MYSTERY SPOT
Yesterday morning we visited the "Mystery Spot " which is located near Santa Cruz,California. It was opened in 1939. It is a place about 150 feet in diameter where the laws of physics and gravity do not apply .The guide provides a number of demonstrations in support of these claims. Tall redwood trees pole-vault to the sky and there is a nip in the air. Guides take groups of twelve persons and introduce us to the mystery.
Phenomena demonstrated by the tour guides (and by visitors using levels) include two people standing on opposite sides of a level surface who appear to change height as they switch positions. A ball appears to roll up a plank.Water droped from a bottle moves up--not down!.
At the site, an old shed which was on level when originally erected appears to have lost part of its foundation and is slanted and oddly angled. Tourists flock to the Mystery Spot to enjoy the "puzzling variations in gravity, perspective, height and more," leaving baffled and perplexed by the apparent exceptions to the laws of physics and gravity
The Mystery Spot is a gravity hill type of visual illusion . The phenomena that visitors to the attraction may experience result from the effects of forced perspective , optical adaptation and certain visual illusions in combination with the steep gradient of the site. That is, the tilted environment inside the Mystery Spot causes misperceptions in the height and orientation of objects. For example, visitors misperceive the height of individuals because they use the tilted background as their guide. Also, the tilt distorts the horizontal and as such, balls appear to be rolling up a plank when it is of course rolling with gravity.
As visitors travel through the site, they try to habituate to the tilted environment. The effects of this adaptation are then exploited, especially within closed structures, so that visitors may feel as though gravity does not operate as it should in the Mystery Spot. Also, visitors may feel light-headed or dizzy due to the attempt of the brain trying to adapt to the visual tilt. Additional claims of mystery are the growth patterns of trees and their branches within the Mystery Spot, the lack of animals such as dogs, rodents or even birds inside the compound and the distortion of magnetically calibrated measurement devices such as compasses.
The official website speculates that extraterrestrials buried unearthly metals or a spacecraft beneath the Spot, or that carbon dioxide seeps out of the earth.
Several similar illusions can be found elsewhere, including the identically named Mystery Spot in Michigan,in Beuna Park California, Gold Hill, Oregon,Ligonier in Pennsylvania and Spook Hill in Florida and other sites around the world. One hilly vista of the city of Jerusalem offers a similar effect, with cars there appearing to roll uphill without power.
For years, UCSC Psychology Professor Bruce Bridgeman has taken college students to the Mystery Spot, a popular local tourist attraction, to demonstrate how the human brain works.
Mystery Spot managers welcomed his research on the attraction, said Bruce Bridgeman, below.
But for Bridgeman, the site is a powerful--and entertaining--way to demonstrate the influence of the visual context on perception. "It shows that you can teach serious science in unexpected places," said Bridgeman, who has published a scholarly article that explains the perceptual effects at work at the Mystery Spot. Mystery Spot visitors will recognize the scene of Bridgeman's research: In a cabin on a steep hillside, an 8 kilogram weight hangs on a chain from the ceiling. Although the weight hangs vertically, the tilt of the cabin makes the weight appear to be suspended at an angle. Visitors find that pushing the weight one way is perceived as much more difficult than pushing it the other way. Rather than a magical defiance of gravity, the explanation lies in the "mismatch" between expectations and the actual weight: Expectations based on visual information override the proprioceptive experience of moving the weight. Far from spoiling the fun, Bridgeman said understanding the phenomenon adds to the enjoyment of a visit to the Mystery Spot. "To me, it's much more fun to have something that's real than not," said Bridgeman. "The real fun is that you can learn about how your mind works in an interesting setting."
In his study, seven subjects pushed the pendulum away from vertical in both directions and were asked to judge the required effort on a one-to-10 scale, with one described as "effortless" and 10 "immovable." All participants experienced the "effort illusion": perceived effort in pushing toward visual vertical was significantly greater than perceived effort in pushing away from visual vertical.
"The tilt of the cabin makes it appear that the pendulum is suspended in an impossible position," said Bridgeman. "It is as though some additional force holds the weight in this unstable position. That's why the visual illusion is so compelling, and why the expected force applied is so dramatically different from the actual force needed to move the weight." Pushing the weight toward what appears to be vertical will always require more force than expected, and pushing it away will always require less.
"The visual context strongly influences what you perceive, and you can't escape it, even if you know better," said Bridgeman. "Expectations and assumptions are as important to perceived weight as the actual effort required to move objects."
"We think of our perceptions as being pretty much accurate, but they seldom are," said Bridgeman, noting that people are notoriously inaccurate when they attempt to estimate things like distance and the slope of a hill, too. "The philosophy of the brain is not to be totally accurate but to reduce the chance of error. Perception in the service of action is error reduction."
Of interest to lovers of Comics is that Dennis the Menace visited the Mystery Spot and has his own unique delightful experience.
Several similar illusions can be found elsewhere, including the identically named Mystery Spot in Michigan,in Beuna Park ,California, in Gold Hill, Oregon,in Ligonier in Pennsylvania and Spook Hill in Florida .
PPR—13-9-2008
Friday, December 5, 2008
MUIR WOODS---REDWOODS
MUIR WOODS
Ever seen a tree almost as tall as the Qutb Minar (273.8 feet) or Rajabhai Tower (280 feet) or one that is over 1000 years old? This tree was flourishing when the Magna Carta was signed by King John in the year 1215 and this tree had grown to over 100 feet when the Pilgrim Fathers landed in Plymouth Harbour in 1620. This is the most famous Redwood Tree found in northern California. A few miles from another famous monument of this state--the Golden Gate Bridge, we have a place called Muir Woods full of redwoods slightly shorter . “This is the best tree-lovers monument that could possibly be found in all the forests of the world," declared conservationist John Muir when describing the majestic coast redwoods of Muir Woods.
The tallest redwood tree here is 252 feet high and the widest over 14 feet. Some redwoods are at least 1000 years old. Most mature trees are 500 to 800 years old. The world’s tallest living thing is a coast redwood in northern California, measuring 379.1 feet. The redwood trees are expected to live up to a 2000 years but hold your breath the Giant Sequoia has a life span of 3200 years. We saw the Sequoia in Yosemite. Noting that Redwood Creek contained one of the San Francisco Bay Area's last uncut stands of old-growth redwood, Congressman William Kent and his wife, Elizabeth Kent, bought 295 acres here for $45,000 in 1905. To protect the redwoods the Kents donated the land to the United States Federal Government and, in 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt declared it a national monument. Roosevelt suggested naming the area after Kent, but Kent wanted it named for conservationist John Muir.
You walk away from the clamour of the city into an oasis where slanting beams of sunlight caress rugged red trunks that have stood for hundreds of years .There was a time when these trees came close to feeling the bite of loggers' saws. But stout efforts by early preservationists turned the area into a national monument in 1908. Parks officials are marking the centennial with a year of events including a day-long celebration April 21, the birthday of Sierra Club founder John Muir.
Muir Woods, just a dozen miles north of San Francisco, gets a million visitors a year and we heard the sounds of Mandarin, French, Spanish or a score of other languages in the park . Mostly they seem to be saying the same thing: These trees are big.
