tagged w/ Popular
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LONDON (Reuters Life!) - Teen vampire movie "Twilight" topped the British box office over the weekend, taking 2.5 million pounds.
The movie, based on the bestselling novel by U.S. author Stephenie Meyer, also topped the North American box office at its opening weekend last month with ticket sales of $69.6 million, and its backers hoped the success would extend beyond the book's core U.S. following.
Independent studio Summit Entertainment is going ahead with the sequel "New Moon" based on the second novel in the four-book series.
Meyer's Twilight series has sold more than 25 million copies worldwide, 17 million of which have been in the United States. Her publishers are hoping the movie franchise will boost sales around the world.
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Is the forbidden love story universal?
What is it about vampires that make girls loose their minds, besides being all strong and unbreakable and stuff?LONDON (Reuters Life!) - Teen vampire movie "Twilight" topped the British... more
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Despite a period of strong wind bringing snow and thick cloud cover, we are now seeing the rapid and welcome return of natural light. With the current weather conditions we are even more vigilant in keeping an eye on our scientific material, ever aware that the ice could move at any moment.
In the next few logs I will take the opportunity to talk more about the specific scientific programmes that have been our daily occupation throughout the winter.
Overall, the work we are undertaking is part of a large European programme called DAMOCLES (Developing Arctic Modelling and Observing Capabilities for Long-term Environmental Studies) coinciding with the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007-08. The main objective of Tara-Damocles is to reduce the uncertainty in our understanding of climate change in the Arctic concerning sea-ice cover, key atmospheric processes and ocean circulation in order to improve our capability in simulating environmental change.
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▐─────────────▌Despite a period of strong wind bringing snow and thick cloud cover, we are now seeing... more
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WOMEN GET 'VIRGINITY FIX' NHS OPERATIONS IN MUSLIM-DRIVEN TREND
London: Women are being given controversial "virginity repair" operations on the NHS, it emerged last night.
And increasing numbers of women are paying up to £4,000 in private clinics for the procedure apparently under pressure from future spouses or in-laws who believe they should be virgins on their wedding night.
Doctors said most patients are immigrants or British of ethnic origin.
The popularity of the operation is said to be the result of social regression caused by Islamic fundamentalism
The trend has been condemned by critics as a sign of social regression driven by Islamic fundamentalists. Some countries have made hymen reconstruction operations illegal.
Dr Magdy Hend, consultant gynaecologist at the Regency Clinic, Harley Street, London, who started hymen reconstruction more than 18 years ago in the Middle East and the Gulf, said: "In some cultures they like to see that the women will bleed on the wedding night. If the wife or bride is not a virgin, it is a big shame on the family."
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Considering the punishment for being impure, do you think this is a service to women of Islamic faith?
Could having this available and anon prevent "honor killings"?
What about Muslim men? They aren't always pure, but the women have to be.WOMEN GET 'VIRGINITY FIX' NHS OPERATIONS IN MUSLIM-DRIVEN TREND
London:... more
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HOUSTON -- Tis the season for red-capped Santas and red-nosed reindeers. Sleigh bells ringing and snowflakes glistening. Stockings carefully hung and yuletide carols being sung ... in an airport terminal. With a karaoke machine.
Ho-ho-ho, hold that flight. There's a holiday surprise for travelers -- and aspiring performers -- passing through Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport this month.
There it is, just past the security checkpoint, set atop a small stage: a karaoke machine adorned with Christmas lights and stockings shaped like cowboy boots. There's even a team of Christmas elves -- airport employees the rest of the year.
"A little holiday karaoke while you wait? It's fun and it's free," cooed Ashley Thompson. "You could be a star."
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So do you think this would be a good way to distract people from the long security lines?
