HUMOUR BOOK

Best Periods Of Architecture

2012-10-30T02:43:00.000-07:00

Here's the list of golden periods of developing architecture around the world.

1 . Indus valley civilization

3300 BCE-1300BCE

The Indus Valley Civilization was a Bronze Age civilization was located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, consisting of what is now mainly modern-day Pakistan and northwest India. The civilization was spread over an area of some 1,260,000 km², making it the largest ancient civilization in the world. The Indus Valley is one of the world's earliest urban civilizations, along with its contemporaries, Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt.Inhabitants of the ancient Indus river valley developed new techniques in metallurgy and handicraft (carneol products, seal carving) and produced copper, bronze, lead, and tin.
The civilization is noted for its cities built of brick, roadside drainage system, and multistoried houses. The baths and toilets system the cities had is acknowledged as one of the most advanced in the ancient world. The grid layout planning of the cities with roads at exact right angles is a modern system that was implemented in the cities of this particular civilization. Mohenjo-darois an archeological site situated in the province of Sindh, Pakistan is one of the largest settlements of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization, and one of the world's earliest major urban settlements, existing at the same time as the civilizations of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Crete.

2 . Neolithic architecture

10000 BC

The architecture of Neolithic period. Neolithic cultures appeared in Southwest Asia after (10000 BC). There are early Neolithic era in Iraq, Southeast Anatolia and Syria by 8000 BC, the farming culture first appeared in the Central Europe around c. 5500BC and in Southeast Europe around 7000 BC.

The Neolithic peoples in the Syria, Anatolia, Levant, Central Asia and northern Mesopotamia were great architectures, using mud brick to construct their houses. At Çatalhöyük, their homes were painted with pictures of animals and humans. In Europe, long houses were built from daub and wattle. Neolithic people of British Isles were known for creating chambers and long barrows tombs for causewayed camps and dead, cursus monuments and henges flint mines. Most of the megaliths found in Western Europe were also erected in the Neolithic period. The most famous megalithic structure is Stonehenge in England.

3 . Asian

5000 B.C - 300 A.D

Also includes Persian, chinese and indian architecture. It encompasses a wide variety of geographically and historically spread structures, each to their own details and religious deities. The diversity of each nation’s culture is represented in its architecture. It is a blend of ancient and varied native traditions, with building types, forms and technologies from West and Central Asia, as well as a few in Europe. Presently, Asian interior design is a popular trend used in homes. The use of artworks, furniture, Zen, Balinese, etc. are Asian inspired.

4 . African Architecture

2000 B.C - 1000 A.D

The architecture of Africa, like other aspects of the culture of Africa, is exceptionally diverse.One common theme in much of the ancient African architecture is the use of fractal scaling : small parts of the structure seems to be similar to larger parts, like a circular village madeup of circular houses. As with most architectural traditions elsewhere, African architecture has been subject to numerous external influences from the earliest periods.

Egypt

Egypt's achievements in architecture were varied from temples, enclosed cities, canals, and dams.

Nubia

Nubian Architecture is one of the most ancient in the world. The earliest style of Nubian Architecture include the speos, structures carved out of solid rock, an A-Group(3700-3250 BCE) achievement.

Aksumite

Aksumite Architecture flourished in the region from the 4th century BC onward, persisting even after the transition of the Aksumite dynasty to the Zagwe in the 12th century, as attested by the numerous Aksumite influences.

Somalia

Somali architecture is a rich and diverse tradition of engineering and designing multiple different construction types such as stone cities, castles, fortresses, mosques, temples, lighthouses, towers and tombs during the ancient, medieval and early modern periods.

5 . Pre Columbian

2000 B.C - 1600 A.D

The pre-Columbian is a period in Americas before the arrival of Europeans around 16th century. The era is best known for its ceremonial and urban monumental buildings. The creation of a large road system along the full western length of the continent, the development of Rope Bridges which is the world’s first suspension bridge are the milestones they achived in the field of architecture. The people of this period were great stone cutters and the masonry used have no mortar. Pre-Columbian architecture is mostly known for its pyramids which are the largest pyramids outside of Ancient Egypt.

6 . Gothic

12th century

Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture. Gothic architecture was known during the period as "Frankish work". Gothic architecture is most familiar as the architecture of many of the great cathedrals, abbeys and churches of Europe. It is also the architecture of many castles, palaces, town halls, universities and to a less prominent extent, private dwellings.

France

The distinctive characteristic of French cathedrals, and those in Germany and Belgium that were strongly influenced by them, is their height and their impression of verticality.

England

The distinctive characteristic of English cathedrals is their extreme length, and their internal emphasis upon the horizontal, which may be emphasised visually as much or more than the vertical lines.

Germany and the Holy Roman Empire

This is expressed in the Gothic architecture of the Holy Roman Empire in the huge size of the towers and spires, often proposed, but not always completed.

Spain and Portugal

They are comparatively wide, and often have very tall arcades surmounted by low clerestories, giving a similar spacious appearance to the hallenkirche of Germany, as at the Church of the Batalha Monastery in Portugal.

Italy

The distinctive characteristic of Italian Gothic is the use of polychrome decoration, both externally as marble veneer on the brick façade and also internally where the arches are often made of alternating black and white segments, and where the columns may be painted red, the walls decorated with frescoes and the apse with mosaic.

7 . Islamic Architecture

600 A.D - 1700s

Specifically recognizable Islamic architectural style emerged soon after Prophet Muhammad's time, inspired by Islam with addition of localized adaptations of the former Sassanid and Byzantine models, the Germanic Visigoths in Spain also made a big contribution to Islamic architecture.
Islamic architecture encompasses a wide range of both secular and religious styles from the foundation of Islam to the present day, influencing the design and construction of buildings and structures in Islamic culture. The principal Islamic architectural types are: the Mosque, the Tomb, and the Forts. Development of the Great Mosque at Cordoba starting in 785 CE is the beginning of Islamic architecture in the North Africa and Iberian Peninsula . The Dome of Rock (Qubbat al-Sakhrah) in Jerusalem is known as one of the most excellant buildings in Islamic architecture.

Styles

Persian style
Azerbaijani architecture
Turkistan (Timurid) architecture
Ottoman architecture
Indo-Islamic
Sino-Islamic
Indonesian-Malay
Sahelian-Islamic
Somali-Islamic

8 . Modern

Modern architecture is generally characterized by simplification of form and creation of ornament from the structure and theme of the building.

Futurism architecture
Futurist architecture began in the early-20th century, characterized by anti-historicism and long horizontal lines suggesting speed, motion and urgency. Technology and even violence were among the themes of the Futurists. The movement was founded by the poet Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, who produced its first manifesto, the Manifesto of Futurism in 1909. The movement attracted not only poets, musicians, artist but also a number of architects.

Expressionist architecture

Expressionism was an architectural movement that developed in Northern Europe during the first decades of the 20th century in parallel with the expressionist visual and performing arts. Making notable use of sculptural forms and the novel use of concrete as artistic elements, examples include Rudolf Steiner's Second Goetheanum, built from 1926 near Basel, Switzerland and the Einsteinturm in Potsdam, Germany.

International Style architecture

In 1932, the International Exhibition of Modern Architecture was presented at Museum of Modern Art at New York City. Philip Johnson and his collaborator together presented many trends and threads in architecture, then they identified all of them as stylistically similar and aggregated them into International style.

Brutalist architecture

Architects such as Louis Kahn, Paul Rudolph, Marcel Breuer, I.M. Pei and others would respond to the "light" glass curtain walls advocated by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, by creating architecture with an emphasis on more substantial materials, such as concrete and brick, and creating works with a "monumental" quality.

Top Secret Codes You Should Know

2012-04-20T11:44:00.000-07:00

Stores, hospitals, and other places where the public are present in large numbers, uses secret codes to pass information between store employees without alarming the non-staff members and common people.

Here's the list of Top 6 Secret Codes

PICNIC / ID-10T

In computer maintenance and support, a variety of codes are used when referring to a customer. PEBKAC ("Problem Exists Between Keyboard And Chair" and PICNIC ("Problem In Chair Not In Computer") or ID-10T error ("Idiot error") are also used as slang in technical circles with similar potentially derogatory meaning.This usage implies a lack of computer savvy, asserting that problems arisen when using a device are the fault of the user. “The fault was a PICNIC” (problem in chair – not in computer), or “ID 10 T Error” – ID 10 T is, of course, IDIOT. Keep your ears open when a serviceman is fixing your computer.

Code Blue

Hospital Emergency Codes are used in hospitals worldwide to alert staff to various emergency situations. The use of codes is intended to convey essential information quickly and with a minimum of misunderstanding to staff, while preventing stress or panic among visitors to the hospital. "Code Blue" is generally used to indicate a patient requiring resuscitation or otherwise in need of immediate medical attention. Code Red is usually used for fire Alert.

Mr. Mob

Mr. Mob means man overboard. Man overboard can also be signaled with three prolonged blasts on the ship's whistle and general alarm bell.
Assemble at Muster Stations or Abandon Ship, seven or more short blasts on the ship's whistle and general alarm, followed by one long blast
Fire and emergency, continuous ringing of the general alarm bell for ten seconds and a continuous sounding of the ship's whistle for ten seconds
Bravo, Bravo, Bravo, used by many cruise lines to alert crew to a fire or other serious incident on board without alarming passengers.
Echo, Echo, Echo, is the code for a possible collision with another ship.

Code Bravo

Code Bravo is the code used for general security alert at airports. This code is meant to cause alarm - when this alert is raised, all of the security agents will begin to yell “Code Bravo” in order to frighten the passengers so that it it easier for the agents to locate the source of the problem without interference from the public.

Inspector Sands

Inspector Sands is a code phrase used by public transport authorities in the United Kingdom, including London Underground, to alert staff and police, to an emergency or potential emergency such as a fire or bomb scare without alerting the public and creating panic. The exact wording depends on the station, and the nature of the incident, for example "Would Inspector Sands please report to the operations room immediately" or "would Inspector Sands please report to platform 2".

Wal-Mart Codes

Walmart uses a large number of code phrases. A code 300 calls for security. Code red means there is a fire in the building – get the hell out if you hear this. Worse still, a code blue means there is a bomb in the building. A Code green means there is a hostage situation and a Code white means there is an accident. The one that's heard the most is Code c which is simply a call for customer service. Code Adam is used for a "missing child".

Top Celebrities First Jobs List

2012-03-22T06:09:00.000-07:00

Hugh Jackman

Australian hunk made his living as a clown at kids' parties for about three years, earning about $50 per show.

Sylvester Stallone

Stallone used to work as a lion cage cleaner at Central Park Zoo. After finding himself homeless, he had no other way but to act in a porn flick for a mere $ 200.

Tom Hanks

He used to be a popcorn and peanuts vendor.

Tom Cruise

Wanted to become a catholic priest and he even joined a Franciscan seminary.

Mariah Carey

This Famous Singer was a coat check girl who got fired for having a very poor attitude.

Johnny Depp

Captain Jack Sparrow used to sell ballpoint pens in his early life.

Sandra Bullock

She used to work as a bartender while in college.

Oprah Winfrey

Talk show host Oprah Winfrey's first job was at a local grocery store.

Madonna

She survived on her dreams and the meagre income she used to get from a job at 'Dunkin' Donuts' when she arrived in 'Big Apple'.

Sean Connery

Before he got the license to kill, Sean Connery worked as a milkman, bricklayer, lifeguard and coffin polisher.

Al Pacino

He along with Quentin Tarantino used to work as cinema ushers. While Tarantino was quite happy about his job given that fact that he could watch movies everyday, Al Pacino got fired from the job.

