Tuetego - indexer

indexer › New article
7 years ago

The 16th/17th century priest and educator Peter Fourier is remembered on 9th December. Peter Fourier was born in Lorraine (now part of eastern France) in 1565. He attended the Jesuit university at Pont à Mousson and became a member of the Regular Canons of St Augustine at Chamousey. He later ... Read more

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7 years

Violeta › Very nice article

7 years

carmen3521 › Good content!?

7 years

Jelenajeca › this is so nice article

7 years

Deliana › Interesting article!

7 years

svetle76 › Very nice article

7 years

Ryanskie › Good article..

7 years

Explorer2017 › Thanks for this info. This is the first time that I have heard about him.

7 years

indexer › @Explorer2017 I'm not surprised - there are thousands of little-known saints!

7 years

Explorer2017 › @indexer ?

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6 years

Shavkat › Nice work of art

6 years

5 years

Strabunica013 › Good article..?

5 years

indexer › New article
7 years ago

Bird’s-foot (Ornithopus perpusillus) gets its name from its slightly curved, pointed pods, which could be seen as resembling bird’s claws. It is common throughout Britain, apart from the far north, preferring well-drained sandy or gravelly soils. Although it is a native British species, bird... Read more

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7 years

frenchqueen › I wonder if it could thrive in a tropical country .

7 years

indexer › @frenchqueen Unlikely, I would have thought. This is a plant that thrives in temperate regions.

7 years

svetle76 › ????

7 years

6 years

Shavkat › It is nice to have them in the yard.

6 years

indexer › New article
7 years ago

The Vela Supernova Remnant is an object within the constellation of Vela, which can only be seen in the southern Hemisphere. It is about 6,000 light years away. Around 10,000 years ago a massive star exploded as a supernova that would have been easily visible from Earth. It has been estimated tha... Read more

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7 years

blissfulliberty › This is interesting. When I was young I used to read comics about UFOs and I dreamed of becoming an astronaut.. :)

7 years

Frenki › Very interesting article. Astrnomy always amaze me :)

7 years

indexer › @blissfulliberty Has the dream died?

7 years

blissfulliberty › @indexer i dream a lot. now not to become an astronaut but to read the stars.. hahaha.. :)

7 years

indexer › @blissfulliberty Yup - I'll buy that one!

7 years

svetle76 › Very interesting article

7 years

indexer › New article
7 years ago

In 1987 Marie Jones, a playwright in Northern Ireland, wrote a play called “Somewhere Over the Balcony” that is set in Belfast at some time after the “Troubles” but when they were very fresh in people’s minds. At one point in the play a character talks about the fact that the Troubles h... Read more

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7 years

maca1 › Interesting artikle

7 years

blissfulliberty › while i am reading it rains so hard outside and it s so loud on the rooftop. my concern is flood may happen somewhere...
yeahh.. back to money.. inflation is so high today and money must be spent wisely. i am worried that basic commodities like rice and meat cost higher than they used to.. inflation is really felt right now.. :)

7 years

svetle76 › ????

7 years

indexer › New article
7 years ago

Great Dunmow is a village is Essex (half way between Bishop’s Stortford and Braintree) that owes its fame to a custom that has been running unbroken since the 12th century and which is mentioned in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. Married couples are put on trial to prove the strength of their marriage and, should they convince a judge and jury, win the prize of a side (or “flitch”) of bacon.

Dunmow and its flitch

The custom is supposed to have started when the lord of the manor and his wife went in disguise to the prior of the local monastery and asked him to bless their marriage, which had lasted for a year and a day. The prior rewarded their selfless devotion to each other with a prize of a flitch of bacon, and, ever since that time, that has been the prize on offer to married couples who, during their marriage of at least a year and a day, have never “wished themselves unmarried again”.

Of course, just saying that you are an utterly devoted couple proves nothing. You have to show the proof by “standing trial”, producing the evidence, and being willing to be cross-examined by barristers in front of a judge and jury, and that is what the Dunmow Flitch Trials are all about.

