucky.

New York-based Red Cross volunteers quickly hopped on planes to pitch in with the region's long road to recovery.

"We're trying to prevent PTSD by showing them how to take care of themselves," Queens-based mental health counselor Hun-Jue Luu, 46, told the News. "The challenge is to get them to calm down and go back to their previous life."

Healing the wounds of your ancestors & parents

Source: Huffington Post, written by Dr. Judith Rich

"You are a link in a chain of causation that stretches before and after your life for a thousand generations."
--Rev. Chris Michaels, founding minister of the Center for Spiritual Living, Kansas City, Mo.

Unless you're a Native American, if you were born in America, somewhere in your lineage, you can trace back to ancestors who came here from a foreign land to start a new life. Their decision affected all future generations in your lineage, including you. Your life has taken a different trajectory because of the choices made by those who came before you.

Some Native Americans believe that our actions affect the seven generations in both directions. Think about that possibility. Is it possible that we can evolve our lineage backwards in time as well as forwards? Does it matter? And why bother? Isn't that ancient history?

Maybe not. Consider not only that it's possible to evolve your lineage in both directions, but also that to have this awareness cuts to the core of the true nature of human being. We're here in a body, appearing to be separate. We appear to lead separate lives, to have different experiences, beliefs and opinions about what is true and right and how the world works. This is true -- at the level of appearances.

But as our dear friends and scientific geniuses, Carl Sagan and company, reminded us in the video I posted a few weeks ago, we are all part of this great cosmic symphony of particles and light dancing together, energy that's never destroyed, only transformed.

As you step to the front of the line in your ancestry, the energy they embodied has been passed on and is now expressing as you and those of your current generation in the lineage. As you transform, the energy of the entire lineage preceding you is transformed, for it is all happening now through you, as you. You are the one who can heal old wounds for your entire lineage, forgive old enemies, shift conditioning and beliefs, release pain that has held preceding generations captive for centuries.

This is the gift you bring them, for as they departed, they left behind the residue of their unfinished business, passed down through the ages, held in place by the unspoken family agreement to perpetuate it -- that is, up until now. And now it's your turn. Bringing completion to prior generations and setting up what happens for future generations now depends on you.

You can take this as a burden and decline to answer the call. This is how the wound keeps reproducing itself. Or you can see this as a gift and an honor, an opportunity to contribute to those you'll never see or know, those who may never know your name. And you can choose to do the work of healing yourself and them.

Perhaps you come from a lineage of addiction, from people who found solace and comfort from what seemed unbearable through alcohol or other substances. You might come from a lineage of anger or violence, from people who kept score and settled them in ways that were destructive to themselves and others. Maybe your people tried hard to assimilate and fit in, but never quite succeeded, always the "outsider." Maybe you still feel that "outsider-ness" in your own life today. Your people might have been survivors, having lived through war or other atrocities. Many fought the battles, inner and outer, with those conflicts having been passed on to you.

I grew up in a family with two parents who stayed together for 66 years. I never heard them say a cross word to each other in front of my brothers or me. But as a child, I would sometimes hear them arguing behind the closed doors of their bedroom. It was always a shock to me, for on the surface everything always seemed so tranquil between them. I never knew how unhappy my mother was until towards the end of her life when she began to unload a lifetime of complaints she'd held inside.

People of my parents' generation didn't express their feelings. Their ancestors were stoic and never complained, even though life was hard. Feelings didn't matter. What mattered was getting the job done. At the end of their lives, with having gotten the job of living done, both my parents were faced with a flood of feelings that had never been expressed. For my dad it was sadness, for my mom, anger. My mother was a good and kind woman, but sadly, she died a bitter woman, filled with regrets, never really knowing who she was.

My entire adult life has been a journey of healing this wound, making sure that I leave no stone unturned, so that at the end of the day, I can leave this life with no regrets. I love how George Bernard Shaw puts it: "Life is no 'brief candle' for me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations."

Burning The Bright Torch

Our "job" here is to be the light that we already are and reflect that light outward so that others might find their own way in the darkness. The wounds we carry dim the light. As we do the work of transforming our wounds into gifts that help to bring about healing, we literally begin to shine. We become radiant beings who reflect their true nature, which is luminosity. Or, as Carl Sagan said, "We're made of star stuff." We are light beings as much as the stars.

