Lost Egyptian City of Heracleion Finally Revealed After 1200-Years

Finally, the lost Egyptian city of Heracleion has been revealed after spending 1,200-years under sea. Researchers discovered amazingly well-preserved artifacts 30-feet under the surface of the Mediterranean Sea in Aboukir Bay, near Alexandria that tell the story of a vibrant classical-era port.

According to the Telegraph: "Leading research now suggests that Thonis-Heracleion served as a mandatory port of entry for trade between the Mediterranean and the Nile." Researchers say that the immense weight of large buildings on the region's water-logged clay, combined with sand soil, may have caused it to sink in the wake of an earthquake.

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Category: Pics, Video

5 Beautiful Roads You Must Drive Before You Die

If you haven't already planned a road trip for this upcoming summer, be sure to add some of these beautiful roads to your "must-see" list. They include Highway 1, Big Sur (above) to a windy road in China.

5. White Rim Road, Canyonlands National Park (Utah, USA)

The 100-mile White Rim Road loops around and below the Island mesa top and provides expansive views of the surrounding area. Trips usually take two to three days by four-wheel-drive vehicle or three to four days by mountain bike. All vehicles and bikes must remain on roads. ATVs and non-street legal dirt bikes are not permitted. Pets are also not permitted, even in vehicles.

4. Highway 1, Big Sur (California, USA)

State Route 1 (SR 1) is a major north-south state highway that runs along most of the Pacific coastline of the U.S. state of California. Highway 1 has several portions designated as either Pacific Coast Highway (PCH), Cabrillo Highway, Shoreline Highway, or Coast Highway. SR 1 was built piecemeal in various stages, with the first section opening in the Big Sur region in the 1930s. However, portions of the route had several names and numbers over the years as more segments opened.

3. Tianmen Mountain Road (Hunan, China)

Tianmen Mountain is a mountain located within Tianmen Mountain National Park, Zhangjiajie, in northwestern Hunan Province, China. A cablecar was constructed by the French company Poma from nearby Zhangjiajie railway station to the top of the mountain. Tianmen Mountain Cableway is claimed in tourist publications as the "longest passenger cableway of high mountains in the world", with 98 cars and a total length of 7,455 metres and ascent of 1,279 metres. The highest gradient is an unusual 37 degrees. Tourists can walk on kilometres of paths built onto the cliff face at the top of the mountain.

2. Furka Pass (Switzerland)

Furka Pass (el. 2429 m.) is a high mountain pass in the Swiss Alps connecting Gletsch, Valais with Realp, Uri. The Furka-Oberalp-Bahn line through the Furka Tunnel bypasses the pass. The base tunnel opened in 1982 and replaced a tunnel at 2100 m. The Furka Pass was used as a location in the James Bond film Goldfinger.

1. Atlantic Ocean Road (Norway)

The Atlantic Ocean Road or the Atlantic Road is an 8.3-kilometer (5.2 mi) long section of County Road 64 which runs through an archipelago in Eide and Averoy in More og Romsdal, Norway. The fixed link passes by Hustadvika, an unsheltered part of the Norwegian Sea, connecting the island of Averoy with the mainland and Romsdalshalvoya peninsula. The road runs between the villages of Karvag on Averoy and Vevang in Eida. The road is built on several small islands and skerries, which are connected by several causeways, viaducts and eight bridges & the most prominent being Storseisundet Bridge.

Cultivating Love of Learning: A lesson From Bill Gates

A few weeks ago, Bill Gates hosted an Ask-Me-Anything (AMA) event at Reddit. While there were many questions asked and answered, here I’d like to focus on just one of them:

Q: What do you do for fun? I find it hard to fathom how someone like you can just disconnect. Disconnect from the emails, calls, the media. All of it. What would be your definition of a chill and fun day?

A: I love playing tennis. I am an avid bridge player (a card gameif you have not heard of it – it was more popular in the past!). I like to tour interesting things with my kids like power plants, garbage dumps, the Large Hadron Collider, Antarctica, missile Silos (Arizona),… I read a lot and watch courses (online or the Learning Company)…

The part I highlighted above states that he loves to read and to watch courses. But what kind of books does he read? To give you an idea, here is a page that showcases them. The question, remember, was about what he does for fun. But, to be honest, I don’t think many people will consider the books on that page fun. As for watching courses… well, I guess it’s quite obvious. :)

So how can Gates consider those activities fun while many people don’t?

