A Serene and Simple Prayer …. Not Only by Senior Citizens … !!!!

 

SPECIAL PRAYER BY SENIOR CITIZENS
 
A Simple, not-so-intelligent, but Sincere Prayer.

 
My dear God, 
you know that I am growing older.
      Keep me from becoming too talkative, from repeating all my jokes and anecdotes, and particularly keep me from falling into the tiresome habit of expressing an opinion on every subject.

Release me from craving to straighten out everyone’s affairs. Keep my mind free from recital of endless details.
Give me wings to get to the point.

Give me the grace, dear GOD, to listen to others as they describe their aches and pains.

Help me endure the boredom with patience and keep my lips sealed,
for my own aches and pains are increasing in number and intensity,
and the pleasure of discussing them is becoming sweeter as the years go by.

Teach me the glorious lesson that occasionally, I might be mistaken. Keep me reasonably sweet.


I do not wish to be a saint (Saints are so hard to live with), but a sour old person is the work of the devil.

Make me thoughtful, but not moody, helpful, but not pushy, independent,
yet able to accept with graciousness favors that others wish to bestow on me.

Free me of the notion that simply because I have lived a long time,
I am wiser than those who have not lived so long.

I am older, but not necessarily wiser!

If I do not approve of some of the changes that have taken place in recent years, give me the wisdom to keep my mouth shut.


GOD,
 please know that when the end comes,
 I would like to have a friend or two left. 
Source:::: Unknown…. Input from a Friend of Mine
Natarajan
Jan 19  2015

Image of the Day…. Year 2014 Ranks as The Warmest on Record Since 1880 !!!

 

The year 2014 now ranks as the warmest on record since 1880, according to an analysis by NASA scientists.
Image Credit:
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

The year 2014 ranks as Earth’s warmest since 1880, according to two separate analyses by NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) scientists.

The 10 warmest years in the instrumental record, with the exception of 1998, have now occurred since 2000. This trend continues a long-term warming of the planet, according to an analysis of surface temperature measurements by scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies (GISS) in New York.

In an independent analysis of the raw data, also released Friday, NOAA scientists also found 2014 to be the warmest on record.

“NASA is at the forefront of the scientific investigation of the dynamics of the Earth’s climate on a global scale,” said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “The observed long-term warming trend and the ranking of 2014 as the warmest year on record reinforces the importance for NASA to study Earth as a complete system, and particularly to understand the role and impacts of human activity.”

This video shows a time series of five-year global temperature averages, mapped from 1880 to 2014, as estimated by scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York.
Image Credit:
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
global temperature anomaly data from 2014
This color-coded map displays global temperature anomaly data from 2014.
Image Credit:
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

Since 1880, Earth’s average surface temperature has warmed by about 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit (0.8 degrees Celsius), a trend that is largely driven by the increase in carbon dioxide and other human emissions into the planet’s atmosphere. The majority of that warming has occurred in the past three decades.

“This is the latest in a series of warm years, in a series of warm decades. While the ranking of individual years can be affected by chaotic weather patterns, the long-term trends are attributable to drivers of climate change that right now are dominated by human emissions of greenhouse gases,” said GISS Director Gavin Schmidt.

While 2014 temperatures continue the planet’s long-term warming trend, scientists still expect to see year-to-year fluctuations in average global temperature caused by phenomena such as El Niño or La Niña. These phenomena warm or cool the tropical Pacific and are thought to have played a role in the flattening of the long-term warming trend over the past 15 years. However, 2014’s record warmth occurred during an El Niño-neutral year.

“NOAA provides decision makers with timely and trusted science-based information about our changing world,” said Richard Spinrad, NOAA chief scientist. “As we monitor changes in our climate, demand for the environmental intelligence NOAA provides is only growing. It’s critical that we continue to work with our partners, like NASA, to observe these changes and to provide the information communities need to build resiliency.”

