PARAPSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH
When the Society for Psychical Research (S.P.R.) was founded in 1882 research into phenomena and experiences suggesting personal survival of man after death took a high priority. Its findings were constantly under fire from the scientific establishment, which frowned even upon the notion psychical research being considered a science - after all paranormal phenomena did not exist at all! A belief still cherished.
Investigators of the S.P.R. became so influenced by these attacks and were so eager to find favour in the eyes of their antagonists that they began to take over their condemning attitude. A common psychological trait - the oppressed identifying themselves with the worst characteristics of their tormentors.
Supernatural phenomena are still being dismissed by the academic community. Influenced by recent breaktroughs leading to an explanation of some mysteries, they have come to the conclusion that science will explain all eventually.
Scientists, who would not dare to trespass in fields outside their speciality for fear of being torn apart by fellow academics, feel free to make all sorts of pronouncements in the media on subjects in the domain of parapsychological research, of which they have no knowledge whatsoever.
Like in all other areas of science, parapsychology has narrowed down its research to specialist sectors, hardly anyone daring to voice an opinion on general issues.
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LIFE AFTER DEATH
As to research into personal survival after death, although no absolute proof in a scientific sense has been established, there are strong convergent arguments in its favour.
Let us examine these:
Human consciousness can exist independent of brain-activity.
Reductionism/Epiphenomenalism has long been a pet notion of psychology, specially in behaviourism. Now that psychology's own principles have been shaken after recent discoveries in genetics the idea that consciousness is merely an effect of brain-activity is being questioned again.
Brain specialists, Prof. J.C.Eccles, Sir Cyril Burt, Dr.Wilder Penfield and Prof.W.H.Thorpe stated that in their opinion the brain appears to be more a complicated organism to register and channel consciousness rather than produce it. "The brain is messenger to consciousness", Eccles said. In his famous debate with philosopher Popper "The self and its brain" this matter was examined further.
David J.Chalmers Ph.D. writes in the Scientific American (1997):
Consciousness, the subjective experience of an inner self, could be a phenomenon forever beyond the reach of neuroscience. Even a detailed knowledge of the brain's workings and the neural correlates of consciousness may fail to explain how or why human beings have self-aware minds.
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Man's psychic powers
It is remarkable that in most predictions about discoveries anticipated in this century a breakthrough in parapsychology is not even mentioned or hoped for. Yet developing its 'extra dimensional' powers is the only way for mankind to overcome its isolation in the universe as a result of the space/time barrier. One has not woken up to the fact that there are no other means left. One may assume that advanced extraterrestrial civilisations will have developed precisely these powers.
Herewith a summary of some of these faculties:
Medium Colin Evans being levitated during a seance
Telepathy. Almost everyone knows an instance of the so-called sixth sense, yet science pronounces that this power to be aware of someone else's thoughts does not exist as it has no physical basis.
The same applies to clairvoyance - awareness of an object or event at a distance not through the normal senses.
Precognition - foreseeing an event in future.
Psychokinesis(PK) or mind over matter. Exercising power over objects outside of human physical reach. Levitation being one of these phenomena.
Bi-location A person being seen at two places at the same time.
Psychic healing. Healing that cannot be explained by normal means.
Dowsing. The ability to feel the presence of underground water, ores etc.
Psychometry. The ability to pick up information about a person - past, present or future - by handling an object that belonged to him/her.
These widely reported supernatural abililities, which to my regret I cannot go further into here, cannot be attributed to the mere functioning of the physical brain.
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Man's creative and spiritual nature
Man's spiritual nature is another ticklish matter for scientists excelling in cerebral activity. Yet, these faculties distinquish man from the animal. History has given us sufficient testimony as to his ability to tune in to a divine spiritual reality. With his sublime creative powers bordering on genius man can create works of art that are everlasting. Saints, sages, mystics and great artists have laid the foundation of human culture in a relatively short time in evolution. Mystics and founders of religions have testified to man's ability to free him/herself from the clutches of temporal existence by opening himself to the Divine.
Some people feel quite suddenly and unexpectedly carried away in spirit, becoming emerged in a 'cosmic consciousness' - one with nature. (Click here for a description)
Being able to transcend time and space could mean that in the depth of his nature man is connected to an extradimensional continuum.
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Out-of-the-body experiences
Another phenomenon that indicates that the mind can operate independent of the body is that of ESP projection.
During OBE's (Out-Of-the-Body experiences) occurring during sleep, narcosis or other circumstances, people have actually felt leaving their bodies. From a point in space they saw themselves lying in bed.
Prof.C.G.Jung for instance observed activities in his hospital room whilst he was in coma. Other patients saw incidents in the street, an impossible feat from their beds.
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Near-Death-Experiences (NDE's)
Thanks to progress in medical science, more and more patients are resuscitated from clinical death. Some of them report experiences which bear great similarity, such as passing through a tunnel, being received by deceased members of the family, or a radiant figure, before entering in a heavenly sphere in a state of great euphoria.
As a result of continuing research in the last decades more and more of these experiences could be recorded, compared and analysed. It is noteworthy that these patients saw only relatives and friends who had died, in the 'hereafter'. In exceptional cases they even saw people who they surmised still being alive, but whose death announcement had not reached them as yet.
Of course specialists have endaevoured to wave this argument away, but psychiatrist Bruce Greyson writes in The Lancet of Febr.5th 2000 after having examined all bio- and neurochemical explanations that these do not offer any satisfactory solution for this phenomenon.
The Lancet of 15th December 2001 published an extensive NDE study of Pim van Lommel, MD, cardiologist at Rijnstate Hospital in Arnhem, Netherlands. He relates: A patient saw during a NDE besides his deceased grandmother another man who looked at him full of love. Yet he did not know him. More than ten years later he learned that he was born out of wedlock with a Jewish man during WW2. This man was deported and killed. When he was shown a photo of his biological father he recognised him as the man he had seen ten years before during his NDE !
In a BBC TV documentary of 5th February 2003: "The Day I Died", more patients related similar experiences
Pim van Lommel concludes: "NDE pushes the limits of medical ideas about the range of human consciousness and the mind-brain relationship."
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Deathbed visions
Nobel prize winner Prof. Charles Richet, who took a deep interest in psychical research, was most impressed by deathbed visions. Prof. Karlis Osis has done great work in collecting accounts of doctors and nurses on this phenomenon.
Patients, whose last hour has struck, have been reported seeing visions of near relatives appearing at their bedside. They have been seen focusing their attention on a point in space where they see the apparition. In rare cases people present in the room see the apparition as well, feel an unexplainable cold draught, hear a rushing sound, or see some kind of curious lumininosity. Other visitors may partake in the resulting exaltation.
As in the case of near-death-experiences the dying only see apparitions of deceased people. Again there are instances of patients who saw people who they surmised were still alive, but in fact had died without them knowing so.
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Apparitions
Not only terminal patients see such visions. In fact one of the first research projects of the S.P.R. in 1889 was to collect accounts of people seeing apparitions. The question asked was:
Have you ever, when believing yourself completely awake, had a vivid impression of seeing or being touched by a living being or an inanimate object or of hearing a voice; which impression was not due to any external physical cause?
In this "Census of Hallucinations" some 17000 cases were being studied and the most trustworthy published. It was ascertained that about 10% of the population had such an experience. The conclusion was that there must be some connection between the death of a person and an apparition.
Sometimes the phantasm of a deceased person seems to come for the sole purpose of conveying urgent information to the surviving relative. In one of such cases the late farmer James Chaffin appeared to his son to show him that he had hidden in his Bible his last will.
Many cases have been documented of people being forewarned of a coming disaster by an apparition. In other cases apparitions, sometimes seen as angels, gave life saving advice.
Apparition (in white) filmed on video in 1998 at Belgrave Hall Museum, Leicester, UK (dating from 1709). Curator vouches for authenticity.
Apparitions have been observed to cast a shadow, be reflected in a mirror, overturn furniture, make sounds whilst walking, leave a scent, ask for a lift, in short, demonstrate to possess an active intelligence.
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Communications from the dead
A popular saying has it that no one has ever returned to tell what happened after death. They do not take into consideration then the millions of communications said to have been received by the survivors directly, or by means of a psychically gifted person - a medium. This contact with the dead has been reported to us from the dawn of mankind. Thousands of books have been filled with descriptions of the hereafter.
Some of these communications were dictated whilst the recipient was asleep. In other cases one hand just scribbled on its own accord the messages whilst the receiver was either asleep or conducting a conversation. Messages have revealed facts no one alive could have ever known.
'A course in miracles' (1975), even in academic circles being acknowledged for its spiritual depth, was being dictated to an atheist, non-believing professor in psychology, Helen Schucman.
Dr.A. Crookall, who studied a host of these communications was struck by the fact that they bore a great similarity in the description of the after death states.
In S.P.R. Proceedings hundreds of pages have been devoted to alleged cross-correspondences in messages received by a number of mediums living far apart independently.
Sentences received by one medium were completed through another who was not aware of the other incomplete message. The correspondence between the messages was detected later by a research-officer of the S.P.R.
