Banks are contributing to the deterioration of this planet’s climate

Big banks do not realise that they are contributing heavily to the crashing of the earth’s climate by financing the worst fossil fuel criminals. Life on earth is in peril. The biggest solution to preserve life on this planet is by curbing or restricting fossil fuels’ usage. Humanity could survive a very big threat this way. Yet, time is running out faster than we would like to think. We need to act fast and act with prudence. It is the big banks that are not helping by financing organisations that do not believe in keeping fossil fuels in the ground and stopping the spread of poison on this planet. The world’s leading bankers have to learn better money habits and avoid the funding of organisations that are hell bent on destroying the earth’s climate. Since the past seven years, bankers such as Bank of America have funded over two hundred billion dollars in financing of fossil fuels. Who is the main beneficiary? Exxon Mobil who cares two hoots about the survival of our climate and our ozone layers. Companies like these are doing their most in hurting our climate and our communities. Another example is the financing of Formosa Plastics’ twelve-billion dollar petrochemical complex which is sure to double the toxic emissions in one of the highest regions of cancer rates in the United States of America. Bank executives could re-strategise and decide on ditching fossil fuels and climate-destroying agents like Formosa Plastics and Exxon Mobil. Bank of America tries to educate its target audience by promoting its `better money habits’ on social media channels while, in reality, it is helping finance destructive industries. We have to be committed to the future of our climate and our ozone layers by ending expansion of fossil fuel usage and withdrawing support for the petrochemical complexes.

What would the earth do without the Mountains?

One of the greatest and most extraordinary features of our planet Earth is the mountain. It has always retained its majesty, regardless of the number of times man has climbed it. God spoke to man on a mountain. The highest range above land is in the Himalayas in the form of Mount Everest and the deepest under an ocean is found in the Pacific Mariana Trench. `Himalaya’ in Sanskrit means `the house of snow’. The Indian sub-continent collided with the mainland of Eurasia and forced the Himalayas up at the point of impact. This was a major continental drift. The sea-beds and the land masses of this world are on huge tectonic plates which are in constant motion over the surface of this oval globe. The Atlantic Ocean is also growing wider at the rate of about a cople of centimetres or three-quarters of an inch, every year. Mountains are formed by the crust of the Earth breaking up into large blocks. Some blocks get to move up while others sink downwards. The Jura Mountains between France and Switzerland were formed by a process of folding just like the crust of the Earth being compressed laterally as a pile of blankets will do when pushed from either side. Rain and wind, cold and heat have weathered these huge rocks and broken them up to smoothen up their contours so that their jagged rock would be rounded off as hills. The craggier and sharper shapes of mountains suggest that they are newer ones. Volcanic action is a process by which matter from within the Earth is forced up to the surface, by heat. Most geologists have classified a mountain as a landform that rises at least a thousand feet or more above its surrounding areas. A mountain range is a series or chain of mountains that are close together. Mountains are quite useful for the well-being of humans as they are a storehouse of water. Many rivers have their source in the glaciers in the mountains. Reservoirs are made and the water is harnessed for the use of people. Volcanoes have played a significant part in the formation of the seas as they have brought water to the surface from deep within the earth and aided in releasing oxygen. You can see this in all rocks and it makes up nearly half their weight. The formation of a volcano begins when the rock melts within the earth, as far down as hundred miles. The melted rock is called magma. It releases gas when it melts and the mix of this magma and gas slowly rises towards the surface. The magma finds a weaker spot in the surface and it bursts out. The main volcanic ranges in this world are concentrated between New Zealand and Indonesia in the Pacific Ocean to Japan and to Alaska. It is known as the `ring of fire’. Almost sixty-two per cent of the active volcanoes in this world are along the plate margins of the Pacific Ocean. Mountains are the water towers of the world. They provide almost sixty percent of all freshwater resources for our planet. At least, half of the world's population depends on the mountain ecosystem services to survive; not only for water but also for food and clean energy. Why do mountains matter in the scheme of things on earth? Major cities such as Rio de Janeiro, New York, Nairobi and Tokyo rely almost exclusively on freshwater from mountains. Mountains are beneficial to man in a variety of ways. For example, mountains retain water. Water from the mountains is also used for cultivation and hydroelectric power generation. In the mountains, paragliding, hang gliding, river rafting and skiing are all popular activities. Mountains provide water for agriculture, food, hydroelectricity, shelter and fresh water. As temperatures decrease with altitude, mountains affect the distribution of snow and ice cover through ecosystems. For example, the slow release of water from snow melting from mountains can provide freshwater throughout the year as it flows into streams and recharges aquifers. Mountains attract around twenty percent of global tourism and they host nearly one-quarter of all terrestrial biodiversity. They are home to many of the foods that come to our tables, such as rice, potatoes, tomatoes and barley. Available records indicate that glaciers in mountain ranges around the world are retreating and disappearing due to climate change. At least six-hundred glaciers have disappeared completely over the past decades; affecting water supplies relied on by billions living downstream. For example, in Pakistan, water originating from the Hindu Kush Himalayas provides eighty percent of irrigation for the Indus Basin, where food is grown for one hundred and eighty million people. Climate change is triggering disasters through avalanches, mud and rock slides which tumble downstream, stripping bare forests, flooding communities and populations. Infectious diseases such as malaria will spread at higher altitudes in the tropics as a result of rising temperatures and climate change, affecting millions of people living in the mountains.

