The Arrivals

The Arrivals is a series of short videos that are aimed to show us all the religious signs that prove the foundation of all requirements for the existence of the Anti-Christ, Al Mahdi and the second coming of the Christ. Each episode proves a point. The series concentrates on the very basis of Muslim-Jew divide and goes to the olden times of Jesus Christ. The movie takes the help from Holy Quran, the Bible and the Torah. Each claim is well supported by documented facts that are well explained in the series. The series also brings many conspiracy theories to light which are prevalent these days. It analyses the advent of the new world order and the motives of the group that want it to be put into practice. The series doesn’t only address the muslims but it is a invitation to truth to all humankind. The series is not to propogate the muslim point of view about things rather it supports its claims from the holy books shared by the Jews and the Christians. The series aims at clearing the misconceptions between the Muslims and the west and evaluates the basis of this divide. The series uses English language to directly deliver the message to the Westerners. The West, if they approach properly, can form a clear and amazing image about Islam and the Middle East. The Arrivals just does that thing by using a style that’s welcoming and eye-opening for the truth seekers. Work Inspired by Hashemsfilms and of Course the Words of the Noble Qoran, The Holy Bible, and The Torah, The Arrivals is a Joint Production by truthseekers Noreagaaa and Achernahr. The series is not copyrighted so you are free to distribute it to your friends and pals so that the message of peace and truth can be spread to the mankind....click here to visit.

PESANAN BUAT WANITA

A short history of soap

By John A. Hunt, PhD, FRPharmS

Few items of commerce are more ubiquitous or in more frequent use than soap. Few proprietary products have been offered over a longer period to the public by pharmacists, and by chemists and druggists before them, than some long established brands of toilet soap. Soap is perhaps the first manufactured substance with which we come into contact in our lives and it remains a daily necessity thereafter. For how long has this inexpensive but essential product been such a feature of daily life and how did its adoption come about?

There is no clear evidence that the use of soap for personal hygiene pre-dates the Christian era. Two mentions appear in the Old Testament. "For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me," says the book of Jeremiah. A more modern translation reads: "Though you wash with soda and use soap lavishly. . . ."¹ There are doubts as to whether this is a reference to true soap. It has been suggested that possibly a lye, made by mixing alkaline plant ash with water, was referred to, or possibly some form of Fuller's earth.² This view is perhaps supported by the second mention, on virtually the final page of the Old Testament, in the book of Malachi, in which both the authorised version of 1611 and the modern translation read virtually identically: "He is like a refiner's fire, like a fuller's soap."³ It has been suggested that some form of soap, made by boiling fat with ashes, was being made in Babylon as early as 2800BC, but probably used only for washing garments. Pliny the Elder (7BC–53AD) mentions that soap was being produced from tallow and beech ashes by the Phoenicians in 600BC.⁴ This might have been used as a hair pomade rather than a washing soap.⁵

Bathing in classical times

In classical times, perfumed oils were in extensive use for bathing and were combined with the use of the strigil, a metal implement used to scrape the skin free of oil and dirt. It is claimed that, for washing themselves, the Romans used a type of clay found near Rome called "sapo" from which the word soap is derived.⁴ An alternative suggestion for the derivation of the name is that the Romans learned the art of soap-making, using animal fats and plant ashes, from the Celts, who called it "saipo".⁶
The use of soap in personal hygiene does not appear to have been adopted until the second century when the physician Galen (130–200AD) mentions its use for washing the body. Another physician, Priscianus (circa 385AD), reported the use of soap as a shampoo and made the first mention of the trade of "saponarius", or soap-boiler.⁶
While soap was in use during the Roman period its adoption may have been slow, despite the popularity of public and private baths throughout the empire. Possibly early soaps, made from animal fat and crude alkali, were not particularly attractive in appearance or smell, and were deemed more suitable for cleaning and laundering. The remains of what might have been a soap factory were discovered in Pompeii, which was overwhelmed by an eruption of Vesuvius in 79AD, but possibly this was a site for producing a type of Fuller's earth for cleaning fabrics.