How the trials are held

The trials only take place in the July of a leap year, hence only during a single month once every four years. Five couples are selected in advance from all those who apply and each couple is tried separately.

These days, the proceedings are conducted in a light-hearted manner, but the trials are real enough in that the judge and barristers are often genuine legal personnel who conduct the trials in full regalia. A jury is sworn in, but these are 18-year-olds from local schools who represent pre-marital purity (one hopes!), with the maidens in white dresses and the bachelors wearing dark suits and ties.

The trials are held in a marquee and there is much processing about and speechifying by officials dressed in medieval costume and wearing hats adorned with flowers. Pride of place in the “courtroom” goes to the flitch, which hangs on a frame surrounded by greenery.

The flitches are donated by local butchers, who, naturally enough, would prefer not to have to give away valuable produce and so instruct their legal counsel to find chinks in the armour of the couples who claim never to have regretted their decision to marry. Lots of references are doubtless made to appreciative glances at pretty neighbours, burnt dinners and toilet seats being left up!

When a couple win their trial (which is the usual jury verdict), they are carried aloft in the “Flitch chair” by eight “humble folk” to Great Dunmow’s main square where they repeat the “Flitch oath” to the effect that they have never “offended each other in deed or in word”, “in bed or at board”.

A couple that is unsuccessful has to walk behind the empty Flitch chair and endure the mockery of the villagers. However, they do get a joint of gammon as a runners-up prize!

As for the flitch itself? These days the butchers generously cut it up for the winners to make it easier to carry home.

As mentioned above, this event is conducted with a friendly and humorous attitude and it is all regarded as a bit of fun, although it does require the couples involved to be somewhat broad-minded in publicly revealing aspects of their private lives. However, it has been known for couples, presumably with an addiction to bacon, to take things too seriously. On one occasion in times past a couple, having been awarded the flitch, was overheard arguing about what to do with it. The flitch was promptly confiscated and distributed among the other claimants!

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Great Dunmow is a village is Essex (half way between Bishop’s Stortford and Braintree) that owes its fame to a custom that has been running unbroken since the 12th century and which is mentioned in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. Married couples are put on trial to prove the strength of their marria... Read more

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7 years

dorageorg › Lovely, dear!?

7 years

svetle76 › nice

7 years

indexer › New article
7 years ago

The comet that appeared in the sky in November 1680 has two main claims to fame. It was the first to be discovered by telescope and the first to have a known orbit. It was found by accident by Gottfried Kirch, a German astronomer, when he was actually observing the Moon through his telescope, bu... Read more

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7 years

carmen3521 › interisting one.

7 years

Deliana › Very interesting article!

7 years

indexer › New article
7 years ago

In some parts of the world the need for information services in remote rural areas is met by using traditional modes of transport in unusual ways. This is certainly the case in Zimbabwe, where the role of libraries is essential in supporting education in schools and also for initiatives that bring economic and social benefits to people of all ages.

Mobile libraries offer information services in rural areas, but the typical “bookmobile” is limited in terms of the places it can reach if the road network is simply not up to the job. This is true of vast regions of the developing world and not just Zimbabwe.

In Zimbabwe the problem is being addressed by the use of donkey-drawn libraries – simply a cart, pulled by a donkey, that offers books and other information resources and which can go just about anywhere.

The initiative is just one element of the work of the Rural Libraries and Resources Development Programme (RLRDP), which is a community based not-for-profit non-governmental organization formed in 1990 with the objective of establishing and developing community libraries and information services to empower the rural population.

According to Obadiah T. Moyo, the Secretary General of RLRDP, the organization has assisted in the establishment of “300 rural community libraries, 10 donkey-drawn mobile libraries and 130 book delivery bicycles. They provide an extension outreach service in areas where proper roads are not available. About 105 rural libraries have access to computers.”

Donkey-drawn mobile libraries were first conceptualized and developed by RLRDP in the Nkayi district of Zimbabwe in 1995. It is a very important initiative that has attracted world attention, and was recognized and commended by the World Summit on the Information Society (2003 and 2005), which has made clear that access to information leads to sustainable development.

