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Brendan Gaughan takes NASCAR back to its roots, and this time it’s legal – FOXSports.com

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

LAS VEGAS NASCAR and moonshine have long had an intertwined relationship, so it should come as no great surprise that Brendan Gaughan, who is sort of a throwback driver, has found a profitable way to keep the tradition going.

And this time, its legal.

Gaughan, full-time driver of the No. 62 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing in the XFINITY Series, has started up a new side business called City Lights Shine. And the Las Vegas native isvery excited about it.

City Lights Shine is the new whiskey moonshine that were making here in Las Vegas, Gaughan said Friday in the Las Vegas Motor Speedway media center. We are the first and only legal distillery in Las Vegas. Ive got to stress the legal part.

Gaughans partner in the business venture is former NASCAR official Mike Dolan.

The back story is there is a certain individual who may have been a NASCAR official for quite a few years, who may have made a product every once in a while that we would, uh, taste, Gaughan said. We may or may not have done that. I will invoke my right to the Fifth Amendment.

Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images

Gaughan said he eventually introduced the product to his parents, owners of South Point Casino in Las Vegas. His mother, Paula Gaughan, actually liked it so much that she encouraged her son to pursue making it and distributing it all legally, of course as a business enterprise.

My mother and my father really enjoyed the product. They actually liked it, Brendan Gaughan said. So a couple years ago, my mom said, Hey, I like this stuff. Look into it.

So I did. And Ive always been about the numbers, plus I like to do what I know. Thats kind of been a Gaughan family motto for about 50 years The numbers added up. My partner moved out from North Carolina to Las Vegas.

Now it seems to really be taking off, in part thanks to Gaughans SouthPoint and NASCAR connections.

Its now available at the SouthPoint and Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Thanks to (Speedway Motorsports Incorporated president) Marcus Smith and SMI, it now looks like were going to have it all the SMI tracks.

That includes the tracks not only Vegas, but also the ones at Atlanta, Bristol, Charlotte, Kentucky, New Hampshire, Sonoma and Texas, where Gaughan says City Lights Shine will soon be available in strawberry, blueberry, raspberry and the original all-clear flavors.

Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports | Jerome Miron

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Brendan Gaughan takes NASCAR back to its roots, and this time it's legal - FOXSports.com

Dr. Oz Rebuffs First Amendment Challenge by Olive Oil Industry … – Reason

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Harpo Productions/Oz WorksLast week, a Georgia state judge dismissed a lawsuit filed against talk-show host Dr. Oz over claims made on his show last year that much of the olive oil sold in U.S. grocery stores is fraudulent. The suit alleged that Oz wrongly disparaged the corrupt olive oil industry.

The lawsuit was brought against Oz by an industry trade group, the New Jersey-based North American Olive Oil Association (NAOOA), under Georgia's so-called veggie libel law. It's one of about a dozen states with these awful lawswhich allow a party to sue for damages if a person allegedly disparages their agricultural productson the books.

Oz won in court thanks to Georgia's anti-SLAPP law. Such laws gives people who speak out on issues of public concern a useful tool to counter lawsuits that seek to intimidate them into silence. ("SLAPP" is an acronym that stands for "strategic lawsuit against public participation.")

Several domestic olive oil brands had also been sued alongside Oz.

Fraud in the olive oil business is, in fact, a longstanding problem. A 1917 Missouri court case, Lo Buono v. V. Viviano & Bros Macaroni Mfg. Co., centered on fraudulent olive oil, as did a 1950 federal case involving another producer. In the past decade, The New Yorker has dedicated at least two lengthy pieces to the issue of fraudulent olive oil. And Congress recently held hearings on the issue.

The fictional Corleone crime family in Mario Puzo's The Godfather used its olive oil business, Genco, as a cover for its criminal activities. That depiction of mafia involvement in the olive oil trade isn't far from the truth in some cases. Facing U.S. tax fraud charges in 1951, mafia boss and drug trafficker Francisco Paolo Coppola claimed to earn much of his income as an olive oil producer.

How does such fraud play out? An olive oil might be misbranded, claiming to be of higher quality than it really isfrom an earlier pressing, for exampleor to be from one country but hail from another. Or it might be adulterated, containingfor examplea mix of olive oil and other less expensive food oils.

In fact, the NAOOA, which represents many foreign olive oil producers, whose products make up the bulk of the olive oil sold in the United States, is itself keen to identify and prevent such fraud in the industry. A 2015 report issued by the group, for example, raises "significant questions" about the quality of California olive oils tested by NAOOA.

The NAOOA clearly understands the value of free speech.

Listen, I think Oz is a quack. Forbes writer Kavin Senapathy, whose writings expose quackery around food, was probably right when she called Oz's olive oil segment as "yet another gag in his lineup of shady antics."

But it's also another reminder of attacks on Dr. Oz's First Amendment rights.

In 2014, Oz was called before Congress to explain his claims about a variety of foods and supplements he claims have particular health-promotion qualities.

"Oz has absolutely zero responsibility to hold mainstream views and every right to make money off of those views," I wrote in a 2014 piece defending Oz's free-speech rights and attacking Congress for attempting to intimidate him into silence. "His popularity has absolutely no impact on his right to say whatever the hell he wants to say. And being hauled before Congress for saying what he wants places a tremendous burden on his, your, and my First Amendment rights."

As a reminder, the First Amendment protects speech regardless of its subjective value. It protects speech by neo-Nazis and Black Muslims, pornographers and religious zealots, and climate change alarmists and deniers alike. And your right to speak freely is stronger today thanks to a renowned medical doctor who freely espouses many views that appear, by any reasonable measure, to be objectively false.

Critics of Oz are free to rail against his idiocies. I hope they'll continue to do so. But when courts and lawmakers attempt to intimidate him into silence, they are more apt to turn Dr. Oz into a First Amendment hero than expose what he truly is.

