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" Author: Rhonda Byrne / Format: Hardback / Date of publication: 04 December 2006 / Genre: Mind, Body, Spirit / Subcategory: Thought & Practice / Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd / Title: The Secret / ISBN 13: 9781847370297 / ISBN 10: 1847370297 "
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I was given this book as a gift recently, by someone very thoughtful who felt it would help my suffering with a chronic illness. The gesture was gratefully appreciated and treasured, the sentiment however is really very offensive.
A hardback copy of this book can be purchased for £8.99 from Amazon but it is widely available, along with a DVD of the same theme.
The book itself is beautiful. Tea brown in colour with faded ink scrawlings across the front cover and throughout the 200 odd pages give it an old fashioned parchment appearance. On the front there's an imprinted mock red wax seal which you can actually feel if you run your finger across it - all very pretty and mysterious. Here is where mystery ends and mockery begins.
We are told that this is a highly coveted secret, centuries old and known by some of the most respected people of our time and beyond. The author name drops such timeless 'celebrities' as Beethoven, Sir Isaac Newton, Pythagoras, Sir Francis Bacon and many more. I couldn't possibly vouch for whether all these great men did indeed know 'The Secret' due to my not being on speaking terms with them, apparently unlike the author. There are no mention of any great famous women utilising the Secret, make of that what you will.
The author herself, Rhonda Byrne tells us that her daughter introduced her to a book containing the Secret some years prior, when she was suffering from close personal trauma. This lead to her discovering all about the Secret, tracing it back through the years and bringing it to a wider audience.
The contents of the book are as follows:
The Secret Revealed
The Secret Made Simple
How to Use The Secret
Powerful Processes
The Secret to Money
The Secret to Relationships
The Secret to Health
The Secret to the World
The Secret to You
The Secret to Life
Sounds intriguing doesn't it? Ms Byrne seems to be promising that simply by reading this, every problem in your life will be fixed. Remember the old proverb your mum used to tell you? If something sounds too good to be true...?
I'm already sick of typing 'The Secret' and I haven't even revealed to you what this shocking cure-all is yet. So lets skip past the foreword and acknowledgements and head to straight to 'The Secret Revealed', shall we?
Allow me to save you £8.99 and unveil to you this most guarded of secrets: Wish for something and you shall receive it. Yes, good people of Dooyoo, it's really that simple. Now as an experiment I've been screwing up my eyes and wishing hard for 20,000 Dooyoomiles... They have yet to materialise, so I feel I can conclude this theory a dud ;)
Apparently it's based on the law of attraction - when you fixate on worries, such as 'I don't want to catch the flu' or 'I don't want to lose my job', 'I'm worried about getting into debt' etc, the universe can't differentiate between what you do and do want, it simply hears 'flu' and 'job' and grants them to you. Because that's just how the universe works, you see. In order to become a millionaire, you must picture it strongly in your mind, you're already a millionaire, how do you feel? Putting yourself on the same frequency as your wealth will grant you it. Ms Byrne compares this law of attraction to the law of gravity, I can already smell pseudo-science, and if you listen closely, you'll just about make out the sound of Sir Isaac Newton spinning in his grave, wishing he'd never used that damned Secret.
At this stage, I feel I need to point something out, but I'm sure you're already thinking it too. Disease, natural disasters, crime... These are all caused by fixating on them and being on the same 'frequency', are they? There's a term for this my friends, and it's called victim blaming. A woman is the victim of assault, she was obviously dwelling on being assaulted and gifted this by the universe. That must be her fault then. I suffer a disabling neurological disease from childhood, simply picturing myself without it will cure me? Well somebody call Cancer Research, because they're wasting millions of pounds funding research when Cancer patients could just be imagining themselves free of Cancer.
I may be taking this all too personally, having been gifted this book with the strong implication that it'll cure me of an all too physical disease. However, I do find this type of cult-ish bile absolutely terrifying. Surely this encourages people to sit back and not take responsibility for their own actions and lives? Unless you, by some fluke win the lottery, or your wealthy Great Aunt Ethel takes her place on the Big Cloud in the Sky, you are not going to have a million pounds drop randomly into your lap (sorry!). If you are in debt, imagining you aren't is going to fix it. Debt isn't caused by worrying about debt, it's caused by spending money. It's dangerous and irresponsible to tell people that some distant law of attraction is going to be responsible for giving and taking away everything in their lives and they should just sit back and let it. All this is encourages is apathy, as a quote from the next chapter, 'How to Use the Secret' shows:
'How it will happen, how the Universe will bring it to you, is not your concern or your job. Allow the Universe to do it for you.'So it's not my job to decide how to live my life then? No thanks. Apparently by doubting you will receive what you wished for, you are giving off a frequency that shows a lack of faith and you will not receive.
In this chapter we are taught the in-depth process of ordering. Yes, ordering! It's likened to ordering from a catalogue. Well knock me down with a feather! I didn't realise life was one big Argos, now I just feel stupid...
In brief, the process of ordering is thus:
First of all you write a list of things you desire. You need only ask for each thing once, apparently the Universe has a good memory.
Next you must believe that you will receive. If you wish for a holiday, you must not then actually book one, this is sending a mixed frequency out - you must simply go along, assuming you are indeed going on holiday. Well, what are you waiting for, shouldn't you be packing your bikini?
The next stage is the one that tickles me most. Now you must tell yourself you have received what you asked for. You must absolutely believe that you have been given that new car/money/pony/impossibly busty supermodel in order to then take delivery of it. Here's where the pseudo magic really lies. It feels almost like a placebo on mass effect - you take medicine which you believe will make you feel better, so you do. I don't understand quite how you'll actually get your million pounds, but maybe you'll be living with your head so deeply shoved in the sand that you believe you are Richard Branson, all the while racking up endless amounts of debt to feed the lifestyle you don't actually possess in reality. Nice and responsible, then! There are plenty of unscrupulous money-making 'cures' out there for diseases (believe me, I've been the victim of enough relatives posting me paper-clippings advertising them...) whereby you will yourself to believe you are well, and suddenly you are. This will cure you from anything from Cancer to a warty toe. If you have a physical illness this won't cure you, and neither will The Secret.
The next chapters discuss money, relationships and health and the best ways to receive them. The health section starts with 'our body is really the product of our thoughts'. No, it isn't. I'll save you the rest of the pseudo-science, because the rest of it carries on in this vein. Anyone with a vague grasp of science and reality will not be able to stand more than a few pages of this drivel without self combusting with rage, or just flinging the book angrily down, just missing your slightly perturbed cat.
So in summary, the book tells you everything bad in your life is your fault and anything good has been gifted to you as a result of you ordering it. This pretty much means you have achieved nothing positive in your life by yourself, then. The rest of the pages are just padded with made up science, poor grammar and reinforcing the idea of placing orders to the Universe like it's one big Chinese Takeaway. Intolerable nonsense, please don't waste your money.
I love this book and recommend it to anyone that will listen. It is positive thinking, common sense and probably what you know already, therefore hardly a secret! However, I feel that, sometimes when you see things in black and white and in someone else's words, it can be more effective.
The way it is written is quite simplistic and at times cheesy, but for myself it was quite effective. It explains how to get what you want through positive thinking and breaks this down in terms of money, relationships and health. It uses quotes from some well known successful people and a couple of biblical quotes too.
This book was recommended to me by a couple of friends because I was complaining about my previous relationships and was very down about it. I had explained that I always get what I want in terms of my career and material things, however when it comes to relationships I always fail. I wondered why I could not get what I wanted out of a relationship.
After reading the book I understood what it was that I did to have a good career and how I was not applying this to my relationships. I understood that I needed to recognise that I deserved better and would receive better. I began to focus on a couple of things that I wanted in the immediate future by writing them down. After five months of finishing the book I met my husband and we were engaged not long after. After he asked me to marry him, I referred back to my "want list". Under "find my husband" I found a list of all the things I love about him. He even ticked the box for good looking!
I know you probably think it sounds dumb to say this book changed my life and I would agree, however this book made me open my eyes to the way I was thinking and to the law of attraction. I definately believe that you attract certain things into your life, bad and good. I have read this book 4 times as after reading it, my mood is always lifted.
This is a book in to my own opinion is a book that certainly lifts you and changes your mood and your way off thinking. It is based on the law of attraction. Which is whatever you think about you attract it. You give off a frequency by your though and it is recieved back to you. It is like a radio station or a television you tune into a frequency it sends a signal (i.e in this this case our brain is the transimitter giving off thought signal) the signal then is reflected back to the first point of call tv radio which gives you the picture or station (in our case our thoughts we give out we recieve back in our life). It is based on physics acording to this book and certain legends have used an known the secret for example is albert einstein.
So basically if you are thinking about debt and trying to solve it you are attracting more debt. You can change all this by shifting you though to something that makes you happy think of abundance. If you think and feel that you have what you want you will get it. One of the philosphers states in the book if you think and feel what you want you will hold it in your hand.
