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  Sat, 19 Jul 2008 13:03:00 +0200







  Sat, 19 Jul 2008 12:59:00 +0200



  Sat, 19 Jul 2008 12:57:00 +0200

This artist rendering released by Dynamic Architecture shows a rotating skyscraper that is to be built in Dubai, in various stages of movement. An Italian architect said he is poised to start construction on the new skyscraper that will be 'the world's first building in motion,' an 80-story tower with revolving floors that give it an ever-shifting shape.
  Sat, 19 Jul 2008 12:55:00 +0200
World Largest Fountain In Dubai
Infibeam.com, today announced the grand opening of its new Jewellery Store (www.infibeam.com/Jewellery/) -- a single shopping destination committed to offering low prices on a large selection of high-quality rings, necklaces, pendants, bracelets, and earrings. To provide the large breadth of selection, Infibeam.com has teamed with jewelry merchants and designers to offer fine jewellery, fashion jewellery, designer jewellery and accessories.

"We are thrilled to offer Infibeam.com customers an unparalleled jewellery shopping experience by making it easy to find and discover thousands of unique items, including diamond necklaces, gold earrings and silver bracelets among other finest jewellery at lower prices than other retailers -- online or offline," said Vishal Mehta, CEO of Infibeam.com

Traditionally, jewellery product margins are high, in order to cover the costs of holding inventory, renting store space, and providing display cases, a professional sales force and security. Because Infibeam.com does not incur many of these costs, the company is able to significantly reduce the margin on its products. While the average margin in jewellery retailing is approximately 45 to 50 percent, Infibeam.com targets substantially lower margins on jewellery sales.

Each piece of jewellery sold by Infibeam.com is inspected to verify quality attributes and ensure an excellent product. Since Infibeam.com wants their customers to be fully satisfied with their purchases, they have an excellent policy. This way a customer is a winner in either way.

Infibeam.com is making waves on the Internet as a leading one-stop source for online secured buying of new, used and rental facility providing cars, bikes, mobile phones, watches, books, apparels, beauty products and now jewellery.

Infibeam.com allows easy and fast selection and buying with its unique presentation of product bouquet that offers unmatched quality, prices, reliability and execution in the shortest possible time.

Courtesy: Infibeam.com

  Thu, 03 Jul 2008 13:28:00 +0200
The 1983 team earned a place in sporting history, and along with it the title 'Kapil's Devils.' Every Indian team, thereafter, has been compared to these champions.

A memorable moment. One, no words can describe. Kapil Dev receives the trophy from MCC president Sir Anthony Tuke

'The spirit among the boys was incredible. I don't know what specific reasons enabled us to attain that kind of spirit but I believe it was the most vital character of that triumph,' Mohinder Amarnath said after India's incredible victory.

'The victory. How did it happen? How did India overturn all predictions? Why did so many wickets tumble so cheaply? India performed one of the most mystical acts in her long cricket history -- Kapil Dev's merry men swung, seamed and caught their way through the rich list of Caribbean batting talent to win the Prudential World Cup. Joyful Indian crowds swarmed in front of the pavilion. The handsome captain, Kapil Dev, accepted the Cup from the president of the MCC, Sir Anthony Tuke.' -- The Sunday Telegraph, Tony Lewis.

The match-winning moment Things were starting to look up for the West Indies. After a disastrous start, wicket-keeper Jeff Dujon put on 43 runs with Malcolm Marshall for the seventh wicket. Then came along Mohinder Amarnath to bowl his trundlers. A seemingly innocuous delivery deceived Dujon and India were roaring towards victory once again.

'In a remarkable game, no batsman made 50, no bowler took more than three wickets, yet the outcome was perfect climax to a competition puntuated by the unlikely and the unexpected.' -- Michael Carey, of the Daily Telegraph
Left: India's opening batsman Krishnamachari Srikkanth, who top-scored, with 38 runs, in the final.
India denied the West Indies a third consecutive title. The odds against India winning the World Cup before the tournament were 1 to 66, a true reflection of their performances in the earlier World Cups.