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Dr. Oz Rebuffs First Amendment Challenge by Olive Oil Industry ... - Reason

Jitsi Meet – Android Apps on Google Play

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Jitsi Meet lets you stay in touch with all your teams, be they family, friends, or colleagues. Instant video conferences, efficiently adapting to your scale.

* Unlimited users: There are no artificial restrictions on the number of users or conference participants. Server power and bandwidth are the only limiting factors. * No account needed. * Lock-protected rooms: Control the access to your conferences with a password. * Encrypted by default. * High quality: Audio and video are delivered with the clarity and richness of Opus and VP8. * Web browser ready: No downloads are required of your friends to join the conversation. Jitsi Meet works directly within their browsers as well. Simply share your conference URL with others to get started. * 100% open source: Powered by awesome communities from all over the world. And your friends at Atlassian. * Invite by pretty URLs: You can meet at the easy to remember https://MySite.com/OurConf of your choice instead of joining the hard to remember rooms with seemingly random sequences of numbers and letters in their names.

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Jitsi Meet - Android Apps on Google Play

Europe-Wide Raids Against Cybercrime Networks | NewsFactor … – NewsFactor Network

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Child Porn Case Dropped as U.S. Refuses To Show Software code

Charges against Vancouver, Washington, teacher Jay Michaud in U.S. District Court in Seattle were dismissed Monday.

In 2015, Michaud was arrested and accused of downloading child pornography. During the child porn investigation, the FBI allowed a secret child porn website on the largely anonymous Tor network to run for two weeks while it tried to identify users by hacking into their computers.

The child porn website, called Playpen, operated on Tor, which provides users anonymity by routing their communications through numerous computers around the globe, and it had more than 150,000 members. The Tor browser is based on Firefox. While the network is used for various reasons -- including circumventing free-speech restrictions in some parts of the world -- it has also provided sanctuary for child pornography, drug trafficking and other criminality.

After arresting Playpen's operator in Florida in early 2015, the FBI let the website continue running for two weeks while trying to identify users, a move the agency said was necessary to apprehend those posting and downloading images of children being sexually abused. Defense attorneys criticized the tactic as unethical.

A magistrate in Virginia issued a search warrant allowing the agency to deploy what it calls a "network investigative technique": code that prompted the computers that signed into Playpen to communicate back to the government certain information, including IP addresses, despite the anonymity normally afforded by Tor.

The FBI then obtained further warrants to search suspects' homes. At least 137 people were charged. Defendants have challenged the FBI's hacking on numerous grounds.

A federal judge in Washington state threw out the government's evidence against Michaud last year, saying that unless the FBI detailed the vulnerability it exploited, the man couldn't mount an effective defense.

The DOJ said previously the information is not relevant. Defendants have been offered or provided all the evidence they need, including limited source code and data streams showing what the program did, the FBI has argued.

Michaud's lawyer, Colin Fieman, said in an email to The Associated Press that they are relieved and grateful his case is done but that many unanswered questions remain about the FBI's investigation, known as Operation Pacifier.

"Mr. Michaud maintained his innocence from the outset, and the dismissal is a result of the FBI's overreaching and misuse of its computer hacking capabilities, including its operation of the world's largest child pornography web site and attacks on computers in over 120 countries," Fieman said. "It remains to be seen whether the FBI will ever be held fully accountable for those aspects of its investigation that put core privacy rights at risk and violated common standards of decency when it comes to how law enforcement agencies do their job."

A school district spokeswoman says Michaud hasn't returned to work, KGV-TV reported.

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Europe-Wide Raids Against Cybercrime Networks | NewsFactor ... - NewsFactor Network

Vancouver man’s child porn charges dropped as feds refuse to disclose hacking techniques – KING5.com

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

John Tierney, KGW 1:05 PM. PST March 09, 2017

. (Photo: Justin Sullivan, Getty Images)

TACOMA, Wash. -- Federal prosecutors decided to drop child pornography charges against a Vancouver, Wash. teacher rather than give up classified information about the hacking techniques they used to gather evidence in the case.

The case involves a teacher named Jay Michaud who was arrested in July 2015 and accused of downloading child pornography from a website called Playpen. While users on that website, which was actually operated by the FBI, used a special web browser called Tor to protect their identities, FBI agents exploited unknown weaknesses in that browser to identify suspects.

The FBI's Playpen website ran for two weeks while it gathered evidence of illegal activity.

A judge in Michauds case ordered the FBI to disclose to the defense parts of their hacking process, known as a network investigative technique. But the government refused to give up their secrets and determined the better alternative was simply dropping the case against Michaud.

Because the government remains unwilling to disclose certain discovery related to the FBIs deployment of a Network Investigative Technique (NIT) as part of its investigation into the Playpen child pornography site, the government has no choice but to seek dismissal of the indictment, U.S. Attorney Annette Hayes wrote in a court filing.

Hayes said the government faced only two options: disclose classified information or drop the case.

Disclosure is not currently an option, she wrote.

U.S. District Judge Robert Bryan on Monday agreed to dismiss the case without prejudice, meaning charges could be re-filed at some point in the future.

Michauds attorney Colin Fieman said his client always maintained his innocence and was relieved by the decision to drop charges.

He said the case also points to larger issues about the governments hacking abilities, including using techniques found in national security investigations for domestic criminal cases.

Fieman said defendants have a right to challenge evidence in any case, even when the government uses sensitive methods to collect that evidence.

There are fundamental rights for a defendant at stake when the government is trying to prosecute someone on what is essentially secret evidence, Fieman said.

Fieman said it was highly unusual for a judge to force the governments hand like this. In most cases, federal agents arent required to disclose classified methods used to gather this type of evidence.

With a criminal case, the government needs to be prepared to display all the evidence against that person to ensure a fair trial, Fieman said. If they cant do that, maybe its time for the FBI and others to start re-thinking the measures theyre using.

