Thursday 28 February 2013

BERMUDA TRIANGLE MYSTERY





The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is an undefined region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and ships are said to have disappeared under mysterious circumstances. The triangle does not exist according to the US Navy and the name is not recognized by the US Board on Geographic Names.Popular culture has attributed various disappearances to the paranormal or activity by extraterrestial beings.

Documented evidence indicates that a significant percentage of the incidents were spurious, inaccurately reported, or embellished by later authors.Contrary to popular belief, insurance companies do not charge higher premiums for shipping in this area.



There were some mysteries that is related to the Bermuda Triangle:






Extra Terrestrial

Much that defies the logic of our everyday lives seems to get attributed to extra-terrestrial beings. A ship disappears, so it must be our friends from Andromeda who have traveled across space and time to steal our secrets of flotation or in- atmosphere flight. Yep, that’s what they need in Andromeda: a Cessna and a sailboat. Flight 19, in which 5 Navy bombers seemingly disappeared mid-flight on December 5, 1945, has been attributed to UFOs.



The Presence of Pirates

Piracy occurs in all seas, around the globe. The US Department of State cautions against the possibility of encountering, “vessels ... engaged in illicit activities … near the Bahamas.” But if you had aspirations to be a pirate wouldn’t you choose a place where people will cast the blame for normally suspicious acts on methane, UFOs and magnetic anomalies? Heck, yeah. The Bermuda Triangle is a rogue’s paradise.



Methane Gas

The latest culprit in the Bermuda Triangle is methane, a natural gas that is less dense than water. So if you happen to be sailing through a patch of ocean when a massive methane effluvium bubbles up from the deep, then, yes, your boat could in fact sink. Gas hydrates exist in deep, high pressure environments found in all the world’s oceans, including parts of the Bermuda Triangle. But there are no recorded instances that such an incident has occurred.





Rogue Waves

You’re lolling along in a boat, rising and falling in the cradle of the deep ocean, enjoying the sun, sea and the wind when, wham! a giant wave pops up next to your boat and sinks it. In fact, this does happen without warning in the Bermuda Triangle, as it does in seas all over the globe. So this theory holds water… so to speak. And is, after human error, the most credible explanation for the mysterious disappearances that occur in the Triangle.


Magnetic Anomalies


If you’ve ever watched a TV show on the Bermuda Triangle, then you’ve heard the recordings of pilots noting their instrumentation has gone haywire. So let’s think about this reasonably. True north only exists within a small swath of the earth. Otherwise, magnetic variations are normal and most pilots, sailors and computers with GPS know this and compensate compass bearings to adjust to true north. But even if a compass goes haywire, does that mean it’s an unexplained mystery? Magnetic anomalies happen, even locally, all over the world. But thousands and thousands of planes, sailboats, motor yachts and other water-bound vessels ply these waters each year and seem to exit unscathed.



Dumb Mistakes

All over the world, human blunders result in the loss of billions of dollars worth of stuff. Could this also be happening in the Bermuda Triangle? Of course. Consider the pirates. If you make a catastrophic mistake that results in the loss of your boat or plane or personal watercraft and you don’t want to accept blame, what better place to have a calamitous loss of property than the mysterious, ship-eating, UFO-ridden and methane-spewing Bermuda Triangle. Hello, insurance claim. Recreational boating accident reports do show high incidences in the region that encompasses the Bermuda Triangle.





Wednesday 27 February 2013

 THE FLYING DUTCHMAN



For centuries, sailors around the world have told the legend of a cursed ghost ship, named The Flying Dutchman. The ship is cursed, and as such can never return to port. Since it has place to go, The Flying Dutchman sails around the ocean aimlessly, haunting the minds of sailors and toying with the imaginations of sea farers globally. There have been tales for ages, of late-night spotters in the crow's nest of a ship seeing a ghost ship passing their bow. Men swear on their lives that the cursed ship, The Flying Dutchman was seen sailing past them.

Where did this legend come from, and who started telling the story of this cursed ship? The first references to The Flying Dutchman comes from the writings of George Barrington in the late 1700's who wrote about the ship that appeared and then disappeared in a dark cloud - like an apparition. Several other writers and authors have written stories and poems including mentions of The Flying Dutchman. In all of the references, they talk about the ship being a terrible omen to sailors... They never want to see this ship. Seeing The Flying Dutchman is tantamount to a visit from God telling them that their voyage has been cursed.






Was The Flying Dutchman an actual ship, or was it created as folklore? The jury is still out on this question, but many who have speculated about the legend agree that The Flying Dutchman was a ship that became doomed for one reason or another. Some say that The Flying Dutchman was used for piracy and was loaded with gold and other loot. While travelling with a load of treasure, unspeakable crimes were committed on board the ship, thus making it cursed forever.

Other variations of the legend say that the Captain of The Flying Dutchman refused to go to port in the face of a horrible storm and as a result the entire ship perished. Others claim that the ship was not called The Flying Dutchman - that instead it was the name of the captain of the ship. Eventually, as people passed the legend down through the generations, the story of The Flying Dutchman referred to the ship.




