Reed Flute Cave

Reed Flute Cave is the largest and the most impressive natural landmark and tourist attraction in Guilin, Guangxi, China. The reed flute cave is over 180 million years old. It was discovered in the 1940s by a group of refugees. The reed flute cave has received many VIPs.

This cave, marked on the most travel itineraries, got its name from the reeds growing in this region, with which people make pipes and flutes.
The cave is divided into different parts. It served as a war refuge for many people during World War II.
Inside the Reed Flute Cave is a spectacular world of different stalactites and rock formations shimmering with amazing colors of artificial lighting. It all creates an impressive effect!

world's youngest tattoo artist

Youngest Tattoo Artist In The World

Most three-year-old girls are just getting to grips with felt pens, but Ruby Dickinson is taking her artistic tendencies a step further.

The toddler is set to become the world's youngest tattoo artist after learning the trade from her father, Blane, who runs a tattoo parlour in Wales.

Mr Dickinson, 36, is importing an ink gun from the U.S. that has been specially designed to be used by small hands.

Ruby will be getting the miniature tattoo kit for her fourth birthday in October.

Mr Dickinson told North Wales Pioneer: 'Ruby is well aware she is getting the kit, she cannot wait. She wants to be a tattoo artist when she grows up.

'The aim is to get her to tattoo my leg with a birthday message for my 40th birthday.'

The toddler currently takes tattoo lessons after nursery as well as practising with a toy kit at her father's shop.

Mr Dickinson hopes to beat Canadian Emilie Darrigade's record of tattooing part of a butterfly on to her father's arm when she was five.

According to her father, Ruby is nearly able to draw a complete version of her favourite design - a spider.

'I'm under no illusions that she'll do a Van Gogh, after all she's only three-and-a-half,' Mr Dickinson told The Sun.

'But I've got 70 per cent of my body covered in tattoos already and it'll only be the size of a 2p piece, so I'm not too worried she'll make a mess of it.'

Mr Dickinson, who runs Inkaholics Anonymous at his home in Penmaenmawr, Conwy, added: 'It'll be a proud and very special moment for me and for her.

'She really loves it and I'm pleased I can teach her the skills.'

However, despite hoping Ruby will take up tattooing as a career, the toddler's father is keen to let her make her own choices.

Source:- Unique Daily

Couple's amazing escape from car crash

Astonished police officers have told how a husband and wife walked from the mangled wreckage of a car with barely a scratch after a head on collision with a lorry.

All that's left of the family saloon are the seats and the airbags after the car drove straight into the truck trying to overtake another vehicle in Collion, Switzerland.

The roof was ripped right off as the car slid under the truck for more than 50 yards before stopping, sending the doors and the boot lid flying too.

And the impact pushed the car's engine sideways as it turned around on its mountings missing the French couple by inches.

"They must have had a guardian angel. A head-on crash with a lorry is not something many people walk away from.

"In fact the lorry driver came off worse. He's still in hospital with shock," said a Swiss police spokesman.

A sudden geomagnetic storm, the strongest in the past 18 months, was caused by the Sun.

The geomagnetic storm that began on April 5 still continues, although it is subsiding. The maximum strength is most likely over. The storm has reached geomagnetic K-index 7 out of 10, the strongest in the past 540 days, since October 2008.

According to a warning issued by Russian scientists on the website of the space observatory Tesis, the storm of such strength may “affect global power systems requiring voltage correction and cause false security systems alarms.” Spacecrafts may be damaged, as well as communication systems and satellite navigation systems. Northern Lights will be observed even in midlatitudes. Acute cardiovascular diseases are not ruled out.

It is hard to say how exactly the planet was damaged. Exceptionally bright Northern Lights were observed from the orbit by astronauts working at the ISS. Japanese member of the team Soiti Noguti even took a picture of this bright sight. In the picture, the station looks like it is floating in outbursts of fire.

The scientists were surprised that there were no precursors for this strong geomagnetic storm. It was caused by certain processes on rather quiet Sun. For instance, on April 3 there was an outburst on the Sun, but it was so weak that it was not even paid much attention to. Yet, the outburst did not subside quickly as it usually happens but lasted for over seven hours. It was catastrophically long and it was not considered in the forecasts.

Scientists stated that “a huge energy that was to be released during the outburst was underestimated. In general, the incident shows that the connection between outbursts on the Sun and emissions of solar matter that causes geomagnetic storms cannot be considered a solved issue of solar physics.”

The beginning of the storm was rather weak. Later the state of magnetosphere radically changed.

Geomagnetic K-index reflecting geomagnetic fluctuations has increased from 4 to 7 in 3 hours. According to the American classification, it was G3 storm, a strong one, of the last, red, level of danger.

It is hardly likely that the cataclysm will repeat, but it cannot be ruled out completely. Unpredictability of the Sun is scary. The shocking scenario described by specialists of the American Academy of Sciences does not look that unrealistic. In the report “ Severe Space Weather Events--Understanding Societal and Economic Impacts: A Workshop Report ” they predict maximum solar activity by 2012 and, respectively, strongest outbursts and geomagnetic storms. They envisage that fluctuations will damage high-voltage power lines and transformer substations, which will leave the planet without electricity.

