We only have one planet. You can help protect it. Participate in the world’s largest single campaign for the planet: Earth Hour. It starts by turning off your lights for an hour at 8:30 pm on March 31, 2012 in a collective display of commitment to a better future for the planet. Think what can be achieved when we all come together for a common cause.
Now that we are on the Easter break, let's travel around the globe and know this fantastic, sometimes weird, world better!... So, sit down comfortably, fasten your seat-belts, as the journey is about to begin... Destination? Wherever your imagination takes you to...
Germany, we've just landed in Germany...
And what you see is a wall that plays music...
Weird? Or simply awesome?
'According to Atlas Obscura, when the rain starts to fall, this colorful drain and gutter system attached to the outside of a building in the Neustadt Kunsthofpassage turn into charming musical instruments. The Funnel Wall is one of the strangest and most enjoyable attractions in Dresden’s student district in the new town.'
Source (quoted text and picture):
Weird World FB page
Celebrou-se, no passado dia 24 de Março, o Dia do Estudante.
Este é um dia profundamente ligado à luta da Juventude pela Democracia em Portugal.
Fonte: Calvin & Hobbes
Este ano, o Dia do Estudante coincidiu com o início da pausa lectiva relativa ao final do segundo período. Terá sido o momento mais desejado pelos discentes para comemorar este dia (?) ...
Um pouco de História:
No dia 25 de Novembro de 1961, realizou-se uma manifestação contra a guerra colonial, onde participaram milhares de estudantes. O governo fascista confrontava-se, nesta altura, com várias acções de luta por parte de vários sectores da população, entre os quais os estudantes. A sua resposta era o aumento da repressão. Nesta manifestação vários estudantes foram presos. Contrariando o governo fascista, em 1962, é realizado em Coimbra o primeiro Encontro de Associações de Estudantes, no qual se aprova que 24 de Março será um dia de luta e comemoração para os Estudantes. Também nesse ano, em Lisboa, os estudantes concentraram-se dentro da cantina da Cidade Universitária, como forma de protesto contra a repressão e exigindo a libertação dos estudantes presos. O governo fascista responde com o envio da polícia. São vários os estudantes espancados e presos. Mas a Luta não pára! Em resposta a isto declara-se luto académico e greve às aulas. É neste contexto, que em 1987 a Assembleia da República Portuguesa fixa o Dia 24 de Março como o Dia do Estudante.
Fonte: Trovador (adaptado)
Como forma de homenagear O ALUNO, e toda a sua capacidade de criar e protagonizar momentos de excelência, passo a publicar, e com a devida autorização das próprias e dos respectivos Encarregados de Educação, dois vídeos elaborados por alunas da turma A do 10ºano, do curso Ciências e Tecnologias, no âmbito da avaliação da oralidade prevista nos Critérios de Avaliação da língua Inglesa:
Multi-tasking
...by Ana Beatriz Pinto, Ana Isabel Pereira, Catarina Vieira e Susana Silva
Cyber Dangers
...by Ana Beatriz Ferreira, Ângela Leite, Beatriz Leite e Inês Moreira
Thank you, ladies, for the moments we share in class!...
And to all my students, especially those that are so afraid of SPEAKING, this is my piece of advice to you:
Clever thoughts bubble up constantly, but what’s the right venue for all of them? Now you can consult this handy graphic to help make those hard choices among Google+, Foursquare, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Dilemma solved!
There are 7 billion people to feed on the planet today and another 2 billion are expected to join by 2050. Statistics say that each of us drinks from 2 to 4 litresof water every day, however most of the water we ‘drink’ is embedded in the food we eat: producing 1 kilo of beef for example consumes 15,000 litres of water while 1 kilo of wheat ’drinks up’ 1,500 litres. When a billion people in the world already live in chronic hunger and water resources are under pressure we cannot pretend the problem is ‘elsewhere’.
pic via GoogleImages
And you? Do you know how much water you actually consume every day? How can you change your diet and reduce your water footprint? Join the World Water Day 2012 campaign “Water and Food Security” and find out more!
@World Walks for Water
The World Walks for Water and Sanitation is a global event demanding action to address the world’s largest crisis – water and sanitation. From 17 to 25 March 2012, thousands of people will walk together to demand political change. And you can take part too! Now is the time to tell the world's politicians about our concern! Now is the time the World Walks for Water and Sanitation!
This season arrives during different parts of the year in the North and South of the world. Spring in the Northern Hemisphere is called Boreal Spring. It begins on March 20th and ends on June 21st. In the Southern Hemisphere, it is called Austral Spring. It begins on September 23rd and ends on December 21st. Spring enriches natural beauty and it seems as if nature is dressed in a beautiful green gown.
The spring is when the Earth comes back to life after a long cold winter, and it is in the spring when the first flowers begin to bloom and the green world begins to return after its winter slumber. The power of spring and its regenerative effects are evidenced by the fact that every major religion includes a major holiday in the spring season. From Passoverto Easter, it seems that every culture marks spring with a celebration of renewal and new life.
Holi is a religious spring festival celebrated by Hindus. People in India and other countries with large Hindu populations celebrate Holi, the Festival of Colors. Holi is celebrated as a welcoming of Spring, and a celebration of the triumph of good over evil. What that translates to in action is an enthusiastic dropping of inhibitions, as people chase each other and playfully splash colorful paint, powder and water on each other. People also attend bonfires to commemorate the story of Prahlada, a Hindu figure and devout follower of Lord Vishnu who prevailed over his father and the demoness Holika with the power of his devotion. Go to The Boston Globe to see this news story in photographs.