Regional differences in temperature are more strongly affected by weather dynamics than the global mean. For example, in the U.S. in 2014, parts of the Midwest and East Coast were unusually cool, while Alaska and three western states – California, Arizona and Nevada – experienced their warmest year on record, according to NOAA.

The GISS analysis incorporates surface temperature measurements from 6,300 weather stations, ship- and buoy-based observations of sea surface temperatures, and temperature measurements from Antarctic research stations. This raw data is analyzed using an algorithm that takes into account the varied spacing of temperature stations around the globe and urban heating effects that could skew the calculation. The result is an estimate of the global average temperature difference from a baseline period of 1951 to 1980.

NOAA scientists used much of the same raw temperature data, but a different baseline period. They also employ their own methods to estimate global temperatures.

GISS is a NASA laboratory managed by the Earth Sciences Division of the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center, in Greenbelt, Maryland. The laboratory is affiliated with Columbia University’s Earth Institute and School of Engineering and Applied Science in New York.

NASA monitors Earth’s vital signs from land, air and space with a fleet of satellites, as well as airborne and ground-based observation campaigns. NASA develops new ways to observe and study Earth’s interconnected natural systems with long-term data records and computer analysis tools to better see how our planet is changing. The agency shares this unique knowledge with the global community and works with institutions in the United States and around the world that contribute to understanding and protecting our home planet.

The data set of 2014 surface temperature measurements is available at:

http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/

The methodology used to make the temperature calculation is available at:

http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/sources_v3/

For more information about NASA’s Earth science activities, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/earthrightnow 

