Very few panoramics are so spectacular as those offered in Bagan. When it starts to get dark, the high profiles of thousands of pagodas and temples appear on this magical plain, together with palm trees and luxuriant vegetation. We are transported to the ages when this enclave was a glorious reign, with more than 13,000 temples and pagodas. Sigue leyendo
The complexity and aural beauty of the song of the whales and the dolphins is being studied by marine biologists all over the world. The song is composed by a variety of sounds and meanings that have led many investigators to theorize that whales have their own language with a particular grammar and a hierarchic structure similar to the human sintaxis. Does this language based on frequencies resonating all over the seas and oceans as undecipherable and angelical songs hold the planetary secrets?
Beyond the semantic field of these songs, we can appreciate that this sound-based language contains the fractal language that permeates the Universe. If we can see the galactic spiral in the Fibonacci sequence, in fingerprints, in metereological systems or in a snail, it is also possible to observe part of this formal code in the song of the whales and dolphins, thus unifying the whole Universe under a geometric correspondence. It wouldn’t be exaggerated to say that inside those frequencies there are mandalas, mountains, galaxies and imperceptible elements that reflect the harmony underlying the matter. Sigue leyendo
Project Yosemite is un video recorded using the timelapse technique in the Yosemite National Park. The music accompanying this work is breathtaking and recreates sensations that are hard to explain.
The project is a collaboration between Sheldon Neill and Colin Delehanty, who became friends through Vimeo. These complete strangers embarked in a journey that required several trips to Yosemite. They witnessed sunsets and sundowns, shooting stars flying across the universe, the slow motion of the time compressed in just a few seconds. And all this from different areas of such an extent place as the Yosemite National Park; the result is a video that connects our consciousness with those moments and makes us vibrate. This experience has encouraged his creators to keep on catching the beauty of our planet and are already planning new projects. Sigue leyendo
The rise in fuel prices has seen greater awareness and a wider concern for what life will be like when the oil runs out. This has seen interest in less chemical dependant farming methods bringing permaculture to the forefront of discussion and debate.
First of all, we will give you a brief definition of permaculture:
Permaculture is an Interdisciplinary Earth Science which encompasses all kinds of Appropriate Technologies and Sustainable Design Methodologies, such as; Renewable Energy, Water Conservation, Organic Food Production, Ecological Building Techniques, Micro-Economics and much much more. Permaculture offers Practical Solutions using Design Principles drawn from the Observation of Natural Systems. From Individual Homes to Entire Bio-Regions, Permaculture has the potential to Repair Damaged Landscapes, Build Capacity in Communities and replace Apathy with Self Empowerment. Sigue leyendo
By this point, regarding apocalyptic predictions of the ending of the Mayan long-count calendar’s grand cycle later this year, you’re probably either a) sick and tired of hearing about it, b) already tucked away in a survival shelter clutching your rifle, or c) scratching you’re head and muttering “Mayan, calendar, ending, huh?”.
But what about actual modern-day Mayans?
It turns out that the descendants of the ancient Mayans are far more concerned about current environmental problems than they are about their old calendar.
Antonio Mendoza, of Mayan activist group Oxlajuj Ajpop:
There are leaders who let themselves be carried away by what they hear…and they are worried that a catastrophe will happen, but none of that is true.
What does cause us a great deal of concern is how to bring people together in the effort to refocus our behavior with respect to nature, global warming, and the neoliberal policies that only extract oil and minerals and install large factories, posing a serious threat to humanity. … The idea [behind Mayan organizations in Guatemala coming together in 2012] is to come together in unity and solidarity and salvage the valuable Maya knowledge about nature and Mother Earth.
This new stage is extremely important for reflection and analysis about human coexistence and nature.
Modern Mayans speaking up for environmental protection and protection of Mother Earth, and against neoliberal trade policies and extractive industries, is just another example of a wider Central and South American movement with roots in indigenous cultures speaking up for a different vision of humanity’s relationship with the planet.
At the World People’s Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth, held in Bolivia, the following rights for Mother Earth, for Pachamama, were agreed upon:
The right to life and to exist; the right to continue vital cycles and processes free from human alteration; the right to pure water and clean air; the right to balance; the right to not be polluted; and the right to not have cellular structure modified or genetically altered. Controversially, it will also enshrined the right of nature “to not be affected by mega-infrastructure and development projects that affect the balance of ecosystems and the local inhabitant communities.”
The possibilities of what you can make with makedo are limited only by the materials you find and your imagination.
Wouldn’t you love to make play objects, kid’s costumes, furniture, decorations for the home and well, just about anything you can think of from the materials around you? makedo makes it possible and impossibly fun, as it is a connector system that enables materials including cardboard, plastic and fabric to easily join together to form new objects or structures. When you’re done playing, simply pull it apart to reuse over and over again. Sigue leyendo
When building contractor Guy Baker set out to build a weekend cabin for his wife and three boys in Wedowee, Alabama, his goals were quite simple. He wanted to build it using the scraps and salvage that he had collected over the years, and he wanted to teach his sons—none of whom had any construction experience—how to build. “I wasn’t about to raise three boys who wouldn’t know how to work and get really tired and sweat and bleed,” Guy says. “This project turned them into three fine young men. It taught them values and character, respect and responsibility.”
Sigue leyendo
Crater Lake, USA; Photo by Andrew Smith
The following places and landscapes are 100% real, although these seem to be pure Photoshop magic or the result of somebody’s imagination. Enjoy the beauty and uniqueness of our planet! Sigue leyendo
Sophie Windsor Clive and Liberty Smith were having fun with their canoe when they witnessed the most amazing view they can remember. The result is Murmuration, an astonishing and touching video that perfectly captures one of the most beautiful phenomena of Nature: the dance of thousands of starlings, just above the two of them.
Thousands of consciousnesses melting together, retaining their individuality, but feeling the wholeness; this creates an overwhelming beauty. Plants are aware of it, the birds and the mountains are also aware of it, and more and more people are starting to do so. We hope you enjoy this divine union! Sigue leyendo
It’s a bit of a shame that the easiest way to describe this magnificent structure requires reference to a cartoon from the 1960s, but the way in which it incorporates its natural setting defies most conventional description. Located in the Fafe mountains of northern Portugal, A Casa do Penedo, or “the House of Stone,” was built between four large boulders found on the site. Although the house may seem rustic, it is not lacking in amenities, which include a fireplace and a swimming pool–carved out of one of the large rocks. But, as word has spread, the sleepy little house has had visitors venturing to see it in droves. Sigue leyendo