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Physical phenomena
No doubt the strongest impression ever to be made on man is that of the physical appearance of a dead one. The so-called materializations are said to be composed of that strange substance ectoplasm. For a further description I refer the reader to my page The presence phenomenon (click).
Nobel prize winner Prof.William Crookes shook hands with a materialized spirit named Katie King and photographed her in his laboratory.
S.P.R. correspondent Dr. G.Zorab, after studying all the witness reports, concludes that the experiments cannot be just put aside by infering that Prof.Crookes was fooled by magical tricks.
Another means of communication that has great persuasive power is that of the direct voice - a voice manifesting in space, normally in the vicinity of the medium, or a registration on audio-tape (see below).
On my page Paranormal Voices more info is given on this phenomenon.
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Cases suggestive of reincarnation
Numerous cases have been reported of young children remembering a previous incarnation, showing even birth marks of supposed injuries in a previous life.
Prof.Ian Stevenson has collected the most striking cases of this kind. Nature-nurture research has shown that babies are born with dispositions, allergies, temperament and personalities which are difficult to explain by the structure of the DNA.
In the last decades regressions to previous lives under hypnosis have been put forward as "proof" for survival after death. Sometimes the person remembering a previous incarnation may furnish historical data that were lost, but could still be verified after intensive research.
Reincarnation helps to explain the origin of particular talents, phobias, fears, preferences and characteristics that make up man's identity. Its chief weakness is its failure to explain convincingly the origin of the increasing number of human souls that are being born. The personality and character of man seems to be made up of his genetics, upbringing and fate. The soul, a link to the Divine, remains an intangible mystery.
None of the above ten arguments in itself is sufficient proof for personal survival after death. Yet, taken together, the above phenomena constitute a solid body of testimony in favour of the belief.
Author J.Vyvyan argues in his "A case against Jones" (Ernest Jones being the great behaviourist psychiatrist) that if ever a case for or against survival would have to be fought in court, a jury might well be convinced of a life after death on the basis of the above arguments.
Prof. Hornell Hart, after weighing up all the pros and cons comes to the conclusion: "Human personality does survive bodily death. That is the outcome which I find emerging when the strongest anti-survivalist arguments and the strongest rebuttals are considered thoroughly, with passionate open-mindedness."
In spite of widespread public interest in the abovementioned phenomena (a recent survey shows that over half the adults in the United States have had paranormal experiences) the science of parapsychology is in a phase of decline in the last decades. One of the reasons being given is that the advancement of rationalized society entails the marginalization or elimination of its adversary, the paranormal.
Yet, let us not forget that mankind all through its history has left traces or records evincing that it believed that life did not end at death. In the oldest graves objects have been found for the deceased to carry to his new abode. It is only in the past century that this belief has been assailed by the scientific establishment which itself staggered from one shattered paradigm to another.
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Literature:
Barrett, Sir William: Death-Bed Visions (1926)
Berger, A.S & J: The Encyclopedia of Parapsychology and Psychical Research (1991)
Brown, R.L.: The Phantom Soldiers (1975)
Bucke, R.M.: Cosmic Consciousness (1901)
Chalmers, David J.: The Puzzle of Conscious Experience (Scientific American, special issue 'Mysteries of the mind' 1997)
Crookall, Robert: The supreme adventure (1961)
Ebon, Martin: The evidence for life after death (1977)
Eccles, John C. & Popper K.R.: The Self and its brain (1978)
Gordon Melton, J.: Encyclopedia of Occultism & Parapsychology (1996)
Grof, Stanislav (Ed.): Human survival and the Consciousness Evolution (1988)
Gurney, E; Meyers, F.W.;Podmore, F.: Phantasms of the Living (1886)
Hansen, G.P.: The Trickster and the Paranormal (2001)
Hart, Prof.Hornell: The enigma of survival (1959)
Inglis, Brian: Natural and Supernatural, a history of the paranormal.(1977)
Labro, Philippe: La Traversée (The crossing, 1996 (near death experience)
McClenon, J.: Deviant Science: The Case of Parapsychology. (1984)
Mishlove, J.: Roots of Consciousness (1993)
Monroe, R.A: Journeys out of the Body (1977)
Muldoon,S. & Carrington, H.: The Phenomena of Astral Projection (1951)
Myers: F.W.H.: On recognised apparitions occurring more than one year after death."(1889)
Randles, Jenny & Hough, Peter: The Afterlife. An investigation into the Mysteries of Life after Death (1993)
Richet, Charles : Thirty years of psychical research (scan)
Rychlak, J.F.: In defense of human consciousness(1997)
Saltmarsh, H.F.: Evidence of personal Survival from Cross-correspondences (1938)
Stevenson, I: Twenty cases suggestive of reincarnation (1974)
Toynbee, A., Koestler A. and others in: Life after death (1976)
Vyvyan, J.: A case against Jones (1966)
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Links:
Survival of bodily death. A statement by a group of scholars and scientists.
Society for Psychical Research, London
American Society for Psychical Research Inc., New York
Parapsychology Foundation Inc., New York
Life after Death?, by Dr. Karlis Osis Ph.D.
Society for Scientific Exploration
Koestler Parapsychology unit, Univ of Edinburgh
A lawyer presents the case for the afterlife
Beyond the Veil - NDE site + Resources on death and dying
After Death Communication Research Foundation
International Association for Near-Death studies
Near Death Experience Research Foundation
The Trickster and the Paranormal
International Survivalist Society
University of Virginia: Personality studies paranormal phenomena
Life after death database
Parapsychological links
Paranormal websites and newsgroups
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PARANORMAL VOICES
Independent direct voice phenomenon (click for further info)
All through history there have been reports of voices and sounds heard at a distance from the person(s) who heard them. St.Paul on his way to Damascus heard a voice "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?...And the men that journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no man." (Acts 9:4-7).
But also in less dramatic circumstances were voices heard, often in the vicinity of children - the so-called poltergeist phenomena.
Finally such voices have been heard in the seance room of mediums in the past 150 years in the wake of modern spiritism.
These voices should not be confused with taperecorder, or Raudive, registrations on tape. These are very short and require a trained ear to detect and interpret. Direct voices can be heard as any other sound and recorded. The Woods/Greene collection contains such recordings of direct voices. A few are provided as sound-clips.
Click here for more info.
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THE ROOTS OF THE NEW AGE
The New Age movement is hardly novel! It is rooted in age-old traditions and mystical experiences going back to the dawn of mankind. For further reading on the pioneers of the esoteric tradition: click here.
Thursday, November 01, 2007
future weapons
Weapons Technology - Keep up with the latest innovations in our cutting edge special report.
1. Autonomous weapons
2. High-energy lasers
3. Space-based weapons
4. Hypersonic aircraft (Scramjet)
5. Active Denial System
6. Nuclear missiles
7. Stun guns (Tasers)
8. High-power microwave weapons (e-bombs)
9. Layered missile defence
10. Information warfare
----1. Autonomous weapons
These are robotic vehicles, under development, that search and destroy enemy troops and equipment on the ground or in the air, without risk to friendly troops - theoretically.
How they work: Onboard computers interpret sensor data to identify and target hostile forces with built-in weapons. Robots may query human controllers at remote sites for the go-ahead to fire, and friendly forces may carry transponders that identify them as “friends”.
Limitations: Difficulty of quickly and reliably discriminating between hostile forces and neutral or friendly parties or objects, such as civilians, cows, trees, and tractors. Systems that check with human controllers are vulnerable to communication failures. Malfunctioning robots could fire wildly at anything.
Back to top
----2. High-energy lasers
These are powerful energy beams that travel through air or space in straight lines. They travel at the speed of light and can strike over distances of thousands of kilometres.
How they work: Large mirrors focus powerful laser beams onto a small spot on the target. The heat produced burns through the surface of the target, disrupting flight, disabling warheads, or igniting fuels or explosives.
Limitations: It needs much more energy to do damage than bullets, which destroy targets with their momentum. Powerful lasers need fuel or electrical power and are also very bulky (the US Airborne Laser fills a Boeing 747). Travelling through air and turbulence can disperse the energy of the beam.
Back to top
----3. Space-based weapons
Space is the ultimate high ground, so weapons in orbit would have the ability to see and zap anything on the ground, in the air, or nearby in space.
How they work: The main mission of space-based weapons would be to defend against ballistic missiles fired at targets on Earth. Fleets of interceptors or battle stations would be stationed in orbit, poised to fire at any attacking missiles. The leading approach now is solid projectiles – such as tungsten rods – that would impact missiles. But laser battle stations are also under consideration.
Limitations: The technology is immature. Reaction times must be very fast. Interceptors must hit warheads to destroy them, which is difficult. Lasers also need chemical fuel or electrical power which is not readily available in space.
Back to top
----4. Hypersonic aircraft (scramjet)
Launched from a standard runway, a hypersonic aircraft could fly faster than Mach 5 to strike anywhere in the world within two hours. It would also have enough thrust to deliver a satellite to low-Earth orbit.
