Interesting Things For you Late @ Night: 02/25/09

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Are you looking for a little peace and quiet? Are you tired of traffic-filled streets and tedious queue lines? Then how about taking your next vacation somewhere far from the muddle of over-crowded cities and too-touristy towns? Here are six of the least-densely populated nations on earth, where you are more likely to find yourself than meet a stranger.

Greenland

Kangerlussuaq-the easiest access to inland ice

With only 0.026 people per square kilometer, Greenland is the place to go if you need some elbowroom. The ice-covered island, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans features icebergs, glaciers and ice caps that set the scene for year-round winter sports.

Thrill-seeking vacationers can paraglide on an ice cap, trek through “hidden” east Greenland, kayak the fjords and arctic straits or go dog-sledding on the sea ice in northeast Greenland. Anglers can fish for halibut and catfish, or visit in the springtime and try to hook a Greenlandic shark through a hole in the ice. Experienced hikers can head for Greenland’s inner ice via Kangerlussuaq, which can also be reached by car or horse. Rather visit in the warm season? Well, ok. But even then the temps don’t exceed 50° Fahrenheit … but hey, at least you will be alone.

Falkland Islands

Magellanic penguins at Gypsy Cove

With more than 740 islands to its name the Falkland archipelago has a population density of 0.25 people per square kilometer. Located 400 miles from the coast of Argentina, the islands are an overseas territory of the United Kingdom where there are just over 3,000 people … and 583,000 sheep.

Stanley, the capital of the Falkland Islands and the main seaside town is perched on the edge of East Falkland Island in the waters of the Stanley Harbor. The red phone boxes and English pubs reflect the island’s British heritage, while the military monuments, sites and museum offer guests insight into the island’s war-stained past. Visitors can head out to Gypsy Cove-located just a few minutes from Stanley-and visit the colony of Magellanic penguins that have claimed the area.

Western Sahara

A camel caravan in Western Sahara

Barely breaking the one person per square kilometer mark, Western Sahara is part of the world’s largest hot desert and is located in North Africa. The Kingdom of Morocco and the government of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic wrestle for control of Western Sahara’s 285,000 square kilometers-most of which are sandy plains-that stretch from the Red Sea to Ethiopia.

Ranging from large sand dunes and stone plateaus to dry valleys and salt flats, Western Sahara offers little more for visitors than heat and sand. The largest city in Western Sahara is El Aaiun, where over half of the 440,000 inhabitants live.

French Guiana

Devil’s Island was a penal settlement until 1946

Where on earth can you enjoy a feast of Creole specialties while relaxing in the shade of a tropical palm tree and sitting near French colonial architecture? At French Guiana, of course. With a population density of 2.1 people per square kilometer, French Guiana is ideal for soaking in the charm of old-world France, without the boisterous groups and congested streets.

French Guiana’s capital city, Cayenne is located on a hilly peninsula at the mouth of the Cayenne River on an island that is named, you guessed it — Cayenne. Visitors to Cayenne can explore the ruins at Fort Cépérou, head to Place du Coq for the main produce market or visit the Botanical Gardens and museums. Just off of the rugged coast at the Iles du Salut and Devil’s Island, visitors can tour the French Space Center, visit the ruins of the Devil’s Island prison or swim, sail or fish in the welcoming waters of the archipelago.

Australia

Heron Island Beach on the Great Barrier Reef

With 50,000 kilometers of coastline and just 2.6 people per square kilometer, Australia is the place to go if you want breathtaking scenery sans the masses. With beaches, reefs, cities and nightlife, the world’s smallest continent has something for everyone. Beach bums can over-sun on Whitehaven Beach while their diving counterparts make a break for the legendary Great Barrier Reef. Explorers visiting Fraser Island, the world’s largest sand island, can enjoy an up-close meet-and-greet with manta rays, while visitors to the sunburned Australian outback can see the vast sand dunes at Lake Mungo.

