Saturday, March 21, 2009

The World Billionaires 2009

William Gates III
$40 Billion



Warren Buffett
$37 Billion



Carlos Slim Helu & Family
$35 Billion



Lawrence Ellison
$22.5 Billion



Ingvard Kampard & Family
$22 Billion




View Complete list via FORBES.COM







Saturday, March 7, 2009

Terracotta Warriors of Qin Dynasty


The terracotta warriors were originally placed to protect the tomb of China's 1st Emperor Qin Shihuang who ruled from the then capital of Xi'an, 36km to the west. In 246 BC, at the age of 13 ,Ying Zheng ascended to the throne of the Qin State, taking the name of Shi Huang or First Emperor. During his reign, he built the Great Wall of China, implemented mass irrigation and conquered the other 4 warring states. He was the first emperor to truly unify China. He started work immediately on his tomb; commissioning over 700,000 slaves to do the work and took over 40 years to complete. Everyone who had worked on the tomb was supposedly killed and buried with the emperor to ensure that the site remained secret for the rest of humanity.






The thousands of protective statues comprise a complete army of cavalry, infantry, archers, and chariots with their horses, all positioned in battle formation. The infantrymen form three lines at the front, with armed soldiers and chariots standing immediately behind. A single column of soldiers flank the sides of the pack, facing outward to offer enhanced protection. The warriors were created in the vision of the Emperor's own army, resulting in every face being chiselled with unique characteristics and expressions. Each statue holds real battle equipment such as swords with the lead poisoned tips still fastened today. The terracotta was once elaborately painted but this has sadly all but disappeared due to their time underneath the unrelenting earth.




Amazing Holes In The Earth

Great Blue Hole-Belize



Bingham Canyon Mine-Utah



Monticello Dam-California



Kimberley Diamond Mine-South Africa



Darvaza Gas Crater-Turkmenistan



Chuquicamata-Chile



Udachnaya Pipe-Russia



Sink Hole-Guatemala



Diavik Mine-Canada



Mirny Diamond Mine-Siberia