SOURCE:::::www.nasa.gov

Natarajan

Jan 18 2015

” அவ்வையாரின் ‘மூதுரை முப்பது “… இன்றைய தலைமுறைக்கு …ஆங்கிலத்திலும்

 For the Benefit of our Children … AND also for our Information as  Recap of our School Days  !!!!
1.      நன்றி ஒருவர்க்குச் செய்தக்கால் அந்நன்றி
என்று தருங்கோல் என வேண்டா – நின்று
தளரா வளர்தெங்கு தாளுண்ட நீரைத்
தலையாலே தான்தருத லால். 1
Helping someone should never be done expecting it be reciprocated.
Like the Coconut palm that offers through its head (from coconut) the water that it drank at its feet, the roots.
2. நல்லார் ஒருவர்க்குச் செய்த உபகாரம்
கல்மேல் எழுத்துப்போல் காணுமே – அல்லாத
ஈரமிலா நெஞ்சத்தார்க் கீந்த உபகாரம்
நீர் மேல் எழுத்துக்கு நேர். 2
The help rendered to the good people is like letters written on a rock.
Help rendered to the heartless is like the letters written on water.
3. இன்னா இளமை வறுமைவந் தெய்தியக்கால்
இன்னா அளவில் இனியவும்-இன்னாத
நாளல்லா நாள்பூந்த நன்மலரும் போலுமே
ஆளில்லா மங்கைக் கழகு. 3
Misery during youth is poverty whereas during old age even good things may not be enjoyable.
A woman without a man is like a flower that blooms out of season
4. அட்டாலும் பால் சுவையில் குன்றா(து) அளவளவாய்
நட்டாலும் நண்பல்லார் நண்பல்லர்
கெட்டாலும் மேன்மக்கள் மேன்மக்களே; சங்கு
சுட்டாலும் வெண்மை தரும். 4
Taste of milk does not diminish even when boiled.
Some people even after knowing step by step would never become friends.
The good will always retain their character even during bad times,
The conch roasted in fire will still retain whiteness.
5. அடுத்து முயன்றாலும் ஆகும்நாள் அன்றி
எடுத்த கருமங்கள் ஆகா – தொடுத்த
உருவத்தால் நீண்ட உயர்மரங்கள் எல்லாம்
பருவத்தால் அன்றிப் பழா . 5
Hard work will not give immediate results like the trees that are big which will not bear fruits until the fruiting season.
6. உற்ற இடத்தில் உயிர்வழங்கும் தன்மையோர்
பற்றலரைக் கண்டால் பணிவரோ – கற்றூண்
பிளந்திறுவ தல்லால் பெரும்பாரம் தாங்கின்
தளர்ந்து வளையுமோ தான். 6
Will the People who would give their life for others cow down when faced with enemies?
Would a stone pillar that carries weight will ever bend?
7. நீர் அளவே ஆகுமாம் நீர் ஆம்பல் தான்கற்ற
நூல் அளவே ஆகுமாம் நுண் அறிவு – மேலைத்
தவத்து அளவே ஆகுமாம் தான்பெற்ற செல்வம்
குலத்து அளவே ஆகுமாம் குணம் . 7
A water lily rises to the height of water
Wisdom rises to the limits of learning
Wealth rises to the limits of austerity
Character rises to the limit of the family’s.
8. நல்லாரைக் காண்பதுவும் நன்றே நலமிக்க
நல்லார்சொல் கேட்பதுவும் நன்றே – நல்லார்
குணங்கள் உரைப்பதுவும் நன்றே; அவரோடு
இணங்கி இருப்பதுவும் நன்று. 8
It is good to see good people.
It is good to listen to the words of learned.
It is good to praise qualities of virtuous people.
It is good to associate with all of these
9. தீயாரைக் காண்பதுவும் தீதே திருவற்ற
தீயார்சொல் கேட்பதுவும் தீதே – தீயார்
குணங்கள் உரைப்பதுவும் தீதே; அவரோடு
இணங்கி இருப்பதுவும் தீது. 9
It is bad to even see evil people.
It is bad to listen to the words of the wicked.
It is bad to speak about the character of the wicked.
It is bad to associate with wicked.
10. நெல்லுக் கிறைத்தநீர் வாய்க்கால் வழியோடிப்
புல்லுக்கும் ஆங்கே பொசியுமாம் – தொல் உலகில்
நல்லார் ஒருவர் உளரேல் அவர்பொருட்டு
எல்லார்க்கும் பெய்யும் மழை. 10
The water meant for rice fields also irrigates the grass.
Like that, even if there is one good man in a place, the rains will pour on his behalf and benefit all around.
11. பண்டு முளைப்பது அரிசியே ஆனாலும்
விண்டு உமிபோனால் முளையாதாம் – கொண்டபேர்
ஆற்றல் உடையார்க்(கு) ஆகாது அளவு இன்றி