It takes courage to do the work of healing. It's not comfortable, convenient or easy. It's not "business as usual," or maintaining the status quo. It means the end of denial, pretending and avoiding. It means being radically honest with yourself and those around you. This kind of honesty won't necessarily win popularity contests, but it will recalibrate your DNA.

If we're healing and transforming the wounds we carry from those who came before, we're also changing the trajectory of those who come after. Those who follow will have a different standard as the foundation for the linage. If we break the chain of addiction, violence or other inherited, limiting beliefs, our children and their children and those who follow them are given access to possibilities not available to the ancestors. And thus, the entire lineage evolves.

I once had a dream in which I found myself standing in front of a long table. Seated at the table was a group of ascended masters who called themselves "The Committee." On the ground before me was drawn a line in the sand. The Committee gave me the following instructions: "If you choose to step across this line, you will take with you your entire lineage. It's entirely your choice."

In the dream, stepping across the line symbolized my choice to evolve as a conscious being. By stepping across, I was bringing consciousness to the generations who came before and after me. I could see them and feel their presence. They were all standing behind me, with their hands on each other's shoulders linked together in a long chain of beings. I could feel their longings and the unfinished business of their lives.

The choice was an easy one, but I needed to declare it. It had to be a conscious step. So I spoke to the Committee and declared, "I choose to evolve as a conscious being on behalf of all my ancestors, for those who came before and those who come after." I stepped across the line, and as I did, I could feel a surge of energy as they all came with me. Then I woke up from the dream.

It's time we all woke up from the dream. In doing the work of awakening, we're invited to rise up and see what lies beyond the wound, what possibilities await our arrival at the place of conscious choice. What's possible when we live our lives fully embracing ourselves as the magnificent beings we truly are? What's possible for the human condition when we care enough about each other to look upon one another as partners in this cosmic symphony instead of mortal enemies because it's been that way for centuries?

I once began a seminar by sharing this dream and drawing an imaginary line in the front of the room. I then invited participants, whoever chose to, to come to the front, step across the line and declare themselves. Many made the choice, but not all. And this is how it is with us humans.

I invite you to consider making this choice for the thousands of people you represent. Imagine that standing behind you are the people from your past and your future. Many of them haven't even been born yet. Will you choose to step across the line, do the conscious work of healing and move the chain of beings in a "thousand generations" with you?

What wounds do you carry that come from your lineage, passed on for generations? What can you do to change the trajectory for them and for those who follow?

Here's the first part of the Shaw quote:

"This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy.

I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community, and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can.

I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake."

Ancient Israelite group known as the Samaritans

Source: ITN News

This is a recent video of the "ancient" Israelite group known as the Samaritans. The name Samaritans is said to come from the Hebrew word Shamerim meaning "Keepers Of The Law". According to their history, they existed before Jesus The Christ era. Their dress & fez is an influence of Christian, Islamic (really Moorish) & Jewish influence.

clip of The Borgias: The Moor episode

Source: Showtime Youtube channel

The earth & sky from atop El Teide, Spain's highest mountain

Source: Terjes Vimeo channel

Scientist are puzzled by two super big whirlpools that has formed in the Atlantic Ocean

Source: thewatchers.adorraeli.com



US scientists discovered two giant whirlpools in the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Guyana and Suriname. It became a sensational discovery because this part of the ocean has been studied thoroughly, and no one expected anything like that to appear in the area. More importantly, no one can understand where the whirlpools came from and what surprises they may bring to people. We reported earlier about two whirpools (Huge Ocean ‘Frisbees’ Whirl Off Brazil Coast) of Brazil coast. Two scientist, William Johns and Guilherme Castelão detailed their findings online Jan. 11 in the Journal of Geophysical Research-Oceans.

This funnels rotate clockwise and they are moving in the ocean. Just northwest of Brazil, winds drive part of the North Brazil Current eastward along the equator. Every now and then, this turn is especially sharp and the current loops around. The looping action pinches off a huge clockwise-spinning disk of warm water that travels northwest like a Frisbee moves through air. Although scientists have known about these “current rings” for decades, knowledge of even their basic details such as size, speed, depth and rate of spin was limited. It appears that rotation occurs at a rate of one meter per second, the speed is sufficiently large compared to the speed of oceanic currents, on the border hoppers is a wave-step height of 40 cm.