Unfortunately, this is not that unrealistic. Similar damages, if not even worse ones (remember "2012" movie), can be caused by long stronger outbursts of 7 hours.

underwater plane

A new "underwater plane" will plunge wealthy riders down into the ocean depths for a hefty fee.

U.K. company Virgin Limited Edition recently announced the Necker Nymph, a three-person "aero-submarine" that can dive to depths of 36,000 feet – which is deeper than Mount Everest is tall.

The Necker Nymph vehicle is designed and built by San Francisco-based Hawkes Ocean Technologies and is based on the company's DeepFlight series of submersibles.

Virgin bills the Necker Nymph as a "a new class of high-performance, positively buoyant vehicles which safely extend the overall capabilities of scuba, while offering the unique experience of underwater flight."

Unlike conventional subs, which use ballast to sink in the water, the Necker Nymph uses "uses downward 'lift' on the wings to fly down to depth," Virgin explained in a statement.

Each dive can last up to two hours, during which time the "hydrobatic" Necker Nymph can perform dolphin-like flips underwater. An open cockpit provides a near 360-degree viewing experience.

Virgin says the Necker Nymph has "near-zero" environmental impact: "Its positive buoyancy prevents the sub from landing on a reef, and its low light and noise emissions ensure the fragile ocean ecosystems remain undisturbed."

But unless you're incredibly wealthy, don't expect to experience a ride aboard the Necker Nymph anytime soon. The craft is only available if you rent Necker Belle, Virgin's 105-foot (32-meter) luxury catarmaran. The boat's weekly charter rate is U.S. $88,000. Rent the Necker Nymph will cost an additional U.S. $25,000 per week.

Virgin and its founder Sir Richard Branson have a reputation for building extreme vehicles. Virgin Galactic recently unveiled a space plane, called SpaceShipTwo, that will ferry tourists to suborbital space.

Source:- msnbc.msn.com

Anchorage and Wasilla Tax Day Tea Party Events

Between teaching morning and evening UAA classes, I spent over three hours at the noon Anchorage, and tea time Wasilla Tea Party events Thursday. I took about 40 pictures and interviewed 63 people. I polled them on actions, views and hopes.

It was a brisk and sunny early afternoon in Anchorage, with most people donning gloves for warmth. In the mid-afternoon semi-sun in Wasilla, it was warmer, and people seemed more comfortable with the air.

Though the chill was gone from the air, at first, I felt the people in Wasilla were more icy. Part of the reason for this, was that the Wasilla event was fairly tightly organized, and speakers from a trailer podium egged them on, one stating the local police were there to keep liberals from disrupting the event.

I counted two of us. In Anchorage there had been almost 20. There were no disruptions whatsoever at either event. The Wasilla cheerleader was using red herring pom-poms.

I counted 225 in Anchorage at 1:30. When I left the Wasilla event at 5:20, I had counted about 500. More people were arriving than leaving when I left Wasilla.

My overall impression was one of frustration, more than of anger from participants. Only a few people refused to talk to me, all middle-aged males. Many conversations ended upbeat and warm.

I had hoped to poll about 90 people between the two events, but only got 42 in Anchorage and 21 in Wasilla. Discussions during and after polling slowed the process.

In Wasilla, I bumped into several friends who I hadn't seen in a long time. From coaching, scouting, shooting and directing the Valley's community band for 13 years, I've made a lot of friends from all across the political spectrum. We had catching up to do whenever I encountered old friends. Kids I've coached honked from the Parks Highway, rolled down their windows and yelled messages from their siblings to me, as they waited for lights to change from red to green.

The demography of the Wasilla crowd was very different from that of last year's tax day rally, as my Part Two report tomorrow may clearly show. I'll go through the polls in a post then. For now, here are some pictures.

Anchorage:

Wasilla:
Other Alaska Coverage:

Living in Tok - Tea Party

The Alaska Dispatch

The Anchorage Daily News

Andrew Halcro

KTUU TV - intensely dishonest journalism by Jason Lamb
Progressivealaska
The Mudflats

Tags: Tax Day, Tea Party Events, Anchorage, Wasilla

Common toads can detect earthquakes in advance

Believe it or not, common toads can detect quakes up to five days in advance, say scientists.

For centuries, animals, from dogs to rats, snakes and chickens, are said to have behaved strangely before a quake -- but their impulses have never been scientifically established.

Now, a team at The Open University has found that the toads are able to predict imminent earthquakes, after studying a population of common toads outside L'Aquila in central Italy before last year's tremors hit.

They noticed that even though it was the creature's important breeding season, nearly 96 per cent of male toads abandoned the area five days before the earthquake struck in April, 'The Daily Telegraph' reported.

The number of paired toads at the breeding site also dropped to zero three days before the earthquake. No fresh spawn was found at the site from the date that the earthquake struck to the date of the last significant aftershock.

Breeding sites are male-dominated and the toads would normally remain in situ from the point that breeding activity begins, to the completion of spawning, the scientists say.

Lead author Dr Rachel Grant said: "Our study is one of the first to document animal behaviour before, during and after an earthquake.

"Our findings suggest that toads are able to detect pre-seismic cues such as the release of gases and charged particles, and use these as a form of earthquake early warning system."

It is believed that just before an earthquake radon gas and gravity waves are released from the earth which are then reflected back by the atmosphere and detected by toads, according to the scientists.

The findings have been published in the 'Journal of Zoology'.