Home » Archives for August 2009

How large is Betelguese?

The giant red star Betelguese the red star in the shoulder of the constellation Orion is 700 million miles across, about 800 times larger than the Sun. Light takes 1 hour to travel from one side of the giant star to the other.

What was a Wrigley Field first?

Chicago's Wrigley Field is one of the oldest and most cherished ball parks in the United States. The American tradition of singing "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the beginning of each baseball game started at Wrigley Field during the first game of the 1918 World Series. The ball park is affected by wind conditions more than any other major league park. Breezes off Lake Michigan favor pitchers, but winds blowing toward Lake Michigan make home run hits easy. It is the only park where it's more difficult to hit a homer down the foul line than to hit one 50 or so feet out in fair territory, because the bleachers protrude into the outfield.

Tari Pendet or Pendet Dance

Pendet Dance from Bali (Indonesian)

Pendet is a traditional Balinese dance, in which offerings are made to purify the temple or theater as a prelude to ceremonies or other dances. Pendet is typically performed by young girls, carrying bowls of flower petals, handfuls of which are cast into the air at various times in the dance. Pendet can be thought of as a dance of greeting, to welcome the audience and invite spirits to enjoy a performance.

Traditional Balinese dances are the oldest form of performing arts in Bali. Traditional dances can be divided into two types, sacred dance called Wali and entertainment dance called Bebalihan. Wali (sacred dance) is usually performed in some ritual ceremonies only because it has strong magical powers and only can be performed by specific dancers. Bebalihan are usually performed in social events. In addition to entertain, Bebalihan also has other purposes such as: welcoming guests, celebration of harvests, or gathering crowds. Bebalihan has more variations than Wali.

Pendet is the presentation of an offering in the form of a ritual dance. Unlike the exhibition dances that demand arduous training, Pendet may be danced by anyone. It is taught simply by imitation.

Younger girls follow the movements of the elder women, who recognize their responsibility in setting a good example. Proficiency comes with age. As a religious dance, Pendet is usually performed during temple ceremonies.

All dancers carry in their right hand a small offering of incense, cakes, water vessels, or flower formations. With these they dance from shrine to shrine within the temple. Pendet may be performed intermittently throughout the day and late into the night during temple feasts.

The original Pendet dance is performed by 4-5 young girls (before their puberty) in temple yards. Pendet dancers bring flowers in small Bokor (silver bowls for keeping flowers in a ceremony). They spread the flowers around the temple. This dance is a symbol of welcoming God in some ritual ceremonies in Bali. Pendet actually has simple dance movements. These movements are the basic dance movements of Balinese dance. Pendet has undergone later development with variations and now is not only performed in ritual ceremonies but also in some social events. Pendet since has been known as a welcoming dance.

Controversy Pendet dance

Pendet dance was used in the “Enigmatic Malaysia” tourism advertising. The fact that Pendet is unrelated to Malaysian culture, has caused protests among Indonesian public, including Balinese artists. Pendet dance is one of the many Indonesia’s originals that was and is claimed by the neighbouring country. This had caused many Indonesians to be furious about it. Although the Indonesian culture’s manager already did made reports about it, and protested it to the Malaysian tourism company.

Which of Heinlein's fabricated words entered the vernacular?

The English language has absorbed several words from his fiction, including "grok," meaning "to understand something so thoroughly that it becomes part of the observer." During his lifetime, beginning with his very first works in 1939, he was also a major influence on many other writers, who tried to emulate, with varying degrees of success, the apparently effortless skill with which he blended speculative concepts and fast-paced storytelling. Heinlein won four Hugo Awards for his novels, awarded following the year of publication.

Play online blackjack easily

No game guarantees you the first place. No online game will guarantee you the winner title. Even if you spend years practicing have a chance to lose. If we talk about online blackjack - well, probably it is the best combination of skill and luck. But you should not think that there is nothing you can do to give yourself a possibility to win if you don't consider yourself too lucky. Here we will share our visitors' top 5 advices with you. Those five will help you gain more money playing blackjack.

