Letters from Chopin

2 April 2011 - Six letters written by Frederic Chopin, thought to be lost in 1939, have been found and donated to a Warsaw museum dedicated to the Polish composer. The letters, written by Chopin to his parents and sisters between 1845 and 1848, were believed lost after the outbreak of World War II. After it emerged in 2003 that they still existed in a private collection, moves were made to secure them. Chopin was born in Poland in 1810 but spent half of his life in France. According to museum curator Alicja Knast, the letters were last displayed in public in Poland in 1932 and were still confirmed as being in Warsaw in 1939. It is thought the letters went missing, like many other cultural artefacts, after the Nazis invaded Poland. The museum was assisted in their recovery by Marek Keller, a Polish art dealer now based in Mexico. He acquired them directly from their owners, who Knast said wished to remain anonymous. In the letters, written in Polish, Chopin describes daily life and his cello sonata in G minor, one of his few non-piano works.

Aggltinative Language

1 April 2011 - The Mongolian language  is tthe best-known member of the Mongolic language family. It sounds a bit weird, but really beautiful and musical. It may have about 5.2 million speakers, including the vast majority of the residents of Mongolia and many of the Mongolian residents of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region of China. In Mongolia, the Khalka dialect of Mongolian, written in Cyrillic, is predominant. Mongolian has vowel-hermony and a complex syllabic structure for a Mongolic language that allows up to three syllable-final consonants. It is a typical agglutinative language that relies on suffix chains in the verbal and nominal domains. While the basic word order is subject-object-predicate, the noun phrase order is relatively free, so functional roles are indicated by a system of about eight grammatical cases. There are five voices. Verbs are marked for voice, aspect, tense and epistemic modality. In sentence linking, a special role is played by converbs. It almost like science.

100 Words

31 March 2011 - England's Italian football manager Fabio Capello claims he can manage his players with just 100 words. So how far could you get with a vocabulary of that size? Despite his sometimes colourful language, communicating with Wayne Rooney does not require a Shakespearean command of English. That's just as well, as the England manager has admitted he's having problems learning some of the basics. "If I need to speak about the economy or other things, I can't speak," he told reporters. "But when you speak about tactics, you don't use a lot of words. I don't have to speak about a lot of different things. Maximum 100 words." In Capello's defence, his vocabulary appears to be far wider than 100 words. But how far would such a limited knowledge take you? For Peter Howarth, deputy director of Leeds University's language centre, Capello's defence of his language skills looks shaky. "It's a ridiculously small number, you could learn 100 words in a couple of days, particularly when you're in the country surrounded by the language," he says. "People do say that from a learners point of view, English is relatively easy to use without too much grammar ... but Fabio Capello needs a range, presumably, and to communicate emotions and a bit of nuance."

UB Fashion

30 March 2011 - Now here is something you did not know about Mongolia: there are a number of fashion shows that take place in Ulaanbaatar throughout the year. The biggest and most well know is Goyol which takes place in December over a whole weekend at the Cultural Palace. It showcases the best of Mongolian and international designers and models and normally sets the trend for the coming year’s look. Tickets for each day cost around Tg6000 but it’s well worth it for the show. Unfortunately one can’t take photographs without a photopass but a few shots from the aisles shouldn’t be a problem. Moda takes place in the State Drama Theatre and costs around Tg4000. It concentrates a little more on traditional wear than the latest cutting edge fashion but is still worth a look – especially as the show is not your standard runway fair but incorporates scene from famous Mongolian plays and also opera signing.

Cable Bill

29 March 2011 - You may have heard the story about the man living in a 14x60 trailer who got a $12,864 electric bill, or the Corpus Christie man who was billed $7.7 million by his water company, or the Canadian whose cell phone provider hit him up for $85,000--the list truly goes on and on and on. Now the outrageous bill receivers club has a new member. Yes, based on the cable bill that an American man received this week, he's either the king of pay-per-view, or the victim of one of the most extreme computerized billing glitches in the history of computerized billing glitches. Fortunately for him, it looks like it's the latter. When the Ohio man's attempt to make a payment on his cable bill to Time Warner was rejected, he learned that the company had calculated his past-due amount at more than $16 million. "All I want to do is watch March Madness," Mr DeVirgillio said. A local newspaper reported that DeVirgilio did the math and concluded that he'd have to order 1.6 million on-demand movies or a pay-per-view fight 400,000 times to accumulate $16.4 million in charges.