Lee Child Bad Luck and Trouble: A Review

This is a great narrative laced with revenge as Jack Reacher wants an eye for an eye. The plot is about seven of his friends who were once military cops. Reacher had once formed an elite unit with them. He receives a message through a coded bank transaction from one of those called Neagley which is a SOS as one of them is found dead in mysterious circumstances. It is later learnt when they start exploring that three more are dead. It is assumed that were all murdered but by people unknown to the remaining four. Reacher wants payback as it was their motto during the paramilitary unit regime that `people did not mess with special investigators’. Even though their strength has waned during the years that have passed, their philosophy has not perished. It is later learnt that all four of them were killed after being tied at their ankles and wrists and thrown out of a helicopter. Reacher and Company start investigating from California to Las Vegas in Nevada. They make mistakes and start correcting them as they edge close to the answers to their questions. Through this journey, Reacher rekindles an old affair with one of his flames from that unit. With their uncanny skills of exploring, the outline of a conspiracy starts to take shape. They have to make a choice – either to save friends or avenge dead friends or risk the lives of hundreds of thousands of innocent people. Reacher does not give up, even in a world of bad luck and trouble, as he turns the tables on his foes.

The Teaching Essence of the Bhagavad Gita

The Teaching Essence of the Bhagavad Gita Brahmavidyāyāṁ Yogaśāstre Srīkṛṣṇārjunasaṁvāde These words arise at the end of each chapter of the Bhagavad Gita. Those who do not know Sanskrit might not have even detected this. Those who know Sanskrit just take it for granted and circumvent it as something that needs to be recited at the end of each chapter, whatever the reason may be. But there is no unnecessary word in the Bhagavad Gita. There is nothing that can be circumvented or considered as preparatory, just to be buffed over; even if there is an illustrious apostrophe—śrībhagavān-uvāca—that also has a meaning in itself. What does the Bhagavad Gita teach? It teaches three things: Brahmavidyāyāṁ Yogaśāstre Srīkṛṣṇārjunasaṁvāde. It is repeatedly drummed into our ears. The commentaries on the Gita say that it teaches karma yoga, raja yoga, bhakti yoga and jnana yoga, a synthesis of yoga, the art of living; and what not! But the Gita itself tells us what it teaches by a colophon (a publisher’s emblem on the title page of a book) which is in three words only: Brahmavidyāyāṁ Yogaśāstre Srīkṛṣṇārjunasaṁvāde. Actually, these three words mean theory, practice, and realisation. There is theoretical physics, practical physics and there is the technological realisation of it. Theoretical physics is the advanced conceptualisation of the deep structure of physical reality, in whatever form. Then, with this insight gained through a methodological study of the constituents of matter, it becomes more acquiescent and one can handle it more easily. An unknown object is fearful. The more we know it and the more we become intimate with it, the easier it is for us to handle it, for any given purpose. Brahma-vidya is the science of the Absolute—the system of thinking which is made possible to understand by itself at any time, telling us about the total structure of things. To conceive the absolute is to, at once, take into consideration, in our processes of thought, all things connected with the object of thought—not only the inner constituents of the object as such, but also the relations that the object bears to other objects. The reality of a particular thing is not only in itself; it is also in that which determines it, restricts it, influences it, conditions it, defines it and makes it what it is. Every individual is an entity by itself. But this ‘being an entity by itself' is not so simple a matter as it appears on the surface. As humans, we appear to be totally secluded and we stand by ourselves, unrelated to external things. We can be in our own rooms and unconnected to things. But, we are not unconnected to things. The physical atmosphere, the social atmosphere and the psychological atmosphere establish us. So, even if we are alone in our rooms, we do not forget that our individuality is habituated by the presence of these social laws, of government and of the thoughts of people, in general. Hence, our individuality is only a fantasy and total individuality by itself is not a possibility. There is a relation of ‘A' to ‘B'. If we say that an object is red in colour, it is not a self-governing perception of the redness of that object. It is, at the same time, a characteristic that we draw between the redness and other colours which are not red. If there was only redness everywhere, we would not be able to observe the redness of things. There is a merit in the characteristic of a particular object which is red. That distinction lies in the fact that it is not about what is not red. The negative influence is exerted on this object. Our not being animals is a conditioning factor even if we are human beings. The existence that is outside us is not actually outside us. It just influences us. We have to check out into the structural pattern of the object in its relation to atmospheric conditions outside, which establishes it in quality as well as in quantity, so that to think in an absolute fashion would be to recognise the total structure of the universe even in an atom or to see the whole government in a single official. We can summon the entire government, if necessary, though no official can be called the government. In a similar manner, any object can draw sustenance from everything in the universe. Brahma-vidya is the art and the science of educating oneself in the manner of correctly perceiving the world, including one's own self, in the totality of relations, so that no partial vision of things can be regarded as an authorisation to the concept of the Absolute. Mostly, our perceptions are partial. They are limited to certain conditions. It is a condition related to a marketplace, a railway station, an airport, an office or a house. These are the things that limit our thoughts but we do not rise above the outward nature of these conditions. The human mind is restricted in terms of being sensor receptive. It is basically external in its nature and total perception is neither external nor internal. It is a blend of both the external and the internal, so that we are in the middle, between our perceiving capacity and the object that is being perceived. In a total perception of things, we are not within ourselves; we have transcended ourselves, nor are we in the object; we have transcended the object. We are in the middle as the blend—a blending consciousness which brings about a harmony between the seer and the seen or between any two faces of reality. In all situations, there are two aspects: the cause or the causative factor and the effect upon which the cause has an impact. It is very difficult for us to see the relation between cause and effect. Mostly, we see the cause as one thing and the effect as another. Brahma-vidya is a complicated subject. It is not just repeating of some words of the Upanishads or the Brahma Sutras or even the Gita. It is the entry of the consciousness into the very importance of the teaching, which is suggested in many of the verses of the Bhagavad Gita itself. मत्तः परतरं नान्यत् किञ्चिदस्ति (७.