Video Scenes Pulled from Peoples' Thoughts

“Some scenes decode better than others,” said Gallant. “We can decode talking heads really well. But a camera panning quickly across a scene confuses the algorithm.

clipped from www.livescience.com Dr. Gallant and his colleague Shinji Nishimoto have used fMRI to scan the brains of two patients as they watched videos. "A computer program was used to search for links between the configuration of shapes, colors and movements in the videos, and patterns of activity in the patients’ visual cortex. "It was later fed more than 200 days’ worth of YouTube internet clips and asked to predict which areas of the brain the clips would stimulate if people were watching them. "Finally, the software was used to monitor the two patients’ brains as they watched a new film and to reproduce what they were seeing based on their neural activity alone. "Remarkably, the computer program was able to display continuous footage of the films they were watching — albeit with blurred images." This appears to be the first instance in which video scenes were recovered; previous work has been done to recover spatial memories seen in the hippocampus via fMRI.

Swiss referendum 'reflects unease with Islam'

clipped from news.bbc.co.uk As a Swiss referendum backs a ban on the building of minarets, the BBC's Islamic affairs analyst Roger Hardy looks at the often uneasy relationship between Islam and Europe. But it is not just in Switzerland that the presence of growing Muslim communities has polarised opinion. Since the attacks of 9/11 in the United States, and the bombings in Madrid and London, Muslims have often been regarded as a security threat. For governments anxious to maintain social harmony at home and good relations with Muslim governments abroad, this poses a set of difficult dilemmas. And for many of the estimated 15 million Muslims in Western Europe, the Swiss vote will be seen as one more sign that - whatever governments may say - they are simply not welcome.

Remember those dreamlike images of Dubai? Guess what. You WERE dreaming

The Guardian says you were dreaming, oh well....

Dubai's fantasy skyline seems to have been built on sand

clipped from www.guardian.co.uk Monument to mammon . . . the Palm Island offshore property development in Dubai. Photograph: Jorge Ferrari/EPA I am phenomenally stupid. Stupid in every conceivable way except one: I'm dimly aware that I'm stupid. This means I spend much of my time assuming the rest of the world knows better, that everyone else effortlessly comprehends things I struggle to understand. Things like long division, or which mobile phone tariff to go for. In many ways, this is a comforting thought, as it means there's a limitless pool of people more intelligent than myself I can call on for advice. clipped from www.copytaste.com via

The Arabs Have Stopped Applauding Obama

"American arms had won a decent outcome in Iraq, but Mr. Obama would not claim it—it was his predecessor's war. Vigilance had kept the American homeland safe from terrorist attacks for seven long years under his predecessors, but he could never grant Bush policies the honor and credit they deserved. He had declared Afghanistan a war of necessity, but he seems to have his eye on the road out even as he is set to announce a troop increase in an address to be delivered tomorrow."

clipped from www.copytaste.com clipped from online.wsj.com 'He talks too much," a Saudi academic in Jeddah, who had once been smitten with Barack Obama, recently observed to me of America's 44th president. He has wearied of Mr. Obama and now does not bother with the Obama oratory. He is hardly alone, this academic. In the endless chatter of this region, and in the commentaries offered by the press, the theme is one of disappointment. In the Arab-Islamic world, Barack Obama has come down to earth. He has not made the world anew, history did not bend to his will, the Indians and Pakistanis have been told that the matter of Kashmir is theirs to resolve, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the same intractable clash of two irreconcilable nationalisms, and the theocrats in Iran have not "unclenched their fist," nor have they abandoned their nuclear quest. Mr. Obama's election has not drained the swamps of anti-Americanism. Mr. Obama has himself to blame for the disarray of his foreign policy

Dubai a city built on sand

clipped from current.com Before the desert sands close over its luxury follies, lessons should be learned – number one, don't believe the hype. Was anywhere heading for a fall so obviously as Dubai? Yet why did no one ever scream? Why did everyone just marvel? When I first visited the place three years ago, it was already the most dangerous speculative bubble on earth. Breakneck building – using reputedly a quarter of the world's cranes – was sustained on hysterical public relations and $80bn of debt. By last March the signs of impending doom were everywhere. Property and stock market prices were falling and only the PR firms were still sustaining morale, witness a cringing ITV documentary by Piers Morgan and grovelling coverage of Sol Kerzner's "world's biggest" hotel launch. Building projects worth a reported $300bn were stopping work overnight. And so castles made of sand...fall in the sea....eventually..... .....the Great Jimi Hendrix......