This is only the second time federal prosecutors have dropped charges rather than expose secret techniques, according to Wired magazine. The magazine reports that federal investigators have exploited vulnerabilities in the Tor browser to identify suspects.

Michaud did not return a message seeking a comment for this story. He previously worked at the Vancouver School District but was placed on administrative leave when the allegations surfaced.

A school district spokeswoman said Michaud has not returned to working at the district.

2017 KGW-TV

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Vancouver man's child porn charges dropped as feds refuse to disclose hacking techniques - KING5.com

Using Google Trends to Detect Bitcoin Price Bubbles – CoinDesk

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Willy Woo is an entrepreneur, angel investor, derivatives trader and cryptocurrency enthusiast.

In this guest piece, Woo discusses the recent run-up in bitcoin price, and the methods he uses to determine if and when bitcoin is overvalued.

Simply put, Google Trends is a great way to track the growth of active bitcoin users.

The search 'BTC USD' serves as a proxy for the engagement of active bitcoin users as they check the daily price. In the chart above, the baseline denotes the exponential growth of active users, while the height above the line illustrates their engagement levels.

When engagement levels run high, bitcoin users are in party mode, checking the price daily of their precious coin. If engagement levels are too high, that's when we are in a price bubble, and it's a good time to sell.

Here's that graph again with the 'bubble zone' drawn:

Conversely, when engagement is at alow (marked with green dots), this is a good time to buy. Put together, Google Trends is a pretty reliable buy and sell indicator.

So, what does this say about the recent run-up in price?

Here,we can see bitcoin is not in a bubble, and that there is likely still plenty of room for our current bull run to continue.

This piece is not intended to provide, and should not be taken as, investment advice.

Images via Willy Woo for CoinDesk; Soap bubble via Shutterstock

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, CoinDesk.

Bitcoin TradingPrices

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Using Google Trends to Detect Bitcoin Price Bubbles - CoinDesk

Let’s Be Real: Bitcoin is a Useless Investment – Wall Street Journal (subscription) (blog)

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Wall Street Journal (subscription) (blog)

Let's Be Real: Bitcoin is a Useless Investment
Wall Street Journal (subscription) (blog)
The Winklevoss twins are an unlikely source of philosophical musings about the nature of money. But the rejection by U.S. regulators of their plan for an exchange-traded product holding bitcoin is a good time to ask why bitcoin might have any value ...

Bitcoin Miners in Venezuela Forced to Pay Bribes or Face Arrests as Government Tries to Shut it Down – newsBTC

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

As the government in Venezuela cracks down on Bitcoin miners without legal grounds, corruption raises its ugly head. Read more...

The Bitcoin community in Venezuela faces an unusual situation. They are uncertain about their operations as the law enforcement agencies in the country are trying to put a stop to it. Meanwhile, if the cops do come knocking, they are left with two options to shut shop or pay up and hope they take a lenient view and let them operate.

People have found a use for Bitcoin under a variety of circumstances, some of them when faced with a dire need. Venezuelans probably fall into the category of desperate people trying to overcome the countrys failing ecosystem by opting for an alternative currency.

Many news reports in the past few months have offered a detailed description of Venezuelas Bitcoin market and how people are using the digital currency to order essential goods and supplies including medicines from online stores. While Venezuela faces the worst possible inflation, the government seems to be more concerned about curbing the use of Bitcoin.

The Venezuelan government agencies have been cracking down on cryptocurrency businesses and miners. Recently, the countrys largest Bitcoin exchange, SurBitcoin was forced to temporarily suspend services after Banco Banesco froze its accounts. Also, the law enforcement authorities recently arrested Bitcoin miners and confiscated their mining equipment.

The main reason for such a condition to arise is the mismatch between Venezuelas laws and governments interests. As Bitcoin miners continue to exploit the cheap, highly subsidized electricity supplied to the residents, the government feels that the resources are being misused. At the same time, Bitcoin mining is a legitimate activity, and no law in the country states otherwise.

Recently few news outlets published reports of miners being forced to pay bribes, as high as $1000 per piece of confiscated mining hardware. With any viable mining operation running at least 100 hardware units, the extent of bribes collected in one single operation can go as high as $100,000. Few miners have allegedly paid the sum as they were scared of being jailed on various charges including terrorism, money laundering, computer crimes and anything the agents could come up with.

Even people who are remotely involved with Bitcoin businesses are being detained and questioned in Venezuela. All these developments make it quite evident that the government is not comfortable about the rise of an alternative economy while it fails to rein in the one that has gone haywire.

The future of Bitcoin businesses in Venezuela is constantly under threat and unless the situation improves, the country may lose out on much more than Bitcoin.

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Bitcoin Miners in Venezuela Forced to Pay Bribes or Face Arrests as Government Tries to Shut it Down - newsBTC

Bitcoin Fell Hard Again after ETF Decision – CryptoCoinsNews

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Bitcoin showed a very steep rise last night, rising over $100/coin in just a matter of minutes. It was quite a shock to see, and undoubtedly thrilled a few who were long, and undoubtedly spurred a lot of people to take new positions at what was ultimately a swing high.

Overnight (Asia time) that irrational exuberance was punished by a severe fall to $960 on Kraken. Of course, the news event that allegedly sparked that selloff was the rejection of the ETF. But the chart gave a warning to those who watch the charts. You see, at the high, pricetime hit the long-term 11 Gann Angle AGAIN. That angle has been like the electric 3rd rail for a very long time:

The fall was stopped by the 4th arc pair (blue arrow), and price later found higher support at the 11 on the 4 hour chart from the Jan 2017 low. I expect that buying here is a good long-term trade. It seems quite likely that prices will be higher than these levels in the not-distant future.