The RLRDP also promotes community libraries by providing relevant reading materials, sponsoring debates in communities about issues and problems affecting daily life, providing the means and mechanisms for continuing education for everyone in the community, and pooling resources to benefit the wider spectrum of the community through networking activities. All these tasks have proved successful as they reinforce a sense of collective responsibility for the community libraries that have been established.

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In some parts of the world the need for information services in remote rural areas is met by using traditional modes of transport in unusual ways. This is certainly the case in Zimbabwe, where the role of libraries is essential in supporting education in schools and also for initiatives that bring... Read more

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7 years

frenchqueen › We had this person in this country who wanted to educate the children. With his very little money, he had a cart and pushed it everywhere to teach children to read. I think he was featured in CNN.

7 years

indexer › @frenchqueen That's interesting - thanks for the information.

7 years

RalRey › In a moment of my work as a cultural promoter, I participated in activities to promote reading with the Public Library of my city, attached to the National Network of Public Libraries. We did not have to use the donkeys because there was access by car, but we made the books available to the children and youth of the community. Also, in coordination with other institutions of the municipality and the state, with the help of a television and a Betamax first and then a VHS, we perform film functions. For me, they were work experiences that gave me great and unforgettable satisfactions. Unfortunately these initiatives were not given due continuity and are now forgotten.

7 years

indexer › @RalRey Yes - it is a shame that such projects are often not seen as been as valuable as they truly are.

7 years

5 years

Strabunica013 › We had this person in this country who wanted to educate the children. With his very little money, he had a cart and pushed it everywhere to teach children to read. I think he was featured in CNN.

5 years

indexer › New article
7 years ago

There are many examples throughout history of people who have been absolutely certain that God has spoken directly to them, either as a voice or via some messenger such as an angel. The Bible is crammed full of such events, and Joan of Arc was far from being the only saint who believed that they had received instructions directly from Heaven to do what they did.

Indeed, many Christians will say that they have been “born again” as a result of receiving a “call” that was every bit as strong as a direct voice speaking to them, even if this fell short of an angelic visitation.

So do these examples not prove that God is a real being that speaks directly to individuals?

Voices in the head

I think not. We have long known that there is a phenomenon known as “auditory hallucination”, in which the sufferer is convinced that they are being spoken to by somebody who is not present or communicating with them by normal means. Apart from being a regular symptom of psychotic illness, there is a very wide range of mental conditions that can include auditory hallucination to a greater or lesser extent.

At its extreme, this phenomenon can lead people to commit terrible acts, including mass murder, because they were convinced that the “voices” were telling them to do so. Although most people who hear voices recognise that they are not real, there are unfortunately some who are unable to tell the difference and act on what they believe they have been told to do.

Auditory hallucinations are so common – and not necessarily connected with mental illness – that it would not be at all surprising to learn that the vast majority of “born again” episodes were the result of such events. This would be especially true in cases where the person was already associating with others who were religiously inclined and were therefore half expecting such a “call” to come their way.

I therefore take the view that one’s “personal God” is highly likely to be a product of brain function that is slightly out of alignment.

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There are many examples throughout history of people who have been absolutely certain that God has spoken directly to them, either as a voice or via some messenger such as an angel. The Bible is crammed full of such events, and Joan of Arc was far from being the only saint who believed that they h... Read more

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indexer › New article
7 years ago

Street names can be fascinating. I grew up in Tatnam Road (Poole), and lived at various times in Gravits Lane (Bognor Regis) and Windwhistle Way (Alderbury, near Salisbury). However, although it might seem that I am fated to live in streets with strange names, I ruined it all by spending the past 30... Read more

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7 years

RasmaSandra › I'll join you in Alabama. I have always wanted to see the Mississippi. Perhaps we can set up a steamship cruise line for tourists. Anyway, I am also fascinated by strange street names. My cousin back in Latvia lives in a very rural area. She never had an address until some intelligent official decided all places in the country no matter how remote should have an address. It turned out that her property was close to a cemetery and she wound up living on Cemetery Street.

7 years

indexer › @RasmaSandra Thanks for your comment. Yes - that is a depressing address that is along the lines of Slaughterhouse Lane!

