Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Eclipse

Image and video hosting by TinyPic
Sometimes I want to break out of his vacuum but I just can’t. The space demons keep calling me back into the void. I feel comfortable there!

Had Physics Test today. I think this time REALLY will fail. I'm only confident of one question. Complacent does harm. Raining so skip "Running"(YES!) Ended school at 1pm, due to O level Listening Comprehension. Wth. We were chased out of the classroom without prior notice. Didn't want to go for history extra lesson. I don't want to get scolding again. Anyway, don't go also scolding, must well don't go. We're NA, so don't use the express method to teach us. This marked the different between a NA student and an Express student. Since you said we are the worst in your eye, doesn't it show that you are a bad teacher? A good teacher will ensure that his student will do well. Seriously every lesson, scolding is irreplaceable. You always want us to 'critisize' others work. I don't think it really helped us. Everyone have their own mistakes. Only those who are better in History or bootlickers will give you to 'critisize'. I used to score well in History under Mr Ang, at least he know the right method to teach me. I understand better under him. Anyway, I just have study on my own or do better in SS and just switch off during his lesson. I never fail to fall asleep in his class. After much discussion with the rest, I made up my mind and went to eat and study with Adeline at Queenway Mac instead. I think the rest went for it. A scolding waiting for me tommorrow.



Solar eclipse shrouds Asia in cloak of darkness

VARANASI, India (AFP) - - The longest solar eclipse of the 21st century plunged millions across Asia into temporary darkness on Wednesday, triggering scenes of religious fervour, fear and excitement in India and China. Ancient superstition and modern commerce came together in what was likely to end up being the most watched eclipse in history, due to its path over Earth's most densely inhabited areas.A woman was killed in a stampede in the holy city of Varanasi where tens of thousands of devout Hindus had crowded the river Ganges at dawn.Police said the 80-year-old fainted in the crush to enter a temple near the banks of the river and suffocated, triggering panic. More than 20 people were injured. With Hindu priests conducting special prayers, the crowds in Varanasi cheered and then raised their arms in salutation as the sun re-emerged from behind the moon, before they took a spiritually purifying dip in the river's holy waters. A total solar eclipse usually occurs every 18 months or so, but Wednesday's spectacle was special for its maximum period of "totality" -- when the sun is wholly covered by the moon -- of six minutes and 39 seconds. Such a lengthy duration will not be matched until the year 2132.State-run China Central Television provided minute-by-minute coverage of what it dubbed "The Great Yangtze River Solar Eclipse" as the phenomenon cut a path along the river's drainage basin.Millions of people in areas of southwestern China enjoyed a clear line of sight, according to images broadcast on CCTV, but the view was obstructed along much of its path by cloudy weather. Shanghai viewers braved rain and overcast skies to witness the spectacle as darkness shrouded China's commercial hub at 9:36 am (0136 GMT)."It's like magic, the day turns into night in such a short period of time ... I have no idea where I am right now. It feels like a different world," said Chen Hong, a biotech company chief executive.Despite the weather, hotels along Shanghai's famed waterfront Bund packed in the customers with eclipse breakfast specials.Those who could afford it grabbed expensive seats on planes chartered by specialist travel agencies that promised extended views of the eclipse as they chased the shadow eastwards. The cone-shaped shadow, or umbra, created by the total eclipse first made landfall on the western Indian state of Gujarat shortly before 6:30 am (0100 GMT). It then raced across India and squeezed between Bangladesh and Nepal before engulfing most of Bhutan, traversing the Chinese mainland and slipping back out to sea off Shanghai. From there it moved across the islands of southern Japan and veered into the western Pacific. In Mumbai, hundreds of people who trekked up to the Nehru planetarium clutching eclipse sunglasses found themselves reaching for umbrellas and rain jackets instead as heavy overnight rain turned torrential. "We didn't want to watch it on television and we thought this would be the best place," said 19-year-old student Dwayne Fernandes. "We could've stayed in bed." Many did stay home, fearful of the effects of the lunar shadow which some believe can lead to birth defects in pregnant women."I was advised not to leave the house as the eclipse brings bad luck to you and your family," said Deepa Shrestha, a 25-year-old housemaid in Kathmandu. Superstition has always haunted the moment when Earth, moon and sun are perfectly aligned. The daytime extinction of the sun, the source of all life, is associated with war, famine, flood and the death or birth of rulers. The ancient Chinese blamed a sun-eating dragon. In Hindu mythology, the two demons Rahu and Ketu are said to "swallow" the sun during eclipses, snuffing out its light and causing food to become inedible and water undrinkable. Some Indian astrologers had issued predictions laden with gloom and foreboding, and a gynaecologist at a Delhi hospital said many expectant mothers scheduled for July 22 caesarian deliveries insisted on changing the date. The last total solar eclipse was on August 1 last year and also crossed China. The next will be on July 11, 2010, but will occur almost entirely over the South Pacific.


My schoolmates were crazy over it, when it strike 8.30am. LOL. They can't see anything cause it covered with the cloud. I shall watch it on Channel U, at 11.30pm.