Megan Fox

In her teens, she worked for a smoothie shop.

Jennifer Aniston

She used to work as a bike messenger in New York City

Lady Gaga

Worked as a waitress at a restaurant in NY.

Brad Pitt

He worked for El Pollo Loco restaurant on Sunset Boulevard often dressed up in chicken costume.

Nicolas Cage

Was a popcorn seller at the Fairfax Theater.

Queen Latifah

Used to work for Burger King, before getting expelled due to losing her temper at work.

English Language At Its Best - 1

2012-02-14T08:30:00.000-08:00

An employee applied for leave as follows.

"Since I have to go to my village to sell my land along with my wife, please give me one-week leave."

A Job application from a non-english speaking country.

"This has reference to your advertisement calling for a ' Typist and an Accountant - Male or Female'... As I am both(!!? )for the past several years and I can handle both with good experience, I am applying for the post."

Another great man.

"Dear Sir: with reference to the above, please refer to my below..."

Laundry, India.

"Lady's, leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon having a good time."

Hotel, Moscow (opposite Russian Orthodox monastery).

"You are welcome to visit cemetery where famous russian and soviet composer, artist and writers are buried daily except Thrusday."

From H.A.L. Administration Dept.

"As my mother-in-law has expired and I am only one responsible for it, please grant me 10 days leave."

Hotel, India.

"Women's are requested not to have childrens in bar."

An extraordinary leave letter.

"I am suffering from fever, please declare one-day holiday."

Letter written for application of leave.

"My wife is suffering from sickness and as I am her only husband at home I may be granted leave".

Letter writing.

"I am well here and hope you are also in the same well."

Best Covering note.

"I am enclosed herewith..."

Restaurant, India.

Open seven days a week, And weekends too.

Restaurant menu, Germany.

Our food leaves you nothing to hope for.

Tribute to the Professors.
* Open the doors of the window. Let the Air Force come in.

* Shhh...Quiet, boys...the principal just passed away in the corridor.

* shhh... quite, the principal is rotating in the school.

Top 10 Quotes of Evil Leaders - Bad people's Quotes

2012-01-18T12:38:00.000-08:00

Here's the top ten list of famous quotes by bad peoples :

1 . “Death is the solution to all problems. No man – no problem.”

Said By : Joseph Stalin

2 . “The only white man you can trust is a dead white man.”

Said By : Robert Mugabe

3 . “Keep your faith in God, but keep your powder dry.”

Said By : Oliver Cromwell

4 . “One death is a tragedy; one million is a statistic.”

Said By : Josef Stalin

5 . “Generals think war should be waged like the tourneys of the Middle Ages. I have no use for knights; I need revolutionaries.”

Said By : Adolf Hitler

6 . “You cannot run faster than a bullet.”

Said By : Idi Amin

7 . “Americans are the great Satan, the wounded snake.”

Said By : Ayatollah Khomeini

8 . “Ideas are more powerful than guns. We would not let our enemies have guns, why should we let them have ideas.”

Said By : Josef Stalin

9 . “Equality means nothing unless incorporated into the institutions.”

Said by : Slobodan Milosevic

10 . "To read too many books is harmful."

“Politics is war without bloodshed while war is politics with bloodshed.”

Said By : Mao Zedong

Top 10 Movie Taglines - Hollywood Movies

2012-01-12T03:07:00.000-08:00

Here's the list of best hollywood movie taglines :

10. House

Year : 1986
" Ding dong. You're dead "

9. Jaws: The Revenge

Year : 1987

" This time, it's personal " 

8. The Royal Tenenbaums

Year : 2001

" Family isn't a word. It's a sentence "

7. Wall Street

Year : 1987

" Every dream has a price " 

6. Jason X

Year : 2001

" Evil has an upgrade "

5. The 40 Year Old Virgin

Year : 2005

" The longer you wait, the harder it gets "

4. Forest Gump

Year : 1994

" Life is like a box of chocolates...you never know what you're gonna get " 

3. Club Vampire

Year : 1998

" Check your soul at the door "

2. No Country for Old Men

Year : 2007

" There Are No Clean Getaways "

1. The Hurt Locker

Year : 2008

" You'll know when you're in it "

What's your best movie tagline among these top 10 ? Comment ..

Top 10 Humor Books List | Books For Humour

2012-01-04T13:53:00.000-08:00

Here's the list of top 10 most humorous books :

1 . The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Author : Douglas Adams

“Lively, sharphly satirical, brilliantly written . . . Ranks with the best set pieces in Mark Twain.”
–The Atlantic

2 . Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream

Author : Hunter S. Thompson

'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is a scorching epochal sensation. There are only two adjectives writers care about any more! "brilliant" and "outrageous"! and Hunter Thompson has a freehold on both of them.' New York Times

3 . Catch-22
Author : Joseph Heller

"Catch-22 is like no other novel. It is one of the funniest books ever written, a keystone work in American literature, and even added a new term to the dictionary"- Amazon Review

4 . Our Dumb Century
Author : The Onion

Definitely not for the easily offended, Our Dumb Century was a New York Times #1 bestseller chronicling 100 years of American history with dry humour and cynicism. This Miniature Edition™ distills the brilliant wit and satire of the original from "America's Finest News Source."

5 . A Confederacy of Dunces
Author : John Kennedy Toole

A Confederacy of Dunces is an American comic masterpiece. John Kennedy Toole’s hero is one Ignatius J. Reilly, “huge, obese, fractious, fastidious, and a latter-day Gargantua, a Don Quixote of the French Quarter. His story bursts with wholly original character, denizens of New Orleans’ lower depths, incredibly true-to-life dialogue, and the zaniest series of high and low comic adventures” (Henry Kisor, Chicago Sun Times)

6 . Breakfast of Champions: A Novel
Author : Kurt Vonnegut

“Marvelous . . . [Vonnegut] wheels out all the complaints about America and makes them seem fresh, funny, outrageous, hateful and lovable.”—The New York Times

7 . Me Talk Pretty One Day
Author : David Sedaris

8 . A Dirty Job: A Novel

Author : Christopher Moore

"improbable humor" (New York Times) and courage in "embracing what we fear" (Washington Post)

9 . Wonder Boys: A Novel

Author : Michael Chabon

"Chabon's long-awaited follow-up to The Mysteries of Pittsburgh concerns the antics of a self-destructive middle-aged novelist who is suffering from a sustained case of writer's block"
From Publishers Weekly

10 Naked Pictures of Famous People

Author : Jon Stewart

"Terrific night table reading for lovers of intelligent satire... smart... refreshingly offensive... unapologetically un-PC... a gift for just about anyone." -- Austin Chronicle

Top 8 Less Known Useful Websites List

2011-12-29T07:39:00.000-08:00

Here's the list of top very useful websites that are not much known.

8. Is it Down for Everyone, or Just Me?

Nothing’s worse than clicking on a website and waiting for it to load. What will be your first question. Is it the problem on my end? Well, simply go to this website, type in the site address, and get the answer. Who knows, maybe it’s down for everyone too.
downforeveryoneorjustme

7. Valebrity

For every celebrity Twitter page that goes online,dozen's fake celebrity Twitters are created. Type in either the Twitter username or the actual celebrity name on Valebrity and pull up their official Twitter page for your stalking pleasure.
Valebrity

6. Umbrella Today

Weather is easy enough to obtain online, but what about rain? Decipher the 20% chance of rain with Umbrella Today, which instantly tells you whether or not it’s umbrella carrying weather with a simple input of your zip code.
Umbrella Today

5. Memorari

There are certainly many easy ways to remember something- set a reminder in your cell phone, tie a ribbon in your finger. Well strain no more with Memorari, which will remember what you need and remind you at the specified time, date, and communication method via phone, IM, email, etc.

4. Pic Resize

Pic Resize, can resize a photo into any size or format quickly via upload and saves it to your computer or keeps it online for you to link to.
Pic Resize

3. HelloTxt

You probably have multiple accounts in social networking sites. With HelloTxt, you can post a status update instantly with a number of sites at the same time.

2. What Does the Internet Think?

Before getting into any debates, see if you can have the weight of the Internet to support you with What Does the Internet Think? It uses search engines to pull up data on whether or not your keyword is positive, negative, or maybe a bit of both.
What Does the Internet Think?

1. HowJSay

Get a heads up on your big fancy vocabulary words with HowJSay, which says over 100,000 words aloud for you to hear. Just type in the word and listen to its pronunciation.
HowJSay

Top 10 Most Strange Places In the World

2011-12-27T23:46:00.000-08:00

Ever wanted to visit very strange places ? Here's the top 10 strange places list to follow.

1. PAMUKKALE

LOCATION : TURKEY

Thousands of years ago earthquakes, which are common in Turkey, created fractures that allowed powerful hot springs to bring water rich in calcium carbonate to the surface. As the water evaporated the chalky thing condensed and formed layer-upon-layer of Travertine and thus slowly built up the walls over time in the same way that a stalactite forms in a cave.

2. NINE HELLS
LOCATION : BEPPU

Beppu, located on the Japanese island of Kyūshū, is the second largest producer of geothermal water in the world. Located in the same area are the “Nine Hells” or ponds that each has its own remarkable character and colour thanks to the variety of minerals in the outflows. These “Hells” are a popular tourist attraction in Japan but are little known outside of the country.

3. MOERAKI

LOCATION : NEW ZEALAND

These large, spherical, alien and strangely beautiful boulders are mainly located on Koekohe Beach, part of the Otago coast of New Zealand’s South Island. Known as “Moeraki Boulders” they were originally formed on the sea floor from sedimentary deposits that accreted around a core in the same way that a pearl will form around a particle of sand.

4. LAS CAÑADAS
LOCATION : TENERIFE

The crater, which is an enourmous sixteen kilometres across, is a picture of what Hell might look like if it cooled a little. Sheer walls that formed when the caldera first collapsed encircle this dry and alien place. And, with an arrogance than can only be accepted as typical, humanity has built roads and observatories across this no mans land that is little more than a plug over a sleeping yet still active and very large volcano.

5. GREAT BLUE HOLE
LOCATION : BELIZE

Found on both land and in the ocean throughout the Bahamas and the national waters of Belize are deep circular cavities known as Blue Holes which are often the entrances to cave networks, some of them up to 14 kilometres in length. Divers have reported a vast number of aquatic creatures some of which are still new to science. In addition, they’ve recorded chambers filled with stalactites and stalagmites which only form in dry caves.

6. SANQINGSHAN
LOCATION : CHINA

Sanqingshan is a relatively small National Park near the city of Shangrao in the Jiangxi province of China. What it lacks in size it makes up for in shear natural beauty. It is officially the 7th World Heritage Site designated in China. The key mystique of this remarkable place is the combination of extraordinary granite geology in the form of weird outcrops and pillars combined with seasonal climate variations than often cause mists, fogs and striking sunsets. Those that have visited this place describe a feeling of overwhelming peace and tranquility.

7. HELL'S DOOR
LOCATION : TURKMENISTAN

Located in the Kara-Kum desert of Turkmenistan is the village of Darvaza (Derweze) near to where, in 1971, a team of Soviet prospectors allegedly drilled into a large chamber filled with natural gas. The roof of the cavern collapsed leaving a crater-like sinkhole some 25 metres deep with a diameter of approximately 60 - 70 metres. It soon became evident that natural gas was still rising into the crater from even deeper sources and the story goes that the decision was made to ignite the emissions rather than risk either a concentrated build-up of gas or local poisoning.

