A Summing Up

Let us consider where our rapidly accumulating store of knowledge about the universe is leading us. That it provides satisfaction to a host of curiosity-motivated physicists and astronomers is beyond dispute. However, some view it as a humbling experience in that each increase in knowledge seems to reveal more clearly our own relative insignificance in the grand scheme of things. Thus, in chronological order, we humans have come to realise that

• Our Earth is not the center of the solar system.
• Our Sun is but one star among many in our galaxy.
• Our galaxy is but one of many, and our Sun is an insignificant star in it.
• Our Earth has existed for perhaps only a third of the age of the universe and will surely disappear when our Sun burns up its fuel and becomes a red gaint.
• Our species has inhabited Earth for less than a million years – a blink in cosmological time.

Although out position in the universe may be insignificant, the laws of physics that we have discovered (uncovered?) seem to hold true throughout the universe and – as far as we know – have held since the universe began and will continue to hold for all future time. At least, there is no evidence that other laws hold in other parts of the universe. Thus, until someone complains, we are entitles to stamp the laws of physics “Discovered on Earth.” Much remains to be discovered: “The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.” That declaration allows us to answer one last time the question “What is physics?” Physics is the gateway to those magical things.

I love Physics. I love Science. Even now, when I open up a new chapter, a new topic, excitement bubbles inside of me (impatience?) to learn new things and better understand the world around me. Physics is to me like The Underground is to Versatile or  NBA is to Toughtrasher 😉

What do you like? What thing matters most to you? What is it that excites that curious little brain of yours? Share it with us, and we might be able to learn from each other! On this note, I would like to end the 1000^th article created on the Underground Blog. I would also like to use this opportunity to congratulate Versatile, Voltaire and all the other authors due to whom we have come this far! Lets spread knowledge!

The Problem With Parents

Explanations to unidentified reasons as to why parents blame you, the child, for everything wrong in THEIR lives.

Throughout life, everyone has problems with their parents, from the most perfect family to the most shallowly disoriented. Often times, from the parents’ perspective, it’s safe to assume that your child is off doing things that he/she should not be doing, of course. Although that is the safest thing to assume, it isn’t fair and it isn’t right, because it’s not always true.

Every parent exerts respective authority to the best of his knowledge with hopes of being an adequate role model. It is safe to say that no one can be 100% at anything, no matter who they may be. Having said this, I’d like to proudly point out that parents are defective a whole lot more than they presume! A WHOLE LOT!

But before you jump at my throat for unjustly slandering your perfect parent, hear me out. No matter whom you are, you are bound to wrongfully expel some anger and rage toward those who do not deserve it. For example, if you are working immensely for the better part of your day, your “lovely” boss is yelling at you, and you’ve just learned that you’ll have to continue using the bus as transportation to work for another week because your car is getting a full tune-up from that accident that wasn’t your fault, then you are expected to have at least a tiny bit of anger bottled up inside. Anger that, for the most part, will be thrown at the wrong people.

As a person, I know that everyone has some steam they’d like to blow off once in a while. I understand. I understand you just fine, parents. But what I DON’T deduce from all this, nor choose to accept your judgment as a reasonable answer is, “Why do you discharge your fury on those you love most?” What I mean is, from all of the people you hate, and the hundreds of strangers you see every day, why’d you decide to make your loved ones most miserable? If family comes first, why do you put them last?

The reason is targets. Everyone, even you and I, have targets on who we take our anger out on. Usually, it’s somebody we come in contact with every day; a co-worker, a classmate, or in this case, a family member. Adults pick their children (or spouse) as targets because they are the most qualified candidates for the job. How could they not be!? From a parent’s point of view, you will never get in any serious trouble for yelling or punishing your child, you have complete control over them AND they get mad when you punish them. I’ll give you the basic breakdown: Parents wrongfully punish their children so they can feel better about their useless lives. They have nobody to boss around, so they control their children. Plain and simple. Making someone else feel bad makes you feel good! It’s human nature! Although the more stress you have, from work, school, pressured life, etc., the more you tend to save for later. Using your child as target practice for anger-release techniques grows and spreads in a person’s subconscious faster than wildfire. More anger means more hatred toward your children, which, in turn, means more relief and release for you.

