The Venus Project

The Venus Project presents a bold, new direction for humanity that entails nothing less than the total redesign of our culture. There are many people today who are concerned with the serious problems that face our modern society: unemployment, violent crime, replacement of humans by technology, over-population and a decline in the Earth's ecosystems.


http://www.thevenusproject.com/

Some words of wisdom in these troubled times...

     At the onset of the 21st Century, humanity stands on the verge of the most transforming and thrilling period in its history.  It will be an era in which the very nature of what it means to be human will be both enriched and challenged, as out species breaks the shackles of its genetic legacy and achieves inconceivable heights of intelligence, material progress, and longevity.  - Ray Kurzweil, "The Singularity is Near"

     We must be ready to dare all for our country.  For history does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or the timid.  We must acquire proficiency in defense and display stamina in purpose.  We must be willing, individually and as a Nation, to accept whatever sacrifices may be required of us.  A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both.  - Dwight D. Eisenhower

     There manifests itself in the fully developed being - MAN - a desire mysterious, inscrutable and irresistible: to imitate nature, to create, to work himself the wonders he perceives. Inspired to this task he searches, discovers and invents, designs and constructs, and covers with monuments of beauty, grandeur and awe, the star of his birth. He descends into the bowels of the globe to bring forth its hidden treasures and to unlock its immense imprisoned energies for his use. He invades the dark depths of the ocean and the azure regions of the sky. He peers in the innermost nooks and recesses of molecular structure and lays bare to his gaze worlds infinitely remote. He subdues and puts to his service the fierce, devastating spark of Prometheus, the titanic forces of the waterfall, the wind and the tide. 

     He tames the thundering bolt of Jove and annihilates time and space. He makes the great Sun itself his obedient toiling slave. Such is his power and might that the heavens reverberate and the whole earth trembles by the mere sound of his voice.  What has the future in store for this strange being, born of a breath, of perishable tissue, yet Immortal, with his powers fearful and Divine? What magic will be wrought by him in the end? What is to be his greatest deed, his crowning achievement?  Long ago he recognized that all perceptible 

matter comes from a primary substance, or a tenuity beyond conception, filling all space, the Akasha or luminiferous ether, which is acted upon by the life-giving Prana or Creative Force, calling into existence, in never ending cycles, all things and phenomena. The primary substance, thrown into infinitesimal whirls of prodigious velocity, becomes gross matter; the force subsiding, the motion ceases and matter disappears, reverting to the primary substance. 

     Can man control this grandest, most awe-inspiring of all processes in nature? Can he harness her inexhaustible energies to perform all their functions at his bidding? More still - cause them to operate simply by the force of his will?  If he could do this, he would have powers almost unlimited and supernatural. At his command, with but a light effort on his part, old worlds would disappear and new ones of his planning would spring into being. He could fix, solidify and preserve the ethereal shapes of his imagining, the fleeting visions of his dreams. He could express all the creations of his mind on any scale, in forms concrete and imperishable. He could alter the size of this planet, control its seasons, guide it along any path he might choose through the depths of the Universe. He could cause planets to collide and produce his suns and stars, his heat and light. He could originate and develop life in all its infinite forms. 

     To create and to annihilate material substance, cause it to aggregate in forms according to his desire, would be the supreme manifestation of the power of Man's mind, his most complete triumph over the physical world, his crowning achievement, which would place him beside his Creator, make him fulfill his Ultimate Destiny.

-  Nikola Tesla, "Man's Greatest Achievement"

Powers of Ten

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BjHvwSvpOw

Your light body

Studies of ancient civilizations show that traditions of making and wearing vividly colorful contrasting patterns seemed to play an important part in their life. This tradition seems to continue in folklore... Research at Bioresonant reveals that what seems just a tradition could have in the ancient past an important reason, related to the very basis of human existence. Can our science discover and improve principles that ancient civilizations already knew and practiced? Pyramids are not the only ancient mystery...



http://www.bioresonant.com/research.html

SOUNDGARDEN - LIVE Searching with my good eye closed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sruPa9hqS2Y

Rock!!

from ANGEL TECH: An Introduction...

