Naked flight attendants launch NZ travel search website

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Naked flight attendants launch NZ travel search website

One of the world's top travel search companies today unveiled its next-generation website with body painted flight attendants and a 3-D chalk artwork of the world.

Body painted flight attendants and a three-dimensional chalk art creation of the world took centre stage in the Auckland CBD today as Momondo Group, the travel search pioneer, unvieled its new next generation Cheapflights website atCheapflights.co.nz.

New Zealand is the first country to benefit from a series of new features and enhancements .

Cheapflights is one of the worlds most popular travel search websites in nine countries. Momondo Group selected New Zealand as one of just two early test-markets for the next generation site and unveiled the new site today after it completed final user testing.

The Australian site, Cheapflights.com.au is one of the fastest growing of the group's travel search websites. The new meta site features a simplified user interface designed to make it easier to search through millions of flights and travel options faster as well as quickly filter and compare results, according to whether holidaymakers want the cheapest or the quickest option.

Cheapflights.co.nz now also features handy chart view and calendar view options to enable users to easily find the cheapest days and times to travel.

The launch was celebrated in the Britomart precinct in Auckland with body painted flight attendants encouraging passers-by to get into the picture by posing next to a 3D chalk artwork of some of the worlds most popular landmarks and to explore the world via the new site.

According to the latest data from cheapflights.co.nz, New Zealanders are already pushing their adventure- holiday boundaries in 2014. The latest data reveals the top emerging destinations the biggest movers in terms of flight searches on the site were Stockholm (Sweden), Cork (Ireland) and Milan (Italy). Other cities recording large increases in searches were Venice, Italy (4th); Prague, Czech Republic; (5th); Cairo, Egypt (6th); Seattle, USA (7th) and Seoul, South Korea (8th) with Bangalore, India, and Rome, Italy, rounding off the top ten risers. The new Cheapflights site now enables users to compare a much wider range of airlines and travel companies across the market, helping them to find the best options whether by price, convenience, duration or carrier to meet their needs. A revealing new fast insights feature enables users to quickly find the latest local prices for taxis, buses and a range of local goods from clothing to coffee, from eggs to water and a range of beers.

Pages are served faster thanks to new optimised requests, helping users find flights and information more quickly and the site now uses responsive design, meaning content now better fits on a range of screen sizes; making it easier to view on laptops, tablets, smartphones and the next generation of portable devices.

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Naked flight attendants launch NZ travel search website

Sci-Fi Story Altered States of Plaine Harbors Ambitions That Tower Above Its Tiny Budget

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Photo by Gary Robinson

Gallagher as Emanuel Plaine in Altered States of Plaine.

Despite expensive anomalies like The Matrix and Inception, which found huge audiences for densely scripted plotlines, studios still regularly hand Michael Bay the annual GDP of French Guiana.

Science fiction is hard, but making fart jokes with giant robots is easy. It's the corporate equivalent of having Eggos for dinner. Altered States of Plaine, like indies Pi and Primer, harbors ambition that towers over its super-saver discount budget.

Director Nick Gaglia hides the actual rough edges of the production with the artistic rough edges of handheld cameras, slow shutter speeds, and tight, low-angle close-ups that favor his charismatic actors. The transition between the blue-grays of the city and the saturated yellows of the desert are as disorienting as the main character's problem. Whenever Emanuel Plaine (George Gallagher, who co-wrote the script) falls asleep, his body teleports to a random point on Earth, raptured away without clothing or possessions.

In the film's opening moments, he awakens naked on a New York subway, screaming in full panic, just as confused as the audience. During an apartment B&E to steal clothing, he saves a young prostitute named Violet (Kether Donohue) from a violent john, and eventually convinces her to drive him to Maryland to plead for help from a physics professor whose work entails the teleportation of photons.

The script, only occasionally clumsy, errs on the side of mystery, leaving open the question of whether Emanuel is insane or transhuman until the final moments.