It is all about thought for example if you get up out off bed and hurt your toe on the edge of the bed you say or think this is going to be one of those days and what happens those thoughts attract to one of those days.
The book to me is intresting I have been putting the book to the test you have to believe it I have seen a few changes in my life and I am not one for beleiving very easily. Since I have read the book I have been more positive and happy I am still trying to use it best to my ability it will certainly pick you up if you give it a read. It is great reading the book as it makes you realise what life is actually about time and grattitude and not the silly things we all do. Give it a read hard one to review but if you need more info check out the website just type in The secret to google it is the first one pops up. Check it out
I'd first heard of The Secret a few years ago when I was given the book as a present. The Secret is about living the life that you what and achieving your dreams by positive thinking.
The Secret looks at different aspects such as - health, relationships, money, life and the world. Some parts of the love and health chapters are unrealistic. I disagree that you do not have to work hard in life for money (unless you're a lottery winner or ahem a 'celebrity'). Also not everybody can eat what they want and not gain any weight. I take these views with a pinch of salt. I would say that The Secret is a basis of how to think more positively about life. There are also insights from contributors in the book who include teachers, business people and doctors.
I guess that really the thoughts that you have are a self-fulfilling prophecy, if you have a positive outlook on life, then you will find it easier to turn a negative to a positive. If you have more negative thoughts then you ignore or miss out on the more positive aspects.
I would say that to achieve what you want in life you have to be extremely focused and try to overcome all the obstacles and setbacks that life throws at you. To me the most important things in life are health, happiness and love.
The Secret is not such a secret and nothing new in my opinion. There is no revelation really. I am happy with the book though as if I start to have negative thoughts, then I can pick up this book to read. The Secret is just a constant reminder to be more positive, even when it feels like there's no light at the end of the tunnel. There is always somebody else who is worse off, and I found that when I kept repeating it to myself I had a more positive outlook, regardless of the many obstacles that I have faced in life.
The Secret is not for everybody. There is a lot of sceptisim, as there is about anything psychological. I won't say that you have to rush out and by The Secret. I find it useful. You could just as easily take pen to paper and write a list if what you want to achieve, and set yourself goals and targets of when you want to achieve them by. If you're feeling low you could write down a list of strengths that you have or get your friends or family to write them down for you.
The Secret is over 200 pages long and is available on Amazon for £6.48 in hardback.
I would say that The Secret is a good basis of changing your thought of mind, as long as you remain realistic about how you can make improvements in your life. I haven't read this book everyday, but I'm going to try and read it more often and see if it helps.
As well as The Secret, there is The Secret Daily Teachings, which is a flip up style book. Each page is for everyday of the year and includes different quotes and insights to be read each day. My mum's been reading it to try and think more positively (which is unlike her), when she went to work that day her colleagues noticed straight away and felt more comfortable around her and a lot happier in her company. My mum found it difficult to keep up the first time, and started to look at the book continuously. I'm going to have to buy her her own copy at this rate!
There is also The Power which follows on from The Secret (without the insights of the contributors from The Secret).
Some people make think that it is a totally waste of money, but I'm going to give it a try watch this space.
This book has been getting a lot of bad press recently, with people claiming that its a waste of money, a scam, lies etc etc. Anyway i heard it was a celebrity favourite with the likes of Paris Hilton and Lauren Conrad reading it, and jumping on the bandwagon i decided to give it a go.
The first chapter drags on a bit without actually telling you what the Secret is, just lots of quotes from the author, some life coaches and people like that on how it will change your life.
It turns out that the Secret is positive thinking, shocking i know, i was expecting something better than that to. But reading further, the book goes on to say that people like Albert Einstien, Beathoven etc were all aware of this secret but didnt want to share it and that is why they became so much more successful that other people. That why its called the Secret, because a select few people kept it to themselves over centuries.
Now i know your probably thinking its total garbage now youve heard it but its really a very good read! It offers a lot of advice on how to stay positive through the bad times, how to imagine that you already have what ever it is that you want ( an important part of the Secret) and how to be happy for what you already do have in life.
Since reading it, it has definately opened my eyes and iv had more than a few good things happen to me, which has furthermore convinced me that having a positive perspective can only be a good thing.
Even if your still a bit unsure i would give it a go, whats the worst that could happen, as it sells for only about £10 -£15 and you might be surprised!
Rhonda Byrne in her book is telling us; 'your thoughts cause your feelings' and you attracted everything that happen to you. The secret to get what you want is " the law of attraction ".
Is 'the law of attraction' really working?
In my opinion everything that's in this book is nothing but true.
You can get what you want when you are positive. You're willing to work, to do something. If you belive that you can do something you're happier. And finally if you're happy you have a lot of energy.
You can't become a millionaire if you don't work or neither if you don't buy a lottery ticket.
And vice-versa.
If you're negative you don't belive that you can change your life. You lie on your bad in a dark room and do nothing. Will you become a millionaire?
I'm living example that it really works.
After reading I started to think "I can do this! I can get what I want" This book motivated me. I stopped thinking about things that makes me upset.
One year ago, saying goodbye to someone I said 'See you next year in London'. At that time was no chance that I move to UK but it was my dream since I was a child. Now I'm sitting in my London flat writting this review.
OK I know, The Secret isn't a magic book. Everything that is written in this book was known long time ago - positive thinking always helped to solve problems.
Yes, I think this book is worth reading. It motivates and lift people spirits.
The Secret is all about what they call "the law of attraction". Your thoughts reflect your surroundings. So for example if you only think of a negative outcome negative things will happen. On the other hand if you think positively good things will happen. There are a lot of quack books available to read full of psycho babble on "positive thinking" so it would be easy to assume that "The Secret" is another quack book. However the secret is slightly different. It doesn't tell you to just "be positive" but also to imagine the outcome you desire. You have to use a lot of imagination. You see apparently everyone in this universe is interconnected so your thought directly influence your surroundings. Having tested out the theories in the book it seems to work. Some strange things have happened which I can only put down to this book.
If you're looking for some direction I highly recommend The Secret. Your mental state of mind is an extremely important one. Whether you believe it works or not I recommend giving it a try. The only drawback is it does take a lot of concentration. For those with busy lives with plenty of things or their minds following The Secret could be difficult. If you do follow the book, it would be better to keep it to yourself since many people will consider it "quack".
I was passed a copy of this book by my mother recently. My mother is usually a very sceptical person and would not normally be seen dead reading a book like this, assuming it to be another one of those 'long winded' self-help books.
However, my mother had been staying with a male friend who had inspired her to read it and take the book's message seriously. Let me explain. This friend has been an actor and producer for 30 years. Unfortunately, last year he was accused by another playwright of plagiarising some work. The case went to court and my mother's friend was found not guilty. However, he had to pay £37,000 in legal fees. Work had dried up, he was bankrupt and was living in a small flat.
He then bought the book 'The Secret' and adopted the message and the principles of the book. One year later, this man is now living in an 8 bedroomed appartment, has £50,000 profit in his account, and was unexpectedly offered the directors job against all odds for a top London theatre production. He has also had a full year of work - which as an actor has never happened in 30 years.
All of this could of course be coincidence, but this man is absolutely convinced that his fortunes and life improved considerably since wholeheartedly adopting the principles and beliefs in the book. My mother said that when she was there her friend was opening his mail, and two letters contained royalty cheques for large sums of money, whilst the others were more offers of work. He fully recommended this book to my mother, who then passed it to me.
***What is the book about?***
The book is about 'a secret,' which will supposedly change your life for the better and help you to 'know how you can have, be, or do anything you want.'
The author Rhonda Byrne uses her own life experience to demonstrate how she pulled her self out of turmoil and despair to one of positivity and fortune. This all came about after her daughter passed her a hundred year old book which referred to this 'secret,' which in turn inspired Rhonda to trace this back through history, including the links with famous scholars, scientists and philosophers. Rhonda then used the principles of the secret to produce a film about it, despite having no idea how to fund or go about this. Rhonda claims that she had utter faith that this would happen due to knowing the secret and so it did. Rhonda claims that since the film and book was produced, people wrote to her to confirm that applying the secret had worked for them, produced miracles and changed some people's lives for the better.
***So what is this secret?***
The secret outlined in this book is very simple.
It is the 'law of attraction' and positive thought.
The book works on the principle that everything that you are experiencing in your life is attracted by you. In other words, whatever is going on in your mind you are attracting to you. The book suggests that thoughts and images in your mind can become concrete and transfer into a reality.
'Every thought of yours is a real thing - a force' - Prentice Mulford (1834-1891)
Rhonda claims that in researching 'the secret', she has found that famous poets, musicians, artists and scientists have used the secret and in some way referred to this in their works. For instance, Shakespeare, Browning, Leonardo da Vinci, Pythagoras and Sir Issac Newton. Rhonda also claims that evidence of it can be found within all of the major religions.
Rhonda claims that we are responsible for the law of attraction , that we call it into action, and that we are responsible for this via our thoughts and feelings. She likens it to a magnet, whereby you attract what you think.