  Mon, 23 Jun 2008 08:57:00 +0200

  Mon, 23 Jun 2008 08:57:00 +0200

  Mon, 23 Jun 2008 08:54:00 +0200

  Sat, 21 Jun 2008 07:05:00 +0200










Type Airliner
Manufacturer Airbus
Maiden flight 27 April 2005
Introduced 25 October 2007 with Singapore Airlines
Primary user Singapore Airlines
Produced 2004 – present
Number built 14 as of April 2008
Program cost 11.7 (US$17.1) billion[1]
Unit cost US$317.2-337.5 million[2]

The Airbus A380 is a double-deck, wide-body, four-engine airliner manufactured by the European corporation Airbus, an EADS subsidiary. The largest passenger airliner in the world, the A380 made its maiden flight on 27 April 2005 from Toulouse, France,[3] and made its first commercial flight on 25 October 2007 from Singapore to Sydney with Singapore Airlines. The aircraft was known as the Airbus A3XX during much of its development phase, but the nickname Superjumbo has since become associated with it.

The A380's upper deck extends along the entire length of the fuselage. This allows for a cabin with 50% more floor space than the next-largest airliner, the Boeing 747-400,[4] and provides seating for 525 people in standard three-class configuration[5][6] or up to 853 people in all economy class configuration.[7] The A380 is offered in passenger and freighter versions. The A380-800, the passenger model, is the largest passenger airliner in the world, but has a shorter fuselage than the Airbus A340-600 which is Airbus' next biggest passenger aeroplane. The A380-800F, the freighter model, is offered as one of the largest freight aircraft, with a listed payload capacity exceeded only by the Antonov An-225.[8] The A380-800 has a design range of 15,200 kilometres (8,200 nmi), sufficient to fly from New York to Hong Kong for example, and a cruising speed of Mach 0.85 (about 900 km/h or 560 mph at cruise altitude).[5]

Background

Airbus started the development of a very large airliner (termed Megaliner by Airbus in the early development stages) in the early 1990s, both to complete its own range of products and to break the dominance that Boeing had enjoyed in this market segment since the early 1970s with its 747. McDonnell Douglas pursued a similar strategy with its ultimately unsuccessful MD-12niche market, as had been demonstrated by the simultaneous debut of the Lockheed L-1011 and the McDonnell Douglas DC-10: both planes met the market’s needs, but the market could profitably sustain only one model, eventually resulting in Lockheed's departure from the civil airliner business. In January 1993, Boeing and several companies in the Airbus consortium started a joint feasibility study of an aircraft known as the Very Large Commercial Transport (VLCT), aiming to form a partnership to share the limited market. design. As each manufacturer looked to build a successor to the 747, they knew there was room for only one new aircraft to be profitable in the 600 to 800 seat market segment. Each knew the risk of splitting such a niche market, as had been demonstrated by the simultaneous debut of the Lockheed L-1011 and the McDonnell Douglas DC-10: both planes met the market’s needs, but the market could profitably sustain only one model, eventually resulting in Lockheed's departure from the civil airliner business. In January 1993, Boeing and several companies in the Airbus consortium started a joint feasibility study of an aircraft known as the Very Large Commercial Transport (VLCT), aiming to form a partnership to share the limited market.

In June 1994, Airbus began developing its own very large airliner, designated the A3XX. Airbus considered several designs, including an odd side-by-side combination of two fuselages from the A340, which was Airbus’s largest jet at the time.[9] The A3XX was pitted against the VLCT study and Boeing’s own New Large Aircraft successor to the 747, which evolved into the 747X, a stretched version of the 747 with the fore body "hump" extended rearwards to accommodate more passengers. The joint VLCT effort ended in July 1996, and Boeing suspended the 747X program in January 1997. From 1997 to 2000, as the East Asian financial crisis darkened the market outlook, Airbus refined its design, targeting a 15 to 20 percent reduction in operating costs over the existing Boeing 747-400. The A3XX design converged on a double-decker layout that provided more passenger volume than a traditional single-deck design.

Design phase

On 19 December 2000, the supervisory board of newly restructured Airbus voted to launch a 8.8 billion program to build the A3XX, re-christened as the A380, with 55 orders from six launch customers. The A380 designation was a break from previous Airbus families, which had progressed sequentially from A300 to A340. It was chosen because the number 8 resembles the double-deck cross section, and is a lucky number in some Asian countries where the aircraft was being marketed.[9] The aircraft’s final configuration was frozen in early 2001, and manufacturing of the first A380 wing box component started on 23 January 2002. The development cost of the A380 had grown to €11 billion when the first aircraft was completed.