७); अहं आत्म गुडाकेश सर्वभूताशयस्थितः (१०.२०); पश्य मे पार्थ रूपाणी शतशोऽथ सहस्रशः (११.५); दिव्यं दादामि ते चक्षुः पश्य मे योगं ऐश्वरं (11.8); ज्ञेयं यत् तत् प्रवाक्ष्यामि यज ज्ञानत्वमृतं अश्नुते, अनादिमत परं ब्रह्म न सत् तन नसाद उच्यते (१३.१२); सर्वतः- पाणिपादं तत् सर्वतोऽक्षीशिरोमुखं, सर्वतःश्रुतिमल लोके सर्वम् आवृत्य तिष्ठति (१३.१३): The Total has eyes everywhere, has feet everywhere, has hands everywhere because it is neither a subject nor an object. In the total perception of things, we are not ourselves nor are we other than what we are. We are something beyond both what we are and what is other than what we are. This is the final import and learning from Brahma-vidya aspect of the Bhagavad Gita. Theoretical physics has to lead to applied physics. What is the purpose of simply knowing things? Knowledge has to be applied in practical life. Similarly, this Brahma-vidya which is the knowledge of the integrality of things has to be put into daily implementation in our activities and gestures, in our biases and prejudices, in our desires, attractions and in our repulsions. In every situation, this Brahma-vidya has to be there. We cannot be whole only at some time and a fraction at some other time. Will we be whole persons in our office and only a percentage in our houses? We are whole everywhere but if we behave in different ways at different times and convert ourselves into fractions of human personality; we are not living a wholesome life. It is not a holistic approach to life. Brahma-vidya is to be applied in the Yoga Shastra. It is the daily application of our consciousness, our mind and our attitude to anything in the world in terms of the lesson that we have learnt through Brahma-vidya. What is the purpose of this practice of yoga in terms of the wisdom that we gain through Brahma-vidya? It is Kṛṣṇārjunasaṁvāda: the conversation of the soul with God. Kṛṣṇārjunasaṁvāda is the conversation of the soul with the Absolute. The soul speaks to the Absolute. Arjuna's imagining the mighty Krishna is symbolic of the soul imagining the Cosmic Being in its daily life. Who can meet the Absolute? Who can talk with God, unless we are burnt and blazing in the purity of our spirit as God Himself is? Unless we have transcended the limitations of flesh and bone and the limitations of the psyche which are conditioned socially and politically; unless we are able to lift our consciousness above these limitations, how will we converse with God? Who can dare approach God when there is no communicating medium between ourselves and God? The wavelength of our individuality and the wavelength of God are in such contrast that there is no mingling of these two factors. The radio station of God is sending messages. We are unable to receive any message from God because our receiving sets here have a very weak wavelength and we cannot receive those messages. The Yoga Shastra or the practice of yoga is nothing but the tuning of the wavelength of our receiving sets to the wavelength of the message that comes from God's broadcasting station. This is Yoga Shastra and the purpose of this is to contact God directly. There is no use of thinking about God, praying to God, feeling God and imagining that one day we will realise God. It is necessary to confront Him every day, if it is true that He is present in every atom. In every atom, He is vibrating just like the sun is vibrating in the solar system. If that is the case, He is to be contacted. God is here and now and not an afterwards or a somewhere or someone. He is without these limitations of concept of space and time. Contact with God is contact with timelessness and with eternity. Such is the importance of the final teaching of the Bhagavad Gita, where the soul converses with God in its realisation of the perfection that it has to achieve finally through the Yoga Shastra. This is the practice of the discipline necessary in this world in the light of the knowledge of Brahma-vidya, which is the theoretical education that we receive of how the world is made. First, we have to know; then, we have to do and then we have to realise. A similar reference is made in the Eleventh Chapter of the Bhagavad Gita. It is not enough if we merely see and know, but we have to enter into it. It is necessary for us to enter into God in our daily lives. The entry into God's existence every day is the living of the divine life and we should not fear that this is a very hard thing. Who can enter into God every day? Where is God? Is He in some unimaginable infinity? It is nothing of the kind. Sarvataḥ pāṇipādaṁ tat sarvatokṣiśiromukham, sarvataḥ śrutimal loke sarvam āvṛtya tiṣṭhati (13.13); mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti (7.7): Outside God, nothing exists. If that is the case, what is the distance between us and God? Distance is abolished. It is a distance-less and timeless contact. That is possible for us, provided that we open the gates of our personality, open the windows to the sunshine of the Supreme Being that is illuminating us perpetually and melt our egos, which affirm that “I also exist together with God”. The biblical fall of Satan is nothing but the story of the affirmation of the ego in the presence of God: “If you are there, I am also there.” The devotee says, “God, Thou art, but I am also there to contemplate about you.” That devotee should not be there at all. Let that devotee melt and then God possesses him. The ocean enters into the rivers and the world melts into the consciousness which is both now and here. The Bhagavad Gita is a Brahma-vidya (knowledge), a Yoga Shastra and Srīkṛṣṇārjunasaṁvāda. It is a theoretical understanding of the structure of the cosmos, the practice of yoga and the daily contact with God in our practical affairs - which is true divine life.

