Photo by AP

DETROIT -- Raymond Highers, wearing bright yellow Wayne County Jail scrubs, folded his hands Thursday and clamped his eyes shut when it became clear what the judge was about to do.

“We have new evidence .” Wayne County Circuit Judge Lawrence Talon began.

Then the sniffling started, from one or two supporters in the back row of the packed courtroom on the sixth floor of the Frank Murphy Hall of Justice in downtown Detroit.

“ The court finds the newly discovered evidence to be credible and reliable.”

The room erupted in screams and applause before Talon could finish.

Raymond Highers and his brother, Thomas Highers, both imprisoned for a quarter-century for a murder they long maintained they did not commit, had just had their convictions wiped out.

And then, for the first time in the extraordinary hearing held off and on since March, Raymond Highers reached forward, shook his brother’s hand, and embraced him.

In a ruling from the bench that lasted about an hour, Talon said that new witnesses who never went to police about the shotgun slaying of Robert Karey, 65, offered enough new evidence during the hearing to erase the 1988 decision by then-Judge Terrance Boyle to convict the brothers and sentence them to life in prison.

Older brother Thomas is now 46. Raymond just turned the same age.

I recommend this program by Air Pano - a Russian company which has done a magnificent job in using advanced technology to develop this geographical study: AirPano.com.  It allows one to feel that they are "there" when they observe countries and sites from diverse aircraft - a feeling of true connection.  It allows an appreciation of many cities and places in our world, and draws us all closer together.

Original text

Dr. Capra's books have been published in numerous languages and editions. Click here for a complete list.

The Tao of Physics, Capra's first book, challenges much of conventional wisdom by demonstrating striking parallels between ancient mystical traditions and the discoveries of 20th century physics. Originally published by a small publisher with no budget for promotion, the book became an underground bestseller by word of mouth before it was picked up by a major American publishing house. Since then, The Tao of Physics has been published in 43 editions in 23 languages.

In The Turning Point, the author expands his focus to show how the revolution in modern physics foreshadows a similar revolution in many other sciences and a corresponding transformation of world views and values in society. In particular, he explores paradigm shifts in biology, medicine, psychology, and economics. The book has been published in 25 editions in 16 languages.

 

In Uncommon Wisdom, the author describes dialogues and personal encounters between himself and the thinkers who helped shape the theme of The Turning Point.The book has been published in 16 editions in 12 languages.

 

The Web of Life starts from the conceptual framework presented in The Turning Point, summarizes the mathematics of complexity, and offers a synthesis of recent nonlinear theories of living systems that have dramatically increased our understanding of the key characteristics of life. The book has been published in 14 editions in 10 languages.

 

In The Hidden Connections: A Science for Sustainable Living, the author extends the framework of systems and complexity theory to the social domain and uses the extended framework to discuss some of the critical issues of our time -- the management of human organizations, the challenges and dangers of economic globalization, the scientific and ethical problems of biotechnology, and the design of ecologically sustainable communities and technologies. The book has been published in 11 editions in 8 languages.

 

Die Capra Synthese (The Capra Synthesis) presents an annotated selection of the author's essential texts in two German editions.

 

Green Politics, co-authored with Charlene Spretnak, analyzes the rise of the Green Party in Germany and similar ecology-oriented political parties in other European countries. The book has been published in 7 editions in 4 languages.

 

Die Seele Indiens: Tamil Nadu (Tamil Nadu: The Soul of India), coauthored with Jacqueline Capra, is a photo essay on daily life in the villages and cities of Tamil Nadu in southern India.

 

Belonging to the Universe, co-authored with Brother David Steindl-Rast, explores parallels between new ways of thinking in science and Christian theology. The book has been published in 10 editions in 7 languages.

 

Mindwalk contains the complete screenplay of Bernt Capra's film, cowritten by Floyd Byars and Fritjof Capra, together with introductory comments by the film's director and a scientific commentary by Fritjof Capra.

