WcP Blog - World Culture Pictorial

New Year, New Site

WcP.Publisher — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 08:05:01 +0000

New Year's greetings, dear readers!

2018 marked the 10th anniversary of World Culture Pictorial online journal, and we’re ringing in 2019 by relaunching the site with a more mobile-friendly and other features for your viewing enjoyment:
http://worldculturepictorial.com/wcp-blog/

The archives from 2008 to 2018 can still be found here at http://www.worldculturepictorial.com/blog/archive whereas all new entries will be posted at the new site going forward.

A big Thank-You and a very Happy New Year to all!
Publisher, WcP Blog

"Human beings have a huge propensity for good, and yet a capacity for evil", Queen Elizabeth's 2018 speech

WcP.Life.Coach — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 15:20:22 +0000

"Even with the most deeply held differences, treating the other person with respect and as a fellow human being is always a good first step towards greater understanding."

"Some cultures believe a long life brings wisdom. I'd like to think so. Perhaps, part of that wisdom is to recognize some of life's baffling paradoxes such as the way human beings have a huge propensity for good, and yet a capacity for evil."

(quote)
Queen Elizabeth Reflects on the Royal Family's 'Busy: as well as the births of her two great-grandchildren, Prince Louis and Lena Tindall, and Prince Charles's 70th birthday. She also called out the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, remembering her father's time in the military and honoring all of those who serve. But perhaps most impactful was the Queen's plea for kindness and respect in our modern society.
"Even with the most deeply held differences, treating the other person with respect and as a fellow human being is always a good first step towards greater understanding," she said.
"Even the power of faith which frequently inspires great generosity and self-sacrifice can fall victim to tribalism. But through the many changes I have seen over the years: faith, family, and friendship have been not only a constant for me, but a source of personal comfort and reassurance."
Queen Elizabeth's 2018 Christmas speech in full:

For many, the service of 'Nine Lessons and Carols' from King's College Cambridge is when Christmas begins. Listened to by millions of people around the world it starts with a chorister singing the first verse of "Once in Royal David’s City." read more »

"All-I-want-for-Christmas-is-$5-billion-for-the-wall" shutdown. 5 billion of $3.8 trillion annual budget / spending? 0.125%

WcP.Humor — Tue, 25 Dec 2018 17:57:00 +0000

"5 vs 4000" "This pie is $4000 billion/year. $5 billion represents 5/4000 or 1/800th of this pie."
"10% vs 90%" what shuts down (less than 10%) and what keeps going (over 90%!).
graphiccreated by congressman Thomas Massie at @RepThomasMassie

(quote)

23 December 2018
politico The ‘all-I-want-for-Christmas-is-$5-billion-for-the-wall’ shutdown
All of which means that a government that spends $3.8 trillion annually is being disrupted over 0.005 percent of its annual budget.

In fact, the 2018 Christmas shutdown is starting to look a lot like 2013 — when government funding lapsed for 16 days — or 1995-96, when a partisan showdown between Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich lasted 21 days.

25 December 2018
CBSnews It's not going to reopen until we have a wall or a fence.
Washington — As the government remains partially closed through the holidays, President Trump said the impasse in budget negotiations will continue until his $5 billion demand for border wall funding is met. He spoke to reporters in the Oval Office on Christmas morning.

"I can't tell you when the government is going to reopen," Mr. Trump said after hosting a video conference call with U.S. troops stationed overseas to thank them for their service. "I can tell you it's not going to reopen until we have a wall, a fence, whatever they'd like to call it. I'll call it whatever they want, but it's all the same thing."

(unquote)

After unannounced visit of Arlington National Cemetery in rain, Trump orders to bring soldiers home from abroad

WcP.Tomorrows.History — Thu, 20 Dec 2018 02:35:19 +0000

(quote)

15 December 2018
Trump's surprise visit to Arlington in the rain
On Saturday, Trump arrived around 2.15pm at Arlington National Cemetery unannounced for wreath laying, which decorates the graves of fallen troops for Christmas.

19 December 2018
independent.co.uk Trump orders full and immediate withdrawal of US troops from Syria
The US has more than 2,000 troops in Syria. US officials said on Wednesday that a full withdrawal had been requested by Mr Trump. One official told Reuters that the pullout could take up to 100 days. Shortly after news of the plans emerged, the president appeared to tweet confirmation.

*update*
21 December 2018
BBC Trump to withdraw thousands of troops from Afghanistan
The Trump administration is planning to withdraw thousands of troops from Afghanistan, US media say. Reports, citing unnamed officials, say about 7,000 troops - roughly half the remaining US military presence in the country - could go home within months. The reports come a day after the president announced the country's military withdrawal from Syria.