   We are, in essence, beings of light.  Most of us have forgotten this, some of us are starting to remember and a few of us are living the truth.  If you are reading this now, you are probably somewhere in the middle... between forgetting and living.  Those forgetful among us would have no reason to read this book unless they, perhaps, are waking up at this time.  Individuals already living the truth are very possibly too busy to read a book about it.  How do I know these things?  I'm the one writing this book and if I were living the complete truth, maybe I'd have no purpose writing about it, would I?  However, I've a story to tell and writing is my way of organizing my thoughts so that I might communicate and, proceed.  My bias is to approach living as consciously as I can...  eyes open, through the center and out the other side.
   ANGEL TECH is an Invisible Institute for Higher Learning dedicated to Intelligent Survival with the Planet.  The Teachers walk amidst our daily lives prepared to share the appropriate information when we are ready for it.  As we evolve, the lessons present themselves more clearly.  for those of us who are too headstrong to learn from other human beings, lessons will duly arrive in the guise of Situations, Dreams, and other Self-generating activities.  The rest of us who can learn from each other directly, will share the opportunity of meeting the Teachers in the flesh.  They are us.  We appear in a vast array of masks, cloaks, and roles and many of us will not even take the credit for something which comes as natural as helping each other.  These Teachers, however, have been recognized in the following services:  Gas Station Attendants (Self-Serve), Grandmothers, Stumbling Drunks, Astronomers, Cats, Landladies, Ferns, Newscasters, Mozart, Hardcore Punk Music, Madmen, Crystals, Children, Presidents, Indian Chiefs, Movie Stars, Plumbers, Telephone Operators and the list goes on forever.  It's all Spiritual and the Teachers are everywhere.  It just takes a certain kind of perspective to see this.

What is self defense?

excerpt from, mildly edited;):  Martial Arts Pressure Points - Bruce Tegner

     A modern definition of self-defense is in order.  One way of defining self-defense is to explain what it is not.  Personal self-defense is not warfare; it is not vengeance; it is not an art; it is not a sporting event; it is not a movie or television fight scene.

     Self-defense is preparation to minimize the possibility of assault.  It is training to learn and use appropriate and effective physical actions if there is no practical alternative.

     Self-defense instruction is the beginning of a process of learning how to avoid being a victim.

     Many victims of assault are victims not because they lack the capacity to win fights but because they have been given absolutely no preparation to cope with this special kind of emergency.

     The old-fashioned view that self-defense instruction is training to reach a high level of fighting skill has the effect of eliminating those individuals who have the greatest need.  It is precisely those people who are unable or unwilling to become fierce fighting machines who benefit from practical self-defense instruction to the greatest degree.

     Our capabilities ought to bear some relationship to real-life objectives.  People learning to defend themselves against assault out not to be trained as though they were preparing for warfare.  The concepts, techniques, and methods appropriate for training Samurai warriors are not those appropriate for teaching self-defense as a practical skill for today.

     The legal and moral definition of self-defense expressly limits the degree of force to the least which can be used to avert, stop, or escape from an intended assault.

     In old-style self-defense, every assault is viewed as a very vicious assault.  Real life is different.  There are degrees of danger.  Assault intentions range from mildly threatening to the intent to do great bodily harm.  More important, there are mildly threatening situations which, if handled properly with assertive self-control, can be prevented from escalating into physical violence.

     There must be a full range of responses to correspond to the range of possible situations.  Otherwise there is only the all-or-nothing response, which is not a choice -- it is a dilemma.  The person who cannot cope with a mildly threatening hostile act does nothing, or responds to the mild threat as if it were a vicious assault and assaultive action is more likely to occur.  Reacting to a mild threat as though it were a vicious assault is inappropriate.

     The objective of ethical self-defense instruction is to teach appropriate and effective reponses.  The objective of this book {and blog} is to give information and guidance toward making those appropriate responses. 

Discover's 20 Things You Didn't Know About Everything

1. Airport Security
2. Aliens
3. Ancient Weapons
4. Bees
5. Birth
6. Your Body
7. Death
8. Duct Tape
9. Germs
10. The Internet
11. Meteors
12. Milk
13. Mosquitoes
14. Obesity
15. Rats
16. Sex in Space
17. Sleep
18. Space Disasters
19. Sperm Banks
20. Weather
:)
This makes for an oddly disturbing poem, but the book itself is wonderful!

There is no spoon... I can only show you the door, you have to walk through it.

