UCLA’s own Stradivarius violin echoes with history

It is the Van Gogh of the musical world: part instrument, part art. It is the ultimate violin. It’s a Stradivarius violin. And UCLA (University of California) owns one. Over the course of the late 17th and early 18th centuries, an Italian violin maker named Antonio Stradivari crafted a series of violins that came to be known as “Stradivarius” violins, or “Strads” for short. These violins came to be thought of as the pinnacle of the violin world because of their craftsmanship and clear, powerful sound.

According to Movses Pogossian, a UCLA professor of violin and chairman of strings, the locations of about 400-500 violins of the roughly 600 that Stradivari was purported to have crafted are known. Pogossian said that the violins made during Stradivari’s “Golden Period,” usually considered the time from 1700 to Stradivari’s death in 1737 when the craftsman made his best violins, are especially admired .“Golden Period Strads have this uncanny power and pure resonance,” Pogossian said.

Japan Volcano Explodes With a Big Blast

(TOKYO) — A revived volcano in southern Japan erupted Tuesday with its biggest explosion yet, shooting out a huge plume of gas, boulders and ash and breaking windows 5 miles (8 kilometers) away.

The danger zone around Shinmoedake volcano was widened to keep residents safe. The largest eruption since it burst back to life last week covered wide areas in ash, shot boulders onto distant roads, knocked down trees and broke hundreds of windows in hotels and offices. (Read about Japan dealing with the volcanic ash from the day before the eruption.)No serious injuries have been reported since the initial eruption last Wednesday, but public broadcaster NHK said a woman suffered cuts from shattered glass in Tuesday's blast.

An Insight on Kim Kardashian

Kim Kardashian is an American TV personality, producer, actress, and model. She is the daughter of Robert Kardashian a lawyer of Armenian origin who defended former football player OJ Simpson, accused of murdering his former wife.Kim Kardashian remained relatively unknown to the public until Vivid released a porn video of her and R&B singer Ray-J. Kim settled with Vivid for $ 5 million after fighting the release was a lost cause. Kim later said this scandal was “not my most proud moment. It was humiliating. But now let’s move on. Not that I don’t think it’s [no one's] business, but I think I’ve done a good job of replacing negative things with positive things.”

Liverpool demand £50m for Fernando Torres from Chelsea

Liverpool are likely to sell striker Fernando Torres before the transfer window closes on Monday if they can agree a £50m package with Chelsea.

The Red could be open to a £40m cash deal plus Blues forward Nicolas Anelka, according to an Anfield source. The Reds have already rejected a £35m bid from Chelsea for Torres, who was signed from Atletico Madrid in 2007.

The 26-year-old Spain striker's transfer request was turned down by Liverpool on Friday. The Reds are angered by the timing of Torres' request - the January transfer window closes at 2300 GMT on Monday - and believe Chelsea have "tapped up" the player by encouraging him to express a desire to leave. 

Torres has a £50m release clause in his contract, but this only entitles him to leave if the Merseysiders fail to qualify for the Champions League this season - so even if Chelsea offer a package of that amount, Liverpool believe they could still force him to stay. Reds manager Kenny Dalglish and the club's owners see little point in forcing the striker to remain at Anfield against his will, but are determined to hold out for what they see as a more realistic bid - and what would be a British record transfer fee. 

Omar Suleiman - New Appointed VP, Egypt

(Reuters) - Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who has not had a vice-president since he took office in 1981, appointed his intelligence chief and confidant Omar Suleiman to the post on Saturday, the official news agency said.

Deepest Diving Sea Turtle - Their Secret Voyage Revealed!

On 2 February 2009, at 4am, a turtle known as Tika set off from the coast of Gabon, west Africa. She spent almost six months swimming across the Atlantic, a 5,000-mile (8,000km) journey to the coast of South America. At the moment she is probably somewhere off Brazil, eating jellyfish and building herself up. In about March next year, she'll begin her journey back to Africa, and, if all goes well, she'll then build a nest and lay her eggs in the sands of the Mayumba national park in Gabon. And this will be just one of many 10,000-mile round trips she makes in her 50-year life.

It's Official - Michigan Hires Greg Mattison

Well, that was certainly expeditious.

Just a couple of hours after reports first emerged thatMichigan was in talks with Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Greg Mattison regarding the same position in Ann Arbor, Brady Hoke indeed has found a new coordinator in a familiar face.

