A small life journey

Facts about blackholes

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 11:01:00 GMT

Black Holes: Facts About Black Holes

So dense that even light becomes helpless infront of the mammoth gravitational pull of this amazing region of space called the black holes! This is a compilation of some of the most interesting facts about black holes in space. Explore...

Stars whose size is 10 or 15 times as massive as the Sun, generally have a fate of becoming black holes. Small stars, however, die as white dwarfs or neutron stars. So how do large stars become black holes? As stars begin to grow old, they gradually expand and they slowly run out of their supply of hydrogen and then helium. This causes contraction of their cores and expansion of the outer layers. The stars start becoming cooler and less bright and they come to a stage which is known as the red giant phase. Now, for a star which is even 3 times or more the mass of the Sun, undergoes detonation (a violent release of energy caused by a chemical or nuclear reaction) in cataclysms known as supernovae. Such kind of an explosion results in scattering of most of a star into the space. However, it also leaves behind a cold remnant of the star, which is no longer able to execute any nuclear fusion reaction.

As there is no fusion in the dead remnants of a massive supernova star, there is no creation of any energy which can oppose the inward pull of gravity caused by the star's own mass. Thus, the star enters a phase where it begins to collapse in upon itself. This is the formation of the black hole, wherein, it starts shrinking to zero volume. So, with volume being zero, density becomes infinite, so much that even light becomes unable to escape its massively strong gravitational pull. As a result of this, even the light of the dead remnants of the star gets trapped in its orbit and this dark star evolves to become what is known as a black hole. This was a brief explanation about the creation of black holes in space. Now, let's proceed to what this article is all about - 'Facts about black holes in space'.

Read more on:

10 Facts About Black Holes

If we talk about black holes facts for kids or for adults, the concept is analogous to the phrase, 'sky is the limit!' In other words, the facts are myriad. Nevertheless, the following section will give you some of the most interesting and thought provoking facts about black holes in space, till date!

It has been estimated that there might be black holes of enormous size, which may be existing at the center of our galaxy, 'The Milky Way'. These holes are assumed to be having the mass of 10 - 100 billion suns. Now, that is something which is 'HUGE', in block letters! Read more on the facts about the Milky Way.
Cygnus X-1 is the black hole that is located about 8000 light years away from our planet Earth. This is the closest black hole to Earth, known to man.
Although, black holes are associated with the reputation of having the strongest suction force, they do not bear the capability to absorb the whole universe. Anything such asplanets, light and other matter, can be pulled into the grasp of black holes, only if they happen to cross what is known as the event horizon. The radius of this event horizon is known as the Schwarzschild radius and at this radius, the escape velocity equals the speed of the light. So, once an object has passed through it, it must travel faster than light in order to escape it. That is the reason why, even light cannot escape the event horizon of a black hole.
As mentioned earlier, in this part of black holes in space, only the largest of stars are capable to end up as black holes. Only these stars are massive enough to get compressed to the Schwarzschild radius. While, smaller stars end up as white dwarfs or neutron stars.
There are several black holes which exist in binary star systems. Stars which are neighboring such holes, will keep on shrinking as their mass will continually be pulled by these holes. Gradually, the black holes will go on increasing, until the other stars have completely vanished.
As light cannot escape from a black hole, it cannot be directly observed. However, scientists use the presence of matters which swirl around the hole. Such matters are usually gas and dust and they heat up and emit radiation which can be detected.
Talking about our Sun becoming a black hole, the phenomenon won't occur. This is because the sun is not massive enough to shrink into a black hole. However, it will end up to become a white dwarf, after several billion years.
The center of a black hole is void of time and space.
A giant elliptical galaxy in the constellation Virgo, is assumed to home the largest known black hole. This hole is about 3 billion times the mass of the Sun.
Larger black holes are known to suck up other smaller ones which are close to their vicinity.

This is where I conclude this little exploration on the various interesting facts about black holes in space. No matter, how many facts people come up with, black holes represent an endless journey in the vast darkness of the space. The concept which lay hidden in the lap of black holes, perhaps most aptly vouches the depth of what I mentioned at the start of this piece, 'sky is the limit!'

By Rajib Singha
Published: 2/12/2010

This lil dilemma...

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:36:00 GMT

Just confused what am I to start with...feared the pass and wanna give another try in the present...its not tough to get it started..but I am afraid I may break someone's heart, that will eventually cause me a greater loss. I guess I am traumatized with my pass experience. I dun wan to show myself..and I am afraid so..

Wushu (home coming celebration) 05.09.09

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 15:49:00 GMT

Phew! I am so glad the wushu performance for the home coming celebration is over. I am happy with the friends I met, getting closer to one another like a family, gaining experiences (in wushu and friendship), laughters, fun and most of all..the team spirit!! Thanks Zi Yang for leading us well. You really have an excellent leadership and also as a wushu practitioner. Thanks for all your teachings Ding Yao, Jia Ying and Zi Yang. Thanks Yen Yee for being a great company. Thanks Wai Wai, Ah Sing, Toni, Ah Chim, Yen Yee, C+ and Ding Yao for the greatest laughter! During the night, we were given free admission to the home coming event! It was really really fun! The whole wushu club went bananas!! LOL! For the first time in my life, I was thrown up in the air supine by this bunch of fun makers!! Really love you guys..

Finally it's all over!! After all the hardwork we had put in. It's finally over!! Haha!! Really, the performance was awesome! Well, we actually performed under the hot sun with a "not so good" terrain. Anyway, lets cut the crap and view the photos!