'Most people are thinking about what they don't want, and they are wondering why this shows up again and again.'
This is not always easy to get your head around. Rhonda gives a number of examples:
Your thought: 'I don't want a bad haircut'
Message you send out: 'I want a bad haircut.'
Your thought: 'I can't handle all this work'
Message you send out: 'I want more work than I can handle'
Much of the book dedicates itself to talking about what the secret is about, whilst the rest focuses on how a person can change their though process and bring about the changes in their life as a result.
This is not as simple as it sounds. It's all very well thinking positive thoughts for a short time, but to attract what you actually want, Rhonda states that a person needs to be specific about what it is, have complete faith it will happen, and believe they already have it. Any doubt at all will hinder the process.
The book recommends a number of tips and tools throught - such as making lists of what you want, providing gratitude daily for what you have, and visualising change.
The book is an inspiring read and is thought provoking.
It certainly can't hurt to train yourself to think more positively about life - we have all heard stories about people who have improved their health and achieved more in life by being positive and believing only the best can happen.
This book takes that concept one step further by implying that you can actually manipulate the world around you and turn thoughts into actions and 'things.'
I have heard personally from people who have used this book to improve things in their own lives and believe that it works for them.
This book will probably draw people into two seperate camps - the 'believers' and the 'non-believers.'
* The book is written in a simple manner and is easy to understand. It's not all that long and you could get through it in a few hours. However, it can be repetative in stages, often repeating the same message over and over again. However, I believe that this is done to reinforce the message to the reader which, if you are going to take it seriously, is probably necessary. This is because putting the law of attraction into practice and changing your thought process, is not as easy as it sounds. Many of us are very negative and don't even realise it. The book is aiming to give you the tools to 'retrain' your thoughts and resulting feelings. No easy feat.
*There is little factual evidence to back up Rhonda's claims. To me, it seemed as though Rhonda quoted a great deal of famous names as adopting the principles of the law of attraction. However, we are rarely informed about the evidence behind this and at times it feels like she is expecting the reader just to believe what she is saying. In essence - why should we? Where is the evidence? The book also has an absence of detailed case studies, which possibly could have inspired the reader more. However, I am aware that there is a website on the Secret, where people have posted their stories about how the law of attraction has worked for them.
* There are some statements in the book, that without evidence to support them , can be somewhat controversial. This includes the reference to the fact that people who have been caught up in accidents or natural disasters, have been in that situation because their thought processes have drawn them to such scenarios. Some readers may find this frustrating.
***Overall opinion***
I found the concept of the book to be a simple one, and I personally do believe that there is some truth in the law of attraction. Whether this is a religious concept (as in the bible - 'Ask and you will receive') or a law of the universe I am unsure about.
Some people will say that the only benefits of positive thinking are psychological ones. This is fair enough, but it is harder to explain how some people can materialise cheques for exact amounts, get parking spaces in the exact same places each time by thinking about it, or reverse serious illnesses.
I have personally yet to try out the techniques in this book. If I feel they work I will update this review at a later date. However, the concept is not new to me, and I have used complete belief and faith about smaller things in the past which against all odds, have actually happened. But I think a person needs to get to a place where they have absolutely no doubt to make this happen - which is really difficult. This may explain why it is harder to believe that bigger things can happen - could you really believe that you can move a mountain? I doubt many people could!
The actual book itself, I feel could have been written in a better way. Although I have quite liberal views and believe in the power of the mind and the law of attraction to an extent - many people will not. This book does not provide enough evidence or reference to research and will therefore not convince everyone. It is also quite 'americanized' in style - by that I mean it can sometimes come accross as a bit patronising and dramatic to the more sceptical British reader!
In a nutshell - I do recommend this book because I personally believe there is some truth in the message, and I also know people who have made positive changes in their lives by adopting the message and techniques.
However, at £12.99 I think it should be sold for half that price! Buy a second hand copy on e-bay or amazon!
Visit www.thesecret.tv for more information on the film or real life success stories.
I was given this book as a gift by my mother, whi in my mind the most negative thinker ever! So I was impressed if it helped her! I took this book on holiday with me so I could read it cover to cover. I am a believer in positive thinking.
This small book has an impressive cover and after reading a few pages into the book I started to understand what it was all about. The Secret is the Law of Attraction and in other words what you think you attract you do attract that into your life.
This book is an easy read where some books can be heavy going and pretty full on. This was light but thought provoking. There are other merchandise that you can buy ie the Audio CD, DVD, Gratitude book and Daily Teachings to help you master the Secret.
Many people will have an opinion on this book and on personal level I feel that it teaches you to take responsiblity for your own life and your own thoughts. Everyone is entitled to live the life they want. I have always been aware that positive thinking can enrich your life. It is not always easy though.
Overall this book only confirmed in what I believe in, it won't work for everyone but it is worth a try.
It is difficult know how to review this book as so far I have not seen results but maybe I am not thinking positively enough or welcoming the thoughts of abundance already. The concept is straightforward and is based on maintaining positive energy at all times in order to get what you want. For example, if you are in debt and want to get out of it, you need to think thoughts that you will have large sums of money and it will eventually come around to you. The process involves, asking for it and also feeling as though you have already received it. When you do these things the secret is fulffiled and you get what you asked for. This is a very spiritual book and as a result some people may not be interested in it. There are almost religious tones to it and so if you are not a religious person you will unlikely get anything from this book.
regardess of this though, the book is very easy to read and very easy to get your head around the concept so for those of you who do most of your reading on a commute somewhere like me and you don't want your reading too heavy, you could certainly do a lot worse that this.
Personally, I think life is too short not to believe so grab yourself a copy get requesting all the positive changes that you want to make et viola. The new you will be with you shortly.
My best friend who was living in London for a long time was about to leave to our home country, she is my dear friend and i always turned to her for any opinions and deep conversations so the day that she left she came over to my place and gave me this book that i heard about but never got into the mood of reading it!
So she wrote some nice words in the first page for me so i decided to give it a go and read it!
In the beggining i thought i was all a bunch of rubbish because i knew all of that, like you have to think positive and that everything you think of will become real in your life, it doesnt matter if its good things or bad! Its the unfailable Law of Attraction! So i kept reading and i said to myself: Try to do all the things that they say in the book! and one day i started realizing that it really works! i started thinking of all the things that happened to me and all the things that i was thinking at the time, and its really true! whatever i was thinking became reality!
It scared me so much so i changed all my patterns of thinking, i try to think as positive as i can about everything in my life now because i know that will become reality!
The book says that you should always think positive and keep imaging that you alreadu have the things you want in life! It doesnt matter if its a car or being healthy! you have to imagine that you have that car that you always wanted and that you alreadu have the partner that you always wanted and that you are in perfect health, because then the universe will make all this happen, they say in the book that you dont have to believe in the Law of attraction, but it surely happens.
So i decided to have a vision board here in my home with all the things i want, so everytime i look at it reminds me of the things that i want to become reality!
It has changed the way i think about me and others!And i am really glad my friend gave the book because it has changed her life and for sure is changing mine as well!
I have a secret for you.
Do not buy The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne.
''You hold in your hands a great secret" it says on the back. ''It has been passed down through the ages, highly coveted, hidden, lost, stolen and bought for vast sums of money. This centuries-old Secret has been understood by some of the most prominent people in history: Plato, Galileo, Beethoven, Edison, Carnegie, Einstein - along with other inventors, theologians, scientists and great thinkers. Now the Secret is being revealed to the world.''
A new friend loaned me this book and as I am not a new-age sort of person I wasn't too interested but she emailed the next day to see if I had started reading it, if so, what did I think of it?
So, after reading the blurb on the back and thinking it a bit ''airy-fairy'' for me I set off to find the new me, to see why I hadn't won the huge lottery I have so set my heart on for the five years I've lived in England with access to striking the ''big one''.
Now I should have seen it as a warning - in the introduction on the paper fly - ''In this book you'll learn how to use The Secret in every aspect of your life - money, health, relationships, happiness and in every interaction you have in the world. You'll begin to understand the hidden, untapped power that's within you, and this revelation can bring joy to every aspect of your life.''
There was even a hint that I'd obtain things many would regard as impossible.
So, why did I go on? Why did I read to the last page? It was Tuesday and the Euromillions was around GBP90 million in a few days and boy I could do with all the help I could get! No harm done in reading the ''Bible according to Rhonda Byrne''.
So around 200 pages later, the little hard cover book has been read by me - I am reviewing my first ever book here and I guess you could say it has been a ''joy''. I must have learned something because if I send out lots of joy to the Universe it will come back to me. How joyous it is for me to be creating this review!
The big lure for me to read on was that I had to ''tell the Universe what I wanted - not ask - TELL it and it is was up to the Universe to work out how it was going to happen. So you can be sure I told the UNIVERSE very clearly, succinctly that I WANTED the GBP90million pounds on Friday night. (Just a note here - the Universe does NOT have any knowledge of time so I guess that is why I did not win the most coveted cheque on the exact date and time).