How they work: To get off the ground from a runway, a hypersonic plane would either hitch a ride on a conventional plane, or have its own conventional jet engine. That engine would carry the hypersonic craft to an altitude where air density and resistance are less. Here it would reach supersonic speeds and then shift to its scramjet engine. The scramjet scoops up air and mixes it with fuel so it burns as the mixture flows through the engine at supersonic speeds. This means scramjets can achieve some of the speed of a rocket without having to carry heavy oxidiser (to mix with fuel), as rockets do.
Limitations: The technology is immature, with many engineering issues unresolved. Scramjets engines can not start until the plane flies faster than the speed of sound. Plus, hypersonic flight has so far only been demonstrated for small unpiloted craft carried to high speed by other vehicles - and other planned experimental craft are too small to carry a pilot.
Back to top
----5. Active Denial System (millimetre-wave weapon)
Millimetre-wave or microwave beams supposedly make people flee without injuring them. They might typically be powered by a generator fitted to a Humvee, in crowd control situations.
How it works:A 2-metre antenna and mobile generator produce and aim a beam of 95-gigahertz (3-millimetre) radiation. The top 0.3 mm of skin absorbs millimetre waves, causing intense pain within five seconds, so people flee quickly, if they can.
Limitations: Serious injury is possible if people cannot escape from the beam; skin burns within minutes. The beam also superheats metal objects like coins, earrings, or spectacle frames, which can then burn skin.
Back to top
----6. Nuclear missiles
Nuclear missiles are able to deliver unmatched destructive power anywhere in the world, making them the ultimate level of military power.
How they work: One or more nuclear warheads are mounted on a ballistic missile, and launched vertically. The rocket burns out in the upper atmosphere, then coasts to its programmed destination where the bomb descends and explodes.
Limitations:These weapons are so frighteningly destructive that they have never been used in war (the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs – which had much less destructive power - were dropped from aircraft). Plus, the launch site and trajectory are easy to identify, inviting retaliation in kind from the target nation.
Back to top
----7. Stun guns (Tasers)
Tasers disable people with bursts of high-voltage electricity, allowing police to subdue them without lasting injury.
How it works: A special gun fires darts on wires. These deliver a pulse of electricity that temporarily disrupts control of voluntary muscles. Police target body or legs to avoid vulnerable areas such as head and neck. Without muscle control, people fall to the ground.
Limitations: Tasered people may be injured when they fall to ground. Darts can injure the throat, eyes, or genitals. Pulses can cause muscle spasms or seizures, and deaths have been reported. One pulse does not stop all people, and there have been allegations of misuse of stunguns, and claims of their use in torture.
Back to top
----8. High-power microwave weapons (e-bombs)
High-power microwave pulses can knock out computers, electronics, and electrical power, crippling military and civilian systems.
How they work:A rapid increase in electromagnetic field strength during a pulse, induces surges of electric current in conductors. This burns out electrical equipment – semiconductor chips are particularly vulnerable. Special bombs generate the most intense pulses covering large areas, but unmanned aircraft carrying smaller generators can pinpoint targets.
Limitations: The effects can depend on local conditions, and are hard to predict. Sensitive enemy military equipment can be shielded, and microwaves also disable friendly electronics within range.
Back to top
----9. Layered missile defence
Layered missile defence offers the best chance to shoot down attacking ballistic missiles.
How it works: Multiple anti-missile systems are deployed to target ballistic missiles during different stages of the attacking missile's flight: (1) The boost phase, while the rockets firing engines makes it easy to spot; (2) Mid-course, while the warhead coasts in space, and; (3) The terminal phase, as it approaches the target. Each phase, or layer, of defence increases the chance of successful destruction of the missile.
Limitations: Depends on efficiency of each layer. The system is very expensive to build, test, deploy, and maintain. The initial boost phase is easiest to target, but requires extremely fast reaction times.
Back to top
----10. Information warfare
This technique interferes with the flow of information vital to enemy operations, while defending friendly channels of communication.
How it works:Information warfare specifically targets communication networks and computers. Expert computer hackers, called crackers, might break into or overload military computers and networks, or spread computer viruses. Jammers might also block radio and television transmissions. Misinformation is circulated deliberately.
Limitations: The US relies more on computers and communications than most of their potential adversaries – making the technique a potential threat to them, and of limted use against low-tech opponents. Both side are also vulnerable to mis-information.
1. Autonomous weapons
2. High-energy lasers
3. Space-based weapons
4. Hypersonic aircraft (Scramjet)
5. Active Denial System
6. Nuclear missiles
7. Stun guns (Tasers)
8. High-power microwave weapons (e-bombs)
9. Layered missile defence
10. Information warfare
----1. Autonomous weapons
These are robotic vehicles, under development, that search and destroy enemy troops and equipment on the ground or in the air, without risk to friendly troops - theoretically.
How they work: Onboard computers interpret sensor data to identify and target hostile forces with built-in weapons. Robots may query human controllers at remote sites for the go-ahead to fire, and friendly forces may carry transponders that identify them as “friends”.
Limitations: Difficulty of quickly and reliably discriminating between hostile forces and neutral or friendly parties or objects, such as civilians, cows, trees, and tractors. Systems that check with human controllers are vulnerable to communication failures. Malfunctioning robots could fire wildly at anything.
Back to top
----2. High-energy lasers
These are powerful energy beams that travel through air or space in straight lines. They travel at the speed of light and can strike over distances of thousands of kilometres.
How they work: Large mirrors focus powerful laser beams onto a small spot on the target. The heat produced burns through the surface of the target, disrupting flight, disabling warheads, or igniting fuels or explosives.
Limitations: It needs much more energy to do damage than bullets, which destroy targets with their momentum. Powerful lasers need fuel or electrical power and are also very bulky (the US Airborne Laser fills a Boeing 747). Travelling through air and turbulence can disperse the energy of the beam.
Back to top
----3. Space-based weapons
Space is the ultimate high ground, so weapons in orbit would have the ability to see and zap anything on the ground, in the air, or nearby in space.
How they work: The main mission of space-based weapons would be to defend against ballistic missiles fired at targets on Earth. Fleets of interceptors or battle stations would be stationed in orbit, poised to fire at any attacking missiles. The leading approach now is solid projectiles – such as tungsten rods – that would impact missiles. But laser battle stations are also under consideration.
Limitations: The technology is immature. Reaction times must be very fast. Interceptors must hit warheads to destroy them, which is difficult. Lasers also need chemical fuel or electrical power which is not readily available in space.
Back to top
----4. Hypersonic aircraft (scramjet)
Launched from a standard runway, a hypersonic aircraft could fly faster than Mach 5 to strike anywhere in the world within two hours. It would also have enough thrust to deliver a satellite to low-Earth orbit.
How they work: To get off the ground from a runway, a hypersonic plane would either hitch a ride on a conventional plane, or have its own conventional jet engine. That engine would carry the hypersonic craft to an altitude where air density and resistance are less. Here it would reach supersonic speeds and then shift to its scramjet engine. The scramjet scoops up air and mixes it with fuel so it burns as the mixture flows through the engine at supersonic speeds. This means scramjets can achieve some of the speed of a rocket without having to carry heavy oxidiser (to mix with fuel), as rockets do.
Limitations: The technology is immature, with many engineering issues unresolved. Scramjets engines can not start until the plane flies faster than the speed of sound. Plus, hypersonic flight has so far only been demonstrated for small unpiloted craft carried to high speed by other vehicles - and other planned experimental craft are too small to carry a pilot.
Back to top
----5. Active Denial System (millimetre-wave weapon)
Millimetre-wave or microwave beams supposedly make people flee without injuring them. They might typically be powered by a generator fitted to a Humvee, in crowd control situations.
How it works:A 2-metre antenna and mobile generator produce and aim a beam of 95-gigahertz (3-millimetre) radiation. The top 0.3 mm of skin absorbs millimetre waves, causing intense pain within five seconds, so people flee quickly, if they can.
Limitations: Serious injury is possible if people cannot escape from the beam; skin burns within minutes. The beam also superheats metal objects like coins, earrings, or spectacle frames, which can then burn skin.
Back to top
----6. Nuclear missiles
Nuclear missiles are able to deliver unmatched destructive power anywhere in the world, making them the ultimate level of military power.
How they work: One or more nuclear warheads are mounted on a ballistic missile, and launched vertically. The rocket burns out in the upper atmosphere, then coasts to its programmed destination where the bomb descends and explodes.
Limitations:These weapons are so frighteningly destructive that they have never been used in war (the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs – which had much less destructive power - were dropped from aircraft). Plus, the launch site and trajectory are easy to identify, inviting retaliation in kind from the target nation.
Back to top
----7. Stun guns (Tasers)
Tasers disable people with bursts of high-voltage electricity, allowing police to subdue them without lasting injury.
How it works: A special gun fires darts on wires. These deliver a pulse of electricity that temporarily disrupts control of voluntary muscles. Police target body or legs to avoid vulnerable areas such as head and neck. Without muscle control, people fall to the ground.