Zi Yang playing flute, Wai Wai is pulling my head towards Yen Yee (I better explain it here first), Ding Yao and Ah Sing pushing me towards her...

I am at the far right corner from YOUR view

Yen Yee, C+ and Wai Wai

With an addition of my leg

Ah Chim

Ah Chim and Ding Yao

They force us to take this photo...=.='

Toni took it and gave it to C+..brother..she still underage la

Juliet and the two lions

There are more photos out there!! Its just that I am unable to get them..If anyone have the photos taken at night during the celebration (also the videos)..please send them to me!!

My never care attitude...

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 12:26:00 GMT

The other day I just thought of something..mind my broken English..I just want to write with what I felt like.

It isn't hard to be me..because I don't care with most of the things in my life!!! I dyed my hair and Ee Chiet nearly fainted. According to her, I am a goody boy that is obedient. She can't believe that I had transform into a wanna be threatening gangster boy. =.='."Lately, I told her that I cursed a lot too coz of my new degree life. You wanna know why??!!!! Go to FBG and look for the dean! Or at least see how Utarians park their cars....

Yea, getting new friends is easy..getting pissed by them is easy too! ^^...oh please, meeting someone for the whole foundation year is tough enough..are you gonna expect me to survive with someone even worse for three years???!! Yes Nancy!! I am talking about you, you dumb Nancy!!! Can you hear me?? You wan me to spell your name out??!!! "N-A-N-C-Y" "Nannies Are Noob Chicken Younkers"!

Guess what! Before I got really pissed with the people around me..I got pissed with people with theirs cars around mine! Not even a month my car got kissed twice. It never happened to me before...not even once in Ipoh. I wonder how people park their cars sampai my SLK (Small Little Kancil) kena langgar.

Even lately, I truly understand friends cannot stay so close to you until they meet someone new. Even others meet new people..so I never blame anyone. Its me myself for not socializing. I am also well aware that, if people are not close to you..eventually they will talk behind you..so I say...let them be..its never gonna end..

Assignments! As usual, I scored the lowest marks for all the assignment as compared to my friends. The reason is simply, I don't care..in one of the weeks, I have two assignments about to due, 1 lab report to hand up and a test..all in the same week, for consecutive three days towards the end of the week. I did not care much about the assignments and "hor" now I am getting worried because I dun care..Oh Ya! Back to you Nancy!! Your assignments mark very high meh??? HUH?!! Talk like so pro only??!! Finals haven't come and how you know you get 4 flat??? You think your brain so big is it?? Bigger than mine ah??!! FYI: Einstein's brain is smaller than average...

Tell you what..I screwed up in my Nutrition theory test (I scored with flying colours when it comes to practical), Anatomy & Physiology test 1 and my SB test 2..LOL!!! Bet you will die if you are me...

Finals?? Never care!

Quick Sand

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 21:30:00 GMT

Quicksand is a colloid hydrogel consisting of fine granular matter (such as sand or silt), clay, and salt water. In the name, as in that of quicksilver (mercury), "quick" does not mean "fast," but "living" (cf. the expression the quick and the dead).

Water circulation underground can focus in an area with the optimal mixture of fine sands and other materials such as clay. The water moves up and then down slowly in a convection-like manner throughout a column of sand, and the sand remains a generally solid mass. This lubricates the sand particles and renders them unable to support significant weight, since they move with little friction, behaving more like a liquid when exposed to stress. Since water does not usually go up to the surface of the sand, the sand on top appears solid, and can support leaves and other small debris, making quicksand difficult to distinguish from the surrounding environment.

Properties

Quicksand is a non-Newtonian fluid: when undisturbed it often appears to be solid ("gel" form), but a minor (less than 1%) change in the stress on the quicksand will cause a sudden decrease in its viscosity ("sol" form). After an initial disturbance—such as a person attempting to walk on it—the water and sand in the quicksand separate and dense regions of sand sediment form; it is because of the formation of these high volume fraction regions that the viscosity of the quicksand seems to increase suddenly. Someone stepping in it will start to sink. To move within the quicksand, a person or object must apply sufficient pressure on the compacted sand to re-introduce enough water to liquefy it. The forces required to do this are quite large: to remove a foot from quicksand at a speed of one centimeter per second would require the same amount of force as "that needed to lift a medium-sized car."

It should be noted that because of the higher density of the quicksand, it would be impossible for a human or animal to completely sink in the quicksand, though natural hazards present around the quicksand would lead people to believe that quicksand is dangerous. In actuality the quicksand itself is harmless on its own, but because it greatly inhibits human locomotion, the quicksand would allow harsher elements like solar radiation, dehydration, or tides to harm a trapped person.

The pimple anatomy

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 09:16:00 GMT

Inside the pore are sebaceous glands which produce sebum. When the outer layers of skin shed (as they do continuously), the dead skin cells left behind may become 'glued' together by the sebum. This causes a blockage in the pore, especially when the skin becomes thicker at puberty.The sebaceous glands produce more sebum which builds up behind the blockage, and this sebum harbours various bacteria including the species Propionibacterium acnes.

Over-the-counter medications

Common over-the-counter medications for pimples are benzoyl peroxide and/or salicylic acid. Both medications can be found in many creams and gels used to treat acne through topical application. Both medications help skin slough off more easily, which helps to remove bacteria faster. A regimen of keeping the affected skin area clean plus the regular application of these topical medications is usually enough to keep acne under control, if not at bay altogether. 1-2% of the population is allergic to benzoyl peroxide treatments.