But for some traders, in my humble opinion, Ethereum is the trade to watch at this juncture. It hit its recent swing low exactly 270 degrees past the June 2016 high (blue arrow), and is presently working its way through a long-term 3rd arc pair.

As I have stated many times in the past, ANYTHING can happen while price is going through an arc pair. But, when it clears the pair, there is a whole lot of empty space above that arc, before that 4th arc pair is hit. To illustrate that point, view this look at the same chart above, shrunk a bit to show the larger setup:

The blue arrow at the top right indicates the point at which price might have doubled from here. It is entirely plausible that ETH could DOUBLE from its present price by the time it hits that 4th arc pair.

Of course, there is a Gann angle and a top of square in the way, so it will not be a straight run. But IMO this might be fun.

Happy trading!

Remember: The author is a trader who is subject to all manner of error in judgement. Do your own research, and be prepared to take full responsibility for your own trades.

Image from Shutterstock.

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Bitcoin Fell Hard Again after ETF Decision - CryptoCoinsNews

Maps of World Countries, States, Counties, Cities & Continents

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Since its humble beginnings, maps have opened up new ways to look at the world we live in. Contemporary maps have become an excellent platform to combine different pieces of information and ideas seamlessly. The wonder of mapping and cartography is still evolving exponentially and new ways of uniting knowledge with geography have become a fun and innovative way to connect with our audience. Read More

The simple answer to this is, everything has a root, whether you are talking of culinary traditions or the climate of a place. A map provides a birds eye view of the entire picture and explains the root of a theme.

For example, if you own a creole restaurant and wondering what to put up on the wall, a customized map of creole cuisine and how it evolved and matured in different parts of Louisiana could be a great idea. Or if you want to decorate a classroom with students from a very diverse background, a customized map is the best way to celebrate individual cultures of the students present.

There are, of course, other academic uses of the good ol map. If a picture can speak a thousand words, a map can speak ten thousand. This is best illustrated by historical maps, which mark events in a concise and clear fashion. For example, the best way to teach American Revolution to new students is to use a map which merges historical events with spatial geography. It makes more sense to teach things this way as it helps create a deeper impact than just plain texts.

Apart from specific applications, the world map is a charming addition to any study room. Its an essential component of any home. Now when you can customize your map your way, why go for the poor quality discounted ones?

We not only deliver on regular maps, but maps with niche categories like World Tourism Map, World Map of Fault Lines, Map of World Best Shopping Destinations, and also a whole range of US centric maps. Some of the best-sellers are US Map with Capitals, USA River Map, USA Airports Map, Museums of USA and USA County Map.

Another classic application for maps is thematic representations. Thematic maps are maps which focus on a particular aspect like say, historical, cultural, technological, economical, etc. Maps are one of the best ways to look at the bigger picture and now with advanced technology, you can select which part of the picture you want to focus on. For example, we can create you a map of American cities with top GDPs, or maps that focus on natural resources, climatic conditions, social characteristics, etc.

The possibilities are limitless and your requirements are the boundaries. We simply design and create a map which best speaks your line of trade. Creating and designing the best map is our only ambition which we carry forward with great passion. We are lucky to have a wide customer base throughout the world and are greatly humbled with their generous loyalty.

It is why we always try to understand our customers personally and deliver on exactly what they need. Please dont hesitate to contact us for any queries and quotes on customizable maps. We would love to assist you with all your mapping and cartographic needs. Read Less

Maps of World Countries, States, Counties, Cities & Continents

Detentions and Travel Orders Coincide With Dip in Interest in Coming to America – New York Times

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

New York Times

Detentions and Travel Orders Coincide With Dip in Interest in Coming to America
New York Times
It's the message that's gone out around the world, that the U.S. is potentially closing for business, said David Scowsill, the chief executive of the World Travel & Tourism Council. Trump's administration has made it clear that they will be inward ...

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Detentions and Travel Orders Coincide With Dip in Interest in Coming to America - New York Times

Guru holds key to spirituality – The New Indian Express

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Surrender wholly to the Guruit is the easiest way for the disciple to accelerate his spiritual progress. Obey every word of the Guru without harbouring the least doubt. Cultivate a mind that enables this. After that, everything will be much easier.

No matter what the Guru advises, the first thing that arises in the disciples mind is his personal desire, and he is likely to act accordingly.

As a result, he makes mistakes, which cause sorrow and suffering. That is when he realises that he had acted according to his own desires and not according to the Gurus will. This understanding enables him in due course to act in accordance with the Gurus will.

The peace and bliss that the disciple stands to gain through surrender further inspires him to strengthen his surrender to the Guru. Eventually, the disciple becomes ready to defer all his wishes to the Gurus will. Thus, through sincere effort, the disciples inner Guru awakens. But before this can happen, the disciple must cultivate shraddha, patience, the attitude of surrender and optimism.

It is natural for seekers to make mistakes on the spiritual path. However, one must never waver, because it is from error that one moves to rightness.

The lotus blossoms in mire. If one is innocent, one can correct oneself and move ahead. The biggest mistake is not trying to correct oneself. When toddlers try to walk, they fall. They get us and try to walk again. They fall again.

The faith that is she falls, her mother will be there to help inspires the toddler to keep trying. Similarly, the faith that the Almighty will save us from all dangers is the seekers inspiration and strength. Owing to his egoism, the disciple might not experience this inspiration or strength initially. However, if he is innocent and bent on reaching the goal, all these will manifest in due course.

Our bodies have grown, but our minds havent. If the mind is to grow, it must become child-like. In order to be child-like, we must learn to remain a beginner. If we think we know everything, we will never learn anything. If a vessel is full, what can you possibly pour into it? Only when the bucket is lowered into the well does it get filled with water.

