Award-winning Millbrook Resort scoops gold again at World Travel Awards

Posted on by

October 10 2013

Award-winning Millbrook Resort scoops gold again at World Travel Awards

Queenstowns five-star Millbrook Resort has once again beat off stiff national competition to take out the title of New Zealands Best Golf Resort at the travel industrys most prestigious awards ceremony held in Dubai earlier this month.

The multi award-winning golf and lifestyle resort, set on 500 acres of grounds near Arrowtown, won the top spot for the third year running, making it one of the most lauded golf courses in Australasia and the world.

Widely-referred to as The Oscars of the Travel World, the World Travel Awards (WTA) celebrates those companies and brands that push the boundaries of industry excellence in product and service.

Millbrook Director of Golf, Brian Spicer said the award win was an important recognition in the lead up to the Resorts inclusion in next years New Zealand Open.

The entire team has worked hard in the last five or so years to ensure we maintain our high standards, providing one of the best golfing experiences in the country. Were certainly up there with the worlds best, said Mr Spicer.

Our hard work has certainly paid off, not only with the acknowledgement of this prestigious award for the third consecutive year, but also being co-host of the 2014 NZ Open- which is a huge privilege.

Were absolutely thrilled to be a part of this prestigious tournament, which will be the pre-eminent sporting event in the country this summer.

Our dedication to providing world-class facilities and five-star service has enabled us to become part of the NZ Open for 2014, Mr Spicer said.

More:

Award-winning Millbrook Resort scoops gold again at World Travel Awards

Millbrook Resort scoops gold at World Travel Awards

Posted on by

Queenstowns five-star Millbrook Resort has once again beat off stiff national competition to take out the title of New Zealands Best Golf Resort at the travel industrys most prestigious awards ceremony held in Dubai earlier this month.

The multi award-winning golf and lifestyle resort, set on 500 acres of grounds near Arrowtown, won the top spot for the third year running, making it one of the most lauded golf courses in Australasia and the world.

Widely-referred to as The Oscars of the Travel World, the World Travel Awards (WTA) celebrates those companies and brands that "push the boundaries of industry excellence in product and service".

Millbrook Director of Golf, Brian Spicer said the award win was an important recognition in the lead up to the Resorts inclusion in next years New Zealand Open.

"The entire team has worked hard in the last five or so years to ensure we maintain our high standards, providing one of the best golfing experiences in the country. Were certainly up there with the worlds best," said Mr Spicer.

"Our hard work has certainly paid off, not only with the acknowledgement of this prestigious award for the third consecutive year, but also being co-host of the 2014 NZ Open- which is a huge privilege."

"Were absolutely thrilled to be a part of this prestigious tournament, which will be the pre-eminent sporting event in the country this summer.

"Our dedication to providing world-class facilities and five-star service has enabled us to become part of the NZ Open for 2014," Mr Spicer said.

"People come from all over the world to stay and play Milbrooks greens and were constantly reminded by people of how beautiful the course and surrounds are.

"The NZ Open will allow us to showcase Millbrook to a worldwide audience," said Mr Spicer.

The rest is here:

Millbrook Resort scoops gold at World Travel Awards

A Transhuman Conundrum: Elective Bionic Limb Replacement …

Posted on by

By Erin Biba on Oct. 8, 2013 at 10:25 a.m.

This week were taking a look at the ethics of enhancing ourselves. Well present you with a series of ethical conundrums brought about by entirely possible future transhuman modifications and you can argue the ethics in the comments. Well have to face these questions eventually, might as well get started now. Are you pro or con superhumans?

The scenario: You have carpal tunnel from repetitive tasks and your legs dont have much muscle left because you sit all day long anyway. Dont fret! Advances in prosthetics means cheap, easily attachable, bionic parts are available to you. Why not replace all your limbs? Mechanical hands can type faster than your stubby human ones, mechanical legs dont get shin splints or bum knees, and a new metal elbow will make playing catch with your dog WAY more fun (especially since your dog is a robot). Prosthetics are better than your real limbs, theyre super cheap now, and its a simple in-and-out procedure. What do you do?