1: One of the most important aspects is the game choice. Don't get into wrong notion that blackjack is a standard game. There are lots of variations of it. Players usually stick to their favorite game, the one that brings them more money. However we don't recommend you to play one and same game all the time. Sometimes it makes perfect sense to try your luck with another type.

2: If you are the type of player that needs a real casino instead an online one - you better secure yourself with a club card. Player's club cards give you lots of privilege. These privileges could decrease your expenses in the casino, which is always favorable. What will a player's club card do for you? It will grant you free meals and maybe a free room on some occasions.

3: If the game doesn't look too bright or if the game requires you to come back another time - you should really stop at 17. But you should remember that this will only work in the case of no low cards appearing on the table yet. Which also means the next low card could be yours which you do not want. You should try various combinations where you can re-split or double down your cards.

4: Always stay in your mind with bets. I know sometimes it seems like the one that bets more wins more but this theory could be false. People make big bets in order to impress others around; they want to make others bet much as well. If you plan to use some kind of Blackjack system, don't make it your Bible. There is no one irresistible method for winning in Blackjack. If such method excisted, then the person that created it would definitely not be selling it to you for a few dollars. Why would they do it? Sounds a good question.

5: The fifth advice would be not to believe those silly stories about counting cards in blackjack as it is never the case. If you are some kind of a math genius, you may try that one for a change but trust me; most of us won't be able to count it up.

Another important note to remember would be not let anybody rush you or tell you how to play. As long as you know exactly what you are doing - you are safe. If you don't trust yourself with cards and you know you can put too much at steak - don't enter the casino.

Know your budget when you play. Don't ever let the casino control your life, you should control it. We wish you good luck with it and hope our advices helped you to know more about the blackjack game.

Helpful tips to online gambling newbies

When playing games that have to do with luck or chance (like poker or blackjack) there is a certain set of rules that will make your playing experience a lot more effective and exciting. These rules are not something to follow strictly, however you will see that they really help if taken into account and will save you a lot of time and stress if applied during your gaming process. The games you play, your experience or bankroll do not affect the way you should interpret these tips as they are of universal effectiveness and can be applied in most gaming situations. So here we go:

Learn the rules before actually playing a game. That is a must when thinking of playing just any game at the casino. First, you have to clearly understand the rules behind the game and make sure you understand all the terminology. You can't play blackjack if you can't count to 21. Just imagine going to a business meeting where everyone's speaking Japanese (and you don't understand any single word out of it). The same thing hare. And there's really no excuse in not knowing the rules with some many free online casinos out there today, where you can practice as much as you want.
Keep a slow pace of your gaming process. Don't net everything you have in the first 15 minutes, because gambling is about the fun of playing, not spending all you got as fast as you can. Make sure you follow your own rhythm and have something to gamble with after and hour or two into the game.
Define your playing budget. You will have to set the maximum amount of money you can afford losing during the nigh. And don't spend even a penny over this amount. Forget about your credit card and leave it at home, because the temptation of withdrawing more money will be very strong, and if you will actually do it you will have to deal with even a larger sum of money lost and all the hassle behind it.
Don't try to outplay your losses. Of course the temptation of winning over your losses with larger bets will be high, but it's definitely not the smartest thing to do. In fact, it will make the things even worse. In this case it is better to switch the table or the game altogether and start all over if you are still within your budget.
Avoid distractions. It is important to keep the focus on your gaming process. Because a simple and stupid mistake can result in a big loss. And that's really disappointing.
Don't push yourself too hard. Taking breaks is very important because it helps you stay in focus. Try refreshing yourself during the breaks and stay alert on what's happening at the table when getting back.
Keep track of your emotions. Gambling is not the best thing to do when you're angry, furious or depressed. Keep in mind that focus is the key to winning at any casino games and any emotions that will interfere with your alertness are a one way ticket to losing.
Try to have as much fun as possible. This is what gambling is all about. As long as you're having fun when playing you'll be less prone to losing money. Try to remember this and be positive about anything that happens at the table.