The park includes redwoods over 260 feet high; some are more than 1,200 years old. Of special interest is Cathedral Grove, where delegates who drafted the charter of the United Nations held a commemorative ceremony on May 19, 1945, in tribute to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who died in April of that year.
The grove can be reached on a loop walk of only one mile, which was hugely enjoyed by the two family groups I went with who wanted to experience California's famous redwoods after driving for two hours.
On certain days, Cathedral Grove is designated a "quiet zone" with a sign to that effect to heighten the experience of the magic and majesty of the woods — all the more remarkable for being about 30 minutes from the cosmopolitan bustle of San Francisco. Listen to the birds and the wind rustling in the branches; gaze up at trees soaring into the sky, their leafy tops forming graceful arches, and you'll understand how this spot got its name.
President Theodore Roosevelt, a big supporter of the nascent conservation movement, played a pivotal role in preserving the woods.Most of the coastal redwoods that once covered the California coast were chopped down to build the homes and cities of new California. But the Muir trees, tucked in a hard-to-access Redwood Canyon survived until the turn of the 19th century.
Businessman William Kent bought the land in hopes of preserving it. Kent, who later became a congressman, donated the land to the government and Roosevelt turned the woods into a national monument using the powers of the recently passed Antiquities Act.
It was Kent who wanted the woods named for naturalist Muir. In an exchange of letters, Roosevelt advocated for putting Kent's name on the new monument, but Kent replied that he had "five good husky boys," and if they couldn't keep the name of Kent alive, "I am willing it should be forgotten."
Kent, whose name is commemorated in the Marin County town of Kentfield among other things, went on to co-author the act creating the National Park Service in 1916.In a letter to Kent, Muir wrote: "Saving these woods from the axe & saw, from money-changers and water-changers & giving them to our country & the world is in many ways the most notable service to God & man I've heard of since my forest wanderings began."
PPR
8-9-2008
Ever seen a tree almost as tall as the Qutb Minar (273.8 feet) or Rajabhai Tower (280 feet) or one that is over 1000 years old? This tree was flourishing when the Magna Carta was signed by King John in the year 1215 and this tree had grown to over 100 feet when the Pilgrim Fathers landed in Plymouth Harbour in 1620. This is the most famous Redwood Tree found in northern California. A few miles from another famous monument of this state--the Golden Gate Bridge, we have a place called Muir Woods full of redwoods slightly shorter . “This is the best tree-lovers monument that could possibly be found in all the forests of the world," declared conservationist John Muir when describing the majestic coast redwoods of Muir Woods.
The tallest redwood tree here is 252 feet high and the widest over 14 feet. Some redwoods are at least 1000 years old. Most mature trees are 500 to 800 years old. The world’s tallest living thing is a coast redwood in northern California, measuring 379.1 feet. The redwood trees are expected to live up to a 2000 years but hold your breath the Giant Sequoia has a life span of 3200 years. We saw the Sequoia in Yosemite. Noting that Redwood Creek contained one of the San Francisco Bay Area's last uncut stands of old-growth redwood, Congressman William Kent and his wife, Elizabeth Kent, bought 295 acres here for $45,000 in 1905. To protect the redwoods the Kents donated the land to the United States Federal Government and, in 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt declared it a national monument. Roosevelt suggested naming the area after Kent, but Kent wanted it named for conservationist John Muir.
You walk away from the clamour of the city into an oasis where slanting beams of sunlight caress rugged red trunks that have stood for hundreds of years .There was a time when these trees came close to feeling the bite of loggers' saws. But stout efforts by early preservationists turned the area into a national monument in 1908. Parks officials are marking the centennial with a year of events including a day-long celebration April 21, the birthday of Sierra Club founder John Muir.
Muir Woods, just a dozen miles north of San Francisco, gets a million visitors a year and we heard the sounds of Mandarin, French, Spanish or a score of other languages in the park . Mostly they seem to be saying the same thing: These trees are big.
The park includes redwoods over 260 feet high; some are more than 1,200 years old. Of special interest is Cathedral Grove, where delegates who drafted the charter of the United Nations held a commemorative ceremony on May 19, 1945, in tribute to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who died in April of that year.
The grove can be reached on a loop walk of only one mile, which was hugely enjoyed by the two family groups I went with who wanted to experience California's famous redwoods after driving for two hours.
On certain days, Cathedral Grove is designated a "quiet zone" with a sign to that effect to heighten the experience of the magic and majesty of the woods — all the more remarkable for being about 30 minutes from the cosmopolitan bustle of San Francisco. Listen to the birds and the wind rustling in the branches; gaze up at trees soaring into the sky, their leafy tops forming graceful arches, and you'll understand how this spot got its name.
President Theodore Roosevelt, a big supporter of the nascent conservation movement, played a pivotal role in preserving the woods.Most of the coastal redwoods that once covered the California coast were chopped down to build the homes and cities of new California. But the Muir trees, tucked in a hard-to-access Redwood Canyon survived until the turn of the 19th century.
Businessman William Kent bought the land in hopes of preserving it. Kent, who later became a congressman, donated the land to the government and Roosevelt turned the woods into a national monument using the powers of the recently passed Antiquities Act.
It was Kent who wanted the woods named for naturalist Muir. In an exchange of letters, Roosevelt advocated for putting Kent's name on the new monument, but Kent replied that he had "five good husky boys," and if they couldn't keep the name of Kent alive, "I am willing it should be forgotten."
Kent, whose name is commemorated in the Marin County town of Kentfield among other things, went on to co-author the act creating the National Park Service in 1916.In a letter to Kent, Muir wrote: "Saving these woods from the axe & saw, from money-changers and water-changers & giving them to our country & the world is in many ways the most notable service to God & man I've heard of since my forest wanderings began."
PPR
8-9-2008
HURRICANES--NAMES
Hurricane Gustav has raged with speed of 140 miles per hour. It is followed by Hanna, Ike and Josephine. You will find an explanation below of how hurricanes are named and categorised. PPR
************************** Currently, there are six separate 21-name lists and each of them is used every six years in a rotation. They don't include names that begin with Q,U,X,Y and Z because there aren't enough names starting with those letters. There has been 21 tropical storms and hurricanes in the Atlantic. A storm name is retired if it causes widespread damage and deaths. So if there is a deadly hurricane Alpha, what is it replaced with when it's retired? Actually, when old names are retired, new names have to be drafted in to a database maintained specifically for Atlantic ocean storms, said Mark Oliver, spokesman for the world meteorological organization in Geneva, Switzerland, which maintains the database. "There are certain specifications which they have to meet," Oliver said. "they have to be fairly easily remembered, they've got to be in alphabetical order." For several hundred years, damaging hurricanes were named after the Saint's Day when the storm hit. For example, there was Hurricane Santa Ana which hit Puerto Rico on July 26, 1825. According to the U.S. conference of catholic bishops, there are Saint's days for about a third to a half of all days. Then, Australian meteorologist Clement Wragge began giving women's names to tropical storms before the end of the 19th century, according to the National Weather Service. Other regions take a different approach. In Asia, storms may be given names of people, but also of flowers or other non-human beings, Oliver said. Japan does not participate in this system, preferring instead to number each storm chronologically starting a new each year. During World War I I, storm naming became more common, especially among Air Force and Navy meteorologists who tracked storms over the Pacific Ocean. From 1950 to 1952, the United States named storms by a phonetic alphabet, starting with Able, Baker and Charlie. That became confusing because the same names were used each year, so female names were used starting in 1953 in a list created by the National Hurricane Center. The first one was called tropical storm Alice. That was considered biased against women, so men's names were added in 1978 in the Pacific and a year later in the Atlantic, with Hurricane Bob.