ஏற்ற கருமம் செயல். 11
Even if rice is used to grow rice, once the husk comes off it will not be able to grow.
Similarly even if the most skilled are able to do work, a work beyond their limit should not be undertaken.
12. மடல் பெரிது தாழை (😉 மகிழ் இனிது கந்தம்
உடல்சிறியர் என்று இருக்க வேண்டா – கடல்பெரிது
மண்ணீரும் ஆகா(து) அதனருகே சிற்றூறல்
உண்ணீரும் ஆகி விடும். 12
Leaves of Thazhampoo flower may be long
But the leaves of the Makizam flowers which are small are fragrant.
Even if the ocean is big, only a small fresh water stream nearby is suitable for drinking
So do not judge a person by their physical size.
13. கவையாகிக் கொம்பாகிக் காட்டகத்தே நிற்கும்
அவையல்ல நல்ல மரங்கள் – அவைநடுவே
நீட்டோலை வாசியா நின்றான் குறிப்பறிய
மாட்டாதவன் நன்மரம். 13
(sarcasm) The tress with branches and twigs in the forest are not the good trees but the ones who cannot read or cannot take a cue from others are the better trees.
14. கான மயிலாடக் கண்டிருந்த வான்கோழி
தானும் அதுவாகப் பாவித்துத் – தானும் தன்
பொல்லாச் சிறகைவிரித்(து) ஆடினால் போலுமே
கல்லாதான் கற்ற கவி. 14
An uneducated person attempting to write poetry is like a wild turkey imitating the dance after seeing a peacock spread its plumage and dance.
15. வேங்கை வரிப்புலிநோய் தீர்த்த விடகாரி
ஆங்கதனுக்(கு) ஆகாரம் ஆனால்போல் – பாங்கறியாப்
புல்லறி வாளர்க்குச் செய்த உபகாரம்
கல்லின்மேல் இட்ட கலம். 15
Like a doctor who went to treat a tiger and became its food, helping people who do not know its value is the same as breaking a pot over a stone.
16. அடக்கம் உடையார் அறிவிலர் என்றெண்ணிக்
கடக்கக் கருதவும் வேண்டா – மடைத் தலையில்
ஓடுமீன் ஓட உறுமீன் வருமளவும்
வாடி இருக்குமாம் கொக்கு. 16
Do not ignore and proceed past people who are humble and patient thinking they are not wise. Such people are like the crane that waits patiently watching all the fish pass by until the right fish passes by.
17. அற்ற குளத்தில் அறுநீர்ப் பறவைபோல்
உற்றுழித் தீர்வர் உறவல்லர் -அக்குளத்தில்
கொட்டியும் ஆம்பலும் நெய்தலும் போலவே
ஒட்டி உறுவார் உறவு. 17
A real relative is not like the birds that leave a lake when it dries.
One who is like the blooming of water lilies and katti plants in a dry lake, is the real relative.
18. சீரியர் கெட்டாலும் சீரியரே; சீரியர் மற்(று)
அல்லாதார் கெட்டால் அங் கென்னாகும்? – சீரிய
பொன்னின் குடம்உடைந்தால் பொன்னாகும் என்னாகும்
மண்ணின் குடம் உடைந்தக் கால். 18
When the wise, the good have bad times they still retain their character.
For the others when they have bad times, what will happen?
When a Gold pot breaks, it still retains its value but
What happens if an earthenware pot breaks?
19. ஆழ அமுக்கி முகக்கினும் ஆழ்கடல்நீர்
நாழி முகவாது நால்நாழி – தோழி
நிதியும் கணவனும் நேர்படினும் தத்தம்
விதியின் பயனே பயன். 19
Even if you immerse a one measure container inside a deep sea, it will not bring four measures of water.
Even if a woman has a husband and wealth, what is destiny will not change.
20. உடன்பிறந்தார் சுற்றத்தார் என்றிருக்க வேண்டா
உடன்பிறந்தே கொல்லும் வியாதி – உடன் பிறவா
மாமலையில் உள்ள மருந்தே பிணிதீர்க்கும்
அம்மருந்து போல்வாரும் உண்டு. 20
There can be siblings and relatives who are like a disease that kills one from inside.
Just like a herbal medicine from a mountain outside can cure the disease, there are outsiders who can be like medicine that are antidotes to such siblings and relatives.
21. இல்லாள் அகத்திருக்க இல்லாதது ஒன்றில்லை
இல்லாளும் இல்லாளே ஆமாயின் – இல்லாள்
வலிகிடந்த மாற்றம் உரைக்குமேல் அவ்வில்
புலிகிடந்த தூறாய் விடும். 21