Ken Uston

Uston burst onto the scene in 1977 with the publication of The Big Player, co-authored with Roger Rapaport. In this book, Uston exposed the secrets of Al Francesco's big player teams. The book caused a falling out between Al and Ken that lasted for years, as Al felt Ken had betrayed his trust as well as his teammates.

But this book caused an upheaval in the world of card counting, changing the ways that professionals looked at the blackjack and attacked it. Three of the most successful international blackjack teams-the Tommy Hyland team, the MIT team, and the Czech team-all were founded in 1978, the year after Uston's book was published.

Al and Ken later patched up their relationship and Uston went on to start many blackjack teams of his own. He was a personality on a grand scale, who legally challenged the casino industry in the courts of both New Jersey and Nevada. His playing career spanned two decades of play at the highest levels, and included card counting, BP teams, hole card techniques, and concealed computer play.

Ken is also the author of Two Books on Blackjack, Million Dollar Blackjack, and Ken Uston on Blackjack.

He died in 1987 at the age of fifty-two.

Is absinthe particularly addictive?

At the height of this popularity, absinthe was portrayed as a dangerously addictive, psychoactive drug; the chemical thujone was blamed for most of its deleterious effects. By 1915 it was banned in a number of European countries and the United States. Even though it was vilified, there is no evidence showing it to be any more dangerous than ordinary alcohol although few modern medical studies have been conducted to test this. A modern absinthe revival began in the 1990s, as countries in the European Union began to reauthorize its manufacture and sale.

What happens when you can’t afford a ticket?

International flights have became very expensive. Many people say that you have to be quite wealthy nowadays to be able to do it more than twice a year. And really ... what happens when you can't afford to purchase the airway ticket? Do you have to say goodbye to your dream of going abroad by plane? NO! There are various ways of getting a good discounted price for the places you want to visit so much.

Here are some points to consider before you start packing your bags.

a) Every now and then airline decides to drop the prices. There can be many reasons for it. Some do it to win the competition and get more people on-board. This is called price war. It is all so well-planned. It starts will one airline giving travelers a good discount and that is when others start to follow. They are trying to reduce price to minimum so the costumer chooses their airline instead of the other one. Another reason could be the demand. During a slow season, there are less airplane travelers over a period of time. Airline carriers lower down their ticket prices or give discounts on them to prevent backlogs of flight travels.

If you want to get a good priced ticket you better do some research. There is nothing better than internet when you need to find information. There are various online travel sites that will grant their advices for free. You can email your questions to them which they will be happy to answer. They can advice you on how to get a cheap airway ticket when you need it.

b) Travel packages are totally the best. If booked separately they are expensive, but when you book a package trip you will be absolutely amazed by the price opportunities you might get. This works well for those who are traveling with families consisting of more than 3 people. The package usually includes: accommodation, itineraries, insurance, and plane tickets.

c) Tickets are available on the internet. There are some basic sites that sell the airway tickets for the reasonable prices. These travel sites purchase tickets from the airline carriers by bulk so they can reduce the price a little to satisfy their clients.

d) Cheap airline tickets can be obtained in special cases by some groups of people. First of all those are military people or war veterans. Age also matters as student and kids get a discount on their airline tickets.

e) It is better for you wallet to go for a smaller airline carriers. It doesn't have to be big to be safe. Remember that. What you see in movies is not what you have in reality. Search a small airline that gives you the best ticket rate.

Going on a vacation can be so entertaining. You don't have to be bothered about the cost. Get your cheap airline ticket today and forget all your worries. Airline tickets that are affordable are the best motivation to travel!

What are the origins of alchemy?

Western alchemy has always been closely connected with Hermeticism, a philosophical and spiritual system that traces its roots to Hermes Trismegistus, a syncretic Egyptian-Greek deity and legendary alchemist. These two disciplines influenced the birth of Rosicrucianism, an important esoteric movement of the seventeenth century. In the course of the early modern period, as mainstream alchemy evolved into modern chemistry, its mystic and Hermetic aspects became the focus of a modern spiritual alchemy, where material manipulations are viewed as mere symbols of spiritual transformations.