Big Corporate Companies are failing our Forests

A giant corporate such as Procter & Gamble is literally failing our forests. It is neither helping nor safeguarding the forests nor is it protecting human rights in the past few years. The decision makers in this company are doing nothing to stop the destruction of forests and human lives; all for their short-term profits. It is time they raised an alarm and woke their conscience to put their policies as well as their money where their sustainable brands claim to be. There is a solution for this wake-up call. The calendars can be jammed. It can be done by sending thousands of calendar invites for events that are not likely to happen; this is a way of making companies such as Procter & Gamble and its leaders understand that they cannot be let off the hook until they decide to alter their policies and act humane. The company has been criticized widely for its use of palm oil and palm kernel oil suppliers who are responsible for the deforestation of many tropical rainforests. In these cases, extraction of resources is responsible for releasing the carbon which is stored in the forests and ecosystems into the atmosphere, disturbing the ozone layer and creating a greenhouse gas effect.

Certain Banks are pouring Gasoline on the Climate Fire

Receipts are showing the numbers that in the past six years, close to sixty banks have contributed almost five trillion dollars into fossil fuel and such kind of financing is surely wrecking the ozone layer and the climate with greenhouse gas effects while violating indigenous rights and, above all, fueling forest fires all around the world. There is no doubt that banks have been literally pouring gasoline on the climate fire. If you want a specific example, Chase Manhattan is a primary one. They have poured money into Exxon by financing them and the figure is almost fifteen billion dollars. They have funded TC Energy with another twenty-three billion dollars. They have stuffed another five billion dollars down the throat of Gazprom of Russia. More than twenty-one months ago, all world leaders assembled for the United Nations’ Climate Conference in Glasgow, Scotland. Their main idea was to accelerate action on climate change deterioration. By March 2022, it has come to light that though several banks have made big commitments merely on paper, they went on and contributed seven hundred and forty two billion dollars into fossil fuels alone. Banks like Wells Fargo and J.P. Morgan Chase increased their financing for fossil fuel in the past year. This does not sound like an action from banks that care about the health of the planet’s climate. Whatever the case may be, time is running out to take meaningful action to slow down this climate change crisis as it has already been escalated by such irresponsible bankers who are only concerned about bringing in profits from fossil fuels being bankrolled, deforestation and abuse of human rights.

The Rainforests of Borneo are in danger of succumbing to the greed of big corporates

For the local Batak People of North Sumatra in Indonesia, land is their personal character. If they lose their land and their forests, they lose a part of themselves. That is the reason why the Pargamanan-Bintang Maria community and so many others like them are fighting for their forests, no matter whatever the cost. Criminal activities and encroachment by the local law enforcement authorities or violence from the growing paper and pulp business of TPL (Toba Pulp Lestari) have not made them stop in defending their forests. Procter & Gamble is trying to tell the whole world that their palm oil supply chain has nothing to do with TPL (that’s the company that’s expanding into Pargamanan-Bintang Maria’s forests) and is presenting itself as a sustainability leader, it could be hinting towards being a hoax. Procter & Gamble is trying to `green wash’ destruction of forests. It is time the common man who is interested in preserving the earth’s natural resources to tell Procter & Gamble that he is not fooled by the smoke and mirror strategies being used by this corporate giant. It is important to care and think about how the palm oil is being sourced and how its sourcing is being linked to indigenous people who are losing their lands faster than you can imagine. If Procter & Gamble cannot control their main suppliers, RGE (Royal Golden Eagle), then it is going to be a bad scenario for these indigenous people and the earth’s environment. This corporate company feels that it has a little secret and it is not just the women’s deodorant; it is the fact about being a violator of indigenous rights and also of being a deforester through its supplier. Royal Golden Eagle has become a major link between the biggest brands of Procter & Gamble such as Head & Shoulders, Olay and Crest. It is because RGE are tied to being involved in the theft of indigenous lands, promotion of child labour and clearance of the endangered Orangutan species’ habitat. Procter & Gamble and RGE combined have almost destroyed several rainforests in Borneo, Indonesia. These rainforests are one of the earth’s most important biomes and they are big enough to be seven times the size of New York City. The deforestation problem continues while Procter & Gamble are dodging these issues and busy reassuring their investors that the palm oil would continue to keep flowing from these rainforests. They are not bothered and continue in the quick and dirty business of dishing out palm oil. The only way that these corporate giants can be brought to their knees is by putting pressure from the caring masses. Awareness has to be brought to such people that they are killing the earth’s resources. Something has to be done to change the math for wicked decision makers in these big corporations. It is time someone pressurised Procter & Gamble to drop insensitive suppliers like Royal Golden Eagle.