Boeing, meanwhile, resurrected the 747X programme several times before finally launching the 747-8 Intercontinental in November 2005 (with entry into service planned for 2009). Boeing chose to develop a derivative for the 400 to 500 seat market, instead of matching the A380's capacity.

Production

Major structural sections of the A380 are built in France, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Due to their size, they are brought to the assembly hall in Toulouse in France by surface transportation, rather than by the A300-600ST Beluga aircraft used for other Airbus models. Components of the A380 are provided by suppliers from around the world; the five largest contributors, by value, are Rolls-Royce, SAFRAN, United Technologies, General Electric, and Goodrich.[10]

The front and rear sections of the fuselage are loaded on an Airbus Roll-on/roll-off (RORO) ship, Ville de Bordeaux, in Hamburg in northern Germany, from where they are shipped to the United Kingdom.[11] The wings, which are manufactured at Filton in Bristol and Broughton in North Wales, are transported by barge to Mostyn docks, where the ship adds them to its cargo. In Saint-Nazaire in western France, the ship trades the fuselage sections from Hamburg for larger, assembled sections, some of which include the nose. The ship unloads in Bordeaux. Afterwards, the ship picks up the belly and tail sections by Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA in Cádiz in southern Spain, and delivers them to Bordeaux. From there, the A380 parts are transported by barge to Langon, and by oversize road convoys to the assembly hall in Toulouse.[12] New wider roads, canal systems and barges were developed to deliver the A380 parts. After assembly, the aircraft are flown to Hamburg, XFW to be furnished and painted. It takes 3,600 litres (950 gallons) of paint to cover the 3,100 m² (33,000 ft²) exterior of an A380.

Airbus sized the production facilities and supply chain for a production rate of four A380s per month.[11]

Testing

Five A380s were built for testing and demonstration purposes.[13]

The first A380, serial number MSN001 and registration F-WWOW, was unveiled at a ceremony in Toulouse on 18 January 2005. Its maiden flight took place at 8:29 UTC (10:29 a.m. local time) 27 April 2005. This plane, equipped with Trent 900 engines, flew from Toulouse Blagnac International Airport with a flight crew of six headed by chief test pilot Jacques Rosay. After successfully landing three hours and 54 minutes later, Rosay said flying the A380 had been “like handling a bicycle” .[14]

On 1 December 2005 the A380 achieved its maximum design speed of Mach 0.96 (versus normal cruising speed of Mach 0.85), in a shallow dive, completing the opening of the flight envelope.[13]

On 10 January 2006 the A380 made its first transatlantic flight to Medellín in Colombia, to test engine performance at a high altitude airport. It arrived in North America on 6 February, landing in Iqaluit, Nunavut in Canada for cold-weather testing.[15]

On 14 February 2006, during the destructive wing strength certification test on MSN5000, the test wing of the A380 failed at 145% of the limit load, short of the required 150% to meet the certification. Airbus announced modifications adding 30 kg to the wing to provide the required strength.[16]

On 26 March 2006 the A380 underwent evacuation certification in Hamburg in Germany. With 8 of the 16 exits blocked, 853 passengers and 20 crew left the aircraft in 78 seconds, less than the 90 seconds required by certification standards.[17]

Three days later, the A380 received European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval to carry up to 853 passengers.[18]

The maiden flight of the first A380 using GP7200 engines - serial number MSN009 and registration F-WWEA - took place on 25 August 2006.

On 4 September 2006 the first full passenger-carrying flight test took place.[19] The aircraft flew from Toulouse with 474 Airbus employees on board, in the first of a series of flights to test passenger facilities and comfort.

In November 2006, a further series of route proving flights took place to demonstrate the aircraft's performance for 150 flight hours under typical airline operating conditions.

Airbus obtained type certificate for the A380-841 and A380-842 model from the EASA and FAA12 December 2006 in a joint ceremony at the company's French headquarters.[20][21] The A380-861 model obtained the type certificate 14 December 2007.[21] on

As of February 2008, the five A380s in the test programme had logged over 4,565 hours during 1,364 flights, including route proving and demonstration flights.