 

EcoManagement, co-authored with Ernest Callenbach, Lenore Goldman, Ruediger Lutz, and Sandra Marburg, proposes a conceptual and practical framework for ecologically conscious management. The book has been published in 5 editions in 4 languages.

 

Steering Business Toward Sustainability, co-edited with Gunter Pauli, is a collection of essays by business executives, economists, ecologists, and others who outline practical approaches to meeting the challenge of ecological sustainability. The book has been published in two editions in two languages.

 

The Science of Leonardo is the first book to present a coherent account of the scientific achievements of Leonardo da Vinci, the great genius of the Renaissance, and to evaluate them from the perspective of 21st-century scientific and philosophical thought. Its central thesis is that Leonardo's science is a science of living forms, of quality, which can be seen as a distant forerunner of today's complexity and systems theories. It is a science that honors and respects the unity of life, recognizes the fundamental interdependence of all natural phenomena, and reconnects us with the living Earth. Leonardo's science is thus highly relevant to our time. The book has been published in 7 editions in 5 languages.

Source

Fritjof Capra, Ph.D., physicist and systems theorist, is a founding director of theCenter for Ecoliteracy in Berkeley, California. The Center advances schooling for sustainability; its most recent book on this growing movement in K-12 schools isSmart by Nature: Schooling for Sustainability (2009). Dr. Capra is on the faculty of the Beahrs Environmental Leadership Program of the University of California, Berkeley.

 

He also teaches at Schumacher College, an international center for ecological studies in England, and frequently gives management seminars for top executives.

 

Dr. Capra is the author of five international bestsellers, The Tao of Physics (1975),The Turning Point (1982), Uncommon Wisdom (1988), The Web of Life (1996), andThe Hidden Connections (2002). He coauthored Green Politics (1984), Belonging to the Universe (1991), and EcoManagement (1993), and coedited Steering Business Toward Sustainability (1995). His most recent book, The Science of Leonardo, was published in hardcover in 2007 and in paperback in 2008. Please see the bibliographyfor full details about publications.

 

From Science Insider

by Elizabeth Pennisi on 2 February 2012, 1:50 PM 

The debate over whether a bacterium can incorporate arsenic into its DNA just flared up again, with the posting yesterday of a paper refuting the idea on ArXiv, an electronic preprint archive primarily used by astronomers, mathematicians, and physicists. The controversy began in December 2010, when NASA astrobiology fellow Felisa Wolfe-Simon and colleagues described online in Science a microbe called GFAJ-1, which grew, albeit slowly, in the presence of arsenic, leading the authors to conclude the bacterium had taken up the toxic element and incorporated it into its cellular components. The report, amplified by a NASA press conference, quickly lit up the blogosphere and Twitter and led to the unprecedented publication of eight critical technical comments alongside the print version of the paper.

From The Huffington Post

By Jacqueline Howard 

Posted: 07/18/2012 12:52 pm Updated: 07/18/2012 1:15 pm

Call it a prehistoric paradox. Huge herbivorous dinosaurs like Diplodocus—at about 30 meters in length, one of the longest dinos ever discovered—needed to consume vast quantities of plants. And yet scientists have puzzled for years over the Diplodocus’ long snout and protruding, peglike teeth--which don't look like the right equipment for the job.

With the help of finite element analysis—an imaging technology commonly used in airplane design—a team of researchers created a 3D model of the Diplodocus skull and used it to figure out just how the dinosaur dined.

Large-mass-of-Glacier breaks off

From   Washington Post

    Heath and Science

      By Juliet Eilperin and Jason Samenow, Published: July 17

Professor Andreas Muenchow, University of Delaware - The vast, flat expanse stretching into the background is the Petermann Glacier, well over one-third of which has now broken off. It connects the Greenland ice sheet to the Arctic Ocean.

Paraprosdokians:   Turn on your speakers and click here. This will pronounce the word for you!