The answer, I believe, lies in an important trait he has that many people lack. The trait is a love of learning. In fact, I can’t think of any other explanation of how someone could consider such activities fun unless the person loves to learn.

There is a big difference between those who love to learn and those who don’t. Those who love to learn will consider activities that widen their perspective (such as reading books) fun. Those who don’t, on the other hand, will consider those activities boring. Those are very different ways of viewing the same activities.

This difference can manifest into a big gap between the two groups in the long run. Those who love to learn will absorb new knowledge like a sponge, while those who don’t will actually avoidopportunities to learn. Can you guess which ones are more likely to achieve their full potential?

Love of learning, I believe, is an essential trait to have. We need to have it. It’s even more true given the fast-changing world we live in now. Those who love to learn are the ones who will be able to adapt and thrive. The reason is simple: they are the ones who enjoy learning new things.

But one question remains: how can we have this trait? How can we love to learn?

As with many other things in life, the main thing is to find the motivation. If you can find it, everything else will fall into place. But if you can’t, it will be hard to get anything going.

From my experience, here is a good way to find the motivation:

Have a strong desire to get the most out of your life

Simple, isn’t it? But think about it. If you have this desire, the love of learning will naturally follow. Why? Because to fulfill the desire you will need to achieve your full potential. And to do that, you need to constantly learn. That’s why if the desire is strong enough, learning will become something youlove.

So what do you think? How do you cultivate your love of learning?

Source Via: Donald Latumahina

A Man's Journey From Nepal To Texas Triggers Global TB Scramble

We don't know too much about a Nepalese man who's in medical isolation in Texas while being treated for extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis, or XDR-TB, the most difficult-to-treat kind. Health authorities are keen to protect his privacy.

But we do know that he traveled through 13 countries — from South Asia to somewhere in the Persian Gulf to Latin America — before he entered the U.S. illegally from Mexico in late November. He traveled by plane, bus, boat, car and on foot.

And all the way he may have unwittingly put hundreds of other people at risk of getting the highly drug-resistant TB strain.

That possibility has triggered a far-reaching investigation by the U.S. and other health authorities to track down potentially exposed people around the world. "It's a huge effort that's ongoing," Dr. Martin Cetron, who heads the division of global management and quarantine at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, tells Shots.

The case, first described by Betsy McKay at the The Wall Street Journal, provides a window on a problem that health officials say is sure to arise more and more often.

XDR-TB is a more dangerous part of a bigger problem with multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis, or MDR-TB.

"We estimate at any one time in the world there are about 630,000 cases of MDR-TB," Dr. Dennis Falzon of the World Health Organization tells Shots, referring to multi-drug-resistant TB. MDR-TB isn't vanquished by the two mainstay drugs isoniazid and rifampin and requires more complicated drug regimens.

In 2007, a young lawyer named Andrew Speaker became the best-known case of MDR-TB when he flew to Europe, potentially exposing other passengers.

XDR-TB is resistant not only to isoniazid and rifampin but also a class of drugs called fluoroquinolones and one or more potent injectable antibiotics. TB germs become drug-resistant when patients fail to complete a course of treatment. When a partly-resistant strain is treated with the wrong drugs, it can become extensively resistant.

There are about 60,000 people with XDR-TB strains like the Nepalese man who's in isolation, Falzon says.

That means there are other people with XDR-TB traveling the world at any given time. Like the Nepalese man, until he got to the U.S., Falzon says, "many of these XDR cases aren't even diagnosed."

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Shots - Health News

A Troubling Rise In Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis

To give some idea of the public health challenge, such cases present, Dr. Kenneth Castro of the CDC's division of TB elimination tells Shots that over 700 people were thought to be exposed to the Nepalese man while he was in the custody of the U.S. Border Patrol.

"Out of those, 60 percent or so are back in their country of citizenship which then leaves many others that are being sorted through to determine if (their exposure) was real or not," Castro says.

But at least those potential contacts were known. Falzon says it's almost impossible to trace people who may have had close contact with the man during his complicated itinerary.

"We cannot trace down a bus tour which happened within, let's say, the space of a few weeks," Falzon says. "And it's very difficult to get details. The person (in detention) doesn't speak English."

The long-haul flight he took from a country on the Persian Gulf to Brazil, which exposed fellow travelers sitting within a couple of rows of his seat, occurred months ago. "We're trying to track down the exact details of that flight and the persons who were exposed," the WHO official says.