These rings play a key role in global climate as well, transporting ocean heat from the equator northward and eventually feeding into the Gulf Stream system. Even during the dry months the funnels do not disappear. Scientists concluded that the nature of the funnels does not depend on the flow of water, which one of the world’s biggest rivers brings into the ocean. The natural phenomenon, which creates the whirlpools, is unknown to modern science.

As a matter of fact, the phenomenon of giant whirlpools in the World Ocean is not new to science. In most cases, the craters, or rings, as scientists call them, are formed as a result of so-called vertical currents. The latter, in their turn, appear because of differences in water density which appear because of difference in temperatures of water layers. It is an open secret that cold water is thicker and heavier, so it goes down, underneath the masses of warm water, which is lighter. This is the reason why warm currents in the World Ocean always flow closer to the surface, whereas colder currents flow closer to the bottom.

Whirlpools are ocean currents that move in a rotating direction, produced by rising and falling tides. Some of these exhibit a downward pull, called a vortex. One of the most famous whirlpools is the Maelstrom located near the Lofoten Islands, off the coast of Norway. The word comes from the Dutch for ‘whirling stream’. This is caused by a strong channel about 8km (5 miles) wide that travels through the islands of Moskensøya and Mosken. The currents can reach speeds of 11km/h (7mph) with the changing tides. Others occur on the Strait of Corryvreckan (between Scarba and Jura, off the west coast of Scotland), along the coast of Calabria in southern Italy and off Messina, in the strait between Sicily and peninsular Italy. A vortex occurs in the Naruto Strait, which connects the Inland Sea (Japan) and the Pacific Ocean.

Old Sow is the name of the largest tidal whirlpool in the Western Hemisphere located off the southwestern shore of Deer Island, New Brunswick, Canada between that island and Moose Island, the principal island of Eastport, Maine. The whirlpool is caused by local bathymetry and extreme tidal range where waters exchange between Passamaquoddy Bay and the Bay of Fundy, combined with the unusual topography of the location’s sea floor at the confluence of the numerous local currents.

The Naruto whirlpools (鳴門の渦潮) are tidal whirlpools in the Naruto Strait, a channel between Naruto in Tokushima and Awaji Island in Hyōgo, Japan.
The strait between Naruto and Awaji island has a width of about 1.3 km (0.81 miles). The strait is one of the connections between the Pacific Ocean and the Inland Sea, a body of water separating Honshū and Shikoku, two of the main islands of Japan.

Saltstraumen is a sound with a strong tidal current located in Nordland 30 km east of the city of Bodø, Norway. The narrow channel connects the outer Saltfjord with its extension, the large Skjerstadfjord. It is the strongest tidal current in the world. Up to 400 million m³ (tonnes) of seawater forces its way through a 3 km long and 150 m wide strait every six hours, with water speeds reaching 22 knots (about 40 km/h). Vortices known as whirlpools or maelstroms up to 10 m in diameter and 5 m in depth are formed when the current is at its strongest.

As the Gulf Stream flows north, it encounters the Labrador flowing south along the banks of Cape Hatteras. As these two currents meet, they begin to meander (they wind back and forth like a snake). Eventually, these meanders “pinch off” from the main flow and become independently rotating structures, known as rings.

One set of rings, which contains the cold water of the Labrador Current, are known as cold core rings. These cold core rings spin off from the Gulf Stream and are propelled eastward into the North Atlantic Ocean. Their movements may take them quite far from the Gulf Stream and, depending on their size, they may retain their characteristics for months. As they spin off from the Gulf Stream, they have a certain rotational velocity, a net direction, and a characteristic temperature structure.

On the other side of the Gulf Stream, warm water pinches off into structures called warm core rings. These rings typically spin off west and north of the Gulf Stream, and travel against the flow of the Labrador Current. Because their centers are composed of warm, nutrient-poor water, conditions are not ripe for plankton blooms. As such, these rings typically don’t develop the kinds of biological communities we observe in cold-core rings.