24 December 2018 read more »

"We come from the earth. We return to the earth. And in between we garden."

WcP.Philosophy — Thu, 13 Dec 2018 19:37:29 +0000

"We come from the earth.
We return to the earth.
And in between we garden."
- Author Unknown

"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need."
- Cicero

7 Dec 1941. Pearl Harbor

WcP.Observer — Sat, 08 Dec 2018 00:48:12 +0000

(quote)
Today in 1941, carrier-based Japanese aircraft staged a surprise attack on U.S. fleet at Pearl Harbor. The next day, the United States officially entered World War

Fat Man, the 10,300-pound atom bomb that convinced the Japanese Empire to end the war after 8/9/1945
(unquote)

Photo courtesy National Air and Space Museum and @AHMalcolm

The van with a thousand eyes

WcP.Humor — Mon, 03 Dec 2018 03:15:43 +0000

Photo courtesy @Thomas1774Paine

California Camp Fire November 2018: survivor’s stories

WcP.Story.Teller — Tue, 27 Nov 2018 02:06:10 +0000

(quote)

Survivors' story: Jeff Evans' Home Survived Camp Fire Nov 8 2018
"I inherited 11 dogs... my world changed pretty dramatically. I can't leave with 11 dogs. So I stayed here" in the Evacuation Zone.
59-year-old Jeff Evans and his parents, who live with him, told me his house survived unscathed, but his neighbors were not so lucky.
The Camp Fire in Northern California incinerated entire towns. More than 13,000 single-family homes were destroyed in the blaze.

California Camp Fire ravages town of Paradise, destroying more than 6,500 structures
Homes destroyed by the Camp Fire in Paradise, California.
Trees survived.

Fierce winds picked up in the Sierra foothills that morning, fueling the most destructive fire in California history, which has burned nearly 10,000 homes, killed at least 71 people and left more than 1,000 unaccounted for.

(unquote)

Photo courtesy NPR and Newsweek

This is Chile, Part II - "Poet's Pacific paradise: Pablo Neruda’s homes in Chile", "there's a little bit of traffic"

WcP.Art — Tue, 20 Nov 2018 18:48:15 +0000

“Poet's Pacific paradise: Pablo Neruda’s homes in Chile”

“There's a little bit of traffic”

Photo courtesy @ThisisChile.cl (via @guardian) and @ThisisChile.cl (via el_jose_patagonia | IG)

This is Chile, Part I - "the path that everyone wants to discover", "there is art in nature"

WcP.Art — Thu, 15 Nov 2018 02:30:51 +0000

“The path that everyone wants to discover”

“There is art in nature”

Photo courtesy @ThisisChile.cl (via heather.photog | IG) and @ThisisChile.cl (via alex_pinilla_photos | IG)

Disney to launch new streaming service called Disney+ and pull content from Netflix in 2019

WcP.Movie.Critic — Fri, 09 Nov 2018 01:23:31 +0000

(quote)

Disney's new Netflix rival will be called Disney+ and launch late 2019
Disney's new streaming service, Disney+, will be a home for its past titles and original series, including new content from the Marvel and Star Wars franchises.
The company will pull its content from Netflix in 2019.

(unquote)

Photo courtesy CNBC

"Nothing is more fairly distributed than common sense: no one thinks he needs more of it than he already has." - Rene Descartes

WcP.Common.Sense — Sat, 03 Nov 2018 22:58:26 +0000

"Nothing is more fairly distributed than common sense: no one thinks he needs more of it than he already has."

"The two operations of our understanding, intuition and deduction, on which alone we have said we must rely in the acquisition of knowledge."

- Rene Descartes

Photos: polar bear cub in Alaska looking up to the sky and "praying for snow"

WcP.Story.Teller — Sat, 27 Oct 2018 15:16:22 +0000

(quote)

A polar bear appeared to be praying for a cold winter after being seen placing his huge paws together and looking up at the sky.
The cub bear was pictured seemingly looking up to the heavens and asking for divine intervention in the animal's current plight.
Temperatures in their Alaskan habitat are higher than usual and as a result the pack have been left stranded on land waiting for the ice to freeze.
Until temperatures drop and more ice freezes after melting during the spring, the polar bears cannot go and find seals.

The male juvenile bear made the plea to a higher power just before he went to sleep, while his while his mother and sister were already napping.