8. THE STRANGE EYE
LOCATION : MAURITANIA - AFRICA

The image to the left is the "pupil" but a visit to Google Earth zoomed out a little will reveal the cliffs that make up the rest of the eye. This natural phenomenon is actually a richat structure caused by the dome shaped symmetrical uplifting of underlying geology now made visible by millennia of erosion. Please note that this explanation is not wholly accepted by the scientific community. There still remain academics that believe it is the sight of a meteor impact.

9. SUQATRA ISLAND
LOCATION : YEMEN

This enchanting and little known island also known as Socotra is located off the coast of Yemen in the Middle East. Isolated from the rest of the world its plants have evolved into many bizarre shapes and forms that are unknown in other parts of the world. One of the most famous of these is the Dragon's Blood Tree the sap of which is used to make crystals that can be used as a dye or as an alleged aphrodisiac. The plant depicted on the right is the strange Desert Rose.

10. RACETRACK PLAYA
LOCATION : USA

Located in one of the flattest places on the face of this planet are the strange and unexplained Sailing Stones of Racetrack Playa - Death Valley - California - USA. Once a year the "Playa" or flat desert pan experiences short winter rains and becomes slippery as the hexagonal desert floor turns back to mud. During this time the boulders and rocks move leaving clearly visible tracks behind them.

Top 10 Greatest Speech List

2011-12-27T01:23:00.000-08:00

10. Socrates “Apology”
399 BC - Athens, Greece

One of the finest teachers in history, Socrates would wander throughout the streets of Athens talking to his fellow citizens about discovering the truths. Socrates gained a following of young men, whom he taught to question everything, including the Athenian military. For this he was arrested on the charges of corrupting the youth, not believing in the gods and creating new deities. This speech acted as his defense as he attempted to persuade his jury with reason. Despite this, he lost and was sentenced to death by hemlock, dying as a martyr for free thinking.

Excerpt:
“Someone will say: Yes, Socrates, but cannot you hold your tongue, and then you may go into a foreign city, and no one will interfere with you? Now I have great difficulty in making you understand my answer to this. For if I tell you that to do as you say would be a disobedience to the God, and therefore that I cannot hold my tongue, you will not believe that I am serious; and if I say again that daily to discourse about virtue, and of those other things about which you hear me examining myself and others, is the greatest good of man, and that the unexamined life is not worth living, you are still less likely to believe me.”

9. Mahatma Gandhi “Quit India”
August 8, 1942 - Gowalia Tank Maidan in Bombay, India

When India had been under the direct rule of Britain , Mahatma Gandhi and the National Indian Congress began a movement to push the Brits out of India by nonviolent means. On August 8, 1942, Gandhi passed the Quit India Resolution that demanded independence from the British

Excerpt:
“I believe that in the history of the world, there has not been a more genuinely democratic struggle for freedom than ours. I read Carlyle’s French Resolution while I was in prison, and Pandit Jawaharlal has told me something about the Russian revolution. But it is my conviction that inasmuch as these struggles were fought with the weapon of violence they failed to realize the democratic ideal. In the democracy which I have envisaged, a democracy established by non-violence, there will be equal freedom for all. Everybody will be his own master. It is to join a struggle for such democracy that I invite you today. Once you realize this you will forget the differences between the Hindus and Muslims, and think of yourselves as Indians only, engaged in the common struggle for independence.”

8. John F. Kennedy “Inaugural Address”
January 20, 1961 - Washington, D.C.

One of the greatest inaugural addresses in history, by the youngest ever U.S. President to be elected. Kennedy was young, dapper and incredibly intelligent, which made him one of the top man of his time, but many of his critics believed he was too inexperienced to be the President of the United States. His speech addressed these issues and called the American people to act as one and uphold their duty to society.

Excerpt:
“Can we forge against these enemies a grand and global alliance, North and South, East and West, that can assure a more fruitful life for all mankind? Will you join in that historic effort?
In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility — I welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it — and the glow from that fire can truly light the world.
And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.
My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”

7. Franklin Delano Roosevelt “Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation”
December 8, 1941 - Joint Session of Congress, Washington, D.C

The Pearl Harbor attack completely stunned all of America, a nation that was trying desperately to avoid any significant contribution to the Second World War.The day after the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt made a speech that shook every American family and in a few more hours it became official : "America was going to war".

Excerpt:
“Yesterday, December 7, 1941-a date which will live in infamy-the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan….
…but always will our whole nation remember the character of the onslaught against us. No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might will win through to absolute victory. I believe that I interpret the will of the Congress and of the people when I assert that we will not only defend ourselves to the uttermost but will make it very certain that this form of treachery shall never again endanger us.
Hostilities exist. There is no blinking at the fact that our people, our territory and our interests are in grave danger.
With confidence in our armed forces-with the unbounding determination of our people-we will gain the inevitable triumph-so help us God.”

6. Queen Elizabeth I “Against the Spanish Armada”
August 8, 1588 - Tilsbury, Essex, England

In 1500s there was a battle between Britain and Spain .Elizabeth had been mistreating Catholics within her borders, she had had Mary Queen of Scots (Philip’s ally) beheaded and she had aided William of Orange’s 1572 revolt. Philip and the entire Spanish Armada sailed for England, reaching the southeastern shore on July 12, 1588. Due to a combination of misfortune, miscalculation and an attack of English fire ships, the Spanish Armada was obliterated. From there, Elizabeth made her way to Tilsbury to inspect her army and it was there that she made her famous speech.

Excerpt:
“My loving people, we have been persuaded by some, that are careful of our safety, to take heed how we commit ourselves to armed multitudes, for fear of treachery; but I assure you, I do not desire to live to distrust my faithful and loving people. Let tyrants fear; I have always so behaved myself that, under God, I have placed my chiefest strength and safeguard in the loyal hearts and good will of my subjects. And therefore I am come amongst you at this time, not as for my recreation or sport, but being resolved, in the midst and heat of the battle, to live or die amongst you all; to lay down, for my God, and for my kingdom, and for my people, my honor and my blood, even the dust. I know I have but the body of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart of a king, and of a king of England, too; and think foul scorn that Parma or Spain, or any prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of my realms: to which, rather than any dishonor should grow by me, I myself will take up arms; I myself will be your general, judge, and rewarder of every one of your virtues in the field. I know already, by your forwardness, that you have deserved rewards and crowns; and we do assure you, on the word of a prince, they shall be duly paid you. In the mean my lieutenant general shall be in my stead, than whom never prince commanded a more noble and worthy subject; not doubting by your obedience to my general, by your concord in the camp, and by your valor in the field, we shall shortly have a famous victory over the enemies of my God, of my kingdom, and of my people.”

5. Winston Churchill “Their Finest Hour”
June 18, 1940 - The House of Commons, London, England

At the time of Battle of France in World War II, Winston Churchill made three famous speeches. one of which was the “Their Finest Hour” speech. This speech came four days after Paris fell into Nazi hands and the day after the French requested an armistice. The British were now alone in the fight against the Nazi war machine and Churchill tried to bring hope in one of Britain’s darkest hours.

Excerpt:
“What General Weygand called the Battle of France is over. I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin. Upon this battle depends the survival of Christian civilization. Upon it depends our own British life, and the long continuity of our institutions and our Empire. The whole fury and might of the enemy must very soon be turned on us.
Hitler knows that he will have to break us in this Island or lose the war. If we can stand up to him, all Europe may be free and the life of the world may move forward into broad, sunlit uplands. But if we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new Dark Age made more sinister, and perhaps more protracted, by the lights of perverted science.
Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, ‘This was their finest hour'.

4. Nelson Mandela “I am Prepared to Die”
April 20, 1964 - Pretoria Supreme Court, South Africa

Son of Tembu tribal chieftain, Nelson Mandela became a lawyer and in 1944 he joined the African National Congress. On August 5, 1962, he was arrested and along with twelve other members of the ANC they were charged with the capital crimes of sabotage and crimes that were equivalent to treason, as well as for plotting a foreign invasion of South Africa. At his trial, Mandela represented himself and in his statement from the dock at the opening of the defence he made this speech. Despite this he was found guilty and spent the next twenty-seven years between Robben Island and Pollsmoor Prison.

Excerpt:
“During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”

3. Abraham Lincoln “The Gettysburg Address” – read by Gregory Peck
November 19, 1863 - Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Despite being only three minutes long, the Gettysburg Address, along with the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence is the cornerstone of American freedom. Four and a half months after the Battle of Gettysburg, enough money was raised to properly bury the 8,000 corpses that were left behind. On November 19, 1863, at the dedication of the Soldiers’ National Cemetery, Lincoln gave his famous speech. He had been invited to speak almost as an afterthought and that day he followed a 2-hour speech by Edward Everett as well as music and a prayer by Reverend T.H. Stockton.

Excerpt:
“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate – we cannot consecrate – we cannot hallow – this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us – that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom – and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

2. Jesus Christ “Sermon on the Mount”
33 AD - An unknown hill in Galilee

No matter what you believe about Jesus Christ, there is no denial that he was a great teacher. Set down in the Gospel of St. Matthew, the Sermon on the Mount is the central tenets of Christianity. It contains both the Lord’s Prayer and the Golden Rule and is widely considered to be a commentary on the Ten Commandments.

Excerpt:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

1. Martin Luther King “I Have a Dream”
August 28, 1963 - The Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C

After a century of supposed freedom and equality, America was still a dangerous place for African Americans, segregation ran rampant and black men, women and children were still treated like second class citizens. From this tumultuous time in history emerged a great leader and hero, Dr. Martin Luther King, who led the African American people into an era of peace and equality between blacks and whites. While most men would resort to violence, Dr. King chose to get his message across peacefully, by arranging boycotts and peaceful protests and making speeches that inspired hope for a new era in American history. The most well known of these speeches is the “I Have a Dream” speech.

Excerpt:
“I have a dream that one day down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification – one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.”
“We will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope.”

Top 10 Failed End of World Theories

2011-12-26T01:05:00.000-08:00

Now ,as 11.11.11 has passed and we are still living ,look at the list of top 10 failed theories of the end of the world.

The 11.11.11 Prophecy

Despite a lack of solid evidence, or at times even common sense, a number of groups have issued reports suggesting the world will end on 11 Nov., 2011.One of the prominent "theories" circling the cyber-highways suggests that the Mayan calender prophesied the world's end on the 11 Nov. 2011.

Luckily the exact reason for the 11.11.11 date's link to the ancient calender is questionable at best. The long-count Mayan calender is reported to end soon, though the common date given for its end is actually 21 Dec. 2012.

Mormon Armageddon

The Mormon church's founder Joseph Smith originally made his doomsday prediction all the way back in February 1835. In his famous meeting with church leaders Smith claimed that he had spoken to God "recently" who had revealed to him that Jesus would return within the next 56 years and that the End Times would soon follow.

Pope Innocent's Number Of The Beast

One of the most "colourful" of all the Pope's, Innocent III did away with all modesty, redefining his role as Pope to making him more akin to a demigod than a man. Proclaiming himself as a Biblical priest-king, Innocent housed a profound hatred of Islam.
In his writings he went so far as to claim that the prophet Muhammad was actually "the beast" referred to in the book of Revelation. Continuing his hatred of the religion Innocent III went on to predict the world would end in 1284. He made the prediction by adding together the number of beast 666, to 618, the year he calculated Islam as being founded.