Courtesy: en.wikipedia.org
The key to affecting the development of tomorrow's mobility lies in our readiness to challenge what is established and in the ability to present new options. In order to meet these objectives, BMW Group Design taps into the potential of the GINA principle (Geometry and Functions In "N" Adaptions) which promotes innovative thinking by allowing maximum freedom of crea-tivity. GINA produces dramatically different solutions that affect the design and functionality of future cars. The GINA Light Visionary Model is an optical expression of selective, future-oriented concepts which provide an example of the manner and extent of this transformation.


BMW Group Design is not just interested in answering the question of how the car of the future will look but primarily wishes to explore the creative freedom it has to offer. Both of these aspects are affected by the requirements that future cars are expected to meet. All ideas that the GINA Light Visionary Model presents are therefore derived from the needs and demands of customers concerning the aesthetic and functional characteristics of their car and their desire to express individuality and lifestyle. The GINA Light Visionary Model has an almost seamless outer skin, a flexible textile cover that stretches across a moveable substructure. Individual functions are only revealed if and when they are needed. With this model, BMW Group Design initiates a fundamental discourse about the characteristics that will affect the development of cars in future. It is therefore fundamentally different from concept cars, which reflect what is expected of them by implementing as many elements as possible in a future production model. In contrast, the GINA Light Visionary Model is a vision of future cars and serves as an object of research.

The seamless car body of the GINA Light Visionary Model.
Putting its visions of tomorrow's car into practice, BMW Group Design has developed a two-seater roadster with the unique dynamic proportions that are typical of its brand. The GINA Light Visionary Model takes the sculptural design that has already been established by a number of production cars to a new, unparalleled conclusion. The car's front and sides, including the doors, create one single uninterrupted, seamless whole that converges to form an optical
as well as a structural unit.In order to create this appearance, it was necessary to move beyond all previous conceptions of car body configuration, design and materials. Therefore, the GINA Light Visionary Model has dispensed with the usual body elements found on production vehicles such as front apron, bonnet, side panels, doors, wheel arches, roof, trunk lid and rear deck. Instead, a new structure with a minimum amount of components has taken their place. A special, highly durable and extremely expansion-resistant fabric material stretches across a metal structure. This new material offers designers a significantly higher level of freedom
of design and functionality.

The body consists of only four elements. The largest component extends from the front of the vehicle to the edge of the windscreen and down the sides to the rear edge of the doors. The large side panels start at the front where the rocker panels emerge and run across the rear wheel arches into the rear. The fourth component is the central rear deck element.

An innovation breaks new ground: car with a flexible outer skin.
The innovation of a flexible outer skin breaks new ground in automotive engineering. This revolutionary solution opens up new design, production and functionality potential. It has a major impact on the interaction between driver and car and enhances it by offering a variety of entirely new options. Some elements of the substructure are moveable. The driver can move them by means of electro and electro-hydraulic controls. This will also change the shape of the outer skin, which can thus be adapted to suit the current situation, the driver's requirements and can also enhance the car's functional range.


The most striking example of this is the headlight design. In normal position, when the headlights are not active, i.e. when there is no necessity to illuminate the road, they are hidden under the special fabric cover. As soon as the driver turns on the lights, the contour of the front end changes. Activated by the metal structure that lies beneath it, the previously closed fabric cover opens to the right and left of the BMW kidney grille and reveals the BMW double head-lights. The rear and the rocker panels of the GINA Visionary Model can also adapt both the shape and function to the driving situation in hand. Both can change the shape of their outer skin to meet the driver's requirement for particularly dynamic motoring. This concept also takes into account a potential interaction with aerodynamic requirements. The design of the rear element allows for automatic lifting of the rear spoiler when a certain speed is reached, thus creating extra downforce on the rear axle at higher speeds. Due to the fact that the entire rear end, including the spoiler, is covered by a single sheet of material that reaches as far as the rear compartment of the interior, the homogeneous shape of the car's rear will not be affected by changes to the spoiler position. The mechanical system that moves the elements remains concealed.


The turn indicators and the taillights function without changes to the shape of the outer skin. Their position, however, is only revealed upon activation. The emitted light shines through the translucent fabric cover, which is permeable to light but not transparent.

The rocker panels demonstrate the formal versatility of the GINA Light Visionary Model with an equally impressive performance. The air duct can be optimised if required. A corresponding movement of the metal structure results in an adjustment of the rocker panel contour to allow for better airflow. At the same time, an additional protruding rocker panel line emerges. The aerodynamic optimization and the length of the line can be infinitely adapted to the driving situation at hand.