Photographer, Shayne McGuire, captured the beautiful bear in Barter Island, Alaska, on the October 7.
She said: 'It was nap time for the bear, his mum and sister had already curled up, yet, there he sat, contemplating something, that we will never know.
'Then he looked up at the sky, raised his head and paws, and I heard one of my group say 'he is praying for the ice to freeze.'
'It is late in the season and yet, very little snow.
' I have seen global warming affect their habitat, I have been going since 2013 and there has always been snow in late September, early October.
'In 2015, there were snow storms and the snow was deep.
'Since then, I have been in early October to mid October and have had some ice, very little snow.'

(unquote) read more »

"Let those who are in favour with their stars Of public honour and ..." - William Shakespeare

WcP.Poetic.Thought — Wed, 24 Oct 2018 01:11:58 +0000

Let those who are in favour with their stars
Of public honour and proud titles boast,
Whilst I, whom fortune of such triumph bars,
Unlook'd for joy in that I honour most.
Great princes' favourites their fair leaves spread
But as the marigold at the sun's eye,
And in themselves their pride lies buried,
For at a frown they in their glory die.
The painful warrior famoused for fight,
After a thousand victories once foil'd,
Is from the book of honour razed quite,
And all the rest forgot for which he toil'd:
Then happy I, that love and am beloved
Where I may not remove nor be removed.

Sonnets Xxv: Let Those Who Are In Favour With Their Stars - Poem by William Shakespeare

"News deserts": 1,800 US newspapers have closed since 2004

WcP.Watchful.Eye — Thu, 18 Oct 2018 17:58:53 +0000

(quote)

1,800 US newspapers have closed since 2004
Half of the 3,143 counties in the United States now have only one newspaper, usually a small weekly, and almost 200 counties in the country have no newspaper at all.
"The people with the least access to local news are often the most vulnerable -- the poorest, least educated and most isolated," the report said.
More than half of all newspapers have changed ownership in the past decade, and the largest 25 chains own a third of all newspapers.
"The consolidation in the industry places decisions about the future of individual papers, as well as the communities where they are located, into the hands of owners with no direct stake in the outcome."

(unquote)

Photo courtesy AFP Photo / NATALIE BEHRING

35 years ago today: first cell phone call made in 1973. Now: world has more mobile devices than people

WcP.Watchful.Eye — Sat, 13 Oct 2018 17:57:04 +0000

(quote)
Martin Cooper, who made the first cell phone call in 1973, holds a Motorola DynaTAC, the first prototype of a cell phone. The first commercial call wasn’t made until 10 years later.

Our reliance on cellphones began 35 years ago today
With 95% of Americans owning a cellphone, it can feel like we’ve been calling, texting, and tweeting on the go forever. But the infrastructure supporting our cellphones has actually not been around that long. While we’re now on 4G networks, it was only 35 years ago today that Ameritech (now part of AT&T) launched 1G, or the first commercial cell phone network.

That network, called the Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS), went online on October 13, 1983, allowing people in the Chicago area to make and receive mobile calls for the first time. Ameritech president Bob Barnett, who made the first call, decided to make the historic moment count by ringing Alexander Graham Bell’s grandson. A little more than a year later, UK’s Vodafone hosted its first commercial call on New Year’s Day. Israel’s Pelephone followed suit in 1986, followed by Australia in 1987.

7 October 2014: There are officially more mobile devices than people in the world
The world is home to 7.2 billion gadgets, and they’re multiplying five times faster than we are.
The number of active mobile devices and human beings crossed over somewhere around the 7.19 billion mark.

(unquote)

Photo courtesy AP Photo / Eric Risberg

"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need." - Cicero

WcP.Life.Coach — Fri, 05 Oct 2018 15:19:05 +0000

"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need."
- Cicero

"It is what you read when you don't have to that determines what you will be when you can't help it."
- Oscar Wilde

"A house without books is like a room without windows."
- Horace Mann

The World's Most Beautiful Libraries - new book from Italian photographer's travels around the globe

WcP.Art — Sun, 30 Sep 2018 18:38:33 +0000

(quote)
Stiftsbibliothek Kremsmu¨nster, Kremsmu¨nster, Austria
This monastery library was built between 1680 and 1689 and contains about 160,000 volumes

Biblioteca Statale Oratoriana dei Girolamini, Naples, Italy
The oldest library in Naples which has been open to the public since 1566

Real Gabinete Portugue^s de Leitura, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
This institution was founded in 1837 by a group of Portuguese immigrants to promote culture amongst the Portuguese community

Stiftsbibliothek Sankt Gallen, St Gallen, Switzerland
The oldest library in Switzerland is also one of the earliest and most important monastic libraries in the world