Prescription medication

Severe acne usually indicates the necessity of prescription medication to treat pimples. Prescription medications used to treat acne include isotretinoin, which is a retinoid. Historically, antibiotics such as tetracyclines and erythromycin were prescribed. While they were more effective than topical applications of benzoyl peroxide, the bacteria eventually grew resistant to the antibiotics and the treatments became less and less effective. Also, antibiotics had more side effects than topical applications, such as stomach cramps and severe discoloration of teeth.

Reference:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pimple

http://notinmycolour.blogspot.com/2008/08/anatomy-of-zit.html

Discovered New Ant Species

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Thu, 28 May 2009 05:20:00 GMT

A new ant discovered in the Amazon looks so odd that scientists are choosing Latin names that playfully suggest the creature comes from Mars.

Yet the species Martialis heureka could help rewrite the history of ants on Earth.

Found in Brazil, the ant has a pale body and no eyes, says Christian Rabeling of the University of Texas at Austin. Its mouthparts stick out like sharp forceps and are longer than the rest of its head.

Its DNA may be even more interesting. Genetic analysis puts the new ant so far from other species that it deserves its own subfamily, Martialinae, Rabeling and his colleagues report in an upcoming Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. It’s the first new subfamily described for a living ant since 1923, the discoverers say.

“It’s an incredibly bizarre-looking ant morphologically, which for ant biologists is really exciting,” said Corrie Moreau, after seeing a picture. As an ant specialist at the Field Museum in Chicago, she says she can think of a few other species with each of the new ant’s peculiar features. But to find those rare traits combined in one species is unique, she says.

DNA analysis suggests that the odd ant’s lineage evolved earlier than any other living ant’s, Rabeling says.

That suggestion fits with a puzzling twist on ant history that has emerged from recent studies using DNA similarities to construct family trees. “Ants evolved from wasps — everybody agrees on that,” Moreau says. However, DNA-based family trees, including one she worked on, looked as if other specialized underground ants were the most ancient living lineage.

The new species could easily be another subterranean ant, Moreau speculates, since it has no eyes, a bleached color and extreme mouthparts. Adding it to the family tree strengthens the evidence that some of today’s underground ants really do come from ancient lineages.

Just how those lineages went underground isn’t clear, Moreau says. Perhaps the first ants really were subterranean specialists. Or perhaps ants first evolved above ground, but the only surviving descendants of those early ancestors come from lineages that literally went under.

Rabeling only has one specimen of the new ant so far. A coauthor found two other specimens before but they have since been lost. Subterranean ants are hard to find, so the researchers have called for more searches.

Naming a species based on a single specimen doesn’t strike Moreau as odd because the practice isn’t unusual. “The fact that a single ant ‘rediscovered’ in the rainforests of Brazil can tell us so much about the evolution of the ants highlights how little we know about the diversity of life on the planet,” she says.

Susan Milius
Photos by: Rabeling and M. Verhaagh

Reference:

http://www.phenomenica.com/2008/09/discovered-new-ant-species.html

Animals 'can tell right from wrong': Scientists suggest it's not just humans who have morals

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Tue, 26 May 2009 11:34:00 GMT

Animals have a sense of morality and can tell right from wrong, according to new research.

Species ranging from mice to wolves are governed by similar codes of conduct as humans, say ecologists.

Until recently, humans were thought to be the only species to experience complex emotions

Fairness: Dominant wolves learn from a young age to play down their strength

But Professor Marc Bekoff, from the University of Colorado, Boulder, believes that morals are ‘hard-wired’ into the brains of all mammals.

They also provide the ‘social glue’ that allow often aggressive and competitive animals to live together in groups, he said.

For instance dominant wolves dominate fairness by ‘handicapping’ themselves by engaging in role reversal with lower ranking wolves, showing submission and allowing them to bite, provided it is not too hard.

Chimpanzees also demonstrate a sense of justice by setting upon those in the group who deviate from the code.

Empathy: Spindle cells in dolphins' brains mean they care about other species

They also treat disabled members differently by rarely subjecting them to displays of aggression, research found.

Dolphins and whales are known to be capable of empathy because they have the same spindle cells in their brains as humans.

Prof Berkoff, who presented his case in new book, Wild Justice, said: ‘There are cases of dolphins helping humans to escape from sharks, and elephants that have helped antelope escape from enclosures.’

Experiments with rats have shown that they will not take food if they know their actions will cause pain to another rat.

Justice: Chimpanzees punish those who break their groups' strict rules

Similarly, mice react more strongly to pain when they have seen another mouse in pain.

‘The belief that humans have morality and animals don’t is a long-standing assumption, but there is a growing amount of evidence that is showing us that this simply cannot be the case,’ Prof Bekoff told the Sunday Telegraph.

‘Just as in humans, the moral nuances of a particular culture or group will be different from another, but they are certainly there.

‘Moral codes are species specific, so they can be difficult to compare with each other or with humans.’

His conclusions will provide ammunition for animal welfare groups pushing to have creatures treated more humanely.

Sympathy: Mice react more strongly to pain when they see others in pain

But some experts are sceptical about the extent to which animals can experience complex emotions and social responsibility.

Professor Frans de Waal, a primate behaviourist at Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, said: ‘I don’t believe animals are moral in the sense we humans are – with well developed and reasoned sense of right and wrong – rather that human morality incorporates a set of psychological tendencies and capacities such as empathy, reciprocity, a desire for co-operation and harmony that are older than our species.