Special fabric cover ensures accurate reproduction of material folds.
The fact that the body surface is designed by means of a flexible fabric cover that stretches across a metal substructure means that the materials used must meet exacting requirements. Industrially produced hybrid fabric made from a stabilizing mesh netting support and an outer layer that is both water-repellent and resistant to high and low temperatures is suitable for this application. Another essential material property is a maximum level of dimensional stability.]


It must remain dimensionally stable irrespective of the temperature and air humidity it is exposed to even after severe and constant expansion. The dimen-sional stability helps retain the cover's surface tension for a long period of time. The movement of individual body elements creates accurately reproducible folds in the material. In its choice of material BMW Group Design was inspired by exterior and interior architecture. The expertise of seat pattern designers working for BMW Group Interior Design was successfully applied in order to cut the fabric webbing to size with maximum precision, determine the strategic position of attachment points and stretch the material. As a result, the surfaces are remarkably well balanced and due to the steady tension that is retained between any two clearly defined points, the lines are extremely accurate.

The special fabric is supported by a metal wire structure. At specific points,
the high-strength metal is enhanced by carbon struts with a higher flexibility. They are used predominantly for round, moving contours with a particularly narrow radius.

The use of large fabric areas and the possibility of changing the surface contours by moving individual parts of the metal mesh that lies beneath it create a new relationship between form and function. If additional cooling air is required, the BMW kidney grille at the front of the vehicle can be opened. Because the overall surface of the special fabric covering remains unchanged, the contraction
at the front of the vehicle, which is necessary for functional reasons, has to be compensated for by extra tension in other areas. The result is an optically attractive interaction between various body parts that introduces a new dimen-sion to sculptural design. The widening of the kidney grille openings is activated by a movement of the metal mesh in the front area of the side panels. This creates more tension, which becomes visible by the emergence of an additional character line. The development of this new contour tenses the front of the vehicle: the kidney grille opens up.

Innovative body structure introduces new functional dimensions.
The high-precision fit of the material to the metal mesh also allows surface changes without slackening the tension. In this case, opening of the surface by moving the respective steel mesh struts creates precisely defined folds in the material. The GINA Light Visionary Model uses this option to display a function that corresponds to the opening of the hood in conventional vehicles. The material opens at the centre of the engine cover and can be folded to the far right and left along an opening line that is approximately 0.5 meters long, to allow the driver or mechanic access to the service points in the engine.

The filler caps of the engine oil, cooling and wiper water tanks are now open for servicing. Opening and closing is similar to the mechanism on a doctor's traditional medical bag, where clip-lock fasteners are held together in the middle by a rail.

The effect of the accurate surface material draping is even more impressive when the doors are opened. They swing both outwards and upwards. The high number of attachment points for the fabric cover positioned at the front of the car as well as at rear door edges creates a clearly defined and perfectly reproducible bulk of material. The draping is confined to the area between the front door edge and the side panel. Once the doors are closed, the folds in material disappear completely, leaving a perfectly smooth, stretched material surface.

The interior: discourse between driver and vehicle.
In the interior, variability, form and function are united in an inseparable connec-tion. Whenever selected functions are accessed, the driver also changes the appearance of individual car elements. Again, the car's variability is adapted to suit the driver's needs. This creates a close interaction between driver and
car in various different situations.

When the car is parked, the steering wheel and the round instruments - rev counter, speedometer and fuel gauge, which are vertically arranged on the centre console, are in idle position. This provides the driver with maximum comfort upon entering the car. Likewise, the seat only assumes its optimised functional position and shape if and when the driver sits down on it.

At that point, the headrest, previously firmly integrated into the seat's backrest, rises up automatically. At the same time, the steering wheel moves towards the driver and the instrument panel moves in the same direction. The information on the best driver-specific position of both steering column and seat is stored in the transducer. The engine is started simply by pushing the start/stop button.


The smooth transition of interior and exterior that is typical of BMW convertibles is reinterpreted by the GINA Light Visionary Model. The fabric that covers the rear deck runs into the interior and stretches across the driver and front passenger seats. The same material is also used for the surface design of the door trim and armrests. The shift lever in the centre console protrudes from tightly stretched textile bellows.