Harold Camping

In 2011 California preacher and former radio personality Harold Camping predicted that the world would end 21 October.
Now defunct -- by merit of the fact we're still here -- the theory followed Camping's previous failed prediction that the rapture would occur on 21 May, when God would take 200 million good Christians, meaning people who followed Camping, to Heaven.
After swinging two misses, 90-year-old Camping resigned from his post at Family Radion and apologised to his followers admitting that he found the whole thing a bit "embarrassing" -- well at least he was a polite fake prophet.

Jehovah's Witness Predictions

While the Jehovah's Witnesses can't necessarily be listed as a "failed" prophecy as they are still putting out new dates, they certainly have had their fair share of failed doomsdays.
Since popping up in 1870s the Witnesses have predicted the world will end on 1915, 1918, 1920, 1925, 1941, 1975 and 1994. Luckily for members, given the groups tendency to just add a new date a few years down the line they're bound to get it right sooner or later -- it just may take while.

Joanna Southcott

Self-proclaimed English mystic Joanna Southcott was born 1750. Well balanced person that she was, at some unknown point in her life she became convinced she had supernatural powers and proclaimed that she was the woman spoken of in Revaluations 12:1-6.
"And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars," read the exact passage.
Following her bold claim-to-fame Joanna predicted that she would give birth to the Messiah and that the world would end on 19 October, 1814.As you would guess the world didn't end and Joana herself died two months later.

Edgar C. Whisenant

Despite apparently being a man of science, working as a NASA engineer, Edgar C. Whisenant not only offered his own doomsday prediction, he gave 88 "reasons" why it would.
In his book "88 Reasons Why the Rapture is in 1988," Whisenant unsurprisingly predicted that the rapture would occur between 11-13 September 1988. While some would call him a fool, the book did sell 4.5 million copies and he managed to get a nice career re-releasing doomsday predictions right up to the day he died on 16 May, 2001.

Y2K

The lead up to the millennium saw one of the largest and most widespread doomsday theories ever constructed sweep across the globe.
The most prominent theory revolved around the theorised "millennium bug." According to a slew of "experts" the world's computers would be unable to deal with the "rollover" from 99 to 00. The biggest fear-mongers even went so far as to suggest that the bug would effect military computers, potentially "accidentally" launching nuclear missiles.
For better or worse, come the actual turn of the millennium all people really had to worry about was the inevitable 1 January, 2000 hangover.

Nostradamus

One of the most famous hit-and-miss foreseers of the future, Nostradamus predicted that the end of the world would occur in July 1999.
Specifically, Nostradamus wrote: "The year 1999, seventh month, From the sky will come a great King of Terror. To bring back to life the great King of the Mongols, Before and after Mars to reign by good luck."
Lucky for us, come July 1999 the martians failed to appear, leaving them safely housed next to Scientology's Xenu in the realm of things that -- probably -- don't exist.

The Prophet Hen of Leeds, 1806

One of the most bizarre failed doomsday predictions, arose in 1806 when a hen allegedly laid an egg with the words "Christ is coming" written on it.
The prophetic hen was from Leeds, England. After the eggs began to emerge many of the local populace became convinced that the end of the world was at hand. Luckily, one unnamed sensible chap decided to actually watch the magic hen lay eggs and soon learned that the hen was just a hen.
As it turned out, the hoaxster had etched the "Christ is coming" message into the eggs before reinserting them back into the hen.

Top 10 Most Disturbing Novels List

2011-12-03T22:49:00.001-08:00

This list of top 10 disturbing novels will help to introduce you to the darker side of novels – the disturbing, macabre, and oftentimes downright sick.

Justine

Written by : Marquis de Sade

Upon anonymous publication, this book so scandalized France that Napoleon ordered the arrest of the author, stating that book was “the most abominable book ever engendered by the most depraved imagination”. The plot concerns Justine, who is presented with vice and abuse everywhere she turns. For example, she seeks refuge and confession in a monastery, but is forced to become a sex-slave to the monks, who subject her to countless orgies, rapes and other kind of abuses. This is a must-read for anyone interested in French literature, the history of sadism, or disturbing literature.
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Perfume

Written by : Patrick Suskind

In 18th century France, Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, born with no scent of his own, but with with a supernatural ability to detect the scent of others is driven to murder in order to create the perfect perfume. The book is a bizarre tale, but it is also hypnotic and lyrical –almost a fairy tale of terror. The ending is utterly vile and if you like disturbing literature, that alone makes this book worth a read. You won’t be disappointed, I bet you.
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Misery

Written by : Stephen King

Anyone who has read this book will appreciate its inclusion here; if for no other reason than the axe scene
( the protagonist chops off one of his feet with an axe – this is the hobbling scene in the movie). That scene aside, the pages upon pages of descriptions of the pain suffered by the bedridden main character, coupled with the psychological torment as he tries to move through the house unnoticed, make this a much deserved entry.
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American Psycho

Writtenby : Brett Easton Ellis

This is one of the only books that I have not finished reading. I was so horrified by a scene early in the book (involving a dog, a bum, and a very sharp knife) that I could not go on. It was my first introduction to truly disturbing writing. I have since learnt to cope better and will, eventually, give this book another go. In this novel, people are sawed in half, gutted, sliced, diced and quartered in every imaginable form. What is striking about this novel’s violence is how emotionally unattached the protagonist is to all of it , he has lost all feeling for anything but the thrill of the taboo. This book will make a great impact on you !
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The Painted Bird

Written by : Jerzy Kosiński

The ‘Painted Bird’ is a holocaust novel that mentions the concentration camps only in passing, and rarely details the Nazis and their terrible work. This is the story of a young boy who gets separated from his parents when they send him to the (perceived) safety of the countryside when World War II breaks out in Eastern Europe. What happens to the boy – the things that are done to him, the things he sees and endures – is staggering. It’s a shocking description of hell on Earth. This book is a carnival of torture.
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5
Geek Love

Written by : Katherine Dunn

Straddling the borderlands between realism, fantasy and horror,this novel deals with the remarkable Binewski carnival family: Arturo the Aqua-Boy, born with flippers but no limbs; the musical Siamese twins Electra and Iphigenia; the telekinetic boy-wonder Chick; and the long-suffering Olympia, our narrator, who is a bald hump-backed dwarf. The story progresses through the family’s relatively innocent conception into much darker territory, primarily concerning Oly’s megalomaniac brother, Arty, and eventually culminates in a catastrophic event which claims the lives of all but a few Binewskis.
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The Wasp Factory

Written by : Iain Banks

The book is told entirely by Frank, a 17 year old who manages to sound perfectly sane and rational as he explains how he killed 3 people while he was still just a child or as he performs the rituals of the Wasp Factory (bizarre rituals that need to be read to be believed). The casualnes with which violent and unpleasant events are described is possibly more horrible than the events themselves and the irony that Frank considers himself the sanest person he knows is understated throughout. “I had been making the rounds of the Sacrifice Poles the day we heard my brother had escaped. I already knew something was going to happen; the Factory told me.”
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We Need To Talk About Kevin

Written By : Lionel Shriver

Kevin is a 15 year old mass murderer; a child who’s been emotionally unstable throughout his life. This book is written from the perspective of his mother, Eva. She, too, is emotionally very disturbed. Shriver does do a creepily good job of highlighting all of the real school shootings that have taken place in America in the last few years, making We Need to Talk About Kevin not just disturbing in the far-off sense, but in the sense that although this particular story isn’t real, Eva could be any number of mothers in this country whose children have done the unthinkable.
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Glamorama

Written by : Brett Easton Ellis

I normally restrict these lists to one book per author. Today I am breaking that rule. Glamorama definitely needs to be on this list (along with the other Easton Ellis book, American Psycho) because of the gut churning violence depicted throughout the entire second half of the novel. There is a poisoning scene which you will reman in your mind forever, a scene involving dismemberment (and described in every detail as is always the case with this author), and a plane crash. This book does have many elements of humor (for example, the main character, a male model, thinks that Global Warming is a type of shampoo) and I found it to be an enjoyable read, but it is definitely up there as one of the most disturbing books I have ever read.
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Haunted

Written By : Chuck Palahniuk

Haunted is truly a disturbing but entertaining book of short stories. The first story is about a guy who loses some of his organs – it is the perfect example of “disturbing” literature. This is possibly the most blatantly twisted of Palahniuk’s novels; Haunted pushes the borders of what is considered socially acceptable. The book tells the story of 18 or so struggling writers who sign up for a “workshop” that involves being locked inside a dilapidated mansion for several days to develop story ideas. The chapters are the consequences of their brainstorming. One review sums up the gruesomeness of this book : “I thought that if I made it through story #1 (eating your way through your own prolapsed rectum) that I could get through anything, but I was wrong.”
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10 Crazy Things Fallen From Sky

2011-11-14T06:33:00.000-08:00

1. Cow that fell from the sky in Japan

In 1997 a Japanese fishing trawler was rescued in the Sea of Japan. They claimed that a cow fell from the sky and struck the boat, causing the boat to sink. The crew members were immediately put in jail. About two weeks later the Russian Air Force informed the Japanese authorities that the crew of one of its cargo planes had stolen a cow thinking they would have beef for some time. The cow was not fond of its close surroundings and began to thrash about. To save the aircraft and themselves, at about 30,000 feet, the crew shoved the animal out of the cargo hold as they were flying over the sea of Japan.

2. Rain of spiders in Argentina

On April 6, 2007, a rain of spiders started falling from the sky in Salta Province, Argentina. Christian Oneto Gaona and his friends decided to take a trip to Salta Province during their Easter vacation. They started to hike into the San Bernardo Mountain and after two hours , they found the ground around them was blanketed with abou four inch spiders of many colors. They found more and more spiders along their way up themountain. They looked upthe sky, and saw that numerous spiders were falling from the sky. Christian became probably the first person in the world who caught this weird rain on camera.

3. Rain of blood in Colombia

A red rain that was certified by a local bacteriologist to be blood fell on a small community of La Sierra, Chocó in 2008. A sample was collected and taken to the nearest town, Bagadó, where it was analyzed. The priest of the hamlet said that it's a sign from God that people will have to change their sinful ways.

4. Star jelly rain in Scotland

In Scotland a jelly rain fell in 2009. Scientists commissioned by National Geographic carried out tests on, but they have failed to find any DNA in it so far. Theories for the origins of “star jelly” abound, one of the most plausible theories is that star jelly is regurgitated frog or toad ovaries, vomited by buzzards or herons as it is indigestible.

5. Rain of fish in a desert town in Australia

In 2004, locals reported fishfalling from the sky, and in this opportunity the freak phenomena happened not once, but two times in February 2010. “Hundreds and hundreds of small white fish had fallen alive from the sky everywhere”, a witness said.

6. Rain of worms falls from the sky in the USA

Jennings Police Department employee, Eleanor Beal said that she saw worms with large tangled falling from the sky. Where they came from is a mystery, but some believe that a water spout spotted less than five miles away at that same time near Lacassine Bayou could be a reason.

7. Multi-coloured snow fell over Siberia

In the Omsk about 1400 miles from Moscow, smelly orange, yellow and green snow fell in 2007.

8. Rain of money in Germany

German motorist saw money flying through the air in her rear view mirror in 2007. She tried to collect all the notes, unsuccessfully. When police went with her to the scene they could not find any more cash. The money's origin is unknown.

9. Fresh meat rain in USA

On March 9, 1876, a shower of meat fell near Olympian Springs, covering a strip of ground about one hundred yards in length and fifty wide. The sky was perfectly clear at the time, and she said it fell like large snowflakes, the pieces as a general thing not being much larger. Two gentlemen, who tasted the meat, express the opinion that it was a either venison or mutton.