‘Human morality was not formed from scratch, but grew out of our primate psychology. Primate psychology has ancient roots, and I agree that other animals show many of the same tendencies and have an intense sociality.’

Reference:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1187047/Animals-tell-right-wrong-Scientists-suggest-just-humans-morals.html?ITO=1490

DAILY SCIENCE FIX - DARK ENERGY - Dark what?

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Thu, 21 May 2009 07:35:00 GMT

Dark Energy...? 75% of the universe and we dont know what it is...?

All the known matter in the universe, including the hundreds of billions of galaxies we think exist, is only 5% of everything we observe given the known laws of physics. Either something big is missing, or something is wrong, take your pick.

I often like to mention there's much we dont know. In fact despite all of our advancements there are big holes in almost every major field of study. Astronomy is no exception, though given that we have to study the universe from one tiny speck, it really should come as no surprise. The suprise is how little we know.

All of the known, ordinary matter in the universe (see illustration) comprises about five percent! The rest...well we dont have much of a clue. Thats why we call the remainder "dark"; dark energy and dark matter. Dark energy is to account for fact that the universe is expanding and a certain amount of energy would be needed to do that, even though we arent sure where its coming from. Dark matter is to account for the gravity (attractive force) we see in action when we look at the cosmos (so it must have a lot of mass) even though it does not radiate anything we can detect. (Ill do a post soon on dark matter)

Dark energy itself was only really discovered eleven years ago

Perlmutter was the leader of one of the two separate teams of astrophysicists who concluded, from watching distant supernovae, that the cosmic expansion was accelerating and not slowing under the influence of gravity, as was previously thought. The two teams' finding confirmed just how little we know about our universe.

The most conventional explanation is that dark energy is some kind of "cosmological constant" that arises from empty space not being empty, but having an energy as elementary particles pop in and out of existence.

Though Einstein proposed a century ago the "cosmological constant", he later called the theory his greatest blunder. Now it looks like maybe he was wrong about being wrong.

Today scientists still don't know a lot about dark energy. Much of the study being done now is to calculate with as much precision as possible, how fast is the universe expanding? The rate of expansion tells how much force were looking for, and then hopefully its nature will come clearer.

The new value for the expansion rate, known as the Hubble constant, or Ho (after Edwin Hubble who first measured the expansion of the universe nearly a century ago), is 74.2 kilometers per second per megaparsec (error margin of ± 3.6). The results agree closely with an earlier measurement gleaned from Hubble of 72 ± 8 km/sec/megaparsec, but are now more than twice as precise.

Or stated another way; were twice as far from not knowing as we were.

Reference:

http://www.stumbleupon.com/toolbar/#url=http%253A%252F%252Ftpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com%252Ftalk%252Fblogs%252Fwademorris%252F2009%252F05%252Fdaily-science-fix---dark-energ.php

Einstein's Biggest Blunder? Dark Energy May Be Consistent With Cosmological Constant

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Thu, 21 May 2009 07:25:00 GMT

ScienceDaily (Nov. 28, 2007) — Einstein's self-proclaimed "biggest blunder" -- his postulation of a cosmological constant (a force that opposes gravity and keeps the universe from collapsing) -- may not be such a blunder after all, according to the research of an international team of scientists that includes two Texas A&M University researchers.

The team is working on a project called ESSENCE that studies supernovae (exploding stars) to figure out if dark energy -- the accelerating force of the universe -- is consistent with Einstein's cosmological constant.

Texas A&M researchers Nicholas Suntzeff and Kevin Krisciunas are part of the project, which began in October of 2002 and is scheduled to end next month after achieving its goal of discovering and studying 200 supernovae. The team uses a 4-meter diameter telescope in Chile during the observing season of October to December to find the supernovae.

In 1917, Einstein was working on his Theory of General Relativity and was trying to come up with an equation that describes a static universe -- one that stands still and does not collapse under the force of gravity in a big crunch. In order to keep the universe static in his theory, Einstein introduced a cosmological constant -- a force that opposes the force of gravity.

Then, 12 years later, Edwin Hubble discovered that the universe is not static -- it is actually expanding. So Einstein scrapped his idea of a cosmological constant and dismissed it as his biggest blunder.

In 1998, however, two teams of scientists, one of which Texas A&M researcher Suntzeff co-founded, discovered that the universe is not only expanding, but its expansion is actually accelerating -- going faster and faster.

"So there had to be some other force that had overcome the force of gravity and is driving the universe into an exponential acceleration," Suntzeff said. This opposing force is what scientists now call dark energy, and it is believed to constitute roughly 74 percent of the universe. The other constituents of the universe are dark matter, which composes about 22 percent of the universe, and ordinary matter, which is about 4 percent.

"Eighty years later, it turns out that Einstein may have been right [about a cosmological constant]," Krisciunas said. "So he was smarter than he gave himself credit for."

The type of supernovae that the ESSENCE team studies all give off the same amount of energy and have essentially the same peak brightness. Researchers can compare the observed brightness of a supernova that they see in the sky to its known actual brightness to figure out how far away the supernova is.

Researchers also look at what is called the redshift of the supernova, which tells them how fast the universe is expanding. When scientists compare the distance of the supernova to its redshift, they can measure the acceleration of the expansion of the universe. This acceleration is caused by the force scientists call dark energy.