Driver and front seat passenger look out through a steeply inclined windscreen with the inside rear view mirror integrated into its frame. The side view mirrors are connected to the window frame. A narrow vertical dividing bar located at the center of the windscreen harks back to the typical windscreen division of traditional roadsters.

Innovative thinking put into practice: the GINA Light Visionary Model.
With the GINA Light Visionary Model, BMW Group Design focuses on a wide variety of issues that will determine the future conception of mobility. It demonstrates the results of intense research into design, functionality, material and production. All ideas that have been put into practice in the GINA Light Visionary Model are derived from the same motivation: to challenge conventional and previously pursued solutions. The quest for alternative options has generated a wide variety of different requirements that potential solutions are expected to meet. The main focus is on providing general versatility and catering to customer requirements with sophisticated solutions. In accordance with the GINA principle, every functionality enhancement helps to create an emotional bond between the driver and their car. The new solutions also allow for the option of fast, flexible and cost-efficient production.

Every innovation demonstrated by the GINA Light Visionary Model also contributes to a clearly optimised resource management. As the quest for sustainability is one of the central issues of the GINA philosophy, new materials and manufacturing processes are expected to consume less resources and energy than previous solutions. Accordingly, the infrastructure used for manufacturing cars that are built in compliance with the GINA principle, has also changed. The manufacturing process requires fewer model-specific tools, and more highly-qualified skilled specialists. In all the areas referred to above, the GINA Light Visionary Model has provided inspiration for more intense research into ideas conceived as a result of maximum creative freedom.

Emotional appeal of roadster models and visionary prospect of future cars.
The solutions conceived as part of this philosophy are not considered sepa- rately, but have been pooled in an integrating vision - a vision that is expressed in the context of an outstanding, fascinating car. The basic features of a roadster with its eight-cylinder combustion engine below a stretched front that applies motive power to the rear wheels in order to move the car along the road defines this context. The synthesis of elementary visions and sheer driving pleasure expressed by the appearance of the GINA Light Visionary Model has a particu-larly striking emotional impact. Only the particular appearance of a fascinating car with its authentic design that creates a natural aesthetic look can bring to light the significance of the presented innovations.

The GINA Light Visionary Model builds a bridge between vision and reality by presenting a number of features with a striking similarity with those found on production vehicles. The Roadster rests on 20" alloy wheels in a cross-spoke design with a matt silver finish. The car body is comprised of an exceptionally light aluminum space frame. Two double tailpipes for the rear exhaust system, a third brake light integrated into the height-adjustable rear spoiler, an air splitter at the front and a rear-end diffuser in a carbon design also meet the standards of a production vehicle.

Nevertheless, the GINA Light Visionary Model retains its character as an object of research. It demonstrates the innovative force of BMW Group Design and its ability to challenge what is established, to find new solutions and to interpret these in the context of the car of the future at a high aesthetic level. This car is the logical continuation of the GINA principle in action. The GINA principle has already led to a variety of innovative concepts and has production vehicles in ways that are completely new and unprecedented by any other car manufacturer.


BMW Group Design uses concept cars such as the BMW concept car CS1 of 2002 as a step on the way towards putting a particular vision into practice. The CS1 was the first to present features such as the basic principle of the innovative control system - the BMW iDrive. Independently from all other innovative features shown by this concept car, the iDrive has become a series production feature. Similarly, the GINA principle gave rise to an innovative manufacturing method that allows the manufacturers to decorate outer skin components that have been preformed by conventional methods with indi-vidually configured, high-precision contour lines prior to their reintegration into the manufacturing process. The Rapid Manufacturing method utilized for this process was first used during the production of hoods for the BMW Z4 M Roadster and the BMW Z4 M Coupé. In these models, the finished hood has received two distinctive contour lines prior to painting. These are not produced by a pressing tool but embossed into the metal with pin-point precision by a robot-guided steel pin.

Both examples illustrate the challenging route from a vision to a concept and to final series production that is not always straight and direct. With the GINA Light Visionary Model, BMW Group Design shows where this route begins. Not all innovations shown by the GINA Light Visionary Model will pro-ceed to the next stages. In its entirety, however, the visionary look into the future shows the extent to which the BMW Group employs creative potential in its endeavor to respond to the challenges of tomorrow's mobility.