Genghis Tomb

28 March 2011 - For Mongolians the remains and burial place of the great leader Genghis Khan are sacred. From the period of reconstruction the desire to remember the heritage of Mongolia has resulted in an increased feeling of pride over their great Khan. The Mongolians and Japanese jointly held a prospecting expedition which made a search for the burial place of Genghis from 1990 to 1993. The expedition did not produce any results. People’s thoughts were divided on the subject and some Mongolians were angry about the expedition so the searching work was stopped. Since 1993 the Academy of Sciences has not given a grant to make a new search. In fact the expedition did not fully search territory of Khentii aimag which is thought to be his final resting place. There is a legend that if one touches upon Genghis remains, much trouble and hardship will follow.

Mongolian Customs

27 March 2011 - Mongolians traditionally were afraid of misfortunes and believe in a variety of good and bad omens. Misfortune might be attracted by talking about negative things, or by persons that are often talked about. They might also be sent by some malicious shaman or enraged by breaking some taboo, like stepping on a yurt's threshold, desecrating waters or mountains, etc.The most endangered family members were children, and that's why they would sometimes be given non-names like Nergui (Mongolian for: without name) or Enebish (Mongolian for:: not this one), or boys would be dressed up as girls.Before going out at night, young children's foreheads are sometimes painted with charcoal or soot in order to deceive evil spirits that this is not a child but a rabbit with black hair on the forehead.

Kanamara Matsuri Festival

26 March 2011 - The Kanamara Matsuri Fstival is an annual Shinto fertility festival held in Kawasaki, Japan in spring held in the Kanayama shrine. The exact dates vary: the main festivities fall on the first Sunday in April. The penis forms the central theme of the event that is reflected everywhere—in illustrations, candy, carved vegetables, decorations, and a mikoshi parade.The Kanamara Matsuri is centered around a local penis-venerating shrine once popular among prostituteswho wished to pray for protection against sexually transmitted diseases. It is said that there are divine protections also in business prosperity and the clan's prosperity, easy delivery, marriage, and married couple harmony. There is also a legend of a sharp-toothed demon that hid inside the vagina of a young girl and castrated two young men on their wedding nights. As a result, the young girl sought help with a blacksmith, who fashioned an iron phallus to break the demon's teeth, leading to the enshrinement of the item. Today, the festival has become somewhat of a tourist attraction and is used to raise money for HIV research

Meep Meep

25 March 2011 - It is official: China will overtake the US and dominate global trade by 2030, a leading accountancy firm says.China's global trade is set to surge past the US' by 2030, according to a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Currently, China's international trade is worth $2.21 trillion (£1.36tn), compared with the $2.66tn (£1.64tn) for the US. China was confirmed as the world's second-biggest economy earlier this year, overtaking Japan. According to the report by PwC, the coming years will see global trade undergo "fundamental change" as emerging economies such as China and India begin to "dominate the top sea and air freight routes". PwC's findings are in line with the World Bank's prediction that China's economy will eclipse the US by 2030, if it can sustain its growth. Its chief economist Justin Lin said on Wednesday that, if China continued to grow at an annual rate of 8%, it would be twice the size of the US economy in 20 years.

Famous First Lines

24 March 2011 - Maybe this falls under the "Quote of the Day" category, but let's look at some famous opening lines:

• Telegram message, 1844: "What hath God wrought"
• Telephone, 1876: "Mr Watson, come here. I want to see you."
• Wireless communication over open sea, 1897: "Are you ready?"
• BBC Radio 1, 1967: "And, good morning everyone. Welcome to the exciting new sound of Radio 1".
• Moon landings, 1969: "That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind."
• E-mail, 1971: Qwertyuiop [probable]
• Text message, 1992: "Merry Christmas"
• Google, Jan 1996: no record of first search term, it says
• Facebook, Feb 2004: no record of first post
• YouTube, 2005: Video called "Me at the zoo", with first words: ""Alright, so here we are in front of the elephants"
• Twitter, 2006: "just setting up my twttr"

Elizabeth Taylor

23 March 2011 - Dame Elizabeth Taylor, one of the 20th Century's biggest movie stars, has died in Los Angeles at the age of 79. The double Oscar-winning actress had a long history of ill health and was being treated for symptoms of congestive heart failure. Her four children were with her when she died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, her publicist said. In a statement, her son Michael Wilding called her "an extraordinary woman who lived life to the fullest. We know, quite simply, that the world is a better place for Mom having lived in it." He continued to say that "Her legacy will never fade, her spirit will always be with us, and her love will live forever in our hearts."