The ESSENCE team can then use the value of the acceleration to figure out the density of dark energy, which they then use to calculate what is called the w-parameter. For Einstein's cosmological constant to be correct, the w-parameter must equal -1, and so far, the results of the ESSENCE project seem to confirm that it is indeed very close to -1.

"The magic value is -1 exactly," Krisciunas said. "If the number turns out to be precisely -1, then this dark energy is a relatively simple thing -- it is Einstein's cosmological constant." The team won't have the final results until later next year, but right now, the measurement is coming in at -1 plus or minus 10 percent error, Suntzeff said, so the initial data seems to point to Einstein being correct.

"We can never test [dark energy] in the laboratory, so astronomers have to measure it [through observational data], and one of the ways we're measuring it is with supernovae in the ESSENCE project," Suntzeff said. "Dark energy is completely unexplained by conventional physics. Perhaps this is a manifestation of the 5th dimension from string theory. Or maybe it is a new vacuum energy density that is changing slowly in time. We have no idea, and that is what excites both physicists and astronomers."

Reference:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071127142128.htm

Genting trip with best buddies ever

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Wed, 20 May 2009 11:49:00 GMT

Finally! I got all the pics and I really enjoyed looking at them. Of course, the pictures aren't enough to describe how much fun we actually had. Firstly, 9/12 of my housemates decided to go for the trip. Just the day before, all 9 of them came to Ipoh and stayed in Ah Wah's place. I did not know they came until they called me when I was 'yum-cha'-ing with Weng Foo and Jun Lee. Well, after that we all went to watch X-Men Origins. Whoa! I can tell you that the movie was awesome.

The next day, we gathered at Olympia College and took the bus to Genting.

In the bus, on the right was an unknown lady, and on the left was Eric.

Ah Wah self-shot

Me, Ah Yang and Ah Qiang

Well, in the bus to Genting, Khim Yao had kinda became my lou po..^^. If you don't believe me, ask him show his wedding ring..hahahahaha!!

Me also wanna 'SS' like Sian Wah

Pee-ka-bo

Upon arriving the Resort Hotel, I remember Ah Wah was looking for the toilet very badly..Anyway, that place was awesome and we had a few shots there..We kinda waited for a while coz the check-in time was at 1pm and we have two hours. What to do? Go 'kai-kai' lor...there were several attempts of Sian Wah, Khim Yao, Ah Qiang and me (if you wanna include) to enter the Casino..the first time, Khim Yao and Sian Wah entered and then got kicked out..lol! There goes the first attempt..

Outside Resort Hotel

Our group photo inside the hotel

^^..I love the fountain behind me..that's why I took this pic

Well now is check-in time!! Like lil-kids entering a hotel room we jumped onto the bed. It may sound silly that 9 of us share the same room, but its fun!

Looks like those guys found out something weird..

What was weird, Nigel was standing at the back of the wardrobe and his hand was waving at the toilet door..the wardrobe is connecting to the common area and both sides of the door can be opened. That's why I was able to take this pic..lolx! As soon as those guys found out this stupid design..Ah Wah shouted "Aiya! Why din bring *censored* come!" The whole group burst into laughter...

As usual, Ah Wah just loves to bully Eric..since 9 of us is gonna sleep in the same room, Ah Wah found a perfect place for Eric to sleep..and that was right inside the cupboard below the TV..unfortunately for him, there was a small fridge inside it.

By the way, I haven't seen such thing before inside the lift.

Then, we moved on to first world! However, Yu Jiun, Eric and Ah Qiang did not follow us to the outdoor theme park. Anyway, our first ride was the...emmm..uhm....the flying chair watever...

Lou poh and Ah Yang

Nigel and Ah Zhang

Ah Wah....=.='..self-shot again...

And me..

Ready to take off!

While I was taking photos, Ah Wah was so afraid that my handphone will fall off...

Later on, we played the most exciting ride ever..the Space Shooter..hahahahaha!! Previously in KFC, Yu Jiun bet that Ah Wah will not dare to ride this thing..and I said the other way..anyhow, Ah Wah really not dare to take the ride...but we decided to cheat him..so that he will owe me lunch...

Not there yet..btw, Ah Yang was sitting on the row to my right..he sat with a Singaporean

Almost there...it was raining when we ride this thing..all the mist around...at the top, I cannot see anything at all..that even make things scarier coz I dunno how high I've gone...and to tell the truth..when I rode this thing..it was my first time ever where I wanted to shout, but no voice came out.....really scary but exciting!!

Next, since its raining...archery!!! Khim Yao, Ah Wah and Nigel are good archers...me still noob...sob...

Sadly, I'm too tall for this ride...

Tada!!

We took this ride after archery..I wanted to take more when the ride starts..but the guard stopped me..he say dangerous wor...but I think he scared Genting 'por-chan' coz if I were to take photos, the photo booth outside will be useless...stupid...

We had a few rides..one of em was the Corkscrew..lol...one thing about Ah Wah is that..he is afraid of rides!! LOL!! Not only he was afraid, he was also scared for other people..Ah Yang like to lift his hands off when we took the ride..Ah Wah kept pulling his hands down coz he was scared accidents would happen like those in 'Happy Tree Friends'...

The haunted ride..watever...before we went for this ride, all of us made a deal..we had to scream as loud as possible so that others will get scared too..hahaha...really..this ride was nothing as compared to Space Shooter

Well, like lil kids, Nigel, Khim Yao, Sian Wah and I..rode this thing..all four of us sat in the same cup and we started spinning like mad..I was holding to my handphone taking video of us spinning.