Courtesy: BMW Group, Singapore
  Wed, 11 Jun 2008 10:44:00 +0200

The Palace of Mysore is a palace situated in the city of Mysore, southern India. It was the official residence of the former royal family of Mysore, and also housed the durbar (ceremonial meeting hall of the royal court).

Mysore has a number of historic palaces, and is commonly described as the City of Palaces.Amba Vilas. The palace was commissioned in 1897, and its construction was completed in 1912. It is now one of the most famous tourist attractions in Mysore. However, the term "Palace of Mysore" specifically refers to one of these palaces,


History

The Kingdom of Mysore was ruled by the Wodeyar dynasty from 1399 until the independence of India in 1947 and the subsequent dissolution of monarchy by the Indian constitution. The Wodeyar kings built a palace in Mysore in the 14th century, but this palace was partially damaged by a lightning strike in 1638. It was repaired and expanded, but fell into neglect by the late 18th century. It was demolished in 1793, and a new palace was built in its place in 1803. This palace was destroyed in a fire in 1897 during the wedding of Princess Jayalakshmanni.

The regent of Mysore at the time, Queen Kempananjammanni Vanivilasa Sanndihana, commissioned a British architect, Henry Irwin, to build yet another palace in its place. The architect was directed to combine different styles of architecture in the construction of the palace. The construction was completed in 1912. Apparently, the palace cost Rs. 42,00,000 to build. It is one of the richest palace in the world.



Architecture

The architectural style of the palace is commonly described as Indo-Saracenic, and blends together Hindu, Muslim, Rajput, and Gothic styles of architecture. It is a three-storied stone structure, with marble domes and a 145 ft five-storied tower. The palace is surrounded by a large garden.

The three storied stone building of fine gray granite with deep pink marble domes was designed by Henry Irwin. The facade has seven expansive arches and two smaller ones flanking the central arch, which is supported by tall pillars.

Above the central arch is an impressive sculpture of Gajalakshmi, the goddess of wealth, prosperity, good luck, and abundance with her elephants.



Special events

Mysore Palace, illuminated for the Dasara festival

Every autumn, the Palace is the venue for the famous Mysore Dasara festival, during which leading artists perform on a stage set up in the palace grounds. On the tenth day of the festival Vijaya Dashami, a parade with caparisoned elephants and other floats originate from the palace grounds.

Dasara is the most extravagant festival of Mysore. The Dasara festival is celebrated in the months of September and October of each year.

The festival celebrates and commemorates the victory of the great goddess Durga, after she slew the demon, Mahishasura, and thereby, symbolizing the triumph of good over evil according to Hindu mythology. Some call her Chamundeshwari.

This festival has been celebrated in Mysore with great pomp for many centuries and the tradition still is carried on although the scale of the celebrations has diminished. The Dasara festivities have become an integral part of the culture and life in Mysore.

To celebrate this festival the Palace of Mysore is illuminated with more than 10,000 lights during that two month period.


Unique rooms

  • Ambavilasa or Diwan e Khas.

This was used by the king for private audience and is one of the most spectacular rooms. Entry to this opulent hall is through an elegantly carved rosewood doorway inlaid with ivory that opens into a shrine to Ganesha. The central knave of the hall has ornately gilded columns, stained glass ceilings, decorative steel grills, and chandeliers with fine floral motifs, mirrored in the pietra dura mosaic floor embellished with semi-precious stones.

  • Gombe Thotti (Doll’s Pavilion)

Entry to the palace is through the Gombe Thotti or the Doll’s Pavilion, a gallery of traditional dolls from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The pavilion also houses a fine collection of Indian and European sculpture and ceremonial objects like a wooden elephant howdah (frame to carry passengers) decorated with 84 kilograms of gold.

  • Kalyana Mantapa

The Kalyana Mantapa or marriage hall is a grand octagonal-shaped pavilion with a multi-hued stained glass ceiling with peacock motifs arranged in geometrical patterns. The entire structure was wrought in Glasgow, Scotland. The floor of the Mantapa continues the peacock theme with a peacock mosaic, designed with tiles from England. Oil paintings, illustrating the royal procession and Dasara celebrations of bygone years, make the walls more splendid.




Temples

The palace complex includes twelve Hindu temples. The oldest of these was built in the 14th century, while the most recent was built in 1953.