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Sci-Fi Story Altered States of Plaine Harbors Ambitions That Tower Above Its Tiny Budget

Streetwise Spirituality For The 21st Century & Beyond – Mark Passio – Part 1 of 2 – March 22, 2014 – Video

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Streetwise Spirituality For The 21st Century Beyond - Mark Passio - Part 1 of 2 - March 22, 2014
Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AJkRKF0RBo Mark Passio #39;s website - http://whatonearthishappening.com/ (donations welcome) Mark Passio - WOEIH playlist - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...

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Streetwise Spirituality For The 21st Century & Beyond - Mark Passio - Part 1 of 2 - March 22, 2014 - Video

Lelaki Teruja a gift to Christians

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MIRI: There is a great need for more spiritual or religious books in Bahasa Malaysia to meet the increasing demand in the country, especially in Sarawak.

Baram parliamentarian, Anyi Ding said currently, most Christians books available are in English where as Bahasa Malaysia is the national language.

It is high time more Christian or religious books in Bahasa Malaysia be published here since our national language is Bahasa Malaysia.

In this challenging world, this book Lelaki Teruji is very appropriate and could be used as a guide for Christians to consolidate their faith, he said when launching the book entitled Lelaki Teruji on Monday at SIB Church in Miri.

The authors were husband and wife, Pastor Rosmaida Sianigar and Dr Justin Wan, who is chairman of SIB Miri.

Dr Justin said the book was their second religious book, written as a gift to Christians in Sarawak.

Pustaka Putera Kenyalang, the publisher launched the book in conjunction with this years World and National Book Festival to encourage more people, especially the younger generation to read.

General manager of Pustaka Putera Kenyalang, Jaya Ramba said the book is very unique, written in two beautiful languages Bahasa Malaysia and Indonesia -like the marriage of Dr Justin himself (local Kayan) with her Indonesian wife.

It is of high quality and a gift to Christians especially in this country. Besides, it is locally published and this helps enhance the development of the book industry in Sarawak.

Reassured, our company will support any local writer to publish their books, said Jaya who is one of the states prolific local writers, Former parliamentarian, Mutang Tagal and medical practitioner, Dr Roland Mattu who both reviewed the book, agreed with the authors that spiritual enlightenment plays a vital role in human development.

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Lelaki Teruja a gift to Christians

Team of engineers at Rice work on harvesting energy from heat in space – Video

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Team of engineers at Rice work on harvesting energy from heat in space
Rice University engineering students think it #39;s a shame to waste energy, especially in space. So a team of seniors invented a device that turns excess heat into electricity. Heat created by...

By: Rice University

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Team of engineers at Rice work on harvesting energy from heat in space - Video

University of California Davis Experiment Launches with NASA Cargo to Space

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When Space ExplorationTechnologies (SpaceX) launched NASA's third contractedcargo resupply mission to the International Space Station April 18, anexperiment designed by University of California,Davis, was among the cargo headed to space.

The experiment, NanoRacks-Comparison of the Growth Rate and DNACharacterization of Microgravity Exposed Microbial Community Samples(NanoRacks-Project MERCCURI), comparesthe growth rates of microbes isolated from samples collected from ground-basedpublic venues both in the microgravity environment of the space station and inthe lab. This study also characterizes the microbial communities found onsurfaces aboard the station using culture-independent methods.

U.S. company SpaceX ofHawthorne, Calif., launched its Dragon spacecraft atop the company's Falcon 9 rocketfrom the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 12:25 p.m. PDT.

SpaceX developed its Dragoncapsule, the only cargo spacecraft currently servicing the space station withthe capability to return cargo back to Earth, with NASA and now successfullyhas completed three missions to the orbiting outpost. Expedition 39 crewmembers captured the SpaceX-3 Dragon using the station's robotic arm at 7:06a.m. April 20. The capsule is scheduled to remain attached to the station unit for28 days. It then will return to Earth and splash down in the Pacific Ocean, offthe coast California. It will return samples from scientific investigationscurrently underway aboard the space station.

The InternationalSpace Station is a convergence of science, technology and human innovation thatdemonstrates new technologies and makes research breakthroughs not possible onEarth. The space station has had continuous human occupation since November2000. In that time it has been visited by more than 200 people and a variety ofinternational and commercial spacecraft. The space station remains thespringboard to NASA's next great leap in exploration, including future missionsto an asteroid and Mars.

For more informationabout the SpaceX-3 mission and the International Space Station, visit

http://www.nasa.gov/station

Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.

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University of California Davis Experiment Launches with NASA Cargo to Space

Texas Music Students to Perform Live with Space Station Astronaut

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Expedition 39 commander Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, currently aboard the International Space Station, will make space-to-Earth musical connections with students in Texas this week to share and explore the relationship between the arts and space exploration.

Students from Pearl Hall Elementary in Pasadena, Texas, will perform songs with NASA astronaut Cady Coleman, Houston Symphony violinist Sergei Galperin and violinist Kenji Williams at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. From the space station, Wakata will perform a piece of the ancient Gagaku music with a Japanese reed instrument called a sho.

The live Music in Space program will be broadcast on NASA Television and webcasted on the DLiNfo Channel at 12:30 p.m. EDT Friday, May 2.

To attend the event at Johnson, media should contact Megan Sumner at 281-483-5111 ormegan.c.sumner@nasa.gov. Johnson Space Center is located at 2101 NASA Parkway, Houston.

This is the second Music in Space event. The first featured astronaut Chris Hadfield formerly of the Canadian Space Agency in March 2013. This event is a part of the Building Cultural Bridges program, which links Pearl Hall Elementary with Johnson Space Center and several arts organizations, providing opportunities for students to discover that they are an integral part of society at the local, state, national and international levels.

Linking students directly to space station astronauts provides them with an innovative experience of space exploration, scientific studies and the possibilities for future human space exploration.

These in-flight education events are part of a series with educational organizations in the United States to improve science, technology, engineering and mathematics teaching and learning. It is a component of NASA's Digital Learning Network education program, which is designed to deliver interactive instruction in support of long-term retention of knowledge as only NASA can.

For NASA TV streaming video, schedules and downlink information, visit:

NASA TV Live

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Texas Music Students to Perform Live with Space Station Astronaut

NASA seeks commercial uses for space station

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April 29, 2014 04:33 PM ET

Computerworld - NASA is reaching out to companies that want to use the International Space Station or low-Earth orbit for research or commercial space activities.

The space agency is asking for ideas from companies interested in using the orbiter to expand the U.S.'s commercial space industry or to propel technologies that will ultimately help NASA explore deep space.

"Now is an exciting time for space research and developing exploration capabilities," said William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Human Exploration and Operations at NASA, in a statement. "After 10 years of continuous habitation in low-Earth orbit, we know microgravity provides data unattainable on Earth. We are already seeing benefits in pharmaceuticals, medical robotics and materials sciences."

NASA's request for commercial proposals is expected to help the agency decide how to open up the orbiting laboratory to the private sector in better and more practical ways, according to Gerstenmaier.

"Ultimately, [this could help] to pave the way for private microgravity research facilities of the future," he said.

The ideas should focus on:

The complete proposal is available on NASA's website.

Proposals should be no more than 20 pages long and are due by June 30.

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NASA seeks commercial uses for space station

Orbital Sciences Soars Out of Musks Shadow in Space Race

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Orbital Sciences Corp. (ORB) looked like an also-ran in the space race about two years ago, eclipsed by billionaire Elon Musks startup venture.

Orbital was trading near its five-year low while Musks Space Exploration Technologies Corp., or SpaceX, made history in May 2012 by docking a cargo ship at the International Space Station.

Today, Orbital is soaring on plans to combine with Alliant Techsystems Inc. (ATK)s aerospace and defense businesses, tripling revenue and uniting two longtime launch partners. Alliant helps power the Antares rocket, key to Orbitals growth in the estimated $7 billion market for building and launching midsized satellites and spacecraft.

Were still not going to be a $30 billion-level company, but well be well-positioned in bringing the right combination of innovation and affordability, David W. Thompson, chairman and chief executive officer of Orbital, said in a phone interview after the announcement yesterday.

Thompson, 60, will be CEO of the new company, created by the years end in a $5 billion, all-stock deal. Orbital surged 17 percent yesterday to close at $30.96 in New York, the biggest gain in more than 11 years. The shares, which sank to a five-year low in June 2012, have risen 75 percent in the past year, reflecting the companys success in reaching the space station.

Unlike SpaceX, Orbital has no plans to jump into the riskier businesses of ferrying astronauts to the station or launching big military and spy satellites.

Theres the Goldilocks effect here, Thompson said earlier this month at the companys headquarters in Dulles, Virginia. You can fail by not reaching far enough, and you can also sometimes stumble by reaching too far.

Orbital officials expect to boost sales in an austere federal budget environment in part by focusing on midsized missions, which include the flights to the space station under a National Aeronautics and Space Administration contract.

The midsized missions accounted for roughly $350 million, or more than a quarter of Orbitals sales last year. By the end of the decade, they may generate $1 billion, Thompson said.

Thompson said he doesnt regret losing the opportunity to develop a commercial crew program for NASA. The agency instead has funded efforts by several companies to develop spacecraft capable of carrying astronauts -- including SpaceX, Boeing Co. (BA) and Blue Origin LLC, a Kent, Washington-based company founded by Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN)

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Orbital Sciences Soars Out of Musks Shadow in Space Race

NASA Opens Space Station To Private Corporations, Asks Tech Firms For Ideas

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SILICON VALLEY (CBS SF) Forget Silicon Valley and Bay Area rents, there is no higher rent than thisan office space thats quite literally out of this world. The views are amazing, but the commute is a bit expensive, and the office quarters are cramped. Still, the work that can be done up here is only possible in this rarest of places, 220 miles up.

As the International Space Station is now old enough to drive, its also showing its age. Sixteen years in space, and another ten years of planned life has NASA looking for options to evolve the orbiting outpost, and thats where corporations come in.

The space agency is looking for ways to create greater access for companies to use the space station (ISS) for private enterprise.

All puns aside, Google workers wouldnt be hopping into Soyuz capsules in Mountain View to head up to work, but theoretically, Google could invest in some real estate above earth for a project.

In the Request for Information announced this week, NASA is asking companies for their ideas on what they would do on board the station to develop a commercial market, and help the agency continue exploration.

Already, Tesla and PayPal co-founder Elon Musks company is handling cargo missions to the station under SpaceX.

NASA hopes to make the space near earth a commercial project, and focus instead on deep space.

Now is an exciting time for space research and developing exploration capabilities, said William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Human Exploration and Operations at NASA Headquarters in Washington. After 10 years of continuous habitation in low-Earth orbit, we know microgravity provides data unattainable on Earth. We are already seeing benefits in pharmaceuticals, medical robotics and materials sciences.

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NASA Opens Space Station To Private Corporations, Asks Tech Firms For Ideas

Red Cross provides Sudanese refugees with urgent support

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ICRC Bulletin 29 April 2014

Ethiopia: Red Cross provides South Sudanese refugees with urgent life-saving support

Since violence erupted in South Sudan in mid December, more than 95,000 people have fled to Gambella, in neighbouring Ethiopia, where they arrive exhausted, sick and in desperate need of support.

The Ethiopian Red Cross Society, the ICRC, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the Swiss Red Cross are working together to provide the refugees with better access to medical care and clean water, while also promoting good hygiene practices.

"Families, many of them with very small children, walk for days, and sometimes weeks, to reach the safety of Ethiopia," said Ariane Tombet, head of the ICRC delegation in Ethiopia. "They are worn out from the journey, and many arrive sick and in need of immediate aid."

"The fact that life is becoming more difficult in the camps, where there is not enough shelter or water, requires the attention of all humanitarian organizations," said Frehiwot Worku, the secretary-general of the Ethiopian Red Cross. "More and more refugees are arriving every day. The Ethiopian Red Cross and its partners within the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement need to prepare for even greater numbers of refugees who have not yet arrived."

"The rainy season will soon be upon us and with that comes the potential for an increase in water-borne diseases such as cholera and diarrhoea," said Jill Clements, who heads the delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Ethiopia. "It is vital that we work with refugees now to ensure they are aware of some of the measures they can take to help prevent diseases such as these from taking hold."

After assessing conditions in the refugee camps in early March, Red Cross Movement partners sent two fully equipped ambulances to the camps along with two other vehicles. "Red Cross ambulance crews are giving 24-hour service to refugees who need medical attention, while the two additional vehicles are used to transport patients whose condition is not critical," explained Ato Umed Uquay of the Ethiopian Red Cross Gambella branch.

In addition, equipment, medicines, hygiene items and other medical supplies have been donated to Gambella hospital and to Nyinenyang and Itang health centres.

In Letchuor camp, 100 volunteers who are refugees themselves have been trained in water and sanitation activities and in emergency health. Approximately 21,000 litres of water is being trucked to Kule camp every day from the town of Itang, more than 8 kilometres away.

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Red Cross provides Sudanese refugees with urgent support

South Sudan: Ethiopia – Red Cross Provides South Sudanese Refugees With Urgent Life-Saving Support

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Since violence erupted in South Sudan in mid December, more than 95,000 people have fled to Gambella, in neighbouring Ethiopia, where they arrive exhausted, sick and in desperate need of support.

The Ethiopian Red Cross Society, the ICRC, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the Swiss Red Cross are working together to provide the refugees with better access to medical care and clean water, while also promoting good hygiene practices.

"Families, many of them with very small children, walk for days, and sometimes weeks, to reach the safety of Ethiopia," said Ariane Tombet, head of the ICRC delegation in Ethiopia. "They are worn out from the journey, and many arrive sick and in need of immediate aid."

"The fact that life is becoming more difficult in the camps, where there is not enough shelter or water, requires the attention of all humanitarian organizations," said Frehiwot Worku, the secretary-general of the Ethiopian Red Cross. "More and more refugees are arriving every day. The Ethiopian Red Cross and its partners within the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement need to prepare for even greater numbers of refugees who have not yet arrived."

"The rainy season will soon be upon us and with that comes the potential for an increase in water-borne diseases such as cholera and diarrhoea," said Jill Clements, who heads the delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Ethiopia. "It is vital that we work with refugees now to ensure they are aware of some of the measures they can take to help prevent diseases such as these from taking hold."

After assessing conditions in the refugee camps in early March, Red Cross Movement partners sent two fully equipped ambulances to the camps along with two other vehicles. "Red Cross ambulance crews are giving 24-hour service to refugees who need medical attention, while the two additional vehicles are used to transport patients whose condition is not critical," explained Ato Umed Uquay of the Ethiopian Red Cross Gambella branch.

In addition, equipment, medicines, hygiene items and other medical supplies have been donated to Gambella hospital and to Nyinenyang and Itang health centres. In Letchuor camp, 100 volunteers who are refugees themselves have been trained in water and sanitation activities and in emergency health. Approximately 21,000 litres of water is being trucked to Kule camp every day from the town of Itang, more than 8 kilometres away.

Plans are now under way to provide 12,000 of the neediest refugees, including pregnant and lactating women and refugees with disabilities, with fuel-saving stoves, firewood, emergency shelters and other items. In Pagak camp, the entry point from South Sudan, the Red Cross will build five communal shelters, each of which will be able to accommodate up to 300 refugees, and equip them with kitchen sets and sleeping mats.

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South Sudan: Ethiopia - Red Cross Provides South Sudanese Refugees With Urgent Life-Saving Support

NASA’s Curiosity Mars Rover captures UFO’s Flying Docking Refuelling – Video

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NASA #39;s Curiosity Mars Rover captures UFO #39;s Flying Docking Refuelling
Curiosity has really done it !! Clear images of UFO docking, possibly refuelling while others are in the air above. Music is by Hypnocat - Blackout - used with permission Source http://mars.jpl.na...

By: Sapa Holliday

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NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover captures UFO's Flying Docking Refuelling - Video

Mars Rover Curiosity at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory – Nerdy Jobs with Matt Bennett – Video

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Mars Rover Curiosity at NASA #39;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory - Nerdy Jobs with Matt Bennett
Join Matt Bennett as he takes you behind the scenes of some of the coolest Nerdy Jobs on the planet. This episode Matt gets a hands on look at the inner working of NASA #39;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory...

By: Nerdist

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Mars Rover Curiosity at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory - Nerdy Jobs with Matt Bennett - Video