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A day after an orbiter's radio shutdown blocked NASA from telling its newly planted Phoenix Mars lander what to do, orders were on the way to get its robotic arm moving.

 A UHF radio on the Mars Reconnaissance orbiter turned off Tuesday, preventing it from relaying the command from NASA to the lander to begin to unfurl its 8-foot robotic arm.

Mission leaders said the incident caused a one-day delay in preparations for getting the spacecraft ready to begin its key scientific experimentation: digging up icy soil samples for testing from its location in Mars' northern arctic region.

Fuk Li, manager of the Mars exploration program for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., said the glitch may have resulted from a cosmic ray.

But he and others said the problem was minor, and by the end of the day Tuesday the orbiter's radio had resumed working, relaying Phoenix's images of the Martian landscape back to earth.

The orbiter is one of two circling Mars that is being used in conjunction with the lander's mission. Even with the Mars Reconnaissance orbiter's glitch fixed, officials were sticking with their plan to use the Mars Odyssey, the second orbiter, to relay commands to Phoenix during its morning orbital pass on Wednesday, lab spokeswoman Veronica McGregor said.

The lander has delighted scientists with the first-ever peek of the planet's northern arctic region since it descended onto the Martian landscape Sunday. The terrain where Phoenix settled is relatively flat with polygon-shaped patterns in the ground likely caused by the expansion and contraction of underground ice.

Peter Smith of the University of Arizona, the mission's principal researcher, and his colleague Alfred McEwen, who operates the camera aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, said photos taken since the landing show that Phoenix is at the edge of a trough that will make an ideal place for digging.

Smith said plans had called for maneuvers Tuesday to unhook the lander's 8-foot robotic arm from a protective sleeve that held it in place.

The arm is at the heart of the lander's scientific functions during its three-month experiment.

Phoenix will dig into the soil with the arm to reach ice believed to be buried inches to a foot deep. It's part of the effort to study whether the site could have supported primitive life.

Among the things it will look for is whether the ice melted in Mars' history and whether the soil samples contain traces of organic compounds, one of the building blocks of life.

Smith said it would be "hard to conceive" that there isn't ice beneath the lander, given that the landscape is 80 percent ice for the first meter of ground.

Images taken from the Reconnaissance Orbiter's camera showed the lander on the ground with its two solar panels deployed, the spacecraft's jettisoned heat shield and its parachute.

Another series of photos taken by the lander's camera displayed the surrounding landscape and low hills about nine miles away on the horizon.

Weather information gathered by the mission's Canadian Space Agency team showed temperatures ranged between minus 22 degrees and minus 112 degrees Fahrenheit "milder than they could be in other places" Smith said.

On the Net : http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/

and I love to sing with her.

A new robot that walks like humans is one of the most advanced of its kind.

Attempts to get robots moving like people typically result in very stilted gaits and limited range of motion.

Human walking is "really very similar to falling forward in a controlled fashion," researchers at TU Delft in The Netherlands explained. "Adopting this method replaces the cautious, rigid way in which robots walk with the more fluid, energy-efficient movement used by humans."

The new robot, Flame, weighs about 40 pounds (15 kg) and is 4 feet tall (1.3 meters). Its got several moving joints attenuated by springs. An inertia sensor (called an "organ of balance") helps keep the 'bot stable. Seven motors get it all going.

Flame can move at 1 mph (0.45 meters per second) and deal with steps down as long as they're not more than one-third of an inch (8 mm).

As it walks, swaying side-to-side like a flat-footed human, Flame uses its organ of balance to dictate how far apart its feet are placed, to prevent falls.

Project leader Daan Hobbelen gets his Ph.D. this week for all the work. Hobbelen said Flame is the most advanced walking robot in the world, at least in the category of robots which apply the human method of walking as a starting principle.

Research done to build the robot provides insight into how people walk, the researchers say, and this could lead to better training and rehabilitation equipment.

http://www.livescience.com/php/video/player.php?video_id=080522-flame-robot-walk

I want this one !! 

Researchers have identified seven possibilities for the next generation of mosquito repellant, some of which may work several times longer than the current standard-bearer, DEET. The next step: safety testing to make sure they're not harmful.

While the new repellants aren't likely to be available commercially for a few years, early tests on cloth were promising, with some chemicals repelling mosquitoes for as long as 73 days and many working for 40 to 50 days, compared to an average of 17.5 days with DEET, according to a study in Tuesday's edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Biting insects such as mosquitoes and ticks can spread diseases such as encephalitis, Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, malaria and dengue Fever.