Brisbane, the arts capital of Australia, has dozens of theaters, concert halls and galleries, while Sydney boasts sun-drenched skyscrapers and an exotic restaurant scene. Kangaroo Island--an island seven times the size of Singapore--is the ideal place to see koalas, goannas, wallabies, echidnas and kangaroos in their natural habitat.

Iceland

The Aurora Borealis over Reykjavik

Just a five-hour flight from America’s east coast is a country with exploding geysers, steamy solfataras, volcanoes, glaciers, rivers and frozen waterfalls-and only 3.0 people per square kilometer. Iceland offers visitors an unparalleled collection of mud pools, sulfur pits, steam vents and hot springs, and unrivaled geyser eruptions that spew up to 90 feet high.

For an unforgettable experience, visit Lake Mývatn between September and March for a chance to see the colorful Aurora Borealis Northern Lights, the mesmerizing natural light display that materializes at night. Already planning to visit Europe? Fly from the US to Europe on Icelandair and enjoy a free stopover in Iceland for up to seven days.

Six of the Least-Densely Populated Nations in the World | BootsnAll Travel Articles

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Timber House in the most graceful way and the views to die for! | Modern House Designs

Guided by a helical path winding its way up the mountain, this amazing 2008 home renovation by architects Jose Ulloa Davet and Delphine Ding is as breathtaking as its awe-inspiring view! Aptly dubbed “Metamorfosis,” this modern timber house in Tunquen, Casablanca, Chile was transformed from standard to stunning through the extension of an existing deck, the addition of a new room, and a new, raw timber skin that unifies the home’s various elements while blending it with the gorgeous rocky landscape. From below, the path makes its way up the hillside, and connects to a walkway leading from the house main entrance, around the house exterior, and up to the spacious rooftop patio. Inside, timber too is a major player, bringing the same “raw” element from the outdoors, but with an added sense of sophistication. A vast picture window frames the stunning scenery. José Ulloa Davet and Delphine Ding
via Arch Daily
Photo credit: José Ulloa Davet

Posted by Lydia on February 12, 2009 9:46 PM

Timber House in the most graceful way and the views to die for! | Modern House Designs

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The end of the modern financial system as we know it has cleared the way for an era of ethical economics, or "Ethonomics." We live in a world that's resource-constrained but ingenuity-rich. So an upstart generation of entrepreneurs--and innovators within the world's biggest companies--are founding businesses that are good for the world as well as the bottom line. They are practicing social change through urban revitalization, sustainable agriculture, green IT, alternative energy and online community-powered investing. Any business that claims to be truly sustainable and innovative should be increasingly efficient with energy and natural resources, transparent and accountable, and good on balance for people and other living things. Ethonomics is a hybrid of technology, design, and social responsibility, and at Fast Company we believe it is the future of business.

But we're not breathless cheerleaders for every daisy-splashed widget that comes down the pike. We have a skeptical eye out for greenwashing by large and small companies alike, and are impatient with lofty claims that stray too far from the marketplace or from Main Street. Our duty is to keep it honest; our promise to our audience is to keep our coverage clear-eyed and entertaining. In the reality-based world of ethonomics, good results are more important than good intentions.

What is Ethonomics? | Editor's Desk | Fast Company

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Term life insurance serves beneficiaries in countless ways. It protects families in the event the breadwinner dies. It used to fund college education expenses, to pay off mortgages, to pay for the burial of the deceased, to pay probate and attorney's fees. It provides sufficient income so that a family can maintain their same standard of living. Term life does all this but the big question is why is most of it bought by men?