Hahaha!! Now come to the best part. Four of us went to ride this roller coaster next to the cups..now..hehe..that lovely Ah Wah was again trembling .When he sat beside me, he said.."Zach...you have to look after me k?" and I was laughing laughing and laughing...and then, when the ride went bananas, Ah Wah scream like a lil girl, face down and teary eyes!! The whole ride became so funny to me.

Heard of bumper cars?? Here's bumper boat..

LOL! Must not exceed 75 kg..I'm 42...=p

Our last ride was a train..I don't remember the name..the ride was not much of twisting and turning but it was fast..this time I was sitting next to Ah Yang and Sian Wah behind me..as usual, Ah Yang love to lift his hands up..Ah Wah cannot help it and screamed "Suk Sau La So-Hai!' LOL!! Hahaha! I cannot be helped coz I was laughing again non-stop..Imagine him..with a deep voice...scared until no voice..and forced to screamed like that..hahaha...his tone all out...when I share this with others..all of them laughed like mad...we did play some indoor games and exchanged prizes later on..

Guess what's for dinner..Maggi Mee....LOL..they all so despo for money leh...everything there are expensive..

Drinking beer, eating snacks, maggi mee and play "chor dai-di" (Food and drinks were bought in Tesco Kampar)

We went out for window shopping that night..as we were walking..we saw one Cyber Cafe..and the price was RM 10 for 1/2 hour...siau...Imax now promotion RM1.5 for 1 hour la....Anyway, Sian Wah tempted to enter the Casino again..so he planned to go back to the hotel room and dressed nicely..as for me, I wanted to enter as well, so I borrowed Nigel's IC when we got back...anyhow, I was tired..so I din go but slept..Yu Jiun slept in the same bed with me...as I was about to sleep..Ah Wah tried something funny...all of the sudden I heard "Arhhh..argh..ugh...Yamateh....yamateh..Yitai...ugh..yitai.." *bed shakes violently* Yu Jiun and I suddenly woke up, laughed our ass off and cursed him...lol!!

The next day, I woke up ard 7..the earliest though...since everyone was sleeping, I got myself ready..Ah Qiang was awake too..so, I asked him for the key and went for a stroll...I took my breakfast at McD..then walk around and later..I saw a few hot babes!!! Gosh...at ard 8:30 I went back and by 10 everyone woke up and got ready..we went for check out and take our breakfast at Kenny Rogers..since we all so despo for money...I did something evil..very very evil..the menu stated that if you order soft drinks, you will have unlimited refill..and that is a good thing to start with...I ordered cook and asked for three empty cups to share with Khim Yao and Yu Jiun..then, we keep asking them for refill..what..you think cheap ah...RM 5.90 for one cup leh..hahaha..the funny part is..when they realise that we are evil...the staffs immediately held a meeting a few tables behind us...lol!!! They were holding a jug and discussed something about refilling...that's what I heard..Khim Yao do have another group photo taken with the Statue of Liberty behind us but its not here with me..anyway, Ah Zhang had to go home first..he took a different bus that would go straight to his hometown..guess that's good-bye..Well, later...

Snoker!! My first time playing and yet I scored 7!! Wahahahahaha!! Ah Qiang scored 4, Khim Yao-4 and Yu Jiun-5. Next, we went hiking..

I reached 3/4..I was too tired...scared and my hands and legs were numb...really need a lot of energy leh...those whom were not climbing kept telling me where to put my hands and legs..they said it as though it was easy..so I turn behind and say..."You try and see la...talk only easy..but when you do...you know how it feels.."

Those things not nice to grip also..slippery and shallow...

Sian Wah

Khim Yao

Well, next to this hiking game..is the archery.....lol..for those who din play archery..anyway, we were tempted to play again..

Sigh..tired but happy..its time to go home..bus will come at 5..

Curi ambil my gambar...the bus stopped at kampar Ghany Corner first for Nigel, Ah Qiang and Ah Yang to go back to Westlake first..the rest of us will go down at Jusco..Never had so much fun before...thanks Yu Jiun, Nigel, Khim Yao and last but not least, Sian Wah for organizing such a beautiful trip..

Nikola Tesla-The Forgotten Wizard

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Tue, 12 May 2009 21:27:00 GMT

Well, if you are dealing with people with the following characteristics:

1. Discouraging

2. Thinks he/she knows everything

3. Thinks he/she is better than you

4. Power hungry

5. Gossiping

6. Thinks he/she had a lot of life experiences

7. Provoking

8. A childish "Big Shot"

9. Backstabber

10. Jealous (especially this)

11. Irritating

12. Rude

13. Not loyal to friendship

14. Betrayal

15. Think he/she has "Superiorly Inevitably Superbly Incredibly Extraordinarily" good leaderships. (but he/she doesn't..and is far worse than you..its just that you have to give face sometimes...^^)

16. E.T.C.

You may want to watch this video, it helps. I feel much better that someone was able to go through all of this until the end of his life. Salute you Tesla!

Mirror Neurons

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Tue, 12 May 2009 21:09:00 GMT

A newly discovered type of brain cell may help us prep for social interactions.

The cells are a special type of "mirror neurons," which are thought to aid understanding of the actions and intentions of others. Mirror neurons fire both when you do something, like grab a bottle of wine, and when you watch another person do the same thing. Instead of carrying out a step-by-step reasoning process to figure out why a friend is grabbing a bottle of wine, we instantly understand what’s going on inside his head because it’s going on in our heads too.