Zorrilla Animal - Smelliest Animal Alive!

According to Google, the hottest topic on the web right now is the world’s smelliest animal. We have no idea why — but now we know that we never want to get within a half-mile of the African Striped Polecat; aka the Zorrilla, Zorilla, or Zoril. It’s smell is that strong.

What Happened To Seal's Face?

One of the most frequent questions you hear about Grammy-winning singer Seal is, "What happened to Seal's face?" 

Seal is famous for singing "Kiss From a Rose" and other award-winning songs. But he is also well-known for his visible facial scarring. Lines of scarring are clearly visible on both sides of his face. (To see a close-up image of Seal's face, click on the Related Link.)

Source: http://bollywood.rightcelebrity.com/?p=312

Speculating About What Happened to Seal's Countenance
It is easy to speculate about Seal's scars. The raised lines of scarring look like something you might get in a knife fight resulting in scars. The scars might also look like scars from a car accident or similar mishap causing scars. 

Jet magazine quotes Seal as saying: "People want the scars to be tribal scars. That's just the nature of the media and of people's imaginations." Source: Celebrities Who Have Overcome Obstacles, Jet, June 10, 1996, available at books.google.com.

What Really Happened to Seal's Countenance
But Seal's scars are not the result of violence. Jet reported that Seal's facial scars are the result of the disease lupus. At age 23, Seal developed discoid lupus erythematosus (DLE), a rare form of the disease causing scars. Source: Celebrities Who Have Overcome Obstacles, Jet, June 10, 1996, available at books.google.com. 

According to The Lupus Book, only ten percent of lupus patients have DLE. Thick, scaly lesions appear on these patients' skin, especially skin that is exposed to sunlight. If untreated, the lesions can turn cancerous. Source: Daniel J. Wallace, The Lupus Book, 4th ed., Oxford University Press, pages 70-71. 

Lupus is an auto-immune disease that is passed down genetically. It is unknown when Seal's Lupus developed. A number of on-line sources claim that Seal developed lupus as an infant or as a teen (e.g., as of April 5, 2009, Wikipedia's entry for Seal claims the disease presented itself when Seal was a teen, though no sources are cited). I have not found any authoritative source for that claim. As cited previously, Jet magazine claims Seal did not show signs of the disease until age 23. This claim is consistent with public comments Seal has made. 

Discoid Lupus is a chronic skin condition of sores with inflammation and scarring favoring the face, ears, and scalp and at times on other body areas. The exact cause of this auto-immune disease is unknown. 

Seal Samuel has a skin ailment called discoid lupus. There is a half moon scar that lies under his eyes due to this ailment. But this scar it seems had begun to form since his childhood days.

Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_is_Seal's_face_scarred#ixzz1BM49sV4I

Martin Luther King (MLK) Quotes - Gain inspiration on this day!

Source: http://connect.in.com/mlk-quotes/photos-quotes-mlk-a05ed75bd2fb90fe.html

What better way is there to commemorate Martin Luther King, one of the greatest leaders and orators in American history, than by downloading an app made up entirely of his most inspiring words?

Martin Luther King, a prominent, peaceful leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement was a powerful speaker, who educated and inspired people across the country when he gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963.

Some of the man's best quotables from his life are said to be included on the Martin Luther King Inspiration app for your Android phone, a quote-a-day service designed to motivate and infuse the human spirit.

This may be the most simple, easy to use apps that I have ever seen. Every day, you just launch and load up the app and a daily dose of wisdom will be posted atop a screen of a natural, scenic background from somewhere in the United States. None of the quotes are longer than the length of your screen.

While the photos are exceptionaly vibrant and clear, the text written over the top of them sometimes isn't so easy to read. You may have to skim your eyes over the words a few times before you can decipher exactly what they say. Also, the occasional intrusive ad that pops up at the bottom of the screen seems to take away from the calming, inspiring aesthetic of this MLK application. However, because it's free, I feel that you sometimes must make allowances for these kind of minor flaws.

I like that Martin Luther King Inspiration doesn't send those daily, sometimes irritating push notifications that harass you to read your daily quote of the day (I find that this usually happens when you're preoccupied with something else). At the same time, however, because you have to remember to pull this app up on a regular basis, I could see how it might get lost in the shuffle.