There have been six lists of names in use since 1979 (list i). The lists make use of names from both sexes. They are in alphabetical order and lists are recycled after six years, with list vi in use for the 2008 season,
Gender alternates both between adjacent names in a list (a male name is followed by a female one and vice versa) and between initial names between lists (if one year's list starts with a female name, the next year's list begins with a male one and vice versa).
If the names on a list are all used, storms are then named after the letters of the Greek alphabet (alpha, beta, gamma, etc.) Greek names, unlike the names in the regular lists, cannot be retired. In case a storm reached the magnitude that might otherwise have lead to retirement, the storm would be listed with the retired names with a footnote indicating the Greek letter would still be available for future storms. The use of 21 names was established in reference to the1933 Atlantic hurricane season which had been the record holder for the most storms in the region. This record was broken during the 2005 season which saw 28 storms (27 named Andone unnamed), and saw the first use of the Greek alphabet to name storms.
List 1 List 2 List 3 List 4 List 5 List 6
• Ana• Bill• Claudette• Danny• Erika• Fred• Grace• Henri• Ida• Joaquin• Kate• Larry• Mindy• Nicholas• Odette• Peter• Rose• Sam• Teresa• Victor• Wanda
• Alex• Bonnie• Colin• Danielle• Earl• Fiona• Gaston• Hermine• Igor• Julia• Karl• Lisa• Matthew• Nicole• Otto• Paula• Richard• Shary• Tomas• Virginie• Walter
• Arlene• Bret• Cindy• Don• Emily• Franklin• Gert• Harvey• Irene• Jose• Katrina• Lee• Maria• Nate• Ophelia• Philippe• Rina• Sean• Tammy• Vince• Whitney
• Alberto• Beryl• Chris• Debby• Ernesto• Florence• Gordon• Helene• Isaac• Joyce• Kirk• Leslie• Michael• Nadine• Oscar• Patty• Rafael• Sandy• Tony• Valerie• William
• Andrea• Barry• Chantal• Dorian• Erin• Fernand• Gabrielle• Humberto• Ingrid• Jerry• Karen• Lorenzo• Melissa• Nestor• Olga• Pablo• Rebekah• Sebastian• Tanya• Van• Wendy
• Arthur• Bertha• Cristobal• Dolly• Edouard• Fay• Gustav• Hanna• Ike• Josephine• Kyle• Laura• Marco• Nana• Omar• Paloma• Rene• Sally• Teddy• Vicky• Wilfred
******************************************************
Categories for hurricanes
Have you ever wondered what exactly the forecasters mean when they say a hurricane is a category 1 or category 4? Hurricanes are classifed based on categories of intensity. These categories tell people what kind of damage the storm could cause. A tropical storm officially becomes a hurricane once it reaches winds of 75mph or greater. Once this happens the hurricane is then given a category based on how powerful the winds are. The category also gives an idea as to how likely the damage will be for flooding and structural damage once the hurricane hits land. Hurricanes are measured on the "saffir-simpson" scale. The scale was named after the two men that came up with this way to measure hurricanes. Herbert Saffir was an engineer in Florida and Robert Simpson was the Director of the National Hurricane Center from 1967 through 1973.
The scale has five categories which are: Category 1
A category one hurricane has winds ranging in speed from 75 to 95 mph. A category 1 hurricane usually causes some minor flooding and damage to trees and some structural damage to buildings. Some category 1 hurricanes were: hurricane allison 1995, hurricane danny 1997, hurricane lili in 2002, hurricane gaston in 2004. Category 2
Category 2 storms have winds 96 to 110 mph. A category 2 hurricane will cause some structural damage usually ripping tiles off roofs, damaging windows and causing tree damage and possibly knocking down power lines. Mobile homes also will usually see a great deal of damage done to the home. Minor flooding can be expected with a category 2 storm. Some category 2 hurricanes were: hurricane Kate in 1985, hurricane Bob in 1991, hurricane Bertha in 1996, hurricane Isabel in 2003, hurricane Frances in 2004. Category 3
Any hurricane that is a category 3 or higher is considered a major hurricane. A category 3 hurricane is a hurricane in which you should evacuate from your area and move to an area away from the hurricane. Category 3 hurricanes have winds of 111 to 130 mph. Category 3 hurricanes can cause tree damage, building damage and mobile homes could be destroyed. Some category 3 hurricanes were: hurricane Alicia in 1983, hurricane Roxanne in 1995, Fran in 1996, hurricane Jeanne and hurricane Ivan in 2004.
Category 4
Category 4 hurricanes are powerful with winds of 131 to 155 mph. Category 4 hurricanes can cause damage to all types of buildings. Tree and sign damage can also be expected. Mobile homes will be destroyed. Flooding is usually severe with a category 4 storm. Some category 4 hurricanes were: hurricane Felix and hurricane Opal both in 1995 hurricane Hugo in 1989 and hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Category 5
Category 5 storms are the most powerful hurricanes on the earth. We are lucky that these hurricanes are rare and we have only had three category 5 hurricanes ever hit the United states. Category 5 storms have winds of 156 mph and over. Category 5 storms will cause heavy structural damage to most buildings and mobile homes will be destroyed. Trees and signs will be blown down. Category 5 hurricanes will also cause severe flooding with storm surges at 18 feet or higher. The only 3 category 5 hurricanes to ever make landfall in the United States since the record keeping began are: Labor day hurricane of 1935 that hit the Florida Keys, hurricane Camile in 1969, and hurricane Andrew in 1992.
************************** Currently, there are six separate 21-name lists and each of them is used every six years in a rotation. They don't include names that begin with Q,U,X,Y and Z because there aren't enough names starting with those letters. There has been 21 tropical storms and hurricanes in the Atlantic. A storm name is retired if it causes widespread damage and deaths. So if there is a deadly hurricane Alpha, what is it replaced with when it's retired? Actually, when old names are retired, new names have to be drafted in to a database maintained specifically for Atlantic ocean storms, said Mark Oliver, spokesman for the world meteorological organization in Geneva, Switzerland, which maintains the database. "There are certain specifications which they have to meet," Oliver said. "they have to be fairly easily remembered, they've got to be in alphabetical order." For several hundred years, damaging hurricanes were named after the Saint's Day when the storm hit. For example, there was Hurricane Santa Ana which hit Puerto Rico on July 26, 1825. According to the U.S. conference of catholic bishops, there are Saint's days for about a third to a half of all days. Then, Australian meteorologist Clement Wragge began giving women's names to tropical storms before the end of the 19th century, according to the National Weather Service. Other regions take a different approach. In Asia, storms may be given names of people, but also of flowers or other non-human beings, Oliver said. Japan does not participate in this system, preferring instead to number each storm chronologically starting a new each year. During World War I I, storm naming became more common, especially among Air Force and Navy meteorologists who tracked storms over the Pacific Ocean. From 1950 to 1952, the United States named storms by a phonetic alphabet, starting with Able, Baker and Charlie. That became confusing because the same names were used each year, so female names were used starting in 1953 in a list created by the National Hurricane Center. The first one was called tropical storm Alice. That was considered biased against women, so men's names were added in 1978 in the Pacific and a year later in the Atlantic, with Hurricane Bob.
