Last March 14, the planetary arrangement of our solar system caused one very rare astronomical event to happen, that is -- the very close conjunction of two of the brightest planet as seen from Earth, Jupiter and Venus.
For the last several weeks, the two objects moved gradually closer every night.
At the start of the month of March, the planet pairing can be spotted in the sky a few minutes after sunset, and the night of March 14 is their closest, after which these two would gradually move again to opposite directions across the night sky.
It is indeed an eye-catching sight in the night sky.
For actual images of the pairing, visit a friend of mine's astronomy blog.
*Unfortunately I was not able to see the closest position of the pairing during that night because I have work and the Western sky was blocked from my view. T^T
--Photos taken from Stellarium software
For the last several weeks, the two objects moved gradually closer every night.
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| January 31, 2012 |
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| February 9, 2012 |
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| February 16, 2012 |
At the start of the month of March, the planet pairing can be spotted in the sky a few minutes after sunset, and the night of March 14 is their closest, after which these two would gradually move again to opposite directions across the night sky.
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| March 14, 2012 |
It is indeed an eye-catching sight in the night sky.
For actual images of the pairing, visit a friend of mine's astronomy blog.
*Unfortunately I was not able to see the closest position of the pairing during that night because I have work and the Western sky was blocked from my view. T^T
--Photos taken from Stellarium software
*This entry was written on February 23, 2012 (Thursday)
Suddenly, I feel so envious with doctors. They could treat people who are sick. Unlike me, I'm adept with computers. Big deal. What good thing can it bring if something happens regarding my health? I wish I just took Doctorate or medicine, etc. My parents would even benefit from my work.
Sigh. :(
The view on the hospital window at my sister's room was magnificent. It was facing West so I was able to see the sunset.
A 'belt of Venus' formed on the horizon line few minutes after.
Later, a very thin crescent moon came into view! It was a gorgeous site.
Then again minutes later, a super bright Venus appeared in view. Then I knew surely shortly after, I would be seeing Jupiter too. ^^
I thank God for that wonderful sight. This is one of those tough times of our family. I hope all things will be alright in the end. I am praying for my sister's quick recovery.
*** Update: My sister is recovering fast now, thankfully. She still can't travel yet though so she's just resting at home. Everyone of us are looking after her. I'm happy everything went well.
*** Update: My sister is recovering fast now, thankfully. She still can't travel yet though so she's just resting at home. Everyone of us are looking after her. I'm happy everything went well.
This is my first encounter with an AI robot.
I recently installed on my Android phone this application called Simsimi, a chatting robot, which is a product developed by ISMaker, a Korean company. It is designed as a language-learning app and is beginning to attract the attentions of smartphone users because of very clever and witty answers that it can provide to any topic input by users.
The application has the functionality of 'teaching' Simsimi new language expressions. However, this is becoming an issue because some abusive users teach the robot some rude expressions.
The developers added an R-17 warning for people who would be using the application.
Try it yourself. It's free, and is already available for Apple and Android products.
I recently installed on my Android phone this application called Simsimi, a chatting robot, which is a product developed by ISMaker, a Korean company. It is designed as a language-learning app and is beginning to attract the attentions of smartphone users because of very clever and witty answers that it can provide to any topic input by users.
The application has the functionality of 'teaching' Simsimi new language expressions. However, this is becoming an issue because some abusive users teach the robot some rude expressions.
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Try it yourself. It's free, and is already available for Apple and Android products.
Mornings have always been fun because of this radio show. At 6:00AM, tune the FM radio frequency to 93.1 and for sure you would be hearing cheerful voices of a guy and a gal, greeting everyone a wonderful day. They are no other than the multi-awarded tandem Chico and Delamar.
For years I've been listening to them. Today, I finally got to see them in person during the book signing of their book "The Best of Chico and Delamar's The Morning Rush Top 10" at Powerbooks in Greenbelt Makati.
We were several minutes late so when we arrived, the book signing was already ongoing. Around 300 people arrived for the signing. My number was 143.
For years I've been listening to them. Today, I finally got to see them in person during the book signing of their book "The Best of Chico and Delamar's The Morning Rush Top 10" at Powerbooks in Greenbelt Makati.