Laugh!

No man who has once heartily and wholly laughed can be altogether irreclaimably bad.

You can't deny laughter; when it comes, it plops down in your favorite chair and stays as long as it wants.

With the fearful strain that is on me night and day, if I did not laugh I should die.

Laughter on one's lips is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp of life.

Laughter is the sensation of feeling good all over and showing it principally in one place.

Laughing is one of my MOST favourite things to do, no doubt about it.

clipped from www.quotegarden.com I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose.  At the height of laughter, the universe is flung into a kaleidoscope of new possibilities. Even if there is nothing to laugh about, laugh on credit.  The most wasted of all days is one without laughter. Laughter is an instant vacation.  Laughter is the shortest distance between two people. When people are laughing, they're generally not killing each other. Laughter gives us distance.  It allows us to step back from an event, deal with it and then move on. A hearty laugh gives one a dry cleaning, while a good cry is a wet wash. There can never be enough said of the virtues, dangers, the power of a shared laugh. I've always thought that a big laugh is a really loud noise from the soul saying, "Ain't that the truth." Laughter is the corrective force which prevents us from becoming cranks.  A man isn't poor if he can still laugh.  A laugh is a smile that bursts. Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face.  Laugh clipped from www.youtube.com

New species of chameleon discovered after snake coughs it up in front of startled scientist

clipped from www.dailymail.co.uk Discovered: The new species - Kinyongia magomberae - was discovered when it popped out of the mouth of a twig snake in front of British scientist Dr Andrew Marshall A twig snake puffed out, which it does when it feels threatened. They can grow to a length of 3ft

Wonderful Ways to Use Epsom Salts

clipped from www.care2.com Relaxing and sedative bath Foot soak Soak sprains and bruises clipped from www.care2.com Face cleaner: To clean your face at night, mix a half-teaspoon of epsom salt with your regular cleansing cream Homemade skin mask 1 tablespoon of cognac, 1 egg, 1/4 cup of non-fat dry milk, the juice of 1 lemon, and a half-teaspoon of epsom salt. For normal to dry skin, mix 1/4 cup of grated carrot, 1 1/2 teaspoons of mayonnaise and a half-teaspoon of epsom salt. Skin exfoliator clipped from www.care2.com Remove excess oil from hair 9 tablespoons of epsom salt to 1/2 cup of oily hair shampoo. Apply one tablespoon of the liquid to your hair when it is dry; rinse with cold water. Pour lemon juice or organic apple cider vinegar through the hair, leave on for 5-10 minutes, and then rinse. Remove hairspray Hair volumizer

A Cat, A Dog, and a 'Starless Night'

by Carl Luc Campbell

clipped from www.vimeo.com

I DO NOT

This is a perfect example of how slow and difficult social change is.

But these little girls have stood up to be counted as worthy to claim their childhood and the right to choose their own partner and their own life.

I can't imagine the type of courage that must take.

clipped from www.latimes.com Her fate was all but sealed, the wedding bells ringing in her relatives' heads. Then the bride-to-be, a little girl playing in the dirt in this impoverished village, plucked up her courage and said, "I do not." The British Raj tried to stamp it out. Mohandas Gandhi, himself a child groom, campaigned against it. The United Nations has condemned it. And in 2006, the Indian government explicitly banned it. But child marriage remains pervasive in India, accounting for one-third of such unions worldwide and underscoring the contradictions and complexities of a society that produces cutting-edge engineers even as it clings to feudal traditions. "These girls are very brave," said Sarita Singh, secretary of the Rajasthan state Department of Child and Women Development. "There are enormous social forces working against them."