TB is spread through droplets in the air released by coughing or sneezing. It requires close and prolonged exposure, so a shorter flight, for instance, is not thought to pose a danger.

Castro says there's no reason to think XDR-TB is more contagious than less-resistant or drug-susceptible strains. "The alarm bells have to do with the consequences of the disease," he says — that is, the two-year, toxic, costly drug regimen necessary to cure the infection.

One big advantage these days, Castro says, is a lab test that can tell within two days whether a patient's sputum contains TB bacilli with mutations that confer resistance to seven different drugs.

"This is a game-changer," Castro says. The TB organism is notoriously slow-growing, so it used to take six weeks to culture it in laboratory dishes and test its susceptibility to different drugs. "The result is that some folks died before results of drug susceptibility tests came back," he says.

The CDC has recorded 63 cases of XDR-TB from 1993 through 2011 (the most recent data available), more than half of them among foreign-born people.

When illegal immigrants with drug-resistant TB are isolated in ICE detention facilities, things get complicated. They cannot be deported until they're no longer contagious, which can require months of complex treatment. Otherwise, they'd pose a risk to fellow travelers.

But Dr. Edward Zuroweste of the nonprofit group Migrants Clinicians Network says just because such patients are no longer contagious doesn't mean they're cured. This requires at least two more years of treatment — often back in a home country without specialists in treating drug-resistant TB or access to the proper drugs.

Zuroweste's group has a contract with ICE to make sure deportees have appropriate treatment. It checks up on them regularly to see if they're sticking with it. He says 84 percent complete treatment, and the rest either disappear or refuse further treatment.

He says the U.S. and other nations should expect to see growing numbers of these difficult cases. "There's no way to ever isolate the U.S. from an airborne disease," Zuroweste tells Shots. "The world is becoming much smaller and people travel a lot. So what we have to do is attack the disease, not the individual unfortunate enough to contract the disease."

Why I love the word "Grow".............

BY DONALD LATUMAHINA

The tag line of this blog is “Personal Growth and Effectiveness.” I use the phrase “personal growth” there rather than an alternative such as “personal development” or “self-improvement.” Why is that?

Well, in the beginning it was because the phrase was more search-engine friendly. It had lower competition than the alternatives; as a result, it ranked higher in search engines.

With the passage of time though, another reason emerged: I simply love the word “grow” in the phrase “personal growth.” Here are a few reasons why I love the word “grow.”

1. It implies a long process

These days, people want quick and effortless results. In the past, people washed clothes by hand. That, of course, took a lot of time and energy. But with a washing machine, you can just push your clothes in there, press a few buttons, and get clean clothes. Nice, isn’t it?

Unfortunately, you can’t expect such quick results in other aspects of life. For instance, you can’t achieve your full potential right away. You need to go through a process to achieve that, and it could take many painful years to complete.

The word “grow” implies that there is a process to go through to get results. There is no shortcut. So don’t get discouraged if you still don’t see the results you want. As long as you keep improving yourself (see the next point below), you are doing fine.

2. It implies constant improvement over time

Not only does the word “grow” imply a process: it also implies constant improvement. When a plant grows, it does so day-by-day. The plant grows a little compared to yesterday. The plant tomorrow will also grow a little. Each day brings improvement.

Similarly, you should improve yourself day-by-day. Aim to be better today than yesterday. Don’t ever stop improving yourself.

3. It implies that you need a good environment

For a plant to grow, it needs a supporting environment. It needs good soil and sunshine.

Similarly, you can’t achieve your full potential alone. You need friends who can support you, mentors who can guide you, and resources (such as a computer or a library) that you can use.

That’s why you should find an environment that can support you. Once you do, even if it’s not perfect, don’t take it for granted. Get the most out of it.

4. It implies a worthy goal at the end

When a plant grows, it doesn’t just grow without a purpose. The goal is clear: to achieve its full potential and bloom into the prettiest flower or the tallest tree. Similarly, you grow every day in order to achieve your full potential. You grow to be the best you can be. That’s a goal worth fighting for.

***

“Grow” is a simple word, but it contains many values. I love it. I want to grow every day, and I invite you to join me.