Throughout the years, many sailors have claimed to see a ship sailing past them, and then disappearing. One of the most famous men who swore to have seen The Flying Dutchman is Prince George of Wales, along with his brother Prince Albert Victor. In his writings, he stated that no less than thirteen men saw The Flying Dutchman sail by their ship in the middle of the night, and a few hours later disappeared from all site into thin air.

With all of these sightings, this leaves sailors and observers to wonder... Is there any merit to this legend? As has been well-documented, The Bermuda Triangle has taken the lives of many sailors and pilots throughout history. It is difficult to argue against eyewitness accounts - but can there be a logical explanation to these sightings?






Tuesday 26 February 2013

Atlantic City The Lost Empire

Atlantic City The Lost Empire





Plato told the story of Atlantis around 360 B.C. The founders of Atlantis, he said, were half god and half human. They created a utopian civilization and became a great naval power. Their home was made up of concentric islands separated by wide moats and linked by a canal that penetrated to the center. The lush islands contained gold, silver, and other precious metals and supported an abundance of rare, exotic wildlife. There was a great capital city on the central island.
There are many theories about where Atlantis was—in the Mediterranean, off the coast of Spain, even under what is now Antarctica. "Pick a spot on the map, and someone has said that Atlantis was there," says Charles Orser, curator of history at the New York State Museum in Albany. "Every place you can imagine."Plato said Atlantis existed about 9,000 years before his own time, and that its story had been passed down by poets, priests, and others. But Plato's writings about Atlantis are the only known records of its existence.




Few, if any, scientists think Atlantis actually existed. Ocean explorer Robert Ballard, the National Geographic explorer-in-residence who discovered the wreck of the Titanic in 1985, notes that "no Nobel laureates" have said that what Plato wrote about Atlantis is true.Still, Ballard says, the legend of Atlantis is a "logical" one since cataclysmic floods and volcanic explosions have happened throughout history, including one event that had some similarities to the story of the destruction of Atlantis. About 3,600 years ago, a massive volcanic eruption devastated the island of Santorini in the Aegean Sea near Greece. At the time, a highly advanced society of Minoans lived on Santorini. The Minoan civilization disappeared suddenly at about the same time as the volcanic eruption.
But Ballard doesn't think Santorini was Atlantis, because the time of the eruption on that island doesn't coincide with when Plato said Atlantis was destroyed.
Romm believes Plato created the story of Atlantis to convey some of his philosophical theories. "He was dealing with a number of issues, themes that run throughout his work," he says. "His ideas about divine versus human nature, ideal societies, the gradual corruption of human society—these ideas are all found in many of his works. Atlantis was a different vehicle to get at some of his favorite themes."





The legend of Atlantis is a story about a moral, spiritual people who lived in a highly advanced, utopian civilization. But they became greedy, petty, and "morally bankrupt," and the gods "became angry because the people had lost their way and turned to immoral pursuits," Orser says.As punishment, he says,the gods sent "one terrible night of fire and earthquakes" that caused Atlantis to sink into the sea.








MUAY THAI ANCIENT ART






Muay Thai has come a long way in the last 100 years. Because of the great national popularity, Muay Thai began to garner international exposure and recognition. In World War II, Thai soldiers were stationed overseas, and foreigners recieved their first good look at Muay Thai firsthand. Muay Thai was named by foreigners as Siam Boxing, as Thailand was formerly Siam. During WW II, the French labeled Muay Thai as "Le Sport Orient" or the fighting style of the orient. The Thai soldiers participating in the war would practice Muay Thai among themselves as soldiers from Europe and America watched with great interest. Until that time, Muay Thai was a cultural gem, hidden within this strange and wonderful culture of this country called Thailand.


Soldiers from abroad were so impressed of the Muay Thai fighting style that they asked the Thai soldiers to teach them the basics and traditions of Muay Thai. As Muay Thai became more popular, especially with an international interest, the rules began to changge to become more inline with other goverened sports like boxing. In the 1920's, the roots of modern Muay Thai were planted when rings were introduced replacing open courtyards.The old-style horsehide, hemp rope, or leather bindings were replaced with gloves similar to boxing. In the past, fighters were known to soak their hemp rope bindings in a sticky resin and then dip their hands in crushed glass and ash that could attack the opponents eyesight. 





Muay Thai fighters often begin training when they are 6-8 years-old. They will begin fighting between 8-10 years of age and may have as many as 120-150 fights ( 3 times as many as a very active boxer ) before they are 24 years old. Muay Thai fighters do not generally have long careers because of starting at such an early age and how physically demanding the sport is on the fighters. Injuries are quite common in Muay Thai fights. From cuts and lacerations to the face and head to broken bones and severe sprains of muscles and ligaments, Muay Thai fighters deal with injuries their entire career. Muay Thai fighters are known for their ability to ignore pain and injury.






Today, the evolution of Muay Thai is finally reaping rewards and recognition. Muay Thai was recently accepted as an Olympic sport, and it is becoming quite popular in many countries throughout the world. Professional fighters in martial arts, K-1, and submission fighting all agree, Muay Thai is an essential part of being an all-around skilled fighter and having stand-up fighting skills. Muay Thai will continue to grow in popularity as new training camps and gyms open around the world.