As I retired to bed on Friday night I did all the positive thinking, visualised me holding the cheque, truly EXPECTED I would win the extremely large amount of money because, after all, I deserve it. Positive, there was no-body more positive than me. But, as I nodded off I wondered how many other readers of The Secret had spent four days doing all the power of positive thinking I'd done and how many were visualising themselves holding the cheque and set down plans on how they were going to enjoy it all.
I take you through the chapters to give you and idea of what is addressed : The Secret Revealed, The Secret Made Simple, How To Use the Secret, Powerful Processes, The Secret to Money, The Secret to Relationships, The Secret to Health, The Secret to the World, The Secret to You and The Secret to Life.
A personal touch, Rhonda Byrne tells us in her foreward that she has capitalized the word You so that the reader knows and feels she has created the book especially for them. ''My intention is for You to feel a personal connection with these pages, because The Secret has been created for You''.
So, as you read through you can put yourself into the picture. This highly repetitive tome introduces You to, and aids you, to appreciate the words of wisdom from a variety of '' experts '' like a philospher, psychologist and trainer in the field on mind potential, a visionary and founder of the Agape International Spiritual Centre, a metaphysician, moneymaking expert, a law of attraction specialist and there are references to quotes from people long dead.
But I know you will be dying to know what The Secret is. You learn this quite early on, on page four when Bob Proctor tells us it is ATTRACTION. ''The Secret is the law of attraction. Everything that's coming into your life you are attracting into your life. And it is attracted to you by virtue of the images you're holding in your mind. It's what you're thinking. Whatever is going on in your mind you are attracting to you.''
Rhonda Byrne tells us at this point, ''The greatest teachers who have ever lived have told us that the law of attraction is the most powerful law in the Universe. The law of attraction is forming your entire life experience and this all-powerful law is doing that through your thoughts. You are the one who calls the law of attraction into action, and you do it through your thoughts.''
Actually the rest of the book says this again and again and you do get the idea that it's all up to you - if you are unwell it is because your thoughts were negative and of being unwell, if you have not got rich it is because you do not think and visualise yourself as being wealthy.
Back to Bob Proctor again, '' if you see it in your mind, you're going to hold it in your hand.''
Dr Joe Vitale sums it all up: ''Thoughts are sending out that magnetic signal that is drawing the parallel back to you.'' Rhonda Byrne explains, ''Thoughts are magnetic and thoughts have a frequency. As you think, those thoughts are sent out into the Universe, and they magnetically attract all like things that are on the same frequency. Everything you send out returns to the source. And that source is You.''
In this book we learn that we are all a human transmission tower (like our tv tower) but we are more powerful than any television tower created on earth.'' You are the most powerful transmission tower in the Universe. Your transmission creates your life and it creates the world. The frequency you transmit reaches beyond cities, beyond countries, beyond the world. It reverberates throughout the entire Universe. And You are transmitting that frequency with your thoughts,'' advises Rhonda Byrne.
But we do know that this did not work for me and my huge lottery win. Well I did the visualizing when I saw me shaking hands with the Camelot person, my two gnarly old hands holding the cheque and even my first interview with the bank manager, and I even had the press-release prepared with complete anonymity - the thought-police were booking me for voluminous, speedy thoughts zooming out into the Universe. There is a small glimmer of hope and joy for me - remembering that the Universe ''cannot tell time' - it may still come my way. You can be sure if it does there will be a review about my joyful reaction!
What worries me about this book is that some people may take it all too seriously - like read it and find out that if they are really ill it is because they attracted the illness to themselves. Hale Dwoskin tells us, ''Anything we focus on we do create. So if we're really angry, for instance, at a war that's going on, or strife, or suffering, we're adding our energy to it. We're pushing ourselves, and that only creates resistance.'' Or Jack Canfield says, '' The anti-war movement creates more war. The anti-drug movement has actually created more drugs. Because we're focusing on what we don't want - drugs!
We are told, ''Disease is held in the body by thought, by observation of the illness, and by the attention given to the illness. If you are feeling a little unwell, don't talk about it - unless you want more of it. If you listen to people talk about their illness, you add energy to their illness. Instead, change the conversation to good things, and give powerful thoughts to seeing those people in good health.''
Yes, there is always a place for positiveness when your friend tells you they are extremely unwell but in my life experiences - if they bring up the subject they do want to talk about it and they get some relief from talking it through. The best you can do is listen and let them talk.
This book tends to repeat the same message and doesn't really prove that The Secret medically or scientifically will change lives - generally speaking I guess the message to be positive, be joyful, expect the best in life and plan on being well and happy, will benefit the reader. There's nothing really new in here and I am glad I never paid for it.
To be honest my friend has emailed me this week to see if I have read all of the book and asked what I think about it. Now, with my new-found information I must think of something positive to joyfully reply to her. I am not having much fun visualizing what I will write so I obviously have not been converted!
It would be unfair if I didn't say something positive about the book. It did remind me that a positive attitude is always healthy, I have been more focused on being grateful for what I have and thankful for my life so far and for what it brings and where it takes me in the future. Both important messages in the book. Rhonda Byrne is enthusiastic about her message and she has the right to promote her ideals.
It wouldn't surprise me if a number of the many millions reported to have purchased this book never got to the end of it. I may be wrong but I made myself finish it - took days but I did endure it just to see if there was an improvement in the information, or interest, to find I'd trudged through only to be disappointed.
Summing up - on the back page it tells us a little bit about Rhonda Byrne who has been on her own journey of discovery. ''Along the way, she brought together a superb team of authors, ministers, teachers, film makers, designers and publishers to bring forth The Secret to the world, and through her vision, bring joy to millions.''
At the end of this long and repetitive journey you learn: ''The earth turns on its orbit for You. The oceans ebb and flow for You. The birds sing for You. The sun rises and it sets for You. The stars come out for You. Every beautiful thing you see, every wondrous thing you experience, is all there for You. Take a look around. None of it can exist, without You. No matter who you thought you were, now you know the Truth of Who You Really Are. You are the master of the Universe. You are the heir to the kingdom. You are the perfection of Life. And now you know The Secret.''
Secretly, would I recommend it?: You already know the answer to that.
(At the risk of readers saying I should not add a personal note to a book review!!!) My Secret to You: if you want a fulfilling life, aim to be happy. Strive for good health. If you want to make money, work hard, save and along the way, be kind, caring, laugh lots, travel, and at the end of each day, go to bed happy that you have not upset or hurt anyone. Most of all, love Yourself and treasure those you share your life with. That wise tome cost you nothing and there was no ''team of experts'' to help me come to this realisation.
THE SECRET, Rhonda Byrne.
Published in Great Britain by : Simon and Shuster UK Ltd, 2006
, Beyond Words Publishing.
Hard cover, on the back is says GBP12.00
There is apparently a movie: on the back cover it invites you to visit www.thesecret.tv BUT I will not be!
A Review of The Secret by Rhonda ByrneRhonda Byrne, The Secret (New York: Atria Books, 2006) 198 pages.A video by the same title was released earlier in 2006.I had never watched an entire episode of Oprah until her program on The Secret. In the promo for the show, Oprah announced that the program would present "the secret" to making more money, losing weight, finding the love of your life, and achieving job success. Who could resist hearing more about such a claim, especially when it is made by the most influential woman in America and touted as the key to all her success? Apparently I wasn't alone. After the show, Oprah's website was overwhelmed, emails poured in, and within hours The Secret had become the best-selling book in the nation.A week later, while unpacking in a hotel room. I powered up the TV.
The Secret has been on Amazon's list of top bestsellers for quite a while now. (It's no 12 at the time of writing). The description suggested a motivational self-help book of some kind and the synopsis referred to physicists, old oral traditions, religions, poetry and philosophy. Intrigued by the consistently high ranking, I included the book in my last order even though I am not normally in a market for this kinds of work.
I won't keep you in suspense. The secret of "The Secret" is to think positive thoughts: think that you have what you want to have all the time, visualise it, be grateful for it in advance and feel positive feelings as the thinking itself won't cut it without them. Y'know, "you have two sets of feelings: good feelings and bad feelings. And you know the difference between the two because one makes you feel good and the other makes you feel bad."
There. No need to buy the book. Honestly, there is nothing else there: most of the 160+ pages are filled with continuous, ad nauseam, unbearable repetition of the ideas summarised above. They don't even provide the normal padding of countless inspirational case stories (there are a few, but not that many). It is just a plain, in-your-face, mercenary, repetitive regurgitation of the think good thoughts - feel good feelings - be grateful as if you already had what you want sequence.
The main idea of the "law of attraction" (or You Are What You Think) gets applied to money, relationships, health and The World, but nothing new gets said. The last chapter develops the New Age ideas of spirituality and in a way is the most acceptable part of the book althought it is characterised by breath-taking solipsism ("You are the creator, and you are creating the creation of You on this planet", "You are god").