Music Experience at St. Florian Monastery

Introduction: Nestled in the serene countryside near Linz, Austria, Stift St. Florian Monastery stands as a testament to architectural grandeur and a haven for divine music. Besides its rich history and stunning Baroque architecture, the monastery holds a secret that captivates visitors from around the world—the extraordinary acoustics within its hallowed halls. This article explores how the acoustics at Stift St. Florian Monastery are received by the audience, creating an awe-inspiring auditory experience. A Sonic Marvel: Upon entering the monastery's Abbey Church, visitors are greeted by a symphony of harmonious echoes and resonating melodies. The vast, cavernous interior with its high vaulted ceilings and ornate decorations creates an acoustic environment unlike any other. The sound within the church reverberates and carries, enveloping the audience in a sublime auditory embrace. Choral Performances: The acoustics of Stift St. Florian Monastery are particularly renowned for enhancing choral performances. As the heavenly voices of the choir fill the space, every note reverberates and blends harmoniously, allowing the melodies to soar effortlessly. The acoustic design ensures that even the softest whispers of the singers can be heard with clarity throughout the church, making every nuance and expression palpable to the listeners. Instrumental Concerts: Beyond choral performances, Stift St. Florian Monastery's acoustics also elevate instrumental concerts to unparalleled heights. The rich tones of string instruments, the crisp clarity of woodwinds, and the majestic resonance of organs are all enhanced by the cathedral-like space. Each note lingers, creating a captivating auditory trail that amplifies the emotional impact of the music. Audience Experience: Visitors to Stift St. Florian Monastery often describe the acoustic experience as transformative. The combination of the majestic architecture, sacred atmosphere, and exceptional acoustics creates an immersive sensory journey. Listeners report being deeply moved, their spirits lifted, and their souls touched by the profound musical performances within the monastery's walls. Preserving the Sonic Legacy: The captivating acoustics of Stift St. Florian Monastery are not a happy accident but the result of careful architectural planning and design. The structure's geometric proportions and the materials used such as marble and stone contribute to the sound reflections and reverberations. Efforts are made to preserve this sonic legacy by maintaining the monastery's infrastructure, ensuring that future generations can continue to enjoy the divine auditory experiences that have captivated audiences for centuries. Conclusion: Stift St. Florian Monastery near Linz, Austria, is not only a magnificent architectural gem but also a sanctuary for mesmerising acoustics. The resplendent space reverberates with the sound of choral performances and instrumental concerts, leaving audiences spellbound. The sonic legacy of Stift St. Florian Monastery continues to thrive, immersing visitors in an auditory journey that transcends time, connecting the divine power of music with the hearts of all who listen. I have been fortunate to visit the Abbey and attend a concert at the Monastery Cathedral. Bruckner Linz orchestra played Sven-Erik Werner’s Homage a Bruckner and Bruckner’s Seventh Symphony in E Major with Markus Poschner conducting. The experience was a splendid one.

Why are Tasmanian Devils dying from oral cancer?

Before we get into this ailment, let us understand what these Tasmanian devils are - a Tasmanian devil is a well-built marsupial with a large head and powerful jaws; they have black fur and they are not found anywhere else in the world except in Tasmania. They are lethargic and slow-moving but aggressive and feed mainly on carrion. The Tasmanian devil is the world’s largest living carnivorous marsupial. It is about the size of a small dog, Tasmanian devils are well known for their piercing nocturnal shrieks and their strong jaws. They are found only on the island of Tasmania, to the south of the mainland of Australia. Being marsupial mammals, Tasmanian devils give birth to tiny and underdeveloped young, completing their development in the mother’s pouch. The Devil Facial Tumour Disease (DFTD) is a distinctive form of transferable cancer which harms its victims by causing tumours to grow around the face. These tumours interfere with their feeding patterns and lead ultimately to starvation. The lack of genetic variation in Tasmanian devil population leaves them particularly vulnerable to mass infection. Hence, the disease has eradicated a large percentage of Tasmanian devils, inflicting havoc in the survival of this already endangered species. Perhaps no animal is better suited to its name than the Tasmanian devil. While it might look cuddly; in reality, this animal is quite the opposite. With the strongest bite of any mammal and a wicked blood-curdling scream, the Tasmanian devil is a ferocious creature which is known to assault animals many times its size. The irony is that even this devil is no match for its supreme enemy - an unusual and contagious face cancer, wrecking the population. The first glimpse of this mysterious disease was given about two decades ago when people sighted large tumours on Tasmanian devils’ faces. They began to grow common. The news channels then started reporting that in the past twenty years; a third of their population had already died from this mysterious illness. The tumours were growing at a rapid and uncontrollable rate until they were noticed. The tumours were slowly covering their mouths and eyes and were giving indication that this could be cancerous. Neither the people living in Tasmania were able to figure nor were the scientists there able to determine the cause of such large tumours that were pervasive and growing fast. Usually, cancer starts as a result of a single mutation or a change to a section of DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid). Most mutations are safe but often; they can cause a cell to grow and divide in an uncontrollable manner. This unrestricted enlargement causes the rogue cells to amass, forming the masses that we recognise as cancerous tumors. As cancer cells continually grow and divide, they tend to get more and more mutations in their DNA, resulting in tumors that give birth to a broader landscape of mutations. However, as mutations are considered random events, cancer often looks different in each individual. For example, two people having breast cancer may have tumors with completely different armoury of mutations. This is what makes the case of the Tasmanian devil so puzzling. It is almost impossible for so many of these animals to independently develop similar type of cancer