(Winston Churchill loved them) are figures of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected; frequently humorous.

  
1. Where there's a will, I want to be in it.

2. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. But it's still on my list.

3. Since light travels faster than sound, some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

4. If I agreed with you, we'd both be wrong.

5. We never really grow up, we only learn how to act in public.

6. War does not determine who is right - only who is left.

7. Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.

8. To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism. To steal from many is research.

9. I didn't say it was your fault, I said I was blaming you.

10. In filling out an application, where it says, 'In case of emergency, Notify:' I put 'DOCTOR'.

11. Women will never be equal to men until they can walk down the street with a bald head and a beer gut, and still think they are sexy.

12. You do not need a parachute to skydive. You only need a parachute to skydive twice.

13. I used to be indecisive. Now I'm not so sure.

14. To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first and call whatever you hit the target.

15. Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.

16. You're never too old to learn something stupid.

From NBC NEW:

In Sao Paulo, Brazil, authorities say that over the past week more than 500 dead penguins have washed up on the shore of beaches across southern Brazil.

The deaths have puzzled marine biologist, and as of now, they are unsure of the caused of the penguins deaths. Officials say the penguins appeared to be in good shape with no evidence of malnutrition or injury.

The penguins were Magellanic penguins that are named after the region where they mate in southern Argentina. The penguins were in the process of migrating towards warmer waters and more food.

Officials are still investigating the cause of the penguin's death but they should know the reason in less than a month.

Published on Friday, July 13, 2012

by Common Dreams 

Recently, I had reason to look at VOA (Voice of America) where there are many articles of interest.  The group of articles that caught my attention is "Words and their Stories".  An example of this is:

Bob always played with cold, hard cash --only coins and dollar bills. Sometimes my friend would clean up. He would win a lot of money on one card game. He liked to tell me that one day he would break the bank. What a feeling it must be to win all of the money at a gambling table!

Beginning with May 7th, 2006 there are are various phrases as in the example above with an explaination of the phrase.  The "slang" word(s) are highlighted, and the meaning of that word or phrase is then explained.

UN WIRE  July 12, 2012 

Funds pledged to aid contraception access for millions of women

Access to contraception would be extended to 120 million women and girls in the developing world over the next eight years through $2.6 billion in pledges made Wednesday at a family-planning summit in London. More than 20 poor countries contributed to the spending commitments, which are projected to reduce by tens of millions the numbers of unwanted pregnancies and abortions and improve survival rates for mothers and babies.

Alan Turing: His Mind, His Life 

In Part 1 of a two-part series, listen as Frances Allen, Charles Bachman, Vint Cerf, Dame Wendy Hall, William Newman, Christos Papadimitriou and Judea Pearl celebrate the mind of Alan Turing, the father of computer science. Click the link above to learn more.

Copied from Reader Supported News

ere comes the Fourth of July, number 236 since the Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence and riders on horseback rushed it to the far corners of the thirteen new United States - where it was read aloud to cheering crowds. These days our celebration of the Fourth brings a welcome round of barbecue, camaraderie with friends and family, fireworks, flags, and unbeatable prices at the mall.

Copy of this  Article in Delancey Place 

From:  

Land of Promise: An Economic History of the United States

 by Michael Lind by Harper

In today's excerpt - in the 1700s, British merchants made fortunes smuggling opium into China over the objections of Chinese leaders the resulting opium addition epidemic devastated Chinese society. Profits proved too tempting and by the 1800s American merchants had joined in the trade, earning vast sums including the fortune inherited by Franklin Roosevelt:

E-Mail from John Royal of the National Lawyers Guild - Detroit Branch.