How Realistic is This?

In a lot of ways, prosthetic limbs are already starting to look better than the regular old boring human ones. All the way back in 2009, an arm prosthetic called the iLimb came equipped with its very own iPhone app that allowed its users to customize a variety of personalized grips. Today its able to gradually increase the strength of its grip to adjust to different activities (like tying a shoe versus picking up a glass). And thats just arms. In 2012, Zac Vawter and his bionic leg climbed all 103-flight of Chicagos Willis (aka Sears) Tower in just under an hour. His $8 million dollar prosthesis, made by the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicagos Center for Bionic Medicine, is connected directly to the nerves in his leg that would normally control his hamstring. Right now, the biggest hurdle preventing us all from replacing our limbs with bionic ones is the price tag.

Youll have to decide how you feel about cutting off your already working limbs. After all, theyve served you well enough for this long. And you have no idea how youll actually feel about your bionic replacements. Remember, once your limbs are gone, theres no going back (probably). And how prepared are you to come in for regular firmware and hardware upgrades? Youll also have to decide how your friends and colleagues will feel about your modifications -- because once youre part robot youll jump higher and run faster than any of them. Plus youll beat everyone in arm wrestling. But if youre a reporter youll be able to type super fast, so maybe its worth it.

Much like in other elective surgeries, your doctor will have to decide how he feels about basically maiming you in order to enhance you.

Here's what ethicists have to say on the matter.

Shockingly, this is already an issue were already confronting. Partial amputees are opting to have more of their limbs removed in order to make their replacement limbs more comfortable and easier to use. And we all know about the Olympic argument about whether or not runner Oscar Pistorius had an advantage over other athletes thanks to his carbon fiber blade legs. But what about elective surgery in people that arent already injured?

Some ethicists note that humankind is pretty well hindered by the limitations of our bodies. Talking to The Guardian, Andy Miah, director of the Creative Futures Institute and professor of ethics and emerging technologies at the University of the West of Scotland said: What's crucial about these technologies is they don't just repair us, they make us better than well. The human enhancement market will reveal the truth about our biological conditions we are all disabled."

Originally posted here:

A Transhuman Conundrum: Elective Bionic Limb Replacement ...

A Transhuman Conundrum: Brain-Machine Interfaces – Tested

Posted on by

By Erin Biba on Oct. 9, 2013 at 9 a.m.

This week were taking a look at the ethics of enhancing ourselves. Well present you with a series of ethical conundrums brought about by entirely possible future transhuman modifications and you can argue the ethics in the comments. Well have to face these questions eventually, might as well get started now. Are you pro or con superhumans?

The scenario: Everyones always told you to relax. Youre too high-strung. You just have so much anxiety about everything. So why not get yourself a shiny new exocortex. A little computer that you can wear behind your ear. It plugs into your brain and helps you have all those fantastic personality traits youve always wanted. Want to be funnier? Tap into a repository of jokes and anecdotes. Have a better memory? Storage capacity is not a problem. Instantly speak a foreign language? Sure! Why not even a constructed one?

The exocortex--or even the ability to jack your brain into a computer to enhance it--is still a long way away. But its not completely impossible. Were already experimenting with it on the small scale. You can already buy a whole slew of toys that claim to be operated by your brain (Mattels Mindflex games let you use your mind to direct a ball through a maze). UC Berkeley's Carmena Lab is developing techniques to use the brain to manipulate mechanical devices. And, of course, theres Obamas infamous brain map initiative--who knows what will come from that. Applications today work in one direction--from brain to device--but two-way connections, such as memory implants, are in the works.

Your new exocortex is going to help you with high level thinking. It could make you a better student or a better all around person. But it could also significantly change (or even replace) your personality. Youre going to have to decide how far you want to go. Just how different are you going to end up being after all is said and done? Youre also going to have to take into account how your friends and family are going to react to these changes. At the same time, your boss might consider you to be the ultimate employee--truly dedicated to being the best at your job that you can be.