Trinity: I know why you're here, Neo. I know what you've been doing … why you hardly sleep, why you live alone, and why night after night, you sit by your computer. You're looking for him. I know because I was once looking for the same thing. And when he found me, he told me I wasn't really looking for him. I was looking for an answer. It's the question that drives us, Neo. It's the question that brought you here. You know the question, just as I did.

Neo: What is the Matrix?

Trinity: The answer is out there, Neo, and it's looking for you, and it will find you if you want it to.

Morpheus: I imagine that right now, you're feeling a bit like Alice. Hm? Tumbling down the rabbit hole?

Neo: You could say that.

Morpheus: I see it in your eyes. You have the look of a man who accepts what he sees because he is expecting to wake up. Ironically, that's not far from the truth. Do you believe in fate, Neo?

Neo: No.

Morpheus: Why not?

Neo: Because I don't like the idea that I'm not in control of my life (period).

Morpheus: I know exactly what you mean. Let me tell you why you're here. You're here because you know something. What you know you can't explain, but you feel it. You've felt it your entire life, that there's something wrong with the world. You don't know what it is, but it's there, like a splinter in your mind, driving you mad. It is this feeling that has brought you to me. Do you know what I'm talking about?

Neo: The Matrix.

Morpheus: Do you want to know what it is?

Neo: Yes.

Morpheus: The Matrix is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now, in this very room. You can see it when you look out your window, or when you turn on your television. You can feel it when you go to work, when you go to church, when you pay your taxes. It is the world that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth.

Neo: What truth?

Morpheus: That you are a slave, Neo. Like everyone else, you were born into bondage, born into a prison that you cannot smell or taste or touch. A prison for your mind. Unfortunately, no one can be told what the Matrix is. You have to see it for yourself. This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill, the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill, you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes. Remember: all I'm offering is the truth. Nothing more.

You've come to the right place...

Awakening happens... "Welcome to the Real World."

A hypnopompic state (or hypnopomp) is the state of consciousness leading out of sleep, a term coined by the spiritualist Frederick Myers. Its twin is the hypnagogic state at sleep onset; though often conflated, the two states are not identical. The hypnagogic state is rational waking cognition trying to make sense of non-linear images and associations; the hypnopompic state is emotional and credulous dreaming cognition trying to make sense of real world stolidity. They have a different phenomenological character. Depressed frontal lobe function in the first few minutes after waking – known as "sleep inertia" – causes slowed reaction time and impaired short-term memory. Sleepers often wake confused, or speak without making sense, a phenomenon the psychologist Peter McKeller calls "hypnopompic speech."

SING!

Songwriters: Jenkins, Stephan;
I wish you would step back from that ledge, my friend
You could cut ties with all the lies, that you've been living in
And if you do not want to see me again
I would understand, I would understand

The angry boy, a bit too insane
Icing over a secret pain
You know you don't belong

You're the first to fight
You're way too loud
You're the flash of light on a burial shroud
I know something's wrong

Well, everyone I know has got a reason
To say put the past away

Wish you would step back from that ledge, my friend
You could cut ties with all the lies that you've been living in
And if you do not want to see me again
I would understand, I would understand

And well, he's on the table
And he's gone to code
And I do not think anyone knows
What they are doing here

And your friends have left you
You've been dismissed
I never thought it would come to this
And I, I want you to know

Everyone's got to face down the demons
Maybe today we can put the past away

I wish you would step back from that ledge my friend
You could cut ties with all the lies
That you've been living in and if you do not want to see me again
I would understand, I would understand, I would understand

I would understand
I would understand
Understand

Can you put the past away?
I wish you would step back from that ledge, my friend
I would understand

I wish you would step back from that ledge, my friend
I would understand
I wish you would step back from that ledge, my friend
And I would understand

I wish you would step back from that ledge, my friend
I would understand
I wish you would step back from that ledge, my friend
And I would understand


© 3EB PUBLISHING; EMI BLACKWOOD MUSIC INC.;

Welcome to the...

...Axis of Justice is a non-profit organization co-founded by Serj Tankian and Tom Morello. Its purpose is to bring together musicians, fans of music, andgrassroots progressivism to fight for social justice together.