10. Starlings' rain in England

In the Somerset village of Coxley, over a hundred starlings dropped dead from the skies over Julie Knight's garden in March 2010.

Murphy's Law - Best Explanation And Examples

2011-10-10T06:13:00.000-07:00

"If anything can go wrong, it will"

Murphy's Original Law

If there are two or more ways to do something, and one of those ways can result in a catastrophe, then someone will do it.

Murphy's Law

If anything can go wrong -- it will.

Murphy's Law First Corollary

Left to themselves, things tend to go from bad to worse.

Murphy's Law Second Corollary

It is impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious.

The Murphy Law Philosophy

Smile... tomorrow will be worse.

Conclusions

If there is a possibility of several things going wrong, the one that will cause the most damage will be the first one to go wrong.
Corollary - If there is a worse time for something to go wrong, it will happen then.

If several things that could have gone wrong have not gone wrong, it would have been ultimately beneficial for them to have gone wrong.

Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.

If anything can't go wrong, it will anyway.

If you perceive that there are four possible ways in which something can go wrong, and circumvent these, then a fifth way, unprepared for, will promptly develop.

If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something.

Everything takes longer than you think.

You never find a lost article until you replace it.

If nobody uses it, there's a reason.

You get the most of what you need the least.

Nature always sides with the hidden flaw.

Mother nature is a bitch.

EXPLANATION OF EXAMPLES

Best Example :

A slice of buttered toast, when dropped from a height, will always land butter side down This, the most famous of Murphy's paradoxes, is undeniably true. There is a full chance of the toast landing butter-side down. There is a reason why every piece of toast ever dropped lands butter side down. Most people deny this fact, and 'prove' to you that it isn't true by throwing pieces of toast into the air. The result is boring; 50% of the pieces landed butter-side up, while the other 50% landed butter-side down. However, this is not a true test of Murphy's law. It is not bad luck which caused the toast to fall; it's the stupidity of the person who threw them. The real importance of Murphy's law resides in the fact that it was bad luck that made the toast fall. If one was to sit at a table and push pieces of toast off your plate onto the floor, the results would be a phenomenal 100% butter-side down. The laws of rotational inertia state that the mass of an object determines the speed at which it rotates; the mass of an average piece of buttered toast is such that it will complete only one-half of one rotation if it falls any distance from approximately 0.5to 1.8m. m. This means that when a piece of buttered falls off your plate, it will always land with its butter side down.

Who was Murphy ? Edward A. Murphy, Jr. was one of the engineers on the rocket-sled experiments that were done by the U.S. Air Force in 1949 to test human acceleration tolerances (USAF project MX981). One experiment involved a set of 16 accelerometers mounted to different parts of the subject's body. There were two ways each sensor could be glued to its mount, and somebody methodically installed all 16 the wrong way around. Murphy then made the original form of his pronouncement, which the test subject (Major John Paul Stapp) quoted at a news conference a few days later. Within months `Murphy's Law' had spread to various technical cultures connected to aerospace engineering. Before too many years had gone by variants had passed into the popular imagination, changing as they went. Most of these are variants on "Anything that can go wrong, will"; this is sometimes referred to as Finagle's Law. The memetic drift apparent in these mutants clearly demonstrates Murphy's Law acting on itself

Top 10 Craziest People On Earth ! Oh My God

2011-09-28T00:59:00.000-07:00

1 - Bhagat - had his twin brother in his stomach

Sanju Bhagat's stomach was once so swollen he looked nine months pregnant . Living in the city of Nagpur, India, Bhagat said he'd felt self-conscious his whole life about his big belly. But one night in June 1999, his problem erupted into something much larger than cosmetic worry. Mehta said that he can usually spot a tumor just after he begins an operation. But while operating on Bhagat, Mehta saw something he had never encountered. As he cut deeper into Bhagat's stomach, gallons of fluid spilled out — and then something extraordinary happened. "First, one limb came out, then another limb came out. Then some part of genitalia, then some part of hair, some limbs, jaws, limbs, hair."
At first glance, it may look as if Bhagat had given birth. Actually, Mehta had removed the mutated body of Bhagat's twin brother from his stomach.

2 . Ngoc - three decades without sleep

Sixty-four-year-old Thai Ngoc, known as Hai Ngoc, said he could not sleep at night after getting a fever in 1973, he has counted infinite numbers of sheep during more than 11,700 consecutive sleepless nights. "I don't know whether the insomnia has impacted my health or not. But I'm still healthy and can farm normally like others," Ngoc said. Proving his health, the elderly resident of Que Trung commune, Que Son district said he can carry two 50kg bags of fertilizer down 4km of road to return home every day. His wife said,

"My husband used to sleep well, but these days, even liquor cannot put him down." She added that when Ngoc went to Da Nang for a medical examination, doctors gave him a clean bill of health, except a minor decline in liver function.

3. Nakamatsu - photographed and analyzed every meal since 34 years

Yoshiro Nakamatsu (born June 26, 1928), a.k.a. Dr. NakaMats, is the Japanese inventor claiming to hold the world record for number of inventions with over 3,000, including the floppy disk and "PyonPyon" spring shoes. He has being photographing and retrospectively analyzing every meal he has consumed during a period of 34 years (and counting). The goal of Nakamatsu is to live over 140 years old.

4 . Yokoi - spent 28 years hidden after WWII

Shoichi Yokoi was a soldier, conscripted into the Imperial Japanese Army in 1941 and then sent to guam. In 1944, as American forces reconquered the island, Yokoi hide himself.

On January 24, 1972, Yokoi was discovered in a remote section of Guam by two of the island's inhabitants. For 28 years he had been hiding in an underground jungle cave, fearing to come out of hiding even after finding leaflets declaring that World War II had ended. "It is with much embarrassment that I have returned alive," he said upon his return to Japan.

5 . Mehran - living at the Airport since 1988

Mehran Karimi Nasseri, also known as Sir, Alfred Mehran, is an Iranian refugee who has been living in the departure lounge of Terminal One in Charles de Gaulle Airport since August 8, 1988. After he was later imprisoned, tortured and expelled from his country, he applied for asylum in many European countries without luck.

When he decided to go to the United Kingdom, he claimed that he was mugged, and his shoulder bag stolen . Nasseri managed to board the plane, but when he arrived at Heathrow without the necessary documentation, Heathrow officials sent him back to Charles de Gaulle. Nasseri was unable to prove his identity or his refugee status to the French officials and so he was moved to the Waiting zone, a holding area for travellers without papers.

Nasseri was reportedly the inspiration behind the 2004 movie The Terminal. Unlike Tom Hanks' character in the movie, Nasseri does not live in the duty-free transit area but simply in the departure hall, in the circular boutiques and restaurants passage on the lowest floor. He does not seem to speak with anyone normally. With his cart and bags, he almost looks like a traveler, so people either do not notice him or ignore him as if he were a homeless person.

6 . Mitsuo - a japanese Jesus Christ

Matayoshi Mitsuo is an eccentric Japanese politician with the conviction that he is Christ.According to his program, he will do the Last Judgement as the Christ but the way to do this is totally within the current political system and its legitimacy. His first step as the Savior is to be appointed the prime minister of Japan. Then he will reform Japanese society and then the United Nations should offer him the honor of its General Secretary. Then Matayoshi Jesus will reign over the whole world with two legitimate authorities, not only religious but also political.
He has become well-known for his eccentric campaigns where he urges opponents to commit suicide by hara-kiri.

7 . Bihari - most officially dead person

Lal Bihari is a farmer from Uttar Pradesh, India who was officially dead from 1976 to 1994. He founded Mritak Sangh or the Association of the Dead in Uttar Pradesh, India. He fought Indian government bureaucracy for 18 years to prove that he is alive.

When Lal Bihari tried to apply for a bank loan in 1976, he found out that he was officially dead. His uncle had bribed a government official to register him as dead so he would get the ownership of Bihari's land.

Bihari discovered at least 100 other people in a similar situation, being officially dead. He formed Mritak Sangh in the Azamgarh district. By 2004 they had managed to declare four of their members alive.

8 . Icke: our salvation from Reptilian Humanoids

David Icke, is a former professional football player, BBC television sports presenter, and British Green Party national spokesperson. Since 1990, he has been what he calls a "full-time investigator into who and what is really controlling the world.".

He dresses only in turquoise and sustains that the world was ruled by a secret group called "The Elite": a race of reptilian humanoids, known in ancient times as the Babylonian Brotherhood, and that many prominent people are descended from them, including George W. Bush, Queen Elizabeth II, and Kris Kristofferson. After a five-hour speech to students, he received a standing ovation at the University of Toronto in 1999.

9 . Lotito - mister eat-it-all

Michel Lotito (June 15, 1950) is a French entertainer. Lotito, who was born in Grenoble, is famous as the consumer of undigestables, and is known as Mister Eat-it-all. Lotito's performances are the consumption of metal, glass, rubber and so on in items such as bicycles, televisions, a Cessna 150, and smaller items which are disassembled, cut-up and swallowed. The aircraft took roughly two years to be 'eaten' from 1978 to 1980.
Lotito does not often suffer from ill-effects due to his diet, even after the consumption of materials usually considered poisonous. When performing he consumes around a kilogram of material daily, preceding it with mineral oil and drinking considerable quantities of water during the 'meal'.

10 . Bawden: the self-elected Pope Michael I

David Allen Bawden (born 1959), is an American citizen who was elected "Pope Michael I" by a group of six Conclavist, arguing that the elections of the last 6 popes were invalid because they are all modernists.
Sedevacantists argue that if the College of Cardinals cannot elect a valid pope, ordinary Catholics can do so, under the principle of "Epikeia" (Equity). Acting on the basis of this, David Bawden was elected Pope by six people on 1990 . He is still on the job to this day.

Top Non American Actress In Hollywood

2011-09-26T00:32:00.000-07:00

Kate Beckinsale, England

Kate Beckinsale was born on 26 July 1973 in England, and has resided in London for most of her life. Her mother is Judy Loe, who has appeared in a number of British dramas and sitcoms and continues to work as an actress, predominantly in British television productions.

Penelope Cruz, Spain

Known outside her native country as the "Spanish enchantress", Penélope Cruz Sánchez was born in Madrid to Eduardo (a retailer) and Encarna (a hairdresser)

Charlize Theron, South Africa

Charlize Theron grew up on a farm outside Benoni, South Africa, as the only child. She got an education as a ballet dancer and has danced both the "Swan Lake" and the "Nutcracker Suite".

Kate Winslet, England

The British actress has made a point of eschewing straightforward pretty-girl parts in favor of more devilish damsels; as a result, she's built an eclectic resume; that runs the gamut from Shakespearean tragedy to modern-day mysticism and erotica.

Salma Hayek, Mexico

The amazing Salma Hayek was born on September 2, 1966, in the oil boomtown of Coatzacoalcos, Mexico. Salma Hayek is one of the most prominent Mexican figures in Hollywood

Monica Bellucci, Italy

Born in 1964 in the Italian village of Città di Castello, Umbria, Bellucci originally pursued a career in the legal profession.