The abdication of reason is so absolute that it takes a while to actually believe it can be really happening. I had read the whole thing, hoping that eventually it would be revealed that what we are talking about is more of a metaphor: that what "The Secret" advises is really positive thinking, affirmations, visualisation of goals; ideas made mainstream by treatment techniques like Cognitive Behaviour Therapy: that one's attitude and expectations often result in self-fulfilling prophecies. That fear and lack of self-confidence can block fulfilment. That day-to-day, others sometimes treat us the way we think we deserve to be treated. That generally, we tend to be more happy and more successful if we have positive outlook and believe things are possible.
But it most empathically doesn't limit itself to the above. Instead, "The Secret" claims that the only thing between you and *anything* you want is your negative thoughts (or lack of positive ones). The rich are rich because they think of themselves as rich so they keep and attract more money. It obviously has nothing to do with inherited wealth nor with ability, talent, hard work or social connections.
Even mass death is the result of people believing that they can be in the wrong place at the wrong time (and then finding themselves thus). The book doesn't devote much to such grim subjects, though - there is perhaps a paragraph about that and it singularly fails to address instances of mass suffering caused not by being in a wrong place at the wrong time (as in a case of a natural disaster for example) but by active, deliberate pursuit of evil ends by other human beings as happened during the Holocaust, Rwandan genocide or Khmer Rouge murders to pick just three random, obvious examples.
On some levels, "The Secret" is quite funny, in the way somebody with enough cheek to stand in front of you and say the most unimaginable bullshit without blinking an eye can be funny: kind of post-infuriating funny. Amongst the most choice statements included is a claim that according to the Bible, Jesus "was a prosperity teacher" who lived "a more affluent lifestyle that many present day millionaires could conceive of "(I am NOT making this one up, it's on page 109). Or that Albert Einstein came from a particularly poor and humble background and the fact that he managed to achieve anything is entirely due to his knowledge of The Secret (in fact, his father was a salesman and later on a co-owner of an engineering company).
But these are, really, minor quibbles. What recurs throughout the book is the most appalling abuses of scientific terminology I have ever seen, and I have seen a lot of Bad Science. I can understand it. Science is one of the great success stories of our age: people tend to believe science and scientists, and statements with a scientific tint to them are thought to be more credible. But the terminology and concepts presented in "The Secret" go beyond mere misuse and make very successful strides into the land of pure nonsense. Just random picks: it mentions somebody watching the DVD of The Secret many times "in order to absorb the message right into the cells of her body." It constantly refers to the law of attraction which is, apparently, the heart of the Secret and has been known to scientists and artists (there is a nice selection including Socrates, Pythagoras, Newton and Beethoven: anybody is strongly advised to look up the manner of demise of these famous people before judging them as being partial to a mystery of universal happiness). Of course, the law of attraction doesn't exist. There is absolutely no evidence whatsoever of external forces reacting in any ways to one's thoughts. Despite Byrne's reassurances, we cann't make the planets move according to our wishes by thinking about it and neither we can avoid aging.
Couching the idea in pseudo-scientific terms like "emitting this frequency into the Universe" doesn't make it any more viable. You cannot emit a frequency (frequency is always of something) and thoughts do not, generally, get emitted anywhere (unless we shout them out really loud or broadcast using machinery). Statements like "The feeling of love is the highest frequency" you could emit do not make sense at all as factual statements - however appealing they might be in a metaphorical sense. There is no such a thing like "vibrations of mental forces". Modern physics' proposition that vibrations of so-called super strings is at the basis of all matter (or energy) DOES NOT translate into large-scale stuff like human bodies, brains or even (huge in comparison to strings) atoms. I doubt that my spirit is so big (or small, depending on how you look at it) that it fills the room, but I'm pretty sure that I am not an energy magnet or a transmission tower and I am very sure indeed that I do not electrically energize anything, thank you very much.
Quantum physicists empathically DO NOT tell us that the entire Universe emerged from thought. All diseases are NOT a result of stress. Healthy emotions do not guarantee a healthy body (though they might help recovery). Aging is not caused by thoughts, and even if you believe you can't catch something you still can if you are exposed to the infectious agent (as countless examples of babies, children and animals suffering from infectious diseases attest). And the oil in Belize was not created by the belief of the team that discovered it.
I could go on for much longer. But I think that by now you, gentle reader, have a pretty good idea of what "The Secret" is about. Apart from the fact that it's definitely Not My Thing as far as its New Age spirituality goes, it's also trite, mercenary, repetitive and full of mumbo-jumbo that abuses scientific language and human reason in equal parts. In fact, The New Age spirituality (in the last chapter) is just about the only part of the book that is somehow, touchingly, bearable: it has this quality of heady madness that makes one almost wish that it was true - and as a wonderful, poetic metaphor it might be. But it still doesn't mean that not watching the news and thinking positive thoughts of abundance will make the war, famine and inequality disappear.
And here we come to the important question: does it matter? After all, most people who read this stuff will use it as any other motivational tool - just as I thought it would be like in the first place, of will cheer themselves up with the idea of One-Mind-One-Friendly-Universe.
But I think it matters. It matters, because it is another embodiment of the persuasive modern idea that it's all in the mind and that the social and material worlds doesn't matter (though if you want this million bucks you will get it by visualising a cheque, there is even a pdf to download). That problems most people have are a result of their emotional trauma or negative thoughts or communication breakdowns or lack of parenting and interpersonal skills or something like that. That we should look inward and change our minds, instead of looking outward and trying to change the world. That those who are exploited, killed, robbed, enslaved, exterminated and abused; run over by the metaphorical - and literal - tanks are responsible for their sorry situation, and that the best thing they could do is to start thinking positive thoughts, develop self esteem and start "emitting frequencies of love and abundance".
Despite being lazy, politically inactive and a pacifist I am, after that experience, tempted to say, bring on the revolution.
Hardback, 160 pages, published by Simon & Schuster Ltd.
Once known only by an elite who were unwilling to share their knowledge of the power, 'the secret' of obtaining anything you desire is now revealed by prominent physicists, authors and philosophers as being based in the universal Law of Attraction. And the good news is that anyone can access its power to bring themselves health, wealth and happiness. Fragments of The Secret have been found in oral traditions, literature, religions and philosophies throughout the centuries. A number of the exceptional people who discovered its power went on to become regarded as the greatest human beings who ever lived. Among them: Plato, Leonardo, Galileo and Einstein. Now 'the secret' is being shared with the world. Beautiful in its simplicity, and mind-dazzling in its ability to really work, The Secret reveals the mystery of the hidden potential within us all. By unifying leading-edge scientific thought with ancient wisdom and spirituality, the riveting, practical knowledge will lead readers to a greater understanding of how they can be the masters of their own lives.


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Asia-Pacific media meets in Kathmandu
The Asia-Pacific Institute for Media Development (AIBD) is holding its General Conference in Kathmandu this week. Created by UNESCO 1977, AIBD is instrumental to shape the professional standards in broadcasting in the Asia-Pacific Region. AIBD is mandated to achieve a vibrant and cohesive electronic media environment in the Asia-Pacific region through policy and resource development.
"AIBD is a valuable partner for UNESCO – it has trained more than 20000 professionals, many of whom are now leading broadcasting organizations throughout the region", Axel Plathe, Head of UNESCO Office in Kathmandu says speaking on behalf of UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information.
The collaboration between UNESCO and AIBD since its establishment has been focused on best practices in the field of broadcasting in general and public service broadcasting and community media in particular. Other initiatives have included cyber-journalism for women journalists, use of ICTs for strengthening citizens' participation in broadcasting, HIV-AIDS producers' network and digitization of radio and television archives. UNESCO and AIBD have also collaborated in publishing model manuals in the field of broadcasting, notably " Public Service Broadcasting: A Comparative Legal Survey", "Education Makes News", "Getting the Story and Telling it Right, HIV on TV: A Handbook for Television Trainers and Producers", and "Broadcasting Science".
One of the most important functions of AIBD is the Asia Media Summit. It attracts every year hundreds of decision makers, media professionals, scholars, and stakeholders of news and programming to discuss.
"The summit is a crucial forum for networking and bringing together the media professionals of the region and beyond", says Axel Plathe.
AIBD is an Inter-governmental Institute with 26 Member States from Asia and the Pacific. Nepal is represented by Radio Nepal and Nepal Television as full members. In addition, AIBD has 100 affiliate members from the region, with Antenna Foundation, ACORAB and Communication Corner from Nepal.
<- Back to: UNESCO Office in Kathmandu

subset: commoncrawl


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A LONG-AWAITED plan to build 350 homes in Banbury has been submitted.
Pegasus Planning Group has applied for the homes at land north of Hanwell Fields, off Warwick Road, to Cherwell District Council.
The council has earmarked the land for up to 400 homes in its draft local plan of where estates will go in the coming two decades.
Hanwell Fields Development Action Group opposes to the plan, but said the application came as "no surprise".