Limitations: Tasered people may be injured when they fall to ground. Darts can injure the throat, eyes, or genitals. Pulses can cause muscle spasms or seizures, and deaths have been reported. One pulse does not stop all people, and there have been allegations of misuse of stunguns, and claims of their use in torture.
Back to top
----8. High-power microwave weapons (e-bombs)
High-power microwave pulses can knock out computers, electronics, and electrical power, crippling military and civilian systems.
How they work:A rapid increase in electromagnetic field strength during a pulse, induces surges of electric current in conductors. This burns out electrical equipment – semiconductor chips are particularly vulnerable. Special bombs generate the most intense pulses covering large areas, but unmanned aircraft carrying smaller generators can pinpoint targets.
Limitations: The effects can depend on local conditions, and are hard to predict. Sensitive enemy military equipment can be shielded, and microwaves also disable friendly electronics within range.
Back to top
----9. Layered missile defence
Layered missile defence offers the best chance to shoot down attacking ballistic missiles.
How it works: Multiple anti-missile systems are deployed to target ballistic missiles during different stages of the attacking missile's flight: (1) The boost phase, while the rockets firing engines makes it easy to spot; (2) Mid-course, while the warhead coasts in space, and; (3) The terminal phase, as it approaches the target. Each phase, or layer, of defence increases the chance of successful destruction of the missile.
Limitations: Depends on efficiency of each layer. The system is very expensive to build, test, deploy, and maintain. The initial boost phase is easiest to target, but requires extremely fast reaction times.
Back to top
----10. Information warfare
This technique interferes with the flow of information vital to enemy operations, while defending friendly channels of communication.
How it works:Information warfare specifically targets communication networks and computers. Expert computer hackers, called crackers, might break into or overload military computers and networks, or spread computer viruses. Jammers might also block radio and television transmissions. Misinformation is circulated deliberately.
Limitations: The US relies more on computers and communications than most of their potential adversaries – making the technique a potential threat to them, and of limted use against low-tech opponents. Both side are also vulnerable to mis-information.
top ten future technology
This was a wish list that was originally intended to provide inspiration for inventors. First written in April of 1997, I thought it might be fun to follow-up each year and find out if anyone has been working on these ideas for future technology. I have included websites for you to "check out" inventions that are, are close to, or kinda close to what I am hoping will soon exist in the technology available to us presently.
1. Future Technology - Free Energy
I want my energy bill to come only once, not every month. So be it solar or electro-magnetic, please make it personal and portable with batteries that keep going and going.
Check out - D.O.E. Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
2. Future Technology - Transporter
What kind of technology is required to scramble a person's atoms and send them for regrouping in foreign lands all in the blink of an eye? Imagine, I could work in Tokyo and sleep in Paris. Beam me up.
Check out - Quantum Teleportation or Scientists Report 'Teleported' Data
3. Future Technology - Replicator Technology (Stuff for Free)
Every time I saw Captain Picard (Star Trek Next Generation) ordering his Earl Grey Tea or Councilor Troy getting a triple alien fudge dessert from one of those replicators on the Enterprise, it made me jealous. I imagine you could send the dirty dishes back to the void where they came from. BTW, a replicator is a device that uses transporter technology to dematerialize quantities of matter and then rematerialize that matter in another form.
4. Future Technology - Universal Communicator
Forget long distant bills and roaming charges (especially with me working in Tokyo and sleeping in Paris). I want a very small device that lets me talk and see anyone, anywhere and anytime. All for the price of the device and please throw in the ability for universal translation for a modest surcharge.
Check out - Not quite what I meant however, there is Intel's Universal Communicators
5. Future Technology - The Cure
For you name it.
Check out - Curing Brain Diseases by Growing New Cells?
6. Future Technology - Fountain of Youth
As a woman I consider this as a no-brainer desire for future technology. The "Fountain of Youth" was a legendary spring that renders anyone who drinks of its waters permanently young. What is the real future technology that will extend our lives and keep us looking youthful without surgery?
Check out - Scientists discover cellular 'fountain of youth' and Anti-Aging Medicine or Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine.
7. Future Technology - Protective Force Field
To shield me from the sticks and stones.
Check out - A Force Field for Astronauts?
8. Future Technology - Flying Cars
I want a smooth ride all the way and I hope it's a convertible.
Check out - The Skycar, How Flying Cars Will Work, Flying Cars Ready To Take Off, Flying car more economical than SUV, or Retrofuture.
9. Future Technology - The Battery Operated Butler Did It
What can I say - housework sucks.
Check out - Robotics and Robots
10. Future Technology - The Time Machine
I have a few famous inventors I would love to meet in person and the idea of messing with the time-space continuum is exciting as well.
Check out - Attention Chronic Argonauts and fellow Time Travelers
1. Future Technology - Free Energy
I want my energy bill to come only once, not every month. So be it solar or electro-magnetic, please make it personal and portable with batteries that keep going and going.
Check out - D.O.E. Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
2. Future Technology - Transporter
What kind of technology is required to scramble a person's atoms and send them for regrouping in foreign lands all in the blink of an eye? Imagine, I could work in Tokyo and sleep in Paris. Beam me up.
Check out - Quantum Teleportation or Scientists Report 'Teleported' Data
3. Future Technology - Replicator Technology (Stuff for Free)
Every time I saw Captain Picard (Star Trek Next Generation) ordering his Earl Grey Tea or Councilor Troy getting a triple alien fudge dessert from one of those replicators on the Enterprise, it made me jealous. I imagine you could send the dirty dishes back to the void where they came from. BTW, a replicator is a device that uses transporter technology to dematerialize quantities of matter and then rematerialize that matter in another form.
4. Future Technology - Universal Communicator
Forget long distant bills and roaming charges (especially with me working in Tokyo and sleeping in Paris). I want a very small device that lets me talk and see anyone, anywhere and anytime. All for the price of the device and please throw in the ability for universal translation for a modest surcharge.
Check out - Not quite what I meant however, there is Intel's Universal Communicators
5. Future Technology - The Cure
For you name it.
Check out - Curing Brain Diseases by Growing New Cells?
6. Future Technology - Fountain of Youth
As a woman I consider this as a no-brainer desire for future technology. The "Fountain of Youth" was a legendary spring that renders anyone who drinks of its waters permanently young. What is the real future technology that will extend our lives and keep us looking youthful without surgery?
Check out - Scientists discover cellular 'fountain of youth' and Anti-Aging Medicine or Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine.
7. Future Technology - Protective Force Field
To shield me from the sticks and stones.
Check out - A Force Field for Astronauts?
8. Future Technology - Flying Cars
I want a smooth ride all the way and I hope it's a convertible.
Check out - The Skycar, How Flying Cars Will Work, Flying Cars Ready To Take Off, Flying car more economical than SUV, or Retrofuture.
9. Future Technology - The Battery Operated Butler Did It
What can I say - housework sucks.
Check out - Robotics and Robots
10. Future Technology - The Time Machine
I have a few famous inventors I would love to meet in person and the idea of messing with the time-space continuum is exciting as well.
Check out - Attention Chronic Argonauts and fellow Time Travelers
major geeks downloads
Feedreader 3.11 [ 4.40 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Lightweight aggregator that supports RSS and ATOM formats.
XDESK 4.50.981 Beta [ 1.41 Mb | Shareware | Win All]
A powerful & stable Virtual Desktop Manager.
n-Track Studio 5.1.1 Build 2313 [ 17 Mb | Shareware $49.00 | Win All]
Use your computer as a complete recording studio.
PerfectDisk 8.0 Build 66 [ 19.1 Mb | Shareware $39.95+ | Win All]
Disk defragmentation, optimization, and free space consolidation.
BitComet 2007.11.01 Beta [ 4.86 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Bittorrent compatible p2p file-sharing utility.
Spyware Doctor - Starter Edition 5.1.0.272 [ 14.7 Mb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
Free version of this award-winning spyware protection suite.
Trend Micro Pattern File for Windows 4.807.00 [ 24.7 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Latest antivirus pattern file for all Trend Micro products.
Wise Disk Cleaner 2.91 [ 1.14 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Free up disk space by deleting junk files that are no longer used.
Maxthon 2 2.0.5.7684 [ 2.45 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
IE based browser that uses very little resources with less plug-ins.
The Gimp 2.4.1 [ 14.4 Mb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
GNU Image Manipulation Program.
RJ TextEd 4.10 Beta 2 [ 6.80 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
A web development tool and a Unicode text editor with many features.
Aim Ad Hack 5.50 [ 317 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Aim Ad Hack will effectively remove all the ads from AIM.
WinTools.net Professional 8.8.1 [ 959 Kb | Shareware $39.95 | Win All]
A suite of tools for increasing operating system performance.
Volumouse 1.52 [ 83 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Control many system aspects with your mouse wheel.
Microsoft Virtual Earth 3D 2.0 Beta [ 925 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Virtual Earth 3D brings you another step closer to knowing "what it is like out there".
Riva Tuner 2.06 [ 2.03 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Powerful tweaking utility for NVIDIA and ATI display adapters.