Some of the more famous temples are:

  • Someshvara Temple, dedicated to god Shiva
  • Lakshmiramana Temple, dedicated to god Vishnu

Attractions

The palace houses several rooms of importance. These include:

  • Audience Chamber: This was Hall of Private Audience, where the king would confer with his ministers. It was also the chamber in which he gave audience to people deserving special attention.

Bronze tiger at the gate
  • Public Durbar: The Diwan-e-aam was a public hall where the general population could meet the king at prescribed times with petitions.
  • Royal wedding hall
  • Armoury: The palace houses an armoury, which contains a collection of different types of arms used by the members of the royal family. These include weapons that were used in the 14th century (lances, cutlasses, etc), as well as weapons that were used in the early twentieth century (pistols, etc).
  Wed, 11 Jun 2008 10:35:00 +0200






  Wed, 11 Jun 2008 10:30:00 +0200













The three young women who won top awards for their "science projects" for the 2008 Intel® Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) each won $50,000 scholarships from the Intel Foundation as part of their awards. They are already at the level of Eve Curie! Take a look at their "science projects!"

1. Sana Raoof (left) contributed mathematics research that assists in solving classic biochemistry problems.

Raoof's research provided new insight into how a better understanding of mathematical knot theory could help resolve classic biochemical problems. Specifically, her work focused on the Alexander-Conway polynomial invariant for chord diagrams to help prove how to classify molecules on a structural basis.

Sana Raoof, 17, is from Muttontown, NY.

2. Yi-Han Su (center) identified a way to make methanol convert to hydrogen with greater efficiency.

Su was awarded for her efforts to identify a high-activity catalyst that could improve methanol reforming reactions in order to generate hydrogen more efficiently.

Yi-Han Su, 17, is from Chinese Tapei.


3. Natalie Sarange Omattage developed a biosensor to screen for contamination in foods.

Omattage developed a more efficient and less expensive way to screen for food additive contaminants, including those responsible for the recent deaths of many pets. By developing biosensors based on quartz crystal microbalance (QCM), Omattage's research provides a new way for ports and warehouses to more thoroughly screen for food additives and other contaminants that could be found in food imported into the United States.

Natalie Sarange Omattage, 17, is from Cleveland, MS


Wow! It's hard to believe that these women are still in high-school and I'm reporting the winners of the ISEF and not of the Nobel Prize!

Congratulations to Raoof, Su, and Omattage for your accomplishments and thank you for setting the bar high for teens who aspire to the ISEF. There were 500 other ISEF winners in grade school, middle school, and high school categories; congratulations to you all!

from press release

Myra Per-Lee
Featured Writer
InventorSpot.com


I really like it when someone puts on his or her thinking hats to create fashion with an edge, a scientific edge. In my book, that's what really makes it innovative fashion.


So when I came across the Butterfly Dress, I was floored.

The dress has been designed by Alex Reeder, a grad student at NYU, who's working on changing the way we think about and approach clothes.

He says that any time we go out; we start by planning to what to wear. The decision depends on the destination, prospective partner(s) for the evening, and how to best present oneself, to capture the attention of people across the room?

Wouldn't it be great if clothes could function as an ice-breaker and literally invite a conversation - or better yet - instigate one?

The Butterfly Dress is just that. The Dress is aware of its surroundings in two ways: first, the distance of people around it, and secondly, the heartbeat of the wearer. This data is used to control the flapping and vertical motion of golden butterflies attached to the surface of the dress. As someone approaches you, the butterflies rise in greeting. The magic is in the motion. The butterflies also beat in tandem to the wearers heartbeats.

Not something to wear on a first date...

Though right now the dress is pretty formal, a beautiful creation in silk and organza, much like a wedding gown, Alex is working on more informal versions.

Says the creator, ‘the Butterfly Dress is an exploration of fashion, interactivity and sociality. The dress itself is light and does not sacrifice form for function. The battery and butterflies are removable, making the dress washable - essential for wearability. The butterflies are attached modularly, allowing mood and situation to influence the personalization - and visual appearance of the dress.'

All I can say is that it's a very wearable style that incorporates science, technology, and fashion. Really got me thinking on how we interact with the world around us.

Check out the way the dress moves here.

  Fri, 06 Jun 2008 07:01:00 +0200