7 years

indexer › New article
7 years ago

Tip 1:

Join English Heritage and The National Trust. Between them, and their sister organisations, they look after a large number of castles in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as many other historical buildings and places of scenic beauty. An annual membership grants free entry to most of their properties, and other benefits. You can join when you visit your first castle, or online. However, there are also castles that are privately owned and are therefore either not open at all, or are not covered by the above memberships. Some castles, such as Windsor which is a royal residence, only allow public access to part of the site.

Tip 2:

Plan your castle visiting with care. There are some parts of the country that are awash with castles, and it is quite possible to visit several in a day. However, you need to allow enough time to do each castle justice, and not exhaust yourself, so, for most visitors, one before lunch and one afterwards is quite sufficient. Your planning should also take into account the fact that some castles only open for limited seasons. Also, during the summer months there are often events at castles that should not be missed, such as battle re-enactments, or displays of medieval crafts, etc, and you should plan your visits to take in as many of these events as you can.

Tip 3

Learn some background history. The main period of castle building in England and Wales was between the 11th and 16th centuries, which were turbulent, and often lawless, times, during which kings and powerful people sought to defend their territories and demonstrate their power. Knowing the reason why a castle was built, and possibly rebuilt and/or extended many times, helps towards an understanding of why a castle looks as it does today. It is also useful to understand the basic structures of castles at various times, and to distinguish between, say, a motte-and-bailey arrangement and a fortified manor house.

Tip 4

Watch the weather. Many castles in Britain are ruins, sometimes due to enemy action but more often because of the ravages of time. You can still have a great day at a castle ruin on a rainy day, but expect to get wet unless you dress appropriately! Bare stone gets slippery underfoot when wet, so wear sensible footwear and watch your step.

Tip 5

Be prepared to exert some energy! Not surprisingly for defensive structures, castles were often built on hilltops, and so a steep uphill walk is needed before the visit even begins. However, take your time and have a good look at the castle’s exterior while you pause for breath. Imagine yourself as a potential invader! When inside the walls, you are likely to find many paths to walk along, buildings and structures to visit, and stairs to climb. Be patient, especially on busy days, as you climb hundreds of steps in a spiral staircase, and be prepared to have to squeeze past other people who are coming down. Some castle buildings are enormous, and visiting every part is good exercise!

Tip 6

Keep an eye on the kids. Although the people who own and maintain ancient castles take all reasonable precautions to prevent accidents, such as covering wells and fencing off dangerous drops, they cannot guard against every eventuality, and these buildings were put there long before health and safety laws came into force! So it is up to you to make sure that everyone has a great time but does not do anything stupid. This includes making sure that they do not climb on exposed stonework (which will get worn away if everyone does this) and drop litter around the place.

Tip 7

Enjoy the experience. You can learn a lot from a castle visit, and it is certainly worth buying the guidebook. You will probably find boards placed around the castle describing each room and section, and there may be an audio guide that you can take round with you, playing the commentary into your earpiece as you reach each point of interest. Don’t overlook the castle grounds, as these are often pleasant places to walk, especially if an effort has been made to maintain them by, for example, reproducing the planting schedule of the original kitchen gardens. Also, have a look round the local town or village, as this may well have been founded at around the same time as the castle and have many stories to tell. Take your camera with you, but take note of any restrictions placed on photography.

Tip 8

Come back soon!

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Tip 1: Join English Heritage and The National Trust. Between them, and their sister organisations, they look after a large number of castles in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as many other historical buildings and places of scenic beauty. An annual membership grants free ... Read more

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7 years

Nevena83 › nice post

7 years

RasmaSandra › You forgot to mention not to be too surprised if you run into some ghosts. Hopefully the friendly kind. I just love roaming old castles and hope to have the chance one day.

7 years

indexer › @RasmaSandra In all my castle explorations over many years I have yet to come across any! However, I do know of many castles that are reputed to have at least one!

7 years

6 years

viktorija64 › very interesting article

6 years

marija64 › My unfulfilled desire, to visit England ..

6 years

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