Due to the tragic earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011, over 25,000 Japanese are dead or missing. At the Fukushima nuclear reactors, no one has died. Yet the news media has been stuck on full-hysteria mode over the Japanese nuclear reactors. The media is clearly focused on a goal other than reporting the important news of the day. What could it be?
As the situation at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear powerplant slowly winds down, the salient facts remain the same as they have been throughout: nobody has suffered or will suffer any radiological health consequences. Economic damage and inconvenience resulting from the quake's effects on nuclear power have been significant, but tiny in comparison to all other human activities – the nuclear power plants in the stricken region have suffered less damage and caused less trouble to local residents than anything else that was there.
Despite this background, the details of which are now largely uncontested, hysteria continues to grip large sections of the news media and the internet. _Register
It is natural to be concerned about a disaster which might conceivably affect you or someone you care about. But intelligent people use such natural concerns as motivation to inform themselves on the facts. For a more balanced look at what is going on at the Fukushima reactors:
The post-earthquake, post-tsunami incident at the Fukushima reactors is an economic and energy setback for the Japanese, as well as a public relations nightmare for the Japanese and the nuclear industry in general.
But the reason why the nuclear industry is being tarred so badly is because the world's media has focused its brightest lights on the reactors -- and decided to spew the most radioactively deceptive and misleading "reporting" as possible.
Yes, the world is becoming an Idiocracy -- it doesn't require a genius to see that. Corrupt and dysfunctional government school systems are not entirely to blame, either. Clearly the news and entertainment media play an even greater role in the education and informing of most citizens than the school systems, in the long run. If the media has chosen to dumb down and mislead the public, who will watch the watchers?
Am I saying not to worry about it, that nothing can go wrong? Just the opposite. I am saying to worry about it -- worry about everything. Worry so much that you are prepared for the worst that may come your way. Then hope for the best. Worry is just your brain's way of telling you to get off your lazy arse and learn what you need to learn, do what you need to do, and make whatever preparations you need to make.
No one should need to tell you to be very sceptical of anything you read or hear.
The FORMULA ONE is here againn........ yes, on 8th-10th April 2011 - the race heats up at the Sepang F1 Circuit for the 2011 PETRONAS MALAYSIA GRAND PRIX!!!
I want Michael Schumacher to win!!!!!!!! Schumiii!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Mercedes GP Petronas F1 team - Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg!!!
Anyways, when the F1 is here... brace yourself for an awesome display and showcase of the Formula 1 2011 by PETRONAS! From the 2nd til 10th of April 2011(yes, this weekend ya!) - the PETRONAS F1 showcase will be at the KLCC Concourse level!!!
Were you there last year??? If you were not, make sure you go n check it out this year!
Guess what - there's this awesome Facebook app by PETRONAS Motorsports - or rather, it is a contest - of which the winner gets to meet the DRIVERS Schumi and Nico !!!!!!!! =)
How to join the contest???
EASY!!!
Just upload a picture of your face, then adjust the picture to match the image (see above), confirm it and then click on 'SUBMIT' - get your friends to like it!!! Remember - the one with the MOST LIKES will stand a chance to meet the drivers!!!!!!
REMEMBER! The contest ends on Tuesday 5th April 2011 - so dont wait any longer! Submit now!
What else? The Schumi and Nico Meet The Fans session is on the 6th of April 2011 - so mark that in your calendar ok! So... from this Saturday 2nd til next Sunday 10th - go and check out the PETRONAS MALAYSIA GRAND PRIX Showcase 2011 and get the F1 merchandises that you desire... and thats not all - there's also the display of the F1 car there!!! Get up close to take some awesome pictures!!! Check out the F1 simulator too!!!
Wahhh I am so excited already... I cant wait for this weekend!!!!!
2 units on Level 17..... going for RM 266,480 (before discounts/rebates)
* * * * * * * * * *
Yesterday I uploaded this picture of my sales chart for Alam Idaman.
Yes... last 5 units left. As of now... it is just 4 units left. =P
Interested to snap it up? Come and drop by the Sales Office...
Alam Idaman - A true investment opportunity NOT TO BE MISSED!!!
What are the units available now?
2 units on Level 17..... going for RM 266,480 (before discounts/rebates)
1 unit on Level 20... going for RM 285,080 (before discounts/rebates)
1 unit on Penthouse floor (Level 21)... going for RM 286,080 (before discounts/rebates)
The ones on Level 17 are 807 sf Type B units, while the rest are 883 sf Type B2 units. =)
There are various discounts and packages available... but I not gonna tell you here.