Would the noise annoy the freaking hell out of you?HOUSTON -- Tis the season for red-capped Santas and red-nosed reindeers. Sleigh bells... more
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There is one aspect of the worldview of many Obama supporters that I find genuinely difficult to understand. These supporters insist that by symbolically including and sometimes compromising with even those on the Right with whom he vigorously disagrees, Obama will be able to chip away at the partisan hostilities and resentments, and erode the cultural divisions, that have inflamed and paralyzed our politics. People on the Right may disagree with him, claim these supporters, but they won't be wallowing in rage, suspicions, and hatred towards him. Instead, they'll feel respected and accommodated. They therefore won't be distracted by petty sideshow controversies. As a result, he'll encounter less reflexive resistance to implementing the key parts of his progressive agenda. A New Politics will emerge: one of respectful and civil disagreements, but not consumed by crippling partisan and cultural hatreds.
The question I always return to when I hear this -- the one thing it seems not to be is "new."
Ultimately, the reason politics is unavoidably "divisive" is because people have really divergent and irreconcilable views on passion-provoking controversies. That's what politics is. It's what it always has been. At some point, Obama either will or won't repeal DOMA and don't-ask-don't-tell; he either will or won't rescind Bush's anti-abortion regulations and appoint new Supreme Court Justices likely to re-affirm Roe; he either will or won't close Gitmo; he either will or won't withdraw from Iraq; he either will or won't investigate Bush war crimes; he either will or won't deliver on his promises to unions, etc. People feel very strongly -- and very differently -- about those issues.
But placing one's faith and trust in him and lavishing him with praise that he hasn't earned yet is every bit as irrational, counter-productive and wildly premature. Obama is entitled to be praised for genuine convictions once he actually demonstrates that he has them, once he can point to results achieved as a result of pursuing them. That's how all politicians should be judged. Faith and proof-free trust are not appropriate or healthy for the political realm.
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Do you think he has something new and different to offer?
Or has his staff and others made you feel like "here we go again.."There is one aspect of the worldview of many Obama supporters that I find genuinely... more
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Pathologists who examined a heart found this week at a southwestern Michigan car wash still haven't determined whether it came from a human or an animal. They plan to submit the organ for DNA testing in an effort to find out once and for all. The owner of Soapy's Car Wash in Paw Paw discovered the heart Monday on the floor of a manual car wash bay.
Local doctors said it's about the size of a human heart, but they couldn't tell for sure whether it actually came from a person.
Paw Paw Police Chief Patrick Alspaugh told the Kalamazoo Gazette more may be known about the heart within a week or two from the pathologists at Sparrow Hospital in Lansing.
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Think it's human?Pathologists who examined a heart found this week at a southwestern Michigan car wash... more
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San Francisco, CA -- The sponsors of Proposition 8 asked the California Supreme Court on Friday to nullify the marriages of the estimated 18,000 same-sex couples who exchanged vows before voters approved the ballot initiative that outlawed gay unions.
The Yes on 8 campaign filed a brief arguing that because the new law holds that only marriages between a man and a woman are recognized or valid in California, the state can no longer recognize the existing same-sex unions.
"Proposition 8's brevity is matched by its clarity. There are no conditional clauses, exceptions, exemptions or exclusions," reads the brief co-written by Pepperdine University law school dean Kenneth Starr, the former independent counsel who investigated President Bill Clinton.
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Can we do this without it becoming a spew of hate in discord?San Francisco, CA -- The sponsors of Proposition 8 asked the California Supreme Court... more
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Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich struck a defiant tone in a Chicago press conference today, pledging to fight federal corruption charges in court and to stay in office despite calls for his resignation and talk of impeachment.
"I am not guilty of any criminal wrongdoing," Blaojevich said. "I will stay on the job and I will fight this thing every step of the way."
"I will fight, I will fight, I will fight, until I take my last breath," he said.
"I have done nothing wrong, Blagojevich said, adding that he would not "quit a job the people hired me to do because of false accusations and a political lynch mob."
Blagojevich's tough posture will win him no friends in the Legislature, but it's both a political necessity if he intends to hold on to the job, and it increases his leverage in any negotiation with prosecutors.
"I'm dying to answer these charges -- I am dying to show you how innocent I am," Blagojevich said, promising to answer his questions in court.