New York Criminal Judge who ruled that Twitter messages are public messages, and Twitter is required to turn them over to prosecutors upon request.   The case arises from a subpoena for an Occupy Wall Street activist who was arrested for Disorderly Conduct while crossing the Brooklyn Bridge during a protest last October.  See NYTimes article below.  John Royal

On July 6, 1935, a child named Lhamo Thondup was born into a peasant
family in a small hamlet in the mountains of Tibet.  In 1933, after the
13th Dalai Lama died, a search party of Buddhist monks embarked on an
intensive search for his successor.  Four years later, in 1937, the monks
formally identified the two-year-old child as the 14th reincarnation of a
long line of Tibetan spiritual leaders who are believed to embody the
compassion and wisdom of Buddha.  His name was soon changed to Tenzin Gyatso and he began a lengthy and intensive process of being groomed to become the future spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists.

I can't get Music to work.  Any suggestions.  Ponyo 

I want to raise two questions for consideration by the group.

      I have been thinking a lot on what topic should I post here, but due to some recent and very affective events I decided to post about money.

       Money is dirt. Yeah I could say it and be over but... my anger does not allow it. Money is dirt in every possible way. Some of you may already know this, but there are many people out there who get happy, smiling and greedy of course over this thing called money. It disgusts me how much it is necessary to SURVIVE in our planet. If you have no money you will eventually die. Don't get me wrong I know it is absolutely necessary to have money, I need it to eat, to go to my work, to call my friends, to talk to my boyfriend, but the point is, why did our ancestors had to make this form of exchanging goods to live? I wish we could all go back to when you could trade a bag of rice for a bag of apples or something.

    Back then no one was out to get money, no one was greedy to the point of killing and no one was judged by having expensive or cheap clothes. Everyone was the same humble kind of human. Money makes people sick, makes people pumpous, makes people cynical and ugly outside not matter what they do to their outsides.

    I am always shocked to see what kind of things require money, and big amounts too. Maybe I am particularly  annoyed to see how much of this disgusting money thing I am required to give to have the person I love, the person I am willing and wanting to spend the rest of my live with, here with me in my country. It is...disgusting.

Everything that falls apart anywhere in the world is due with money. Directly or not. And I may be talking on a heavy heart, hot mind and something else, but I would prefer any day to reverse this life and it's advances in order to have a peaceful life, mind and heart.

     I apologise if I made no sense at all.

Thanks for reading. Ana

Something on the BP Oil Spill, if you are following it at all.

I found this news article interesting - but it is a little long.  Maybe you would just want to skim it and see what you think.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Kemp’s ridley sea turtle lay belly-up on the metal autopsy table, as pallid as split-pea soup but for the bright orange X spray-painted on its shell, proof that it had been counted as part of the Gulf of Mexico’s continuing “unusual mortality event.”

Roger and I find this very funny, and we wondered whether people of another culture also would think so.  The piece itself is a classic of Twentieth Century American humor.  James Thurber wrote primarily for the magazine "The New Yorker," which is still published weekly.

China Fears Consumer Impact on Global Warming

By KEITH BRADSHER

Who can help me to solve this problem?

When you completed your comments , then you want to change some words. It seems you can't re-edit it?

Thanks.

I sent this note to some of the members of the group, but not to all. So I thought perhaps I should post it.

So far I know all the partners who are in this group. Therefore I was surprised but glad that Mike (Everest on English Share) came up with an idea of our introducing ourselves to each other.

This blog is a good way to do that because the introductions will remain available for new members, and because we can gather them in one place.

I hope that everyone who is currently a member will add a comment which contains their introduction to the group.  And I hope everyone in the future will add a comment with their introduction.

The New York Times  

July 4, 2010

Punishing the Jobless

By PAUL KRUGMAN  

There was a time when everyone took it for granted that unemployment insurance, which normally terminates after 26 weeks, would be extended in times of persistent joblessness. It was, most people agreed, the decent thing to do.

This is an introduction to Jimdo and the use of the blog.  Some may already know how to use use this feature.  If so okay.  But if not, this is a good topic to discuss - or at least ask questions about.