Why not pop by my Sales Office at Taman Megah, or the Site Sales Office (on site) and find out more??? You can also choose to call 03-7880 8889 right now too!!! To get the package... do mention my name "Eric Yong" - you'll get the best deal!!!
The latest story in the long-running ocean apocalypse saga, involves scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in Massachusetts. Woods Hole scientists explored the Sargasso Sea, in search of plastic-eating bacteria.
Mincer and his colleagues examined bits of fishing line, a plastic bag and a plastic nurdle (a pre-production plastic pellet) fished out of the Sargasso Sea, an area of the North Atlantic where currents cause debris to accumulate. The region as a whole contains more than 1,100 tonnes of plastic1.
...Plastic-eating bacteria might help explain why the amount of debris in the ocean has levelled off, despite continued pollution. But researchers don't yet know whether the digestion produces harmless by-products, or whether it might introduce toxins into the food chain.
...Genetic analysis shows that the bacteria on the plastic differ from those in the surrounding seawater or on nearby seaweed, says microbiologist Linda Amaral-Zettler of the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole. So far, the DNA sequences obtained by her lab show that almost 25% of the bacteria on one polyethylene surface were vibrios, bacteria from the same group as the cholera bacterium.
...Amaral-Zettler and Mincer also found genetic and microscope evidence of eukaryotes — organisms with more complicated cells than bacteria — on the plastic. What she calls the "plastisphere" might contain complex living communities. "It may be a little world that we've created, for better or worse." _Nature_via_Impactlab
It is fascinating that particular ocean bacteria have adapted to using plastics as a food source. This is all quite reminiscent of the bacteria that have adapted to eating crude oil and methane gas around oil spills and and natural hydrocarbon seeps in the ocean floor.
To the bacteria, our discarded plastics are a feast and a windfall, allowing them to feed and reproduce to their microbial hearts' content. Of course the same phenomena occurs on land, except with a much wider range of microbes -- both prokaryotic and eukaryotic -- partaking of the cornucopian repast.
Environmentalists are concerned that the microbes may be releasing toxins into the seawater which will pollute larger sea creatures and perhaps get into the human food chain. A plastic apocalypse on the prowl, don't you see? And yet, in the middle of the ocean, nothing is wasted. If something can be seen as food, it will be used as food by something. That includes anything which humans may perceive as toxic.
Here is the amusing thing in all this: Waste plastics are increasingly being seen as valuable feedstocks in the production of synthetic fuels, chemicals, and other high-value substances. Gasification of solid wastes for production of power, process heat, and chemical/fuel feedstock is just getting started in the developed world. In the future, the only plastic wastes the oceans will see will be coming from places too primitive to know how to unlock their intrinsic value.
And no doubt there will be plenty of plastic-eating ocean microbes to take care of those remnants. Otherwise we will need to raise our seawalls quite high, to avoid the ocean plastic tsunamis that may come from Neptune, with a crashing vengeance.
While my students work on their individual work (usually previewing the content I am about to lecture), I play music. Mostly from my own personal collection, which means there's a lot of rock and roll. Here's a justification for it:
Results indicated that state positive affect and quality-of-work were lowest with no music, while time-on-task was longest when music was removed. Narrative responses revealed the value of music listening for positive mood change and enhanced perception on design while working.
For my US History classes I have an end goal of having a collection of music throughout history so they can listen to the music of the time period they are studying. For one, it will give them a richer understanding of history. I also think it will help me convince them that life (and also music) has only been getting better.
I found this super awesome good deal!!! We’ve heard of so many of these bulk buy/group buy websites and I think this would be the next ‘in’ thing in Malaysia today. But with so many of these portals – how can you tell a good one from a bad one?
My guess is that… it is still very subjective right now. If you ask me – a website that cant benefit me wont be on my ‘LIKE’ list. Simple isn’t it?
Today I want to introduce to you… one of the latest up and coming one… it is called WeBUY.com.my !!!!! =) I find the concept very interesting… lemme continue further..
If you don’t feel like reading – just head on to their Facebook page and find out more there!!!
BUT… wait… if you’re still here… why not continue reading then…
WeBUY.com.my shares the concept of collective buying. From what I know, the site will feature a new deal every 3 days (maximum) – with over 50-90% discounts. Once there are enough people who bought the deal – the deal… will be ON! The difference between WeBUY.com.my and other sites would be its selection process. There are two different types of these sites – one that focuses on cheap cheap cheap pricing on whatever there is, and another which focuses on cheap enough deals on QUALITY merchants.
All in all, they want consumers to experience good food, spas, events, at an affordable price.
Having that would be the perfect reason to try out new things!!!
You can see the extensive list of deals that you have missed out on.