.XXX Domain

22 March 2011 - Internet overseer Icann has given final approval to the creation of an internet domain dedicated to pornography. The move to create a top level ".xxx" domain - similar to ".com" and ".org" - ends a 10-year battle over the virtual red-light district. Icann gave initial approval last year, but carried out further consultation checks over the application. It is now poised to sign an agreement with the ICM Registry, which is backing the domain, to make .xxx a reality. Supporters say the domain will make it easier to filter out inappropriate content. But many pornographers worry that the move could ghettoise their content. Religious groups have argued that giving pornography sites their own domain legitimises the content. Icann, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, said in a draft paper ahead of approving the decision: "The Icann community has engaged in extensive debate as well, with this single issue generating higher volumes of community comment than nearly any other issue ever faced within Icann." The organisation oversees the internet's addressing system and demands that new top level domains, such as .biz, must be "sponsored" in that they must serve the needs of a defined community. ICM said last year that it had more than 110,000 pre-reservations for .xxx domains.

American Idol Dollars

21 March 2011 - American Idol made more money from advertising revenue than any other US TV show in 2010, according to a survey by Forbes magazine. The singing contest raked in an estimated $7.1m (£4.4m) every half hour during its last series. Far behind in second place was Charlie Sheen's former comedy show Two and A Half Men, with $2.9m (£1.8m). Data was taken from Kantar Media, who surveyed all regular prime time shows, excluding sports events. American Idol's 2010 figures were down $1m (£620,000) on the previous year. Simon Cowell was still on the judging panel in the last series, accompanied by Ellen DeGeneres, Kara DioGuardi and Randy Jackson. Following Charlie Sheen's sacking from Two and A Half Men, it remains to be seen whether the show can continue to generate as much revenue, Kantar's Jon Swallen said. "The show is built around the interplay between two contrasting characters," Mr Swallen said. "If you remove one, it fundamentally makes it a different show. If it comes back on the air there will be a curiosity factor but after a few episodes it will have to rise or fall on its own merit. "Desperate Housewives was in third place with an estimated $2.74m (£1.7m), with medical drama Grey's Anatomy at four with $2.67m.

Ulaanbaatar

20 March 2011 - Next week I will go to Ulaanbaatar. UB has a long history, and is only now undergoing an industrial revolution. I read that UB is one of the most drab looking cities on the face of the planet, a travesty really, considering it's the capital of one the most beautiful and hospitable countries on earth. Still, as traditionalists, Mongolians love their capital. They understand that it is not an Asian beauty, but in their hearts they are aware of the city's history, culture and many struggles. Foreigners who take the time to get to know the faces that are hidden behind the gray walls will discover a hospitable and warm-hearted people. One is invited to explore the city from different angles, while at the same time do not ignore the abject poverty of many of the ex-nomads who in recent years have come to the city to find work after severe winters have killed their livestock. In this way, one will learn to unlock the city's many secrets and discover an Ulaanbaatar that is not initially revealed to the casual visitor.

Hygienic Sharks

19 March 2010 -Scientists filmed sharks off the coast of the Philippines  visiting a tropical seamount - or undersea mountain. This is a habitat for cleaner fish, which nibble off parasites and dead skin.The sharks repeatedly visited the station and swam slowly around, giving the fish time to delouse them.The findings were recently published in the journal PLoS One.This is the first time the behaviour has been seen in this species and the researchers say it shows how vital these shallow reef habitats are for the large, threatened predators. The lead researcher, Simon Oliver from Bangor University in the UK, has been studying thresher sharks for more than five years and founded the Thresher Shark Research and Conservation Project. For the PLoS One Study, he filmed over 1,000 hours of footage of the sharks at a seamount off the northern tip of Cebu in the Philippines. "They visit the site very regularly," Mr Oliver told BBC News. "A huge dive tourism site has evolved around them."The sharks' behaviour suggests that they go there specifically to be cleaned."They pose, lowering their tails to make themselves more attractive to the cleaners," he explained. "And they systematically circle for about 45 minutes at speeds lower than one meter per second." This is  about half the speed at which the sharks usually swim. These reefs, which are habitats for cleaner wrasses - as the industrious little fish are known - are probably vital for the sharks' health.