Time gets better with age

clipped from home.att.net TIME GETS BETTER WITH AGE Read it through to the end, it gets better as you go! I've learned that I like my teacher because she cries when we sings "Silent Night". Age 5 I've learned that our dog doesn't want to eat my broccoli either. Age 7 I've learned that when I wave to people in the country, they stop what they are doing and wave back. Age 9 I've learned that just when I get my room the way I like it, Mom makes me clean it up again. Age 12 I've learned that if you want to cheer yourself up, you should try cheering someone else up. Age 14 I've learned that although it's hard to admit it, I'm secretly glad my parents are strict with me. Age 15 I've learned that silent company is often more healing than words of advice. Age 24 I've learned that brushing my child's hair is one of life's great pleasures. Age 26 I've learned that wherever I go, the world's worst drivers have followed me there. Age 29

Major Malik Nadal Hasan.......But First A “Shout Out” to Obama’s Bud

No reason I can’t go golfing, shoot some hoops, and hit the town with Michelle.

President Bush used to break into tears when addressing soldiers and was reviled as a stone-hearted warmonger; Donald Rumsfeld was demonized for using a machine to sign notification letters to fallen soldiers’s next-of-kin. President Obama gives out rounds of virtual fist-bumps to his buds before even mentioning a slaughter of American soldiers, perpetrated by Americans, in mid-America.

We desperately need an adult in the White House. Sadly, today’s press conference proves we do not have one.

(Incidentally, the shooter " who killed 12 people with two handguns " is reportedly an adherent of the Religion of Peace who was incensed about being sent to war.)

clipped from newsrealblog.com Shortly after Major Malik Nadal Hasan opened fire at the largest activity duty armored post in the United States, Ft. Hood in Texas, President Barack Obama held a press conference to address the issue. Before getting around to the shooting that had already claimed a dozen lives and wounded at least 31 people, he began his remarks by saying: I want to thank my Cabinet members and senior administration officials who participated today. I hear that Dr. Joe Medicine Crow (ph) was around, and so I want to give a shout out to that Congressional Medal of Honor winner. It’s good to see you. The quotation says it all: our commander-in-chief feels there is no event so serious that it cannot be prefaced by a moment of glib hipness, no solemn loss so sacred he will deny himself a moment of wry self-indulgence. Soldiers were killed? Let’s say hi to Joe first. An entire theater of war needs a plan to defeat the terrorists who struck America on 9/11?

World in Motion - Digital Camera Photographer of the Year 2009

In the space of 20 weeks, the world’s biggest photo contests, Digital Camera magazine’s Photographer of the Year, received a massive 101,000 online entries from 126 countries.The overall £10,000 prize winner will be announced at the exhibition of winning and commended entries, taking place at Mall Galleries, London. The exhibit will be open to the public from the 9th – 13th December. A full list of the shortlisted entries across all 10 categories can be seen now at PhotoRadar.com - http://www.photoradar.com/news/story/digital-camera-photographer-of-the-year-shortlist-announced

clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Here are the shortlisted entries - in alphabetical order - in the World in Motion category, sponsored by the Telegraph. clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Dancer and Her Dog clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Propulsion clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk TYR clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Life in Motion clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Bird Battles clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk First Ride clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Modern Bridge clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk The Green Express clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Aqua da Musica clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Northsea clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Behind a Waterfall clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Vietnam04 clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Little Planet Dive clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Tunnel clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Soul of Mr Hitchcock clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Lunar Eclipse clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk The Chase is on? clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk The Pacu Jawi (Cow's Race) clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk The Jump clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Powder-hound clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Untitled clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk The Door clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Gobstopper clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Dewi Cahaya clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Dog Race clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Goal clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Light at the End clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Dragons clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk At the Ending Point? clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Through the Path - Nadav Dov Boretzki, Israel