Are Metallica the kings of heavy metal?

Many would say so -- Metallica was formed in Downey, California in 1981 by drummer and son of a former prodigy, Lars Ulrich, along with guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield who he met after each had separately placed classified advertisements in the publication The Recycler. Metallica got its name when Ulrich was asked to help pick out a name for his new magazine to promote metal. They came up with a list that included "Metallica" but ended up calling it "Metal Mania. Lars decided to use "Metallica" for the band he and Hetfield had just started.

Did a newspaper create the Tour de France?

The Tour was founded as a publicity event for the newspaper L'Auto by its editor Henri Desgrange, to rival the Paris-Brest et retour ride (sponsored by Le Petit Journal), and Bordeaux-Paris. The idea for a round-France stage race is also credited to one of his journalists, Georges Lefevre, with whom Desgrange had lunch at the Cafe de Madrid in Paris on 20 November 1902. L'Auto announced the race on January 19, 1903. Promotion of the Tour de France certainly proved a great success for the newspaper; circulation leapt from 25,000 before the 1903 Tour to 65,000 after it; in 1908 the race boosted circulation past a quarter of a million, and during the 1923 Tour it was selling 500,000 copies a day.

Traveling via Mexican airways

Mexico's two main airways, Aeromexico and Mexicana de Aviacion were openly appurtenant and controlled the Mexican air traveling market for many years. Rates were so high, that the most of Mexicans and tourists have been forced to travel via bus. When these airways were privatized, some Mexican reduction airways have come in the scene, making rivalry and sending air rates down.

In the past times budget travelers have been spending a lot of long hours on buses. Mexico's bus facility might be perfect - with different service levels and well coverage everywhere in the country, but Mexico is huge country, and bus travel among destinations might take very long time. So budget travelers may consume that airway in Mexico is now a really good choice.

There are some cautions. Travel agents frequently do not involve Mexican reduction airways in their retrieves. So discovering and booking tickets may demand a lot of exploration - you'll need to visit each airway's website, plug in the source, destination and dates you would want to travel and collate rates. It is worthwhile the strain, anyway, because you might discover some truly great offers - and expending the time in front of your computer beforehand can really save you much travel time that you would expend riding the bus.

When looking for air rates with Mexican reduction airways, take in account these points:

Talk only Spanish: Websites of several airways are only in Spanish. Search for a small US of UK flag to toggle to an English version if possible.
Rates in pesos: Don't be appalled when you notice a rate is $1500 - that's not dollars, that's pesos. Ten pesos is sharply equal to one US dollar, so split the price by ten to receive a sharp point of what the rate will cost you.
Fees and taxes not involved: The primary value listed usually does not involve fees and taxes. You will see the complete price after choosing your route (but before bringing in your private data). Fees and taxes might be enormous - at time even up to 40% of air rate.
No paper plane tickets: Most of Mexican discount flights work without tickets. In place of getting a paper ticket you receive an Internet reservation code and route to print out. At the ticket bureau you grant your reservation code and present your ID to obtain your boarding admission.
Alternative airports: Mexican reduction airways can fly out of alternative airports in place of major centers. Some airways are offering turnaround amongst main destinations and airport.
Cancellations and annulment: Most discount flights permit changes to reservations ahead of the flight, and change fees are sensible. Verify your airway for final dates for changes. Annulments are generally not permitted, nor is it allowed to alter the name on the plane ticket.

Luggage weight restraints might be limiting so be certain to verify that you don't go over the limits. If you transcend the restraints you may anticipate returning additional fees.

Cheap airfares for seniors and students

Student travel prevails more and more nowadays, as more and more airways and travel agencies are selling packages, tickets to this significant piece of travelers. Students are frequently traveling and, in accordance with studies, are not as concerned in comfort, but preferably wish to achieve their destination without spending much money.