FileZilla 3.0.3 RC1 [ 2.76 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
A fast and reliable FTP client.
FeedDemon 2.6 Beta 2 [ 3.64 Mb | Shareware $29.95 | Win All]
Quickly explore the world of RSS from your desktop.
Network Event Viewer 7.0.0.48 [ 3.01 Mb | Shareware $99.00 | Win All]
Manage, consolidate, view, sort, search, and monitor Windows Event Logs
Off Base
Daily Reviews Summary 11/01/07 @ NT Compatible
Way Off Base
Youtube video leads to guilty plea
Grandmother celebrates 100th birthday by becoming world's oldest paraglider
DOG THE BOUNTY HUNTER'S RACIST RANT
Army tests James Bond style tank that is 'invisible'
10-31-2007
Passmark BurnInTest Professional 5.3 (Build 1012) [ 5.25 Mb | Shareware $49.00 | Win All]
Simultaneously test all major sub-systems of your computer for reliability and stability.
Belarc Advisor 7.2.22.0 [ 1.48 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Builds detailed profile of your installed software and hardware.
Becky! Internet Mail 2.42.00 [ 2.40 Mb | Shareware $40.00 | Win All]
A multi-featured E-mail client for Windows.
JaBack 7.41 [ 24,3 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
JaBack is backup software with advanced automation features.
Miro 0.9.9.9 [ 24.4 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Makes video on the Internet way less frustrating and way more enjoyable.
YamiPod 1.7 Beta 2 [ 4.49 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
A freeware application to efficiently manage your iPod.
FreeRIP 3.03 [ 1.70 Mb | Adware | Win All]
Application that can convert your audio CDs to a number of audio file formats.
McAfee Virus SuperDAT Definitions Update 5153 [ 22 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Update your McAfee based scan engine and virus pattern to detect the latest viruses.
Norton Virus Definitions 2003-07 October 31, 2007 [ 19.2 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Ensure your Norton AntiVirus product contains the most up-to-date detection & prevention.
Norton Virus Definitions 2008 October 31, 2007 [ 17.1 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Ensure your Norton AntiVirus product contains the most up-to-date detection & prevention.
AVG Anti-Virus Updates October 31, 2007 [ 15.4 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Manually update your AVG Free Edition when the automatic update fails.
F-Prot Antivirus 6.0.8.0 [ 17.2 Mb | Shareware $29.00 | Win All]
Quick and easy to use antivirus software.
TheBat! Home Edition 3.99.29 [ 5.88 Mb | Shareware $35.00 | Win All]
A powerful, highly configurable, yet easy to use email client.
MagicTweak 4.11 [ 1.48 Mb | Shareware $39.95 | Win All]
Optimize and personalize Windows look, feel and performance.
Mp3tag 2.39d [ 1.54 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Easy-to-use tool to edit metadata (ID3, Vorbis Comments and APE) of common audio formats.
Alchemy Remote Control PRO 3.3 [ 1.47 Mb | Shareware $195.00+ | Win All]
View and control network computers without having to leave your own workplace.
Canon RAW Codec 1.2 [ 10.2 Mb | Freeware | Vista]
a software plug-in that enables the import and display of .CR2 RAW images.
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware 0.69 Beta [ 959 Kb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
Detect and quarantine/remove the malware found on your PC.
Spider Player Basic 2.1 RC2 [ 2.49 Mb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
Multimedia player as well as ripping, streaming, tag editing and more.
ALOAHA PDF Suite 3.0.21 [ 10.1 Mb | Shareware $39.95 | Win All]
Create vector based, high resolution PDF Documents.
Orbit Downloader 2.4.1 [ 2.00 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Super light,easy-to-use and free rich media downloader.
Gom Player 2.1.8.3681 Beta [ 4.48 Mb | Freeware | Win XP/2K/2003]
A multimedia player which can play most of the differently encoded video formats.
Cleanup Assistant 1.1.101 [ 1.66 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Cleanup Assistant is a set of 5 tools that help you keep a clean hard drive.
cPicture LE 1.6.12.8 [ 884 Kb | Shareware $17.95 | Win All]
cPicture LE is software to view and work with your digital photos.
Picasa 2.7 Build 37.36 [ 5.93 Mb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
Organize all the pictures on your PC with this free tool from Google.
Karen's Computer Profiler 2.5.3 [ 803 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Learn more than 100 interesting facts about your computer.
Spybot Search and Destroy Update October 31, 2007 [ 1.90 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Update your Spybot S&D detections without the need for the included WebUpdate.
Off Base
Daily Reviews Summary 10/31/07 @ NT Compatible
PC Power & Cooling 750 Watt Quad Silencer Power Supply @ Bjorn3D
Antec Veris Fusion Black HTPC Case Review @ Tweaknews.net
Lian Li PC-B58 Mid-Tower Case: Non-Production Release @ Benchmark Reviews
Way Off Base
Halloween History Quiz
Worst Halloween costumes of all time
Peters Powers 'victim' speaks out
Doing what Detroit says is impossible
Police: Man drove drunk with kids in car, headbutts cruiser
New list reveals less X-rated media permitted north of border
8 Halloween Costumes Sure To Piss Everyone Off
Woman claims pet-sitter made her pig fat
Toddler Dies After Hooters Mom Forgets Child in Hot Car
Animator vs Animation II...
Sex ban on the Airbus A380
Iowa puts tax on pumpkins (unless you eat them)
Wait, don't eat that: candy scandal stuns Japan
10-30-2007
StartUpLite 1.06 [ 200 Kb | Freeware | NT/200x/XP/Vista]
Disable or remove all known unnecessary startup entries from your computer.
AddaButton 4.1 [ 1.7 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Add buttons directly to Internet Explorer's own toolbar.
Trojan Guarder Gold Version 7.40 [ 1.29 Mb | Shareware $49.95 | Win All]
Provide assistance to protect and manage your computer.
Pitaschio 2.17 [ 59.3 Kb | Freeware | 2K/XP/Vista32]
Freeware which makes it more convenient to use Microsoft Windows.
DameWare NT Utilities 6.6.2.1 [ 23.8 Mb | Shareware $289.00+ | Win All]
An enterprise system management for Windows NT/2000/XP.
Karen's Directory Printer 5.2.5 [ 1.26 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Print the names, and information, of all folders and files on your computer.
Vir.IT eXplorer Lite 6.2.30-31 [ 2.09 Mb | Shareware $29.90 | Win All]
Scans your computer for virus, worm, trojan, backdoor, dialer & more.
save2pc 3.12 [ 2.19 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
A free tool that downloads videos from YouTube.
AnyDVD & AnyDVD HD 6.1.9.4 [ 1.89 Mb | Shareware $39.00 | Win All]
Remove copy protection, unwanted features and more from any DVD.
Nvidia ForceWare for Vista 32-Bit 169.04 Beta [ 65.5 Mb | Freeware | Vista]
Vista driver for GeForce 6, 7, and 8 series GPUs.
Nvidia ForceWare for Vista 64-Bit 169.04 Beta [ 48.6 Mb | Freeware | Vista]
Vista driver for driver for GeForce 6, 7, and 8 series GPUs.
NVIDIA Forceware (2K\XP\MCE) 169.04 Beta [ 37.4 Mb | Freeware | Win XP/2K]
Windows 2K, XP, Media Center Edition driver for all NVIDIA graphics cards.
NVIDIA Forceware 64 Bit (2K\XP) 169.04 Beta [ 46.8 Mb | Freeware | Win XP/2003]
Windows 2003/XP x64 driver for all NVIDIA graphics cards.
Yahoo! Messenger 9.0.0.797 Beta [ 407 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Instant messaging allows you to quickly exchange messages with your online friends.
Active Keyboard 3.1 [ 934 Kb | Shareware $24.95 | Win All]
A utility that accelerates your normal computer workflow.
SuperCleaner 2.96 [ 564 Kb | Shareware $38.99 | Win All]
An all in one disk cleaner.
Mz Vista Force 1.5 [ 1. Mb | Freeware | Vista]
Optimize your Windows Vista.
KMPlayer 2.9.3.1396 Beta [ 17 Mb | Freeware | Win XP/2K/2003]
Movie and audio player that supports a wide range of codecs and file formats.
Vista Start Menu 2.61 [ 1.13 Mb | Freeware | Win NT/2K/XP/2003]
Start working with pleasure using the new version of Vista Start Menu.
Amaya 9.99.2 Beta [ 7.03 Mb | Freeware | Win NT/2K/XP/2003]
Web editor used to create and update documents directly on the Web.
NVIDIA BIOS Editor (NiBiTor) 3.5a [ 541 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Change hidden features, sign-on message, etc. on Nvidia cards.
Xfire 1.82.28504 [ 3.26 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Keeps track of when and where gamers are playing PC games online.
IE7pro 1.2 [ 1.57 Mb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
An add-on for IE 7 which adds lots of features and extras.