Nick Bostrom, a philosopher at Oxfords Future of Humanity Institute, writes in his paper Dignity and Enhancement, that its important to remember how enhancements like hooking our brains into a computer will ultimately affect our dignity:

"A trait acquired through the deliberate employment of some enhancement technology could be more authentically ours than a trait that we possessed from birth or that developed in us independently of our own agency. Could it be that not only the person who has acquired a trait through personal growth and experience, but also one who has acquired it by choosing to make use of some enhancement technology, may possess that trait more authentically than the person who just happens to have the trait by default? Holding other things constant such as the permanency of the trait, and its degree of integration and harmonization with other traits possessed by the person this would indeed seem to be the case."

So what say you? Is adding a new brain onto our old brain a great way to get ahead in the world? Or is it unfair (or just plain creepy) to modify parts of your personality youd otherwise have no control over? Discuss!

Read the original here:

A Transhuman Conundrum: Brain-Machine Interfaces - Tested

Sandy B. – AA Speaker – "The Power of Spirituality and the Twelve Steps" – Video

Posted on by


Sandy B. - AA Speaker - "The Power of Spirituality and the Twelve Steps"
INCREDIBLY moving workshop by one of my favorite AA speakers, Sandy B. from Florida. This is 5 hours plus of recovery gold, and is sure to be a wonderful exp...

By: Odomtology 12-Step Recovery Media

See the original post:

Sandy B. - AA Speaker - "The Power of Spirituality and the Twelve Steps" - Video

Lets Play Mavericks 3 Zero’s Revenge Episode 11 – Dark Dizzy in the Space Station – Video

Posted on by


Lets Play Mavericks 3 Zero #39;s Revenge Episode 11 - Dark Dizzy in the Space Station
READ DESCRIPTION--- We now continue with our regular LP of Mavericks 3 Zero #39;s Revenge, after dealing with Dynamo Man in the Power Station, we now go to th...

By: LeoHightower

More here:

Lets Play Mavericks 3 Zero's Revenge Episode 11 - Dark Dizzy in the Space Station - Video

Scythe Plays Space Station Silicon Valley – E8 – [ICE] Level 14 (Let’s Play 100% Walkthrough) – Video

Posted on by


Scythe Plays Space Station Silicon Valley - E8 - [ICE] Level 14 (Let #39;s Play 100% Walkthrough)
Click Here to Subscribe!!! ? http://bit.ly/17QJQyO EPISODE 8 ICE ZONE [ICE] 00:38 LEVEL 14: PINBALL BLIZZARD (Trophy: Play the song the Baby Penguines teach ...

By: Antignarot

See the rest here:

Scythe Plays Space Station Silicon Valley - E8 - [ICE] Level 14 (Let's Play 100% Walkthrough) - Video

Soyuz reaches International Space Station in under six hours normfunnyvideo – Video

Posted on by


Soyuz reaches International Space Station in under six hours normfunnyvideo
haber,haberler,yeni haber,güncel haber,new news,news,2013,kaza,accident,iphone,android,android sdk haber haberler yeni haber güncel haber new news,news 2013 ...

By: Norm Endersan

Read the rest here:

Soyuz reaches International Space Station in under six hours normfunnyvideo - Video

International Space Station to pass in front of the moon tonight

Posted on by

A RARE SPACE event is to take place tonight when the international space station (ISS) will pass in front of the moon.

The international space station is the biggest and most expensive spacecraft ever to be put into orbit.

Spectacular sight

At 8.54pm tonight, it will rise in the west, travel through the sky towards the moon, with what Astronomy Ireland promises will be a spectacular sight.

David Moore, editor of Astronomy Ireland magazine is urging everyone to get out and see the spectacle. He said the ISS will almost look as if it will crash into the moon, but of course this wont happen, as the Moon is about a thousand times further away than the space station, he said.

He added:

If you imagine a line drawn from Dublin to Bantry Bay in Cork, people along that line can look up and see the ISS pass in front of the Moon. This is a very rare event and we want everyone who can to go out and see it!

The ISS will continue to pass over Ireland every evening until 26 October.

Read: Life on Mars? Not looking likely, says new NASA study>

Read the original:

International Space Station to pass in front of the moon tonight