Source: http://www.androidapps.com/education/articles/4792-gain-inspiration-on-this-martin-luther-king-jr-day

Jets Patriots Score - New York Wins 28-21!

Source: http://www.timesworldnow.com/new-england-patriots-vs-new-york-jets-live-nfl-tv-coverage-on-cbs-channel/11497/

The New York Jets open the quarter with a Mark Sanchez to Jerricho Cotchery pass and run for 57 yards. They're in the red zone, and on third down santonio olmes makes a circus catch in the end zone. Touchdown Jets.

21-11 Jets

With 13:00 left in the game, the Jets make it a two score game.

The Pats will start from their 18. They get a first, but every yard is contested, the Jets are anticipating nearly every move the Patriots make. Deion Branch gets a first, and gets up in the Jets defenders faces. Tempers are high. danny Woodhead puts his head down, and gets a first, he follows with another seven yards, they're at the Jets 35. A false start  sets them back, but Wes Welker gets the first on a screen. A run stuff and a sack make it third and 13. A long incomplete and it's fourth and 13. Antonio Cromartie is down on the field, there's a timeout.

They go for it, and Deion Branch can't hang on. The Jets take over on downs at their 34.  They go three and out. The Pats call timeout with 3:42 left in the game.

The Jets punt, and Julian Edelman goes 42 yards, and the Pats are in Jets territory. A couple quick passes, and they're at the 30. A Jets player takes an injury timeout, and the crowd boos, as it seems like the Jets are injured whenever the Patriots are moving the ball quickly, and New York isn't getting to get set. nd they keep returning after one play.

Rob Gronkowski picks up 12, and an incompletion stops the clock with 2:25 left. Another incompletion, and the Pats are disorganized.

They go for the field goal, and the Jets call timeout, right before the snap. Shayne Graham from 35 is good.

21-14 Jets

1:57 left, and the Pats have two timeouts,and so do the Jets.

The onside kick squirts past the first line, and right to Antonio  cromartie, who picks it up and runs it to the New England 20.

Two plays later, the Shonn Greene scores. He gets an excessive celebration penalty, to be assessd on the kickoff.

28-14 Jets

With 1:41 left The Kets kick from their 15. Brandon Tate takes it out to the 40 yard line. Danny Woodhead runs it out to the 50, Then Wes Welker to the 38. Woodhead to the  23. An incomplete at the goal line, then at the 12 a first down. Welker drops one in the end zone.

Deion Branch hauls one in with 24 seconds left.

28-21 Jets

The onside kick is recovered by the Jets.

28-21 Jets final.

Congratulations to the New York Jets and their fans!!!

Source: http://chicago.sbnation.com/chicago-bears/2011/1/16/1939016/nfl-playoff-schedule-jets-vs-patriots-new-york-wins-28-21-advance

New Astrological Dates - And Reintroducing: Ophiuchus The 13th Sign!

Ophiuchus the 13th sign of the Zodiac - also known as Serpentarius, the Serpent Holder

Source: http://www.love-astrology.com/13th-sign-of-the-zodiac/13th-sign-of-the-zodiac/

Astronomer Parke Kunkle says that due to changes in the Earth's alignment the dates of many zodiac signs have changed, according to NBC. In addition, there may be a 13th Zodiac sign: Ophiuchus.

Kunkle says that as the Earth and Sun slowly move the signs gradually change, as expected.

The change didn't happen over night either. The 12 signs were designated to different periods of the year almost 3,000 years ago, when astrology began, and since then the Earth's position in relation to the sun has changed.

While the sign many people were born under may now be different, it shouldn't affect horoscope readings, according to NBC.

See if your Zodiac sign has changed below.

The New Dates:

Capricorn: Jan. 20 - Feb. 16
Aquarius: Feb. 16 - March 11
Pisces: March 11- April 18
Aries: April 18 - May 13
Taurus: May 13 - June 21
Gemini: June 21 - July 20
Cancer: July 20 - Aug. 10
Leo: Aug. 10 - Sept. 16
Virgo: Sept. 16 - Oct. 30
Libra: Oct. 30 - Nov. 23
Scorpio: Nov. 23 - Nov. 29
Ophiuchus: Nov. 29 - Dec. 17
Sagittarius: Dec. 17 - Jan. 20

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/13/new-zodiac-sign-dates-oph_n_808567.html#s223863&title=kristin_leigh