Cate Blanchett, Australia

Cate Blanchett was born on May 14, 1969 in Australia to an American father and an Australian mother. She has an older brother and an younger sister.
“The Aviator” brought Cate Blanchett the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress

Sienna Miller, England

Sienna was born in New York but raised in England. Her father, Ed, was from Pennsylvania, USA. He was an investment banker, then a Chinese art dealer, joined a cult and wrote a spiritual self-help book. Her mother, Josephine, is from South Africa. She was a model and a personal assistant to David Bowie
Sienna Miller is best known for her roles in “Alfie”, “Factory Girl”, and “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra”

Marion Cotillard, France

In 2010, Marion Cotillard received a Golden Globe nomination for her performance in “Nine”

Helen Mirren, England

Helen Mirren has won an Academy Award, four SAG Awards, four BAFTAs, three Golden Globes, four Emmy Awards, and two Cannes Film Festivals during her career

Top 10 Bizarre Torture Methods | Worst Tortures

2011-09-21T02:34:00.000-07:00

In Medieval times, instead of letting the criminals sit in a jail, they used different torture devices. Let’s check these weird torture methods..

10.

The Brazen Bull

Brazen Bull Info
link for more info

The Breaking Wheel

Breaking Wheel Info
link for more info

The Rack

Rack Torture
link for more info

Judas Cradle

Judas Craddle
link for more info

Coffin Torture

Coffin Torture
link for more info

Iron Maiden

Iron Torture
link for more info

The Knee Splitter

Knee Torture
link for more info

Heretic’s Fork

Heretic
link for more info

Saw Torture

Saw Torture
link for more info

Thumbscrew

Thumbscrew Torture

Top 10 Unusual Guinness World Records

2011-09-04T00:15:00.000-07:00

We have all heard about Eye-Popping Man or Lee Redmond and her 28 ft and 4.5 in long nails. So , here’s a list of top10 list of other unusual Guinness World Records.

10. Heaviest pumpkin

October 09, 2010 a new Guinness World Records was set for a gigantic pumpkin grown in Wisconsin was officially the world’s heaviest. It weighed 1,810 lb 8 oz and was unveiled by Chris Stevens at the Stillwater Harvest Fest in Minnesota. The proud farmer said his secret is a precise mixture of rain, cow manure, good soil, seaweed and fish emulsion.

9. Most T-shirts worn at once

Krunoslav Budiseli? set a new world record on May 22, 2010 for wearing 245 T-shirts at the same time. This man from croatia was officially recognized as the new record holder by Guinness World of Records after he managed to put on 245 different T-shirts in less than two hours. The T-shirts weighted 68 kg. He dethroned the Swedish Guinness record holder who wore 238 T-shirts.

8. Most living generations

Did you ever wonder what is the Guinness World Record for most living generations in one family? The anser is Seven.
The ultimate authority on record- breaking mentions on the website that the youngest great-great-great-great-grandparent of this family was Augusta Bung “aged 109 years 97 days, followed by her daughter aged 89, her grand-daughter 70, her great-grand-daughter 52, her great-great grand-daughter 33 and her great-great-great grand-daughter aged 15 on the birth of her great-great-great-great grandson on 21 January 1989.” OMG

7. Longest ears on a dog

A bloodhound from Illinois has the longest ears ever measured on a dog. The right ear is 13.75 inches long and the left one 13.5 inches. The dog named Tigger earned this title in 2004 and is owned by Christina and Bryan Flessner.

6. Most body piercings in one session

In May 2010, Chris Elliot and Tyson Turk (USA) set the world record for most body piercings in one session: 3100 in 6 hours and 15 minutes. It all happened at the Tyson Turk Tattoo Studio, Bedford, Texas.

5. Most people inside a soap bubble

The Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana, California celebrated this year the 15^th anniversary of the BubbleFest. A bubble’s math principles and science were presented and demonstrated at the three-weeks long exhibition.The Yang family collaborated with the Discovery Science Center to set a new Guinness World Record for most people inside a soap bubble and they succeeded.
The family that has been working for soap bubbles since 27 years created a huge soap bubble and got 118 people inside it. The record was set on April 4, 2011.

4. Fastest individual 1 mile run wearing swim fins

Ashrita Furman, nicknamed Mr. Versatility ,an american citizen, is no stranger to Guinness World of Records. He set more than 340 official Guinness records since 1979 and currently holds 113, including the record for fastest mile run in swim fins: 7 min 56 sec. Ashrita achieved this record in 2010 at the Marswiese Sportzentrum in Vienna, Austria.
Marco Frigatti, head of the global records management team for GWR, declared that Ashrita won “the official record for The most current Guinness world records held at the same time by an individual.”

3. Largest horn circumference – steer

Now , this is amazing ! Lurch was the record holder of the world’s largest horn circumference, 37.5 inches. He was an African Watusi steer born October 11, 1995 on a ranch in Missouri. Janice Wolf adopted Lurch when he was only 5 weeks old.

2. Fastest 100m running on all fours

The 2008 Guinness World Records Day was, according to GWR, their biggest day of record-breaking ever, with more than 290000 people taking part in record attempts in 15 different countries. Kenichi Ito’s record attempt was part of this special day. He is just another example of Japanese with ‘super powers’. His ‘super power’ is to run with great speed on all fours. Kenichi Ito run 100m on all fours in 18.58 seconds.

1. Heaviest weight pulled with eye sockets

Believe it or not, the heaviest weight pulled with eye sockets is 907 pounds (411.65 kilograms). This extreme record was set by Chayne Hultgren, also known as The Space Cowboy. The Australian achieved the record in Milano on the set of “Lo Show Dei Record” in 2009.
One of the many acts that brought him large media coverage is when he swallowed 27 swords decorated with the flags of all European Union’s members. The record was set on the day when Ireland rejected the Lisbon Treaty on European Union reform.

Scandalous Fact About 10 Great Peoples

2011-09-01T00:14:00.000-07:00

History tends to hide the ufortunate facts relating to people that become heroic or famous. Here's the list of ten little known (scandalous) facts about historic figures.

10.

Winston Churchill

Fact: Churchill was racist

In 2002 BBC Voted him as Britian's Greatest individual regarding his skills as an orator and statesman . But many people don’t know is that he also had a dark side. The once said :
“I do not admit… that a great wrong has been done to the Red Indians of America, or the black people of Australia… by the fact that a stronger race, a higher grade race… has come in and taken its place.” -Churchill to Palestine Royal Commission, 1937
“I do not understand the squeamishness about the use of gas. I am strongly in favour of using poisonous gas against uncivilised tribes” – Writing as president of the Air Council.

9.
Gandhi

Fact: Gandhi was a dirty old man

At the age of 36, whilst married, Gandhi decided to become celibate in order to achieve a state of enlightenment (through Hindu religion). As he got older and older, he became more and more fascinated with sex to the point that, second only to non-violence, it was the subject he most talked about. In order to “perfect” his celibate state, Gandhi sleeped naked with young naked women. One of the women was the 16 year old wife of his grand-nephew Kanu Gandhi.Ghandhi wrote to the father of her grandniece Manu Gandhi(19) that he want to share bed with her daughter in order to“correct her sleeping posture”. When his stenographer R. P. Parasuram found him sleeping naked with Manu, he resigned in disgust.

George Washington

Fact: Washington cleverly tricked congress into paying him obscene amounts of money

The most important reason George was asked to be president was that he was very honest, and people both trusted and admired him. He was the most trusted, admired, and respected man in the whole country.”
Unfortunately what they miss entirely is the fact that he turned down a salary of what would have amounted to a little over 1,000 per month, but said: “Sir, I beg leave to assure the Congress that as no pecuniary consideration could have tempted me to have accepted this arduous employment, I do not wish to make any profit from it. I will keep an exact account of my expenses. Those I doubt not they will discharge, and that is all I desire.”
And then the shopping began:
- To sundry Exp.’s paid by myself at different times and places… on the Retreat of the Army thro’ the Jerseys into Pennsylvania & while there… $3,776
- To cash paid for Sadlery, a Letter Case, Maps, Glasses, &c &c &c. for the use of my Command… $831.45
- From September 1775 to March 1776, Washington spent over six thousand dollars on liquor
In eight years, by turning down a salary and taking an expense account, instead of being paid around $12,000, he was paid $449,261.51 in 1780 dollars (around $4,250,000.00 in today’s money).

Washington, being a clever man, tried the same ploy when he was elected President but he was turned down and given a set salary of $25,000 per year. You can view scans of Washington’s expense account at the Library of Congress.

7.
Adolf Hitler

Fact: Hitler was a tax evader

Recent research into papers relating to Hitler has uncovered the fact that in 1934 , when he became chancellor of Germany he had evaded paying 405,500 million Reichsmarks in tax (6.3 million USD). He was forgiven his tax debts when he was elected.The official who forgave Hitler’s tax debt was “rewarded” with a 2,000 Reichsmarks per month tax free allowance when teachers were paid only 4,800 per annum.

Martin Luther

Fact: Martin Luther was an anti-semite

Martin Luther, the famous Monk who started the protestant reformation, is often touted as a hero for standing up against excesses in the Catholic Church at the time, but what most people don’t know is that he was violently anti-Jewish and he made no secret of it. In 1543, he wrote “On The Jews And Their Lies”, in which he recommends that Jews be deprived of money, civil rights, religious teaching, and education, and that they be forced to labor on the land, or else be expelled from Germany and possibly killed . He referred to the Jews as a “base, whoring people, that is, no people of God, and their boast of lineage, circumcision, and law must be accounted as filth.” He said that Jews were “full of the devil’s feces … which they wallow in like swine,” and the synagogue is an “incorrigible whore and an evil slut …” [Wikipedia - Martin On the Jews]

He also put together an eight point plan to get rid of the Jews:
- “I advise that all their prayer books and Talmudic writings, in which such idolatry, lies, cursing and blasphemy are taught, be taken from them. …”

- “Set fire to their synagogues or schools and to bury and cover with dirt whatever will not burn, so that no man will ever again see a stone or cinder of them. …”
- “I advise that their houses also be razed and destroyed. …”
- “I advise that their rabbis be forbidden to teach henceforth on pain of loss of life and limb. …”
- “I advise that usury be prohibited to them, and that all cash and treasure of silver and gold be taken from them. … Such money should now be used in … the following [way]… Whenever a Jew is sincerely converted, he should be handed [a certain amount]…”
- “I advise that safe-conduct on the highways be abolished completely for the Jews. …”
- “I commend putting a flail, an ax, a hoe, a spade, a distaff, or a spindle into the hands of young, strong Jews and Jewesses and letting them earn their bread in the sweat of their brow… For it is not fitting that they should let us accursed Goyim toil in the sweat of our faces while they, the holy people, idle away their time behind the stove, feasting and farting, and on top of all, boasting blasphemously of their lordship over the Christians by means of our sweat. No, one should toss out these lazy rogues by the seat of their pants.”
- “If we wish to wash our hands of the Jews’ blasphemy and not share in their guilt, we have to part company with them. They must be driven from our country” and “we must drive them out like mad dogs.” [Source: Luther, On the Jews, 47:268-288, 292.]

Thomas Jefferson

Fact: Jefferson preached against whites having children with blacks, whilst doing that very thing and denying his offspring

Jefferson said “the amalgamation of whites with blacks produces a degradation to which no lover of his country, no lover of the excellence in the human character, can innocently consent.” Whilst preaching this rubbish, he had several children with his slave Sally Hemings who happened to be the illegitimate half-sister sister of his wife. While the rumours were around during their lifetime , it was not until recent times that DNA testing proved that at least one of Hemings’ children was indeed fathered by Jefferson.

4.
Andrew Johnson

Fact: Vice-President Andrew Johnson took his presidential oath whilst completely drunk

Andrew Johnson was the Vice-President during Lincoln’s reign. He had a strong disliking for the aristocracy whom he thought were there by the labor of the poor such as his own family. “Glassy-eyed and smelling of whiskey, he reminded Congress, the Supreme Court, the Cabinet, and pretty much everyone within hearing distance that they owed their positions to “plebeians” such as himself, then kissed the Bible and staggered away”. In response, the New York Times said “To think that one frail life stands between this insolent, clownish creature and the presidency! May God bless and spare Abraham Lincoln!” His presidency was such a disaster that congress tried to impeach him twice , successfully on the second attempt.

