Western and Eastern spirituality thrive, and mix, in B.C.

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Jesus and Buddha have high approval ratings among British Columbians. The founders of Christianity and Buddhism both receive strongly favourable rankings in B.C. and Metro Vancouver, according to an Easter poll conducted for The Vancouver Sun.

Two of the best-known living leaders in Christianity and Buddhism - Pope Francis and the Dalai Lama - also win top approval ratings.

According to an Insights West online poll of 815 B.C. residents conducted last weekend, three of four believe both Jesus Christ and Buddha "had a positive influence on mankind."

The Dalai Lama received virtually the same approval ratings as the head of the world's 1.2 billion Roman Catholics, Pope Francis.

The performances of the Dalai Lama and the Pope were "approved" by more than 55 per cent. Only five per cent "disapproved" of the Dalai Lama; 11 per cent were critical of the pope.

It's no surprise that two of the major religions with historical links to the East and West are well-received here.

After all, Metro Vancouver is the most Asian major city outside Asia - 43 per cent of Metro residents have an Asian background. Mario Canseco, who conducted the poll for Insights West, said Pope Francis, elected last year, scored across all age groups.

Although the poll indicated the Eastern-rooted religions of Sikhism and Islam are not as popular in B.C. as Buddhism, there are other signs that aspects of Eastern spirituality have taken hold here.

There is a high rate of acceptance, for instance, of the concept of "karma." It is a Buddhist-Hindu teaching that, at the broadest level, suggests people will suffer for their unethical acts and be rewarded for virtuous behaviour.

Sixty-one per cent say they "believe" in karma. Belief in karma, oddly enough, is even higher among Christians, at 65 per cent.

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Western and Eastern spirituality thrive, and mix, in B.C.

From Time.com: Finding God in the Dark

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04/18/2014 at 09:25 AM EDT

Courtesy TIME/Photograph by Joachim LadefogedVII

Darkness is often treated as evil, a vast unknown and the Ultimate spiritual enemy. But as one of America's leading theologians believes, it may save us all

From the moment God declared, "Let there be light," Scripture christened light as holy and condemned darkness to hell. The Christian liturgy soaked in the theme in the centuries that followed. The Book of Common Prayer addresses God as "O Light" and begs, "Be our light in the darkness, O Lord." Hymns followed suit, from Amazing Grace to the hit "In the Light" from Christian hip-hop band dc Talk.

But theologian Barbara Brown Taylor sees it differently. As impossible as it is to imagine faith without light, it is equally hard to imagine a world without darkness. We are taught to fear darkness as children, she says, when parents line the halls to the bathroom with nightlights to scare away the closet monsters. As we grow older, the monsters take a different shape: darkness descends with the call that a loved one has cancer, months of unemployment, a child with an addiction or an unanswered prayer.

The preacher in Taylor points out that darkness was often the setting for humanitys closest encounters with the divine. God appeared to Abraham in the night and promised him descendants more numerous than the stars. The exodus from Egypt happened at night. God met Moses in the thick darkness atop Mount Sinai to hand down the Ten Commandments. Jesus was born beneath a star and resurrected in the darkness of a cave.

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From Time.com: Finding God in the Dark

World's most sacred places

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When we modern folks visit a beautiful natural site, the experience may evoke a sense of peace, a feeling of awe...or just the need to snap a million photos. For our ancient forbearers, though, these places were so much more. Throughout history, civilizations all over the globe have attached spiritual or religious importance to natural spots(ie. not man-made places)that played key roles in their respective cultures. From the mythological homes of powerhouse gods like Zeus and Shiva to the serene spot where the mortal Buddha achieved enlightenment, these are the places of legends. Some are still used for age-old rituals, others have been lost to time, but all crackle with a special energy and, if you're lucky, just a little bit of leftover magic.

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Located in Australia's Red Centre, in the heart of the continent, these two natural rock formations are the main attractions in the World Heritage SiteUluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. One of the country's more recognizable landmarks, Uluru is a flat-topped sandstone rock standing about 1,100 feet high and almost six miles around, with a soulful, deep-red hue that changes throughout the day. (The site is also known as Ayers Rock, so named by the colonial surveyor who "rediscovered" the place in 1873.) About 30 miles away, Kata Tjuta (a.k.a. The Olgas) is made of more than 30 domes of varying rock types, including granite, sandstone, and basalt; the tallest point is almost 1,800 feet high. Both sites are sacred to the Anangu people of the Pitjantjatjara Aboriginal tribe, who believe the rocks were built during the ancient creation period and are still inhabited by ancestor spirits. (Archeologist work suggests there were humans in this area over 20,000 years ago.) Owned by the Anangu and leased by the government, the park is open to the public, though tribespeople continue to perform rituals and ceremonies in various locations, such as the sacred "Dreamtime" track that runs near the modern hiking trail. The park also houses a Cultural Center and Aboriginal rock art sites, and ranger guided tours are available.