Now, researchers have discovered some mirror neurons don’t just care about what another individual is doing, they also care about how far away they’re doing it, and, more importantly, whether there’s potential for interaction.

"This was very surprising for us," said Antonino Casile of the University of Tübingen in Germany, co-author of the research, published in Science Thursday. "The current view about mirror neurons is that they might underlie action understanding. But the distance at which an action is performed plays no role in understanding what the others are doing."

The findings suggest an expanded role for mirror neurons in social interaction. Not only do they facilitate quick comprehension, but they may also help us instantly decide whether to respond and interact. If our friend drops the bottle of wine, we’re ready to swoop in before it crashes to the floor. When someone special puckers up, you don’t have to think before leaning in for the kiss.

The researchers located mirror neurons in the brains of two monkeys, which fired when the monkeys grabbed a small metal object and when they watched the experimenter do the same. Unexpectedly many of these neurons actually had a preference for where the experimenter was grabbing the object — about a fourth of the cells fired more rapidly when the action took place within arm’s reach of the monkey (its
"peripersonal" space), while another fourth were more excited when the action was out reach (its "extrapersonal space"). Over a range of distances, the closer the motion was to the monkey, the faster its peripersonal mirror neurons fired; the extrapersonal mirror neurons had the opposite response.

Distance shouldn’t make a difference for understanding or imitating a task, or for any of the commonly attributed functions of mirror neurons. However, distance plays a fundamental role in deciding how to respond to behaviors.

"Our brain divides space into at least two major sectors — one in which we can do things, in which we can act, and one in which we can’t,"
explained Marco Iacoboni, who studies the human mirror neuron system at the University of California at Los Angeles. "Our cognition, even fairly complex stuff like empathy, seems grounded in our body."

The researchers also demonstrated that it’s not mere distance that affects these neurons, but more specifically, whether there is indeed potential to act. They did the same tests with a clear barrier between the monkey and the experimenter’s grabbing, eliminating the possibility of interaction. Even though the monkey never tried to grab the object during any of the experiments, the barrier stopped some peripersonal mirror neurons from firing, even when the grabbing was very close to the monkey. Meanwhile, the extrapersonal mirror neurons stepped in and started firing.

Casile speculates that these mirror neurons are analyzing actions both to understand what others are doing and to decide what one could do in order to interact with them, and that these analyses are happening simultaneously. "We might be deciding whether and how to interact with an action not after understanding it, but rather in parallel," he said.

"Mirror neurons may be very important for social relations," Iacoboni said. "These new findings truly speak to this idea. The neurons may be encoding actions in a way that’s essential for cooperating with others, and very important for social interactions."

Reference:

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/04/mirrormirror/

Darnassian-Language of the Night Elf

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Mon, 11 May 2009 08:20:00 GMT

Darnassian ( Arathandris Silversky calls it Darnassae) is the primary language of the night elves. It has both written and spoken equivalents. There are two specific dialects: Darnassian, the current language; and an older script, a strange dialect, that can be found in ancient night elf ruins (perhaps Elven).

Just as the naga, high elves, and blood elves are descended from night elves, so Darnassian bears some resemblance to the Nazja and Thalassian languages. There are, however, strong ideological differences between the night elves and their distant kin. Thus, a linguist must take great care in drawing comparisons between Darnassian and its two cousin languages. Night elves tend to consider such comparisons offensive.

It has been pointed out that Darnassian, an old language, shares the same root word with the name of the Night Elven capital, Darnassus, a city created relatively recently. Some reasons as to why this may be include:

1) the language was always called Darnassian, and the city was named for the language;

2) there was no name for the language prior to the foundation of the city, and so they bore the same,

3) the name of the language was changed, or 4) "darnass" has a translation we have not yet determined.

This is one of the four elven dialects.

Darnassian Primer (official translations)

Here are a few common Darnassian phrases and words, for which the translations have been officially confirmed by Blizzard:

"An'da!" = "Papa!" (A nick name for a father)
"Ande'thoras-ethil." = "May your troubles be diminished."(A farewell.)
"Andu-falah-dor!" = "Let balance be restored!" (A war cry.)
"Ash Karath!" = "Do it!"
"Bandu Thoribas! = "Prepare to fight!" (A challenge to an enemy.)
"Ellemayne" = "Reaver"
"Elune-Adore." = "Elune be with you." (A greeting.)
"Fandu-dath-belore?" = "Who goes there?"
"Ishnu-alah." = "Good fortune to you" (A greeting.)
"Ishnu-dal-dieb." = "Good fortune to your family."(A greeting.)
"Shalla'tor" = "Shadow Render"
"Shan'do" = "Honored Teacher" (A title and term of respect.)
"Thero'shan" = "Honored student" (A title and term of respect.)
"Tor ilisar'thera'nal!" = "Let our enemies beware!" (A war cry.)
"Kaldorei" = "children of the stars", "people of the stars". (Starborne, night elves).
"Nordrassil" = "crown of the heavens"
"Quel'dorei" = "children of noble birth" ("Highborne", "High-borne", "high elves").^[2]^{W3Man 48}
"Sunstrider" = "he who walks the day"
"Teldrassil" = "crown of the earth"
"Xaxas" = A short title with many meanings, all dire. "Chaos, "fury", "The embodiment of elemental rage, such as found in erupting volcanos or shattering earthquakes", "elemental fury", "catastrophe". Often used to refer to the black dragon Aspect Deathwing. ^{DotD 136}^[2]
"Zin-Azshari" = "The glory of Azshara"