One clear difference is that the site is NOT as cluttered and jumbled-up, in other words, rojak as the rest – the main focus – is on the main promotion! Tell you what… talk is cheap, why not go and check it out right now… register right away and get your updates sent to you right away!!!!!
Go to… WeBUY.com.my NOW!!! And sign-up here and receive RM 5 credit free!!! BEST SIAL!! Best of all if you refer your friends, you also get RM 5 credit accumulated in your account. That’s just so awesome isn’t it?
I also went to purchase the latest Zen’th Spa deal and managed to use my RM 5 off the RM 58 deal for a 5-in-1 treatment PLUS RM 100 FREE VOUCHER for your following visits. So I only pay RM 53 for this deal! Best lor!
Lets not forget the Gucci deal that you ladies can get for RM 0. Hurry and sign-up now if you are not already a member! Lets hope I win this for the gf!
WeBUY.com.my also has a special deal for RM 28 at Asianel Spa. I’m a keen fan of massages and reflexology and the gf always brings me to Asianel Spa for a luxurious massage. But now I shall decide to purchase 2 of these vouchers so can save money mah. Usually she pays RM 116 for their signature massage now I save 75% per person and for 2 person it is over 140% of savings. Best!!
Walking in to Asianel Spa you will be greeted by their friendly masseurs and cheerful staff, which will sign you up and then lead you to lockers to put your stuff and pass you gowns to change into. These comfortable gowns are provided so that you will get to massage in comfort. Then you will be lead to individual massage chairs and start your massage. The ambiance is really very comforting and I usually fall asleep while massaging. The gf on the other hand is very ticklish so she stays awake and hear my snores. Hahaaa.. Why say more? Just go buy some vouchers and try out – bring your other half as well.
P/S: It is located at Starhill Gallery, sometimes I sneak for massages while the gf is the other corner at her facial place. LOL shhh.. :x
Human brains are amazing mental machines. As far as we know, there is nothing else quite like it in the universe. But we always wonder whether perhaps, we could build something just a bit better? Observe all the excitement and expenditure, over the past 60+ years, directed toward "artificial intelligence." What a disappointment that has been so far.
For all the different approaches that have been taken to achieve machine intelligence, most of the failures share the same feature: they rely on algorithmic digital silicon logic. This seems a bit odd, when the only proof of concept of conscious intelligence we know of -- the human brain -- utilises a distinctly and entirely different type of logic.
Here is an interesting twist on the conundrum: Why not design a neuronal scaffolding out of nanotubes made of germanium and silicon, then allow neurons to grow within the scaffolding? The neurons will naturally make networked connections with each other along the scaffold, but an added bonus may be the ability to interface the neurons with the silicon-germanium substrate of the scaffold itself.
Graduate students at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, led by Minrui Yu, have published an ACS Nano paper, "Semiconductor Nanomembrane Tubes: Three-Dimensional Confinement for Controlled Neurite Outgrowth," in which they show that they have been able to successfully coax nerve cell tendrils to grow through tiny tubes made of the semi-conductor materials silicon and germanium. While this ground-breaking research may not portend cyborgs or even human brains enmeshed with computer parts, it does open the door to the possibility of regenerating nerve cells damaged due to disease or injury.
Yu and his team, led by Justin Williams, a biomedical engineer, created tubes of varying sizes and shapes, small enough for a nerve cell to glam on to, but not so big that it could fit all the way inside. The tubes were then coated with nerve cells from mice and then watched to see how they would react. Instead of sitting idly, the nerve cells began to send tendrils through the tunnels, as if searching for a path to something or somewhere else. In some instances they actually followed the contours of the tubes, which means, in theory, that the nerves could be grown into structures. _PO
Indeed. The nerves could be grown into structures along prescribed pathways. But the possibility of a functional and powerful brain-machine interface is also being considered.
The hope of course, in this type of research, is that a way can be found to connect a computer of some sort to a group of nerve cells to reestablish communication that has been disrupted. The computer in this case could serve as a relay of sorts, allowing those who can no longer walk, for example, due to spinal injury or disease, regain their former abilities. In that regard, this particular research is even more revealing than it might at first seem, due to the fact that the tiny tubes that have been created, very closely resemble myelin, the outer insulating sheath that covers parts of normal nerve cells. _PO
This is the actual goal of the researchers in Wisconsin: to grow a nerve:computer interface. This is one approach to the brain:machine, or cyborg approach to extreme rehabilitation, or even augmentation for emergency workers or military personnel.
Another approach which is even more exotic than described above, would be to grow an intricate "nano-neural web" into the intact brain structure, to create millions of interfaces to all of the important centers of the brain. The idea behind such a grown nano-structure, besides providing an external brain:machine interface, would be to allow the conscious mind access to unconscious brain functions.