Picture Perfect

17 March 2011 - Adult monkeys recognise photographs of their friends, according to scientists.In an experiment, untrained Barbary macaques showed interest in the photos and spent more time scrutinising pictures of unfamiliar animals.Juvenile monkeys were fascinated but puzzled by the photographs. They often tried to greet or touch the animal in the image.The findings suggest that the primates learn with age to understand that photos are representations of faces. As well as adding to our knowledge of their intelligence, the findings, published in the journal Animal Condition could also help in future studies of primate behaviour.
Now that we know [that they spontaneously recognise photographs], we won't be limited to working in the lab and training the animals," said lead researcher Professor Julia Fischer, from the German Primate Center and Gottingen University in Germany. "We will be able to study them in a much more natural captive setting, [studying their behaviour] by designing games for them to play."She and her team observed macaques in wildlife park in Rocamadour, south-west France, where the animals are allowed to roam around an open landscape

Manners and Courtesy

16 March 2011 - I liked this piece by Laura King in the Los Angeles Times:

Reporting from Tokyo -- She was elderly and alone, injured and in pain. When the massive earthquake struck, a heavy bookshelf toppled onto Hiroko Yamashita, pinning her down and shattering her ankle. When paramedics finally reached her, agonizing hours later, Yamashita did what she said any "normal" person would do, her son-in-law recounted later: She apologized to them for the inconvenience, and asked if there weren't others they should be attending to first.
The worst earthquake in Japan's recorded history left a trail of blazing buildings, inundated coastal communities, wrecked roadways and potentially unstable nuclear power plants. But it barely made a dent in the implacably Japanese trait of exhibiting concern for others even in the worst of circumstances.
In Tokyo and its suburbs, the quake knocked out much of the usually clockwork-reliable public-transportation system. Yet when trains finally appeared on a few crucial routes, the queue was as orderly as on any mundane commuting day. Once aboard, people sat quietly, gazing at their cellphones in hope of an elusive signal. “It would be uncivilized to try to push and shove, and what good would it do anyway?” said Kojo Saeseki, helping his wife onto a crowded train on the city’s outskirts.

The Japanese language is full of ritual apologies, uttered so often as to become almost meaningless: I am about to make a nuisance of myself — please excuse me! Some of this is a matter of mere formality. But at a time of crisis, such politesse can be the glue that holds the country together. Even though Friday's magnitude 8.9 quake was shocking and discombobulating, few would imagine burdening a stranger with their anxieties.

Zion

15 March 2011 - From the BBC: Iran has indicated it will attend the 2012 Olympics in London, despite complaining that the Games logo resembles the word "Zion".Last month the Iranians complained to the International Olympic Committee and called for the graphic to be replaced. They objected on the grounds that its resemblance to the word Zion - a Biblical term for Israel - was racist.But now the Iranian-backed Press TV has quoted an official as saying Iranians will "participate gloriously". The report by Press TV quotes the secretary of Iran's Olympic organising committee, Bashram Afsharzadeh, as saying: "Our decision, to partake [in the] Olympic Games, has nothing to do with the UK politicians. "We will make co-ordination with officials of the International Olympic Committee and we will participate and play gloriously in London Games." In its original letter to the IOC, Iran had called for the Games logo to be withdrawn and its designers "confronted".There was also a suggestion that Iranian athletes would be told not to attend. At the time, IOC president Jacques Rogge told BBC Sport: "No, it can't be serious. We will quietly reply, telling [Iran] the logo has nothing to do with racism or any political connotation."

Obama - The Icon

14 March 2011 - The Associated Press has sued several retailers including Urban Outfitters for the unauthorised use of the Hope image created by artist Shepard Fairey. Artist Fairey used an AP photo without permission to create the image, and was sued by the news agency for violating copyright. That case was settled. AP argues that using the image on T-shirts is wilful and blatant violation of the copyright of the photo.A spokesman said that using photos for free devalued the work of journalists. The news agency filed lawsuits against Urban Outfitters, Nordstrom and Zumiez seeking unspecified damages. A Nordstrom spokeswoman said in a statement that the firm was aware of the lawsuit. Representatives of the other retailers have yet to respond, AP said. In a statement, AP spokesman Paul Colford said: "When a commercial entity such as these retailers, or the company that sold the shirts to them, gets something for nothing by using an AP photo without credit or compensation, it undermines the AP's ability to cover the news. "It devalues the work that our journalists do, often in dangerous locations where they may literally risk life and limb to cover a story."

Drink Up

13 March 2011 - Drinking a glass or two of alcohol a day could protect you from developing dementia as you get older, a new Published March 2 in the journal Age and Ageing, German researchers revealed that light and moderate drinkers of any type of alcohol were 29 percent less likely to develop any kind of dementia than heavy drinkers or teetotalers. Good news for Alzheimer's disease too: light and moderate drinkers also had 42 percent less chance of developing the disease than heavy drinkers and those who abstained completely. Light drinkers in the study drank about one drink a day, or 10 grams of wine, beer, or liquor. Moderate drinkers imbibed two drinks per day. Research published last October in the journal Neurology also found that walking just 9.5 kilometers (six miles) a week may keep your brain sharper as you get older. Walking may protect aging brains from growing smaller and, in turn, preserve memory in old age.