Grant Chronicles write about ocean whirpool due to Earth wobble. The shipping lanes along certain fringe zones between warm & cold currents and opposite bodies of water are going to become hazardous due to sudden shifts of bodies of waters and currents due to the rocking motion of the Earth as the tilt adjusts to the slow moving turn of the north pole of the 12th planet. With the 12th planet moving into a magnetic comfort zone of the Sun where both poles will soon be parallel to the tangent line of Earth’ orbital path as the North Pole of the 12th planet rotates towards Earth and the South Pole away within the plane of the ecliptic, wobble will become extreme as the poles of the 12th move another 90 degrees and the north pole of the 12th planet faces the Earth. The wobble will take the motion of a slowly spinning top as the axis of the earth forms an ever-widening circle. The swaying of the large water basins will force cold water over warm waters quickly with disastrous results. The major problem occurs when tilt forces cold water away from the warm currents first, stops, thus creating high tides on the extreme end then reverses and forces this mass of accumulated water into the warm currents creating a line of whirlpools separated turbulent static channels between them. The cold water forced over warmer water due to the wobble of the poles will sink in conjunction with the rotation of the Earth a spin or water vortex will form at random areas in the oceans of the world where two bodies of distinctly different water temperatures co mingle, but a pattern will develop. Ships will be pulled under with little warning with the only remnant trace, scattered debris floating on the turbulent surface.

The second affect will be the change in the jet stream flows and how air masses interact. This will bring the about the advent of the super storms were 2 distinct air masses will be forced together suddenly and the front will be a source of devastation not seen in recent history. Not so much in magnitude, but some will be near the extreme end and hurricanes should not move above 250 mph. due to the atmospheric friction with the land masses as opposed to the sheer number of occurrences.

Pravda reports about two giant whirlpools in the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Guyana and Suriname. Such movement of water may not always depend on the difference of temperatures of the water column. The difference in salinity can also be a reason. The mechanism here is the same. The density of saltier water is higher, this water is heavier and it moves closer to the bottom, pushing less saltier water up. This type of vertical fusion occurs frequently in the tropics because high temperatures lead to the evaporation of water from the surface. The salt does not evaporate with water, though. It stays in the ocean, which raises the level of salinity on the upper layer of water. This layer “drowns” and gives way to less saltier waters of the depth. Such vertical movements of water create giant whirlpools. The whirlpools, tens and even hundreds of kilometers in diameter, may last for months and even years, scientists say. The vertical movement of waters is a slow process, though. Why do those whirlpools exist for such a long time? This is partially the effect of Earth’s magnetic field. In addition, marine water contains many charged ions, Na and Cl for example. To crown it all, water molecules are dipoles that are charged both positively and negatively.

Any dipole starts spinning when moving in the magnetic field. An oceanic ring gathers millions of billions of molecules together. That is why the giant circle movement triggered by the vertical movement of water may last for months and years mechanically. Ions also give more power to the craters. Natrium and Chlorum are charged as well, and their movement in the magnetic field of the Earth also leads to the appearance of the circle movement.

It is not ruled out that the reason for the appearance of the whirlpools off the coast of South America is the same as in other parts of the World Ocean. Scientists are currently studying the influence of those giant funnels on the climate of Latin America and Africa. Such whirlpools show influence on the atmosphere and form cyclonical air mass. They can also affect the movement of air mass formed in other places. For the time being, scientists do not know how the newly discovered water craters can affect the climate of Central and South Americas.

Too much video gaming can cause psychological effects on the brain & confuse the individual with reality

Source: ForaTv Youtube channel

"Jane McGonigal discusses the impact of gaming on the psychological health of gamers. McGonigal explains that when players spend more than 28 hours a week gaming, it can have a negative impact. She points to social and physical gaming as healthier alternatives, arguing these types of games facilitate a connection between gamers and real life friends and family.