If the wife is at home and is consonance (with everyone), there is nothing else needed for the house.
If the wife is harsh tongued, then the house will be changed to a small jungle with a tigress.
22. எழுதியவா றேகாண இரங்கு மடநெஞ்சே
கருதியவா றாமே கருமம் – கருதிப்போய்க்
கற்பகத்தைச் சேர்ந்தார்க்குக் காஞ்சிரங்காய் ஈந்ததேல்
முற்பவத்தில் செய்த வினை. 22
When you are looking for the Karpagam tree for your wishes, if you get only the useless Ettikkai nuts then know that it is due to the deeds of the previous birth.
23. கற்பிளவோ(டு) ஒப்பர் கயவர் கடுஞ்சினத்துப்
பொற்பிளவோ(டு) ஒப்பாரும் போல்வாரே – விற்பிடித்து
நீர்கிழிய எய்த வடுப்போல மாறுமே
சீர்ஒழுகு சான்றோர் சினம். 23
The anger of the scoundrels will be like breaking a slab of stone or ( ).
The anger of the righteous/noble will be like an arrow shot through water and the hurt/wound will disappear quickly.
24. நற்றாமரைக் கயத்தில் நல் அன்னம் சேர்தாற்போல்
கற்றாரைக் கற்றாறே காமுறுவர் – கற்பிலா
மூர்க்கரை மூர்க்கரே முகப்பர் முதுகாட்டில்
காக்கை உகக்கும் பிணம். 24
Like the swan is attracted to a pond where Lotus blooms, the learned will be attracted to the company of the learned.
Like the crow is attracted to the dead body in a cremation ground, the idiots will be attracted to other idiots.
25. நஞ்சுடைமை தானறிந்து நாகம் கரந்துறையும்
அஞ்சாப் புறங்கிடக்கும் நீர்ப்பாம்பு – நெஞ்சில்
கரவுடையார் தம்மைக் கரப்பர் கரவார்
கரவிலா நெஞ்சத் தவர். 25
The cobra with its venom will be found hiding whereas the water snake without any venom can be found slithering fearlessly.
Those who are deceitful will hide from others while those who are not walk fearlessly.
26. மன்னனும் மாசறக் கற்றோனும் சீர்தூக்கின்
மன்னனில் கற்றோன் சிறப்புடையன் – மன்னர்க்குத்
தன்தேசம் அல்லால் சிறப்பில்லை கற்றோற்குச்
சென்றஇடம் எல்லாம் சிறப்பு. 26
If you compare a King and a Scholar, the scholar is better than the King because for the King the glory is in his Kingdom whereas for the Scholar the glory is wherever the scholar goes.
27. கல்லாத மாந்தர்க்குக் கற்றுணர்ந்தார் சொல்கூற்றம்
அல்லாத மாந்தர்க்(கு) அறம்கூற்றம் – மெல்லிய
வாழைக்குத் தான்ஈன்ற காய்கூற்றம் கூற்றமே
இல்லிற்(கு) இசைந்து ஒழுகாப் பெண். 27
For the uneducated the words of the educated is the enemy.
For the wayward people, righteousness is the enemy.
For the plantain tree, its fruiting is the enemy.
For a household, an uncooperative woman is the enemy.
28. சந்தன மென்குறடு தான்தேய்ந்த காலத்தும்
கந்தம் குறைபடா (து😉 ஆதலால் – தம்தம்
தனம்சிறியர் ஆயினும் தார்வேந்தர் கேட்டால்
மனம்சிறியர் ஆவரோ மற்று. 28
Even when a plank of sandalwood has diminished in size due to age, its fragrance is undiminished.
Even when a benevolent King has lost his wealth, his generosity never diminishes.
29. மருவினிய சுற்றமும் வான்பொருளும் நல்ல
உருவும் உயர்குலமும் எல்லாம் -திருமடந்தை
ஆகும்போ(து) அவளோடும் ஆகும்; அவள்பிரிந்து
போம்போ(து) அவளோடு (ம்) போம். 29
With the lady of the house comes pleasant relatives, wealth, culture;
When she leaves all these will be gone with her.
30. சாந்தனையும் தீயனவே செய்திடினும் தாம்அவரை
ஆந்தனையும் காப்பர் அறிவுடையோர் – மாந்தர்
குறைக்கும் தனையும் குளிர்நிழலைத் தந்து
மறைக்குமாம் கண்டீர் மரம்.
Even in the company of enemies who are out to harm, the wise ones will do their best to protect the enemies from danger.
Like the trees that provide shade for the people even if the people are the ones who cut the trees down. 
SOURCE::: Unknown… Input from a friend of mine for the benefit of all of us.
Natarajan
Jan 18 2015