There have been six lists of names in use since 1979 (list i). The lists make use of names from both sexes. They are in alphabetical order and lists are recycled after six years, with list vi in use for the 2008 season,
Gender alternates both between adjacent names in a list (a male name is followed by a female one and vice versa) and between initial names between lists (if one year's list starts with a female name, the next year's list begins with a male one and vice versa).
If the names on a list are all used, storms are then named after the letters of the Greek alphabet (alpha, beta, gamma, etc.) Greek names, unlike the names in the regular lists, cannot be retired. In case a storm reached the magnitude that might otherwise have lead to retirement, the storm would be listed with the retired names with a footnote indicating the Greek letter would still be available for future storms. The use of 21 names was established in reference to the1933 Atlantic hurricane season which had been the record holder for the most storms in the region. This record was broken during the 2005 season which saw 28 storms (27 named Andone unnamed), and saw the first use of the Greek alphabet to name storms.
List 1 List 2 List 3 List 4 List 5 List 6
• Ana• Bill• Claudette• Danny• Erika• Fred• Grace• Henri• Ida• Joaquin• Kate• Larry• Mindy• Nicholas• Odette• Peter• Rose• Sam• Teresa• Victor• Wanda
• Alex• Bonnie• Colin• Danielle• Earl• Fiona• Gaston• Hermine• Igor• Julia• Karl• Lisa• Matthew• Nicole• Otto• Paula• Richard• Shary• Tomas• Virginie• Walter
• Arlene• Bret• Cindy• Don• Emily• Franklin• Gert• Harvey• Irene• Jose• Katrina• Lee• Maria• Nate• Ophelia• Philippe• Rina• Sean• Tammy• Vince• Whitney
• Alberto• Beryl• Chris• Debby• Ernesto• Florence• Gordon• Helene• Isaac• Joyce• Kirk• Leslie• Michael• Nadine• Oscar• Patty• Rafael• Sandy• Tony• Valerie• William
• Andrea• Barry• Chantal• Dorian• Erin• Fernand• Gabrielle• Humberto• Ingrid• Jerry• Karen• Lorenzo• Melissa• Nestor• Olga• Pablo• Rebekah• Sebastian• Tanya• Van• Wendy
• Arthur• Bertha• Cristobal• Dolly• Edouard• Fay• Gustav• Hanna• Ike• Josephine• Kyle• Laura• Marco• Nana• Omar• Paloma• Rene• Sally• Teddy• Vicky• Wilfred
******************************************************
Categories for hurricanes
Have you ever wondered what exactly the forecasters mean when they say a hurricane is a category 1 or category 4? Hurricanes are classifed based on categories of intensity. These categories tell people what kind of damage the storm could cause. A tropical storm officially becomes a hurricane once it reaches winds of 75mph or greater. Once this happens the hurricane is then given a category based on how powerful the winds are. The category also gives an idea as to how likely the damage will be for flooding and structural damage once the hurricane hits land. Hurricanes are measured on the "saffir-simpson" scale. The scale was named after the two men that came up with this way to measure hurricanes. Herbert Saffir was an engineer in Florida and Robert Simpson was the Director of the National Hurricane Center from 1967 through 1973.
The scale has five categories which are: Category 1
A category one hurricane has winds ranging in speed from 75 to 95 mph. A category 1 hurricane usually causes some minor flooding and damage to trees and some structural damage to buildings. Some category 1 hurricanes were: hurricane allison 1995, hurricane danny 1997, hurricane lili in 2002, hurricane gaston in 2004. Category 2
Category 2 storms have winds 96 to 110 mph. A category 2 hurricane will cause some structural damage usually ripping tiles off roofs, damaging windows and causing tree damage and possibly knocking down power lines. Mobile homes also will usually see a great deal of damage done to the home. Minor flooding can be expected with a category 2 storm. Some category 2 hurricanes were: hurricane Kate in 1985, hurricane Bob in 1991, hurricane Bertha in 1996, hurricane Isabel in 2003, hurricane Frances in 2004. Category 3
Any hurricane that is a category 3 or higher is considered a major hurricane. A category 3 hurricane is a hurricane in which you should evacuate from your area and move to an area away from the hurricane. Category 3 hurricanes have winds of 111 to 130 mph. Category 3 hurricanes can cause tree damage, building damage and mobile homes could be destroyed. Some category 3 hurricanes were: hurricane Alicia in 1983, hurricane Roxanne in 1995, Fran in 1996, hurricane Jeanne and hurricane Ivan in 2004.
Category 4
Category 4 hurricanes are powerful with winds of 131 to 155 mph. Category 4 hurricanes can cause damage to all types of buildings. Tree and sign damage can also be expected. Mobile homes will be destroyed. Flooding is usually severe with a category 4 storm. Some category 4 hurricanes were: hurricane Felix and hurricane Opal both in 1995 hurricane Hugo in 1989 and hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Category 5
Category 5 storms are the most powerful hurricanes on the earth. We are lucky that these hurricanes are rare and we have only had three category 5 hurricanes ever hit the United states. Category 5 storms have winds of 156 mph and over. Category 5 storms will cause heavy structural damage to most buildings and mobile homes will be destroyed. Trees and signs will be blown down. Category 5 hurricanes will also cause severe flooding with storm surges at 18 feet or higher. The only 3 category 5 hurricanes to ever make landfall in the United States since the record keeping began are: Labor day hurricane of 1935 that hit the Florida Keys, hurricane Camile in 1969, and hurricane Andrew in 1992.