Several of the new chemicals "were just phenomenal," said Ulrich R. Bernier, a research chemist at the Agriculture Department's mosquito and fly research unit in Gainesville, Fla. "I was so surprised."

Bernier, a co-author of the study, said he regularly receives new repellants from people and he ends up writing them back to say they don't work.

In this case, researchers funded by the Defense Department set out to determine what makes repellants work, and then to use that information in finding more effective ways to chase away disease-carrying insects, Bernier explained in a telephone interview.

"We thought, can we do a better job of designing repellants?" Bernier said.

Using USDA data on hundreds of chemicals collected over 50 years, researchers led by Alan R. Katritzky of the University of Florida rated chemicals from "1" to "5" on ability to repel insects, and then focused on what the most effective ones — the 5s — had in common.

Focusing on a type of chemical known as N-acylpiperidines, they narrowed the study down to 34 molecules — 23 that had never been tested before and 11 that had — Bernier explained. .

From those, the 10 most effective were narrowed down to seven, with eliminations based on concerns about toxicity and high cost to produce.

The tests were done on cloth treated with the chemicals and then placed on the arms of volunteers.

This summer, safety tests will begin on the seven, Bernier said, to make sure they are safe to use directly on the skin.

While the military is paying for the research, any success is expected to benefit the general public too.

The current standard for repellants, DEET (N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide), was also originally developed for military use in 1946 and was registered for use on civilians in 1957.

While DEET has a good safety record, some people dislike its odor and others worry about safety for some individuals, especially children and pregnant women.

The Environmental Protection Agency says that DEET has been implicated in seizures among children, but there is not enough information to confirm it as the cause of the incidents.

EPA estimates that as much as one-third of the U.S. population uses products containing DEET every year to repel biting insects such as ticks and mosquitoes.

ON THE NET : http://www.pnas.org/

I hate the mosquitoes!!! they make me like a strainer !!!!

http://www.fractalism.com/fractals/geometry.htm

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Those three little words, "I Love You", hold a lot of meaning, but there's more ways to say them than you think. Here are 101 different ways !!! I don't know there will be some words more.

I adore you.

I am infatuated with you.

I appreciate you.

I can't live without you.

I can't stop thinking about you when we're apart.

I cherish you.

I dream of you.

I live for our love.

I love being around you.

I need you by my side.

I need you.

I respect you.

I value you.

I want a lifetime with you.

I want you.

I worship you.

I yearn for you.

I'm a better person because of you.

I'm blessed to have you in my life.

I'm devoted to you.

I'm fond of you.

I'm lost without you.

I'm nothing without you.

I'm passionate about you.

I'm thankful for you.

I'm yours.

Me and you. Always.

My love is unconditional.

Our love is invaluable.

Take me, I'm yours.

The thought of you brings a smile to my face.

Ti tengu cara (to female) or Ti tengu caru (to male).

Together, forever.

We were meant to be together.

You are a blessing in disguise.

You are an angel from God.

You are like a candle burning bright.

You are my crush.

You are my dear.

You are my everything.

You are my heart's desire.

You are my life.

You are my one and only.

You are my one true love.

You are my reason for living.

You are my strength.

You are my sunshine.

You are my treasure.

You are my world.

You are precious.

You are the light of my life.

You are the reason I'm alive.

You bring happiness to rainy days.

You bring joy to my life.

You cast a spell on me that can't be broken.

You complete me.

You drive me wild.

You fill me with desire.

You fill my heart.

You give me wings to fly.

You had me from hello.

You hold the key to my heart.

You inspire me.

You intoxicate me.

You lift me up to touch the sky.

You light my flame.

You light up my life.

You make me hot.

You make my heart skip a beat.

You make my world a better place.

You mean the world to me.

You motivate me.

You rock my world.

You seduce me.

You set my heart on fire.

You simply amaze me.

You stole my heart.

You sweeten my sour days.

You turn my world upside down.

You turn the darkness into life.

You're a dream come true.

You're a gem.

You're a twinkle in my eye.

You're absolutely wonderful.

You're all I want.

You're as beautiful as a sunset.

You're beautiful.

You're charming.

You're enchanting.

You're heavenly.

You're my angel.

You're my perfect match.

You're one in a million.

You're priceless.

You're sexy.

You're the apple of my eye.

You're the best thing that ever happened to me.

You're the best.

You're the diamond in the rough.

You're the one for me.

You're the one I've always wished for.

 

STOP!

 

How beautiful love is..