Strahovska´ Knihovna, Prague, Czech Republic
The library boasts two grand baroque halls but visitors are unable to go inside them: it was found that fluctuations in humidity could affect the paintings

In a new Taschen book, the Italian photographer Massimo Listri travels around the world to some of the oldest libraries, revealing a treasure trove of unique and imaginative architecture read more »

Looking for more secure network access? Math to the rescue. University cafeteria uses complex calculus question as wifi password

WcP.Humor — Tue, 25 Sep 2018 17:39:22 +0000

(quote)

The most difficult Wi-Fi password ever! Chinese university makes students answer calculus question to unlock internet access
Students at the elite Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics are asked to solve a complex calculus question before they could access the protected network. 'Wi-Fi password is the first eight digits of the math problem below,' the sign indicated in Chinese.

Ji jun, deputy director of the university's food administration department, told Beijing News that it is a basic question in further maths. 'If a student can't solve it, he/she should really study harder,' she said. 'Don't use the Internet!' The school decided to come up with the question to let pupils have fun with mathematics and to remind first-year students to study hard, she added.

One student told reporters that if a a person has practiced enough, you should be able to solve the equation in 30 seconds. Some posted images of their answers online, completed with steps showing their work. The answer - which is a familiar number to many - is actually 31415926, or pi.

Thai restaurant in San Antonio, Texas, created a brilliant way to make sure that nobody camped out at their restaurant for free Wi-Fi, but still gave its customers the ability to log on to their network. If they're a super math nerd, that is.

(unquote)

Photo courtesy Weibo / Nanhang Dining Hall

Parking lesson turns into swimming lesson - for the car

WcP.Humor — Thu, 20 Sep 2018 13:23:29 +0000

(quote)

A lesson on how to park a car somehow turned into a swim at the community pool.
Maryland’s Montgomery County Fire and Rescue service says it found a car sitting in the middle of a city’s pool over the weekend following a "driver error" during parking practice session.
Photographs posted on Twitter showed the car halfway submerged in the pool at the North Creek Community Center - which had been closed for the season.

(unquote)

Photo courtesy Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service

One of The Few: 99-year-old WWii ace pilot takes to the skies in a Spitfire ahead of 78th anniversary of Battle of Britain Day

WcP.Story.Teller — Sat, 15 Sep 2018 19:17:38 +0000

(quote)

A hero Battle of Britain pilot has taken to the skies at the tender age of 99 for the last time - in a Spitfire.
World War II ace Archie McInnes is one of only six surviving RAF pilots who took part in the vital Battle of Britain - known as The Few.

The war hero took to the skies above Kent last week in a refurbished Second World War Spitfire - accompanied by the plane he flew during the war.

The flight was organised and photographed by pal Jonny Cracknell, working alongside the Battle of Britain Museum. Jonny said: 'There are only eight Battle of Britain airmen left, and out of them, Archie is the most active.

There are only six pilots and two aircrew left out of the thousands of heroes who risked everything to protect Britain from the Nazis.

Archie joined the RAF in 1938, the year before the war, and completed pilot training in August, 1940.

After the Battle of Britain ended, on Ocotber 31, 1940, Archie's illustrious career took him on board HMS Victorious - where he was part of the team that hunted the Bismarck.

Archie then took part in the North African campaign, where he was shot down and lost his arm.

Pilots who fought in the Battle of Britain are known as 'The Few' after an iconic speech by then-PM Winston Churchill: 'Never was so much owed by so many to so few.'

The flight was organised ahead of the 78th anniversary of Battle of Britain Day, on September 15.

(unquote) read more »

Incredible photos: majestic swan family of nine at sunrise; "Born To Explore" producer and host participates in a swan rescue

WcP.Art — Mon, 10 Sep 2018 14:09:01 +0000

(quote)

As the sun rises through the mist, a pair of swans and their seven cygnets glide majestically along in a scene that evokes the end of the hottest summer on record.
The stunning photograph was taken by James MacDonald on his smartphone when he spotted the birds’ stately, single file procession during a morning run in Bushy Park, south-west London.

Mr MacDonald, 40, a mapmaker for DK Travel guides who lives near the park, said: ‘They were on the move along an inlet from a small pond to a larger lake. I’d seen swans with their young in the park earlier in the year, when the parents are still very protective and won’t let you get near, so it was nice to be able to get close enough to take a picture of these now they are bigger.’