Getting There:Visitors can drive or join a bus tour to the park from Alice Springs (280 miles away), or fly to Ayers Rock Airport/Connellan (AYQ); Qantas and Virgin Australia offer direct flights from several major domestic cities. There are only a few accommodation choices in the area, in different price ranges, and all are owned byVoyages Indigenous Tourism. (Camping is not allowed in the park.) Note that while hiking Uluru is not technically forbidden, the Anangu ask that visitors not climb the rock out of respect for its significance, and also ask that photos not be taken of certain sacred sites. Guests should also not pocket any rocks as souvenirsthose who have say it brings bad luck, and often mail the rocks back to the park. Admission is $25 for a three-day pass.

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The ancient Maya revered water for its life-sustaining power, and worshiped Chac, the god of rain, because of this awe of H20. Many areas of Mexico are dotted with cenotesnatural underground sinkholesand the Maya believed that some of these sites were visited by Chac himself. As a result, some cenotes were designated as "sacred" and kept for rituals, offerings and sacrifices, while others were set aside for bathing, drinking and crop water. One of the most notable of the sacred springs is Cenote Sagrado, located near the major Mayan archeological site Chichen Itza in the Yucatan Peninsula. Created from a natural limestone cave, with steep sides stretching about 60 feet above the water line, this cenote was specifically used for ceremonies and occasional sacrifices; for the latter, men, women, and children were thrown in during drought times to appease the water gods. When archeologists dredged the spring in the 20th century, they found gold bells, masks, cups, rings, jade pieces, and more (many from the post-Spanish period) along with human bones.

Getting There:One of the most visited archeological sites in Mexico,Chichen Itzacan be reached by car or organized bus tours (typically about $35 per person) from nearby tourist hubs like Cancn or Cozumel, or via infrequent public bus service; the ride is about two-and-a-half hours from Cancn. The entry fee is about $8 and includes the evening light and sound show; headphone tours are $2. Cenote Sagrado is part of the Great North Platform section of the site.

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According to Buddhist traditions, around 500 B.C., when the ascetic Prince Siddhartha was wandering through what's now the state of Bihar in India, he took rest under a native bodhi tree. After meditating there for three nights, the prince awoke with enlightenment, insight and the answers he had been seeking, which developed into the teachings he went on to spread to his disciples. Naturally, the place where the Buddha reached enlightenment is one of the most sacred sites for Buddhists, and has been a major pilgrimage destination for centuries. Today, a temple complex surrounds what is believed to be a direct descendant of the original majestic tree itself, which sits in the middle of a courtyard surrounded by protective carved panels. A beautiful Buddha statue under the tree marks the significant spot.

Getting There:A UNESCO World Heritage Site, theMahabodhi Temple Complexis in the Bodh Gaya area of Bihar, India. The site is about three miles from the Gaya Airport and about seven miles from Gaya City. Car service, public buses, and bus tours are also available from the holy city of Varanasi; public buses run about $8.

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World's most sacred places

SpaceX launch to International Space Station threatened by storms

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May 23, 2011: The International Space Station sits at an altitude of approximately 220 miles above the Earth in this photo taken by Expedition 27 crew member Paolo Nespoli from the Soyuz TMA-20 following its undocking.AP/NASA

SpaceX returned to the launch pad Friday in hopes of finally delivering supplies to the International Space Station, but stormy weather threatened to interfere.

NASA's commercial supplier was foiled by a leaky rocket valve during Monday's launch attempt. The valve was replaced, and the company aimed for a liftoff at 3:25 p.m. Friday. Forecasters put the odds of acceptable weather at 40 percent.

The unmanned Dragon cargo ship contains 2 tons of station supplies, including material originally intended for urgent spacewalking repairs coming up in just a few days.

A critical backup computer failed outside the space station last Friday. Astronauts will replace it as early as Sunday; the timing for the spacewalk depends on when the Dragon flies.

The primary computer is working fine, but numerous systems would be seriously compromised if it broke, too. A double failure also would hinder visits by the Dragon and other vessels.

"It's imperative that we maintain" backups for these external command-routing computer boxes, also called multiplexer-demultiplexers, or MDMs, said flight director Brian Smith. "Right now, we don't have that."

NASA decided late this week to use the gasket-like material already on board the space station for the repair, instead of waiting for the Dragon. Astronauts trimmed the thermal material Friday to fit the bottom of the replacement computer, and inserted a fresh circuit card.

Much-needed food is also aboard the Dragon, along with a new spacesuit and spacesuit replacement parts. NASA wants these things at the space station as soon as possible.