FreeUndelete 2.0 Updated [ 862 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
A freeware data recovery program for deleted files.
myFairTunes 0.5.7b [ 378 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
myFairTunes is a iTunes/DRM removal tool.
Vista Firewall Control 64-bit 1.2 [ 987 Kb | Freeware | Vista]
Control personal information leakage via controlling application network traffic.
Vista Firewall Control 32-bit 1.2 [ 886 Kb | Freeware | Vista]
Control personal information leakage via controlling application network traffic.
Mass Downloader 3.3.698 SR2 [ 1.95 Mb | Shareware $19.95 | Win All]
Download files from the Web and FTP at maximum speed.
Off Base
Daily Reviews Summary 10/30/07 @ NT Compatible
XFX Geforce 8800 GTS 320 Fatal1ty Video Card Review @ Madshrimps
OCZ Technology 4GB PC2-5400 Vista Upgrade Edition DDR2 Review @ Bigbruin.com
Zerotherm Nirvana NV120 Intel/AMD CPU Cooler Review @ Tweaknews.net
nVidia Chips Comparison Table @ Hardware Secrets
VIZIO 52-inch GV52L 1080p LCD TV Review @ I4U
Way Off Base
Man Buys HDD; Gets Bathroom Tiles Instead
Playtime: Discombobulated
McCanns used fund to pay mortgage
Two Drivers Arrested After Speeding In Ferrari w\video
Three priests set up failed business called Shag
Driver Hit, Killed By His Car
Pregnant Girl Struck; Thonotosassa Woman Jailed
Detectives investigating attempted blackmail against state lawmaker
Man in N.J. Charged with Having Sex with a Corpse
Official Investigation Into Why Some Fake Teeth Contain Extreme Levels Of Lead
Halloween safety: 10 things you and your family should know
Man in zombie costume mistaken for murder victim.
Queen's nephew Viscount Linley blackmail target
Lightweight aggregator that supports RSS and ATOM formats.
XDESK 4.50.981 Beta [ 1.41 Mb | Shareware | Win All]
A powerful & stable Virtual Desktop Manager.
n-Track Studio 5.1.1 Build 2313 [ 17 Mb | Shareware $49.00 | Win All]
Use your computer as a complete recording studio.
PerfectDisk 8.0 Build 66 [ 19.1 Mb | Shareware $39.95+ | Win All]
Disk defragmentation, optimization, and free space consolidation.
BitComet 2007.11.01 Beta [ 4.86 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Bittorrent compatible p2p file-sharing utility.
Spyware Doctor - Starter Edition 5.1.0.272 [ 14.7 Mb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
Free version of this award-winning spyware protection suite.
Trend Micro Pattern File for Windows 4.807.00 [ 24.7 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Latest antivirus pattern file for all Trend Micro products.
Wise Disk Cleaner 2.91 [ 1.14 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Free up disk space by deleting junk files that are no longer used.
Maxthon 2 2.0.5.7684 [ 2.45 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
IE based browser that uses very little resources with less plug-ins.
The Gimp 2.4.1 [ 14.4 Mb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
GNU Image Manipulation Program.
RJ TextEd 4.10 Beta 2 [ 6.80 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
A web development tool and a Unicode text editor with many features.
Aim Ad Hack 5.50 [ 317 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Aim Ad Hack will effectively remove all the ads from AIM.
WinTools.net Professional 8.8.1 [ 959 Kb | Shareware $39.95 | Win All]
A suite of tools for increasing operating system performance.
Volumouse 1.52 [ 83 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Control many system aspects with your mouse wheel.
Microsoft Virtual Earth 3D 2.0 Beta [ 925 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Virtual Earth 3D brings you another step closer to knowing "what it is like out there".
Riva Tuner 2.06 [ 2.03 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Powerful tweaking utility for NVIDIA and ATI display adapters.
FileZilla 3.0.3 RC1 [ 2.76 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
A fast and reliable FTP client.
FeedDemon 2.6 Beta 2 [ 3.64 Mb | Shareware $29.95 | Win All]
Quickly explore the world of RSS from your desktop.
Network Event Viewer 7.0.0.48 [ 3.01 Mb | Shareware $99.00 | Win All]
Manage, consolidate, view, sort, search, and monitor Windows Event Logs
Off Base
Daily Reviews Summary 11/01/07 @ NT Compatible
Way Off Base
Youtube video leads to guilty plea
Grandmother celebrates 100th birthday by becoming world's oldest paraglider
DOG THE BOUNTY HUNTER'S RACIST RANT
Army tests James Bond style tank that is 'invisible'
10-31-2007
Passmark BurnInTest Professional 5.3 (Build 1012) [ 5.25 Mb | Shareware $49.00 | Win All]
Simultaneously test all major sub-systems of your computer for reliability and stability.
Belarc Advisor 7.2.22.0 [ 1.48 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Builds detailed profile of your installed software and hardware.
Becky! Internet Mail 2.42.00 [ 2.40 Mb | Shareware $40.00 | Win All]
A multi-featured E-mail client for Windows.
JaBack 7.41 [ 24,3 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
JaBack is backup software with advanced automation features.
Miro 0.9.9.9 [ 24.4 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Makes video on the Internet way less frustrating and way more enjoyable.
YamiPod 1.7 Beta 2 [ 4.49 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
A freeware application to efficiently manage your iPod.
FreeRIP 3.03 [ 1.70 Mb | Adware | Win All]
Application that can convert your audio CDs to a number of audio file formats.
McAfee Virus SuperDAT Definitions Update 5153 [ 22 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Update your McAfee based scan engine and virus pattern to detect the latest viruses.
Norton Virus Definitions 2003-07 October 31, 2007 [ 19.2 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Ensure your Norton AntiVirus product contains the most up-to-date detection & prevention.
Norton Virus Definitions 2008 October 31, 2007 [ 17.1 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Ensure your Norton AntiVirus product contains the most up-to-date detection & prevention.
AVG Anti-Virus Updates October 31, 2007 [ 15.4 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Manually update your AVG Free Edition when the automatic update fails.
F-Prot Antivirus 6.0.8.0 [ 17.2 Mb | Shareware $29.00 | Win All]
Quick and easy to use antivirus software.
TheBat! Home Edition 3.99.29 [ 5.88 Mb | Shareware $35.00 | Win All]
A powerful, highly configurable, yet easy to use email client.
MagicTweak 4.11 [ 1.48 Mb | Shareware $39.95 | Win All]
Optimize and personalize Windows look, feel and performance.
Mp3tag 2.39d [ 1.54 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Easy-to-use tool to edit metadata (ID3, Vorbis Comments and APE) of common audio formats.
Alchemy Remote Control PRO 3.3 [ 1.47 Mb | Shareware $195.00+ | Win All]
View and control network computers without having to leave your own workplace.
Canon RAW Codec 1.2 [ 10.2 Mb | Freeware | Vista]
a software plug-in that enables the import and display of .CR2 RAW images.
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware 0.69 Beta [ 959 Kb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
Detect and quarantine/remove the malware found on your PC.
Spider Player Basic 2.1 RC2 [ 2.49 Mb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
Multimedia player as well as ripping, streaming, tag editing and more.
ALOAHA PDF Suite 3.0.21 [ 10.1 Mb | Shareware $39.95 | Win All]
Create vector based, high resolution PDF Documents.
Orbit Downloader 2.4.1 [ 2.00 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Super light,easy-to-use and free rich media downloader.
Gom Player 2.1.8.3681 Beta [ 4.48 Mb | Freeware | Win XP/2K/2003]
A multimedia player which can play most of the differently encoded video formats.
Cleanup Assistant 1.1.101 [ 1.66 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Cleanup Assistant is a set of 5 tools that help you keep a clean hard drive.
cPicture LE 1.6.12.8 [ 884 Kb | Shareware $17.95 | Win All]
cPicture LE is software to view and work with your digital photos.
Picasa 2.7 Build 37.36 [ 5.93 Mb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
Organize all the pictures on your PC with this free tool from Google.
Karen's Computer Profiler 2.5.3 [ 803 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Learn more than 100 interesting facts about your computer.
Spybot Search and Destroy Update October 31, 2007 [ 1.90 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Update your Spybot S&D detections without the need for the included WebUpdate.
Off Base
Daily Reviews Summary 10/31/07 @ NT Compatible
PC Power & Cooling 750 Watt Quad Silencer Power Supply @ Bjorn3D
Antec Veris Fusion Black HTPC Case Review @ Tweaknews.net
Lian Li PC-B58 Mid-Tower Case: Non-Production Release @ Benchmark Reviews
Way Off Base
Halloween History Quiz
Worst Halloween costumes of all time
Peters Powers 'victim' speaks out
Doing what Detroit says is impossible
Police: Man drove drunk with kids in car, headbutts cruiser
New list reveals less X-rated media permitted north of border
8 Halloween Costumes Sure To Piss Everyone Off
Woman claims pet-sitter made her pig fat
Toddler Dies After Hooters Mom Forgets Child in Hot Car
Animator vs Animation II...