Even a Nobel Prize-winning scientist must humbly submit to a teacher if he wants to learn how to play the flute. If he continues dwelling on his status as a Nobel laureate, he will never learn how to play the flute. One might be very knowledgeable in many fields of the material world but an utter novice in spirituality. To gain spiritual knowledge, one must bow down; theres no other way.

One cannot open all the locks with one key. For as long as we cannot bow down, we will not be able to advance an inch.

If we approach a Guru with innocence and show eagerness to learn, we will not face any difficulty in understanding the true import of his words. The key to open the treasure-chest of spirituality is made of innocence and surrender to the Guru.

What a disciple needs are the sincere desire to realise the God, and humility before others. Awaken these. We will then become capable of receiving everything, and thus become fulfilled. Self-knowledge is ever filling us, though we are unaware of it. The writer is a world-renowned spiritual leader

Bliss-music awarded highlighting the advantage of spiritual enlightenment – satPRnews (press release)

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Submit the press release

Iowa City, IA (1888PressRelease) March 11, 2017 As per antiquated Vedic intelligence, the spiritual enlightenment is looped three and a half circumstances at the base of the spine of each person. At the point when the spiritual enlightenment is stirred, extraordinary euphoria, astuteness, peace, innovativeness, and energy are discharged. The spiritual enlightenment is mending and transformation by its exceptionally nature and can lead us to unity with the celestial pith of all reality. A definitive objective of this is to stir the energy and to feed the energy as it ascends through and enters the seven chakras, coming full circle in the seventh chakra, the Sahasrara, at the highest point of the skull. At the point when the spiritual enlightenment punctures the Sahasrara Chakra incredible bliss emerges, and significant information of the Divine, said one of the representatives of this organization.

The spiritual enlightenment likewise battles exhaustion from stress, uneasiness, and outrage, by bringing down abnormal amounts of adrenalin. The breathing activities and the development help to enhance the flow of blood all through the body and furthermore help to ease physical torment. A portion of the more articulated physical illnesses that spiritual enlightenment is powerful at alleviating are hormonal awkward nature, menstrual anomalies, coronary illness, ceaseless cerebral pains, gloom, and asthma, said another worker of this organization.

To find out about spiritual enlightenment, you can visit their site today

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Bliss-music awarded highlighting the advantage of spiritual enlightenment - satPRnews (press release)

ISS 2.0: Why the next space station could orbit the moon – Christian Science Monitor

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

March 11, 2017 Dominating the night sky, Earths natural satellite is often the first target to catch the eye of budding astronomers, and now the moon's siren call is pulling the worlds leading space powers too.

The five space agencies responsible for building the International Space Station (ISS) met last month in Tsukuba, home to the Japanese space agency JAXA, to decide what comes after the aging ISS. Discussions advanced an evolving plan to build a lunar space station, settling on a tentative orbit and paving the way for finalized plans that may come in late 2017 or early 2018.

But friction remains around the ultimate goal of the station: Will the ISS successor be a truly lunar space station or a spaceport on the way to Mars?

With the ISSs decommissioning tentatively scheduled for 2024, the International Spacecraft Working Group (ISWG), composed of the American, Russian, Japanese, European, and Canadian space agencies, is looking ahead to the next phase of human space exploration.

This years meeting extends work done last year in Houston, when the team established a number of non-binding recommendations regarding technical details likely to serve as the foundation for future proposals.

Compared with the ISS, a space station orbiting the moon holds greater scientific potential and the opportunity to test technologies needed for deep space missions, but poses significant challenges.

Much of the research done aboard the current ISS focuses on microgravity (commonly, if mistakenly, known as "zero gravity"), which arises from the craft being in a constant state of freefall. A lunar station could carry out similar studies of microgravity phenomena and astronaut health, with the added benefit of lunar proximity making the moon an additional target of study.

Whats more, the station could play an essential role as a steppingstone to Mars, both as a physical spaceport accessible to NASAs upcoming Orion spacecraft, as well as a scientific testing ground for new deep-space technologies. Japanese- and European-built habitats featuring closed-loop life support systems could be one such development. The ISS currently relies on frequent shipments of water and oxygen from Earth, but a less accessible lunar station would likely have no such luxury. For a Mars mission, near-perfect recycling of these resources will be even more of a necessity.

Some wonder why not build a base on the moon itself, rather than a station in orbit. Its true that a base could be more easily shielded from harmful radiation by piling up yards of moondust over the habitats. But extensive lunar construction would require unproven technologies as opposed to the tried and true modular approach to space station building.

Moreover, escaping Earths gravitational pull takes fuel, and the same is true of the moon. Breaking free and staying in orbit, rather than making repeated visits to the surface, may be more efficient.

The ISWG has set the goal of developing common standards that will make it easy for various countries to develop plug and play parts to smooth the construction process. Current designs call for a Russian airlock, the Canadian robotic arm from the ISS, and US-built power and propulsion systems.

Still, the question looms, where is humanity headed next? Russia wants to return to the moons surface, which a station in a low lunar orbit would support. But a higher orbit lends itself to Mars access, an approach preferred by NASA, who reportedly proposed naming the station a "spaceport."

Last months conference seems to have broken NASAs way, with the consortium agreeing on a distant loop known as a Near-Rectilinear Halo Orbit. As the name suggests, this oval path bulges significantly.

At its closest approach, the craft would be only 900 miles from the moon, but its farthest reach would take it 43,000 miles from the surface, completing arevolution in one week. Thats 4 to 174 times higher from the lunar surface than the ISS sits above the Earths.

In addition to being convenient to Mars, this orbit features a number of advantages including constant sun for solar panels, good communication with Earth, and stability that reduces the need for expensive fuel-consuming height boosts.

Unfortunately, its not ideal for actually visiting the surface of the moon, prompting the Russians to continue their analysis of a lower orbit station.

But NASA may be open to compromiseand is reportedly considering designs for a station that could split in two, one part bound for Mars and one remaining to service lunar activity. Another alternative is to modify the orbit as needed for different missions.