Albert Einstein

Fact: Einstein was a philanderer

Einstein is perhaps the greatest mind of the 20th century and he and his most famous formular E=MC^2 are known by nearly everyone. What most people don’t know, is that he cheated on both of his wives repeatedly. After splitting up with his first wife (because of his infidelity), he married his cousin Elsa. Shortly after that he had an affair with his secretary Betty Neumann. In a new volume of letters held by the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Einstein described about six women with whom he spent time and from whom he received gifts while being married to Elsa.

Elvis Presley

Fact: Elvis was unhealthily obsessed with James Dean

Elvis exhibited many compulsive/obsessive qualities throughout his life which both helped and hindered his life. One of the areas that Elvis wanted to excel in was acting. He wanted to be the next James Dean. He anguished over the fact that the roles he was given in movies were not (in his mind) substantial. Elvis knew all the words to “Rebel Without A Cause” that featured James Dean and Natalie Wood. Elvis sought out Wood because of her connection to James Dean. The obsession with Dean led Elvis to intentionally befriend Nick Adams – a very close friend of Dean’s before he died and since his death rumors abound that Adams had a sexual relationship with both Dean and Elvis.

Pope Pius IX

Fact: Pope Pius IX Kidnapped a Jewish child and had him raised as a Catholic

On the evening of 23 June 1858, in Bologna, police arrived at the home of a Jewish couple, Salomone and Marianna Padovani Mortara, to seize one of their eight children, Edgardo (6), and transport him to Rome to be raised as a ward of the state. The police had orders from Holy Office authorities in Rome, authorized by Pope Pius IX. Church officials had been told that a 14-year-old Catholic servant girl of the Mortaras, Anna Morisi, had baptized Edgardo while he was ill because she feared that he would otherwise die and go to Hell. Acorrding to Catholic Church doctrine, Edgardo’s baptism, even if illegal under canon law, was valid and made him a Christian. Under the canon law, non-Christians could not raise a Christian child, even their own. Edgardo was taken to a house for Catholic converts in Rome. Pius IX took a personal interest in the case, and all appeals to the Church were rebuffed. Church authorities told the Mortaras that they could have Edgardo back if they abandoned their faith and converted to Catholicism, but they refused.

Despite international protests (including those from the United States government), Pope Pius IX did not relinquish Edgardo who eventually went on to become a priest. He was also a vehement supporter of the Vatican taking the first steps towards making Pius IX a saint.

Top 10 Bizzare Disappearances

2011-08-11T02:34:00.000-07:00

History is full with tales of people who, for all intents and purposes, inexplicably vanish from the face of the earth without any trace. Here's the list of top ten strange disappearances :

10. The Flannan Isles lighthouse keepers
In December 1900, three lighthouse keepers vanished from their duty stations, leaving behind equipment important to surviving the hostile conditions at that location and time of year. The official explanation for the disappearances is that the men were swept out to sea by a big freak wave.

9. The Vanished Cripple

Owen Parfitt had been paralyzed by a massive stroke. In June, 1763 in Shepton Mallet, England, Parfitt sat outside his sister’s home, as was often his habit on warm evenings. Across the road was a farm where people were doing their work. At about 7 p.m., Parfitt’s sister, Susannah, went outside with a neighbor to help Parfitt move back into the house, as a storm was approaching. But he was gone. Only his folded greatcoat upon which he sat remained. Investigations of this mysterious disappearance were carried out as late as 1933, but no trace or clues were found.

8. The Bennington Triangle

Between 1920 - 1950, Bennington, Vermont was the site of several unexplained disappearances:

On December 1, 1949, Mr. Tetford vanished from a crowded bus. Tetford was on his way home to Bennington from a trip to St. Albans, Vermont. Tetford, an ex-soldier who lived in the Soldier’s Home in Bennington, was sitting on the bus with 14 other passengers. They all testified to seeing him there, sleeping in his seat. When the bus reached its destination, however, Tetford was gone, although his belongings were still on the luggage rack and a bus timetable lay open on his empty seat. Tetford has never been found.

In mid-October, 1950, 8-year old Paul Jepson disappeared from a farm. Paul’s mother, who earned a living as an animal caretaker, left her small son happily playing near a pig sty while she tended to the animals. A short time later, she returned to find him missing.

7. The Disappearing Diplomat

British diplomat Benjamin Bathurst vanished into thin air in 1809. Bathurst was returning to Hamburg with a companion after a mission. Along the way, they had stopped for dinner at an inn in the town of Perelberg. After finishing the meal, they returned to their waiting horse-drawn coach. Bathurst’s companion watched as the diplomat stepped over to the front of the coach to examine to horses – and simply vanishedfrom there.

6. The disappearance of Oliver Larch

According to his narrative, Larch was on his way to collect water from a well one winter when he disappeared; leaving no trails of footprints in the snow which terminated abruptly, and a series of cries for help that appeared to come from above. One particular recurring citation of this variant was as Oliver Thomas of Rhayader, Radnorshire, mid-Wales and the date is given specifically as 1909.

5. The Norfolk Regiment

Three soldiers claimed to be witnesses to the bizarre disappearance of an entire battalion in 1915. They finally came forward with the strange story 50 years after the infamous Gallipoli campaign of WWI. The three members of a New Zealand field company said they watched a battalion of the Royal Norfolk Regiment marched up a hillside in Suvla Bay, Turkey. The hill was shrouded in a low-lying cloud that the English soldiers marched straight into without hesitation. They never came out. After the last of the battalion had entered the cloud, it slowly lifted off the hillside to join other clouds in the sky. When the war was over, figuring the battalion had been captured and held prisoner, the British government asked Turkey to return them. The Turks insisted that it had not captured these English soldiers.

4. The Stonehenge Disappearance

The mysterious standing stones of Stonehenge in England was the site of an amazing disappearance in August, 1971.One night, a group of “hippies” decided to pitch tents in the center of the circle and spend the night. They built a campfire, lit several joints of pot and sat around smoking and signing. Their campout was abruptly interrupted at about 2 a.m. by a severe thunder storm. Bright bolts of lightning crashed down on the area, striking area trees and the standing stones. Two witnesses, a farmer and a policeman, said that the stones of the ancient monument lit up with an eerie blue light that was so intense that they had to avert their eyes. They heard screams from the campers and the two witnesses rushed to the scene. To their surprise, they found no one. All that remained within the circle of stones were several smoldering tent pegs and the drowned remains of a campfire. The hippies too were gone without a trace.

3. Time Tunnel

In 1975, a man named Jackson Wright was driving with his wife from New Jersey to New York City. This required them to travel through the Lincoln Tunnel. According to Jackson Wright, once through the tunnel he pulled the car over to wipe the windshield of condensation. His wife Martha volunteered to clean off the back window. When Wright turned around, his wife was gone. He neither heard nor saw anything unusual take place, and a subsequent investigation could find no evidence.

2. The Legend of David Lang

This famous case allegedly took place in September, 1880 on a farm near Gallatin, Tennessee in full view of several witnesses. The two Lang children, George and Sarah, were playing in the front yard of the family home. Their parents, David and Emma, came out the front door, and David headed off across a pasture toward his horses. At this time, a buggy carrying family friend Judge August Peck was approaching. David turned to walk back to the house, saw the buggy and waved to the judge as he strode across the field. A few seconds later, David Lang , in clear view of his wife, his children and the judge disappeared.A thorough search by the family, friends and neighbors turned up nothing. A few months after the unexplained disappearance, the Lang children noticed that the grass on the spot where their father vanished had turned yellow and wilted in a circle measuring about 15 feet in diameter.

1. The Village That Disappeared

An individual that vanishes is one thing, but how about an entire village of 2,000 people? In November, 1930, a fur trapper named Joe Labelle made his way on snow shoes to an Eskimo village on the shores of Lake Anjikuni in northern Canada. Labelle was familiar with the village, which he knew as a thriving fishing community of about 2,000 residents. When he arrived, however, the village was deserted. All of the huts and storehouses were vacant.Labelle notified the authorities and an investigation was begun, which turned up some bizarre findings: no footprints of any of the residents were found, if they had vacated the village; all of the Eskimos’ sled dogs were found buried under a 12-foot-high snow drift – they had all starved to death. And there was one last unnerving discovery: the Eskimos’ ancestral graves had been emptied.

Top 10 Fantastic Fountains - Most Beautiful Fountains

2011-08-07T22:34:00.000-07:00

Fountains have been used since history to add beauty and ambience to outdoor spaces.So , here's the list of top ten fantastic and beautiful fountains :

1 .

Banpo Bridge
Han River, Seoul, Korea

The Banpo Bridge fountain at 1140 meters long is the worlds longest fountain. It has 380 nozzles that pump out 190 tons of water a minute.

2 .
Big Wild Goose Pagoda Music Fountain
Xian City, China
The Big Wild Goose Pagoda is the back drop of what claims to be the largest musical fountain in Asia with the longest light bar.Fire can also be seen at times shooting out of the holes.

3 .
La Joute Fountain
Montreal, Canada
Created by artist Jean Paul Riopelle in 1969, La Joute fountain is a kinetic sculpture fountain.

4 .

King Fahd’s Fountain
Coast of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

This is the tallest fountain in the world. Shooting water measures taller than the Eiffel tower minus the antennae. Water shoots out at 233 mph and reaches 1024 into the sky.

5 .

Castle Square Fountain
Swansea, Wales
There is nothing too remarkable about this fountain except during St. David’s Day when the Castle Square Fountain and the waterfall are dyed a deep red.Also Known as Blood Fountain.

6 .

Fontaine Des Innocents
Paris, France
Named for the cemetery site it was built on the Fontaine Des innocents was created by renaissance architect Pierre Lescot and sculpted by Jean Goujon. The fountain is decorated with plump little boys with wings common to the period.

7 .

Mercury Fountain
Barcelona, Spain
Created by Alexander Calder for the Spanish Republican government to memorialize the siege of Almaden. Not knowing the effects of mercury, it was open to everyone. But now it can be viewed behind the glass.

8 .

Charybdis Fountain
Seaham Hall, Sunderland, UK
The Charybdis Fountain is a vortex fountain created by water artist William Pye. Encased in a clear plastic type polymer with an air-core vortex that rises every 15 minutes gives this fountain look of the water standing alone.

9 .

Fontana de Trevi
Rome, Italy
The Trevi Fountain is the considered the largest baroque style fountain. The fountain resided at the end of the Aqua Virgo aqueduct -which was built in 19 B.C. The fountain was designed to represent the many fluctuating moods of the sea. Neptune is the center of the fountain and he is flanked by tritons.

10 .

The Fountain of Wealth
Suntec City, Singapore
Located in the Suntec City Mall the fountain of wealth was created for luck using Feng Shui . The base is 16,831 sq. meters(approx. 55,219 sq. ft.) and stands about 30meters(1181 ft.) high.

Top 10 World's Coolest Jobs

2011-08-05T02:42:00.000-07:00

1 . Luxury bed tester

Today, luxury bed testing is one of the most coolest jobs around. And think about the remuneration! One can earn a hefty £1,000 or may be more for just giving objective view of beds on sale and proving feedback on to what extent it is worth of a good night’s sleep.
According to MSNBC reports, “Roisin Madigan, a college student from Birmingham, England, was paid $1,600 for spending a month trying out top-of-the-line beds and mattresses ranging in price from $8,000 to $43,500”.