Sex ban on the Airbus A380
Iowa puts tax on pumpkins (unless you eat them)
Wait, don't eat that: candy scandal stuns Japan
10-30-2007
StartUpLite 1.06 [ 200 Kb | Freeware | NT/200x/XP/Vista]
Disable or remove all known unnecessary startup entries from your computer.
AddaButton 4.1 [ 1.7 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Add buttons directly to Internet Explorer's own toolbar.
Trojan Guarder Gold Version 7.40 [ 1.29 Mb | Shareware $49.95 | Win All]
Provide assistance to protect and manage your computer.
Pitaschio 2.17 [ 59.3 Kb | Freeware | 2K/XP/Vista32]
Freeware which makes it more convenient to use Microsoft Windows.
DameWare NT Utilities 6.6.2.1 [ 23.8 Mb | Shareware $289.00+ | Win All]
An enterprise system management for Windows NT/2000/XP.
Karen's Directory Printer 5.2.5 [ 1.26 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Print the names, and information, of all folders and files on your computer.
Vir.IT eXplorer Lite 6.2.30-31 [ 2.09 Mb | Shareware $29.90 | Win All]
Scans your computer for virus, worm, trojan, backdoor, dialer & more.
save2pc 3.12 [ 2.19 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
A free tool that downloads videos from YouTube.
AnyDVD & AnyDVD HD 6.1.9.4 [ 1.89 Mb | Shareware $39.00 | Win All]
Remove copy protection, unwanted features and more from any DVD.
Nvidia ForceWare for Vista 32-Bit 169.04 Beta [ 65.5 Mb | Freeware | Vista]
Vista driver for GeForce 6, 7, and 8 series GPUs.
Nvidia ForceWare for Vista 64-Bit 169.04 Beta [ 48.6 Mb | Freeware | Vista]
Vista driver for driver for GeForce 6, 7, and 8 series GPUs.
NVIDIA Forceware (2K\XP\MCE) 169.04 Beta [ 37.4 Mb | Freeware | Win XP/2K]
Windows 2K, XP, Media Center Edition driver for all NVIDIA graphics cards.
NVIDIA Forceware 64 Bit (2K\XP) 169.04 Beta [ 46.8 Mb | Freeware | Win XP/2003]
Windows 2003/XP x64 driver for all NVIDIA graphics cards.
Yahoo! Messenger 9.0.0.797 Beta [ 407 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Instant messaging allows you to quickly exchange messages with your online friends.
Active Keyboard 3.1 [ 934 Kb | Shareware $24.95 | Win All]
A utility that accelerates your normal computer workflow.
SuperCleaner 2.96 [ 564 Kb | Shareware $38.99 | Win All]
An all in one disk cleaner.
Mz Vista Force 1.5 [ 1. Mb | Freeware | Vista]
Optimize your Windows Vista.
KMPlayer 2.9.3.1396 Beta [ 17 Mb | Freeware | Win XP/2K/2003]
Movie and audio player that supports a wide range of codecs and file formats.
Vista Start Menu 2.61 [ 1.13 Mb | Freeware | Win NT/2K/XP/2003]
Start working with pleasure using the new version of Vista Start Menu.
Amaya 9.99.2 Beta [ 7.03 Mb | Freeware | Win NT/2K/XP/2003]
Web editor used to create and update documents directly on the Web.
NVIDIA BIOS Editor (NiBiTor) 3.5a [ 541 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
Change hidden features, sign-on message, etc. on Nvidia cards.
Xfire 1.82.28504 [ 3.26 Mb | Freeware | Win All]
Keeps track of when and where gamers are playing PC games online.
IE7pro 1.2 [ 1.57 Mb | Freeware | Win 2K/03/XP/Vista]
An add-on for IE 7 which adds lots of features and extras.
FreeUndelete 2.0 Updated [ 862 Kb | Freeware | Win All]
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some miracles do happen.......
Life in an Age of Miracles
With its July 1991 cover story, "Do You Believe in Miracles?", Life magazine became one of the first mainstream media sources in the US to acknowledge the thousands of unexplained, 'miraculous' phenomena that have been occurring world-wide.
"...I did a little digging," said Peter Bonventre, senior editor of Life , "and it turned out there'd been a rash of sacred apparitions all over the world. There was also a boom in religious book sales." Then he wondered: "Are Americans turning to spiritual values as a reaction against the greed binge of the 80s? I think so. And along with the fall of Communism, there's been a resurgence of the spirit in Eastern Europe too. There's a world-wide spiritual revival, and it's one of the great stories of our time ..."
The cover story describes the apparitions of the Virgin Mary which have been taking place in Medjugorje (in the former Yugoslavia) during the previous ten years. As similar appearances have been occurring unreported in Africa, Korea and the Ukraine since the early 1980's, part of the miracle is that such a topic finally made the cover of a major American publication.
The early years of this modern "Age of Miracles" also saw the first appearance of the phenomenon known as the Crosses of Light. There was both local and national coverage when they began appearing in El Monte, California, in May 1988. The Crosses have since spread as far as Canada, the Philippines, France and New Zealand. They appear fully-formed as holograms, usually in the frosted glass of bathroom windows. They radiate a golden, healing light and they have touched the lives of hundreds who have come to witness them.
Since the late 1980's the number of miracles being reported and documented has grown so fast that it has reached a point today where it seems like the whole world is being flooded with signs - from weeping icons and bleeding statues to crop circles and encounters with angels. The reports keep coming in, from nearly every country and culture imaginable and witnessed literally by millions of human beings.
The question is not whether something is happening but rather - what in the world is going on?
"The Message of Miracles" (TIME cover story, April 10, 1995)
"Miracles: Their Place in Sanatana Dharma" ( Hinduism Today, December 1995 )
"Modern-day Miracles" A book by Paul Prather (Andrews and McMeel, 1996)
"Belief in Miracles Growing" (The Oregonian, December 1998)
"Millenium Madness in the UK" ( BBC, April 1999 )
"Do You Believe in Miracles?" interview with Benjamin Creme (SI)
"Visions of the Virgin Mary - from Lubbock to Mbuye" by Carrol Joy (SIl)
"Miracles at Home and Abroad" by Charlie Acker
A Message of Hope by Johnathan Shepard
About The Miracles Page
This website is a compilation of articles from the magazine Share International. However the original source for virtually all of the stories is the news media, local, national, and international, including Reuters, CNN, TIME Magazine, and the BBC.
Producer - Jeremy TraylenWebmaster - Charlie Acker Web Design - Michael Hyndman
The Age of Miracles has no end!
"From Calcutta to Canada, from Southall to Singapore, millions of Hindus say they witnessed a miracle. In temples and in houses and village huts, statues of the elephant-headed god, Ganesh and Shiva, the destroyer, were drinking spoonfuls of milk. Yesterday in New Delhi and other Indian Cities, the dairies ran dry. All the milk had gone to the gods."
(THE INDEPENDENT, UK, 23 September 1995)
On Thursday 21 September, 1995, the news swept around the world of the extraordinary miracles of milk-drinking Hindu statues. Never before in history had a simultaneous miracle occurred on such a global scale. Television, radio and newspapers eagerly covered this unique phenomenon, and even sceptical journalists held their milk-filled spoons to the gods - and watched, humbled, as the milk disappeared. The media coverage was extensive, and although scientists and 'experts' created theories of "capillary absorption" and "mass hysteria", the overwhelming evidence and conclusion was that an unexplainable miracle had occurred.
While the media and scientists still struggle to find an explanation for these events, many Hindus believe they are a sign that a great teacher has been born. Journalist Rebecca Mae, from The Daily Express, wrote " most of the worshipper said they only went to the temple occasionally and were certainly not religious fanatics. But they were adamant that a new god had been born to save the world from evil."
At the Southall temple in London where thousands had witnessed the miracles, the chairman Mr Bharbari offered his explanation. "All I know is that our Holy Book says that wherever evil prevails on earth then some great Soul will descend to remove the bondage of evil so that right shall reign. We believe this miracle, and those happening at other Hindu temples, may be a sign that a great Soul has descended, like Lord Krishna or Jesus Christ."
The Hindu milk miracle was not the first such event of recent times, and it certainly has not been the last. The 'Age of Miracles' seems to be building up to a climax with new stories breaking the headlines every month.
Images of Christ Appear
In December 1995, Australian wheat-farmer Julian Webb witnessed the materialisation of Christ's face on a hard slab of granite rock. It was night and Mr Webb saw a shaft of light illuminate the rock. He watched amazed as the face of Christ slowly appeared from nowhere. Some days beforehand he had heard a voice coming from the area of the rock, saying "Let I, the Lord, show you the way." Mr Webb, who rarely attends church, said : "I'm just an ordinary bloke who's experienced a miracle and people can take it or leave it."
Meanwhile, on Christmas Day that year, the Iranian newspaper Akhbar carried the following story: "It is reported in various parts of the city (Teheran) that an image of Jesus has been seen on fences or in windows. People have gathered to witness it for themselves". Reuters news agency quoted local sources as saying that the face had appeared on the wall of somebody's flat and that hundreds of people, Christian and Muslim alike, had flocked to the building. The spontaneous healing of a paralysed girl was also reported.