The current timeline suggests construction throughout the 2020s in preparation for Mars- or asteroid-oriented expeditions in the 2030s, although the group's previous construction project suffered significant delays.

Any new ISS in lunar orbit may have company. Chinas nascent but booming space program recently announced plans for a 2036 crewed lunar mission, and private companies are targeting the satellite as well. Space habitat company Bigelow Aerospace envisions an inflatable space station orbiting the moon by 2020, and SpaceX harbors ambitions of an Apollo 8-style shot around the moon in the next couple of years.

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ISS 2.0: Why the next space station could orbit the moon - Christian Science Monitor

‘Monster UFO’ appears by International Space Station ‘before NASA … – Express.co.uk

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

In a video uploaded to YouTube, a cigar-shaped object is seen above Earth, with two bright objects below it.

And the two smaller orbs appear to move towards the larger shape.

The, before the footage ends, the UFOs appear to suddenly disappear.

prolific UFO hunter Streetcap1 uploaded the video to YouTube.

STREETCAP!*YouTube

Fellow UFO chaser Tyler Glockner who another YouTube channel SecureTeam 10 said of the discovery: I have monitored hundreds, likely thousands, of hours of ISS live feed footage and I've seen UFOs, I've seen ice crystals, I've seen space debris and I've seen light reflections.

What we're seeing here looks like none of those.

And it would appear that shortly after these objects come into view, NASA either purposely or the UFOs do it on their own, but the objects quickly dim out.

NASA

1 of 14

ISS Nasa live cam cuts after 'suddenly locking on to mystery glowing UFO'

it would appear that shortly after these objects come into view, NASA either purposely or the UFOs do it on their own, but the objects quickly dim out.

Tyler Glockner

So we may have had NASA dimming the feed, messing with the contrast or the exposure to make these objects disappear from view."

Many viewers were not convinced by the theory.

One posted on YouTube: "probably an old satellite thats space debris.

Another added: Its obviously an airplane distorted the same way you see an image through a clear glass that is round.

There have been several similar claims of NASA shutting the feed when an alleged UFO came into view - but it turned out they were nothing more than light reflected of the ISS itself showing on the camera.

Scott Brando, who runs hoax-busting website ufoofinterest.org said the latest video was just another lens flare anomaly.

He also provided an example of a similar lens flare in another ISS video feed, uploaded by Streetcap1.

NASA denies it has ever seen any UFOs by the ISS, and says the camera only cuts out due to a technical glitch, or changing between different cameras.

See the original post:

'Monster UFO' appears by International Space Station 'before NASA ... - Express.co.uk

‘Mission:ISS’ Lets You Explore Space Station & Spacewalk in Virtual Reality – Space.com

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

A new virtual-reality simulation lets users explore the International Space Station, dock cargo capsules, go on spacewalks and perform other tasks high above Earth's surface.

The "Mission:ISS" simulation, released yesterday (March 9), is available for free. It works with the Oculus Rift virtual-reality headset and the Oculus Touch motion controllers (reviewed on our sister site Tom's Hardware). Production company Magnopus made the simulation in collaboration with NASA, the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency, the Oculus team said in a blog post.

"Mission:ISS" models spacewalks and other space station tasks in 3D.

"Based on NASA Space Station models as well as discussions with multiple astronauts and the VR Laboratory at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, 'Mission:ISS' recreates the International Space Station in painstaking detail," they wrote.

In addition to performing mission tasks using the Oculus Touch, users will learn about the space station's history and hear astronauts' stories through several included videos.

Users can also dock incoming cargo spacecraft using the station's robotic arm, Canadarm2.

The project also includes two very different types of outreach: A beta program will provide some high school students in the United States access to "Mission:ISS" and the necessary hardware, and the Rift will also be sent to space for astronauts to use on the orbiting lab.

"The Rift will be used for the first time in orbit by European astronaut Thomas Pesquet to test the effects of zero-gravity on human spatial awareness and balance using software developed by the space agencies," the Oculus team wrote. Space station astronauts have also worked with Microsoft's HoloLens headsets, which superimpose virtual-reality elements on the real world to be viewed through the headset, to test a system that guides technical procedures and repairs in orbit.

Email Sarah Lewin at slewin@space.com or follow her @SarahExplains. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

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'Mission:ISS' Lets You Explore Space Station & Spacewalk in Virtual Reality - Space.com

NASA’s Kepler provides new data on TRAPPIST-1 – SpaceFlight Insider

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Jim Sharkey

March 11th, 2017

This illustration shows the seven TRAPPIST-1 planets as they might look as viewed from Earth using a fictional, incredibly powerful telescope. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Last month, researchers announced that TRAPPIST-1, an ultra-cool dwarf star approximately 40 light-years from Earth, hosts seven planets that are probably rocky, including three in the habitable zone. The discovery was made by NASAs Spitzer Space Telescope in combination with ground-based telescopes. TRAPPIST-1 has also been under observation by NASAs Kepler Space Telescope since December 2016. On Wednesday, March 8, NASA released new data from Keplersinvestigations of the dwarf star to the scientific community.

The Kepler spacecraft, now operating as the K2 mission, collected data on the stars small changes in brightness due to transiting planets during the period between December 15, 2016, and March 4, 2017. These new observations are expected to help scientists to refine previous measurements of six of the planets, pin down the orbital period and mass of TRAPPIST-h the seventh and farthest planet and learn more about the host stars magnetic activity.

The location of TRAPPIST-1 in Keplers field of view. Image Credit: W. Stenzel / NASA Ames

Scientists and enthusiasts around the world are invested in learning everything they can about these Earth-size worlds, said Geert Barentsen,the K2 research scientist at NASAs Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, California. Providing the K2 raw data as quickly as possible was a priority to give investigators an early look so they could best define their follow-up research plans. Were thrilled that this will also allow the public to witness the process of discovery.