Non-Translated Darnassian words or phrases

Al'ameth - A lake in southeastern Teldrassil.
Aldrassil - An inhabited tree in northeastern Teldrassil.
Allaminar! = Word of magic that creates a illumination spell, which causes a bright light.^[7]
Ameth'Aran - Former night elven city in Darkshore.
Ara-Hinam - A night elven village, long since destroyed.
Arlithrien - Pools in southwestern Teldrassil.
Astranaar - Night elven town in Ashenvale.
Bashal'Aran - Former night elven city in Darkshore.
Ban'ethil - A barrow den in central Teldrassil.
Constellas - A former night elven settlement in Felwood.
Darnassus - The current capital of the night elves.
Dolanaar - Night elven town in central Teldrassil.
Dor'Danil - Barrow den in eastern Ashenvale.
Eldara - Tower in northeastern Azshara.
Eldarath - A ruined city in Azshara.
Eldre'Thalas - Dire Maul.
Elune'ara - A lake in Moonglade.
Ethel Rethor - A tower in western Desolace.
Falathim - Lake in western Ashenvale.
Falfarren - River in central Ashenvale.
Feralas - Lush jungle in southwestern Kalimdor.
Hyjal - Historical mountain in northern Kalimdor.
Isildien - Night elf ruins in southern Feralas.
Jademir - A lake in northern Feralas.
Kalidar - Alleged former name of island currently known as Teldrassil.
Keermissar! = Word of magic that causes three whirling magic stars to flash forth and strike an enemy
Kel'Theril - Former night elven city in Winterpsring.
Lariss - A pavilion in northeastern Feralas.
Loreth'Aran - A night elven ruin on Bloodmyst Isle.
Mathystra - Former night elven city in Darkshore.
Mennar - Lake in southern Azshara.
Mazthoril - A cave in Winterspring.
Morlos'Aran - A former night elven city in Felwood.
Mystral - Lake in southern Ashenvale.
Oneiros - Night elven ruins in northern Feralas.
Ordil'Aran - Former night elven city in Ashenvale.
Rut'theran - A village in southern Teldrassil.
Sar'theris - A beach on the coast of Desolace.
Sardor - Island off the Feralas coast.
Satyrnaar - A satyr town in eastern Ashenvale.
Shal myrinan ishnu daldorah - An incantation used by Celebras to assemble the Scepter of Celebras.
Solarsal - Night elven ruins in Feralas.
Suramar - A former night elven city, now sunk beneath the ocean.
Sylvanaar - A night elven town in Blade's Edge Mountains.
Talrendis - A night elven camp in southwestern Azshara.
Tethris Aran - A former night elven city in northern Desolace.
Thalanaar - Night elven settlement in eastern Feralas.
Vordrassil - Failed World Tree in the Grizzly Hills of Northrend.
Zin-Malor - Temple in Eldarath.
Zin-al-Elune - Uttered in Balancing the Scales

Timeline of a Car Crash-Look how slow our response is

z_terra9999@hotmail.com — Wed, 06 May 2009 19:19:00 GMT

In designing the Falcon XT, Ford engineers set out to discover the anatomy of a car crash and found that the accident is typically over before we’re even consciously aware of it happening.

This is a reconstruction of a crash involving a stationary Ford Falcon XT sedan being struck in the driver’s door by another vehicle travelling at 50 km/h [30 mph].

0 milliseconds - An external object touches the driver’s door.

1 ms - The car’s door pressure sensor detects a pressure wave.

2 ms - An acceleration sensor in the C-pillar behind the rear door also detects a crash event.

2.5 ms - A sensor in the car’s centre detects crash vibrations.

5 ms - Car’s crash computer checks for insignificant crash events, such as a shopping trolley impact or incidental contact. It is still working out the severity of the crash. Door intrusion structure begins to absorb energy.

6.5 ms - Door pressure sensor registers peak pressures.

7 ms - Crash computer confirms a serious crash and calculates its actions.

8 ms - Computer sends a “fire” signal to side airbag. Meanwhile, B-pillar begins to crumple inwards and energy begins to transfer into cross-car load path beneath the occupant.

8.5 ms - Side airbag system fires.

15 ms - Roof begins to absorb part of the impact. Airbag bursts through seat foam and begins to fill.

17 ms - Cross-car load path and structure under rear seat reach maximum load.
Airbag covers occupant’s chest and begins to push the shoulder away from impact zone.

20 ms - Door and B-pillar begin to push on front seat. Airbag begins to push occupant’s chest away from the impact.

27 ms - Impact velocity has halved from 50 km/h to 23.5 km/h. A “pusher block” in the seat moves occupant’s pelvis away from impact zone. Airbag starts controlled deflation.

30 ms - The Falcon has absorbed all crash energy. Airbag remains in place. For a brief moment, occupant experiences maximum force equal to 12 times the force of gravity.

45 ms - Occupant and airbag move together with deforming side structure.

50 ms - Crash computer unlocks car’s doors. Passenger safety cell begins to rebound, pushing doors away from occupant.

70 ms - Airbag continues to deflate. Occupant moves back towards middle of car.
Engineers classify crash as “complete”.

150-300 ms - Occupant becomes aware of collision.

Reference:

http://www.lonegunman.co.uk/2009/02/23/timeline-of-a-car-crash/