ST. PATRICK'S DAY is an Irish holiday celebrated all around the globe to honor the patron saint of Ireland, Saint Patrick. It is celebrated each year on March 17th. There are many traditions and symbols associated with St. Patrick's Day and Ireland. Here are a handful of the most popular practices:
The SHAMROCK as symbol of Ireland and St. Patrick's Day is partly due to the natural abundance of clover plants in the country, but largely due to its strong association with Christianity. According to Robert Mahony, Professor of English and member of the Center for Irish Studies at Catholic University, legend has it that St. Patrick used the shamrock to visually illustrate the concept of the Trinity (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit) when trying to convert pagans to Christianity.
Although clovers are most often found in nature with three leaves, rare FOUR-LEAF CLOVER do exist. Finding one is thought to bring someone extreme luck. The folklore for four-leaf clovers differs from that of the Shamrock due to the fact that it has no religious allusions associated with it. It is believed that each leaf of a four-leaf clover represents something different: first is hope, the second is faith, the third is love, and the fourth is happiness.
A LEPRECHAUN looks like a little old man and dresses like a shoemaker with a cocked hat and leather apron. A Leprechaun's personality is described as aloof and unfriendly. They live alone and pass the time by mending the shoes of Irish fairies.
The legend is that the fairies pay the leprechauns for their work with golden coins, which the "little people" collect in large pots-the famous "pots of gold" often associated with leprechauns. If you listen closely for the sound of their hammer you might be able to capture one. If you do you can force him to reveal where he's hidden his treasure.
So why do we all wear GREEN?
Probably because you'll be pinched if you don't! School children started this tradition. Green is also the color of spring, the shamrock, and is connected with hope and nature. In addition to that, Ireland is often called the "Emerald Isle" due to the lush natural greenery found on the island. Says Prof. Mahony, "One of the things that strikes people all the time is how Ireland is incredibly green! When people say that 'Ireland has 40 shades of green,' they are right!"
This campaign, "Become Someone Else" by the Lithuanian Agency called Love, for Mint Vinetu, is a clever concept, well executed. Here is what they said about it:
"When one reads books,
he/she starts living it and identifies (or not) with main hero. These print ads for the Mint Vinetu bookstore, which sells lots of classics, focuses on the idea of becoming someone else. And provokes people to try on different personas."
'Sharing the joy of reading'...
Mint Vinetu is a bookshop of used books, where good people meet. One can buy popular books recommended by others, in English or Lithuanian, cheaper. Read, while sipping mint or cinnamon tea, use free and fast wireless internet.
Dr.Seuss, one of the most famous children’s book authors, is best known not only for his rhyming words but also for his quirky, yet inspirational, little sayings.
Theodor Seuss Geisel (March 2, 1904 – September 24, 1991) was an American writer and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books written under the pen name Dr. Seuss. He published over 60 children's books, which were often characterized by imaginative characters, rhyme, and frequent use of trisyllabic meter.
His most celebrated books include the bestselling Green Eggs and Ham, The Cat in the Hat, and One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish. Numerous adaptations of his work have been created, including eleven television specials, three feature films, and a Broadway musical.
The day is to celebrate women’s economic, political and social achievements throughout the world. The day was commemorated for the first time on 19 March 1911 in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland, following its establishment during the Socialist International meeting the prior year. More than one million women and men attended rallies on that first commemoration.
'Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures' is the 2012 theme of the internationalwomensday.com website and this has been widely used by hundreds of organisations including schools, universities, governments, women’s groups and the private sector. Each year the United Nations declares an overall International Women's Day theme. Their 2012 theme is 'Empower Rural Women – End Hunger and Poverty'. Many organisations develop their own themes that are more relevant to their local contexts. For example, the European Parliament's 2012 theme is 'Equal pay for work of equal value'.
Nevertheless all that women have achieved, as far as human rights are concerned, there's still a long way to go since Emmeline Pankhurst started the Suffragette Movement in the 19th century.
«From the middle of the 19th century many women campaigned peacefully to obtain the right to vote. They organised themselves into groups, held meetings, sent petitions to Parliament and tried to persuade MPs to change the law to enable them to vote. These non-militant women were known as 'suffragists'.» In Archives - The Suffragetes
In an effort to raise awareness of bullying in schools, Lady Gaga and Oprah took to the stage at Harvard's Sanders Theatre on February, 29th. They addressed their concerns with the current state of bullying and also launched the Born This Way Foundation. Lady Gaga and her mother Cynthia joined on stage by Oprah Winfrey. The other intervenients were the author and speaker, Deepak Chopra; U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebelius; and esteemed Harvard Law School professor, Charles Ogletree. They discussed the vision of the organization, and how you can get involved.
'Keep Calm and Carry On' is a well-known public safety poster issued by the British government during World War II. On the web, the poster has inspired a series of image macros centered around the phrasal template 'Keep Calm and X'.
found pic @knowyourmeme.com
The following video is a short film that tells the story behind the iconic 'Keep Calm and Carry On' poster. From its creation to its rediscovery and meteoric rise to global icon.
found pic @telegraph.co.uk
SO, 'KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON', NEVERTHELESS IT'S MONDAY!...
After organizing their bookshelf almost a year ago, Sean Ohlenkamp and his wife decided to take it to the next level. They spent many sleepless nights moving, stacking, and animating books at Type Bookstore in Toronto, Canada. Garyson Matthews generously composed the beautiful, custom music. Many were the volunteer hands who shelved and reshelved books all night, every night. Read more about this fantastic video and this bookstore at TypeBookstore.
World Book Day was designated by UNESCO as a worldwide celebration of books and reading, and is marked in over 100 countries around the globe. The origins of the day we now celebrate in the UK and Ireland come from Catalonia, where roses and books were given as gifts to loved ones on St. George's Day - a tradition started over 90 years ago.
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