The raw, uncalibrated data that was recently released will help scientists in preparing proposals due this month to use Earth-based telescopes this winter to further study TRAPPIST-1. The fully processed and calibrated will be available in the public archive by late May.

The observation period, known as K2 Campaign 12, provided 73 days of monitoring the longest, nearly continuous set of observations of TRAPPIST-1 ever collected. Campaign 12 will provide scientists with an opportunity to further investigate gravitational interactions between the seven planets and to search for possible undiscovered planets in the system.

Observations of TRAPPIST-1 werent always planned for Campaign 12. The initial coordinates of the patch of sky to be observed during Campaign 12 were set during October 2015 before the planets orbiting TRAPPIST-1 were known to exist.

When the discovery of three of TRAPPIST-1s planets was announcedin May 2016, teams at NASA and Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. reworked the calculations and rewrote and tested commands that would be programmed into the spacecrafts operating system to make a slight pointing adjustment for Campaign 12. By October 2016, Kepler was ready to observe TRAPPIST-1.

We were lucky that the K2 mission was able to observe TRAPPIST-1, said Michael Haas, science office director for the Kepler and K2 missions at Ames. The observing field for Campaign 12 was set when the discovery of the first planets orbiting TRAPPIST-1 was announced, and the science community had already submitted proposals for specific targets of interest in that field. The unexpected opportunity to further study the TRAPPIST-1 system was quickly recognized and the agility of the K2 team and science community prevailed once again.

The additional refinements to the previous measurement of the known planets and any additional planets discovered in the K2 data will aid scientists in planningfollow-up studies of TRAPPIST-1s planets by NASAs upcoming James Webb Space Telescope.

This artists concept shows what the TRAPPIST-1 planetary system may look like, based on available data about the planets diameters, masses, and distances from the host star. Image & Caption Credit: NASA-JPL/Caltech

Tagged: K2 Mission Kepler Space Telescope NASA The Range TRAPPIST-1

Jim Sharkey is a lab assistant, writer and general science enthusiast who grew up in Enid, Oklahoma, the hometown of Skylab and Shuttle astronaut Owen K. Garriott. As a young Star Trek fan he participated in the letter-writing campaign which resulted in the space shuttle prototype being named Enterprise. While his academic studies have ranged from psychology and archaeology to biology, he has never lost his passion for space exploration. Jim began blogging about science, science fiction and futurism in 2004. Jim resides in the San Francisco Bay area and has attended NASA Socials for the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover landing and the NASA LADEE lunar orbiter launch.

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NASA's Kepler provides new data on TRAPPIST-1 - SpaceFlight Insider

Next Cygnus commercial space freighter christened the S.S. John … – Spaceflight Now

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

CAPE CANAVERAL Orbital ATKs next commercial resupply freighter going to the International Space Station will be named the S.S. John Glenn, paying tribute to the legendary first American to orbit the Earth.

Glenn died Dec. 8 at age 95.

The company has made it tradition to give each of its autonomous Cygnus cargo ships launched under NASAs privatized logistics delivery program to the space station a name to honor a former astronaut who has passed away.

Previous Cygnus vehicles have been named for G. David Low, C. Gordon Fullerton, Janice Voss, Deke Slayton, Rick Husband and Alan Poindexter.

John H. Glenn Jr., a decorated combat veteran and test pilot, was one of the original Mercury 7 the pioneering cadre of NASA astronauts at the dawn of the space age.

He rocketed into human history on Feb. 20, 1962, strapped in the Friendship 7 capsule atop an Atlas rocket, to become the first American to orbit the planet.

While lasting only five hours before splashing down near Bermuda, the trail-blazing flight achieved a critical step in the pursuit to live and work in space.

After serving for a quarter-century as a senator from his beloved home state of Ohio, Glenn left the U.S. Congress and returned to NASA to train as a payload specialist and serve as the oldest human subject in biological tests conducted in the microgravity environment of space.

His triumphant return to space, at age 77, came aboard shuttle Discoverys STS-95 mission in 1998, spending 9 days being poked and prodded in the name of medical research.

Glenn always remained a steadfast advocate for space and the promise that experiments aboard the International Space Station could lead to breakthroughs to improve life on Earth.

The S.S. John Glenn, launching atop an Atlas 5 rocket, will carry about 7,500 pounds of crew provisions and fresh science investigations to the space station this month.

Experiments include studies with lung cancer cells, chemotherapy drugs, improving radiological detectors for homeland security, a plant-growing chamber for harvesting food in space and a technology demonstration for science sample return capsules.

Cygnus has been fully loaded and its hatch sealed for flight at Kennedy Space Centers Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. It will be encapsulated within the launch vehicles nose cone tomorrow.

United Launch Alliance is responsible for getting John Glenn back into space, using the Atlas 5 to propel the 16,000-pound ship into low-Earth orbit from Cape Canaveral on March 19.

The 30-minute launch window opens at 10:56 p.m. EDT (0256 GMT).

Cygnus will be moved to the Atlas 5 rockets vertical assembly building on Monday for attachment to the launcher.

The mission is otherwise known in the space station scheduling matrix as OA-7.

After an automated rendezvous with the station, the Cygnus will pause its approach within reach of the Canadarm2 robotic arm. The arm will grab a capture device on the ships exterior around 6:05 a.m. on March 23 and maneuver it to a berthing port on the underside of the Unity module for attachment and unloading.

It is scheduled to spend about three months attached to the station, allowing the resident astronauts to empty the cargo and fill the vessel with trash and disposables.

After departing the station, Cygnus will climb to a higher altitude to deploy cubesats and conduct another in a series of contained fire experiments to better understand how flames behave in microgravity.