text: Kickstarter It looks like a really interesting game and it is Gas Powered Games' (Supreme Commander, Dungeon Seige, Demigod) last ditch effort to go indie and stay open. It's difficult to explain what it is because it's a hybrid of a real-time strategy (e.g. Supreme Commander) and and a third person action RPG (e.g. Torchlight, Deathspank) with an emphasis on technology (e.g. Empire Earth). It has a lot of randomly generated content (like Torchlight) which may be new to the RTS arena. Kings and Castles was side tracked (a mideval, spiritual sequel to Supreme Commander) because Gas Powered Games simply don't have the resources to finish it. Wildman is the product that hopefully allows GPG to go indie, getting a lot more revenue for itself (as opposed to publishers) which in turn allows it to finish Kings and Castles. In addition to the videos on the Kickstarter page, here's an hour long interview with Chris Taylor that got me interested in the project (interview starts at 1:55):


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Java Draw Created Sep 20, 2012 640 x 460px Unless noted Copyright 2012 TanEman.
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Love it :))
OUTSTANDING as usual. I am one of your biggest fans I am sure. Such talent. Amazing art. FAVE.
What beautiful art work,,, great textures and technique throughout,,, the colors are just amazing,,,wonderful work,, collector for me
Superb... Loved the depth and texture. fav for sure! 5/5
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AMAZING, YOU ARE SO TALENTED!!!!!!!!!! 5/5h fave
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It's SASUNARU!! I hope you like it lots!! took me and hour!!! rock on!!!! they're so shexy.
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Oh wow someone traced.....one of my long time friends drew that picture quite awhile ago sweetie...u should stop posting someone elses art as your own-that was an original deviantart picture ppl.....sorry but art theft is a no,no
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cute sasunaru x3~! adorable.


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GirlgasmicFavorites [+]
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When you purchase DRM-free downloadable content, that content is available for you to download on any computer and save to a disk whenever you like. You can also download to multiple computers. There is no timeframe associated with your purchase and the content will not expire.
Running Time: 125 minutes
Released: 01/2008
Studio Name: Anabolic Digital
Series: Girlgasmic
Categories: Lesbian Anal Orgies Strap-On All Sex All Girl Award Winning Movies High Definition
Description: Anabolic proudly presents our first installment of an All Girls series that is pleasingly packed with plethora of pleasure producing pussy! 15 hot, horny, healthy, hooch hungry whores grace the screen in this pounding fuck fest!
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Top 5 At 7:45 – Ways To Protect Your Heart
We protect our selves against many different things in our life. But what about our heart?
I was recently reading a piece in Men's Magazine on line, and it talked about our heart and how we can protect it. Today on the Top 5 at 7:45, we'll talk about how to protect that precious blood pump to maybe help us stay alive long enough to either see the Chicago Cubs win a World Series or to see the U.S. pay off her national debt.
The Top 5 at 7:45 airs weekdays on KGAB Mornings with me, Gary Freeman and sponsored by First Eduction Federal Credit Union.
- Grill A Steak: You might be surprised to know that up to 50% fat in beef is heart healthy monounsaturated variety and can actually be good for you.
- Check Out A Scary Movie: They tend to cause your heart to race thus hitting your heart's "reset" button, according to some researchers.
- Run In Doors When It's Hazy Out: When it's hot and hazy outside, and you're running, researchers have found that this can cut the supply of oxygen in the blood and make it more likely to clot.
- Rid Yourself Of Second Hand Smoke: It's been said that people exposed to cigarette smoke for 30 minutes – three times per week could have about a 26 percent chance of being at a greater risk of heart disease.
- Go For A Swim: Men who burn about 50 calories a day by swimming, are 62 percent less likely to dis of heart disease.


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My name is Fatou Janha Mboob. I am 56 years old, and I have four children aged 25 to 32 years. Being married to a diplomat gave me the opportunity to live in different African countries, Cameroon, Ghana, Tanzania, to name a few; as well my training as a social and agricultural extension worker allowed me the opportunity to do a lot of charity work mainly with women groups. I have been affiliated with several international women associations all of which have been working for the uplifting of the African women and their emancipation from abject poverty and low social status.
I returned to my home country, The Gambia, in 2006 and established my own business as a fashion designer. However, I could not help but notice the plight of the hard working Gambian women harvesting and selling oysters and cockles. These women are classified as the poorest in Gambian society and their hard and often dangerous work has remained unnoticed as far back as my early childhood days. These women, despite being illiterate and poor are the bread winners of their families, responsible for clothing and feeding the family, paying school fees and medical bills. Many of them are widows. Those with husbands have to contend with the reality that they earn more money than their husbands who are mainly menial workers (night watchmen and labourers). The young teenage girls in the family usually work as house-helpers to supplement the family income instead of being at school.
I took the decision to venture into their world to get a more accurate impression of their situation and conditions of work. I found out that the women harvest, process and sell cockles and oysters using rudimentary technologies and they lack basic essentials such as boats, protective gear such as boots and gloves, and life jackets to curb the number of deaths by drowning. In addition to harvesting safety issues, there have been reported incidents of attacks on women at work, rapes, murder and serious injuries requiring hospitalisation. This unfortunate state of affairs spurred me on to get involved with the women.
We agreed to work together and form an association to address the issues confronting them. In 2007, TRY Association was established and registered as a charitable, non-profit community-based organization. The mission of TRY Association is: "to improve the welfare of the members of the Association thereby improving and adding value to their product, and consequently improving the social and economic conditions of its members". TRY Association was first established in one community with 40 members and within four years the Association has spread to 15 communities and membership now stands at 500. The Association has elected members of its Executive Committee and has a Board of Directors. The Association has now gained national attention and recognition and is receiving support from an internationally funded project.
From individuals eking out a living with their bare hands, under this Association, the women organised fund raising activities and bought boats and safety gear. The women are now more aware of the environment and, for the first time in history of the Gambia, they have voluntarily decided to desist from oyster farming for a four-month period to avert the looming spectre of oyster extinction. To crown it all the women have travelled to Senegal to learn about oyster cultivation using the "hanging method".
Much more work lies ahead. There is still an urgent need to improve harvesting technology and shift from chopping down mangrove forests to conserving them; developing oyster culture; improving the harvesting areas which are unhygienic and devoid of water and sanitation facilities; establishing a market for oysters and cockles and product development to meet the requirements of the hotel industry and for export. Work has already started to develop and implement a co-management regime for sustainable oyster and cockle fisheries. The primary stakeholders are the women oyster and cockle harvesters, local government agencies, and government institutions.


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We discuss politics, computer science, philosophy, economics, gardening, and sex.
Saturday, August 09, 2008
New(ish) iMac Review
The best thing about this machine is I can get away from the computer with it. I can lounge on my couch and type as thoughts come to me while reading, instead of having to choose whether I'll be researching comfortably or sitting typing for a long stretch of time. A laptop doesn't permit this -- still too big and clunky -- but the Apple wireless keyboard can be stowed easily alongside your body while you read or watch TV -- I mean here, between your body and the couch back (with you reclining on the arm), and not taking up a seat beside you. Since it weighs a couple of ounces rather than 10 pounds, you don't need to shift positions to pick it up and make a note.
"OK," you ask, "but that certainly doesn't solve what to do when you have to reach the mouse and need a flat surface, does it?" Well, let me tell you, I can literally mouse with no difficulties at all using my leg as the "mouse pad"! The remote mouse is the best I've ever used.
The Apple remote controller is a wonder in simplicity. The whole thing works to control iTunes, DVDs, iPhoto, and more, with only six buttons! (Think of the number on your average TV remote.) What Apple seemed to realize is that a lot could be gleaned from context, e.g., you don't need 4 buttons to move up and down through a menu and raise and lower the volume -- when you're in a menu, you're not listening to anything, and when you're watching your movie, you're not scrolling through a menu! A pair of up/down buttons suffice four all 4 tasks.
The last thing I'll mention is the wonder of iMac setup. When I brought the computer up, I was asked, right away, if there was another computer I wanted to get settings and/or files from? Or, perhaps, a backup disk? I had my external Time Machine hardrive sitting on the same desk, I clicked yes. I went through a couple of screens deciding what to fetch from the old Mac, clicked "Go," and in one hour, my new computer looked exactly like my old one -- every user account, all my preferences, my bookmarks, my contacts, my photos, my songs, my network settings, my papers, etc. You may say, "One hour to set up!" But no, it was about two minutes to set up, and then I walked away for an hour while over 100 GB of data transferred over a USB cable. I have never, ever, since my first PC (where I had no data, programs, etc. and could just start figuring out what the hell it was right away), been up and working on a computer so quickly and painlessly.
20 comments:
If we had ads on this site, people would think Gene was just trying to draw traffic. But no, this is how he talks. Once I said, "But Gene, you don't have dandruff!" and he whipped out a bottle of Head and Shoulders.ReplyDelete
Except that when you try to use it for stuff other than looking at well-defined albums, i.e. try to web-browse, you have to deal with Apple's standard flaky interfaces. The remote mouse doesn't help you with web-browsing, does it? Can you click links with it?ReplyDelete
I bought my iMac nearly a year ago, and it has been very reliable (I think it crashed once, and a few apps have frozen . . . but I've never lost data). In addition to working with it for hours on endReplyDelete
* writing
* editing
* audio editing
* (and, just this weekend starting on) video editing
I also listen to a lot of music, buy music and TV shows on iTunes, and just watched the free premiere of "Primeval" on iTunes (which I downloaded for free).