GOLDEN GATE
GOLDEN GATE We drove to San Francisco starting at 3.30 p.m. it was a 45 minutes drive. There was a lot of mist and it was quite chilly. The first view of the Golden Gate was that of a huge structure cocooned in cloud and only 10 percent visible. After parking our vehicle we began walking towards the bridge. The bridge has been the basis for three works of fiction. Alistair Maclean’s “Golden Gate” followed by Colin Forbes “Year of the Golden Ape” and Vikram Seth’s “Golden Gate”, a novel in poetic form --mainly quatrains. I had also total recall of the Hitchcock movie “Vertigo” where dark doe-eyed Kim Novak attempts to kill herself at the southern end of the bridge and her being rescued by James Stewart. At last I was seeing the bridge that has become a symbol of San Francisco as also America. And in sunlight what a bridge and what an engineering marvel! The sample of the suspension cable is so thick that it reminds you of the leg of an elephant and it is packed with wire rope of great strength. The bridge is somewhat curved and once it was supposed to have bent further with over a million people walking on it. Thereafter they banned such a collection of people on the bridge. We walked along the bridge and the mist lifted and we could see clearly the sea as also the stark “Alacatraz”, the world’s highest security prison. For me it meant two movies. “The Birdman of Alcatraz” with Burt Lancaster and “Rock” with Sean Connery. Meanwhile we walked on the bridge freezing in the cold air. Lots of tourists -several in scanty attire!. How they could bear the cold we wondered. Half way, about a mile-we returned and did the rest of the tour by car. Pushpa drove us on the bridge and Anand drove on the way back. The small peak on Marin county afforded us a different view of the bridge which was quite breathtaking with San Francisco houses in a lovely cluster. Those with interest in the Golden Gate read on. The Golden Gate was declared open in May 1937 after four years for construction. It links San Francisco with Marin County. The bridge is two miles long with a main span of 4200 feet. It was the longest suspension bridge when it was constructed. The 746 feet suspension towers were higher than any New York structure. Joseph Strauss the bridge’s builder –he was a poet too !--was a specialist in steel bridge design who had built more than 400 bridges all over the world.The bridge’s name comes from the nickname given to the entrance to the harbour by early visitors. Its actual colour is “international orange”. Painting the bridge is a never ending job. A team of 25 painters adds another thousand gallons every week. The Fort Point lookout from where you can start has a statue of Strauss and a sample of the 3 foot thick suspension cable. The north end is the vista point. The view from here has San Francisco as the backdrop. There are three lanes with separate access to walkers, cyclists and cars and other vehicles. Eleven men died during construction of the bridge and it has continued to be the favourite suicide spot. It is a more than 200 feet drop from the bridge to the water. If the impact doesn’t kill one immediately, the swift current will take him to the sea with the likelihood of being drowned or eaten by sharks. Despite these factors some have survived the bridge jumps, including an 18-year old woman who jumped twice in 1988. She survived the first jump but not the second. In 1995 there occurred the thousandth leap to death. There was a rush to be the thousandth and entry into the hall of fame or infamy!. USA is notorious for such feats! A suicide barrier was proposed but voted out as it would spoil the aesthetic beauty of the bridge. Ironically, proposals for the suicide barrier once included the one by the Rev Jim Jones whose moving anti-suicide speech in 1977 was undermined a year later when Jones himself led a mass suicide of over 200 persons in Guyana.
PPR—26-8-2008
PPR—26-8-2008
STANFORD UNIVERSITY
STANFORD UNIVERSITY
Stanford University was founded by California Governor Leland Stanford and his wife Jane Stanford in honour of their only son who died of typhoid when he was16 years old.
The school is referred to as “The Farm” as it is located in the horse farm of Leland Stanford. The University officially opened in 1891. Among the first class of students was a young future president Herbert Hoover, who would claim to be first student ever at Stanford, by virtue of having been the first person in the first class to sleep in the dormitory.
The official motto of Stanford University, is "The wind of freedom blows.”
Stanford University owns 8,183 acres It is sometimes asserted that Stanford University occupies the largest university campus in the world, in terms of contiguous area. The red tile roofs and solid sandstone masonry hold a distinctly Californian appearance and most of the subsequently erected buildings have maintained consistent exteriors. The red tile roofs and bright blue skies common to the region are a famously complementary combination. Much of this first construction was destroyed by the 1906 San Francisco earthquake but the University retains the Quad, the old Chemistry Building and Encina Hall (the residence of Herbert Hover, John Steinbeck during their times at Stanford).
Among the impressive structures in the Quad are bronze casts of “The Burghers of Calais.” This is one of the most famous sculptures by Auguste Rodin, completed in 1888.. It serves as a monument to an occurrence in 1347 during the Hundred Years War. When Calais, an important French port on the English Channel,was under siege by the British for over a year. The story goes that England's Edward III, after a victory in the Battle of Crecy, laid siege to Calais and Philip IV of France ordered the city to hold out at all costs. Philip failed to lift the siege and starvation eventually forced the city to parley for surrender. Edward offered to spare the people of the city if any six of its top leaders would surrender themselves to him, presumably to be executed. Edward demanded that they walk out almost naked and wearing nooses around their necks and be carrying the keys to the city and castle. One of the wealthiest of the town leaders, Eustache de Saint Pierre , volunteered first and five other burghers soon followed suit and they stripped down to their breeches. Saint Pierre led this envoy of emaciated volunteers to the city gates and it is this moment and this poignant mix of defeat, heroic self-sacrifice and the facing of imminent death that Rodin captures in these figures. In history, though the burghers expected to be executed, their lives were spared by the intervention of England's Queen, who persuaded her husband by saying it would be a bad omen for her unborn child. While the original statue still stands in Calais, there are versions standing in 15 different venues, including the one at Stanford University.
THE HOOVER TOWER
We went up the Hoover Tower which is a 285-foot structure on the campus of the University.. The tower is part of the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, a research center founded by former American President. Hoover. The Tower, which is a reproduction of the cathedral tower at Salamanca was finished in 1941, the year of Stanford's 50th anniversary. The tower has a carillon of 48 bells cast in Belgium. One of the bells weighs 2.5 tons. The first 9 floors of the tower are library stacks and floors 10-12 are used for offices. The observation deck platform on the 14th floor is 250 feet above the ground, and provides an expansive view of the Stanford University campus and surrounding area. We saw from there two nearby bridges and had a panoramic view of Palo Alto and the San Francisco Bay.
STANFORD MEMORIAL CHURCH
Stanford Memorial Church stands at the center of the University campus. It was built by as a memorial to Leland Stanford. The church, also known as "MemChu", was built in the early 1900s, and has hosted approximately 7,500 weddings since it was completed in 1903. Some of the artwork was not completed until 1905.The church has four organs and a facade decorated with colorful mosaics. The mosaic was the largest in America at the time it was completed, and took 12 men two years to complete. The original organ, called the Romantic Organ, was built in 1901, and has 3,355 pipes.
The 1906 earthquake shook the church with such vehemence that "The clock tower and spire plunged through the roof of the church with such force that the entire north face of the building with its wondrous mosaic was blown out and totally destroyed." It was decided to be reconstructed without the clock tower.
The Church cost more than $1,000,000 to build (early 1900s dollars), and the mosaics alone cost $97,000. The exterior of the Church is 190 feet long and 86 feet high at the façade. There is seating for 1,250 people on the main floor of the building. The interior of the Church is 152 feet long, and the main aisle is 98 feet long. The nave is 50 feet across at its center.
The Church is available to people of all faiths, but daily and Sunday services are generally Protestant.
STANFORD’S GREAT TEACHERS
Stanford's current community of scholars includes:
· 16 Nobel laureates
· 4 Pulitzer Prize winners
· 239 members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
· 132 members of the National Academy of Sciences
· Living Nobel Laureates ( I give names of ones we know)
Kenneth J. Arrow
Professor Emeritus in the Department of Economics, shared the 1972 Nobel Prize in Economics for pioneering contributions to general economic equilibrium theory and welfare theory.
Joseph E. Stiglitz
Professor Emeritus in the Department of Economics, and A. Michael Spence, Professor Emeritus at the Graduate School of Business, shared the 2001 Nobel Prize in Economics for their analyses of markets with asymmetric information.
P P R—10-8-2008
Stanford University was founded by California Governor Leland Stanford and his wife Jane Stanford in honour of their only son who died of typhoid when he was16 years old.
