Yearly Archives: 2011

Getting to the Roots of Yoga

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Philip GoldbergPhilip Goldberg, Interfaith Minister, author of ‘American Veda: How Indian Spirituality Changed the West’
 The Once and Future Yoga
Posted: 8/25/11 01:54 AM ET

September is almost upon us, and that means it’s once again Yoga Month. Started in 2008 and designated a national observance by the Department of Health and Human Services, its organizers define it as “an awareness campaign to educate about the health benefits of yoga and to inspire a healthy lifestyle.” If you’ve been meaning to take a yoga class, this is your no-excuses opportunity, since one Yoga Month feature is the one week free yoga for new students at over 1200 studios.

One of the glories of the yoga tradition is that there’s something in it for everyone, whether you’re secular or spiritual, and whether you want flexible joints, a trim butt, a calm mind, a loving heart or a faster lane to enlightenment. At its best, yoga can deliver on those rewards and others, depending on the student’s dedication and the knowledge and skill of his or her teachers.

That versatility means you will find a huge variation in style, approach, specialty and emphasis. But, despite the diversity, you will probably find that at least 90 percent of every class is devoted to the stretches, bends and postures (asanas) that are now virtually synonymous with the word yoga. That fact has brought American yoga to an interesting moment in its brief and hugely successful history.

to read more, go to:    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/philip-goldberg/real-meaning-of-yoga_b_935362.html

Brain-Belly-Beauty Connection

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How Gut Health Impacts Your Brain And Beauty

Stomach Controls Mind

First Posted: 8/26/11 08:02 AM ET Updated: 8/26/11 10:32 AM ET

By Ashley Neglia for YouBeauty.com

Research has already shown a connection between the belly and the brain (there’s a reason it’s called “gut instinct”), but new studies suggest that the food we eat and the bacteria residing within our gut may be powerful enough to alter our cognitive behavior.

These links between mind and body are helping researchers delve even deeper into viewing health and beauty more holistically.

According to researchers, changes in naturally occurring bacteria within the stomach may pack enough punch to otherwise affect brain chemistry. The new findings may not only help explain why certain gastrointestinal disorders, including irritable bowel syndrome, often occur concurrently withanxiety or depression, but also why some psychiatric illnesses, such as late onset autism, are associated with abnormal bacteria content.

to read more, go to:    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/26/stomach-controls-mind_n_934294.html

Man’s Best Friend

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Dog of Fallen Navy SEAL, Officer Jon Tumilson, Refuses To Leave Casket (VIDEO)

The dog of fallen Navy SEAL Officer Jon Tumilsonrefused to leave his owner’s casket at the officer’s funeral earlier this week, Animal Planet reported.

Tumilson’s cousin Lisa Pembleton captured the loyal pup, Hawkeye, resting alongside Tumilson’s casket at the Rockford, Iowa ceremony.

KPBS reported that the former San Diego residentwas killed in the Aug. 6th Chinook helicopter crash with 29 other American service members.

Pembleton contacted KPBS’s Home Post publication with this statement:

“Hawkeye is/was his loyal “son”. To say that he was an amazing man doesn’t do him justice. The loss of Jon to his family, military family and friends is immeasurable. I hadn’t planned on taking any pictures other than with family. However, from my seat at the funeral, I felt compelled to take one photo to share with family members that couldn’t make it or couldn’t see what I could from the aisle. This is that photo.”

to see the picture and the video, go to:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/24/dog-of-fallen-navy-seal-refuses-to-leave-casket_n_935707.html

Dr, Masters on Tropical Activity

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urricane Irene Weakens on its Approach to North Carolina
Posted by: JeffMasters, 7:58 AM GMT on August 27, 2011 +3
As of 300AM EDT, Hurricane Irene was located at 33.7N, 76.5W, 60 miles south of Cape Lookout. It was moving north-northeast at 14 mph with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph, making it a Category 1 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Irene has a minimum central pressure of 952 mb.

Hurricane warnings are in effect for the US Atlantic coast from the Little River inlet in North Carolina to Sagamore Beach, Massachusetts. Tornado watches are also in effect for the North Carolina/Virginia/Maryland coast. Figure 1 shows the hurricane, tropical storm, and tornado watches and warnings for Irene. Remember, a hurricane warning means hurricane conditions are expected, and tropical storm force winds (greater than 34 mph) will occur within 36 hours. Tropical storm warning means that tropical storm force winds are expected in the next 36 hours, but hurricane conditions are not. A tropical storm watch means tropical storm force winds are possible within 48 hours.

Guatemala Earthquake

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Moderate shallow earthquake close to Guatemala City

Last update: August 27, 2011 at 12:26 pm by By Armand Vervaeck and James Daniell

Earthquake overview : At 05:28 in the morning a shallow moderate earthquake struck the greater Guatemala

Lago de Ayarza earthquake area August 27 2011 – Panoramio picture courtesy Sinai Albareda – http://www.panoramio.com/photo/16113746

City area

UPDATE 12:20 UTC : People in Guatemala are sleeping at the moment, but are very used to moderate earthquakes, which most of the time happen out of the coast in the Pacific Ocean waters

UPDATE 12:18 UTC : The earthquakes epicenter is close to Cuilapa, where very recently more than 6,000 people were affected by inundations of Rio San Juan. The inundations started as a flash flood raged through the village after 30 minutes of torrential rain.