The shipment is already more than a month late. Initially set for mid-March, the launch was delayed by extra prepping, then damage to an Air Force radar and, finally on Monday, the rocket leak.

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SpaceX launch to International Space Station threatened by storms

Space-Tested Fluid Flow Concept Advances Infectious Disease Diagnoses

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April 18, 2014

Image Caption: Rick Mastracchio conducting a Capillary Flow Experiment aboard the International Space Station. Credit: NASA

Melissa Gaskill, International Space Station Program Office, NASA Johnson Space Center

A new medical-testing device is being prepped to enter the battle against infectious disease. This instrument could improve diagnosis of certain diseases in remote areas, thanks in part to knowledge gained from a series of investigations aboard the International Space Station on the behavior of liquids. The device uses the space-tested concept of capillary flow to diagnose infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.

David Kelso, Ph.D., a researcher at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., had been working for several years to develop a simple, inexpensive device that could be used in resource-limited settings to test for infectious diseases. When designs didnt work as expected in the lab, Kelso brought in Portland State University researcher Mark Weislogel, Ph.D., who is the principal investigator for the Capillary Flow Experiment (CFE) on the space station.

He came by the lab, we ran two or three experiments for him, and he explained to us that the problem had to do with capillary flow, Kelso says. Our mindset was that gravity would pull fluids through the device, but his mindset, due to his work in microgravity, was to use capillary action. His experience and work in zero-G was invaluable; he could look at something and not be constrained to just seeing the effects of gravity but other effects that we were blind to.

Cell samples in the form of blood or other bodily fluids are put into the device, where an enzyme fluid bursts the cells to release DNA or RNA. Another solution washes away the enzyme and the cellular debris, leaving behind the DNA or RNA, which is captured on a bead and used to identify infectious viruses. You only need fewer than a dozen particles, and you can detect the presence of the virus, Kelso explains. Its a phenomenal analytical technique, but it involves four different fluids that have to be moved around.

Thats where capillary forces come into play. The interaction between a liquid and a solid that draws a fluid up a narrow tube, capillary forces continue to operate in microgravity, and the low-gravity environment on the space station enabled researchers to conduct investigations into the special dynamics of this fluid behavior. The CFE series clarified the properties of the boundary between a liquid and the solid surface of its container and the flow of liquids under certain conditions. This knowledge will prove useful in designing fluid-bearing containers such as propellant tanks and water storage and management systems. It also will aid in creating instruments that use bio-fluids including the medical testing device the Northwestern lab is developing.

The capillary flow knowledge is just amazing, Kelso says. Its a way to move fluids without putting any energy into the device. We were using motors and batteries and all these things that consume power to make the device work. Doing it with capillary action uses much less energy. That makes it possible to diagnose infectious diseases in places where there is no power or where power is unreliable. It also reduces the time between sample collection and diagnosis and, therefore, initiation of treatment.

This cartridge and the way fluid moves in it are an important part of measuring viral load level, says Kara Palamountain, president of the Northwestern Global Health Foundation. Capillary flow helped us understand more about our assumptions and explains the movement we see in the cartridge, which we wouldnt have seen otherwise.

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Space-Tested Fluid Flow Concept Advances Infectious Disease Diagnoses

Storms threaten 2nd SpaceX Dragon launch try to space station

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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -

SpaceX returned to the launch pad Friday in hopes of finally delivering supplies to the International Space Station, but stormy weather threatened to interfere.

NASA's commercial supplier was foiled by a leaky rocket valve during Monday's launch attempt. The valve was replaced, and the company aimed for a liftoff at 3:25 p.m. Friday. Forecasters put the odds of acceptable weather at 40 percent.

The unmanned Dragon cargo ship contains 2 tons of station supplies, including material originally intended for urgent spacewalking repairs coming up in just a few days.

A critical backup computer failed outside the space station last Friday. Astronauts will replace it as early as Sunday; the timing for the spacewalk depends on when the Dragon flies.

The primary computer is working fine, but numerous systems would be seriously compromised if it broke, too. A double failure also would hinder visits by the Dragon and other vessels.

"It's imperative that we maintain" backups for these external command-routing computer boxes, also called multiplexer-demultiplexers, or MDMs, said flight director Brian Smith. "Right now, we don't have that."

NASA decided late this week to use the gasket-like material already on board the space station for the repair, instead of waiting for the Dragon. Astronauts trimmed the thermal material Friday to fit the bottom of the replacement computer, and inserted a fresh circuit card.

Much-needed food is also aboard the Dragon, along with a new spacesuit and spacesuit replacement parts. NASA wants these things at the space station as soon as possible.

The shipment is already more than a month late. Initially set for mid-March, the launch was delayed by extra prepping, then damage to an Air Force radar and, finally on Monday, the rocket leak.