so quickly through the classical mutation technique. Even more intriguing is that every tumor sample has shown the same pattern of alterations in the Tasmanian devils’ chromosomes. This finding was quite odd, especially compared to how cancer has been generally shown to appear through a series of random mutations to DNA. The fact that all Tasmanian devil samples showed the same irregular chromosome patterns made researchers suspect that the devils were not suffering from a typical type of cancer as it would be nearly impossible for so many creatures to grow with the same exact mutations in their DNA. Instead, the lethal cancer spreading through their population might be infectious, spreading from one animal to another through bites to the face during sessions of fighting. Intriguingly, the cancer affecting the Tasmanian devils showed no sign of viral transmission and the similarity among tumors did not support the mutation model. How this is then spreading from one animal to another? The answer may lie in what is called the MHC or Major Histo-compatibility Complex. The immune system has various ways of protecting the body against invasion by viruses, bacteria and parasites and any intrusive or cancerous cells. The first line of defense is built up by an inborn immune response made up of barriers like skin, tears, saliva and mucus. This is followed by defensive mechanisms built up by adaptive immune reactions that are more specific for the intruder. Adaptive immunity includes both a humoral response (macro-molecules) produced by antibodies and a cell-mediated reaction produced by T-cells that have the ability to destroy other cells. The cell-mediated adaptive immune reaction is synchronised by the Major Histo-compatibility Complex (MHC). It is called that because it is responsible for the rejection of graft or tissue compatibility. As per reports, compared with the figures of Tasmanian devils in the past decade, almost sixty percent of their population has been destroyed by this disease. From the time of the initial discovery of DFT1, a second mutation has arisen as a variation in the form of DFT2 and has been devastating their population. There is a very fine article written by Sharon Guynup in Mongabay magazine, which will help throw up better light on this issue facing the Tasmanian devils. Here is the link: https://news.mongabay.com/2021/10/in-harms-way-our-actions-put-people-and-wildlife-at-risk-of-disease/. This article elaborates on facts like how infectious diseases such as these pose a grave threat to not only Tasmanian devils but also chimpanzees, tigers, African wild dogs and Ethiopian wolves. Some viral diseases are being spread by humans, other domestic animals and livestock and this can culminate in giving a knockout punch to already endangered species that are bordering on extinction’s edge. Not many people realize that a collection of humans, pigs, cows, dogs or chickens into wild areas can bring in further risk of the already endangered species. Somewhere along the line, man has had a broken relationship with nature in its wild patches. Corporate greed has also proved that the rich are quite separate from the rest of the species on earth. Activity of rich corporate thinkers has altered natural systems on earth in a rapid way. It has been so dramatic in the last few decades that it has brought in a new geological eon. These changes include deforestation which has gone out of control, farming, ranching, international travel, global commerce and wildlife trade with the help of poachers has affected climate change and has also helped spread diseases. Why does this happen? It is because such activities bring livestock, people and wildlife into contact, exposing all concerned to viruses and bacteria. Often, the ones suffering lack immunity in a rapidly warming world. Ticks, mosquitoes and several other parasitic carriers of diseases have an expanded range now, bringing debilitating ailments along with them. These changes have also helped new diseases to appear and spread to newer areas. This may lead perhaps to outbreaks soaring in the future. We have already seen recently how a pandemic could impact the whole ecosystem of this planet. Paradoxically, the ecosystem benefits when the dark satanic mills run to less than their optimal range and people are not polluting the atmosphere with carbon monoxide. Here is the ominous part! Roughly around seventy per cent of all the growing and re-emerging pathogens are becoming zoonotic diseases that are transmitted from animals to humans. We have no idea when the next threat or the next Disease X will strike and when. This is also the sentiment shared by the Director of the World Health Organisation, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus when he voiced the same at a meeting concerned with global animal health. Most infectious viruses are emerging from tropical areas which are also home to a rich variety of species and the volume of pathogens they can host and these areas are China, parts of Southeast Asia, Africa and India. We simply have to face the fact that we have to live with diseases as they have become a part of this natural world. Bacteria and viruses have become interwoven into our ecosystems in a varied environment where indigenous residents have now evolved immune systems which prevent high rates of infection and subsequent deaths. Ecosystems have become intact and they maintain equilibrium. For example, as per Rick Ostfeld, a disease ecologist at Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, New York, USA, the web of life is thriving in tropical forests and also keeping hosts of diseases like rodents in decent check. Coming back to our main focus, the Tasmanian devil facial tumour disease involves a couple of independent transmissible cancerous cells which have killed a majority of these species. These cells are originating from Schwann cells and spread between them as they bite each other as that is a common kind of behaviour during their mating season. DFT1 and DFT2 spread as a result of direct contact between them in situations involving fights over food and mates. It is a point to be noted that like most other cancer remedial care, there is no satisfactory treatment procedures for DFT1 and DFT2. Several chemotherapeutic medicines have been on trial for DFT1 but not even one has shown any real efficacy towards treating this disease. Preliminary trials of immunotherapy have shown better promise in case of DFT1. So, what is actually been done to save these Tasmanian devils. The government of Australia has started a funded initiative with the aim of saving this species. Research is being directed that will help understand the cause of these growing tumours. The main objective is to develop a vaccine; and if not, at least some form of intervention or therapy.