Richard Martin-Barton, of forecasters MeteoGroup, said: ‘It will feel a little bit Mediterranean, thanks to slightly warmer air moving in from Northern Spain. But it’s going to be a case of enjoy it while you can if you live in south-east England because – by the middle of next week – they will see the cooler, wetter conditions the rest of the country will be having.’

Emmy-winning 'Born To Explore' shares passion for adventure
Richard Wiese travels to Windsor, England to participate in a swan rescue for an episode of the Westport-produced travel program, "Born To Explore." The program, which airs Saturdays on ABC, recently took home an Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Single Camera Photography. read more »

Bloemencorso - Dutch annual flower parade celebrates end of long winter, brightens cities with colorful flower sculptures

WcP.Art — Fri, 07 Sep 2018 03:06:08 +0000

(quote)

Bloemencorso is a Dutch word meaning "flower parade." In the springtime, usually from about mid to late-April, you will find 2018 Netherlands flower parades towns, villages, and regions throughout the country. Neighboring Belgium celebrates the end of the long winter in a similar way. "Bloemen" means flower, and "corso" means parade, and these celebrations feature the flowers for which the Low Countries, particularly Holland, are so famous. While spring is the prime flower viewing time, the Low Countries grow and import many other flower varieties, and the parades occur periodically through about mid-September.

The first Bloemencorso in Holland coincides with the glorious flowering of a number of different bulb flowers - hyacinth and daffodils, lilies, narcissus, dahlias, and caladiums. But it is the tulip that is most prominently featured. All of these flowers can be viewed at in magnificent cultivated landscapes at beautiful Keukenhof Gardens, located about halfway between Amsterdam and The Hague. The bulb growing area (Bollenstreek) provides the oldest and most famous 2018 Netherlands flower parade mid-April. It winds its way from Noordwijk to Haarlem, a distance of about 25 miles, and passes Keukenhof Gardens in the late afternoon. Visitors to the gardens are allowed to leave the grounds as the parade passes and re-enter afterwards without paying an additional admission.

(unquote) read more »

The Silk Railroad: world longest rail link Yiwu-Madrid railway spans 8,000 miles, crosses 8 countries

WcP.Observer — Mon, 03 Sep 2018 15:42:02 +0000

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The world's longest train route spans more than 8,000 miles, crosses through eight countries, and is long enough to stretch from Florida to Washington state 3 times.

The China-Europe Block Train begins in the city of Yiwu in China's east and crosses through Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Germany, and France before reaching its destination 21 days later in the Spanish capital of Madrid.

Also called Yixinou, the route surpasses the world's second- and third-longest routes, the Trans-Siberian railway (5,772 miles) and the Moscow-to-Beijing (4,340 miles) train.

The Silk Railroad - Episode I: World's longest rail link, from Yiwu to Madrid
An international freight railway network is connecting China to cities across Europe, dubbed the new "Silk Railroad." Two thousand years ago, commodities from China would need a year to reach Europe, along the ancient Silk Road. But today, Chinese consumer goods can reach London by rail in just 14 days.

Yiwu railway station - a massive freight terminus, began transporting cargoes overland to Europe in 2014. It's part of the multi-billion-US-dollar Belt and Road Initiative to boost international trade.

The Yiwu-Madrid railway is the longest rail link in the world. It spreads across 13,000-kilometers through France, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia, and Kazakhstan. Along the way, the train transfers three times due to different track gauges in China, Europe, and Russia.

(unquote)

Image courtesy Skye Gould / Business Insider

Study: Earth magnetic poles could soon flip, increasing exposure to Solar radiation, damaging power and communications systems

WcP.Scientific.Mind — Sun, 26 Aug 2018 17:33:21 +0000

(quote)

Speedy flip in Earth's magnetic field could cause trillions in damage, scientists warn
A new study of previous reversals of Earth's magnetic field has found a rapid shift occurred within two centuries — a discovery that has prompted researchers to warn of a potential dire scenario.

According to a team of international scientists, including from the Australian National University (ANU), such an event in the future would increase our planet's exposure to the Sun's radiation, and could cause trillions of dollars in damage by decimating power and communications systems across the globe.

The Earth has a magnetic field that scientists believe is generated by motion in the planet's core. It's what gives us our north and south poles and powers compasses.

We've known for more than a century that our planet's magnetic field has been weakening at a rate of about five per cent a century, prompting concerns that the Earth's magnetic poles could soon flip - an event that could have potentially disastrous results for life on Earth.

From the electrical grids that power our computers to the satellites that let us watch TV, many facets of our lives depend on the Earth's magnetic field. It also acts like an invisible force field protecting Earth from solar winds and harmful cosmic radiation.

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Image courtesy New Zealand Herald