I was on my way to a shop in a populated district of Cairo one day. I usually try to avoid this area due to its packed streets and traffic-jams. I had to circle a number of times around my target destination to find a parking spot. The streets were unbelievably packed, either side. Rows and rows of cars lining the tiny streets. In many cases there were two rows of cars parked and cars parked on the sidewalks. Sidewalks literally do not exist in most of Cairo. This left only one tiny lane for cars to move through, and in many cases for the cars to move through both ways.
Its an absolute disgrace and should be at the top of someone's priorities. In some cases in Haram (a Western district of Cairo which contains the Great Pyramids of Giza) there are roads that to me look more like a mountain range of dusty asphalt than an actual drivable road. I seriously can't believe that there is governance that have overlooked this for a very long time. Its more like the place is governing itself and the people are struggling along.
There are two vital roads that are traffic arteries in the Haram area. They decided to build a flyover connection which goes along one of them. Fair enough. This has been going on for a long time now and has literally blocked the this artery. I try to avoid it altogether. To make things worse they have decided to also start construction on the other vital road. They are doing something about the rubbish-filled Nile tributary which runs along the middle of the road. They are filling it up or something. So now you have two critical routes blocked with construction. I spent a hell of a long time in one of them a few days ago. Unfortunately I'm going to have to make that same trip again so I'm praying for a skycar or something to get me passed the hordes of cars, trucks and lorries.
Hoping for the best...
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Indians in Space (Chandrayaan)
October of last year, India sent up its first space mission. It sent up Chandrayaan-1 which consisted of a lunar orbiter and an impacter. The impacter separated from the orbiter and hit the surface of the moon releasing debris which was analyzed for water/ice. The orbiter will map the surface of the moon. Already images of the deep moon craters have been beamed back.
India has become the fourth country after the US, Russia and Japan to put its flag on the moon. This is quite an achievement. It shows that India is a force to be reckoned with. In the 1960s American products were boosted by the US missions into space. The missions were seen as a sign of technological advancement in all aspects, not just space flight. Japan visited the moon in 1990, China sent probes up into lunar orbit and now India successfully completes its first event in the exploration of our moon. This definitely gives a boost to Indian technology. They have already developed the worlds cheapest car. Despite the enormous poverty they are on the right track in the technological sector.
India has become the fourth country after the US, Russia and Japan to put its flag on the moon. This is quite an achievement. It shows that India is a force to be reckoned with. In the 1960s American products were boosted by the US missions into space. The missions were seen as a sign of technological advancement in all aspects, not just space flight. Japan visited the moon in 1990, China sent probes up into lunar orbit and now India successfully completes its first event in the exploration of our moon. This definitely gives a boost to Indian technology. They have already developed the worlds cheapest car. Despite the enormous poverty they are on the right track in the technological sector.
Stellar Navigation (Finding Polaris)
I don't think many people know how to navigate using the stars. I know that there is a one in a million chance that you'd be stuck in the middle of nowhere and only have the stars to guide you.
I think its just something interesting to know which may, you never know, save your life. It's very simple. To find North you need to look for Polaris (The North Star). People usually think Polaris is very bright. It isn't actually. It is just surrounded by rather dim stars so it stands out a bit.
The first thing you have to do is look for a particular constellation called "The Big Dipper". It is also known as "Ursa Major". It looks like this:
Once you have found this constellation, you should line up the two stars at the end of the bowl part of the constellation. If you line them up and extend that line you should meet a star directly along its path that is brighter than its adjacent stars. This is Polaris. This star always points in the Northern direction.
I think its just something interesting to know which may, you never know, save your life. It's very simple. To find North you need to look for Polaris (The North Star). People usually think Polaris is very bright. It isn't actually. It is just surrounded by rather dim stars so it stands out a bit.
The first thing you have to do is look for a particular constellation called "The Big Dipper". It is also known as "Ursa Major". It looks like this:
Once you have found this constellation, you should line up the two stars at the end of the bowl part of the constellation. If you line them up and extend that line you should meet a star directly along its path that is brighter than its adjacent stars. This is Polaris. This star always points in the Northern direction.
Disturbing Times...
The UK has officially gone into recession. The world is feeling the pressures of the credit crunch. The financial situation is on the edge of peoples' minds and tips of their tongues. An Egyptian man reportedly lost a large sum of money and killed his sleeping family with an axe to keep them out of the misery.
The conflict in the Middle East still pluming with smoke. Israel has left many people dead, injured and suffering in Gaza. With the hypocritical withdrawal of Israel forces from Gaza a day or two before Obama enters the white house, the region is far from stable. Rumors of spies has been reiterated around Gaza and there have been reports of acts of retaliation against accused spies who helped the Israeli bombardment.
There was a sign of hope with Obama's win and promise of change. He took office and signed for the closing of Guantanamo Bay and halted all prosecutions there. Despite this he did not mention anything about the crisis in Gaza. He did not utter a word. There have also been two strikes since he took office on an area of Pakistan suspected of having links to terrorism. People have died because of the strikes.
Maybe there won't be any change!
I really hope just foreign policy and rightful diplomacy is displayed by the Obama administration.
I truly hope there are bright jovial days to come.
The conflict in the Middle East still pluming with smoke. Israel has left many people dead, injured and suffering in Gaza. With the hypocritical withdrawal of Israel forces from Gaza a day or two before Obama enters the white house, the region is far from stable. Rumors of spies has been reiterated around Gaza and there have been reports of acts of retaliation against accused spies who helped the Israeli bombardment.
There was a sign of hope with Obama's win and promise of change. He took office and signed for the closing of Guantanamo Bay and halted all prosecutions there. Despite this he did not mention anything about the crisis in Gaza. He did not utter a word. There have also been two strikes since he took office on an area of Pakistan suspected of having links to terrorism. People have died because of the strikes.
Maybe there won't be any change!
I really hope just foreign policy and rightful diplomacy is displayed by the Obama administration.
I truly hope there are bright jovial days to come.
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