In a 2007 interview, Tom Morello remarked that he formed Axis of Justice with Serj Tankian after witnessing some members of the audience at Ozzfest 2002 promoting racist symbols and imagery. In an effort to promote a staunchly anti-racist and anti-fascist message, Axis of Justice allied with Anti-Racist Actionshortly after its formation.^[1]

Axis of Justice tents appeared at music festivals where either Audioslave (now defunct) or System of a Down (which is currently on hiatus) were playing, as it did at Lollapalooza 2003. The Axis of Justice also puts out a monthly radio show that can be heard on KPFK in Los Angeles, California and on XM Satellite Radio. The shows are archived in MP3 format on the AOJ website and are available as free downloads. They also have a number of books on their website that they recommend to support their views.

In 2004, they released a live album/DVD entitled Axis of Justice: Concert Series Volume 1. It contains performances by Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Brad Wilk and Chris Cornell of Soundgardenand Audioslave, Serj Tankian from System of a Down, Pete Yorn, Tim Walker, Maynard James Keenan of Tool, A Perfect Circle and Puscifer, and Wayne Kramer among others. It was recorded during a concert at the Avalon in Los Angeles. The concert was a benefit to raise money for the Axis of Justice and a variety of causes.

How does this art make you feel?

Neuroesthetics (or neuroaesthetics) is a relatively recent sub-discipline of empirical aesthetics. Empirical aesthetics takes a scientific approach to the study of aesthetic perceptions ofart and music. Neuroesthetics received its formal definition in 2002 as the scientific study of the neural bases for the contemplation and creation of a work of art.^[1] Neuroesthetics uses the techniques of neuroscience in order to explain and understand the aesthetic experiences at the neurological level. The topic attracts scholars from many disciplines including neuroscientists, art historians, artists, and psychologists.
Neuroesthetics is an attempt to combine neurological research with aesthetics by investigating the experience of beauty and appreciation of art on the level of brain functions and mental states. The recently developed field seeks the neural correlates of artistic judgment and artistic creation. It is widely accepted that visual aesthetics, namingly the capacity of assigning different degrees of beauty to certain forms, colors, or movements, is a human trait acquired after the divergence of human and age lineages.^[3] The theory of art can be broken down into distinct components. The logic of art is often discussed in terms of whether it is guided by a set of universal laws or principles. Additionally, the evolutionary rationale for the formation and characteristics of these principles are sought. Tying in the human experience, the determination of specific brain circuitry involved can help pinpoint the origin of the human response^[4]through the use of brain imaging in experimentation.

Hope!

Proof that moments matter, and this country is going to make it:
House Minority John Boehner (R-Ohio) took the floor ahead of Sunday night's vote on health care reform and asked, "Do you really believe that if you like your health insurance, that under this bill you can keep it?"

House Democrats, in unison, immediately shouted, "Yes."

"No you can't!" Boehner yelled. 

It was a perfect setup: The Democratic caucus erupted in a chant of "Yes you can! Yes you can!"

Later, Boehner asked if members could say that the bill was the product of transparency and openness? “Hell, no, you can’t!” he yelled at the top of his lungs.

“Have you read the bill?" he asked, still shouting. "Have you read the reconciliation bill? Have you read the manager’s amendment? Hell, no, you haven’t.”

The gristled, sharp-tongued Democratic Rep. David Obey, who was overseeing the debate, declared dryly: “Both sides would do well to remember the dignity of the House.”

-- ARTHUR DELANEY & NICO PITNEY, 10:25 PM ET


Hold on to your dignity!

Reprogram yourself and optimize your hardware.

http://www.wethechange.com/50-ways-you-can-be-the-change/

A formless moment in time, still there in my mind. EVENT

I've always thought of moments of significance, importance, or synchronicity as more akin to the computing definition of EVENT.  Little did I realize the similarity between it and the 'mental event'.  Are they separate?