Don’t get me wrong, I am no therapist. If you’re looking for a specific solution that involves “5 Easy Steps” to relinquish your anger in a positive way, you are sadly mistaken. I cannot, nor can anyone else, give you that formula. There is no specific recipe for fixing family relationships because every individual’s family is different. We are all different; that’s what constructs our unique components. So, for me to tell you how you should behave with and around your children would be to unwillingly alter yourself. Then this would all be pointless, wouldn’t it? Just like robots.

I have no specific answer, although here are my “5 Easy Steps” that apply to the general population:

1. Do not mistreat the ones you love most, self-explanatory.
2. Parents, don’t find false reasons to punish your children, find other ways of releasing anger.
3. The children of parents (which is everybody), stand up to your “tyrants” and remind them that you’re not just some random piece of trash off the street, you are their child.
4. When choosing a target, make sure it’s someone that you have reason to hate, or no reason to love.
5. STOP LYING TO YOURSELF. STOP BLAMING OTHERS. TAKE SOME RESPONSIBILITY!

Comment and rate. =)

How to Find Inspiration

Many times, whether it’s writer’s block or just blank thoughts, we can’t find any descent forms of inspiration. Simply, nothing comes to mind and you find yourself unable to put pen to paper, or digits to keyboard, or to click a simple button on a camera. Whatever your artistic interests may be, there are a few key places that a person can look. These places, when searched systematically, have endless pools of fresh ideas; an eternal stream of data, just waiting for someone to transform it into magic.

Family and Friends

When we are depressed, we often go to one (if not both) of the two sources and ask for help and advice. Well, inspiration can work the same way. They don’t have to be noted of it; just behave like you would generally, but examine yourself and the world around you more thoroughly and remember what or how you feel. Normally, you would think nothing of it, because family is SUPPOSED to make you feel safe and secure, and friends are SUPPOSED to make you feel excited and cheerful. In these harsh times though, where the cost of inspiration is skyrocketing through the roof, you can use everyday experiences and people, such as your family and friends, to give you the boost you desire.

Nature

Sun: the natural light bulb. Wind: the natural air conditioner. Earth: the natural home. Without knowing it, we have isolated ourselves from most of the outside world. It might not feel that way because we have the freedom to decide to stay in or go out, but needless to say, we choose the less intelligent one. Writers read much off of the internet and photographers look for photos on the internet for one MAIN reason: to hijack ideas and transform them into their own. A little thesaurus or Photoshop, and half an hour later you have a perfectly “creative and exclusive” piece of work. It’s not a crime to get thoughts from similar thoughts, but it might be better to start somewhere else first. Nature leads us to find amazing landscapes, marvelous creatures, and an infinite amount of inspiration. The trees, the sun, the moon, wildlife, etc. There are unfathomable amounts of dreams just waiting to become reality.

Music

From good to bad, music is in a category all on its own. Without a doubt, music can bring us from the most unearthly hellish slums, to pure enjoyment and ecstasy. The moment you press play, you can feel enlightenment travel through those headphones, through the air. It tweaks your brain, making you take notice to things that seemed unreal or impossible before. It isn’t a scattered form of art, but more a language. It is a form of energy, and you are the converter. It builds up inside you, until you are full, then it seeps through, exiting your body in form of words or images. You are borrowing its power to make power of your own. It has the capability to make a person with a metal leg run a marathon; it can influence a town, city, state, country, or even the world! Its capabilities are limitless, all you have to do is put them together.

Site for photographers: http://www.alphacoders.com/

Positively inspirational artists: AC/DC, Aerosmith, Beatles, Bob Marley, Guns N’ Roses, Heartless Bastards, Joy Division, Interpol, Killers, Led Zeppelin, MGMT, Rolling Stones, Utada Hikaru, White Stripes, etc.

How to Overcome All Fears

Understanding Fear

Clearly put, most fear is created by your own mind, and in most cases is harmless. Understanding is the key to solving life’s problems (such as fear). One way to beat what you’re afraid of is by using this little thing that most of us are gifted with: logic. We use logic to solve our everyday problems, so why can’t it work for this? Use logical knowledge to outsmart your fear. Take the dark for example; many are afraid of the darkness, but we clearly understand that it is simply the daytime without light.

Try to find out why you’re afraid of what you’re afraid of. Your journey could lead you to discover that what you’re afraid of isn’t so frightening after all.

Overcoming Fear

Most of it is just a psychological game; if you can dig deep within your mind, you will surely discover the root of your horrors. It can only scare you as much as you let it. Keep your mentality strong and you will surely overcome the dreadful situation you are in.

The best thing about conquering your fear is that it may eliminate other fears. For example, riding a roller coaster could ultimately erase your fears of roller coasters AND heights. Hit two birds with one stone. There are also questions that can mentally stabilize you such as, “What’s the worst that can happen?” or “Can it really harm me in any way?” More times than others, facing your fears head-on is the most resilient solution, and the quickest.

Don’t Forget:

– Fear stops success

– Face your fears head-on

– Most fear is psychological, and unable to harm you

– Understand your fears before you act upon them

And don’t forget to smile!

Graphics Cards FTW

Not that I want to start a brand name war or anything but does anyone know whats the best single slot graphics card you can get. Currently my PC right now has 4GB ram a intel E6750 cpu and a NVIDIA 9800GT 1GB DDR3 graphics card. I bought my PC last year and so far it’s ran every game on max settings with a decent frame rate (60fps). Games I’ve got are COD6, Source Engine games (hl2), Bioshock 1 an 2 an few others.

Now your probably wondering why does this retard ask about a graphics card when he’s already got a decent frame rate. Well that reason is Crysis, after actually buying the game( so unlike the pirateer that I am) I’m still upset that I cant get it running at 60 fps on average. Boohooh, an yes I’ve overclocked my card to 750mhz on the core 1850mhz on the shaders and 935mhz on memory.

Crazy I know… so if you know anything please reply, those with the best reply’s, will have their dreams come true by me buying the graphics card they suggest and putting it in my PC. Ok, it won’t be your dreams… and yes I’ll post the pics of the new card.

Bywifi vs Speedbit

Before we start i would like to apologize for not updating also that i want to make a professional style blog with all the information there. I was going to make a YouTube video with this im not sure if I should or will 😛

I’m sure most of the underground watches YouTube and other video streaming sites videos on a fairly regular basis. But what if the video takes too long to load?

These two programs both boast video accelerating functionality but which is better?

Let’s start of with a simple pro’s and cons comparison shall we… well yes coz im writing this and I can do what I want 😛

Speed bit supports windows XP+ and a MAC beta

Bywifi supports from windows 95 to windows 7

SpeedBit Video Accelerator: Pro’s

1. Great user interface
2. Sleek
3. A free version which supports up to HQ video’s
4. 500+ sites supported
5. Descent support
6. Easy to use

 And the Cons

1. You need to pay for full version to unlock HD support
2. Doesn’t seem to work after a while
3. Some sites not supported

Bywifi Media Accelerator: Pro’s

1. It’s FREE!
2. Quick installation
3. Fast video download
4. Easy to use
5. Supports all sites ( so far)
6. Speeds up Normal, HQ and HD Video’s
7. If a video if loaded once it will load instantly

And the Cons

1. Bad User interface
2. Seems to save video’s in a folder adding up to 2 gigs then starts overwriting
3. Crashes occasionally ( Rarely if not at all)

With these in mind i should time the time it takes to load a YouTube video in all formats. The video will be GameDexterity’s The Beginning of the End is the Beginning at 9:15 * These tests were performed by me*

*Be aware that this is a Adsl 2+ Connection* * Video must be a full red bar for the timer to stop*

No Video Accelerator

• Regular (360p)                = 6:00 minutes   
• High Quality (480p)      = 8:54 minutes
• High definition (720p) = 10+ minutes

SpeedBit Video Accelerator

• Regular (360p)                = 2:27 minutes
• High Quality (480p)      = 3:05 minutes
• High definition (720p) = Will say it’s accelerating but isn’t. ( from what i gathered its about 5 minutes plus)

Bywifi Media Accelerator

• Regular (360p)                = <10 seconds
• High Quality (480p)      = 0;26 seconds
• High definition (720p) = 2:08 minutes

WIth this said ultimately it’s up to you what you use.

Speedbit = 6/10

Bywifi       = 8.5/10

Other

• Game dexterity video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HzJ025sScU
• bywifi                                : http://www.bywifi.com/
• Speedbit                           : http://www.videoaccelerator.com/
• My YouTube.. well I  don’t have an account uploading video’s for no but maby in the near future.

Want to contact me or play some games or just chat im usually on skype so add “mwc.arms” no “..”

Health

Physical, mental, family, and life health are important aspects in life.  You cannot be healthy without being well in all four subject areas. This article takes a look into each section and see how you can be more healthy starting today.

Physical Health

Who doesn’t want to be physically fit?! This is a very important asset to have. So why is physical health so important? Well, for one, it lengthens life expectancy. Live longer! It might be hard to pick up at first, but it is important in the long end. Exercise also makes you feel fantastic. More confidence, and it makes you happy. It is proven to release endorphins that make you happy. So when you’re feeling glum, go exercise. Another very peculiar thing that it does is it lets you sleep better. Most people often complain about sleeping problems, and most of those people are lazy. Exercise regulates your internal clock, and it helps you sleep much better. And last but not least, let’s not forget, it makes you look more attractive! So if you are trying to impress that one special person, why not get in shape and do just that?!

Mental Health

Mental health is very important in everyday life for many reasons. Think clearly, think faster, perform tasks better, makes speech clearer, and it just, on average, makes you sound smarter. This is a type of chain; one sets off the other, and so on. Mentally helps you think of words or sentences faster, get your work or homework done A LOT quicker, and it gives you better word choice to make you sound like a pure genius! Reading, writing and mental games such as chess or checkers all help progress this process. These are all things to exercise your mind with.

Family Health

Whether it’s just your parents or your wife and three children, it’s always good to have a good relationship with your family.Although people say they are cheerful alone, they are never as happy as they are with their family. It is key to true happiness. It is a new kind of love that must be experience. A life is wasted without family, for family is a main ingredient in the hodgepodge we call “living.” They support your decision and they back you 100% on anything, even if you’re wrong. And most importantly, they are always there to cheer you up when no one else is. Family helps you up at your weakest moment.

Life Health

A well-maintained life is very important. Inside you is the spark of true happiness, and the world is your fuel. If you have a healthy life overall, there is nothing you can’t accomplish. You can control so much more than you think. YOU have the power to shape your future any way you want! All that is needed is confidence and willpower.

Conclusion

Exercise to live your life longer and feel better.

Train your mind to be more knowledgeable.

Support your family, because they’re always supporting you.

With all of this you can become everything you’ve ever dreamed of!

The underground, limitless possibilities?

The underground has been here for quite some time now and have helped many people.
Although helping them in text format is all good and well and with the new Underground e-book coming out why stop there? and why not expand our horizons a little? or.. a lot?

Proposition #1
The Underground official chatroom and i dont mean this like skype where you might talk to one Underground member. But I mean something like ventrilo where the underground members can login and join the room and get troubleshooted through there or just have a talk, start a few games why not? i mean im sure by now the Underground members are well aware of tunngle by now thanks to VersatileNinja i feel that this idea will help promote the Underground for what it does but help a lot more people in a simpler environment although i have not ran this idea through anyone this is why this blog is here.

Proposition #2
As i hope you are aware of a program called logmein although i bet this idea will be shun and not taken seriously but hear me out.
This program brings troubleshooting to a whole new level and long with a chat function from the Proposition above getting help couldnt be easier with an underground member guiding you through what you do though with logmein or taking over the operation entirely

I believe this may cause some people to worry about some security issue’s im sure in a community like this that should not be a problem ( also in logmein you can block the remote user taking control and let them observe and guide you through).

THIS HAS BEEN TESTED!

I use this system of logmein and a voice chat (skype) and i find it makes the process infinitely easier and a lot quicker than the regular text base help.

But Armsdealer? theres tutorials on the internet!
True but each computer is different and some steps may need a work around and with someone there doing it specifically for your needs will make your life easier and probably theres because they dont need to reply to a million comments but instead promote this site 🙂

Recipes for the soul. [and for the gut]

Stepping outside of the box, the traditional blog post you would find here, as part of life, comfort food is something almost all of us, whatever interests, culture or backgrounds we originate from. So for whatever it is you do, here’s a list of some of the best tasting stuff I’ve made for events I’ve been to in recent months. Note that I did not create any of these recipes, but only compiled those that I’ve made in the past which everyone enjoyed. For the ones people did not enjoy, please leave a comment of request.

So, why not start with dessert?

Root Beer Float cookies (with root beer glaze) – average time 15 minutes (depending on oven)

http://desertculinary.blogspot.com/2005/07/root-beer-float-cookies.html

With or without the glaze, served soft and warm, these are very relaxing. You can take a couple or down 10 and you’ll still feel satisfied. Hardly filling and taste very well like a root beer float. I recommend adding way more powdered/confectioner’s sugar, enough to make the glaze gooey that dries sort of shell like. Following the recipe will make a more watery and runny glaze.

Puppy Chow (with peanut butter) – average time 20 minutes

http://www.recipezaar.com/9370

Something about Puppy Chow, especially with peanut butter. Not quite sure what it is, but tons of people I know can’t stop eating this, even when they start to get sick. Please, do not feed to any actual animals, especially puppies and dogs.

Cheesy Spinach and Artichoke dip – average time 35 minutes

http://www.recipezaar.com/1209

This is a great appetizer for people who want something that tastes great but makes them feel like they’re eating healthy. Great for parties or small hang out sessions, LAN parties, you name it. You can set it to cook in the oven and go for a few frags against your buddies or get the house ready for a movie night. Also, a nice versatile dish for vegetarians, instead of platters of meats.

Chicken Cordon Bleu (with bacon!!) – average time 35 minutes

http://kalynskitchen.blogspot.com/2007/04/recipe-update-easy-chicken-cordon-bleu.html

For something that sounds so fancy, the flexibility of this dish is invaluable. As the recipe page mentions, you can quickly prepare the ingredients in 5-10 minutes and freeze it over night and save it for later in the week. Great for kids and family dinners, and come on. What carnivore doesn’t love bacon?

God speed, and Best wishes. (and bon appetit!)

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Expand Your Creativity. [volume 1]

Have you ever heard the term: “think outside the box”? Okay, do you know the origin of the phrase? Complete this puzzle:

Draw four straight, continuous lines that connect all 9 dots without lifting the pencil off the page (or in this case your finger off the screen):

Here is the solution: Click Here for Solution

If you couldn’t figure it out, you probably assumed you had to stay inside the box. If that’s the case, you know have the first major step in thinking outside the box. Eliminate your assumptions. The rules presented didn’t say you couldn’t draw outside the lines.

How do assumptions affect our ability to create success? Write down or type out your answer or answers, and think about what you came up with. This whole post can be applied to just about any area of your life, if you apply it properly.

This is a core element of the Blue Ocean Strategy. The Blue Ocean Strategy is geared towards business, and is spoken on and written into application towards business. But even if you’re simply drawing a design in a competition, or even just for fun, this will expand the creative processes your brain goes through. (refer to my past posts on the brain: Brain Train [part 1] and Brain Train [part 2])

Some DOs and DON’Ts are as follows:

Follow sequence in your plan – if you plot out steps, follow them step by step.

Focus on the big picture FIRST, focus on numbers SECOND. – If you have a time constraint, first take a look at what needs to be done, what your mission is, then think about the time, or the money involved, then tweak it.

Get into the field – see what other people are doing, and ask questions but listen when they answer.

Build enough time into the project – If you do have a time constraint, and you feel it’s a tight one, plan for it.

Approach field work as an anthropologist – Ask questions about the things they love and hate in the particular field you’re dealing with. If you’re drawing something for a contest, you may think of this as a no brainer, but ask what they look for, what “strikes their fancy” so to speak.

Do this work in a vacuum – Don’t do this work in an environment where the creativity is vacuumed out. If you’re drawing, like our examples are following, set yourself down in an inspiration environment.

Go too fast – Haste makes waste. Going in line with making a time plan, or some sort of schedule (preferably a time plan like a guideline rather than a strict schedule) so you aren’t rushing and lowering the quality of a specific part of the work.

Skip steps – If a baseball player skipped a step while running to home plate, the consequence to his action will be simple – he’ll trip and miss home plate. You’re going for a home run, run through all the bases without missing a step!

Too locked into current mindsets – Take time to think, without thinking about others in the field. If you’re drawing something, don’t think about other people’s drawings. Don’t think about any drawings. Just think about your own. Create a vision in your mind, visualize your completed drawing, and do it. However, you will eventually need to make some sort of comparison, but only to see what has been done, so you aren’t copying something else.

_________________________

This is all part of the Blue Ocean Strategy. I highly, highly recommend you research it, buy a book on it if you can find one, or watch some videos online. If the place or company you work for is having any seminars or speakers on Blue Ocean, GO TO IT. You will reap major benefits. It will not be like any seminar or lecture you have ever been to, and it will be fun – guaranteed!

The book “Blue Ocean Strategy” is published by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne and you can find it at any bookseller.

Another great post I stumbled across is here: http://techiteasy.org/2006/12/05/nintendos-wii-the-blue-ocean-strategy/

Please comment with feedback on your experiences or anything you know about Blue Ocean Strategy as well!

[ Source: The Change Agent Group ( changeagentgroup.com ) ]

God speed, and Best wishes.

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