After students have caught the sights of travel facility suppliers, new kinds of facilities have been triggered to attract as many customers as possible from this piece. Although, students have small budgets, they're significant, because they are traveling often and they are numerous. The student airfares are budget plane travel possibilities that students may turn to account to lower air travel costs.

There are 3 general types of facility suppliers that are selling student airplane tickets: airlines, travel agencies, and tailored travel agencies. If you are a student, you must consider every opportunity to fly inexpensive, but which way do you purchase your discounted tickets? Well, at first, make certain that you obtain all the needed I.D's and documents. You will not find student travel offers at every travel facility supplier, but those that proffer such facilities demand particular papers, commonly accessible from your university or student organizations. This happens more frequently in the case of student travel-tailored corporations.

To purchase student airfare tickets, sometimes it's adequate to prove that you are a student. Some travel agents and airways market tickets in this easy structure. What about their profit? Well, they just draw a lot of clients and so, they market more. To search out student airfares, we advise you to check out consolidators at first. The possibility to discover such probabilities is higher amidst them than in the case of airways.

It's always better to compare among airfares proffered by several corporations and only then make a selection. Frequently, you may receive reductions on airplane tickets if you carry friends along with you. More travelers might be meaning fewer costs, but only in case the company has such proffers... About student airfares and travel, we may say, it's better for everyone to search out for himself, as the proffers and the circumstances vary from company to company, and country to country.

Senior airfares are also pretty popular facilities, proposed by airways specifically, but as well by travel agencies.

Cheap airfare tickets might be simply purchased, if you know the way to get them. All you need is an old age, if there are corporations in your country that proffer senior airfares, than all you need to do is verify their proposals and conditions of complicity, collate them and choose what you decide.

If you live in the United States, we advise you to examine the senior travel proffers of such airways like: Midwest, Alaska Airlines, and Southwest Airlines. The demanded ages vary, the common conditions of complicity are exposed to substitute, but the main idea is: the less age demanded is generally amidst 55 and 65, the reductions are approximately 10%, which is not a lot, but ponder of the thing that this way, every eleventh flight is completely free in case you turn to account these senior travel possibilities.

Which dwarves didn't make it?

No one can say just when Walt Disney began to think about undertaking his biggest project to date, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, but by the summer of 1934, his ideas were beginning to take concrete form. An exploratory outline that he distributed to his animation staff, dated August 9, 1934, included the following discussion of the dwarfs' names: "The names which follow each suggest a type of character and the names will immediately identify the character in the minds of the audience." Some of the names that were considered then discarded included Scrappy, Doleful, Crabby, Wistful, Dumpy, Soulful, Tearful, Snappy, Helpful, Gaspy, Gloomy, Busy, Dirty, Awful, Dizzy, Shifty, and Biggy-Wiggy.

What is a bibliopole?

While a bibliophile is a collector of rare books, a bibliopole is a seller of rare books.

What's happening in Asian tourism?

Tour operators, hotels and airlines are bracing for a rocky 2009 as the global financial crisis hits long haul travel. Asia has been experiencing a travel boom with a massive range of geography from the snow-capped Himalayas to some of the best beaches in the world. But last year saw a drop in numbers. This year, negative growth is expected all round. Let's put this in context. The United Nation's World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) showed the loss of tourism business most strongly in the Asia-Pacific region as compared to the Americas, the Middle East, Europe and Africa. This is echoed by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) which is warning that global airlines are facing possible collapse as revenues fall. The consequence is that between 300,000-400,000 jobs are at risk in air transport, travel and tourism sectors. Why is the fall so bad in Asia? The answer is this is not simply an economic problem. Tourism was doing well in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Macao until the news media began carrying stories of political and other problems. There was a major protest in Thailand that shut down Bangkok's airport for a week. As a result, more than a million tourists cancelled their bookings. In India, the terrorist attack in Mumbai was directed at the top hotels and the tourists, and the result has been a general drop in travel to all Indian destinations, even those pure tourism areas like Goa - bookings down 25%. Sri Lanka has become a war zone in the public's imagination and Macao's visitor numbers have been affected by a cutback in the number of visas issued by China. These destinations are now anxiously courting business through promotional prices. Even the best hotels in the most favored destinations are discounting. In places like Singapore and Hong Kong, room occupancy is down to around two-thirds and, to maintain their competitiveness, there are a whole range of incentives for those prepared to make longer journeys. In short, there has never been a better time to think of planning a holiday in Asia. Although there will be some security concerns - everyone wants to relax when they are on holiday - the region is once again calm and anxious to rebuild its tourist business. With support from their governments, all the airlines carrying tourists to Asia are offering cheap air tickets. Because room occupancy rates across the region are way down, there are genuine bargains to be had for both short and long-stay holidays. If you are prepared to invest a little time in researching the market, you will be able to find amazing value. How do we know? Because the regional tourist boards are forecasting 3% growth in numbers over the next three years. The hotel and restaurant trade and the airlines are integral parts of the regional economy. Governments are dipping into their reserves to encourage more tourism. In real terms, there has never been a better chance of finding cheap air tickets than over the next six to eight months.

