Tragedy in south Asia : A horrendous earthquake and tsunami:The world’s biggest earthquake in 40 years hit south Asia Sunday,…
…excerpt from: www.buzzmachine.com…
Tragedy in south Asia : A horrendous earthquake and tsunami:The world’s biggest earthquake in 40 yea…
26-Dec-2004 by
Shopping for the girlfriend or wife
26-Dec-2004 by
Being as this is my first Christmas with a girlfriend, I had to do something I never had to do before. Go shopping for a female! It’s surprising difficult to come up with good gift ideas for someone.
I wondered how I would know when I was done shopping for her. Some will say it’s the amount of money you spend, the size of the gifts, or some other easily discernible measurement. Being a geek and a scientist I looked at shopping as a problem that needed a simple and straightforward solution.
Here is what I came up with. There are three requirements that must be met in order to complete your shopping. They are practicality, thoughtfulness and extravagance.
Practicality is about satisfying some basic need. Is the gift useful and something the person wants or needs? Gifts like appliances, furniture, clothes, a movie, music CD and so on. Things they will use on a regular basis and thus in using the item think of you.
Thoughtfulness is about giving something that shows you love/care for the person. This usually requires you to do real work with the gift. A picture frame for example would be practical but by putting in a picture of you and your girlfriend/wife you now made something thoughtful. It’s original and shows that you used some brain power in getting the gift. It’s something they can display for others to see and know you got it.
Extravagance is all about the splurge. It’s spoiling the person and demonstrating that you are willing to give of yourself for their happiness. Now don’
…excerpt from: www.alanbarber.org…
Writing Better, More
26-Dec-2004 by
The other day at the library book sale, I spotted a title that seemed to belong among my useful books about writing, Jefferson D. Bates�s Writing With Precision.
I only just looked it over yesterday, and saw with delight that Bates�s first principle of more effective writing is, �Prefer the active voice.� (Seabury students will moan inwardly as they read that advice.) He goes from that to advocate using strong, vivid verbs rather than inert �nominalized� forms, hewing to specific rather than vague expressions, and keeping related sentence elements near one another. I couldn�t have said it better myself.
I still plump for Joseph Williams�s Style as my premier book on writing, but every reinforcement is welcome in the battle against empty, flaccid prose. Bates adds a section on outlining (absent from my second-hand copy, darn it, since I need someone to help me cultivate my outlining discipline) and exercises-and-answers that illustrate his principles of writing. Well done, more than worth the fifty cents I spent for it, and refreshing encouragement for my approach to writing.
…excerpt from: akma.disseminary.org…
Monster Cable sues… everyone, basically.
26-Dec-2004 by
Sigh. I have a bunch of Monster stereo/video cable already; in the future, I’ll be patronizing someone else for those needs. These guys have gone way past reasonable in defending their trademark.
DenverPost.com… – BUSINESS
The Brisbane, Calif.-based company has filed trademark lawsuits across the country against companies using the word “monster.” Discovery Channel has felt Monster’s wrath for its show “Monster Garage.” Bally Gaming is under Monster’s glare because of its Monster slot machine. Monster sued Walt Disney Co., maker of the animated flick “Monsters, Inc.” Even the Chicago Bears, a.k.a. “The Monsters of the Midway,” once were eyed by Monster.
Slashdot | Quake and Tsunami Devastate South Asia
26-Dec-2004 by
Slashdot | Quake and Tsunami Devastate South Asia
pfb writes “From reuters, ‘The world’s fifth-largest quake in a century has hit southern Asia, triggering a speeding tsunami that crashed into Sri Lanka and India, drowning hundreds, and swamping tourist islands in Thailand and the Maldives.’”
VOA News – Massive Earthquake in Asia a Geological Rarity
26-Dec-2004 by
VOA News – Massive Earthquake in Asia a Geological Rarity
Geologists describe Sunday’s powerful earthquake in the Indian Ocean as a once-in-a-generation event.
The U.S. Geological Survey says the 8.9 magnitude earthquake that triggered the devastating tsunami, or tidal wave, occurred at a depth of 10 kilometers, and was centered west of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, some 1,600 kilometers northwest of Jakarta.
“This is actually the fifth-largest [seismic] event since 1900. It is the largest since the Prince William Sound earthquake in Alaska of 1964. It is pretty rare,” said Julie Martinez, a USGS geophysicist in the western U.S. state of Colorado.
The Command Post – Global Recon
26-Dec-2004 by
This site has the most comprehensive information on the Asia quake. Be sure to scroll down the page after it loads. Update: 29-Dec-04: Command Post continues to be updated with instructions/suggestions for contributing to the rescue/recovery efforts as well as other information related to the catastrophe.