UPDATE 12:02 UTC : the epicenter of this earthquake is very near to Lago de Ayarza

to read more, go to:    http://earthquake-report.com/2011/08/27/moderate-shallow-earthquake-close-to-guatemala-city/

Thoughts on Irene

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I am getting the sense that Irene has plenty more surprises in store for all.  This is not a time to take her trajectory as set in stone.  Even though the eye has seemingly come apart, there is something within the energies of this system that hold the unexpected.  Whereas complacency is often warranted in the face of expert opinion and past history, this is not a time for complacency.  And this is true on all levels.

Be aware and listen to your intuition in these times.  But do not second guess your intuition.  Expectation and habit are powerful seducers.  Know where you stand as these days progress.

 

What a Rock!

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Surprise! Alien Planet Made of Diamond Discovered

by Nola Taylor Redd, SPACE.com Contributor
Date: 25 August 2011 Time: 02:01 PM ET
This illustration shows the alien planet PSR J1719-1438, where ultra-high pressures caused carbon to crystallize in the remnant of a dead star, forming the extrasolar world. .
This illustration shows the alien planet around pulsar PSR J1719-1438, where ultra-high pressures caused carbon to crystallize in the remnant of a dead star. The planet is made of diamond and orbits a dense pulsing star with a radius smaller than that of our sun.
CREDIT: Swinburne Astronomy Productions

A newly discovered alien planet that formed from a dead star is a real diamond in the rough.

The super-high pressure of the planet, which orbits a rapidly pulsing neutron star, has likely caused the carbon within it to crystallize into an actual diamond, a new study suggests.

The composition of the planet, which is about five times the size of Earth, is not its only outstanding feature.

to read more and see the video, go to:

Comets in the Night Sky

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Comet Double Feature: Comets Elenin & Garradd Now Showing in Night Sky

by Geoff Gaherty, Starry Night Education
Date: 26 August 2011 Time: 10:00 AM ET
Comet Garradd can be seen right now with binoculars in the constellation Sagitta
Comet Garradd can be seen right now with binoculars in the constellation Sagitta

Skywatchers often ask “When’s the next comet?” In fact, if you’re prepared to do a bit of searching, there are always several comets visible in the night sky, including two right now.

Some comets are like old friends, they keep coming back at regular intervals to visit. These are called periodic comets; Comet Halley was the first such comet to be identified, by Edmond Halley back in 1705. It returns to the inner solar system every 75 to 76 years; its last appearance was in 1986 and its next will be in 2061. At present Halley is out just beyond Neptune;s orbit.

Other comets are one-time visitors: they come in to visit us from the Oort Cloud, warm themselves for a few months by the sun, and then head back out to the farthest reaches of the solar system.

to read more, go to: http://www.space.com/12746-comet-elenin-comet-garradd-night-sky-observing-tips.html

History Channel: Increase in UFO Sightings

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UFO Sightings Increase 67 Percent In 3 Years, History Channel Investigates Unexplained Aerial Phenomena

by Lee Speigel, Huffington Post

First Posted: 8/26/11 08:11 AM ET Updated: 8/26/11 10:14 AM ET

Unemployment, gas prices, and fear over global warming aren’t the only things skyrocketing — so are mysterious objects rocketing through the sky.

The Mutual UFO Network — the largest privately funded UFO research organisation in the world — tells The Huffington Post that more people than ever are reporting unidentified flying objects, mostly in the United States and Canada.

“Over the past year, we’ve been averaging 500 sighting reports a month, compared to about 300 three years ago [67 percent],” MUFON international director Clifford Clift said.

“And I get one or two production companies contacting me every week, wanting to do stories on UFOs.”

So far this week, mysterious aerial lights in Laredo, Texas, and Kansas City, MO., lived up to, at least initially, the strict definition of UFOs, namely “Unidentified” Flying Objects.

That, of course, doesn’t mean that little green men are watching us. It’s generally accepted that 95 percent of all sightings are easily dismissed. Some turn out to be conventional aircraft, others are satellites or weather balloons — and then there are the hoaxers with Photoshopped concoctions.

In the case of the Kansas City sighting, the UFOs turned out to be the Army Golden Knights parachuting team, performing a nighttime jump. But the explanation for the blinking light over Laredo is still up for grabs.

However, the remaining 5 percent of all UFO reports aren’t as easily explained. And many of them are reported by commercial and military pilots. These were examined on “Secret Access: UFOs On The Record,” a new History Channel documentary that premiered on Thursday.

WATCH: UFOs OVER KANSAS CITY:

for more and the video, go to:    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/26/ufos-pilots-history-channel_n_935847.html