Storks are not the only safe way of flying a baby

Those of us who write these articles sometimes struggle to find a way of introducing our theme and making it relevant. But, today, it's a pleasing coincidence that a bird should be the one creature associated with the delivery of a baby. Any other choice would make it really difficult to link an article on pregnancy and babies to flight. Let's start off with the myths. Traveling in a pressurised cabin is safe. There is no risk that silicone implants will explode or that any fetus will be injured (not that the two are in any way connected, of course). Indeed, many women travel before they know they are pregnant and no harm is caused. There is absolutely no medical evidence that flying causes any disruption to the development of the baby. There are no verifiable incidents of miscarriage or pre-term labor associated with short or long haul flights. So long as the mother is healthy and the pregnancy is progressing as it should, mothers-to-be may safely fly up to the end of the third trimester. The ban on flying only arises during the last four weeks of the pregnancy. This is for purely practical purposes. After thirty-six weeks, a woman can go into labor somewhat unpredictably and, although it might represent a slightly different take on the mile-high club, airplanes are not set up as flying maternity wards to protect the privacy of the mother or the health of the new-born baby should complications arise. In fact, some airlines require a doctor's certificate after the twenty-seventh week that the mother is healthy and no problems are expected, with the final decision resting with the captain as to whether the mother can fly. Once the baby is born, everything changes. The first issue to consider is the ban on carrying liquids, gels, etc. Check the airport rules for the countries in which you propose to fly on what you are allowed to take on board the plane itself. When you get to the airport and check in, go to the security desk with the baby before you try to pass through to the secured area. Allow a full inspection of food, formula and bottled water. The good news is that you are not required to taste the food yourself, but everything may have to be x-rayed. The airline also need to know in advance so that proper seating arrangements can be made. Most provide special restraint seats that can be strapped into the conventional seats. Make sure the appropriate ticketing arrangements have been made. Beware some low-cost airlines have hidden charges for carrying babies. Take diapers and changes of clothing in case they throw up. There is no reason why families cannot travel safely and economically. There are packages available giving cheap tickets and discounts for other services. All you have to do is to search through the online travel agencies to find the cheap flight deals .

Why is there a string on my box of cookies?

The Animal Crackers box is designed with a string handle because the animal shaped cookie treats introduced in 1902 as a Christmas novelty were packaged so they could be hung from Christmas trees.The Animal Crackers box is designed with a string handle because the animal shaped cookie treats introduced in 1902 as a Christmas novelty were packaged so they could be hung from Christmas trees.

How to get free airway ticket?

Step 1:

SCHEDULE YOUR FLIGHT DURING BUSY SCHOOL VACATION WEEKS. Allow yourself to be sly a bit. Airlines are overbooked during the busy vacation weeks. What happens is that some airlines will offer passengers that have tickets some vouchers to give up their seat in exchange for a guaranteed seat on either the next plane or one shortly after. Knowing this fact and considering it further you can make the situation work out the way you want. What you have to do is refuse on the first voucher airline offers. Wait some more time to see how much the airline is ready to offer you, before you take your seat. You will be surprised about the amount of money airline is ready to give you. If the airline is bountiful enough, you might walk out with a possibility to afford two tickets to a fantastic country and accommodation to go with it.