 

Beagle 2 Spacecraft… Lost in 2003 … Found in Mars in 2015 !!!

Long-Lost Spacecraft Spotted on Mars

Long-Lost Spacecraft Spotted on Mars

IT turns out the Beagle has landed after all — but it never called home.

The gone-but-not-forgotten spacecraft Beagle-2 went AWOL on Christmas Day, 2003, when it was supposed to land on Mars and start transmitting data back to Earth.

Instead, the British-built craft went dark. After several months, it was declared lost — presumed to have been destroyed during its approach or while trying to land on the red planet.

On Friday, more than 11 years later, European Space Agency officials reported that the Beagle-2 had been finally found — thanks to extensive detective work based on new photos taken by the high-resolution camera on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

DISCOVERY: Have scientists solved the Beagle 2 mystery?

The photos show the craft landed safely on Mars and partially deployed — but was unable to fully deploy and start communicating.

Still, it was a vindication of sorts for space scientists who had wondered for more than a decade about the fate of their pet project, which was designed to search for signs of life on Mars.

Rudolf Schmidt, ESA’s Mars Express project manager at the time, called the finding “excellent news.”

He said not knowing what happened to Beagle-2 had “remained a nagging worry.”

Soon after Beagle-2’s disappearance, NASA landed both Spirit and Opportunity near the Martian equator.

Both sent back troves of images and discoveries, providing the sort of information astronomers had been seeking when the first Mars probes began.

There it is ... This NASA annotated image shows a bright feature interpreted as the Beagl

There it is … This NASA annotated image shows a bright feature interpreted as the Beagle 2 Lander with solar arrays at least partially deployed on the surface of Mars. Pic: AFP PHOTO/NASA Source: AFP

Mars is notoriously hard to reach. In a half-century of launch attempts, more than half of the missions by various countries have failed to get off the ground on Earth or overshot Mars.

Landing on the red planet is particularly treacherous because of the thin atmosphere.

Incoming spacecraft travelling at 19,300kph have only minutes to slow to a stop.

The Martian terrain is also full of obstacles — boulders, cracks and cliffs — and a wrong move can doom a spacecraft.

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, which has circled the planet since 2006, has periodically searched for spacecraft missing in action.

Still missing is NASA’s Mars Polar Lander, which lost contact during its arrival at the south pole in 1999.

Officials said careful analysis of the high-resolution photos showed the Beagle-2 had landed within its expected landing area in a basin close to the Martian equator. Signs of key entry and descent components were also spotted.

Identifying the craft was made more difficult by its small size — it is just over 1.8 metres wide with its solar panels unfurled.

 An undated computer generated image made available in London, Sunday June 1 2003 by the the European Space Agency, of the Ma...

Lost in space … A computer generated image of the Mars Express in orbit around Mars. Pic: AP Photo/European Space Agency Source: AP

The 143-pound Beagle-2 was named for the ship that carried naturalist Charles Darwin on his voyage of discovery in the 1830s.

It is shaped like an oversized pocket watch and was designed to descend through the Martian atmosphere, deploy parachutes, and “bounce” to a safe landing on inflatable bags.

Experts who helped identify the lander at the University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Lab said the photographs are “consistent” with only a partial deployment of the Beagle-2 upon landing.

They said a failure to fully deploy would explain why no data or signals from the craft were ever received, since a complete deployment of all of its solar panels would have been needed for successful transmissions.

Alfred McEwen, chief investigator of the project, said the special camera had been used to search for all of the landers that have tried to descend to the surface of Mars.

“This the first time we found one that didn’t send a signal after it landed,” he said.