 

 

 

 

 

honey,
it's been a long time coming,
and i can't stop now
such a long time running,
and i can't stop now
do you hear my heart beating?
can you hear that sound?
'cause i can't help thinking
that i don't look down

and then i looked up at the sun
and i could see
oh, the way that gravity turns for you and me
and then i looked up at the sky
and saw the sun
and the way that gravity turns on everyone
on everyone

baby,
it's been a long time waiting,
such a long, long time
and i can't stop smiling,
oh i can't stop now
do you hear my heart beating?
do you hear that sound?
'cause i can't stop crying
and i won't look down

and then i looked up at the sun
and i could see
oh, the way that gravity turns on you and me
and then i looked up at the sun
and saw the sky
and the way that gravity pulls on you and i
on you and i

ANXIAN, China - AUDRA ANG

Chinese soldiers prepared Monday to explode earthquake debris blocking a river where quickly rising waters threatened to flood disaster victims.

Two weeks after the magnitude 7.9 earthquake hit central Sichuan province, lakes formed by obstructed rivers clogged by landslides were adding new complications to recovery efforts already strained to find shelter for millions of homeless.

One of the most powerful aftershocks since the May 12 quake killed at least eight people Sunday, the Cabinet said, adding to the death toll that the government has said would surpass 80,000.

A Chinese government spokesman said Monday the official death toll had risen to 65,080.

To fight the flood risk, 1,800 soldiers arrived early Monday by foot to the new Tangjiashan lake in Beichuan county, each carrying 22 pounds of explosives to blast through the debris, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

The lake is 2 miles upstream from the center of Beichuan county. Thousands of people who remained there after the initial earthquake have been evacuated in recent days as a precaution.

With weather clearing that had earlier prevented helicopter flights, an earth mover was also lifted in the area to help clear debris, in footage shown on state TV.

But thunderstorms were forecast for parts of Sichuan later Monday and Tuesday, the China Meteorological Administration said, adding they "could increase the risks posed by river blockages in some quake-hit areas."

The backed-up lake is one of several dozen in Sichuan. In Anxian country, about 30 miles to the south of Beichuan, a similar landslide blocked the Chaping river, submerging Shuangdian village.

Residents say the lake has been growing by about 2 1/2 yards a day.

Liu Zhongfu, 31, standing on a mountain overlooking the new lake was working away from home when the earthquake hit. His wife, 3-month-old daughter and 60-year-old mother were all unhurt.

"The water was covering the road, and two days later I could not see the roof of my house anymore," said a truck driver who built his two-sd tory wooden house himself. "I thought I could go back but I have nothing now. My village, it's all become a sea."

Water there was backed up 2 miles along the river, said Wang Li, county Communist Party secretary.

"We need to take care of this soon, this is a serious situation," he said.

Elsewhere, 600 people were voluntarily evacuated from Guanzhuang in Qingchuan county because of landslide worries.

"There's no danger for this exact moment from flooding but we are very worried because the whole mountain is loose," said Ma Jian, a local official.

Many of the dead were children — although no specifics have been given on how many — prompting officials to relax the country's strict one-child policy.

The Chengdu Population and Family Planning Committee in the capital of Sichuan province announced Monday that families whose child was killed, severely injured or disabled in the quake can get a certificate to have another child.

The committee plans to help about 1,200 of the affected families, but said the number could change.

China's top Communist Party leaders said relief efforts should now focus more on resettlement and post-quake reconstruction, but that work to find survivors should not stop.

The shift was announced at a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China's Central Committee presided over by President Hu Jintao, Xinhua reported.

 

SEOUL (AFP) - Samsung Electronics Co, the world's largest computer chip maker, said Monday it has developed a new solid-state drive which is expected to replace hard disk drives in laptop computers.

Samsung said its 256-gigabyte solid state drive (SSD) for data storage is 2.4 times faster than traditional hard drives. The company plans to begin production of SSDs this year.

The new SSD "represents a bold step in the shift to notebooks with significantly improved performance and larger storage capacities," the company said in a statement.

Samsung described the new SSD, 2.5 inches long and 9.5 millimeters thick, as the world's smallest of its kind. It can read up to 200 megabytes of data per second.

It said, citing market research agency iSuppli, that 35 percent of notebook computers would use the SSD by 2012.

 

Once in the dream of a night I stood
Lone in the light of a magical wood,
Soul-deep in visions that poppy-like sprang;
And spirits of Truth were the birds that sang,
And spirits of Love were the stars that glowed,
And spirits of Peace were the streams that flowed
In that magical wood in the land of sleep.

Lone in the light of that magical grove,
I felt the stars of the spirits of Love
Gather and gleam round my delicate youth,
And I heard the song of the spirits of Truth;
To quench my longing I bent me low
By the streams of the spirits of Peace that flow
In that magical wood in the land of sleep.

Sarojini Naidu