Step 2:

OPEN AND CLOSE AIRLINE CREDIT CARDS. A lot of airlines have the credit card programs that can be quite interesting. We will explain why they are. You can earn frequent flyer miles for every dollar charged by the company. Some airlines only offer these cards to people in their frequent flyer program so you may have to join their program first. You could open these credit cards with different airline companies. The next step would be to use promotional bonus miles just for opening the accounts and then close the accounts days before the annual fee kicks in.

Step 3:

BECOME AN INTERNATIONAL AIR COURIER. As you will recommend yourself as a courier that can be trusted and relied on you will star seeing new opportunities coming your way. These opportunities will include free international travels. Such pleasant moments do happen but they are truly unexpected. You might be offered to travel the very next morning or the same evening. If you can prepare yourself for the trip on time, consider yourself to be a lucky person. This may not be the most attractive method for people with family responsibilities but for young people who want to see the world, being able to fly on a moments notice can equal to a free airline ticket.

We gave you this inside scoop on how to get a free ticket for you to know your possibilities. Airline tickets could be given to you absolutely free, but not when you sit home doing nothing. Cheap airline tickets are easy to find too. So pay or get them free it is totally up to you. The world is full of chances to travel without making a bib financial effort. Use them wisely.

How much did the Liberty Bell?

About 1,500,000 people annually make a pilgrimage to the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The length of the bell's famous, zigzag fracture has been measured at 2 feet, 4 inches. Its circumference around its lip is 12 feet. The bell's clapper measures 3 feet, 2 inches and weighs 44.5 pounds. The bell's composition is 70 percent copper, 25 percent tin, small amounts of lead, zinc, arsenic, gold, and silver. The cost of the bell, including insurance and shipping from the manufacturer in London, was 150 pounds, 13 shillings, and 8 pence.

Why is the Philippines so popular with divers?

A virtual underwater playground with its breathtaking coral, the Philippines draws thousands of divers from Japan, China, and Taiwan each year.

What were some of Harrison Ford's most popular movies?

Ironically, there was an American silent-era film actor named Harrison Ford. Born on March 16, 1884 in Kansas City, Missouri, this Harrison Ford made films from 1915 to 1931, including Zander the Great (1925), The Price of a Party (1924), Vanity Fair (1923), Her Beloved Villain (1920), A Lady In Love (1920), Hawthorne of the U.S.A. (1919), Girls (1919), and Experimental Marriage (1919). He died in 1957 in Woodland Hills, California the "other" Harrison Ford of Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Fugitive, and Clear and Present Danger fame, was just 15 years old at that time.

The world may be a smaller place but costs keep rising

One hundred years ago, to get anywhere fast, you were on the railway to the nearest port to get on a ship. Now imagine the rate of progress humanity made in this way, and it will make you proud of human achievements. What used to take weeks in some cases is now hours, sometimes in airplanes that can carry amazing numbers of people. For example, the A380 is allowed to carry 853 passengers in an economy class set-up. So, if you do the math, sharing the cost of the fuel and writing off the cost of the plane, 853 people can travel more cheaply than a hundred or so in a smaller plane. It looks like discount, isn't it? Discounted travel comes in different forms. The other way in which saving are made is to cut out all the "extras". Some airlines provide a high standard of passenger care. When you arrive in the airport, you are moved into a special lounge, offered a drink and a rundown. Then it's on to the plane with food and entertainment provided. This makes your business travel look like some kind of cruise. Go through a budget airport and you see a rather different approach to transport.