"I am absolutely certain that I will be absolutely vindicated," he said, before turning the press conference over to his criminal defense lawyers.
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So, what do YOU think?
Is he ready for a padded room? A jail cell? A senate seat? Or he's just misunderstood!
Let us know!Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich struck a defiant tone in a Chicago press conference... more
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Needless to say this is a pretty unique artist.
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What kind of feelings did you have looking at this page of work?
Is there any one image that stood out to you?
Are there messages for today in his work?Needless to say this is a pretty unique artist.... more
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What did you think of Divine Chaos?
Did it inspire you in any way?▐─────────────▌
▐ Vote up & share ♥ ▌... more
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Cats are creatures that train their owners. They are aloof and independent, yet many famous people owned cats. Cats outnumber dogs in this country as an indoor pet.
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Do you own a cat?
What do you think make cats unique from other pets?
Is there anything uniquely cool about your cat?Cats are creatures that train their owners. They are aloof and independent, yet many... more
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“The Bible says nothing directly about abortion.” Have you ever heard this claim before? I know I have. And the uncomfortable truth is that, in a certain sense, it’s accurate. The deliberate termination of a pregnancy is not directly addressed anywhere in scripture.
I was reading the Christmas story in Luke 1 and 2 when I made what were for me several new observations. First, I noticed that Luke (a doctor and scholar) specifically tells his audience (Theophilus) that he has thoroughly investigated everything he is about to write and that he has decided to “write it out for you in consecutive order” (1:3). Unlike the other Gospel writers, Luke will tell us his story in the form we modern readers best comprehend: chronologically. This means we can rely heavily on the order of things in any of our conclusions. I know this may not seem very important, but stick with me for a moment and you’ll see why it matters.
Reading on, we learn that Elizabeth (Mary’s cousin) has become pregnant and secluded herself for five months, hiding her very late-in-life first pregnancy from everybody, even her close family (1:24). Then Luke tells us that the angel Gabriel makes his famous visit to the engaged virgin Mary in the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy (1:26). These time references are no coincidence.
After his departure, Mary immediately went as fast as she could (1:39) to the hill country to see her cousin, presumably to share her story. When Mary comes close enough to greet her, Elizabeth feels her baby (John the Baptist) leap in her womb with joy at the presence of his Messiah and Mary (1:41-44). By any reasonable standard, this shows that the fetus, John, is a person at this moment and nothing less.
But John is close to his third trimester by now, and even the most strident pro-choice person will usually concede that third trimester abortions are heinous for essentially this reason. Roe v. Wade even affirmed this idea. So nothing observed thus far is particularly persuasive on the subject of abortion. But that’s when I saw something that I hadn’t ever considered before.
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Did you read all that?
If so, when do you think a baby is a baby?“The Bible says nothing directly about abortion.” Have you ever heard this... more
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American Atheists Regional Director Gil lawrence Amancio won his battle early today to challenge the constitutionality of a nativity scene displayed in a public park in Somerset, Massachusetts. With the help of the local American Civil Liberties Union, Amancio argued that the creche endorsed a specific religious belief, advanced religion, and thus violated the establishment clause of the First Amendment.
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Do you miss seeing the traditional Nativity Scene?
I a public Nativity Scene truly offensive to people of other religions, or is it an opportunity to teach tolerance to children?
As an atheist does the photo of this Nativity scene upset you?American Atheists Regional Director Gil lawrence Amancio won his battle early today to... more
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Consider also the point that atheists and other non-christians find them offensive, annoying and depressing. When you do see them, remove them as soon as possible. Every day that they stand gives some motorists the impression that the State condones religious symbols being placed along the road on State or Federal property. There is nothing stopping an individual from taking down these religious symbols. For your safety, if you are going to remove these objects, remember to park off the highway in a parking lot, on a side street, or well over on the shoulder. If you will have to walk far along the highway, get yourself an orange hunting vest or (preferably) a reflective safety vest available at most building supply stores. Be sure you are not venturing onto private property.