What makes this iMac better than previous versions is, for me, the ability to hook up an external monitor. I bought a used 20" Cinema Display and am very pleased with it. The two monitors (the iMac and the Cinema Display) look like fraternal twins (strong resemblance, though one's larger than the other), and using two monitors for work is, I think, a must.
I first used two monitors on my old 7100. And then I added a third monitor. And then a fourth. That was a slow Power Macintosh, old style Nubus etc., but I grew to love multiple monitors. The fact that one can get into multiple monitors EASILY and cheaply using the iMac is a grand thing.
Of course, setting up the monitors is easy, easy, easy. How easy is that in the Windows world? The last I checked, it wasn't easy at all. (But Windows is catching up. Why, it looks better than OS 9, these days.)
"Can you click links with it?"ReplyDelete
Uh, yeah, of course you can. Did you have some reason to believe that you can't click on web links on a Mac?
Gene, the question was about clicking links with the remote mouse, not whether you can click links at all. (reason being that using a track pad is annoying) I'm not sure if you're trying to be funny, or if you were genuinely so incapable of reading questions in context that your questions is actually serious.ReplyDelete
Knowing your past posts, the answer is obvious to me.
Wirkman, the reason you're bubbling so much about your Mac is that you didn't try to do anything very complicated with it.ReplyDelete
For example, you must not have tried to extract ~10 stills from your videos and place them in the same folder, which would have made you find out that you have to do the unnecessary step of first adding the stills as a clip to your video, only to delete them immediately, or that the directory you save them to isn't sticky (you have to find it each time, and it doesn't remember the last name you gave them).
You also probably didn't try to record any video with the built-in camera, which would have made you find out that it makes you wait after each recording to split the video into e.g. 5-second clips, instead of waiting until you were done making recordings to do this (very time-consuming) step.
Am I about right?
"I'm not sure if you're trying to be funny, or if you were genuinely so incapable of reading questions in context that your questions is actually serious.ReplyDelete
"Knowing your past posts, the answer is obvious to me."
Silas, you'd better get some help -- something you're "not sure about" is "obvious" to you! That's a wicked split personality problem.
Ah, Silas, I get the problem here: You wrote "remote mouse" when you meant to write "remote control." (I have both, and they are two quite different devices, I assure you.) The "remote mouse", of course, has always clicked on links just fine. The "remote control" probably doesn't.ReplyDelete
But then, having made an understandable typing mistake, you decided that I was an idiot because I didn't understand your mangled nomenclature. That, my friend, IS a serious personality problem.
Gene: I said "remote mouse". I meant "remote mouse". I asked if you can click links with the remote mouse. Here's what I said:ReplyDelete
"The remote mouse doesn't help you with web-browsing, does it? Can you click links with it?"
Now what you've done (and again, sometimes it's hard to tell if you're being stupid, or jokingly imitating someone being stupid) is to mistakently infer that I really meant "remote control" (stupid mistake number one) but then somehow typed "remote mouse" instead (stupid mistake number two), even though the simpler and more reasonable assumption is that I meant what I typed.
A neat trick! You can convert *anything* sensible that someone says into a double-error that merely *looks* sensible! Hey, I'll do you one better:
I'll -- oopsie! -- assume that in the post beginning "Ah, Silas, I get ...", you actually meant to say, "Silas, I'm sorry for acting like a miserable human being while falsely accusing you of acting that way. Please accept my forgiveness." but erred and typed what we see above. (Wow, that's a lot of typos. You seriously "need help" for your coordination!)
Aww, thanks Gene, that's so humble of you! :-) But really, you don't have to apologize, I know you can't help who you are. ;-)
Well, Silas, I was trying to be charitable -- of course you can click on links with the remote mouse -- it's a mouse! The mouse merely sends the OS a message like MOUSE_CLICK_EVENT, without any idea whatsoever what it's over. It's the OS the interprets that event and decides what to do with it. So there's no way any mouse will be able to click on some things and not others. I didn't think you could possibly be saying anything as stupid as the Apple remote mouse could only click on some things and not others, so I charitably assumed you just misspoke.ReplyDelete
Feel better now?
You see, Silas, the two "stupid mistakes" you think I maliciously accused you of are far, far less stupid then thinking Apple made a mouse useless for surfing the Internet"! That's on the level of "Do their speakers emit sound?"ReplyDelete
Wow you guys are able to fight over just about anything.ReplyDelete
Silas, at this point I am lost. Are you saying it's difficult for you to click on links with a remote mouse, if you're not using a pad?
You know, I started this "discussion" with Silas perfectly innocently -- I really didn't get how he thought a mouse could click on some things but not others. I really don't understand why or how he took that as a personal insult and immediately began an attack on my whole personality, but I suppose that explains all the web sites he's banned from posting on.ReplyDelete
"Wirkman, the reason you're bubbling so much about your Mac is that you didn't try to do anything very complicated with it."ReplyDelete
And by the way, Silas, you do know the Mac runs UNIX, which is capable of automating about any task you want?
Oh geez. The reason I asked about the remote mouse was that I didn't know it's capabilities. Yes "mouse devices click links". Does this make it *feasible* for you to do so? (Bonus points for Bob on that one.) I was expecting something like, "Yes, you can click links, but/and it's easier/harder than with a trackpad." or "no, it just for launching more apps".ReplyDelete
(Maybe I should have asked, "Can you click links with it? And in case you're completely unable to guess the followup question, is clicking links really feasible or is it hard to?")
And this is funny: look what you just asked me: if I thought "Apple made a mouse useless for surfing the Internet"!
I've seen a lot of inexcusable choices on Apple's part -- it wouldn't surprise me.
And, even funnier:
First, you equate a question about mouse devices with a question about all Macs: "Did you have some reason to believe that you can't click on web links on a Mac?"
Then, you hurled: "Silas, you'd better get some help ...That's a wicked split personality problem."
And to top it off: "you decided that I was an idiot because I didn't understand your mangled nomenclature. That, my friend, IS a serious personality problem."
You accuse me of having a "serious personality problem" BEFORE I said a single negative thing about you, and then have the audacity to say that I "immediately began an attack on [your] whole personality"
You really, really can't make this stuff up.
Btw, that's interesting about Unix, but I do know things you can't automate. For example, there's no option to extract stills in iMovie without adding the still as a clip, so, I probably can't automate that.
'The reason I asked about the remote mouse was that I didn't know it's capabilities. Yes "mouse devices click links". Does this make it *feasible* for you to do so?'ReplyDelete
Of course it does, it's a mouse, Silas, It works just like a mouse. Yes, some mice have EXTRA features, but if it can't click, IT'S NOT A MOUSE!
'First, you equate a question about mouse devices with a question about all Macs: "Did you have some reason to believe that you can't click on web links on a Mac?"'
No, it's not funny, it's logical, because, if it's a mouse, it can click just like all other mice. That's the nature of mice. So, LOGICALLY, i thought you didn't believe any Mac mice could click on links -- that was the implication of what you said, not something I gratuitously read into it.
"Then, you hurled: "Silas, you'd better get some help ...That's a wicked split personality problem."
That was a joke, based on your saying the very same thing was both "obvious" and "unclear" to you -- you were supposed to chuckle, like this: ;->
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The NP Turkey
We have a real problem this Thanksgiving: "With a big turkey, you start running into some big problems. It takes longer to thaw ...
Declares LewRockwell.com : "All of this means that while the government has been artificially propping up the economy and 'stimu...
Is shaping up nicely .
The language won't die, but that doesn't mean the programmers won't ! Funny quote: '"Just because a language is 50...


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The Top 8 Headlines You Might Have Missed / Haaretz Newsline, December 13
From the Attorney General decision to close allegations of fraud and money laundering against Foreign Minister Lieberman, to Russia's deputy foreign minister admitting Syria's Assad is likely facing imminent defeat, the top 8 headlines you might have missed.
Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein announced Thursday the decision to close the major case against Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman involving fraud and money laundering, but to oindict him on the more minor charge of braech of trust, thereby concluding a 12-year investigation.
In the first acknowledgement by Syria's main ally that he faces a likely defeat, Russia's deputy foreign minister said Thursday that President Bashar Assad is losing control over Syria and that his opponents may win, as Lebanese media reported that 16 people were killed and more than 25 wounded in a car bomb near Damascus.
Three Palestinians were reportedly injured after clashes broke out in Hebron Thursday, a day after Israeli Border Police forces shot and killed 17-year-old Muhamad Ziad Awad Salima. Large contingents of both Israel Defense Forces soldiers and police were dispatched to Hebron amid assumptions that violent protests would continue, after Palestinian police were unable to contain the disorde.
Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas criticised Hamas leader Khaled Meshal - who said last week during his visit to Gaza that the organization will never recognize Israel, and called for its destruction – yet affirmed that Meshal approved a Fatah-Hamas agreement recognizing a two-state solution.
A U.S. think tank published satellite imagery on Wednesday which it said shows ongoing construction at Iran's Parchin military complex, a site linked to suspected nuclear activity. The publication came just ahead of the arrival of a UN nuclear inspector's team in Tehran on Thursday.
The chairman of the Central Election Committee, Judge Elyakim Rubinstein, banned an ad campaign on Wednesday by the right-wing party Otzma Leyisrael over charges that it was racist.
Although many major food manufacturers announced that they would be hiking the prices they charge the supermarkets by 4 percent to 6 percent, a price check at a number of supermarkets found that the retail chains not only passed along the price increases to the public, but actually raised prices on many items even further. In some instances, the increases were several times the manufacturer's price rise.
According to a study published last week in a leading scientific journal in the field of fertility research, French men are in real trouble - and apparently they are not alone. The study found a steep decline in the quality and quantity of sperm cells among men. The reasons apparently have to do with environmental pollution.
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Temple Law Hiring Announcement
On behalf of this year's committee, I pass along the following:
Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law invites applications from both entry-level and lateral candidates for full-time, tenure-track faculty positions to commence in the Fall Semester 2014. We welcome applications from candidates with a wide variety of interests. Although areas of need are subject to change, priority areas are likely to include health law, business and commercial law, civil procedure, intellectual property, law and technology, trust and estates, torts, and employment law/employment discrimination.
Lateral candidates should contact Professor Gregory Mandel, Lateral Faculty Appointments Subcommittee (firstname.lastname@example.com). Entry level candidates should contact Professor Donald Harris, Faculty Appointments Subcommittee (email@example.com). Temple University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all in every aspect of its operations. The University has pledged not to discriminate on the basis of an individual's age, color, disability, marital status, national or ethnic origin, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or veteran status.


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20th October the day of the huge thunderstorm, the end of the balmy 18*c mild weather, and my first ride on the new bike, it ended in a mudfest with trails became more like raging torrents.
Since then its just not stopped raining. More rain in October than all of summer it feels like, I can only imagine what treats await me in the gloop department if I make it out later.
Any reports from the trailside, are they ruined yet?


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Carmel Valley Ranch
Select your stay dates to check availability
Carmel Valley Ranch
About the hotel
Property Location
Located in Carmel, Carmel Valley Ranch is in the mountains and close to Chateau Julien and Garland Ranch Regional Park. This 4-star resort is within the vicinity of Laguna Seca Golf Club Ranch and Ventana Vineyards Tasting Room.
Make yourself at home in one of the 139 air-conditioned rooms featuring fireplaces and flat-screen televisions. Rooms have private patios. Cable programming and iPod docking stations are provided for your entertainment, while complimentary wireless Internet access keeps you connected. Conveniences include phones, as well as laptop-compatible safes and desks.
Rec, Spa, Premium Amenities
Relax at the full-service spa, where you can enjoy massages, body treatments, and facials. After practicing your swing on the golf course, you can dip into one of the 2 outdoor swimming pools or 2 spa tubs. Additional amenities include complimentary wireless Internet access, concierge services, and supervised childcare/activities.
Grab a bite to eat at the resort's restaurant, which features a bar, or stay in and take advantage of room service (during limited hours). Quench your thirst with your favorite drink at a bar/lounge. Breakfast is available for a fee.
Business, Other Amenities
Featured amenities include a 24-hour business center, express check-out, and complimentary newspapers in the lobby. Event facilities at this resort consist of conference space and meeting rooms. Free valet parking is available onsite.
Hotel Facilities
- Number of spa tubs - 2
- Bar/lounge
- Concierge services
- RV, bus, truck parking
- Conference space
- Safe-deposit box at front desk
- Free newspapers in lobby
- Porter/bellhop
- Golf course on site
- Smoke-free property
- Free valet parking
- Dry cleaning/laundry service
- Garden
- Free self parking
- Wedding services
- Children's pool
- Shopping on site
- Children's club
- Express check-out
- 24-hour front desk
- Meeting rooms
- Health club
- Breakfast available (surcharge) cooked-to-order
- Spa treatment room(s)
- Total number of rooms - 139
- Steam room
- Fireplace in lobby
- Pool umbrellas
- Number of floors - 1
- Library
- Full-service spa
- 24-hour business center
- Supervised childcare/activities
- Restaurant
- Picnic area
- Coffee shop or café
- Number of meeting rooms - 5
- Number of outdoor pools - 2
- Television in lobby
- Outdoor tennis courts 9
- Tennis on site
- Free WiFi
- Coffee/tea in lobby
- Multilingual staff
- Gift shops or newsstand
- Babysitting or childcare
- Spa services on site
- Tours/ticket assistance
Room Facilities
- Phone
- Cable TV service
- Cribs/infant beds available
- Desk
- Iron/ironing board
- Daily housekeeping
- Separate bathtub and shower
- Free toiletries
- In-room safe (laptop compatible)
- iPod docking station
- Patio
- In-room massage available
- Rollaway/extra beds available
- Bathrobes
- Refrigerator
- Room service (limited hours)
- Air conditioning
- Flat-panel TV
- Coffee/tea maker
- Blackout drapes/curtains
- Free WiFi
- Climate control
- Free newspaper
- Fireplace
- Turndown service
- Hair dryer
- Private bathroom
Hotel Policy
Know Before You Go
- Children 15 years old and younger stay free when occupying the parent or guardian's room, using existing bedding.
The following fees and deposits are charged by the property at time of service, check-in, or check-out.
- Pet fee: USD 150.00 per pet, per stay
- Rollaway bed fee: USD 25.00 per night
The above list may not be comprehensive. Fees and deposits may not include tax and are subject to change.
Mandatory Fees and Taxes
You'll be asked to pay the following charges at the hotel:
- Resort fee: USD 30 per accommodation, per night
- Pool access
- Spa tub access
- Fitness center access
- Fitness/yoga classes
- Sporting facilities or equipment
- Business center/computer access
- Internet access
- Newspaper
- Faxes
- In-room safe
- In-room coffee
- In-room bottled water
- Concierge/valet service
- Self parking
- Valet parking
- Parking
- Lending library access
- Housekeeping/cleaning fees/gratuities
- Additional inclusions
We have included all charges provided to us by the property. However, charges can vary, for example, based on length of stay or the room you book.Show all hotel policy Show less hotel policy


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Couples Spa Retreat
Banyan Tree Phuket has created a unique spa experience that offers an afternoon of rejuvenation and romance for you and oyur loved one.
Sanya Rak Dinner Cruise
Enjoy the ultimate romantic dinner on board 'The Sanya Rak - Promise of Love', Banyan Tree's traditional long tail boat. You and your partner will experience traditional music and melt-in-the-mouth cuisine, not forgetting Phuket's spectacular sunset as you cruise through our lagoons.
Couple Wellness Consultation
Get a wellness consultation, with compliments from Banyan Tree Spa.
Dining at Tre
Enjoy an exquisite meal which combines the delicate flavours and cooking styles of Vietnamese cuisine and classic colonial influences of French cuisine at Tre
Beach activities
Located within metres from the main Banyan Tree Phuket resort, a pristine 3km beach provides an array of water sports for you and our loved one to enjoy.
Ăn tối trong biệt thự
Enjoy daily in-villa breakfast cooked to order by your villa host.With a personal villa host to attend to you round the clock and
Set admist verdant greens and at a tranquil lagoon, cycle around the resort's grounds and admire the exotic flora and fauna of Phuket.
Dinner of the Senses
Set in the midst of the resort's main lagoon; be effortlessly transposed to a world for two. Bask in the reflections of the calm lagoon, enjoy a company of stars and revel in a private four-course romantic dinner.


text: CrashyCartman 605 Report post Posted March 28, 2014 [EDIT]Nevermind, I've found the answer by reading one more time the linked paper. Hi Gamedev, I'm currently implementing ambient lighting using spherical harmonics, inspired by this paper, and I'm looking for some details. Basically, I don't understand how they do the real time relighting stuff described in slides 7 to 10 Right now I'm rendering a bunch of environment cube maps with my scene rendered with only the textures color, no lighting at all. Then I compute the spherical harmonics for the cube maps, and the final lighting shader looks like this: //final lighting code float4 finalColor = irradiance*texture + NDotL * shadows * texture; This gives nice results but I don't think this is the right way to do it, and I should render my scene with full shadowing, using something like: //cubemap render code float4 color = NDotL * shadows * texture; Which seems to be a better way, as lit zones will "generate" more irradiance than unlit ones. And then change the final lighting equation to something like that: //final lighting code float4 finalColor = texture+irradiance+NDotL * shadows * texture; But this bothers me because if the light direction changes, I need to recompute all the cube maps, which is not "real time friendly". So what am I missing ? Thank you very much for any help ! 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites