miércoles, enero 28, 2009

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR 2009 - YEAR OF THE OX

Happy Chinese New Year 2009 - Year of the Ox, originalmente cargada por mpdaniel.co.uk.

Ox (zodiac)

The Ox ( 牛 ) is one of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. The Year of the Ox is denoted by the earthly branch character 丑. In the Vietnamese zodiac, the water buffalo (zodiac) occupies the position of the ox.

Years and the Five Elements

People born within these date ranges can be said to have been born in the year of the Ox, while also bearing the following elemental sign:

19 February 1901 - 7 February 1902: Metal Ox
6 February 1913 - 25 January 1914: Water Ox
25 January 1925 - 12 February 1926: Wood Ox
11 February 1937 - 30 January 1938: Fire Ox
29 January 1949 - 16 February 1950: Earth Ox
15 February 1961 - 4 February 1962: Metal Ox
3 February 1973 - 22 January 1974: Water Ox
20 February 1985 - 8 February 1986: Wood Ox
7 February 1997 - 28 January 1998: Fire Ox
26 January 2009 - 14 February 2010: Earth Ox
2021 - 2022: Metal Ox
2033 - 2034: Water Ox

Attributes

The Ox is thought to be the sign of prosperity through fortitude and hard work. The Ox is a power sign, like the Rat, Snake, Dragon, Tiger, and Monkey. They're quite dependable and possess an innate ability to achieve great things. As one might guess, such people are dependable, calm, and modest. Like their animal namesake, the Ox is unswervingly patient, tireless in their work, and capable of enduring any amount of hardship without complaint.

Ox people, according to tradition, need peace and quiet to work through their ideas, and when they have set their mind on something it is hard for them to be convinced otherwise. An Ox person has a very logical mind and is extremely systematic in whatever they do, though they have a tremendous imagination and an unparalleled appreciation for beauty. These people speak little but are extremely intelligent. When necessary, they are articulate and eloquent.

Traditionally, people born under the influence of the Ox are thought to be kind, caring souls, logical, positive, filled with common sense and with their feet firmly planted on the ground. Security is their main preoccupation in life, and they are prepared to toil long and hard in order to provide a warm, comfortable and stable nest for themselves and their families. Strong-minded, stubborn, individualistic, the majority are highly intelligent individuals who don't take kindly to being told what to do.

The Ox, it is thought, works hard, patiently, and methodically, with original intelligence and reflective thought. These people enjoy helping others. Behind this tenacious, laboring, and self-sacrificing exterior lies an active mind.

The Ox, according to tradition, is not extravagant, and a modern interpretation of this is that the thought of living off credit cards or being in debt makes them nervous. The possibility of taking a serious risk could cause the Ox sleepless nights.

Ox people are truthful and sincere, and the idea of wheeling and dealing in a competitive world is distasteful to them. They are rarely driven by the prospect of financial gain. These people are always welcome in small gatherings because of their humble composure and reverent nature towards the host. They are reputed to be the most beautiful of face in the zodiac. They have many friends, who appreciate the fact that the Ox people are wary of new trends, although every now and then they can be encouraged to try something new. People born in the year of the Ox make wonderful parents and teachers of children.

It is important to remember that the Ox people are sociable and relaxed when they feel secure, but occasionally a dark cloud looms over such people and they engage all the trials of the whole world and seek solutions for them.

Attribute	Traditional Ox Attributes/Associations
Zodiac Location	2nd
Ruling hours	1am-3am
Direction	North-northeast
Season and month	Winter, January
Lunar Month Dates	January 6-February 3
Gemstone	Onyx
Colors	Yellow, blue
Polarity	Yin
Element	Water
Positive Traits	Responsible, dependable, honest, caring, honourable, intelligent, artistic, industrious, practical
Negative Traits	Petty, inflexible, possessive, dogmatic, gullible, stubborn, critical, intolerant, materialistic
Countries	Switzerland, India, Cuba, Yemen, Finland, Ukraine

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ox_(zodiac)

CHINESE NEW YEAR 2009 - YEAR OF THE OX

Chinese New Year 2009 - Year of the Ox 1, originalmente cargada por www.simonbarrowphotography.co.uk.

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!!!

Happy Chinese New Year!!!, originalmente cargada por NoLimitsTw.

Plaza 66, Shanghai
Selected by Shanghaiist (Chinese New Year in Shanghai)

miércoles, enero 21, 2009

STRANGE NEW SPECIES FOUND ON GREAT BARRIER REEF

September 18, 2008--A comb jelly trips the light fantastic as it pulses off Heron Island on Australia's Great Barrier Reef complex.

The creature, which lacks the stingers of jellyfish, was among thousands of species studied at three coral reef sites--two of them along the Great Barrier--during a four-year survey led by the Australian Institute of Marine Science.

The survey team announced today that it has discovered hundreds of animals new to science, including previously unknown microscopic shrimp, worms, scavenging crustaceans--and as many as 150 new species of soft corals. (Read the full story.)

The reef expeditions were done as part of the Census of Marine Life, a global ten-year initiative to assess the diversity, distribution, and abundance of creatures in the world's oceans.

--James Owen

Not even this small, delicate seaweed species, Caulerpa cupressoides, escaped the notice of scientists cataloging coral reef inhabitants near Heron Island in Australia.

The island was one of three sites recently surveyed by marine experts looking for lesser known reef life as part of the ongoing global Census of Marine Life. Expedition researchers reported in September 2008 that their four-year effort in Australia has yielded hundreds of species that may be new to science.

"Amazingly colorful corals and fishes on reefs have long dazzled divers, but our eyes are just opening to the astonishing richness of other life-forms in these habitats," said Census of Marine Life chief scientist Ron O'Dor.

A green-banded snapping shrimp reveals its disproportionate weaponry after being discovered inside dead coral on Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

Researchers released the above picture of the shrimp in September 2008 along with shots of other animals found during a recent biodiversity survey at three sites along the reef.

The teams used a wide variety of sampling methods, which included looking inside the hollow skeletons of old coral structures.

Samples were obtained by enveloping dead coral in a bag and chiseling the structures off at their bases to capture the animals inside. A single such sample can yield more than 150 individual animals, the survey team said.

A gelatinous "creature" pictured floating in the water column off Lizard Island in northeastern Australia is actually a colony of smaller animals called salpae.

These sac-like filter feeders can either float as individuals or can form long chains as they drift through the ocean feeding on plankton.

In September 2008 researchers led by the Australian Institute of Marine Science released photos of unusual animals--including the salpae seen above--found while surveying coral reef biodiversity as part of the ten-year Census of Marine Life.

A pair of fan worms wave their feathery feeding arms to filter tiny particles from the water in a picture released in September 2008.

Scientists spotted the worms during a recent survey of reef-dwelling species at three sites in Australia. The teams found hundreds of previously unknown animals, including colorful soft corals, tiny shrimp, and scavenging crustaceans.

Worms were also highlighted in the study, including a potentially new class of marine worm known as bristle worms, relatives of leeches and earthworms.

A species of sea slug, or nudibranch, makes an exotic addition to the coral reefs off Heron Island on Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

(See stunning photos of nudibranchs from National Geographic magazine.)

Results from a recent survey announced in September 2008 suggest that a large proportion of the animals living on Australia's reefs have yet to be scientifically described, making the true effects of threats to coral ecosystems harder to define.

"Corals face threats ranging from ocean acidification, pollution, and warming to overfishing and starfish outbreaks," said Ian Poiner, of the Australian Institute of Marine Science.

"Only by establishing a baseline of biodiversity and following through with later censuses can people know the impact of those threats and find clues to mitigate them.

Survey teams recently snapped a variety of soft corals--so-called because they lack the hard skeletons of reef-building corals--growing near Lizard Island in Australia.

The researchers found about 300 species of soft coral during a four-year census of marine life in Australia's coral reefs. Up to half of the species found could be new to science, the teams announced in September 2008.

Soft corals dominate some of the areas studied, covering up to 25 percent of the ocean floor at the three survey sites. The animals provide important habitat for other marine species.

(Related: "Soft Corals 'Melting' Due to Warming Seas, Expert Says" [July 13, 2007].)

Neil Bruce of the Museum of Tropical Queensland in Australia inspects a sampling aquarium at Lizard Island and its haul of coral-dwelling animals collected from the Great Barrier Reef.

Teams of scientists, including Bruce, recently conducted a four-year survey of life along the reef. They reported in September 2008 that they have found hundreds of species that could be new to science.

Bruce is also part of a team developing new sampling methods to help standardize surveys of coral reef diversity around the world.

For example, researchers set up layered plastic structures, likened to empty dollhouses, for marine life to colonize at Lizard Island and other sites. The structures could facilitate future discoveries.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/09/photogalleries/marine-new-species-photos/index.html