Update: 31-Dec-2004
Indian Ocean Tsunami – Ambassador : Aceh Death Toll May Hit 400,000
05:34 AM EDT | Posted By Alan E Brain
>> Go here to visit Alan E Brain’s weblog.
From the Malaysian National News Agency Bernama :
The death toll in Acheh, the region worst hit by last Sunday�s tsunami, may exceed 400,000 as many affected areas could still not be reached for search and rescue operations, Indonesia�s Ambassador to Malaysia Drs H. Rusdihardjo said Thursday.
He said the estimate was based on air surveillance by Indonesian authorities who found no signs of life in places like Meulaboh, Pulau Simeulue and Tapak Tuan while several islands off the west coast of Sumatera had �disappeared�.
He said the latest death toll of more than 40,000 in Acheh and northern Sumatera did not take into account the figures from the other areas, especially in the west of the region.
[Read more...]
WHY THE TSUNAMI DEATH TOLL I
26-Dec-2004 by
WHY THE TSUNAMI DEATH TOLL IS SO HIGH:
ries most severely affected – including India, Thailand, Indonesia and Sri Lanka – had a tsunami warning mechanism or tidal gauges to alert people to the wall of water that followed a massive earthquake, said Waverly Person of the USGS National Earthquake Information Centre.
“Most of those people could have been saved if they had had a tsunami warning system in place or tide gauges,” he said yesterday. . . .
US seismologists said it was unlikely the Indian Ocean region would be hit any time soon by a similarly devastating tsunami because it takes an enormously strong earthquake to generate one.
“That’s really what has created all of these problems – is that the earthquake is just so massive,” said Dan Blakeman, a USGS earthquake analyst.
But Person said governments should instruct people living along the coast to move after a quake. Since a tsunami is generated at the source of an underwater earthquake, there is usually time – from 20 minutes to two hours – to get people away as it builds in the ocean.
“People along the Japanese coasts, along the coasts of California – people are taught to move away from the coasts. But a lot of these people in the area where this occurred – they probably had no kind of lessons or any knowledge of tsunamis because they are so rare.”
Like an asteroid strike, it seemed too unlikely to be worth guarding against.
Nature’s Terror in Asia
26-Dec-2004 by
I’ve just sent off a donation to the Red Cross to help the survivors of the earthquake and tsunamis that have struck south Asia. Please help if you can.
…excerpt from: weblog.siliconvalley.com…
Macleans.ca | Top Stories | Quake-driven wall of water brings disaster to beach resorts in Thailand
26-Dec-2004 by
Macleans.ca | Top Stories | Quake-driven wall of water brings disaster to beach resorts in Thailand
PHUKET, Thailand (CP) – Thousands of European tourists were beginning their day with breakfast or by sunning themselves on Thailand’s white sand beaches when massive waves triggered by an earthquake swept people, bungalows, boats and cars out to sea.
Sunday’s earthquake off Indonesia’s Sumatra island sent tsunamis rolling across the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal – and a wall of water along the resorts around Thailand’s Phuket island, one of the most popular destinations in Asia for Europeans fleeing winter cold at home.
Yahoo! News – Asia Quake’s Tsunamis Kill Over 11,000
26-Dec-2004 by
Yahoo! News – Asia Quake’s Tsunamis Kill Over 11,000
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – An earthquake of epic power struck deep beneath the Indian Ocean on Sunday, unleashing 20-foot walls of water that came crashing down on beaches in seven Asian countries across thousands of miles, smashing seaside resorts and villages and leaving more than 11,350 dead in their wake.
Top News Article | Reuters.com
26-Dec-2004 by
Top News Article | Reuters.com…
COLOMBO (Reuters) – One of the most powerful earthquakes in a century hit Asia on Sunday, unleashing tsunami waves on coastal areas of Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia and Thailand, and killing an estimated 11,300 people.
The tsunami waves were triggered by an 8.9 magnitude underwater earthquake off the Indonesian island of Sumatra, rearing up into walls of water as high as 30 feet as they hit shallow coastlines in south and south-east Asia.
“I heard an eerie sound that I have never heard before. It was a high pitched sound followed by a deafening roar,” said a 55-year-old Indian fishermen who gave his name as Chellappa.
“I told everyone to run for their life.”
BBC NEWS | World | Asia-Pacific | Reporters’ log: Asian quake disaster
26-Dec-2004 by
BBC NEWS | World | Asia-Pacific | Reporters’ log: Asian quake disaster
Several countries around the Indian Ocean have been hit by devastating sea surges. The BBC’s correspondents report from the affected areas as rescue attempts begin.
Matthew Grant : Madras, India : 2007 GMT
Many people were out walking or playing cricket on the beaches of Madras when the tidal wave struck. Police have recovered hundreds of bodies from the city and along the coast.