Henri Matisse - Master of Impressionist Art

“What I dream of is an art of balance, purity, and serenity devoid of troubling or depressing subject matter... a soothing, calming influence on the mind, something like a good armchair which provides relaxation from physical fatigue.” - Henri Matisse Henri Matisse was born in Le Cateau-Cambresis, Nord, France. He grew up in Bohain-en-Vermandois, Picardy, France, where his parents owned a flower business; he was their first son. In 1887, he went to Paris to study law, working as a court administrator in Le Cateau-Cambrésis after gaining his qualification. He began painting first in 1889, after his mother brought him art supplies during a period of convalescence following an attack of appendicitis. He discovered "a kind of paradise" as he later described it and decided to become an artist. In 1891, he returned to Paris to study art at the Académie Julian and became a student of William-Adolphe Bouguereau and Gustave Moreau. Initially, he painted still-lives and landscapes in a traditional style proficiently. Matisse was influenced by the works of earlier masters such as Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin, Nicolas Poussin, Antoine Watteau and Edouard Manet. Chardin was one of Matisse's most admired painters; as an art student, he made copies of four Chardin paintings in the Louvre. He emerged as a Post-Impressionist and achieved prominence as the leader of the French movement, `Fauvism’. He preferred to use color as the foundation for expressive and decorative paintings. He became famous for his original use of colour. He had skills as a draughtsman and a printmaker. He went on also to become a sculptor but was known essentially as a painter. He defined revolutionary developments in the visual arts during the first couple of decades of the twentieth century along with Pablo Picasso. The intense colour patterns of his paintwork between 1900 and 1905 brought him recognition as one of the Fauves (French for "wild beasts"). Many of his finest works were created in the years after 1906 when he projected a meticulous style that stressed on decorative forms. When ill health in his last years prevented him from painting, he created an important style through the medium of cut paper collage. Matisse’s mastery of the expressive medium of colour displayed in a body of work that spanned over a half-century won him recognition as a leading figure in the modern art and impressionist scene. Matisse is regarded, along with Picasso and Marcel Duchamp, as one of the three artists who helped to define the revolutionary developments in the plastic arts in the beginning decades of the twentieth century. Matisse has been hailed as an upholder of the classical tradition in French painting during the Impressionist era. His mastery of the expressive language of colour and drawing won him acclaim as a leading figure in modern art. Many of Matisse's paintings from 1898 to 1901 make use of a Divisionism technique he adopted after reading Paul Signac's essay, "Eugene Delacroix and Néoimpressionism". He made his first attempt at sculpture, a copy after Antoine-Louis Barye, in 1899. After that, he devoted much of his energy to working with clay, completing `The Slave’ in 1903. His first solo exhibition was at Ambroise Vollard's gallery in 1904, without much success. His fondness for bright and expressive colour became more pronounced after he spent the summer of 1904 painting in St. Tropez with the neo-Impressionists Signac and Henri Edmond Cross. In that year, he painted the most important of his works in the neo-Impressionist style, Luxe and Calme et Volupté. His paintings of this period are characterised by flat shapes and controlled lines and he used pointillism in a less rigid way than before. In 1905, Matisse exhibited in a room at the Salon d'Automne. The paintings expressed emotion with wild and dissonant colours. Matisse showed `Open Window’ and `Woman with the Hat’ at the Salon. Critic Louis Vauxcelles described the work with the phrase, "Donatello au milieu des fauves!" meaning (`Donatello among the wild beasts’). His comment was printed on 17th October 1905 in Gil Blas, a daily newspaper and passed into popular usage. The exhibition, however, attracted harsh criticism with phrases such as "A pot of paint has been flung in the face of the public", said the critic Camille Mauclair. When his painting that was singled out for biased condemnation, `Woman with a Hat’ got eventually bought by Gertrude and Leo Stein, his morale improved significantly. Matisse maintained a long association with the Russian art collector Sergei Shchukin. He created one of his major works, `La Danse’, specially for Shchukin as part of a two-painting commission, the other painting being `Music’ in 1910. These paintings are found in the collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Matisse died of a heart attack at the age of eighty-four in 1954. He is interred in the cemetery of the Monastère Notre Dame de Cimiez near Nice. Henri Matisse's impact on Fauvism movement is considerable. Thanks to the influence he had on paintings following the Second World War, Henri Matisse's reputation is higher than it has ever been before. Following the principle discussed by Hans Hofmann that color was responsible for structural configurations behind a picture, abstract works of Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock showcased this style in their pieces. Matisse became an influential figure of the twentieth century and a decisive figure in the world of Impressionist Art of the time. By defining a visible pictorial language of colours and arabesque lines, Matisse had a huge impact on future and works produced by artists in the twentieth century. “If my story were ever to be written truthfully from start to finish, it would amaze everyone.” - Henri Matisse

In God's Name - David Yallop : A Review

This book is an earth-shattering one! It is a result of almost three years of concentrated investigation and it reveals a narrative which is a powerful revelation in a corrupt and wicked world. David Yallop argues persuasively and shocks the world with his conclusions. He has made the Vatican and the whole world sit up and take note. On 28th September, 1978, a murder took place in the Vatican of Pope John Paul I – Albino Luciani. Such acts happen in this world ‘in God’s name’. Albino Luciani was elected as the 263rd Pope in the history of Vatican. He stayed in his office for only thirty-three days but created fear among the wolves and the wicked in that short tenure. When he died suddenly, it does not take rocket science to understand that he was removed quite cunningly and poisoned and made to look like a cardiac arrest. The autopsy was also reduced by the powers to be. There simply had not been enough time. Or had there been? As David Yallop reveals, Pope John Paul I had, by the evening of September 28, 1978, decided on disquieting changes that would affect the dogma and chain of command of the Roman Catholic Church. These changes would be opposed by many, among them six powerful men who knew that the Pope's decisions could mean the end of their careers if not their lives; unless, of course, they acted first and silenced the Pope. Early on the morning of September 29, 1978, Albino Luciani was found dead. No official death certificate was ever issued. No autopsy was performed. The cause of death referred to by the Vatican in vague terms remained unknown. At 7:27 a.m. on that fateful September day, Vatican Radio announced that John Paul I had succumbed to a heart attack sometime the previous evening, the cover-up of the true circumstances surrounding his death had already been manipulated for key hours; while a vow of silence was forced on members of the Papal household. As a result, crucial evidence disappeared. In this boldly documented, minute-by-minute account of John Paul I's last hours and the events that followed, David Yallop reveals how the elaborate web of Vatican lies was fabricated and surveys the aims of the six powerful men who stood at the axis of a lethal conspiracy. Only thirty-three days after his election, Pope John Paul I, Albino Luciani, died in strange circumstances. Almost immediately rumours of a cover-up began to circulate around the Vatican. In his researches David Yallop uncovered an extraordinary story: behind the Pope's death lay a dark and complex web of corruption within the Church that involved the Freemasons, Opus Dei and the Mafia and the murder of the 'Pope's Banker' Roberto Calvi. When first published in 1984 In God's Name was denounced by the Vatican yet became an award-winning international bestseller. In this new edition, Yallop brings the story up to date and reveals new evidence that has been long buried concerning the truth behind the Vatican cover-up. This is a classic work of investigative writing whose revelations will continue to reverberate around the world. The murder of Pope John Paul reads like fiction but David Yallop weaves a strong case for this to have happened in real life. The Catholic Church and Vatican Bank have been laid bare. This work is an excellent read from a great author which will leave you wondering as to how evil power and money dominate the proceedings in the world we live in. Yallop was inspired to write this after he received scores of `leaks’ from within the Vatican; from people who were themselves shocked with the whole affair. His research can be termed as both exhaustive and perfect while being flawless. Here are some interesting facts from this book – Pope John Paul I (Luciani) was murdered principally for his determination to excommunicate hundred top-ranked Vatican officials who were Freemasons. At the time, Church canon law still debarred membership of Freemasons (even though the Nazi Pope, Pius XII, was himself a Freemason). Besides, several of these Freemasons were co-conspirators in the Vatican Bank scandal, in which 2.4 billion US dollars were misappropriated from the bank, having been channeled into fake Panamanian accounts. The masterminds of this swindle were members of P2 - an Italian branch of the Illuminati. Pictures speak a thousand words. One enlightening picture drawn in the book by Graham Yallop is that of Luciani jovially speaking with a Cardinal, only three hours before his death--quite obviously in the pink of health. Upon his death, he was pronounced dead of a "possible myocardial infarction." "Possible?" Since when would a death in the Vatican be allowed to be interred without an autopsy? All instincts say that he was poisoned. Subsequent to the murder of Luciani, the following events took place: Karol Wojtlya, the CIA's candidate, a Marxist but anti-Russian, was elected. Wojtlya ignored the banking scandal until various European nations threatened to sue the Vatican Bank for default, on their money. Ronald Reagan then bailed out the Vatican Bank with $300 million of `discretionary CIA funds’. This was certainly illicit CIA drug money. He also signed a Concordat with the Vatican in 1983. It was the Vatican that secured the 1984 election for Ronald Reagan. About the Author David Anthony Yallop was born in London, England on 27th January, 1937. He left high school at the age of fifteen and worked a low-level job at a newspaper before two years of compulsory military service in the Royal Air Force. After his service was completed, he worked a series of odd jobs before landing at a television station, where he became a floor manager and studio director before he started writing. He wrote numerous scripts for television shows including the BBC soap opera, `East Enders’. He wrote several books about true crime and conspiracy including `Deliver Us from Evil’; `Tracking the Jackal: The Search for Carlos, the World's Most Wanted Man’; `The Power and the Glory: Inside the Dark Heart of John Paul II's Vatican’ and `Beyond Belief: The Catholic Church and the Child Abuse Scandal’. `In God's Name: An Investigation into the Murder of Pope John Paul I’ – th e book on review here, received the Crime Writers' Association's Gold Dagger award for non-fiction in 1984. He died from complications of pneumonia on 23rd August, 2018 at the age of 81.