The Department of Transportation in your State can take one of four positions on roadside crosses: A) They can provide or erect them for victims' families, in which case a suit should be filed immediately. B) They can sanction them by law (also likely unconstitutional) C) They can ignore the religious memorials erected by families and not remove them. D) They can disapprove of them and remove them.
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Do you find road side crosses annoying?
What are your thoughts on roadside memorials?Consider also the point that atheists and other non-christians find them offensive,... more
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Scarlett Johannson made the most of a bad cold this week, and her seriously gross plan will benefit a good cause - she's selling her snot for charity. Johannson appeared on 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno' with a head cold she caught from 'The Spirit' costar Samuel L. Jackson.
Banking on the die-hard fans who will buy pretty much anything touched by their favorite stars, Johannson blew her nose into a tissue, which Leno helpfully bagged. The bag of tissue - and snot - is now signed and available on eBay. As of 11:30am ET, the bids have reached $2,050. Proceeds from the sale will go to the charity USA Harvest.
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So would you bid on Scarlett's snot to get some of that famous DNA?
Is there anyone's snot that you would buy if you could?
Or is all this just freaking crazy?Scarlett Johannson made the most of a bad cold this week, and her seriously gross plan... more
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Some hardcore "Twilight" fanatics are seething over reports Taylor Lautner could be replaced in the upcoming "Twilight" sequel -- and now certain bloodsuckers are hitting his rumored replacement right where it hurts -- the dude's Facebook page.
The actor being hit is Michael Copon -- and in recent days, his page has been bombarded with messages like "He's [Taylor's] done all the hardwork and so deserves it," "I don't want you playing Jacob Black in New Moon :( because Taylor is perfect" and our personal favorite: "You're a douche."
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So who do you think should get the roll?
1. Taylor Lautner
2. Michael Copon
3. WTF is "Twilight"?Some hardcore "Twilight" fanatics are seething over reports Taylor Lautner... more
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After watching the original post, I realized this needed some research, so who's your conservative girl for the job, naturally, arctic. Hope you enjoy.
Here how it is really done...
My first objective was to get a good outfit (see above) Note: must have firearms, but sword is also a nice touch. Firearms are mandatory via GOP Mandate.
Objective: make capturing liberals very simple. And it was.
(Next, I Found suspected liberal on street) Yes... come in to my conservatory.... (she smiles innocently)
(I mean art studio, but close enough I guess...)
MSG to GOP: So... to do this... do we use fangs here? Instructions were unclear? And how do we know if we have indeed possessed a liberal, not just someone off the street that is confused and isn't going to vote anyway?
GOP: Look for voter registration card in wallet or Obama t-shirt, hat, etc.
MSG to GOP: Ok.. Got it. But you never said HOW to do it. I am still unaware of the process.. can I just stare into his/her eyes and gain control? Or is it more invasive?
GOP: It is unknown, and may be different from one liberal to another depending on iron content.
MSG to GOP: Oh and what happens to my body while I'm possessing said liberal for what amount of time?
GOP: UNKNOWN.
MSG to GOP: Then who's gonna put my vote in for McCain, while I stand in line for this guy to vote for McCain? I am very concerned. I want MY VOTE TO COUNT.
GOP: UNKNOWN.
MSG to GOP: How long before I return to my body assuming I do gain control over the liberals body?
GOP: UNKNOWN, CONDITION MAY BE INDEFINITE.
MSG to GOP: So I might not be able to cast my OWN VOTE? WTF?
GOP: UNCERTAIN.
MSG to GOP: Oh... this is entirely too complicated! Freaking GOP! I'm not doing this! you idiots! What kind of girl do you think i am? DAMN!
(turns to the liberal, with a poised manner and a very sweet smile)
I think you better leave now. /waves, see you later, enjoy voting for Obama!
Note to GOP... Possessing Liberals was a STUPID plot idea. come up with something better next time.
Note to self: Keeping the outfit. I like it. After watching the original post, I realized this needed some research, so who's... more
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Czeslaw Milosz received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1980. He died in Krakow in August, 2004 at the age of ninety-three.