Emergent phenomena are likely to grow from the humble beginnings of such an approach. Growing a nano-neuro web interface inside an intact brain might be easier than growing one outside the brain, in some ways. The "growth front" of the web would merely need to follow pre-existing pathways, and could be assisted by internal and external feedbacks.
Alternatively, one could grow a scaffolding in vitro, according to the most advanced brain imaging, seed it with the appropriate proto-cells, and nourish it into an intricate, functioning, autopoietic neural:nano hybrid network. Any conceivable shape and combination of connections between artificially grown brain centers would be possible -- at any arbitrary and chosen level of complexity. Such an artificial -- but living -- brain could be provided with a rudimentary circulatory system, and implanted into the control structure of very sophisticated and highly connected machines and structures.
Starting with how neuroscientists mapped the brains of roundworms, the video moves ahead to the 3D mapping of a mouse retina and visual cortex. Finishing with the human brain connectome project, the video presents a useful introduction to how nerves fit together to make brains, for the curious.
Having a detailed 3D image of the static brain is just the beginning, of course. What you need is a dynamic 3D image of brain structure at all scales, superimposed by dynamic electromagnetic and blood flow data. In addition one would need dynamic detail at the molecular level for arterial, venous, lymphatic, CSF, intracellular and extracellular fluids and structures of the brain. Finally, one would need to know what was happening to the individual in real time -- both inside the body and outside the body.
At that point, one might begin to understand what was happening in the brain -- and perhaps take educated guesses about the mind. First person reports from the subject herself could refine one's approach.
From that preliminary position, you just take it from there, like in a jazz improvisation.
What's here? I usually come to this floor to get my Nintendo Wii games, maybe PS3 games and sometimes some comics too at the shops on this floor. NOW.... what just opened here recently?
It has some really cute figurine displays here too... hehe... I forgot to ask if it was for sale though.
The SONY Playstation3 console area - for playing with the maids!!!!!
Anyways... I said it was a MAID cafe... and mind you... here is one of the hot maids =)
Oh wait... this one not the hot one.... oops wrong picture.
Meet Kurumi chan - the hottest and most popular one here. =)
SO.... what can you do with the maids?
You can choose to get the maids to feed you...
But remember.... no touching of the maid's body. (I'm not sure of hand/face/legs etc though LOL).
....and definitley NO ASKING FOR A MAID's PHONE NUMBER!!!
No phone number.... of cos NO EMAIL ADDRESS also lah!!!
You can choose the butler to feed you also...
Remember... DO NOT TOUCH A MAID'S BODY!!!
There is also other rules... do not infringe a maid's privacy, no stalking or trying to pick up a maid, no lingering outside the cafe waiting for the maid, no harming the employees, guests or neighbours of the cafe... and of course, no taking photos of the maids!!!!!
You can take a Happy Memories photo with the maid of your choice...
Enough of the maids already isnt it... how about the food?
The Couple Hangout.
Fish & Ship.
Chicken karaage.
The Japanese omurice.
The katsu curry rice.
The chicken katsu don.
...some cocktail sausages.
They also had a simple variety of desserts too... check it out! =)
This one looks really yummy isnt it??? Mmmm....
SO... what's in store for you at TENSHI CAFE?
Apart from the maids... Hahah.com.my is now giving you a super good deal... its called the... HAHAH DEAL!!!
1* Choice of any Japanese Rice 1* Choice of Kawaii-Bento 1* Tenshi Dessert 2 * Ice & Shaky
Normal Price: RM83
Deal Price: RM38 (Wahhhh 55% DISCOUNT!!!)
Deal only available during these dates: 29 Mar 2011 – 3 April 2011
That is NOT ALL... there's also the Hahah Rewards Multiplier !!!!!
Tier 1 after a total of 30 transactions: FREE “Spoon Feed – 3 spoons” worth RM3 Tier 2 after a total of 50 transactions: FREE Choice of “Conventional Games” or “Playstation 3” for one round worth RM5
T&C: Valid for 4 months from date of issue. You can purchase multiple vouchers and may use more than 1 voucher per table. Valid for dine-in only. E-Vouchers are not redeemable for cash. E-Vouchers are transferable. No replacement will be given for expired voucher(s)
The pandemic lasted from June 1917 to December 1920, spreading even to the Arctic and remote Pacific islands. Between 50 and 100 million died, making it one of the deadliest natural disasters in human history. Even using the lower estimate of 50 million people, 3% of the world's population (1.8 billion at the time), died of the disease. Some 500 million, or 28% (≈1/4) were infected.
Compare that to the 9 million that died in WWI, the largest war in Western history at that time.