Photo by aussiegall

How To Protect Yourself On Facebook

 

As Facebook becomes more deeply ingrained in our daily lives, it is important that we remain vigilant when using the site so that we can protect ourselves from harm. When using Facebook for business practices, you leave yourself open to hackers, competitors who might want to do you harm and others who can quickly make your life hell as you attempt to socially network with your primary audience. The following tips will help to keep you protected when using Facebook so that you can get all the benefits out of the social network without any of the headaches.
Separate Email and Difficult Password
When you first sign up with Facebook, the platform asks you to supply an email address. To remain as safe as possible from snoopers, hackers or anyone else with malicious intent, it is recommended that you use a distinct email address just for Facebook. Then, create a password that is very hard to guess. Use a combination of numbers and letters. If you use a standalone email address and you make your password complicated using random words, numbers and letters, there’s little chance of your Facebook or any other social network being hacked, ever.
Set Privacy Settings
When you first sign up with Facebook, you might think that the platform has your best interests at heart and that your privacy settings will automatically be set to the most secure setting. This is definitely not the case. Your privacy settings aren’t enabled until you enable them.
Careful with Personally Identifiable Information
Many people like to populate their Facebook profiles with their real names, address, phone number, birth date. You might as well supply criminals with your social security number, mother’s maiden name and the name of the first street you grew up on while you’re at it.
If you are using the social network for business purposes, keep all information about your business and you won’t become a victim to identity theft.
Beware of Phishing
Hackers and scammers are incredibly smart and crafty. The typical phishing scam involves email. You receive an email that states that there is a problem with your account or that you have new messages or anything else that might get your attention. When you click on the Facebook link provided, it takes you to the login page. The problem is that this login page isn’t the social networking login page at all, it’s a Phishing site. It’s a page that’s designed to look like the actual Facebook login page, but it’s a complete fake.
If you get an email from Facebook, always login by going to the main site. Make sure any links you follow come from Facebook and not from some scammer.
Email isn’t the only way to be phished, however. Hackers and scammers are now using apps on the social networking giant to try to steal personally identifiable information from you. Apps often record a lot of personal information about you, your friends, your habits and more. Make sure you trust any Facebook apps you plan to use so that you don’t get taken by a phishing attack.
Watch How You Communicate
There are a few ways to communicate on Facebook. You can write on someone’s wall, which is public and can be seen and shared by that person and their friends; and you can also write a PM, which is a private message that is only visible to you and the person you’re sending the message to.
No matter how you are communicating, be aware of the information you’re sending and how you’re sending it. Never submit personal information to someone’s wall. This is a common mistake people new to the social network commit all the time. They think they’re posting a private message and they end up spilling the beans about a sensitive subject to anyone who has the privilege of having that message in their timeline.
Some good advice is to read over your message once, twice and maybe even three times before you hit submit.
Study All Photos Carefully Before Posting
Facebook photos allow you to add a visual element to your social networking profile. Choose photos that are high-quality and that don’t reveal too much about you. Too many online marketers have posted photos that include their mailbox with their home address in the background or maybe even their phone number.
And some marketers have posted photos that show something a little less than professional in the background. We won’t elaborate, but some marketers have gotten in a lot of trouble because they didn’t look over their photos thoroughly before posting them.
Your photos can say a lot about your business, but make sure they don’t say too much. As long as you examine every photo thoroughly, you should be ok. While this may not save you from phishing attacks or other types of attacks, it can save your professional reputation, which is equally as important.
Be Selective About Friend Requests
Finally, when you are making friend requests or accepting them, make sure you trust the person on the other end. Do they have an established profile? Are they in the same type of business or are they within your target market? Scammers often create fake Facebook profiles in order to gain entry to your Friends list. Once there, they can wreak havoc. Don’t give them that chance. Treat your friends list like a VIP list and you’ll keep yourself protected from scammers, suspicious marketers and anyone else on the social network wishing to do you and your business harm.

Ask the readers: what book on health do you recommend ?

If you want to live your life to the fullest, there is no doubt that physical health is important. After all, it’s through your body that you think and act. If there is something wrong with it, then you won’t be able to function as well as you should.

To be honest though, I don’t know much about health. That’s why I rarely write about it. But I’d like to learn more about it and I believe you should too. Doing that will only do you good.

So far, my favorite book on health is The Power of Full Engagement by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz. It talks about energy management, which includes physical health as an important part. But I believe that there are still many other good books out there.

So I’d like to ask you:

What books on health do you recommend and why?

Please share your answer in the comments so that everyone can read it. Thanks!

Photo by epSos.de