Early centres of soap making

Little is known of the use of soap in the Dark Ages which followed the fall of Rome. Personal hygiene was probably not a high priority in regions where life was precarious. Saponins are widely distributed in the plant kingdom and such plants as Saponaria officinalis, Quillaia saponaria, Gypsophila spp and Sapindus spp contain useful amounts which might be used for cleaning purposes.
The manufacture of soap in Europe and the Mediterranean region had re-emerged by the end of the first millennium. Early centres of production were Marseilles in France and Savona in Italy. It has been suggested that the French word savon, for soap, may have been derived from the name of the latter centre.
In Britain references began to appear in the literature from about 1000AD, and in 1192 the monk Richard of Devizes referred to the number of soap makers in Bristol and the unpleasant smells which their activities produced.
A century later soap making was reported in Coventry. Other early centres of production included York and Hull. In London a 15th century "sopehouse" was reported in Bishopsgate, with other sites at Cheapside, where there existed Soper's Lane (later renamed Queen Street), and by the Thames at Blackfriars.⁵

Early means of manufacture

Throughout its long history the chemical process for the production of soap has not fundamentally changed. Neutral oils or fats are boiled with alkali in a reaction which produces soap and glycerin. Potassium salts produce soft soaps whereas sodium soaps are harder and more widely employed. When the metallic radical is calcium or magnesium, then insoluble soaps are produced, which form the scum produced when soap dissolves in hard water. The quality of soap produced is very dependent on the quality of the materials employed in the reaction. Early attempts at soap production relied on ash, produced by burning various vegetable materials, as a makeshift source of alkali. For example, in Spain, the plant salsola was burned to produce an alkaline ash called barilla. This, used in conjunction with locally available olive oil, offered a good quality soap which, by salting-out or "graining" the boiled liquor with brine, allowed the soap to float to the surface, leaving the lye, vegetable colouring and impurities to settle out. This produced what was probably the first white hard soap: Jabon de Castilla, or Castile soap, also known to pharmacists as Sapo hispaniensis or Sapo castilliensis. Originally an important product for the Castile region of central Spain, Castile eventually became the generic name for hard, white, olive oil soaps.⁷

Soap production in Britain

In Britain early production of soap was usually based on rendered animal fat, such as tallow from beef or mutton. Later, growing imports of oils such as palm, coconut, olive, linseed and cottonseed oils offered a wider choice of raw materials and favoured production of soap in sea-ports such as London and Bristol. Production of soap in Bristol as early as the 12th century has already been referred to, and the "Proceedings, Minutes and Enrolments" of the Bristol Company of Soapmakers for the years 1562–1642 survive in the local record office. These documents record the names of more than 180 individuals who were engaged in the trade, some being members of families in the business for successive generations. It is recorded that a type of black soft soap was known as "Bristol soap". Another harder type, "Bristol grey soap", was claimed to have been supplied in large quantities to London by 1523 at the price of one penny per pound.⁸ Volume production of soap in London probably dated from the 16th century.

Monopoly and taxation

The emergence of soap as a regular article of commerce did not escape the attention of those seeking to raise money from taxation. In 1632 Charles I granted letters patent to the Society of Soapmakers of Westminster, granting them a 14-year monopoly of the production of certain types of soap in return for payment of £4 per ton.
Bitter struggles followed and decrees of the Star Chamber resulted in the destruction of many soap pans outside the monopoly producers' locations. By 1636, the Star Chamber had decreed that there should be no soap manufacture outside a one-mile limit of London and Bristol. Production in the latter was restricted to 600 tons per annum, whereas the Westminster Society had already covenanted to produce 5,000 tons of white soap per annum. The consequent destruction of the industry in Bristol was considerable.⁸
Taxation continued in various forms. During the Commonwealth period it stood at 4s per barrel. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, under a tax introduced under Queen Anne in 1712, the levy varied between 1d and 3d per pound, the higher figure being equal to the total cost of production.
All soap pans were required to be fitted with a padlock, of which the key was held by the exciseman. This official was required to be in attendance at each soap boiling, of which 12 hours' notice was required to be given. It was eventually Gladstone, as Chancellor of the Exchequer who, in a growing tide of Victorian concern about cleanliness, abandoned the soap duty in 1852, at an annual loss of £1,126,000 in tax revenue.⁹