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Storms threaten 2nd SpaceX Dragon launch try to space station

NASA's moon-orbiting robot crashes into lunar surface early, likely vaporized

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NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Centerenables NASAs mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a lea" title="In this artist's concept provided by NASA the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft is seen orbiting the moon as it prepares to fire its maneuvering thrusters to maintain a safe orbital altitude. NASA's small moon-orbiting spacecraft LADEE (pronounced LAH'-dee) is no more. Flight controllers confirmed early Friday April 18, 2014 that LADEE crashed into the back side of the moon. (AP Photo/NASA, Dana Berry) Credit: NASA Ames / Dana Berry ----- What is LADEE? The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) is designed to study the Moon's thin exosphere and the lunar dust environment. An "exosphere" is an atmosphere that is so thin and tenuous that molecules don't collide with each other. Studying the Moon's exosphere will help scientists understand other planetary bodies with exospheres too, like Mercury and some of Jupiter's bigger moons. The orbiter will determine the density, composition and temporal and spatial variability of the Moon's exosphere to help us understand where the species in the exosphere come from and the role of the solar wind, lunar surface and interior, and meteoric infall as sources. The mission will also examine the density and temporal and spatial variability of dust particles that may get lofted into the atmosphere. The mission also will test several new technologies, including a modular spacecraft bus that may reduce the cost of future deep space missions and demonstrate two-way high rate laser communication for the first time from the Moon. LADEE now is ready to launch when the window opens on Sept. 6, 2013. Read more:http://www.nasa.gov/ladee NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Centerenables NASAs mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a lea" height="367" width="648" border="0">

NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Centerenables NASAs mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a lea">Enlarge Image

In this artist's concept provided by NASA the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft is seen orbiting the moon as it prepares to fire its maneuvering thrusters to maintain a safe orbital altitude. NASA's small moon-orbiting spacecraft LADEE (pronounced LAH'-dee) is no more. Flight controllers confirmed early Friday April 18, 2014 that LADEE crashed into the back side of the moon. (AP Photo/NASA, Dana Berry) Credit: NASA Ames / Dana Berry ----- What is LADEE? The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) is designed to study the Moon's thin exosphere and the lunar dust environment. An "exosphere" is an atmosphere that is so thin and tenuous that molecules don't collide with each other. Studying the Moon's exosphere will help scientists understand other planetary bodies with exospheres too, like Mercury and some of Jupiter's bigger moons. The orbiter will determine the density, composition and temporal and spatial variability of the Moon's exosphere to help us understand where the species in the exosphere come from and the role of the solar wind, lunar surface and interior, and meteoric infall as sources. The mission will also examine the density and temporal and spatial variability of dust particles that may get lofted into the atmosphere. The mission also will test several new technologies, including a modular spacecraft bus that may reduce the cost of future deep space missions and demonstrate two-way high rate laser communication for the first time from the Moon. LADEE now is ready to launch when the window opens on Sept. 6, 2013. Read more:http://www.nasa.gov/ladee NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Centerenables NASAs mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a lea

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA's small moon-orbiting spacecraft LADEE (pronounced LAH'-dee) is no more. Flight controllers confirmed early Friday that LADEE crashed into the back side of the moon.

Researchers believe the robotic explorer vaporized upon contact because of its high orbiting speed of 3,600 mph, possibly smacking into a mountain or side of a crater. As of late Thursday afternoon, the spacecraft was flying 300 feet above the lunar surface. Its altitude had been lowered on purpose to ensure a crash by Monday.

LADEE short for Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer was launched in September. It completed its main science mission last month and was on overtime.

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NASA's moon-orbiting robot crashes into lunar surface early, likely vaporized

Blood-red moon signals Armageddon, say Bible bashers

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On Tuesday millions in America saw a total lunar eclipse in the skies That moon will return over Earth three times in the next 17 months Astronomers call the rare run of red moons a tetrad On September 15 next year, Britain will witness the spectacle

By Tom Leonard

Published: 19:54 EST, 17 April 2014 | Updated: 07:52 EST, 18 April 2014

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On September 15 next year, Britain will witness an extraordinary sight.

High in the heavens, the Moon will turn an eerie blood-red filling the night sky with fiery radiance, as if Mars, the planet of war, has suddenly burst from its natural orbit and arrived on our doorstep.

This spectacular vision will be the culmination of a rare and, in the eyes of some, deeply ominous astrological event, which began this week.

On Tuesday, millions of people across America and much of the rest of the Western hemisphere saw exactly such a blood-red moon glowing above their heads for around an hour-and-a-half. That same moon will return over Earth three times in the next 17 months, making its final dramatic appearance over Britain.

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Blood-red moon signals Armageddon, say Bible bashers