The Beagle has landed ... A computer-generated image showing the Beagle 2 Probe on surfac

The Beagle has landed … A computer-generated image showing the Beagle 2 Probe on surface of Mars. Pic: AP Photo/European Space Agency Source: AP

“If the landing sequence works correctly, the probe sends a radio signal, and you can use that to pinpoint where it is coming from, even if it broadcasts only very briefly. But in the case of Beagle-2, we didn’t get anything. All we had to go by was the target landing area.”

Experts who worked on the project said the Beagle-2 mission can now be classified a partial success — even if it never provided information about possible life on Mars.

UK Space Agency chief executive David Parker said the discovery of the craft showed its complex landing procedures had worked.

“This finding makes the case that Beagle-2 was more of a success than we previously knew and undoubtedly an important step in Europe’s continuing exploration of Mars,” he said.

The Beagle-2 was launched on ESA’s Mars Express orbiter. It was released from its mother ship on December 19, 2003, and was supposed to land six days later, but no communications with the lander were ever established.

Professor Mark Sims of the University of Leicester, who worked on the project, said the new information shows the team came extremely close to its goal of getting data from Mars, with the deployment failing only in its final stage.

“To be frank, I had all but given up hope of ever knowing what happened to Beagle-2,” he said, admitting he was troubled every Christmas Day by the unknown fate of the craft.

SOURCE:::: http://www.news.com.au

Natarajan

Jan 17 2015

Message For the Day…” We are all Actors in Puppet Show By the Creator , the Master Director, GOD…”

We see the outer circumstances, the processes that result in the final event, and in our ignorance we judge that this set of causes produced these effects. We guess the nature of emotions and feelings from what we gauge from events. But circumstances, events, emotions, and feelings are all simply ‘instruments’ in His hands, serving His will and His purpose. When the moment comes, He uses them for His plan and brings about the outcome He has willed. He is the embodiment of time (Kala); He comes as the Master of Time. The force of Atmic faith is the bridge that spans the chasm, and for those who have developed that force and faith, floods are of no concern. With strong faith as their safe support, they can reach the other bank, braving all dangers. All this, is but a grand puppet show by the Creator, the Master Director!   

Sathya Sai Baba

Image of the Day….Titan… Saturn’s Moon !!!

Ten Years Ago, Huygens Probe Lands on Surface of Titan

Ten years ago, an explorer from Earth parachuted into the haze of an alien moon toward an uncertain fate. After a gentle descent lasting more than two hours, it landed with a thud on a frigid floodplain, surrounded by icy cobblestones. With this feat, the Huygens probe accomplished humanity’s first landing on a moon in the outer solar system. Huygens was safely on Titan, the largest moon of Saturn.

These images of Saturn’s moon Titan were taken on Jan. 14, 2005 by the Huygens probe at four different altitudes. The images are a flattened (Mercator) projection of the view from the descent imager/spectral radiometer on the probe as it landed on Titan’s surface.

The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the mission for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Washington. JPL designed, developed and assembled the Cassini orbiter. NASA supplied two instruments on the Huygens probe, the Descent Imager/Spectral Radiometer and the Gas Chromatograph Mass Spectrometer.

> More: NASA and ESA Celebrate 10 Years Since Titan Landing

Image Credit: ESA/NASA/JPL/University of Arizona 

SOURCE:::: http://www.nasa.gov

Natarajan

Jan 16 2015

Who Invented the Paper Clip … ?

The Invention of the Paperclip

The paperclip is today a ubiquitous item in offices and homes the world over. So who invented it?

One very popular false origin of the paperclip was that it was invented by Norwegian patent office manager, Johan Vaaler. He was even granted patents in Germany and the U.S. for a paperclip of similar design as the Gem style paperclip, which is the most commonly used paperclip today. However, Vaaler’s paperclip came after the Gem paperclip was already popular throughout Europe. His design was slightly different than the Gem paperclip in that it didn’t include the all too critical second loop that makes the Gem style much more functional. His paperclip had the papers inserted by lifting the outer wire slightly and pushing the papers into the clip such that the rest of the clip stood out from the paper at a 90 degree angle, which was necessary because of the lack of the critical second loop to allow the papers to be more or less embedded in the clip flatly.