Crosses of Light
1996 saw the biggest cross of light story since the miraculous holographic images first appeared just over ten years ago. In January CBS television reported on giant glowing crosses, up to 40 feet high, which had suddenly appeared in the windows of a tiny Baptist church in Knoxville, Tennessee. In a radio interview given only four months later, the local pastor said that 29,000 people had come to see the crosses and several healings and other miracles had taken place.
He also told a Share International correspondent that "My board members and I have had some strange assurances that something is really going on. One night, before people came to see the crosses, we were sitting on one side of the church, when several of us saw a tall man wearing a turban appear on the opposite side of the church and walk slowly forward next to the wall. He was absolutely perfect in form.
"Two other people then appeared who had more of a cloudy appearance and they followed him forward. Every couple of steps the last person in line turned slightly towards us and waved in a friendly manner. When they reached the front of the church, they turned around and we expected to see the two followers leading the way back , but the first man was again in front and the others followed, as before. When they had made the walk three times, they disappeared. That certainly caught the attention of some of our members. They're still telling everybody about it!
"And then I got another experience. I had to go to the bathroom one night and on my way back to bed a small cross appeared in the room and I heard a voice say: 'Keep those church doors open and it wont be long till I will be back'. I said: 'Who are you?' Then the cross and the voice disappeared. I thought I was losing my mind for a minute."
Last year the media also carried reports on two other crosses which had recently appeared in California, while on the European continent, the crosses also began appearing in Slovenia for the first time. Crosses of light first appeared in poor Hispanic communities in Southern California in 1986, and have since then spread to other parts of the world.
Angel stories continue to abound.
A UK television documentary called "Entertaining Angels Unawares" claimed that at the end of the 20th century, there are now more reported angel sightings than ever before. A national poll taken in America showed that 69 per cent of the population believed in angels, and that 32 per cent reported an angel encounter. Ten present-day angel encounters were reconstructed on screen, some connected with healings, some giving practical help, and some providing comfort or reassurance in time of distress or anxiety, or bringing about a change in lifestyle.
In one episode Ellie Baker describes a visit to her critically ill husband in Germany. There she was allocated an interpreter, a lady, who sat with her for three days and three nights outside her husband's room. In spite of Ellie's constant prayers his condition did not improve. However during a full hour of prayer at his bedside during which she called on the angels for help, she opened her eyes and saw a 10-foot-high golden angel standing at the foot of the bed. Then her husband opened his eyes and spoke to her.
She was so overcome that she left the room in tears. Outside was her 'interpreter' sitting with a harp in her hand, which she proceeded to play then and there. Thereafter Ellie's husband made what the doctors called a "miraculous recovery".
The Man in White
An even more interesting programme was produced by the Evangelical Broadcasting Company in Holland. The story centred around a church in a slum area of Cairo where parishioners had experienced incredible healings. In one example a doctor told of a woman whose back had been crushed by a 5-ton block of stone. 40 men were needed to remove the stone before she was rushed to the local clinic. She was operated on but nevertheless ended as a paraplegic. However "God's healing power" cured her; she now walks, her crushed vertebrae are sound, her back is straight and she has recovered full control of all bodily functions.
Later in the programme a studio guest of Middle Eastern origin, was introduced as an expert on spiritual developments in that part of the world. He said there was mounting evidence that such miracles were more numerous than one might think and are taking place all over the Middle East and the Gulf States. But it is not only Christians who are having experiences of Jesus or God; many Muslims also see him. People see Jesus in visions and dreams. "Whole villages are visited by the 'man in the white robes' ; people see him and recognise him. They call him Aisa, the Muslim Arabic name for Jesus."
Another programme made by the same broadcaster describes Jews who are having parallel experiences. One studio guest was Historian and author Lance Lambert, a Messianic Jew who believes "that we are in the beginning of an unbelievable movement in the Spirit of God" whereby many Jews "for the first time are discovering that Jeshua ( Jesus ) is the Messiah for Israel. The larger number of Messianic Jews that I know have all had visitations or a supernatural revelation of the person of the Messiah."
In America, homeless people were saying that the Christ was back and that He had been walking among them healing the sick. Meanwhile, Hollywood has obviously spotted a trend and begun to produce films featuring angels and similar themes.
Native Americans
The indigenous world is also being swept by 'Millennium fever'. The most significant of signs for native Americans are the white buffalo that have recently been born in the USA. The first birth was in Colorado in 1993, and a second named Miracle was born in Wisconsin in 1994. A third was born in May, 1996, at a ranch on the Pine Ridge reservation of South Dakota. Of the latest birth, a local medicine man commented, "These are omens, and they are happening in the most unexpected place among the poorest people in the country. They are good omens, if we pay attention to them. For us, this would be something like coming to see Jesus lying in the manger."
In 1996 there was another event experienced by Native Americans which has similarities to the many angel sightings. The media reported on a spiritual renewal that was sweeping through Navajo country after deities appeared in May to two respected tribal women. Thousands of Navajo are now visiting the site in Arizona where this took place.
Virgin Mary manifestations around the globe
1996 was a big year for manifestations associated with the Virgin Mary. Early in the year the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel reported that thousands of people were flocking to the house of Rosa Lopez, in Florida. She was offering messages from the Virgin Mary after seeing visions of both Jesus and Mary in her own home. Others also report witnessing the vision, or noticing an unusual feeling of peace and tranquillity at her house. Pilgrims also reported that the water from the fountain in her garden had healing properties.
Similar events took place when images of the Holy Mother appeared on the roof of a church in San Francisco, and on the inside wall of a small country church in South Australia. Father Lauriola, of the Immaculate Conception Church in San Francisco, told CNN "We have a sign that is pulling our attention toward something supernatural". Some visitors said they could smell the scent of roses and had noticed a very strong presence. There were also reports of healings.
In a Reuters news agency report on the Australian image, the parish priest was quoted as saying "Now everybody's coming in. Sceptics, secular humanists, atheists, doubters, people who have no time for the church, and people who are faithful see it... This has become a people's shrine." A spring of water with healing properties has also been found under the church.
Another San Francisco story came to light last year. Since 1991, a young Filipino man, Carmelo Cortez, has had numerous experiences of the Madonna and is able to manifest detailed images of the Christ, Mary, and others onto rose petals.
One journalist, writing for Signs of Our Times, described how Cortez "took a flower from a vase of fresh white roses which we had brought. One by one, Carmelo placed a petal on our shoulders as we said our prayers. After a few moments, we were asked to take a look at the petals. To our astonishment, what were originally plain white rose petals had now on them the image of the crucified Christ." Others present "cried in exultation" as images of the Madonna, the Sacred Heart, Mother and Child, St Joseph and Child, St Francis of Assisi and many others, appeared on their petals.
Another kind of miracle took place in Toronto, Canada, hundreds of people have been visiting a small Greek Orthodox church, where a painting of the Madonna is shedding tears. According to the church priest the icon began weeping profusely after a Sunday mass, leaving a large puddle below. Visitors soon began pouring in as word of the miracle spread.
Finally the year of Madonna miracles ended back in Florida again when reports were beamed worldwide of a three storey high image of the Virgin Mary which had appeared on the outside of a bank.
1996 Christmas Miracle - Weeping icon at Jesus' birthplace
According to hundreds of eyewitnesses, a painting of Jesus is weeping red tears. The painting is no ordinary icon for it hangs in the Bethlehem Church of the Nativity, above the very spot where Christ is said to have been born.
Many hundreds of Christian pilgrims, of all denominations, together with Jews and Muslims, say they have seen the tears. The weeping was first noticed by the 60 year old Muslim woman who cleans that part of the church every morning.
Sadika Hamdan told reporters that she was working alone in the shrine when suddenly "... a light came from the column and the picture of the Messiah Jesus, peace be upon him, began to cry. It was beautiful, beautiful. He opened and closed his eye and later tears fell, red tears. At first, I was very frightened, and I wondered why Jesus was speaking out to me, a Muslim. But I went and got the brothers, and they saw it too, and we realised it was a miracle. I have been coming to this church for 22 years and it is the first time in history that I have seen such a sight."
At the time of the report about 600 people were visiting the shrine each day, and thousands were expected to attend the Sunday services. As well as the tears, pilgrims have also been reporting that the painting of Jesus was winking at them. There are of course no shortage of sceptics dismissing the whole story, but Stephanie Nolen, writing for a Canadian newspaper, had this to say :
"This reporter went to Bethlehem armed with the double protection of lapsed Catholicism and journalistic cynicism, and joined a crowd of about 100 kerchiefed Cypriot women clutching candles and videocorders. 'Tears, tears,' they were whispering, some with tears in their own eyes. So I looked up - and Jesus winked at me."
(Source - Reuters 28 November; The Globe and Mail, Canada, 4 December; CNN)
To bring this overview up to date please visit Latest Stories!
Miracles do not happen in contradiction to nature,but only in contradiction to what is known to us ofnature.
Saint Augustine
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