Others have been washed ashore. Some were thrown into lorries while others were carried to hospital on carts or in sacks.
Locals say they felt the rumble of the earthquake early this morning from its epicentre thousands of miles away in the Indian Ocean.
Then, just over an hour later came what they describe as the wall of water. It slammed into the coastline.
It’s now dark in Madras and most of the water’s gone back out to sea but along the coast there’s still signs of devastation.
Many of the roads there are closed and strewn with debris. Some of the shanty towns by the beaches are completely destroyed and out to see hundreds of fishermen are still believed to be missing.
BBC NEWS | World | South Asia | Sea surges kill thousands in Asia
26-Dec-2004 by
BBC NEWS | World | South Asia | Sea surges kill thousands in Asia
More than 11,500 people have been killed across southern Asia in massive sea surges triggered by the strongest earthquake in the world for 40 years.
The 8.9 magnitude quake struck under the sea near Aceh in north Indonesia, generating a wall of water that sped across thousands of kilometres of sea.
More than 4,100 died in Indonesia, 4,300 in Sri Lanka and 2,900 in India.
Casualty figures are rising over a wide area, including resorts in Sri Lanka and Thailand packed with holidaymakers.
BBC NEWS | World | South Asia | Timeline: Quake disaster
26-Dec-2004 by
BBC NEWS | World | South Asia | Timeline: Quake disaster
BBC News looks at how the world’s strongest earthquake for 40 years, which triggered sea surges and killed several thousands across southern Asia, developed.
the Mail online | News | 11,300 killed by huge quake
26-Dec-2004 by
the Mail online | News | 11,300 killed by huge quake
Tidal waves from a massive undersea earthquake smashed into coastlines across Asia, washing away whole villages in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and India and dragging sunbathers out to sea and snorkelers across jagged reefs at tourist havens in Thailand.
More than 11,300 people were killed in six countries.
Drive-Through Supermarkets Coming
26-Dec-2004 by
AutoCart, LLC, said it plans to roll out the world’s first “drive-through supercenter” format, a 130,000-square-foot facility equipped to deliver more than 25,000 SKUs directly to consumers in their cars. The first of the supercenters, designed with 60 ordering/pickup stations, are projected to open in December 2005 in Albuquerque, N.M. and Tucson, Ariz., according to AutoCart.
an 17 classifications of products and services that AutoCart said it will offer at the proposed supercenters are grocery, pharmacy, banking, movie and game rental, bakery, office supplies, florists, photography development, dry cleaning, liquor, and lottery sales.
…excerpt from: www.business-opportunities.biz…
On Being a Photographer – Excerpt
26-Dec-2004 by
Being an amateur photographer, I can appreciate much of what’s said in this; at some level of consciousness, I already knew these things, if only by intuition/instinct. When I go places suitable for photographing — meaning, excluding restaurants, movie theaters, etc — I take pictures of anything that catches my eye and survives some amount of visual scrutiny (to make sure it is what I think it is, because the brain’s visual filter can be a real pain in the ass sometimes), and then I photograph the hell out of it while I can. Occasionally, I’ll take some significant time to plan ahead for what I want to do (usually night photos), and I generally like those photos a lot, for a while, while it’s impossible to be objective rather than prideful; after several months without looking at one of those pictures, I’ll evaluate it again and may or may not still like it. Almost invariably, though, other people prefer the shots I took little or no time to set up, in any sense of the word “properly”, over those which I spent time on tending to the details, or subjects I find visually boring for whatever reason. (My subject matter tends to be, well.. not people.) Anyway, this small article illuminates and enumerates nicely, helping me understand better why pointing the camera “over there” is a good idea.
On Being a Photographer – Excerpt
Bill Jay: When we were discussing some definitions you remarked that photography%u2019s core characteristic was to show what something looked like. I think this is an important point because many young photographers seem fascinated with the medium yet have no idea what to photograph.
David Hurn: That%u2019s true. The fundamental issue is one of emphasis: you are not a photographer because you are interested in photography.
BJ: Explain what you mean.
DH: Many people are interested in photography in some nebulous way; they might be interested in the seemingly glamorous lives of top fashion or war photographers; or in the acquisition and admiration of beautiful, functional machines, the cameras; or in the arcane ritual of the darkroom processes; or in the persona which they could adopt if only they took pictures like . . . whoever. But these interests, no matter how personally enjoyable they might be, never lead to the person becoming a photographer. The reason is that photography is only a tool, a vehicle, for expressing or transmitting a passion in something else. It is not the end result. An analogy would be to buy a car for its status appeal, for the idea that it will improve your sex-life, for the smell of the new upholstery, for the fascination with its beautiful engineering, and so on. But it is useless unless it actually takes you somewhere.