This also made it so the papers wouldn’t be held together very well as they relied only on how bendable the wire used was to hold the papers. The Gem style paperclip, on the other hand, exploits the torsion principle to help bind papers together. Vaaler’s design was never manufactured or sold and his patents eventually expired.

Why Vaaler gets the credit in so many places, including in many encyclopedias and dictionaries after the 1950s, is largely thanks to a patent agency worker who was visiting Germany to register Norwegian patents in the 1920s. When he was doing so, he noticed Vaaler’s design for the paperclip and wrote an article stating Vaaler was the original creator of the paperclip.

This misinformation found its way into encyclopedias around the 1950s thanks to WWII. During WWII in Norway particularly, along with France and some other occupied countries, the paperclip became a symbol of unity for those rebelling against the Germans. It is not thought that the Norwegians did this because they thought a Norwegian had invented the paperclip, but rather because it simply signified being bound together and was useful as it wasn’t initially a banned symbol or item by the Germans and could be easily clipped to one’s clothing. Eventually, the Germans caught on and people were prohibited from wearing paperclips.

After the war, the fact that the Gem style paperclip had served as a symbol of unity resulted in interest in the origin of the paperclip, at which point the article written by the patent agency worker and the subsequent patent by Vaaler, who was now long dead, was discovered. It was overlooked, of course, that his design was different than the Gem style paperclip and apparently they didn’t bother checking that the Gem style paperclip had already been around by the time Vaaler patented his version of the paperclip. It made a good story though, particularly after the war and how the paperclip was used in Norway among other places, and so this false origin subsequently found its way into many encyclopedias.

The myth is so popular, in fact, that a Gem style, 23 foot tall paperclip was placed near a university in Oslo in 1989 to honor Vaaler, who in fact had nothing to do with the Gem style paperclip design. Further, a commemorative stamp was created honoring Vaaler that also depicted the Gem style paperclip, not Vaaler’s design.

Another false origin of the modern day paperclip often attributes it to Herbert Spencer, who was the man who came up with the term “survival of the fittest”. He claims in his autobiography that he invented a pin that bound papers together. This led to the false belief that he invented the paperclip. In fact, though, his drawing of his binding pin looked more like a cotter pin and, thus, held papers together more like Vaaler’s design. Unlike Vaaler’s design though, this cotter pin style clip wouldn’t stick out nearly as much and, thus, was a bit more functional.

So who really invented the paperclip as we know it today? It is thought to have first been made by the Gem Manufacturing Company in Britain around the 1870s and later introduced to the United States around the 1890s. This is also why the Swedish word for paperclip is “gem”. As for who within that company invented it, this isn’t known, as it was never patented nor did they realize at the time how historically significant that little invention would be, so nobody bothered to save the documentation of the invention.

SOURCE:::: http://www.today i foundout.com

Natarajan

Jan 16 2015

Message For the Day… ” Develop Self Confidence and Have Firm Faith in God…”

Your life may be compared to a stalk of sugar cane. Like the cane, which is hard and has many knots, life is full of difficulties. But these difficulties must be overcome to enjoy the bliss of the Divine, just as the sugarcane has to be crushed and its juice converted into cane-sugar (jaggery) to enjoy the permanent sweetness. Enduring bliss can be got only by overcoming trials and tribulations. Gold cannot be made into an attractive jewel without it being subjected to the process of melting in a crucible and being beaten into the required shape. When I address devotees as, ‘golden one (Bangaru)’ or Divine Embodiments of Love, I really mean it! You must go through the vicissitudes of life with forbearance and become attractive jewels. You should not allow yourselves to be overwhelmed by difficulties. Develop self-confidence and have firm faith in God.

Sathya Sai Baba