The chemistry of soap

Glycerin was first observed by the Swedish chemist Scheele in 1779, who called it "the sweet principle of fat". But it was for the great French chemist, Michel Eugene Chevreul, born in 1786 and living to the age of almost 103, to study the chemistry of soap production and to identify "the sweet principle" as the common denominator of oils and fats and to name it "glycerine". Working in the first quarter of the 19th century, he showed that oils and fats are glycerides, and that boiling with caustic soda or caustic potash formed the salts of fatty acids, or soaps, liberating the glycerin, for which he obtained a manufacturing patent in 1811. This knowledge paved the way for the great expansion of soap manufacture later in the century, for which more assured sources of alkali were essential.

The British alkali industry

The first significant process for the large scale manufacture of alkali was invented by the French chemist Nicholas Leblanc, and its use in Britain commenced in 1823. Salt was reacted with strong sulphuric acid to give sodium sulphate, which was then heated with coal and lime to give sodium carbonate. Production of sulphuric acid was enabled by the lead chamber process, and sulphuric acid and soda manufacture formed the basis of the British heavy chemical industry. The next major development in alkali production was due to the American chemist Hamilton Young Castner. Born in New York in 1858, he moved to England in 1886. Seeking a means of producing pure caustic soda, Castner succeeded in using a mercury cathode to bring about the electrolysis of brine to produce caustic soda, chlorine and hydrogen. His invention was patented in 1892. Like his father and two brothers, Castner died of tuberculosis in 1899. An Austrian chemist, Carl Kellner, had patented a similar, though less effective, process in 1892. In order to avoid legal battles an agreement was reached between Castner and Kellner. The United Alkali Company (which used the Leblanc process) having turned down the rights to the new process, the Castner-Kellner Alkali Company was formed in 1895 and soon commenced the construction of new plant on a 46-acre site at Weston Point, Runcorn, near to the Salt Union works. The Salt Union agreed to provide up to 10,000 gallons of brine per day to enable the Castner-Kellner plant to produce 6,300 tons of pure caustic soda and 13,500 tons of bleaching powder per year.¹⁰

The expansion of soap production

An early entrant into the quality soap business was Andrew Pears. A West Country man who had opened a barber's shop in Gerrard Street, Soho, Pears became interested in the production of better quality soap. In 1789, he commenced production of a transparent soap at a factory in Wells Street, off Oxford Street. In 1835 his grandson, Francis Pears, joined him in the business to form A&F Pears. The company was awarded the prize medal for soap at the Great Exhibition in 1851. A factory was opened at Isleworth in 1862. In 1865 the son of Francis Pears, Andrew, joined his sister's husband Thomas Barratt as joint proprietor, with Andrew running the factory and Thomas in charge of the London headquarters. Thomas Barratt was a pioneer of modern advertising and business management, investing funds in the promotion of his product as an aid to health and beauty. Those whom he persuaded to give testimonials included Theophilus Redwood, professor of pharmacy at the Society's school of pharmacy, Erasmus Wilson, president of the Royal College of Surgeons and the noted actress and society beauty, Mrs Lillie Langtry. His promotional campaigns included use of the painting Bubbles by Sir John Everett Millais, which became the most famous poster in the country, and the introduction in 1897 of ‘Pears Shilling Cyclopaedia'. Many millions of copies of this annual publication have been sold and it remains in print. Barratt has been called "the father of modern advertising" and his initiatives propelled Pears Transparent Soap to the status of a major manufactured product at home and overseas. Following his death shortly before the 1914–18 war, A&F Pears Ltd joined Lever Brothers and production was later moved to Port Sunlight.¹¹