The school is referred to as “The Farm” as it is located in the horse farm of Leland Stanford. The University officially opened in 1891. Among the first class of students was a young future president Herbert Hoover, who would claim to be first student ever at Stanford, by virtue of having been the first person in the first class to sleep in the dormitory.
The official motto of Stanford University, is "The wind of freedom blows.”
Stanford University owns 8,183 acres It is sometimes asserted that Stanford University occupies the largest university campus in the world, in terms of contiguous area. The red tile roofs and solid sandstone masonry hold a distinctly Californian appearance and most of the subsequently erected buildings have maintained consistent exteriors. The red tile roofs and bright blue skies common to the region are a famously complementary combination. Much of this first construction was destroyed by the 1906 San Francisco earthquake but the University retains the Quad, the old Chemistry Building and Encina Hall (the residence of Herbert Hover, John Steinbeck during their times at Stanford).
Among the impressive structures in the Quad are bronze casts of “The Burghers of Calais.” This is one of the most famous sculptures by Auguste Rodin, completed in 1888.. It serves as a monument to an occurrence in 1347 during the Hundred Years War. When Calais, an important French port on the English Channel,was under siege by the British for over a year. The story goes that England's Edward III, after a victory in the Battle of Crecy, laid siege to Calais and Philip IV of France ordered the city to hold out at all costs. Philip failed to lift the siege and starvation eventually forced the city to parley for surrender. Edward offered to spare the people of the city if any six of its top leaders would surrender themselves to him, presumably to be executed. Edward demanded that they walk out almost naked and wearing nooses around their necks and be carrying the keys to the city and castle. One of the wealthiest of the town leaders, Eustache de Saint Pierre , volunteered first and five other burghers soon followed suit and they stripped down to their breeches. Saint Pierre led this envoy of emaciated volunteers to the city gates and it is this moment and this poignant mix of defeat, heroic self-sacrifice and the facing of imminent death that Rodin captures in these figures. In history, though the burghers expected to be executed, their lives were spared by the intervention of England's Queen, who persuaded her husband by saying it would be a bad omen for her unborn child. While the original statue still stands in Calais, there are versions standing in 15 different venues, including the one at Stanford University.
THE HOOVER TOWER
We went up the Hoover Tower which is a 285-foot structure on the campus of the University.. The tower is part of the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, a research center founded by former American President. Hoover. The Tower, which is a reproduction of the cathedral tower at Salamanca was finished in 1941, the year of Stanford's 50th anniversary. The tower has a carillon of 48 bells cast in Belgium. One of the bells weighs 2.5 tons. The first 9 floors of the tower are library stacks and floors 10-12 are used for offices. The observation deck platform on the 14th floor is 250 feet above the ground, and provides an expansive view of the Stanford University campus and surrounding area. We saw from there two nearby bridges and had a panoramic view of Palo Alto and the San Francisco Bay.
STANFORD MEMORIAL CHURCH
Stanford Memorial Church stands at the center of the University campus. It was built by as a memorial to Leland Stanford. The church, also known as "MemChu", was built in the early 1900s, and has hosted approximately 7,500 weddings since it was completed in 1903. Some of the artwork was not completed until 1905.The church has four organs and a facade decorated with colorful mosaics. The mosaic was the largest in America at the time it was completed, and took 12 men two years to complete. The original organ, called the Romantic Organ, was built in 1901, and has 3,355 pipes.
The 1906 earthquake shook the church with such vehemence that "The clock tower and spire plunged through the roof of the church with such force that the entire north face of the building with its wondrous mosaic was blown out and totally destroyed." It was decided to be reconstructed without the clock tower.
The Church cost more than $1,000,000 to build (early 1900s dollars), and the mosaics alone cost $97,000. The exterior of the Church is 190 feet long and 86 feet high at the façade. There is seating for 1,250 people on the main floor of the building. The interior of the Church is 152 feet long, and the main aisle is 98 feet long. The nave is 50 feet across at its center.
The Church is available to people of all faiths, but daily and Sunday services are generally Protestant.
STANFORD’S GREAT TEACHERS
Stanford's current community of scholars includes:
· 16 Nobel laureates
· 4 Pulitzer Prize winners
· 239 members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
· 132 members of the National Academy of Sciences
· Living Nobel Laureates ( I give names of ones we know)
Kenneth J. Arrow
Professor Emeritus in the Department of Economics, shared the 1972 Nobel Prize in Economics for pioneering contributions to general economic equilibrium theory and welfare theory.
Joseph E. Stiglitz
Professor Emeritus in the Department of Economics, and A. Michael Spence, Professor Emeritus at the Graduate School of Business, shared the 2001 Nobel Prize in Economics for their analyses of markets with asymmetric information.
P P R—10-8-2008
CHINA--POST OLYMPIC THOUGHTS
IN THE BACKGROUND OF THE CHINESE OLYMPICS I THOUGHT I WOULD PRESENT YOU SOMETHING ON CHINA YOU MAY NOT BE AWARE OF.
I CAN GIVE MORE DETAILS FOR THOSE INTERESTED. PPR
P P R’S U S MAIL 2--CHINA
Having decided not to return by sea, Hieun Tsang and his party turned to the northeast. They took the route via Hindu Kush. His biographer stated that their caravan consisted only of 5 priests, 20 followers, 1 elephant, 10 asses and 4 horses. At length they descended to Kunduz on the Oxus river and reached the Pamir Knot. On the other side of the Pamirs Hieun Tsang’s caravan met tragedy when they were attacked by robbers in a very narrow defile. His elephant was chased by bandits, fell into the river and drowned. Hieun Tsang wept piteously mourning the loss of the elephant, which he was very keen to take to China. Read more of this in the delightful travel book of K.P.S.Menon entitled “Delhi—Chunking Diary”.
I I
I give extracts from a classic letter written by the Chinese Emperor Chien Lung of the Manchu dynasty to King George III.
Note how the Emperor concludes.
In the summer of 1793, after a nine-month sea voyage from England, the British expedition led by Lord Macartney dropped anchor to begin the overland journey to the Imperial court at Peking. King George III's ambassador had been instructed to deliver a personal letter from the king to the emperor requesting permission to post a representative to the imperial court and allow the expansion of trade with China which, for all foreign countries, could only be conducted under strict regulation at the southern port of Canton. The request was unprecedented and, as far as the emperor was concerned, impossible to grant. The monumental arrogance and indifference to diplomatic niceties of the Son of Heaven conveyed in the emperor’s refusal to accept the request was enshrined in a letter he wrote to King George III.
Wrote the Emperor inter alia .Entire letter is worth reading but I give a few paras.
. . . ..As to your entreaty to send one of your nationals [namely, Lord Macartney] to be accredited to my Celestial Court and to be in control of your country's trade with China, this request is contrary to all usage of my dynasty and cannot possibly be entertained. It is true that Europeans, in the service of the dynasty, have been permitted to live at Peking, but they are compelled to adopt Chinese dress, they are strictly confined to their own precincts and are never permitted to return home. You are presumably familiar with our dynastic regulations. Your proposed Envoy to my Court could not be placed in a position similar to that of European officials in Peking who are forbidden to leave China, nor could he, on the other hand, be allowed liberty of movement and the privilege of corresponding with his own country; so that you would gain nothing by his residence in our midst.. .
Our dynasty's majestic virtue has penetrated unto every country under heaven, and kings of all nations have offered their costly tribute by land and sea. As your Ambassador can see for himself, we possess all things. I set no value on objects strange or ingenious, and have no use for your country's manufactures. This then is my answer to your request to appoint a representative at my Court, a request contrary to our dynastic usage, which would only result in inconvenience to yourself. I have expounded my wishes in detail and have commanded your tribute Envoys to leave in peace on their homeward journey. It behoves you, O King, to respect my sentiments and to display even greater devotion and loyalty in future, so that, by perpetual submission to our Throne, you may secure peace and prosperity for your country hereafter. . .
If, after the receipt of this explicit decree, you lightly give ear to the representations of your subordinates and allow your barbarian merchants to proceed to Chekiang and Tientsin, with the object of landing and trading there, the ordinances of my Celestial Empire are strict in the extreme, and the local officials, both civil and military, are bound reverently to obey the law of the land. Should your vessels touch the shore, your merchants will assuredly never be permitted to land or to reside there, but will be subject to instant expulsion. In that event your barbarian merchants will have had a long journey for nothing. Do not say that you were not warned in due time! Tremblingly obey and show no negligence! . .
I I I
My third item is a new book by Simon Winchester which I am reviewing for Free Press Journal. .
The Man Who Loved China: The Fantastic Story of the Eccentric Scientist Who Unlocked the Mysteries of the Middle Kingdom by Simon Winchester.
In sumptuous and illuminating detail, Simon Winchester, the bestselling author of The Professor and the Madman and Krakatoa brings to life the extraordinary story of Joseph Needham, the brilliant Cambridge scientist who unlocked the most closely held secrets of China, long the world's most technologically advanced country.
Needham was determined to tell the world what he had discovered, and began writing his majestic Science and Civilisation in China, describing the country's long and astonishing history of invention and technology. By the time he died, he had produced, essentially single-handedly, seventeen immense volumes, marking him as the greatest one-man encyclopedist ever. After his death 8 more volumes have been brought out by his disciples at Cambridge. I have handled –of course not read--the 17 volumes—available in the Asiatic Library in Mumbai.
P P R
10-8-2008
I CAN GIVE MORE DETAILS FOR THOSE INTERESTED. PPR
P P R’S U S MAIL 2--CHINA
Having decided not to return by sea, Hieun Tsang and his party turned to the northeast. They took the route via Hindu Kush. His biographer stated that their caravan consisted only of 5 priests, 20 followers, 1 elephant, 10 asses and 4 horses. At length they descended to Kunduz on the Oxus river and reached the Pamir Knot. On the other side of the Pamirs Hieun Tsang’s caravan met tragedy when they were attacked by robbers in a very narrow defile. His elephant was chased by bandits, fell into the river and drowned. Hieun Tsang wept piteously mourning the loss of the elephant, which he was very keen to take to China. Read more of this in the delightful travel book of K.P.S.Menon entitled “Delhi—Chunking Diary”.
I I
I give extracts from a classic letter written by the Chinese Emperor Chien Lung of the Manchu dynasty to King George III.
Note how the Emperor concludes.
In the summer of 1793, after a nine-month sea voyage from England, the British expedition led by Lord Macartney dropped anchor to begin the overland journey to the Imperial court at Peking. King George III's ambassador had been instructed to deliver a personal letter from the king to the emperor requesting permission to post a representative to the imperial court and allow the expansion of trade with China which, for all foreign countries, could only be conducted under strict regulation at the southern port of Canton. The request was unprecedented and, as far as the emperor was concerned, impossible to grant. The monumental arrogance and indifference to diplomatic niceties of the Son of Heaven conveyed in the emperor’s refusal to accept the request was enshrined in a letter he wrote to King George III.
Wrote the Emperor inter alia .Entire letter is worth reading but I give a few paras.
. . . ..As to your entreaty to send one of your nationals [namely, Lord Macartney] to be accredited to my Celestial Court and to be in control of your country's trade with China, this request is contrary to all usage of my dynasty and cannot possibly be entertained. It is true that Europeans, in the service of the dynasty, have been permitted to live at Peking, but they are compelled to adopt Chinese dress, they are strictly confined to their own precincts and are never permitted to return home. You are presumably familiar with our dynastic regulations. Your proposed Envoy to my Court could not be placed in a position similar to that of European officials in Peking who are forbidden to leave China, nor could he, on the other hand, be allowed liberty of movement and the privilege of corresponding with his own country; so that you would gain nothing by his residence in our midst.. .
Our dynasty's majestic virtue has penetrated unto every country under heaven, and kings of all nations have offered their costly tribute by land and sea. As your Ambassador can see for himself, we possess all things. I set no value on objects strange or ingenious, and have no use for your country's manufactures. This then is my answer to your request to appoint a representative at my Court, a request contrary to our dynastic usage, which would only result in inconvenience to yourself. I have expounded my wishes in detail and have commanded your tribute Envoys to leave in peace on their homeward journey. It behoves you, O King, to respect my sentiments and to display even greater devotion and loyalty in future, so that, by perpetual submission to our Throne, you may secure peace and prosperity for your country hereafter. . .
If, after the receipt of this explicit decree, you lightly give ear to the representations of your subordinates and allow your barbarian merchants to proceed to Chekiang and Tientsin, with the object of landing and trading there, the ordinances of my Celestial Empire are strict in the extreme, and the local officials, both civil and military, are bound reverently to obey the law of the land. Should your vessels touch the shore, your merchants will assuredly never be permitted to land or to reside there, but will be subject to instant expulsion. In that event your barbarian merchants will have had a long journey for nothing. Do not say that you were not warned in due time! Tremblingly obey and show no negligence! . .
I I I
My third item is a new book by Simon Winchester which I am reviewing for Free Press Journal. .
The Man Who Loved China: The Fantastic Story of the Eccentric Scientist Who Unlocked the Mysteries of the Middle Kingdom by Simon Winchester.
In sumptuous and illuminating detail, Simon Winchester, the bestselling author of The Professor and the Madman and Krakatoa brings to life the extraordinary story of Joseph Needham, the brilliant Cambridge scientist who unlocked the most closely held secrets of China, long the world's most technologically advanced country.
Needham was determined to tell the world what he had discovered, and began writing his majestic Science and Civilisation in China, describing the country's long and astonishing history of invention and technology. By the time he died, he had produced, essentially single-handedly, seventeen immense volumes, marking him as the greatest one-man encyclopedist ever. After his death 8 more volumes have been brought out by his disciples at Cambridge. I have handled –of course not read--the 17 volumes—available in the Asiatic Library in Mumbai.
P P R
10-8-2008
Monday, December 1, 2008
SUNNYVALE LIBRARY
A TYPICAL LIBRARY IN U.S.A
The Sunnyvale Public Library was opened on September 14, 1908; the Reading Room's collection consisted of fifty books.
Hundred years later,the Library has 191,904 books today.
In January 1988, the library began using an online checkout and catalog system. Dial-up access to the library catalog began at this time. The card catalog was removed.
A 1998 modernization project brought a range of improvements to the library facility. Non-English language materials, compact discs, and videotapes were relocated to a more visible location. New wiring was installed to support access to the Internet and to the online catalog. A new children's services desk was added.
In 2006, the Library received more than 766,000 visitors and checked out more than 2.2 million items, making it one of the busiest libraries in the state for its size.
Every morning I walk down from my daughter’s house here for 20 minutes to the Library. On the way I will be the only person walking. All move by car. The Library is very spacious and books are well arranged. Over thirty computers will help you to locate the books you want. You can specify,
Author—Title—Subject and submit and you will get all the details of the book you want. If issued out it will indicate “Issued—returnable on23-8-2008.There is facility of reserving the book—they call it ‘Hold”. You merely punch the Hold button and print your Library Card number. It will say. ”Accepted.” You will be advised by e-mail as soon as it is returned. If there are many claimants it will indicate “ 15 on “Hold”. There is also information on which other libraries have copies of this book.
After you have located the details of your book you can go to the relevant shelf—on both sides the numbers are given and books are arranged in Alphabetical order. You can easily pick out the books you want. After you have selected your books you can get it issued just as in Mumbai or do it manually. There is a machine with a screen. At its metallic base you can keep five items at a time—in batches of two and five. Even as you place a book or a DVD the title appears on the screen. After all the titles have appeared you have to place your membership card and the barcode will be read by the ultra violet light and you will press a button Continue. Hey ! Presto—a receipt will appear—giving all details-date issued , due date, etc.
You can now take away the books.
There is gargantuan collection of CDs / DVDs and Audio Cassettes.
At a moment of time you can take 50 books and 20 DVDs. They have kept carts with wheels which you can use to place books till you take it to your car and then you put the cart back.
Returning of books is pretty simple. Place books / DVDs on a moving ramp one at a time. Receipts are not issued.
Old books are issued for 21 days and new books for 7 days. DVDs are issued for 7 days. No book ,DVD or periodical can be taken out without it being checked out. If you carry out any item unauthorisedly the alarm bell will ring at the exit as you attempt to sneak out and the Library staff will come promptly to check your book-bag.
Reading rooms are very comfy, with good cushion seats and excellent lighting. There are separate areas designated Silent Areas –no sound here—no talking—deep silence.
Over 100 computers are available in the Library. At a moment internet is free for 90 minutes. You can come again for another stint any number of times.
Regarding books all the latest books are purchased and not less than ten copies. All books have good quality plastic covers and no date stamp is affixed on the books.
Children’s Section is fantabulous. Never knew so much wealth is available on this subject.
Reference section is awesome. Latest Wordbook Encyclopedia Britannica, Dictionaries in hundreds, Science and Technology cyclopedias. Rich - really rich.
In addition the Library holds discussions, reviewing books, has courses on a variety of subjects, Knitting, Sewing, Painting and other fine arts—even Tomato growing—done by son-in-law. He has currently in his balcony over twenty luscious green tomatoes.
Of special significance is that under the American with Disabilities Act, reasonable efforts have been made to accommodate persons with disabilities. The restrooms provide special facilities for those on wheelchairs.
I have spent happy hours all these days. Books that have not yet reached Mumbai are available.
I was keen on a new book on Joseph Needham who wrote 25 volumes “Science and Civilisation in China” by Simon Winchester. I got it and am reviewing it for Free Press Journal. The review has appeared since.
You can get a complete account of what books are issued to you in your P C at home. Renewals can be done on-line. I give my latest record.
P P R*******************************************
The Sunnyvale Public Library was opened on September 14, 1908; the Reading Room's collection consisted of fifty books.
Hundred years later,the Library has 191,904 books today.
In January 1988, the library began using an online checkout and catalog system. Dial-up access to the library catalog began at this time. The card catalog was removed.
A 1998 modernization project brought a range of improvements to the library facility. Non-English language materials, compact discs, and videotapes were relocated to a more visible location. New wiring was installed to support access to the Internet and to the online catalog. A new children's services desk was added.
In 2006, the Library received more than 766,000 visitors and checked out more than 2.2 million items, making it one of the busiest libraries in the state for its size.
Every morning I walk down from my daughter’s house here for 20 minutes to the Library. On the way I will be the only person walking. All move by car. The Library is very spacious and books are well arranged. Over thirty computers will help you to locate the books you want. You can specify,
Author—Title—Subject and submit and you will get all the details of the book you want. If issued out it will indicate “Issued—returnable on23-8-2008.There is facility of reserving the book—they call it ‘Hold”. You merely punch the Hold button and print your Library Card number. It will say. ”Accepted.” You will be advised by e-mail as soon as it is returned. If there are many claimants it will indicate “ 15 on “Hold”. There is also information on which other libraries have copies of this book.
After you have located the details of your book you can go to the relevant shelf—on both sides the numbers are given and books are arranged in Alphabetical order. You can easily pick out the books you want. After you have selected your books you can get it issued just as in Mumbai or do it manually. There is a machine with a screen. At its metallic base you can keep five items at a time—in batches of two and five. Even as you place a book or a DVD the title appears on the screen. After all the titles have appeared you have to place your membership card and the barcode will be read by the ultra violet light and you will press a button Continue. Hey ! Presto—a receipt will appear—giving all details-date issued , due date, etc.
You can now take away the books.
There is gargantuan collection of CDs / DVDs and Audio Cassettes.
At a moment of time you can take 50 books and 20 DVDs. They have kept carts with wheels which you can use to place books till you take it to your car and then you put the cart back.
Returning of books is pretty simple. Place books / DVDs on a moving ramp one at a time. Receipts are not issued.
Old books are issued for 21 days and new books for 7 days. DVDs are issued for 7 days. No book ,DVD or periodical can be taken out without it being checked out. If you carry out any item unauthorisedly the alarm bell will ring at the exit as you attempt to sneak out and the Library staff will come promptly to check your book-bag.
Reading rooms are very comfy, with good cushion seats and excellent lighting. There are separate areas designated Silent Areas –no sound here—no talking—deep silence.
Over 100 computers are available in the Library. At a moment internet is free for 90 minutes. You can come again for another stint any number of times.
Regarding books all the latest books are purchased and not less than ten copies. All books have good quality plastic covers and no date stamp is affixed on the books.
Children’s Section is fantabulous. Never knew so much wealth is available on this subject.
Reference section is awesome. Latest Wordbook Encyclopedia Britannica, Dictionaries in hundreds, Science and Technology cyclopedias. Rich - really rich.
In addition the Library holds discussions, reviewing books, has courses on a variety of subjects, Knitting, Sewing, Painting and other fine arts—even Tomato growing—done by son-in-law. He has currently in his balcony over twenty luscious green tomatoes.
Of special significance is that under the American with Disabilities Act, reasonable efforts have been made to accommodate persons with disabilities. The restrooms provide special facilities for those on wheelchairs.
I have spent happy hours all these days. Books that have not yet reached Mumbai are available.
I was keen on a new book on Joseph Needham who wrote 25 volumes “Science and Civilisation in China” by Simon Winchester. I got it and am reviewing it for Free Press Journal. The review has appeared since.
You can get a complete account of what books are issued to you in your P C at home. Renewals can be done on-line. I give my latest record.
P P R*******************************************
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