Event can refer to many things such as:

• A phenomenon, any observable occurrence, or an extraordinary occurrence

A type of gathering:

• A ceremony, for example, a marriage
• A competition, for example, a sports competition
• A convention (meeting)
• A happening, a performance or situation meant to be considered as art
• A festival, for example, a musical event
• A media event, a happening that attracts coverage by mass media
• A party
• A sporting event

In science, technology, and mathematics:

• Event (computing), a software message indicating that something has happened, such as a keystroke or mouse click
• Event, Particle accelerator, experiments which produce high energy (Electron volt|MeV, GeV, and TeV) subatomic particle collisions
• Event (probability theory), a set of outcomes to which a probability is assigned
• Event (UML), in Unified Modeling Language, a notable occurrence at a particular point in time
• Event chain methodology, in project management
• Event (relativity), a point in space at an instant in time, i.e. a location in spacetime
• Event horizon, a boundary in spacetime, typically surrounding a black hole, beyond which events cannot effect an exterior observer
• Extinction event, a sharp decrease in the number of species in a short period of time
• Celestial event, an astronomical phenomenon of interest

In philosophy:

• Event (philosophy), an object in time, or an instantiation of a property in an object
• Mental event, something that happens in the mind, such as a thought

Philosophical intermingling

Confucianism is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system developed from the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius (Kǒng Fūzǐ, or K'ung-fu-tzu, lit. "Master Kong", 551–478 BC). It is a complex system of moral, social, political, philosophical, and quasi-religious thought that has had tremendous influence on the culture and history of East Asia. It might be considered a state religion of some East Asian countries, because of governmental promotion of Confucian philosophies.

Cultures and countries strongly influenced by Confucianism include China (mainland), Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam, as well as various territories settled predominantly by Chinese people, such as Singapore. Japan was influenced by Confucianism in a different way.

In Confucianism, human beings are teachable, improvable and perfectible through personal and communal endeavour especially including self-cultivation and self-creation. A main idea of Confucianism is the cultivation of virtue and the development of moral perfection.

Taoism (or Daoism) refers to a variety of related philosophical and religious traditions that have influenced Eastern Asia for more than two millennia, and have had a notable influence on the western world since the 19th century.  The word Tao (or Dao, depending on theromanization scheme), literally translated as "path" or "way", although in Chinese folk religion and philosophy it carries more abstract meanings. Taoist propriety and ethics emphasize the Three Jewels of the Tao: compassion, moderation, and humility, while Taoist thought generally focuses onnature, the relationship between humanity and the cosmos, health and longevity, and wu wei (action through inaction), which is thought to produce harmony with the universe.

Reverence for ancestor spirits and immortals is also common in popular Taoism. Organized Taoism distinguishes its ritual activity from that of the folk religion, which some professional Taoists (Daoshi) view as debased. Chinese alchemy (including Neidan), astrology, cuisine, several Chinese martial arts, Chinese traditional medicine, feng shui, immortality, and many styles of qigong breath training disciplines have been intertwined with Taoism throughout history.

The Apollonian and Dionysian is a philosophical and literary concept, or dichotomy, based on certain features of ancient Greek mythology. Several Western philosophical and literary figures have invoked this dichotomy in critical and creative works, including Plutarch, Friedrich Nietzsche, Carl Jung, Robert A. Heinlein, Ruth Benedict, Thomas Mann, Hermann Hesse, singer Jim Morrison, literary critic G. Wilson Knight, Ayn Rand, Stephen King, Diane Wakoski, Umberto Eco and cultural critic Camille Paglia.

In Greek mythology, Apollo and Dionysus are both sons of Zeus. Apollo is the god of the Sun, lightness, music, and poetry, while Dionysus is the god of wine, ecstasy, and intoxication. In the modern literary usage of the concept, the contrast between Apollo and Dionysus symbolizes principles of wholeness versus individualism, light versus darkness, or civilization versus primal nature. The ancient Greeks did not consider the two gods as opposites or rivals. However, Parnassus, the mythical home of poetry and all art, was strongly associated with each of the two gods in separate legends.

truly inspired...

Significance can refer to: with purpose and importance

• Meaning
  • In semiotics, the meaning assigned to a sign
• Significant figures or significant digits, the precision of a numerical value
• Significance (policy debate), a stock issue in policy debate
• Statistical significance, the probability that a result is not due to chance

OK?

A white hat is the hero or good guy, especially in computing slang, where it refers to an ethical hacker or penetration tester who focuses on securing and protecting IT systems.

   ^{White hat hackers, also known as ethical hackers, or white knights, are computer security experts, who specialize in penetration testing, and other testing methodologies, to ensure that a company's information systems are secure. Such people are employed by companies where these professionals are sometimes called "sneakers."  Groups of these people are often called tiger teams or red teams. These security experts may utilize a variety of methods to carry out their tests, including social engineering tactics, use of hacking tools, and attempts to evade security to gain entry into secured areas.}