The S.S. John Glenn concludes its mission this summer in a blaze of glory, re-entering harmlessly over the South Pacific.

See earlier OA-7 Cygnus coverage.

Our Atlas archive.

Next Cygnus commercial space freighter christened the S.S. John ... - Spaceflight Now

Okie From Muskogee: Shooting hoops led to career – Muskogee Daily Phoenix

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Danzig

Glenda McClain shows an autographed basketball she received from the Basketball Hall of Fame. As a player with the All American Redheads, McClain is in the Hall's Class of 2012.

Glenda McClain shows skill at the basics.

They were drilled into her through years on the basketball court. She started as a fourth-grader at Liberty Morris School. She kept dribbling through high school, then for four years on the barnstorming professional team All American Redheads. She said her coach, Orwell Moore, stressed basics of team play.

She helped coach the Redheads her third year on the team.

After leaving the team in 1976, McClain coached and taught at Fort Gibson Schools. At Fort Gibson's Early Learning Center, she taught children such basics as running, skipping, even nutrition.

McClain said she always wanted to teach and coach.

"I was in third or fourth grade, and I always had my paper, pencil and books," McClain said. "I was very tuned into school."

She said she had great teachers, starting with Mrs. Williams in first grade and Mrs. Terry in third grade.

"They just cared," she said. "They showed compassion."

Two grades shared one room at Liberty Morris, she said. "First and second were in one room. Third and fourth were in one room. It was a small school."

McClain continues to be involved in education as director of field studies at Bacone College.

Learning basketball from an early age

Glenda McClain's career path began in the fourth grade.

"In elementary and middle school, even at Haskell, we never had P.E. classes. It was all athletics," she said. "In the middle school, it was preparing me for a high school setting in basketball. The ones who didn't take athletics, still took the class. They'd sit at the side and did their homework."

She recalled playing basketball with her twin sister at a goal they had at home.

She said those athletic classes taught her about "just getting in there and working hard."

"That's what it takes to be good at anything," she said. "I wanted to get in there and work on my skills. My coaches said, 'If you want to get better, you have to give 110 percent.' It was wanting to get better."

She said she worked even harder under her high school coach.

McClain played for the Haskell Haymakers.

"Back in the back, by the goal," she said. "They'd pass to me and I'd make some fakes back there and I'd put it in the hoop. My senior year, I averaged 23 points a game."

She said her team had a winning record those years.

"As a matter of fact, some people would come and watch the girls play," she said.

The team made the state playoffs in 1970.

"Back then, the opportunity was very little for women," she said, "Not until Title IX. I was just lucky Mr. Moore came to see me play."

That man was Orwell Moore, coach of the All American Redheads.

Life on a team

Glenda McClain played for the All American Redheads when she was known as Glenda "Okie" Hall. Because of her height, she was a good post player.

As an All American Redhead, McClain played under the name of Glenda "Okie" Hall.

"It was awesome, traveling around, playing basketball, doing something you love, seeing the country, from the small town of Haskell," McClain said. "Who'd have ever thought we'd have an opportunity like that."

She said the five or seven team members would go to games in a 30-foot limousine. They played five-on-five ball, using men's rules.

"We broke all kinds of stereotypes," McClain said. "Back then, they didn't think women could run down the court or that kind of thing."

They played a variety of men's teams, including Kiwanis groups, coaches, semi-professional teams. They even played basketball against football teams, such as the Denver Broncos and Washington Redskins.

The Redheads played 200 ballgames from October to May.

"On Sundays, we had double-headers," she said.

She said coach Moore kept stressing the basics of play.

"How to do a lay up, how to pass, shooting, every step on how to shoot," McClain said, clapping her hands to emphasize each step. "We'd go over and over and over plays."

Muskogee resident Glenda McClain's name is part of the Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2012 as a player with the All American Redheads.

She said a highlight of her post-career came when the team was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.

"We were the first women's team to be inducted and the ninth only team to be inducted," she said. "We were there with a room full of all-time great basketball players:Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Dr. Julius Irving, Larry Bird, Kareem Abdul Jabar,Charles Barkley, Bill Walton and many more."

Earning degree to teach children

Glenda McClain tells a History Explorers club about her time with the All American Redheads basketball team. She joined the team in 1971, shortly after graduating from Haskell High School.

McClain worked to get her education degree when she wasn't touring with the team.

She recalled that after four years with the team, she needed to get her degree "and start teaching and coaching."

McClain earned a bachelor's degree in 1976 and a master's degree in 1978. She began teaching physical education at Fort Gibson in 1976.

"I taught middle school science for a long time and middle school P.E. for a long time," she said. "The last eight years at Fort Gibson, I moved to the Early Learning Center and taught P.E."

"I loved trying to help people all the time, helping students succeed," she said. "I wanted to physically educate them."

She was Fort Gibson teacher of the year in 1990 and ELC teacher of the year in 1998.

At ELC, she taught the kindergartners, first-graders and second-graders what her coaches had taught her the basics.

"They have so much energy," she said. "You have to teach just the basic skills running, skipping hopping, the locomotor skills, the non-locomotor skills. Seeing them jumping rope. The last semester in kindergarten, they're jumping rope."

Locomotor skills include running. Non-locomotor skills include bending and twisting. Nutrition was another basic skill McClain recalled stressing.

Her youngsters had a walking club, in which they got tokens for each five miles they walked on the school track.

"Some of them really excelled in the mile club," McClain said. "Some of them got over 200 miles a year. I had three or four of them had over 250 miles. During their lunch period, going on the track."

She relished watching "the light go on."

"You could see when they learn something, they're so excited," she said. "And they just love you. At that age, they're willing to get out there and just try."

After four years playing with the All American Redheads basketball team and more than 30 years teaching, Glenda McClain finds time to relax in her home.

Okie From Muskogee: Shooting hoops led to career - Muskogee Daily Phoenix