What will happen to your family when you die? Have they been provided for? Life Insurance is the solution and we can help. Compare Multiple Quotes from Highly Ranked Carriers and Save! Getting your quote is easy and FREE. Click Here And Save

Women need life insurance too. In today's world women are making as much a contribution to the family expenses as men. In fact in many a case their contribution is significantly more. Will the above financial responsibilities still have to be met if the wife dies or will they go away with her? When a woman's income is no longer there will the surviving husbands income be sufficient to maintain the family on the same level or will they have to change their lifestyle somewhat? What about that emergency fund that both husband and wife thought necessary...will it still be there?
What about the myriad of things the wife takes care of in the home even though she has a job outside of the home? The value of her contribution is beyond comprehension. What about a full time home maker...can her value be measured? It used to be that a man decided on his life insurance to protect his family and he would add a small policy on the wife to his portfolio. That was such a thoughtless and misguided approach. The women have now taken over the responsibility of researching and purchasing their own life insurance policies and...in some cases the portfolio of the entire family. Their choice of policy in many a case is term life insurance.
Women have become more aware that upon their death it may be difficult for the husband by himself to maintain the same standard of living for the family. They want to be assured that the children can live in the same house and go to the same school. They want to make certain that the fund for college is secure and available when the children are ready for higher education. A 20 year term insurance policy is a very popular choice to cover these needs. In some cases a 25 year or a 30 year term insurance policy is used.
In many a case women are heads of households. The life of a single parent can be a very difficult one. All the responsibilities of the family fall upon her shoulders. Single parents buy term life insurance because they do not want to leave their children destitute when they die. Even if a goodhearted relative will take care of the children it will cost money. Life insurance can certainly provide this money either in a lump sum or in income form.

People at times live under a misinformed illusion that a single woman without children need no life insurance. Nothing could be further from the truth. Single women are buying their own homes today and in some cases may even have elderly parents live with them. The need for life insurance is still there. You will buy insurance because you want a loved one to have a house free and clear when you die. A good decreasing term policy could take care of that. If elderly parents live with you it may be necessary to provide some sort of income for them. Of course there are the inevitable costs of dying...the funeral costs, attorneys fees and probate fees.
What about future needs for life insurance? Is it not better to buy the policy while you are young and the premiums are very low than wait until later and pay a much higher premium...if you can qualify for it.
Women do need term life insurance because of their immeasurable human life value. In many a case they need more than men.

Term Life Insurance For Women

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Quick Homemade Cheese

Ivory's Totally Yummy Soft Cheese

1/2 Gallon Whole Milk (Goat or Cow)
1/4 cup white vinegar or 1/4 cup Lemon juice
Salt to taste 1. Put milk into stainless steel pot and heat over medium until between 190 and 200 degrees.

2. Slowly stir in vinegar or lemon. Remove from heat and allow to curdle and cool until it's not too hot to touch.

3. Pour cheese into cloth lined bowl. Pull together the 4 corners of cloth and twist around a spoon. Hang dripping cheese for a few hours.

(BTW, it's not touching the bottom of the bowl. It just looks that way.)

4. Salt to taste and check consistency. I like a fairly hard cheese, so I hang it in the fridge overnight. That's about the max.

5. Untie, (add any garlic or herbs or more salt, if you like) place in airtight container, and chill. Depending on how long you hung it, it should be about 12-16 oz of cheese.

Enjoy!!

Ivory

Little House in the Suburbs: Quick Homemade Cheese

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Introduction to the Hydrozoa

Perhaps the best-known hydrozoan, familiar to most students of introductory biology, is Hydra, pictured at left. Hydra never goes through a medusoid stage and spends its entire life as a polyp. However, Hydra is not typical of the Hydrozoa as a whole. Most hydrozoans alternate between a polyp and a medusa stage — they spend part of their lives as "jellyfish" which are hard to distinguish from scyphozoan jellyfish.

A great many hydrozoans are also colonial. Some form delicate branched colonies, while others, known as "fire corals," form massive colonies that resemble true corals. Other hydrozoans have developed pelagic (floating) colonies that are often confused with jellyfish, but unlike jellyfish they are composed of many individuals, all specialized for various functions. The "Portuguese man-o'war" and "by-the-wind-sailors" that often wash up on beaches are examples of these unusual colonial hydrozoans.