Curiously, some airlines have been influenced to the current recession and drop in passenger numbers by increasing their ticket prices. Many airlines tried discounting and that did not tempt passengers back into the air so they reasoned that, if people had to fly, they would pay more. The more they pay, the less money airline loses during the recession. Many airlines in other countries (including US and in Europe) are playing a backdoor game with their prices. They advertise a headline price but charge for a lot of extras. What may be added in? Well, let's take something "simple" like your baggage. Carry one small bag over your shoulder weighing less than 7kg on to the plane and you're safe. Anything else counts as excess baggage and, when you get to the airport, you're expected to pay a charge for checking luggage through the handling system, plus a hefty fee for every kilo over your free allowance of 7kg. If you failed to use the online check-in system, there can be a fee for doing it in person at the airport. And so forth...

When you're looking for discount flights remember the airlines are also looking for you. They want to attract your business so they will try to make the deal look sweet but take your money in others ways. Remember what the price is before the discount kicks in. The Indian airlines have been increasing their prices so, even when a discount flights are offered, this is not as cheap as it looks. There is no right and wrong answer on all of this. You look carefully at all the discount flight offers, identify all the add-ons and extras, and you try to pick the best deal. Waiting until close to your departure date is a good strategy. Prices always fall in the last few days before departure. Just don't wait until all the seats have been sold.

Where does most cheating take place?

According to Gambler's Digest, more cheating takes place in private, friendly gambling games than in all other gambling games combined.

Hints to help you increase your chances playing online casinos games

Read through the tips we bring here to raise your opportunities at the casino. We are sure they will help you to considerably benefit.

1. Game rules are the first thing to get aware of.

Different websites proffer test online gambles in order to introduce them to you. So, don't hesitate and take one your chance to get familiar with the games you would like to play at the casino. Proper knowledge of the game makes the gambler to win it at any difficulty. This is the movement towards the player's fortune. It is suggested that you'd never play the game you are not really familiar with. Ask any other online client to explain you the game in every detail - that will help you to play fast and win the game easily.

2. It's very important to stay calm when you're playing.

If you're playing fast and winning fast as well, don't make yourself confident that next jackpot will be yours. This haughtiness and presumptuousness will make you want to play again and again without any sensible reason. You should gamble with your mind focused on the game, not your emotions being spilled out. The smart wins at all times.

2. Don't drink alcohol while gambling.

Yes, this seems to be real that free drinks proffered at the casinos make the gamblers step into it. This is the main weapon at most of the casinos - provide free drinks to make players less concentrated on the gamble and play more and more. Your thinking capability and concentration reduces while you play and drink at the same time. So it is always best to not drink while you're gambling. Make your intellect and body completely focused on the gamble to make your victory categorical.

4.Always be wise making stakes.

While you are stepping ahead for playing, make a proper settlement to expend the strict sum of money . Take out the paper and pen or just notify the same in your thoughts - how much you need to expend the day you are planning to gamble. And yes, don't stray away from your settlement. Playing again and again could for certain empty your pockets and make you spend your money limitlessly. In case you win and some bonus is offered with other different winnings - save the money you've won. Don't waste and spend them for playing once again. Try to control the winnings for subsequent use.

5. Don't boast of your victory.

Don't enlarge on your winnings and on how good you are in a gamble. Tricks and tips are some of the aspects that you might tell as sort of guidance to some other player. But as well don't make it a habit to tell too much for the victory and how great are you in the gambling. Don't leak that out in front of others. Each online casino has a paymaster to take care of your capital. Be certain to lock that fund before you leave the casino.

No doubt, in gambling all depend on fortune. So relying on the fortune too much isn't wise . The tips provided above could surely make you understand some tricks and smart tips to win blackjack and other games that will truly increase you chances to easily win the game.

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The U.S. county that occupies the smallest area is New York County -- Manhattan. Despite its small area, Manhattan is considered one of the world's foremost commercial, financial, and cultural centers. It is renowned for its many points of interest. Among these are Broadway, one of the world's best-known streets, Wall Street, skyscrapers such as the Empire State Building and the World Trade Center, Greenwich Village, Central Park, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Metropolitan Opera House, the Museum of Modern Art, Columbia University, and New York University.

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A fetus in the womb can hear. Tests have shown that fetuses respond to various sounds just as vigorously as they respond to pressures and internal sensations.