Normalization
by Czeslaw Milosz
This happened long ago, before the onset
of universal genetic correctness.
Boys and girls would stand naked before mirrors
studying the defects of their structure.
Nose too long, ears like burdocks,
sunken chin just like a mongoloid.
Breasts too small, too large, lopsided shoulders,
penis too short, hips too broad or else too narrow.
And just an inch or two taller!
Such was the house they inhabited for life.
Hiding, feigning, concealing defects.
But somehow they still had to find a partner.
Following incomprehensible tastes—airy creatures
paired with potbellies, skin and bones enamored of salt pork.
They had a saying then: “Even monsters
have their mates.” So perhaps they learned to tolerate their partners’
flaws, trusting that theirs would be forgiven in turn.
Now every genetic error meets with such
disgust that crowds might spit on them and stone them.
As happened in the city of K., where the town council
voted to exile a girl
So thickset and squat
that no stylish dress could ever suit her,
But let’s not yearn for the days of prenormalization.
Just think of the torments, the anxieties, the sweat,
the wiles needed to entice, in spite of all.
Translated by Clare Cavanagh Czeslaw Milosz received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1980. He died in Krakow in... more
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Once past saying 'hello' and 'how are you?' to someone you've just met, what is next?
How do we make friends and get to know other people?
Psychologists have talked about the importance of body language, physical appearance and clothing but they've not been so keen on what we actually talk about. A recent study put participants in same-sex and opposite-sex pairings and told them to get to know each other over 6 weeks (Rentfrow & Gosling, 2006). Analyzing the results, they found the most popular topic of conversation was music. What is it about music that's so useful when we first meet someone and what kind of information can we extract from the music another person likes?
"how good is music as a measure of personality?"
The number of people who talked about music was surprisingly high. In the first week on average 58% of the pairs discussed music compared to 37% of all the other categories of conversation combined. Other categories included books, movies, TV, football and clothes.
Why then do we use music as a first port of call in getting to know another person? We probably think that music is indirectly telling us something about the other person's personality. For this reason, the second question this study tried to answer was: how good is music as a measure of personality?
Top 10 personalities
To measure this, participants were asked to judge people's personality solely on their top 10 list of songs.
"...a person's openness to experience was best communicated by their top 10 list of songs."
This was compared to participants results on a standard type of personality test measuring the big five personality traits: openness to experience, extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness and emotional stability.
Overall the results showed that music preferences were reasonably accurate in conveying aspects of personality. Of the five traits, it was a person's openness to experience that was best communicated by their top 10 list of songs, followed by extroversion and emotional stability. On the other hand, music preferences didn't say much about whether a person was conscientious or not.
What some music preferences mean for personality:
* Likes vocals: extroverted
* Likes country: emotionally stable. On the face of it, this is bizarre really because country music is all about heartache. Either the emotionally stable are attracted to country music or it has a calming effect on the unstable!
* Likes jazz: intellectual
(Hey, hey What happened to rock, alt, punk, emo, techno, j-rock, pop, RAP, classical, tribal, new age, folk, uh, that stuff my parents listen to, no clue what in the hell it is, retro-rock, metal, banjo, bluegrass, beer-drinking, and every other music I can't think of at the moment? a.s.)
This raises the question of why people listen to particular types of music. One theory is that people simply find some music more pleasant for aesthetic or cognitive reasons. Another is that people use music to regulate their mood: I want to get hyper for a night out so I put on some dance music. Another is that music is related to identity; people listen to music that expresses they way they see themselves. It seems likely that a combination of all these theories is probably true.
Despite this limitation it seems that talking about music might be a very powerful way to make a connection with another person.
Once past saying 'hello' and 'how are you?' to someone you've... more
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I wanted to pick at least 10 pictures for this. Many are borderline porn, but are art.
How about everyone pick your fav and post it below? That could be fun.I wanted to pick at least 10 pictures for this. Many are borderline porn, but are... more
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