Why are we hellbent on screwing our environment, particularly in Asia?

Kerry Edwards, we have touched on this subject recently on how the stations in Antarctic monitored by Australia were affected and how your coastal shorelines are behaving in the past couple of months.. Anthony DiMichele and Peggy Marr for residing on the Western Seaboard of North America and Glenn Scherer for being a keen and receptive champion and prophet of Greenhouse Effect dangers.. I have written a post today which may be of interest to all of you.. Please go through this.. The Impact of Global Warming on Asian Manufacturers About a couple of months ago, many delegates had gathered in Doha, Qatar for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. It was a conference that went on for a fortnight and saw hundreds of ministers from various countries attending it. The big debate was on whether or not the industrial nations were doing enough on reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. It could be argued that the Asian countries are more likely to suffer economic losses as a result of climate change. Karl Wilson reports in a China Daily that the coastal cities around Asia and China, in particular, are more vulnerable to severe flooding that may affect the growth in economy as well as millions of people. The weather patterns are changing globally. The sea levels are rising as the oceans are getting warmer. The glaciers and the polar ice caps are melting. Floods and droughts have just become more intense. The fashionable thing on the agenda with world ministers nowadays is the global financial crisis; so, thinking about spending many dollars to ward off climate changes is being pushed to the back recesses of the mind. Yet, the world is not going to wait for such ministers to take steps or to think clearly. It is going to get warmer in a hurry and the economic consequences are going to burn many asses. On 18th November of last year, the World Bank reported that the world is hastening down a path to heat up by four degrees Celsius and these four degrees would mean a lot to the poles as they may trigger a cascade of cataclysmic changes that will include severe heat waves raising sea levels affecting millions of people and global food inventory stocks. This report for the World Bank was prepared by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and Climate Analytics in Germany and was called `Turn down the Heat’. It emphasized that a warmer planet would be catastrophic. It listed out that the coastal cities would eventually be inundated. The risk for food production would increase. The dry regions would become drier and the wet regions would become wetter. There would be unprecedented heat wave in many regions, particularly in the tropics. There would be an irreversible loss of biodiversity including the coral reef systems. Multinational companies that are operating in the Asian growth economies would be exposed more to these rising environmental risks in the next few decades. The cities listed out with big risks were Dhaka, Manila, Yangon, Bangkok, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Wuhan, Djakarta, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Mumbai and Kolkata. These cities would have an impact on account of the sensitivity of their population and a relatively poor capacity of government support to adapt local measures to ward off the potential effects of this rapid climate change. So many Chinese cities being included in this risk list is of great concern to many companies which are using China as a manufacturing base. Already, water stress has become a big risk in China as a result of the industry demands and also because of rapidly swelling urban population. The Director of the World Economic Forum, Thomas Kerr, has mentioned that “avoiding these pessimistic predictions may not be possible as it will require a radical transformation in the way the global economy is functioning and how the countries’ think tanks are strategizing”. It will require loads of rapid uptake of renewable energy with big deployment of carbon dioxide capture, reduction of industrial emissions and a total cessation of deforestation.