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| My first glimpse at the funny duo of the Morning Rush |
We were several minutes late so when we arrived, the book signing was already ongoing. Around 300 people arrived for the signing. My number was 143.
Even there, they were so funny. They cracked jokes and everyone was laughing with them. The great chemistry between the two had always been the key ingredient in making them one of the top-listened shows on FM radio.
Finally, we got our turn to meet and greet them. Yay!
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| Chico and Delamar with my sis (left), my close friend (center) and me (right) !! |
By the way, the book that they've launched is a compilation of all the entries that they received on their show for the top 10 of the day, which is based on any topic under the sun.
Thank you Chico and Del, for always making our mornings fun. :D
*** If you haven't listened to them, podcasts are available at iTunes. Many people are so hooked up on this show, they even made the podcasts become the top downloaded in the Entertainment section of iTunes. :D
Thank you Chico and Del, for always making our mornings fun. :D
*** If you haven't listened to them, podcasts are available at iTunes. Many people are so hooked up on this show, they even made the podcasts become the top downloaded in the Entertainment section of iTunes. :D
I am starting to realize several things again. I've been posting here a lot about my thoughts regarding this matter. At first I was in favor of argument A. Then something happened that made me agree with argument B. But now, I am going back to the side of argument A.
I don't know why but I am seeing the situation now in a whole different way. Maybe because of several things that happened recently, it became inevitable for my decision to come to this. It would take a lot of sacrifice on my side I know, and a lot of self-discipline would be needed too. I told myself several times that I would benefit in this situation if I would just stick to my decision from the start.
What I'm just worrying about is my capability to survive the expected things to happen. Would I endure all of that? I'm afraid I'm not yet ready. :( Would all of it be worth it?
I guess I would be really sticking with the original decision. I am deeply praying that I pass all challenges to come and emerge as a stronger person in the end. Help me God.
Since 2010, a Pyro Olympics competition between countries is being held at the Manila Bay in front of SM Mall of Asia. Two countries every week showcase their fireworks display synchronized with music. Last week, it was against Korea and Malta. :)
We purchased silver tickets (which cost a hundred bucks) and our view was fairly good (except to that CloseUp Stage blocking the scenery). We were facing the western sky above Manila Bay and we were able to have a nice view of Jupiter and Venus about to set at the horizon! :D
And then, the show begins!!
[I got really busy this past few week so I only got to blog today. Work was hell. T.T]
At last! The moon reached its full phase. I was waiting for it since I got to capture Orion on my lens to see how the image would look like using the camera.
And it turned to be like this...
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| Spell DISAPPOINTED. T^T |
Honestly, I was not really happy with the results. I expected too much. It dawned to me that my camera's lens are not powerful enough to see the craters of the moon, or even just the lunar surface's details.
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| The moon. Believe me, this is the moon. ;p |
Oh well. Lesson learned. Invest on the lens. But since I'm just a beginner, I can go on learn the basics first and when I'm skilled enough (and equipped enough), I can give lunar photography a second try. :)
I learned something new about photography again! Thanks to this article.
Switching your DSLR to manual mode gives you full control on the shooting settings, most importantly on the shutter speed, aperture, and ISO. You can go with a LOT of combinations but not everything will produce a good image. There is a right mix of these adjustments that will give you great results.
For a certain aperture and ISO setting, there is an appropriate shutter speed to be set. This can be determined by the exposure meter.
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| An exposure meter looks similar this. |
After choosing the desired aperture and ISO, press the shutter half-way. A blinking rectangle will appear below the meter line. Adjust the shutter speed until the rectangle moves to the middle. There! You're set to take a photo with the right exposure! ^^
* This technique applies best in night photography, well according to the article.
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| These make my sweet tooth happy. :D |
I decided to grab a few bags of these candies tonight. I always loved these since I was little. *yum yum*
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| They look like one happy family. xD |
I was looking through my things when I saw this anime action figure that my colleague gave to me last Christmas. I remembered, this Dragon Ball character is also called Android. Then there's my phone running on Android. I just liked how they shared the same name. :)
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