Some other soap manufacturers

William Gossage was born in 1799 and apprenticed to his uncle, a chemist and druggist in Chesterfield, later opening his own pharmacy in Leamington. In 1830, he joined an alkali company in Worcestershire and following experience in chlorine production, white lead manufacture and copper smelting he moved to Widnes in 1850. In 1853, he patented a process for the production of caustic soda from sodium carbonate and the following year turned his attention to soap manufacture. Gossage's low-price good quality soap became very successful and his soap works became the largest in England. He died in 1877. Happily, his factory, situated by the Mersey, close to the Runcorn-Widnes bridge, can still be visited. It now provides premises for "Catalyst" - the museum of the chemical industry. The museum is open daily (except Mondays) and the extensive displays include the history and products of Gossage's. The company eventually joined Lever Brothers.
The chemist and druggist R. S. Hudson began manufacturing a soap powder in the back of his shop in High Street, West Bromwich, in 1837, initially by grinding the soap with a mortar and pestle. By 1854 he was employing 10 young women in the production process and in 1875 he opened a factory at Bank Hall, Liverpool. Hudson's soap became very successful and famous names like "Rinso" and "Omo" originated from the company. It became part of Lever Brothers in 1908.

Port Sunlight

William Hesketh Lever and his brother James, sons of a wholesale grocer in Bolton, bought a small soap works in Warrington in 1885. Using vegetable oils like palm oil, rather than tallow, to manufacture soap and glycerin, they produced a good, free-lathering soap which proved popular. By 1888 output had increased to 450 tons per week and larger premises for the manufacture of "Sunlight Soap" were constructed on marshes at Bromborough Pool by the Mersey opposite Garston Docks. "Port Sunlight" had arrived. By the end of the century "Sunlight Soap" had been joined by "Lifebuoy", "Lux" and "Vim" among other products and overseas activities had been established in the United States, Switzerland, Canada, Australia, Germany and elsewhere. By 1911 the company was cultivating its own coco palm plantations in the Congo and the Solomon Islands. The 1914–18 war was followed by world-wide expansion and the consolidation of soap production in Britain. Lever Brothers Ltd acquired, in addition to A&F Pears, Gossage's and Hudson's, already mentioned, the Vinolia Company, Hazlehurst & Sons of Runcorn, the old established firms Edward Cook of London, Christopher Thomas & Bros Ltd of Bristol, and such famous names as the Erasmic Co, John Knight Ltd, Price's, D&W Gibbs and Joseph Watson & Sons of Leeds. During the 19th century soap manufacture was a very fragmented activity. Many old plans of towns all over the country provide evidence of small local soap works, and some housewives in rural areas would still make their own soap in the home. By the mid-20th century soap manufacture in Britain had been substantially consolidated by Lever Brothers into a modern, large-scale manufacturing industry. William Hesketh Lever, the first Lord Leverhulme, died in 1925 and was succeeded by his son, the second viscount, a prominent member of the Society of the Chemical Industry.¹²

Manufacturing methods

Traditional soap manufacturing methods involved the boiling of oils and fats with caustic solution in open pans of a capacity anywhere between 10 and 150 tons, followed by the addition of salt or brine in the "salting out" process, in which the soap separated from the lye. The skilled operator would control the process by "trowelling". From the way the soap slid from a heated hand trowel he could judge whether more brine or caustic was required and when the batch was ready for "settling". By successive washing in brine the lye was separated from the soap and the glycerin recovered. The soap was dried and cut into bars for supply to the wholesale and retail trade. In former times the retailer would cut the bars into individual blocks at the point of sale, using cheese wire or a sharp knife, and would hand wrap the blocks in paper. It is of interest that the description "a bar of soap" persists, although the product is now normally purchased in individual tablets and a true soap-bar is a rare sight. Traditional transparent soap such as "Pears" is produced by prolonged evaporation and drying from an alcoholic liquid soap in a process taking up to three months. The characteristic concave shape of the soap tablet is achieved not by moulding but by shrinkage in the drying process. Modern soap manufacture, by contrast, is by continuous processes supported by instrumentation and automated control systems.

Soap and pharmacy

In addition to the traditional sale of many kinds of soap products by pharmacists through retail outlets, soap itself has found numerous applications in pharmacy, such as pill making, lotions and liniments, dentifrices, plasters, enemas, suppositories and poultices, in addition to veterinary applications. Older pharmacists will recall sessions in the pharmaceutics laboratory preparing Sapo mollis and Spiritus saponis, and perhaps their first embarrassing experience as a young apprentice when asked for Opodeldoc, until a patient pharmacist explained that this was to be found in a winchester labelled Linimentum saponis.
The use of soap in pharmacy is long established. In 1761 Quincy's English Dispensatory recommended that "those kinds of soap which are most appropriate for medicinal purposes, and given inwardly, are from Venice or from Castile". In 1768 the Experimental History of Materia Medica by William Lewis, FRS, claimed: "The finest of the common soaps is that called Spanish or Castile soap, which is made with olive oil and the alkaline salt called soda or barilla." Although advances in the chemistry of surface active agents in the 20th century have been remarkable and have revolutionised approaches to the manufacture of household and industrial cleansers, laundering agents, shampoos and other cosmetics, traditional soaps have retained their popularity for washing and bathing, and soap may well see another century of large scale manufacture and everyday use.

Acknowledgments The author is grateful to Ms Claire Tunstall, archivist of the Unilever Historical Archives and to staff of the Wellcome Institute Library. The names "Pears", "Rinso", "Omo", "Sunlight", "Lifebuoy", "Erasmic", "Vinolia", "Gibbs" and "Vim" are registered trade marks of Unilever Plc.

Dr Hunt is a retired industrial pharmacist who is currently vice-president of the British Society for the History of Pharmacy

References

1. The Holy Bible. Authorised version 1611 and Revised English Bible 1989. Jeremiah 2:22.

2. Sinclair S. Soap Making. London: Unilever Ltd, 1958.

3. The Holy Bible: Malachi 3:2.

4. Willcox M. In: Butler H (editor). Poucher's Perfumes, Cosmetics and Soaps. Vol 3 (9th ed). London: Blackie Academic (Chapman & Hall) 1993:393 et seq.

5. Wilson RL. Soap through the ages (4th ed). London: Unilver Ltd, 1955.

6. The manufacture of soap. Aust J Hosp Pharm 1974;4:33-9.

7. Mitchell RW. Castile soap - a monograph covering the origin, history and significance. Boston: Lockwood, Brackett & Co, 1927.

8. Somerville J. Christopher Thomas - soapmaker of Bristol. Bristol: Redcliffe Press, 1991.

9. Campbell A. Tricks and taxes. Chemistry in Britain 1998;34:56.

10. Adam D. Man of industry. Ibid 1999;35:36.

11. The story of Pears Transparent Soap (typescript undated). London: A & F Pears Ltd.

12. Miall S. The history of soap. Port Sunlight News (Lever Brothers Ltd). 1931;9: 282-3, 325-9, 361-3.

History of Laptop Computers

Left - Modern Laptop Today

It is a little hard to determine what was the first portable or laptop computer, the first portable computers did not look like the book-sized and folding laptops that we are familiar with today, however, they were both portable and lapable, and lead to the development of notebook style laptops. I have outlined several potential firsts below and how each qualifies, many of the off-site links provide good photos of the computers that will let you see the progression in design.

The First Laptop? Maybe
Designed in 1979 by a Briton, William Moggridge, for Grid Systems Corporation, the Grid Compass was one fifth the weight of any model equivalent in performance and was used by NASA on the space shuttle program in the early 1980's. A 340K byte bubble memory lap-top computer with die-cast magnesium case and folding electroluminescent graphics display screen.

Gavilan Computer As The First Laptop?
Manny Fernandez had the idea for a well-designed laptop for executives who were starting to use computer. Fernandez, who started Gavilan Computer, promoted his machines as the first "laptop" computers in May 1983. Many historians consider the Gavilan as the first fully functional laptop computer.

The First Laptop Computer - Osborne 1
The computer considered by most historians to be the first true portable computer was the Osborne 1. Adam Osborne, an ex-book publisher founded Osborne Computer and produced the Osborne 1 in 1981, a portable computer that weighed 24 pounds and cost $1795. The Osborne 1 came with a five-inch screen, modem port, two 5 1/4 floppy drives, a large collection of bundled software programs, and a battery pack. The short-lived computer company was never successful. (second photo)

More History of Laptop Firsts

· Also released in 1981, was the Epson HX-20, a battery powered portable computer, with a 20-character by 4 line LCD display and a built-in printer.

· In January of 1982, Microsoft's Kazuhiko Nishi and Bill Gates begin discussions on designing a portable computer, based on using a new liquid crystal display or LCD screen. Kazuhiko Nishi later showed the prototype to Radio Shack who agree to manufacture the computer.

· In 1983, Radio Shack released the TRS-80 Model 100, a 4 lb. battery operated portable computer with a flat and more of a laptop design.

· In February 1984, IBM announced the IBM 5155 Portable Personal Computer.

· Three years later in 1986, Radio Shack released the improved and smaller TRS Model 200.

· In 1988, Compaq Computer introduces its first laptop PC with VGA graphics - the Compaq SLT/286.

· In 1989, NEC UltraLite was released, considered by some to be the first "notebook style" computer. It was a laptop size computer which weighed under 5 lbs. (second photo)

· In September 1989, Apple Computer released the first Macintosh Portable that later evolved into the Powerbook. (second photo)

· In 1989, Zenith Data Systems released the Zenith MinisPort, a 6-pound laptop computer. (more Zenith laptops)

· In October 1989, Compaq Computer released its first notebook PC, the Compaq LTE.

· In March 1991, Microsoft released the Microsoft BallPoint Mouse that used both mouse and trackball technology in a pointing device designed for laptop computers.

· In October 1991, Apple Computers released the Macintosh PowerBook 100, 140, and 170 - all notebook style laptops. (more on Powerbooks)

· In October 1992, IBM released its ThinkPad 700 laptop computer.

· In 1992, Intel and Microsoft release APM or the Advanced Power Management specification for laptop computers.

· In 1993, the first PDAs or Personal Digital Assistants are released. PDAs are pen-based hand-held computers.

Green House Gases

Humans have changed planet earth. One of our accomplishments is to extract and burn much of the fossil fuel deposits on the planet. We have increased the concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and are now observing the changes in weather patterns and climate that are a result of our actions.

Greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbon chemicals, and chlorofluorocarbons. These gases act like the glass covering a greenhouse, letting sunlight in but blocking some of the infrared radiation from the earth's surface that carries heat back into space. The gases act like a blanket wherever their concentration increases. Local concentrations increase local heat and increased differences between hotter and colder regions drives weather events into more extreme ranges.

The planet's thermostat had been set at a pleasant average temperature of 59 degrees (F) for the last 10 thousand years or so and is now undergoing a rapid change. Global warming means that the earth retains more of the sun's heat over time. The warming effect of greenhouse gases is reduced by particle pollution and clouds that block incoming infrared radiation. Without particle pollution, ice crystals and water vapor in the atmosphere, global warming would be more rapid.

The attempt to understand complex systems has taken a quantum leap in recent years. We have gone beyond naïve linear models and now appreciate that if complex systems such as the atmosphere, the oceans, and land ecosystems change, they become unstable, climates change and human habitats that once were stable, become unfriendly or, worse, uninhabitable. Extra heat will cause more turbulence and weather patterns will change in unpredictable ways.

The development of a renewed "green movement" in the media suggests that this is a relatively new concern and people who have ignored climate changes during the past 30 years have had legitimate doubts. The fact is that some know what is really going on out there, but most people do not know or know but deny the obvious for selfish reasons.

Carbon dioxide is the most important gas and is produced from the burning of fossil fuels, and the burning of forests. The concentration of CO2 was 280 PPM before the industrial revolution and now is over 350 PPM. The 1990s, the US produced 23% of global CO2 emissions, Western Europe 14%, former Soviet bloc 20 %, India 4% and Japan 5%. High emission countries pump out over 3 metric tons per capita - the US produces 5.2 metric tons per person. In 2007, China matched emissions typical of the US. Low emission countries produce less than 1 metric tone per capita. Most of Africa, South America, and Asia are below 1 metric ton per capita. If you include Brazil, Indonesia and Germany in the industrial heavy-weight polluters, they account for 56 % of the world's population, 59% if its economic output, 58 % of its carbon-dioxide emissions and 53% of its forests.

Methane is less abundant but traps more heat than carbon dioxide. Methane emissions are about 550 million tons per year from biomass decomposition in wetlands, rice farming, ruminant animals and landfills. Methane is "natural gas" and some enters the atmosphere during its commercial distribution and use as a fuel. Large reservoirs of methane also are found in the arctic and in marine sediments, as methane hydrates. Each methane molecule is encased by water ice molecules. There is speculation that large volumes of methane may be released as ocean temperatures rise and accelerate global warming.

Nitrogen oxides, like hydrocarbons, are precursors to the formation of ozone and contribute to acid rain. Catalytic converters in car exhaust systems break down heavier nitrogen gases, forming nitrous oxide (NO2) - 300 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. Nitrous oxide makes up about 7.2 percent of the gases that cause global warming. Vehicles with catalytic converters produced nearly half of that nitrous oxide. Nitrous oxide also comes from nitrogen-based fertilizers and manure from farm animals.

Hydrofluorocarbon chemicals (HFCs) Refrigerants designed to protect the ozone layer have become a major contributor to global warming. Hydrofluorocarbon chemicals (HFCs) were developed to phase out ozone-depleting gases but they are more potent than carbon dioxide as greenhouse gases. A study at the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency suggested that HFC emissions will have the heat trapping effect up to 8.8 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide annually by 2010. (G. J. M. Velders et al. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA doi:10.1073.pnas.0902817106; 2009).

The reduction in forest biomass and the exposure of ocean plankton to increase UV radiation are also concerns. Ocean phytoplankton supplies up to 70% of the oxygen we breathe.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC),a United Nations body won the 2007 Nobel Prize for its efforts to boost understanding of climate change. The IPCC Fourth Assessment Report: Climate Change 2007 consists of four reports, three of them from its working groups.

The Physical Science Basis of Climate Change Key Points are:

Warming of the climate system is unequivocal.

Global atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide have increased markedly as a result of human activities since 1750 and now far exceed pre-industrial values over the past 650,000 years.

Most of the observed increase in globally averaged temperatures since the mid-20th century is likely due to the observed increase in human greenhouse gas concentrations.

Anthropogenic warming and sea level rise would continue for centuries due to the timescales associated with climate processes and feedbacks, even if greenhouse gas concentrations were to be stabilized soon, although the likely amount of temperature and sea level rise varies greatly depending on the fossil intensity of human activity during the next century . The probability that this is caused by natural climatic processes alone is less than 5%.

World temperatures could rise by between 1.1 and 6.4 °C (2.0 and 11.5 °F) during the 21st century:

Sea levels will probably rise by 18 to 59 cm (7.08 to 23.22 in)

There is a confidence level >90% that there will be more frequent warm spells, heat waves and heavy rainfall.

There is a confidence level >66% that there will be an increase in droughts, tropical cyclones and extreme high tides.

More than thirty years ago, Loren Eisely reflected:

Every Civilization, born like an animal body has just so much energy to expend...space and time widen to weariness. In the midst of triumph, disenchantment sets in among the young. It is as though with the growth of cities an implosion took place, a final unseen structure, a spore-bearing structure towering upward toward its final release. I am one of the world-eaters in the time that my species has despoiled the earth and is about to loose its spores into space. When the swarming phase of our existence commences, we struggle both against the remembered enchantment of childhood and the desire to extinguish it under layers of concrete and giant stones. Like some few persons in the days of the final urban concentrations, I am an anachronism, a child of the dying light.""

Loren Eisely The Invisible Pyramid. 1970

Fear of Public Speaking:

by www.Sedona.com

Speaking in public is easily one of the most common fears facing Americans. Now, a little bit of anxiety before getting up in front of an audience is quite natural (some estimates say that as much as 75 percent of the population does not like speaking in public), but a significant portion of us (estimates say around 30 percent), have a real, sometimes debilitating fear of public speaking.
If you experience feelings of dread, uncontrollable anxiety, or fear, or if you sweat heavily, have trouble breathing, shake, or cannot sleep whenever you have to give a public speech, you may be in this latter category.

Why We Fear Speaking in Public

Why is it that public speaking -- something that most all of us have to do regularly, or at least from time to time -- invokes such feelings of terror in so many of us? Quite simply, because it means being vulnerable.

Public speaking is akin to opening your heart and soul to a roomful (or more) of people. True, you’re not about to share you innermost secrets and desires, but it doesn’t matter. You are about to put yourself on the line, share ideas, information and opinions, and there’s a chance that those you’re speaking to may not approve.

Perhaps they will disagree, laugh when they’re not supposed to, or be utterly bored. Perhaps your job and reputation are at stake. Clearly, these are not easy things to open yourself up to.

Meanwhile, in those with a true phobia, you are not only dealing with the feelings of vulnerability, but also the physical manifestations of them, such as a trembling voice, your face turning red, shortness of breath, butterflies in your stomach, and on and on. It’s enough to make even the most successful want to turn and head for the hills.

Of course, while most of us do not have the option of turning back, there is good news. Whether it be a weekly presentation to your clients, leading your neighborhood book club or giving a speech at your best friend’s wedding, you don’t have to miss another opportunity because of this fear.

Key Tactics to Overcome a Fear of Public Speaking

Being able to express your ideas effectively is vital to your personal success and happiness, and everyone can learn to be a confident speaker -- even if you currently loathe the thought of public speaking.

How? By letting the fear go. This simple premise is the foundation of The Sedona Method, a scientifically proven tool that can show you how to let go of all forms of fear, including the fear of public speaking.

Underlying your public speaking fear are negative emotions, thoughts and behaviors. Perhaps you are worried that if the presentation doesn’t go well, you could lose your job, feel humiliated, or fall behind your colleagues, for instance. But imagine how differently you would perceive public speaking if you had absolutely nothing to worry about.

The Sedona Method is a do-it-yourself system that will show you how to get to this worry-free place, and provide immediate relief whenever you get up in front of a group; instead of fear, you will feel a solid sense of confidence.

Further, the following seven tips can be used along with The Sedona Method to ensure your next public speech is easy, pleasant and stress-free:

Take deep breaths before, during and after your speech.

Find someone in the audience who is smiling and focus on them (not those who look crabby or bored).

Use personal stories and be yourself (it’s more interesting for the audience and for you).

Remember that most people in the audience want you to succeed.

Let your passion about the topic show through.

If someone asks an out-there question, stay in control by focusing your response on the points you want to convey.

Come prepared. Know your topic thoroughly and use visual aids to help you remember what points come next.