Can problems like poverty and climate change by fixed through games? Visionary game designer Jane McGonigal thinks it can. With more than 174 million gamers in the United States, McGonigal explores how we can save the world through the power of gaming. McGonigal is helping pioneer the fasting-growing genre of games that turns gameplay to achieve socially positive outcomes. - Commonwealth Club of California

Jane McGonigal is the director of games research & development at the Institute for the Future in Palo Alto, California. She has created and deployed games and missions in more than 30 countries on six continents. She specializes in games that help gamers enjoy their real lives more -- and games that challenge players to tackle real-world problems, through planetary-scale collaboration.

McGonigal is the author of the newly released book, Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World."

Skin bleaching is becoming a major problem on the Caribbean island of Jamaica

Source: News One



KINGSTON, Jamaica – Mikeisha Simpson covers her body in greasy white cream and bundles up in a track suit to avoid the fierce sun of her native Jamaica, but she’s not worried about skin cancer.

The 23-year-old resident of a Kingston ghetto hopes to transform her dark complexion to a cafe-au-lait-color common among Jamaica’s elite and favored by many men in her neighborhood. She believes a fairer skin could be her ticket to a better life. So she spends her meager savings on cheap black-market concoctions that promise to lighten her pigment.

Simpson and her friends ultimately shrug off public health campaigns and reggae hits blasting the reckless practice.

“I hear the people that say bleaching is bad, but I’ll still do it. I won’t stop ’cause I like it and I know how to do it safe,” said Simpson, her young daughter bouncing on her hip.

People around the world often try to alter their skin color, using tanning salons or dyes to darken it or other chemicals to lighten it. In the gritty slums of Jamaica, doctors say the skin lightening phenomenon has reached dangerous proportions.

“I know of one woman who started to bleach her baby. She got very annoyed with me when I told her to stop immediately, and she left my office. I often wonder what became of that baby,” said Neil Persadsingh, a leading Jamaican dermatologist.

Most Jamaican bleachers use over-the-counter creams, many of them knockoffs imported from West Africa. Long-term use of one of the ingredients, hydroquinone, has long been linked to a disfiguring condition called ochronosis that causes a splotchy darkening of the skin. Doctors say abuse of bleaching lotions has also left a web of stretch marks across some Jamaicans’ faces.

In Japan, the European Union, and Australia, hydroquinone has been removed from over-the-counter skin products and substituted with other chemicals due to concerns about health risks. In the U.S., over-the-counter creams containing up to 2 percent hydroquinone are recognized as safe and effective by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. A proposed ban by the FDA in 2006 fizzled.

Lightening creams are not effectively regulated in Jamaica, where even roadside vendors sell tubes and plastic bags of powders and ointments from cardboard boxes stacked along sidewalks in market districts.

“Many of the tubes are unlabeled as to their actual ingredients,” said Dr. Richard Desnoes, president of the Dermatology Association of Jamaica.

Hardcore bleachers use illegal ointments smuggled into the Caribbean country that contain toxins like mercury, a metal that blocks production of melanin, which give skin its color, but can also be toxic.

Some impoverished people resort to homemade mixtures of toothpaste or curry powder, which can stain skin with a yellowish tint.

The Jamaican Ministry of Health does not have data on damage caused by skin-bleaching agents, though dermatologists and other health officials say they have been seeing more cases.

Eva Lewis-Fuller, the ministry’s director of health promotion and protection, is redoubling education programs to combat bleaching in this predominantly black island of 2.8 million people, where images of fair-skinned people predominate in commercials for high-end products and in the social pages of newspapers.

“Bleaching has gotten far worse and widespread in recent years,” she said. “(Bleachers) want to be accepted within their circle of society. They want to be attractive to the opposite sex. They want career opportunities. But we are saying there are side effects and risks. It can disfigure your face.”

Health officials are running warnings on local radio stations, putting up posters in schools, holding talks and handing out literature about the dangers. But a similar anti-bleaching campaign in 2007 called “Don’t Kill the Skin” did nothing to slow the craze.

The bleaching trend is sparking a growing public debate. Even dancehall reggae hits celebrate the practice, or condemn it.

The most public proponent of bleaching is singing star Vybz Kartel, whose own complexion has dramatically lightened in recent years. His ‘Look Pon Me’ contains the lines: “Di girl dem love off mi brown cute face, di girl dem love off mi bleach-out face.”

Kartel, whose real name is Adijah Palmer, insists that skin bleaching is simply a personal choice like tattooing.

Christopher A.D. Charles, an assistant professor at Monroe College in New York City who has studied the psychology of bleaching, said many young Jamaicans perceive it “as a modern thing, like Botox, to fashion their own body in a unique way.”

Others, however, say it raises awkward questions about identity and race.

“If we really want to control the spread of the skin-bleaching virus, we first have to admit that there’s an epidemic of color prejudice in our society,” said Carolyn Cooper, a professor of literary and cultural studies at the University of the West Indies, writing in The Jamaica Gleaner newspaper.

Felicia James, a 20-year-old resident of the Matthews Lane slum, said skin bleaching just makes her feel special, like she’s walking around in a spotlight. She was taught to bleach by her older sister and her friends.

“It’s just the fashionable thing to do. After I bleach, I’m cris,” she said, using a Jamaican term for cool. “Plus, a lot of the boys are doing it now, too.”

The amazing kitchen of the Golden Temple

Source: Smithsonian Magazine youtube channel

This is one reason why I study religion & spirituality around the globe & why it is my foundation for everything. The Golden Temple in India can feed between 40,000 & 100,000 people a day, no mater what their religion/faith/spiritual perspective is.

Mexican scientist creates process to generate electricity with water and melanin

Source: Cronica

The scientist Arturo Herrera Solis says his innovation seeks to generate clean energy through hydrogen. After four years of procedure and evidence, the Russian government gave the Mexican scientist Arturo Herrera Solis's first patent around the world to recognize the existence of "human photosynthesis." This allowed to develop a kind of infinite stack, which the author called Bat-Gen, because it works as both a rechargeable battery and a continuous power generator. The raw material of this invention is abundant in nature, as their core components are water and a molecule that exists in the skin, hair and the lining of the human retina, but that can be produced artificially: melanin, polihidroxiindol. The Bat-Gen is able to maintain a light bulb on for over 100 years, with the only need to change the bulbs when it finishes her lifetime. As evidence of this claim, Dr. Solis has in his laboratory in Aguascalientes lamps that are four years on. The process of Dr. Solis, who was conceived in her private laboratory
in the city of Aguascalientes, is under evaluation for four years in the patent offices of the United States, European Union, China and India. In Mexico, applied for a patent for five years at the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property and still no response. "If we take advantage of this process, no one will discuss to Mexico for having contributed one of the strongest solutions to address the crisis with a clean alternative energy," says Solis.

Ancient Japanese stone markers warned about earthquakes & tsunamis

Source: Huffington Post by JAY ALABASTER

MIYAKO, Japan — Modern sea walls failed to protect coastal towns from Japan's destructive tsunami last month. But in the hamlet of Aneyoshi, a single centuries-old tablet saved the day.

"High dwellings are the peace and harmony of our descendants," the stone slab reads. "Remember the calamity of the great tsunamis. Do not build any homes below this point."

It was advice the dozen or so households of Aneyoshi heeded, and their homes emerged unscathed from a disaster that flattened low-lying communities elsewhere and killed thousands along Japan's northeastern shore.

Hundreds of such markers dot the coastline, some more than 600 years old. Collectively they form a crude warning system for Japan, whose long coasts along major fault lines have made it a repeated target of earthquakes and tsunamis over the centuries.

The markers don't all indicate where it's safe to build. Some simply stand – or stood, until they were washed away by the tsunami – as daily reminders of the risk. "If an earthquake comes, beware of tsunamis," reads one. In the bustle of modern life, many forgot.

More than 12,000 people have been confirmed dead and officials fear the number killed could rise to 25,000 from the March 11 disaster. More than 100,000 are still sheltering in schools and other buildings, almost a month later. A few lucky individuals may move into the first completed units of temporary housing this weekend.

Workers at the tsunami-damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power complex finally halted a leak of radioactive water into the Pacific on Wednesday, but it may take months to bring the overheating reactors under control.

A natural disaster as large as last month's 9.0 earthquake and tsunami happens perhaps once in a person's lifetime, at most. Tokyo Electric Power Co., the nuclear plant operator, clearly wasn't prepared. Many communities built right to the water's edge, some taking comfort, perhaps, in sea walls built after a deadly but smaller tsunami in 1960.

Many did escape, fleeing immediately after the quake. In some places, it was a matter of minutes. Others who tarried, perished.

People had this crucial knowledge, but they were busy with their lives and jobs, and many forgot," said Yotaru Hatamura, a scholar who has studied the tablets.

One stone marker warned of the danger in the coastal city of Kesennuma: "Always be prepared for unexpected tsunamis. Choose life over your possessions and valuables."

Tetsuko Takahashi, 70, safe in her hillside house, watched from her front window as others ignored that advice. She saw a ship swept a half-mile (nearly a kilometer) inland, crushing buildings in its path.

"After the earthquake, people went back to their homes to get their valuables and stow their 'tatami' floor mats. They all got caught," she said.

Her family has lived in Kesennuma for generations, but she said those that experienced the most powerful tsunamis died years ago. She can only recall the far weaker one in 1960, generated by an earthquake off Chile.

Earlier generations also left warnings in place names, calling one town "Octopus Grounds" for the sea life washed up by tsunamis and naming temples after the powerful waves, said Fumihiko Imamura, a professor in disaster planning at Tohoku University in Sendai, a tsunami-hit city.

"It takes about three generations for people to forget. Those that experience the disaster themselves pass it to their children and their grandchildren, but then the memory fades," he said.

The tightly knit community of Aneyoshi, where people built homes above the marker, was an exception.

"Everybody here knows about the markers. We studied them in school," said Yuto Kimura, 12, who guided a recent visitor to one near his home. "When the tsunami came, my mom got me from school and then the whole village climbed to higher ground."

Aneyoshi, part of the city of Miyako, has been battered repeatedly by tsunamis, including a huge one in 1896. Isamu Aneishi, 69, said his ancestors moved their family-run inn to higher ground more than 100 years ago.

But his three grandchildren were at an elementary school that sat just 500 feet (150 meters) from the water in Chikei, a larger town down the winding, cliffside road. The school and surrounding buildings are in ruins. The bodies of his grandchildren have not been found.

Farther south, the tsunami washed away a seven-foot (two-meter) tall stone tablet that stood next to a playground in the middle of the city of Natori. Its message was carved in giant Japanese characters: "If an earthquake comes, beware of tsunamis."

That didn't stop some people from leaving work early after the earthquake, some picking up their children at school en route, to check the condition of their homes near the coast.

Many didn't make it out alive. More than 820 bodies have been found in Natori, some stuck in the upper branches of trees after the water receded. Another 1,000 people are still missing.

Hiroshi Kosai grew up in Natori but moved away after high school. His parents, who remained in the family home, died in the disaster.

"I always told my parents it was dangerous here," said the 43-year-old Kosai, as he pointed out the broken foundation where the tablet once stood. "In five years, you'll see houses begin to sprout up here again."

Green Lantern extended movie trailer

Source: Warner Brothers Pictures youtube channel

Visual alchemy to understand what a star seed is, what an old soul is, what an enlightened one is, what a light bearer is. The gathering of the Lanterns, many different beings meeting in a huge like stadium speaking about a galactic agenda.

(UPDATE) Genetically modified cows will produce human milk in the future

Source: Sott Net, from Richard Gray, The Telegraph, Sky News



Scientists have created genetically modified cattle that produce "human" milk in a bid to make cows' milk more nutritious.

The scientists have successfully introduced human genes into 300 dairy cows to produce milk with the same properties as human breast milk.

Human milk contains high quantities of key nutrients that can help to boost the immune system of babies and reduce the risk of infections.

The scientists behind the research believe milk from herds of genetically modified cows could provide an alternative to human breast milk and formula milk for babies, which is often criticised as being an inferior substitute.

They hope genetically modified dairy products from herds of similar cows could be sold in supermarkets. The research has the backing of a major biotechnology company.

The work is likely to inflame opposition to GM foods. Critics of the technology and animal welfare groups reacted angrily to the research, questioning the safety of milk from genetically modified animals and its effect on the cattle's health.

But Professor Ning Li, the scientist who led the research and director of the State Key Laboratories for AgroBiotechnology at the China Agricultural University insisted that the GM milk would be as safe to drink as milk from ordinary dairy cows.

He said: "The milk tastes stronger than normal milk.

"We aim to commercialize some research in this area in coming three years. For the "human-like milk", 10 years or maybe more time will be required to finally pour this enhanced milk into the consumer's cup."

China is now leading the way in research on genetically modified food and the rules on the technology are more relaxed than those in place in Europe.

The researchers used cloning technology to introduce human genes into the DNA of Holstein dairy cows before the genetically modified embryos were implanted into surrogate cows.

Writing in the scientific peer-reviewed journal Public Library of Science One, the researchers said they were able to create cows that produced milk containing a human protein called lysozyme,

Lysozyme is an antimicrobial protein naturally found in large quantities in human breast milk. It helps to protect infants from bacterial infections during their early days of life.

They created cows that produce another protein from human milk called lactoferrin, which helps to boost the numbers of immune cells in babies. A third human milk protein called alpha-lactalbumin was also produced by the cows.

The scientists also revealed at an exhibition at the China Agricultural University that they have boosted milk fat content by around 20 per cent and have also changed the levels of milk solids, making it closer to the composition of human milk as well as having the same immune-boosting properties.

Professor Li and his colleagues, who have been working with the Beijing GenProtein Biotechnology Company, said their work has shown it was possible to "humanise" cows milk.

In all, the scientists said they have produced a herd of around 300 cows that are able to produce human-like milk.

The transgenic animals are physically identical to ordinary cows.

Writing in the journal, Professor Li said: "Our study describes transgenic cattle whose milk offers the similar nutritional benefits as human milk.

"The modified bovine milk is a possible substitute for human milk. It fulfilled the conception of humanising the bovine milk."

Speaking to The Sunday Telegraph, he added the "human-like milk" would provide "much higher nutritional content". He said they had managed to produce three generations of GM cows but for commercial production there would need to be large numbers of cows produced.

He said: "Human milk contains the 'just right' proportions of protein, carbohydrates, fats, minerals, and vitamins for an infant's optimal growth and development.

"As our daily food, the cow's milk provided us the basic source of nutrition. But the digestion and absorption problems made it not the perfect food for human being."

The researchers also insist having antimicrobial proteins in the cows milk can also be good for the animals by helping to reduce infections of their udders.

Genetically modified food has become a highly controversial subject and currently they can only be sold in the UK and Europe if they have passed extensive safety testing.

The consumer response to GM food has also been highly negative, resulting in many supermarkets seeking to source products that are GM free.

Campaigners claim GM technology poses a threat to the environment as genes from modified plants can get into wild plant populations and weeds, while they also believe there are doubts about the safety of such foods.

Scientists insist genetically modified foods are unlikely to pose a threat to food safety and in the United States consumers have been eating genetically modified foods for more decades.

However, during two experiments by the Chinese researchers, which resulted in 42 transgenic calves being born, just 26 of the animals survived after ten died shortly after birth, most with gastrointestinal disease, and a further six died within six months of birth.

Researchers accept that the cloning technology used in genetic modification can affect the development and survival of cloned animals, although the reason why is not well understood.

A spokesman for the Royal Society for the Protection of Animals said the organisation was "extremely concerned" about how the GM cows had been produced.

She said: "Offspring of cloned animals often suffer health and welfare problems, so this would be a grave concern.

"Why do we need this milk - what is it giving us that we haven't already got."

Helen Wallace, director of biotechnology monitoring group GeneWatch UK, said: "We have major concerns about this research to genetically modify cows with human genes.

"There are major welfare issues with genetically modified animals as you get high numbers of still births.

"There is a question about whether milk from these cows is going to be safe from humans and it is really hard to tell that unless you do large clinical trials like you would a drug, so there will be uncertainty about whether it could be harmful to some people.

"Ethically there are issues about mass producing animals in this way."

Professor Keith Campbell, a biologist at the University of Nottingham works with transgenic animals, said: "Genetically modified animals and plants are not going to be harmful unless you deliberately put in a gene that is going to be poisonous. Why would anyone do that in a food?

"Genetically modified food, if done correctly, can provide huge benefit for consumers in terms of producing better products."

The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks: Readers talk about the book

Source: Rebecca Skloot youtube channel