2 . Resort waterslide tester

Surely the envy of any desk-bound office worker, Tommy Lynch has travelled over 27,000 miles this year for his job, testing holiday resort waterslides. Mr Lynch, 29, works for holiday giant First Choice, checking the height, speed, water quantity and landing of the flumes, as well as all safety aspects. In 2008 Mr Lynch tested waterslides at holiday villages in Lanzarote, Majorca, Cyprus, Egypt, Dominican Republic, Turkey, Costa Del Sol, Algarve and Mexico. This year he will quality control First Choice's new splash resorts in Greece, Turkey, Florida, Jamaica and Ibiza.

3 . Video game tester

If you love video games, this just might be the job for you. Video game testers play video games over and over and over again to ensure the quality, check for bugs, see if they can “break” the game, and more.

4 . Professional prostitute tester

This fantasy job sounds too good to be true : Quality Control in a brothel.
Rascone, an occasional male model and DJ, was offered the gig by Madam Fiorella, who needed somebody to provide that final "interview" in her hiring process. It goes like this: girls who are interested in working as VIP escorts for Fiorella have to undergo interviews, psychological testing, and a photo session. The applicants are whittled down to a final six, who then have sex one after the other in a single day by Jaime. He takes diligent notes on, say, how they moved their hips and whether their groans were adequate, and makes recommendations to the madam. There is even paperwork involved.

5 . Paradise island caretaker

Ben Southall, 34, beat out nearly 35,000 applicants from around the world for the dream assignment to swim, explore and relax on Hamilton Island in the Great Barrier Reef , while writing a blog to promote the area. He was selected for the $111,000 gig - a six-month contract to serve as caretaker of a tropical Australian island. He now has to live rent-free in a three-bedroom villa, complete with pool.

6 . Wine tester and blogger

Imagine moving to the heart of Sonoma County, where every day you'll come home to more than 450 wineries along the coast of California. Picture living rent free, learning the intricacies of making the perfect wine, and capturing and sharing the entire experience for your network of Twitter followers. Now imagine getting paid $10,000 a month to do so. Hardy Wallace of Atlanta, the first person to submit his application, was the winner for the position at Murphy-Goode Winery- a $10,000 p/mo for six months, rent-free job updating Twitter and Facebook with his winery lifestream. The interview process was very simple , just submit a YouTube video explaining why you would be good for the job and wait to see what happens.

7 . TV corpse

If your ideal job involves you doing next to nothing all day, consider becoming a TV corpse. You’ll get to hang out on set, get free lunch and you could get paid up to $200 for the day. That’s not such a bad gig for just having to lie completely still. wow

8 . Secret Shopper

Google has hired two lucky young men to ride around France on dopey looking tricycles snapping up photos of historical sites that are inaccessible by car. This three-wheeler is a sight with its long pole holding nine cameras, a GPS, a computer and a generator.
The riders, wearing Google tee-shirts and white helmets, are visiting well-known sites such as the Chateau de Versailles, the Jardin du Luxembourg on the city's Left Bank or Les Halles, west of Paris, in the busy centre of the French capital.

10 . Chocolate or candy taster

Without any slightest doubt, it is a mouth-watering and perhaps the most delicious job in the world. Harry Willsher, a 12 year school going boy beats thousands of youngsters to reach his dream job as Chocolate taster. He is responsible for tasting Love Hearts, Refreshers and Cola Bottles and assisting in the research to produce the tasty chocolates and candies.

Top 10 World's Worst Jobs

2011-08-05T02:36:00.000-07:00

1 . Janitor at a Porno Theatre

Janitor, in itself, is a pretty bad job. But, porno theater janitor is the worst job on the list. The main work of the porno theater janitor is to take his mop and rag and wide up after each show is finished. Unlike a traditional theater, it's safe to assume that sticky substance under the chair is something other than Coca-Cola Classic!

2 . Sewer Cleaner

Ramesh Sahu works in the sanitation department of Calcutta, cleaning out the city's sewers. Rakesh sits in a low crouch at the bottom of a seven-foot-deep manhole, sloshing away in a swirl of human waste and sediment. Equipped with a hoe, a steel bar, and wearing only a pair of loose purple underpants, Rakesh empties the thick black sludge from a clogged sewer into a bucket that his fellow crew members hoist up and dump in the middle of a narrow road.

3 . Elephant Shit Inspector

Remember being to zoo for an elephant ride? You probably thought that the person who gets to control the elephant is some super awesome guy who with one tiny signal could make the elephant do anything. But behind the scene no one knows how much shit he goes through. You see when you are an elephant some times its difficult to digest the food easily without exercising (running around). So the instructor or some worker has to put his/her hand into the elephant to make it shit easily.

4 . Guard at Buckingham Palace

This job at Buckingham Palace is regarded as one of the worst jobs in the British Army . Besides the fact that they have to stand for hours, no laughing allowed, they also have to look their best. Any soldier whose turn-out is less than immaculate is likely to face a variety of punishments, such as extra guard duty.

5 . Animal Masturbator

Research people who want animal sperm -to study fertility or for artificial insemination-have a suite of attractive options: They can ram an electric probe up an animal's rectum, shove an artificial vagina onto the animal's penis or simply do it the old-fashioned way-manual stimulation. The first option, electroejaculation , uses a priapic rectal probe to send electricity pulsing through the animal's nether regions. "All the normal excitatory signals that stimulate ejaculation, like touch, sight, sound and smell, can be replaced with the current from the probe," says Trish Berger, professor of animal science at the University of California , Davis. "It's fascinating. Of course, this is a woman talking." It generally requires anesthetizing the animal and is typically used on zoo dwellers. The other two methods-the artificial vagina, or AV, and the good old hand-require that animals be trained to the procedure.

6 . Portable Toilet Cleaner

Although most people in polite society methodically avoid situations where they need to use a portable toilet, modern outhouses can be lifesavers. As gross as they can be, they'd be worse without the folks who clean them for a living. Using a tank and a vacuum wand, cleaners must suck up all the waste in aportable toilet. After picking up any stray toilet paper, they also wash down all surfaces that could possibly be soiled, including the walls. This is when a high-pressure hose comes in handy. Most of time cleaning oneportable toilet takes only a few minutes, and most workers clean from 10 to 60 of them a day. Nevertheless, some cleaners grin and bear it -- and take home $50,000 a year.

7 . Stage Performer’s Assistant

An assistant can’t be considered as a worst job but it does depend upon whose assistant the person is going to be. Let’s suppose a knife thrower is supposed to hit the target with you in between him and the target. He may specialize at what he does but if God forbid a single inch is missed, the knife slips from his hand or he sneezes at the inappropriate time, your life will be finished. But people prefer to live. So this can be rated as one of the stupidest and most dangerous jobs.

8 . Cat Food Quality Controller

Jon Hanson had what he describes as the worst job in his entire life: quality control on cat food. His task involved several test as he describes. Test 1: Bury face in a huge tub of it and sniff it to make sure it's fresh. 2: Plunge arms in it up to the elbows and grope for bony bits and take them out. 3: Scoop up huge dollop of it, smear it flat on surface and prod it with fingers to test how much gristle is there. OMG !

9 . Skyscraper Window Cleaner

A window cleaner is a safe job, but when it comes to the skyscrapers a person might get a heart attack just by looking down. A lot of things can go wrong while cleaning the windows of a sky scraper. Even if a single nut of the plank is not tight, the person can lose his life. I wonder if those people ever get the feeling of “screw it; I’m not getting paid enough”. But the financial crisis leaves them with no choice, so they put their life on stake for the sake of their family.

10 . Roadkill Remover

Pretty self-explanatory. Roadkill cleaning the remains of dead creatures in decay off the road in various states, they also get to do it while braving oncoming traffic.

20 Creepy Things Found Inside Human Body

2011-08-05T02:32:00.000-07:00

Here's the list of creepy things that were found inside human body.

1. An Ethiopian man had 222 metallic objects in his stomach. Two hundred and twenty-two. The collection included nails, door keys, watch batteries, and hair pins. The cause of the weird eating was likely mental illness.

2. Surgical instruments have been left behind in patients on many occasions, but even so, it was a shock for one Pittsburgh man wound up with a 10-inch retractor lodged in his abdomen. Even more worst : When the man complained for pains, doctors told him to see a psychiatrist instead of checking their pockets for the missing tools.

3. A living worm - yes,an actual, living, writhing worm - was found inside a girl's brain. After experiencing swelling and numbness, the woman had an MRI that revealed what looked like a foreign growth on her brain stem, but it turned out to be a tapeworm.

4. A death row inmate in Amarillo was among a group of convicts found in November 2008 to be in possession of contraband cell phones. The inmate’s chosen hiding spot? His rectum. The phone was found thanks to an X-ray scan.

5. A 10-pound ball of hair was found inside an 18-year-old woman’s stomach. Actually she had a habit of chewing on and eating her hair, which gradually accumulated in her gut.

6. A new species was discovered when a fanged leech was pulled from the nose of a young girl who was bathing in a river in Peru.

7. An Indian man lived his whole life with a big belly, but sudden pain at the age of 36 sent him rushing to the hospital, where the doctors opened him up to find a human fetus. It was the mutated body of the man’s twin, which he’d absorbed before birth but which had continued to dwell in his body.

8. A chunk of human lung was found in the stomach of a rapper who murdered his roommate and ingested part of her lung in order to promote a hardcore image for himself on behalf of his record label.

9. In 2008, surgeons in Bangladesh removed a tumor from a 35-year-old man’s abdomen that weighed — wait for it — 95 pounds.

10. A set of false teeth were found in a woman’s stomach when she complained of pains. Although initially reluctant to divulge how they got there, she eventually admitted she had swallowed her boyfriend’s dentures while experimenting with “a special type of passionate kiss.”

11. A Japanese man checked into the hospital complaining of the stomach pain, surgeons thought they’d found a tumor. Wrong: It was a surgical towel that had been left inside the man 25 years earlier when he underwent surgery for a minor ulcer.

12. A Czech woman wound up with a foot-long medical tool in her abdomen that doctors forgot to remove after performing gynecological surgery.

13. More than 20 cobblestones were found in the stomach of a Chinese woman who, for reasons only known to her, swallowed them after having a fight with her boyfriend.

14. A plastic piece of fork was found in a man’s lung in North Carolina.

15. More than 30 years ago, a Dutch woman went to the hospital complaining of a stomachache, and that’s when doctors found 78 pieces of cutlery inside her. The woman suffered from a personality disorder that caused her to ignore her food at mealtime and instead go right for the silver, though for some reason, she only at the forks and spoons, never the knives.

16-18. An MSNBC report found that a trio of midwestern women had suffered particularly painful episodes after physical object were left behind in their bodies after various surgeries. One woman had knee surgery but still felt pain: The doctor had left a 2-inch scalpel blade in her leg. Another had a breast biopsy but dealt with pain for eight more years: A new mammogram revealed that a broken needle was embedded in her breast. And third was the victim of faulty construction when a metallic blood-clot filter shifted inside her, punctured a vein, and took multiple procedures to successfully remove.

19. Thirty magnets and steel balls were found inside an 8-year-old Indiana girl after she said they “looked like candy” and wolfed them down.

20. An Israeli woman swallowed a cockroach as well as the fork she used to try and get it out. The big flew into her mouth as she was cleaning house, and in a panic, she tried to scoop the insect out with a fork but wound up swallowing that, as well. Surgery got the fork out, but the bug had already been digested.